Leon and his people remained in Occulara for only a day.  He was happy to be back in the city and his villa, but the deadline given to him by the tau loomed large over him, so staying for any real length of time simply wasn’t in the cards.  However, they were able to pack quite a bit of work into that one day, with Leon handling some introductions between Heaven’s Eye and the Raven Tribe while also passing off enough comm lotuses to facilitate easy communication, while Elise and Valeria went to visit Cristina and Asiya in the Bull Kingdom’s embassy.

When they returned, they had both the Bull Kingdom’s Princess and her guard detail in tow, Elise having promised to bring them back to the Bull Kingdom for a visit.  That left Leon with a bit of a problem: his destroyer was a war ark, one designed to act mostly as a fast-moving weapons platform.  It simply hadn’t the space to accommodate everyone who wanted to join them, especially since Emilie had also expressed interest in returning to the Bull Kingdom to visit her brother—and, of course, she would hardly be traveling unencumbered with husbands and assistants.

All-in-all, even after paring down the people who’d be joining them as much as possible—Emilie taking the biggest loss in personnel given that most of Cristina and Asiya’s escort were native to the Bull Kingdom and Leon wanted them to get preference in visiting home—they were still left with an additional thirty people who wanted to come with.

Fortunately, Cassandra came to the rescue—or, perhaps more accurately, the Grand Druid.  Since Cassandra was back in Imperial lands, the Grand Druid had come to the city to visit, arriving only a few hours after Leon and his people did.  She claimed that she would’ve been waiting for Leon as the Lord Protector had been, but had been slowed down by a present for Cassandra: an Imperial pleasure ark—the same one, Leon noticed that Cassandra had ridden in during the wyvern hunt where they’d met years ago.  It was an ark that was of a size with Silver Spear, but with considerably fewer weapons, armor, and other systems, allowing Leon’s spare passengers to ride in it instead.

The only real problem was that since it was so much slower than Silver Spear, their journey back to the Bull Kingdom would take a full week rather than only another four days.

Given Elise and Valeria’s joy at bringing family and friends back to the Kingdom that they once called home, though, Leon couldn’t quite bring himself to be even mildly annoyed, let alone genuinely upset.  This attitude was compounded by the fact that Emilie, Jordan, Cristina, Asiya, and all the others easily complied with Leon’s request to hurry and pack, and their departure wasn’t delayed at all.

And so, all too soon, their time back in Occulara came to a temporary end, and together, the two arks, one clearly designed for war and built of dark metal, the other sleek and bright, made of white metal with gold accents, took off from the fields on Leon’s property, pointed their noses north, and accelerated.  In only a week, they’d arrive back in the Bull Kingdom…

---

Leon sat in front of a projected window in silent solitude, watching the outside world flit past as Silver Spear cut through the air, Cassandra’s ark—which she wasn’t currently aboard—following behind.  In some respect he wasn’t doing much, simply staring at the scenery, but he was also letting his power roil around in his Mind Palace.  To achieve Apotheosis, he’d need to condense an origin spark within his soul realm, and he was sorely tempted to try and do so right then and there.

However, he remembered the Grave Warden indicating that only a pre-Apotheosis mage could undertake this mission, so Leon refrained—not that he thought he’d be successful on his first try, anyway.  Besides, he figured he’d have to accumulate much greater power to condense an origin spark—magic power was supposed to just be runoff of origin power, so it made sense to him that he’d need a cataclysmic amount of magic power to achieve Apotheosis.

Still, even though he should’ve been more actively training, he found himself letting his power gather in his soul realm just to see what it felt like to tease at the edge of that threshold.

And it felt rather… sickening, like sucking in his stomach at the beginning, and then almost like he was getting a stomach cramp as he proceeded.  He didn’t press too much after that, so he dispersed his power but kept a large amount swirling around his Mind Palace as he lost himself in thought.

It wasn’t anything in particular that he let occupy his thoughts; he simply let the thoughts come and go as Silver Spear pressed northward.  So he wasn’t that annoyed when a knock came at the small room’s door, and when he called for it to open, Red entered the room.

