Steel and Mana

Snow. The last thing I wanted to see so prematurely. Winter should not have been on my mind yet... We just defended my Uncle's borders, with the Rook and a group of veteran soldiers still far away, helping him arrange the defenses and being our westward strike force. I was contemplating if I should call the Rook back, but... Damn. What if our enemy comes again with more self-imploding mages? No. They were needed there.

"Will you be alright?" I asked, sighing, as the situation with the Rook was only one part of my frustration. I was holding my youngest son while watching Yuri prepare to leave.

"Duh." She grinned, leaning in and giving me a deep kiss, almost sticking her tongue down my throat. "Winter is winter. I'll mount the Princess and head over to the Pass."

"Why are you saying it with such a sexual undertone?"

"Aren't you jealous?" She giggled, making me shrug, and if not for the sleeping Lancelot in my arms, I would have smacked her bottom.

"Nope. It's a machine. It is as if you are asking if I should be jealous of an oversized vibrator."

"Booo, be jealous and ravage me as punishment!" She pouted before dropping her foolish expression. "Visit me some time then~!" She answered with an honest smile, and as I replied, the others also entered our room.

"Of course." I nodded, watching Arthur and Leyla run past my legs, hugging their third mother.

"Safe!" They both yelled, rubbing their faces against her skin, making her pick up both, showering them with kisses.

"Relax! Your Yuri Mommy is a badass bitch!" She yelled proudly, making me roll my eyes.

"Language!" Sasha moaned, walking past me and hurriedly taking the kids from her.

"Bitch! Badass Bitch!"

"Well... Too late." Luna giggled, peeking over from behind me, hearing the twins repeat their new, favorite expression in tandem.

"They need a little bit of Yuri to them~!" My wildest wife laughed, walking up to the others, kissing and groping them one by one before being ready to leave. "Last time, you hogged all the fun." She winked at me, gently stroking her son's head. "Now it's my time to shine. Worry not; I will be reasonable. I have a family to come back to..."

She wasn't the only one who was getting ready. The moment the snow began falling from the sky, every soldier said their goodbyes to their families, marching to the Pass where Oleg and my Father were at high alert, preparing for a monster invasion. Was I worried? Yes. But this is the life when you live in Avalon. When winter descends upon us, monsters arrive. We have survived so far, and we are stronger than ever. We can do this, even if winter comes early!

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In the Capital of Ishillia, Pascal stood in the Emperor's bedchamber, a room he hadn't lived in for centuries. Holding his arm behind his back, draped in fine, white silk, he watched the snow cover the city but quickly melt away, as it was not yet that cold. Yet...

"Something is not right... another such winter? So soon?"

He couldn't help but mumble to himself because this was indeed a bad omen... or a sign. He didn't know yet. On the one hand, this halted his enemies, catching everybody off-guard from attacking Ishillia. What if the winter becomes just as harsh as a few years ago? What if this is a sign of something worse to come? Previously, even the most southern kingdoms felt the cold, causing much distress among them as they were unprepared to deal with it. But this also meant that he himself was bound by what he could achieve. If he began moving now, he would put his own troops at a disadvantage, as defending in the winter was much easier than attacking.

"Otto." He spoke, both aloud and in his mind, and after a few seconds, the mental image of his disciple and subordinate appeared before Pascal.

"Yes, My Emperor."

"Report. Don't leave out anything!"

"Westland is under heavy snowfall. It cut my efforts short in raising the army, but it doesn't mean I'm stopping. I already contacted mercenary groups within the borders of the Principality of Lacri. I will boost my ranks with foreign warriors. If they die, I don't need to pay them anyway."

"Mhm." Pascal nodded, humming in approval as his lips curled into a slight smile.

"If everything keeps up as per my calculations, I will start moving before winter ends. The longer I wait, the worse it could get for us. Plus, My Emperor, if the winter is as we think it is, this pesky Avalon will be bogged down with fighting beasts. It is my perfect opportunity to strike them down!"

"I agree. I will send you the Lawbringer; use it as your command ship."

"It is my honor, My Emperor!" Otto cried out, bowing deeply as he received one of the remaining flying ships. This showed that his Emperor was taking this seriously and approving his plans.

"Tell me about Cerna and Mirian."

"Yes. We are still finding our feet in the city and obtaining a legitimate business front. Our little whore doesn't know anything yet. However, she has yet to make contact with either Mirian or Avalon... The moment she does, we will start identifying her accomplices, and when the time comes, we will take all of them down at once if they don't bite onto the mage I sent over. As for her comrades, staying within my city... I can eliminate them at any moment, My Emperor."

"No, you did good not killing them yet. They would notice if they were destroyed, and it could alert them of our trap within Cerna. Can you get close to them?"

