Chapter 46 - The Imperial City

Chapter 46: Chapter 46 - The Imperial City

"Dee? What about her?"

"... I’m assuming you know how she feels about you," Maribelle’s eyes fixed on him with a deep, maternal perception.

Taken aback by the unexpected topic, Vincent answered nervously. "I... I do."

"Oh? So you do, huh?"

"Yes, mama... of course I do." Vincent sighed, looking straight ahead. "I’d be an idiot not to."

"And you see her as just a friend?"

"There’s no way I would kiss a ’friend’ the way I did a few days ago. Sure, it was a spur-of-the-moment kind of thing. Not to make excuses, but we were all under the impression that we wouldn’t see each other for the next hundred years. At least, for you guys, it would have been that way."

"So... you see her as a woman, not just a friend?"

Vincent’s expression turned serious as he stared out into the vast horizon. He remained silent for several long seconds, carefully processing the emotions inside his chest.

"Yes... I do. But I won’t tell her."

"You won’t? Why not?"

"Because I already have Nat, obviously. I don’t want to ruin what I have with her. If neither Dee nor I say anything about our feelings, then that’s how it’ll stay. I won’t confess to her. And if she ever confesses to me instead... it’ll hurt, but I’ll reject her. I don’t want to be a scumbag."

Maribelle smiled deeply with affection. "Aww... I’m happy to know my baby is thinking about this so maturely. But... there’s something you need to know, Vinny."

"Something I need to know?"

"This isn’t Earth. This is the Divine Realm."

"Huh? Well duh. I know that. What are you trying to say?"

"Polygamy is the norm here," she stated plainly.

"HUH?!" Vincent abruptly came to a stop mid-air. "P-Polygamy?! The norm?!"

Maribelle hovered gracefully in front of him, reaching out to gently take one of his hands while carefully balancing the dragon egg in the other.

"Yes. Neither Nat nor Dee are unfamiliar with the concept. Among us divine beings, having multiple partners is completely natural."

"Polygamy... I mean... I know what it is... I think certain cultures back on Earth in Africa and other places do that sort of thing... But I didn’t grow up that way, Mama!"

"Have you at least thought about it with the two of them? Don’t tell me it hasn’t crossed your mind even once?"

Vincent’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment. He looked away, scratching his cheek awkwardly.

"Well... yeah, I have. I mean... Dee and Nat are both incredibly beautiful women. It’s hard not to think about it sometimes. But I always told myself that I could only love one person..."

"What if Deina comes back from Earth and confesses her feelings to you? Because I can assure you... the main reason she went to Earth wasn’t just to help you see Dada and Kathy again."

"Really? Then why did she go?"

"Sorry~ Mama can’t tell you her reason."

Vincent frowned, feeling confused. "Wait, how do you even know the real reason she left? Heck, what makes you so sure she’s going to confess to me anyway?"

"To answer your first question, yesterday, when I caught up with her, Dee told me the real reason she wanted to go. And to answer your second... I don’t know for sure. It’s just a ’what if.’ So, Vinny... how would you respond now, knowing that polygamy is on the table?"

Vincent turned his head away, his brows furrowing as a conflicted, struggling expression washed over his face. "I... I don’t know. That’s a massive decision that completely changes the way I think about everything. I... I need some time to–"

"It’s okay, baby. It’s okay to take your time. As long as you know. Just keep it in your heart, ok?"

As her words settled into his chest, a prickling sensation came over him. He looked down at his arms, watching them begin to fade into translucent particles of light.

"Princess is calling... Guess I’m off to my second life now."

Maribelle gave his hands one last, tender squeeze, holding on until the very last second.

"Try to look up, Vinny. Pristina is a whole new world for you, and I’m sure you’re going to have lots of fun exploring it. And like I said, mama will be right here at home, waiting for you."

"Haha. Yeah... "Thanks, Mama. See you soon."

With a soft chime, his body vanished from the sky.

........

SHEEN

Vincent’s vision snapped back into reality. He was no longer floating in the endless golden clouds of the Divine Realm, but standing on solid, mossy earth under the bright morning sun.

Before him stood Maelle and Roxa. They were standing at the sunlit edge of the dense forest, where the treeline finally gave way to wide, open grassy plains.

Maelle raised an eyebrow at him, crossing her arms over her chest. "What’s with that mopey look on your face?"

"Meh. It’s nothing. So why did you summon me?"

"... As you can see," Maelle said, gesturing toward the horizon, "we’ve reached the perimeter edge of the forest. Roxa needs to return to the sanctuary. I thought it would be best for my Familiar to take over the rest of the escort duties."

"Escort you? Yeah... I guess I can do that."

"Seriously, what is wrong with you?"

Vincent looked out past the treeline with a melancholy smile. "It’s really nothing. Just... taking in the view, since I’ll be seeing a lot of it from now on... Hello Pristina. Here’s hoping we get along."

Roxa let out a soft grunt to clear her throat. "Right, well. This is my stop. It was nice getting to know you these past two days, Maelle. You’re not bad... for a human."

"Hm. Thank you for the escort. Safe travels back, Roxa."

’Oh? Looks like these two became chummy while I was away. I wonder what happened, given Roxa’s personality.’

Roxa turned toward Vincent next, her ears twitching slightly. "It was an honor fighting alongside you, Vincent. I hope you’ll come visit the sanctuary again one day."

A faint, unmistakable blush dusted her cheeks as she added, "I’d... be glad to have you."

"It was an honor fighting alongside you too. Catch you around, Roxa."

With a swift gust of wind, Roxa bounded into the branches of the trees, leaping from trunk to trunk before disappearing into the green canopy.

"Hey... Maelle. I have something to tell you."