“Leon!” Red purposefully declared upon her entrance.  She didn’t even wait for the door to fully close behind her before she proclaimed, “I’m curious about human mating rituals!”

Leon blinked in surprise, and he noticed one of his Tempest Knights outside the door briefly glance inside in shock as the door closed.  For the first time, he found himself almost wishing Red had never bothered learning to speak the common language aloud.  Without much ado, he projected his power and called for Elise to come to the room.  He could sense the need for reinforcements on this one.

“All right, then,” he said as he rose from where he sat.  “I hope you’re not here to ask me for practical demonstrations.”

Red cocked her head a moment, tossing her red hair even as her fire-red eyes narrowed.  “Were you to pursue me, I wouldn’t complain,” she matter-of-factly stated, taking Leon by surprise just a bit.  “You are strong and would create strong young,” Red continued.  “However, your lack of fertility presents a problem, and I wouldn’t trespass upon another’s territory to acquire those young.”

Leon grinned awkwardly.  “I almost thought I’d be used to your bluntness by now, but you still find ways to surprise me.  Just something to keep in mind: having fertility ‘issues’ thrown back in one’s face is a good way to anger them.”

Red hummed for a moment, then said, “I see.  I will refrain from doing so in the future.”

She’d barely finished speaking when the door opened again, allowing Elise into the room.

“Hey there, you two!” Elise said with a good-natured smile.  She paused at the door and ensured it closed behind her, even as Red quickly responded.

“Elise!  I have come seeking information!  I am ready to create more young and require knowledge as to how!”

Elise’s regal demeanor almost shattered right there, and she almost stumbled as she walked further into the room.  Leon steadied her with a hand, and together they presented a unified front to the ninth-tier wyvern-in-human-form.

“I… wouldn’t have thought you’d need to be taught,” Elise said with a masklike smile.  “Haven’t you already ‘made young’ before joining my husband’s retinue?”

“Bah!  I’m familiar enough with the act itself!” Red irritably responded.  “It’s the dancing around it that I’m unfamiliar with!”

“How do wyverns choose their mates?” Leon asked, a frown appearing on his face as he struggled to recall Red speaking on the subject in the past.  He felt like she must’ve, given they’d only met when he, his retinue, Penelope, and Cassandra killed her previous wyvern mate.

“A strong wyvern will claim a mate as they please,” Red explained without hesitation.  “The stronger of the pair will proceed until a clutch of eggs has been laid, and then move on.  This… this ‘marriage’ thing is not something I’d ever considered having to deal with.  Or ‘courtship’, or a thousand other things.  This is what I require aid with!”

“You’re looking to date?” Elise asked, and Leon could almost imagine stars shooting through her emerald eyes as a wide smile spread across her face.  “By the Ancestors!  Red!  We’re going to have to go shopping!  And take you to have your hair done!  And so much more!”  Elise immediately went and took Red’s arm and began trying to steer her toward the door, though Red remained rooted in place.

“Is such pageantry required?” she asked.

Elise paused and cocked her head.  “Wouldn’t you consider a wyvern with… maybe shinier scales or better-shaped horns more attractive?”

Red frowned in thought.  “A wyvern will look for scars, a potential mate’s aura, the size of their territory, the size of their body…  All signs of strength.  Physical characteristics we’ll look for are larger fangs, greater wingspan, powerful shoulders—and yes, horn size—and potential scars.  A good mate will be vicious and have many natural weapons, as well as show their strength with a lack of scars.”

Leon stifled a laugh.  He wasn’t surprised, but it was still strange and rather entertaining to hear from Red herself what she’d look for in a mate.  She was now in human form and didn’t have wings or fangs or scales, but in Leon’s opinion, she cut quite the figure of human beauty, and he doubted she’d have much trouble being attractive to whomever she so wished to take to bed—so long as that person wasn’t put off by her decidedly inhuman personality, at least.

Elise caught Leon’s eye and gave him an eager smile.  “Leon, I can handle this if you don’t mind.”

“Sure,” Leon replied.  “Elise will give you a better idea of ‘human mating rituals’ than I could,” he said.  “Alix, too.  And Anna.  You know what?  Any of the ladies, really, will give you a better idea of what to do.”