"Of course. I bet they would be happy if they think they can infiltrate deeper into our organization."

"Capture them and modify their minds. Let's use their own tricks against them by sending back fake news."

"It will be done, My Emperor."

"As for Cerna... Let it develop naturally. If we are lucky, Mirian will discover your agent and think she can play it smart. Unlike in Kathrien's case, I would be happy if she blows herself up this time."

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Within the city of Cerna, Mirian has been sighing since she woke up. She was standing on the deck of the Judgement, watching the heavy snowfall, while Milan had only woke up a moment ago. She was about to greet him, but then the magical device she received from Avalon suddenly crackled on the nightstand table as a message came through it.

"Tonight."

"Was it...?" Milan asked as it was only one word, heavily distorted, but it was enough for Mirian to understand.

"Elvira, yes. We were a bit late in installing the same kind of defenses as Avalon or Lothlia. But now that they are online, our enemy can't smuggle in CC or artifacts anymore, not to mention disguised mages."

"We need to be careful." Milan warned her, walking close and hugging her body from behind, making Mirian moan in a cute, happy voice, pulling his real and now artificial arm up to her breasts so he could fondle them.

"I know. We need to come up with a method of isolating and eliminating the enemy mage without him exploding. Tsk... If not for the warning from Avalon, we may have already detonated that bastard and let him wipe out the whole city!"

"Which would be devastating... If that happens, I don't think people would have the courage to stand with you anymore."

"With us." she corrected him and continued moaning pleasantly. "We will wait to see what Elvira has uncovered and decide what to do afterward. This heavy snow is not a good omen... I will drive the Judgmenet to the Pass if Leon asks for assistance. We can't let a beast tide through, even if I leave the city unguarded while it's gone."

"I can stay behind." Milan suggested, making Mirian flinch, but then, after a short moment to think, she let out a long breath, nodding. "You can pilot the Guardian. Hmmm... Yes. You will need to learn how to pilot it."

"Me?" Milan flinched because it was Mirian's new favorite toy of everything she had now. He was unsure if he could even activate it.

"Of course! I told you... What is mine is yours. And in that, you will be safe! Um-um! The best decision!" She turned around, hugging him before going to her knees, kissing Milan's naked body, ready to have her early breakfast.

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"You little whore..." Otto grunted, gasping for air, touching the left side of his face that now bled, his surprisingly healthy, crimson blood escaping from the long scar burning up his skin. The attack that left it on him barely missed his eye but still took out a chunk of his ear, angering the old wizard.

Before him, Number 3 was lying on the floor, unconscious, the dagger in her hand stained in Otto's blood. Holding back his anger, the wizard managed to hold back his hand from summoning a spell and incinerating the little whore's body into ash. Just as he was instructed, he made contact indirectly with the remaining two enemy spies, picking one of them up from the streets to have his way with her. Yet, this time, it didn't go as he had previously.

"Bitch..." He spat at the unconscious, half-naked body of Number 2 before holding up a hand mirror, checking his injury.

He was only beginning to undress her when he started casting his spell to infiltrate and dominate her mind, turning her into his faithful slave, when... something broke. He heard and felt it, dispelling his domination spell. The moment it happened, the woman switched, turning from a little, eager prostitute into a cold-eyed killer. First, she pulled out a small repeater crossbow, something Otto had never seen before. If not for his artifact, hanging from his ear as a golden earring, he would be dead already. Luckily, his skin turned to diamond the moment the bolts' piercing tips touched it, deflecting the lightning-quick attacks.

Yet, the woman wasn't flustered at all, discarding her weapon, pulling out a dagger from under her dress, and slicing at his body. Otto was sure it would not be able to hurt him with his stone skin active, but then, another cracking sound and a jolting feeling stunned him. His defensive spell disappeared at once, and if not for his trained body and reflexes, he would have died... again.

Leaning a few centimeters to the left was what saved his skull from being pierced, and with a subconscious counterpunch from the time when he was still a soldier, landing in the chest of the woman, he managed to knock the air and consciousness out of her. Still... Since immemorial, it was his closest moment to death, to a kind of fear he never thought he would feel again.

"I will make good use of you..." he grunted, grimacing in anger. Rolling Number 3 to her back while looking down at her, he began to look through her clothing, finally finding a device that he recognized. "It's a Good thing this one did not crack." He sighed, knowing that its pair would have alerted her comrades, endangering everything. "I don't know how you managed to dispel my defenses, you fuckable meat bag, but I'll make your thoughts mine..."

Acting in a hurry, Otto sat down on her unconscious body, holding Number 3's head between his ten fingers, ready to clamp down at any given moment and burst it open like an egg. While chanting, a black, ominous magic formation appeared behind Otto's back as the two people's minds began merging together...