"Is it important, or can it wait? Because I want to get out of this forest as soon as I can."

Vincent let out a dry laugh. "Hahaha... Yeah. I guess it can wait. What I have to say doesn’t change the reality of what’s happened anyway."

"... Something is definitely wrong with you."

"I’m dandy. Come on, lead the way. We have to go find that bratty red-headed girl, don’t we?"

"Yes," Maelle said, stepping onto the dirt path. "But we have other things to settle before that. Starting with you."

"What about me?"

"Your appearance. Please revert back to looking... normal. You draw far too much unwanted attention in that form."

"Oh, right." Vincent channeled his divine power inward and undone his transformation.

As he gathered his shoulder-length hair into a neat bun, Vincent smirked teasingly. "Isn’t attention something you’re used to? You’re a princess, after all."

Ignoring his question, Maelle walked ahead without looking back. "Follow me. And don’t do anything foolish."

They walked along the winding dirt highway for nearly an hour until the distant landscape opened up to reveal a breathtaking, intimidating sight.

Stretching across the horizon was a sprawling, colossal outer wall made of reinforced gray stone, rising hundreds of feet into the air. At the center stood a titanic iron-reinforced gate, guarded by armored sentries.

In front of the gate was a massive, long line of traveling merchants, wagons, and adventurers waiting for inspection.

Vincent stared at the endless queue, whistling softly. "Man... that’s going to take forever to get inside."

Without slowing her pace, Maelle bypassed the entire waiting crowd, walking straight up toward the security checkpoint.

"M-Maelle?!" he hissed under his breath, frantically glancing around at the annoyed stares of the waiting merchants.

He hurried ahead and caught up to her side, whispering nervously, "Is skipping the line one of the perks of being royalty?"

"Yes."

As they reached the front of the checkpoint, an armored imperial guard stepped forward, raising a hand. "Next–"

The guard locked eyes with Maelle and practically jumped out of his boots. "H-How are you–?!"

A senior guard beside him immediately elbowed the young guard’s ribs, stepping forward with a respectful bow.

"Princess Maelle Ebony. Were you out on an official Academy assignment, Your Highness?"

Maelle suspiciously narrowed her eyes at them. "Something like that."

"I am glad to see you have returned safely," the senior guard said quickly, stepping aside to make way. "Please, pass through."

She walked smoothly through. But as Vincent attempted to step through right behind her, the guards snapped their spears down, blocking his path.

"Halt. Go to the back of the line, boy."

Maelle stopped and looked back. "He is with me."

"With you? Is he a noble from Ebonspire?"

"No," Vincent answered honestly.

"Then move to the back of the queue."

"I said that he is with me. Let him pass."

The guard frowned, looking uneasy. "Is he part of your personal servant staff, Princess?"

"No," Vincent replied.

"A registered student of the Imperial Academy?"

"No."

The senior guard sighed, shaking his head. "Your Highness, we would be severely breaking protocol if we simply let him through. At the very least, he must present a valid Citizen Identification Card."

"I don’t have one of those."

The guard’s expression hardened with irritation as he readied his spear. "Then clear the entryway immediately and wait your turn like everyone else!"

"He is my Familiar."

The two guards froze as if struck by lightning. And several nearby travelers in line gasped aloud.

The senior guard’s voice trembled slightly. "P-Princess... please repeat yourself? I believe I may have misheard–"

"He is my Familiar."

"If... if that is true, Your Highness... we must ask you to prove it."

Maelle aimed her hand toward Vincent, conjuring a glowing magic circle in the air between them.

Suddenly, Vincent felt a searing wave of heat pulse against the side of his neck.

Gasps of genuine horror swept through the crowd.

"What the...?" Vincent reached up to touch his burning neck.

Unbeknownst to him, an intricate, glowing golden crest – the official mark of a Familiar – had surfaced brightly against his skin.

"Look at that... as expected of the black-hearted Princess of Ebonspire..."

"She’s actually bound to a human boy. That’s slavery..."

"Disgusting..."

"That poor boy..."

Maelle’s expression remained stone-cold. Unbothered by the harsh, venomous words directed at her.

Vincent’s blood boiled. He glared at the whispering crowd as his fists clenched tightly.

The guards stammered nervously, bowing deeply to Vincent now. "Y-You may pass through... please forgive us..."

Just as he opened his mouth to snap back at the guards, Maelle turned on her heel and began walking through the archway. "Come, Vincent."

"M-Maelle, wait!"

As he caught up to her and walked down the wide stone avenue, the pitying whispers followed them like a shadow.

"Poor guy... stuck to a monster like her..."

"His life is basically over..."

Once they were far enough away from the gate, Vincent rounded on her, his voice laced with frustrated confusion.

"What the fuck was that back there?! Why the hell did you just let them talk shit about you like that when they don’t know a single damn thing about you?!"

"What they are saying isn’t technically wrong. You are bound to me against your will."

"It is wrong! I may not have known you for very long, but what I do know is that you’re–"

"Vincent. You are making a scene."

Looking around, he suddenly realised that dozens of passersby were staring at him in surprise. He ran a hand over his face and calmed down. "Right... sorry."

They continued walking in silence, and as Vincent cooled down, he finally took a moment to look around at his surroundings.

He caught his breath in genuine awe.

The Imperial Capital was magnificent. It was a staggering medieval-fantasy metropolis, filled with soaring spires, cobbled streets, and lush greenery.

People of every race walked the streets – elves in fine silks, stout dwarves carrying artisan goods, beastkin merchants shouting from storefronts, and humans dressed in elaborate coats and dresses.

"So..." Vincent said softly, taking in the bustling sights. "Where are we going now? You said we had something else to settle first."

"We are going to the Imperial Administration Bureau. To officially register you as my Familiar."