Red scowled a moment and said, “I’m consulting everyone and wanted to know your thoughts.”  She glanced at Elise.  “Not to bring any disrespect to you.”

Despite how token her platitude was, Elise smiled, knowing as well as Leon did that Red wasn’t being malicious, she was just blunt and lacking in social graces.

“And what thoughts of mind do you seek?” Leon asked, his amusement at the whole situation rising proportionally with his awkwardness.

“My chosen mate and how to get him to submit,” Red said with such seriousness that Leon almost burst out laughing.

“Well,” he said as he fought to keep himself under control, “you’re going to not want him to ‘submit’.  Humans take forceful mating poorly.  Very poorly.  If you try to use force without the consent of your chosen partner, you’ll more likely than not make an enemy for life.”

Red clicked her tongue in displeasure but didn’t argue.

“A healthy human ‘mating’ relationship,” Leon continued as he chose his words carefully, his eyes flickering between Red and Elise, “relies on mutual fulfillment.  A wyvern will take from their chosen mate, and the weaker partner can only submit.  Humans, in general, don’t act like that.  Just keep violence out of the equation entirely until you discuss it with whoever’s caught your eye.”

“Then you talk to him,” Elise said in a dreamy tone.  “You find out what he likes and try to attract him with that.  Clothing, perfume, makeup, hairstyle… talking about what he likes, giving him the right signals with your body language…”  Elise’s eyes narrowed and she leaned in to loudly whisper conspiratorially into Red’s ear.  “You have to catch his attention and get him to approach you.”

Red made a sound of frustration and disgust.  “Such useless ceremony,” she growled.  “Why do you humans have to complicate everything?”

“To frustrate you, specifically,” Leon said with a grin.

“Come with me, Red,” Elise said again as she pulled on Red’s arm.  This time, Red was a little more compliant, letting Elise steer her toward the door.  “We’ll have a girl’s night and talk all about this!”

“Before that,” Leon said, causing them to halt once again, “who do you have your eye on?”

“Anshu, perhaps,” Red said.  “Or perhaps that spotted man.”

‘The Jaguar,’ Leon identified with a shallow grin. 

“May your Ancestors aid you in drawing their attention,” Leon said, and following Elise, Red departed the room, leaving Leon alone again to burst out laughing at what had just happened, while also burning with embarrassment and awkwardness while second-guessing what he’d said to Red without much preparation.

Not that he thought he could give her much more than that even had he time to prepare and gather his thoughts before her arrival—his courtships had hardly been ‘standard’, after all.  Still, he returned to silently staring out the window, comforted in the fact that he at least knew what Red’s future plans included…

‘… Should’ve asked her when she planned to have kids,’ he thought with a few silent recriminations.  The last thing he wanted was to have something kick off while she was pregnant… or caring for eggs… or caring for her young.  He bitterly sighed as all the questions he should’ve asked flooded through his mind, and he resolved to see about getting them answered soon.

But not until his embarrassment died down a bit.

---

Silver-blue lightning coursed down Leon’s arm, forming a small bird that perched atop his finger.  It didn’t take much willpower on Leon’s part to get the bird to take flight and do a few circuits around his head, but once he let that willpower flag slightly to allow the magic power animating the bird to continue on its own, the bird instead dissolved into the air.

And yet, Leon was encouraged.  It had taken slightly less willpower than he was used to to form the bird and get it to move at all, indicating a minute increase in skill to form such constructs, even if he’d yet to make any advances in the proto-wisps’ longevity.

As he trained, he kept an eye on his retainers, monitoring their progress.  They couldn’t train that hard while inside Silver Spear for fear of going too hard and potentially causing damage, but keeping their skills sharp was important.  After this latest practice run for making wisps, Leon noticed Alcander not putting in much effort in his training.  He was training with Gaius and making an unusual number of mistakes.

More than that, Alcander was being quiet and thoughtful, a marked departure from his usual demeanor.  In fact, he’d been that way since they’d left Occulara.  Leon had chalked it up to leaving Sofia behind in Occulara with her family while they continued north, a choice that he’d found somewhat strange.  After all, they could much more easily visit Sofia’s family, but Alcander’s was much more distant, meaning that this could easily be the couple’s only chance to introduce Sofia to her in-laws in person.

And yet, she’d stayed behind in Occulara.

“Alcander!” Leon called out as the large man was knocked down for the dozenth time just in that sparring session.  “Let’s chat!”

Alcander sighed and picked himself up.  He gave Gaius a respectful nod before walking over to Leon.

“Your Majesty?” he formally said as he stood at attention.

“Relax,” Leon responded, almost offended at his friend’s formal attitude even though the only other people present were Leon’s family and his other retainers.  “Sit down with me.”  Leon patted the stool next to him and stared Alcander down until he took a seat.  “So, you’re distracted.  What’s going on?”

Alcander scowled lightly.  “It’s nothing.  Personal thing.  Just got me thinking about the future.  It’s been weighing on my mind a lot.”

“That much is obvious,” Leon said with a cheeky smile, hoping to provoke Alcander a little.  To his muted relief, Alcander chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“Yeah, perhaps I’ve been a little too out of it lately.  But in my defense, it’s… life-altering.”

“Nothing’s wrong, is it?” Leon asked, a look of concern passing over his features.

Alcander opened his mouth to speak several times, but no words came out.  Eventually, he took a deep breath, straightened up, looked Leon in the eye, and said, “Sofia’s pregnant.”

Leon’s jaw dropped, everyone else—save for Red who hardly seemed to be paying attention at all—in the room froze and stared at them.  Alix even started to gasp.

With a silent look of recrimination, Leon ordered them back to training even as his mind reeled with this revelation.

Alcander was going to be a father.

“… Congratulations,” Leon said as naturally as he could.  His tone still came out a little strained, but if Alcander noticed, he didn’t mind as a sheepish grin spread across his face.

“Thanks,” he bashfully stated.  “We’ve been trying for about a year now, and we got lucky.  We were going to see a healer to start some fertility regimes if we went another year without result.  Now that it’s really happening, though… I have to admit that I’m fucking terrified…”

“You’d be stupid not to be!” Alix shouted from across the room, a look of absolute glee on her face.

Alcander just grinned at her, before turning back to Leon.

Leon clapped his large retainer on the shoulder and said, “Congratulations.  Truly.  Is this why your wife stayed behind in Occulara?”

Alcander nodded.  “We only got confirmation the day before we left Kataigida.  Sofia’s wanted to meet my family for a long time, but with this news, she wanted to stay with her side of the family for a while.  It’s a shame, but we’ll find some time to head north sometime later.  I hope…”

“We’ll make sure of it,” Leon responded.  “Now, I think you should probably go celebrate with the others; I think they’ll explode if I keep you away for much longer…”

Alcander beamed in delight as he nodded and rose from his seat.  He went back to the rest of the retinue, suffering hugs from Alix, Anna, and Helen, while Gaius and Marcus shook his hand or clapped him on the shoulder.

But as joyful as this news was, Leon couldn’t help but feel a little melancholy.  His family shared in Alcander’s joy, with Anzu practically bouncing with vicarious joy as the mood in the room shifted.  He made eye contact with Elise and instantly knew that she was feeling the same thing.

Happiness for their friend, but… it shone a spotlight on their own failed attempts to have kids.  Leon knew that this was hardly unexpected even for high-tier mages without bloodlines, with most having to try for years even with the aid of light magic to increase fertility, but he couldn’t help but feel a little dejected.

His people were starting to accomplish what he was working toward, and it was something that he was starting to quietly fear he’d never accomplish.  His ladies would probably be fine with standard fertility procedures geared toward high-tier mages, but he’d need something far more than ‘standard’ magic.

‘I can’t… a family…’ Leon thought as he felt his heart squeeze for a moment.

He forcefully pushed those thoughts out of his head, at least for the moment, and rose to join the celebrations, the training session forgotten in light of Alcander’s announcement.  Regardless of his own growing insecurities, he wasn’t going to bring everyone down, not when this news was objectively good and worth celebrating.

But even then, the thought of never experiencing this kind of happiness himself never quite left the back of his mind.

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