It was to be expected that they’d follow me.

  No sane person would want to be alone after what we’ve just gone through, and that included me.

  Human sacrifices? A godlike being? Said being taking the sun’s light and using it as a weapon? No, thank you. Absolutely not.

  Yet it just dawned on me that I had barely anything to offer these two.

  A diet of questionable food and even more questionable water didn’t exactly scream hospitality. No wonder my mental state was circling the drain.

  At least I had a few guest rooms to offer them. Hopefully, a good night’s rest and some fruit would loosen their tongues enough to share details about this world.

  But the first of my many questions soon appeared before me, Calcan Castle.

  “And here we are,” I said as we approached, the castle’s might finally visible to the two.

  Yet… why weren’t they reacting to it? Instead, both stared at me like I’d gone mad.

  “S-sir?” the woman stammered, hesitant. “Is this where you… live?”

  “Yes,” I answered, confused, my gaze darting between them and the looming structure. “Is something wrong with the Castle?”

  “Castle?” the boy frowned, glancing toward where I pointed. “Forgive me, good sir, but… there’s just a lake.”

  “A-are you a merman, by any chance? A hybrid?” the woman asked, her voice trembling as she took a cautious step closer. "But you couldn't be, you have red... forgive me."

  “A lake?” I repeated, frowning, ignoring the woman's last remark as I raised my hand toward the gates. “You’re telling me all you see is a lake?”

  “Yes, sir,” the boy replied, his tone polite but uncertain. “Is it not?”

  “Follow me,” I said simply, walking toward my humble abode.

  They didn’t move.

  “I’m not certain about following you into the lake, sir,” the boy tried to reason, voice steady but wary. “Do forgive me if we take our leave he-”

  I didn’t wait for him to finish. I stepped forward through the gates of Calcan Castle. His voice cut off mid-sentence.

  When I turned back, they were frozen, dumbfounded, staring through me like I wasn’t there. I couldn’t hear a word they were saying either.

  A strange feeling grabbed at my throat, that sudden, uncanny separation, seeing them without being seen. So I stepped back out. Instantly, their eyes snapped to me again, startled.

  “See?” I said, mimicking a certain someone’s sass. “Come on.”

  They still hesitated, but perhaps seeing me vanish and reappear was convincing enough that I didn’t rescue them just to drown them.

  Slowly, they approached and stopped again just in front of the gate.

  “Do forgive me, sir,” the boy began, “but-”

  “No buts,” I groaned, my patience long gone. “Just take another step forward, God damnit.”

  I stepped behind them and gave a light shove, ignoring their panicked looks for the briefest moment before they stumbled forward and found themselves standing in the Great Hall of Calcan Castle.

  “Welcome,” I said, voice echoing louder than their shocked gasps. “To my home.”

  “Did I, did I die?” the young woman asked, her orange eyes wide as she studied the Hall with a mix of awe and disbelief.

  “No, you didn’t,” I sighed, walking past them across the reflective floor toward the crimson-black spikes. They shifted as I approached, striking each other, reshaping themselves into a pillar before me.

  I said nothing to Ephe there. Just kept walking, past the spikes, past the throne, heading straight for the stairs.

  “Are you not coming?” I asked, turning back to the two who still stood frozen near the entrance.

  For all the loneliness I thought I’d escaped, their hesitation, while understandable at first, was beginning to grate on me.

  “Where to… Your Grace?” the boy asked at last, his voice steady but uncertain, the new title he gave me hanging awkwardly in the air.

  A title I didn’t even bother correcting. It sounded nice being called that.

  “I doubt any of us has the strength to talk now,” I said, ignoring the history nerd in me. “There are free beds for the two of you. After some rest, we’ll talk at our leisure.”

  The offer seemed to lift some invisible weight off their shoulders. The woman even managed the faintest hint of a smile.

  “That sounds wonderful, Your Grace,” she said softly, her earlier stutter gone.

  “Good,” I murmured, managing a small smile of my own as guilt pinched the back of my mind.

  I couldn’t blame them for being wary. After all that had happened, none of us was anywhere close to our right minds.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “And here we are,” I sighed, tired from the endless flight of stairs. “Four rooms here, pick whichever one you want.”

  The two nodded in understanding before I continued down the hallway to a smaller door.

  “Here…” I said, opening it to reveal what stood inside, “...is the toilet. Careful not to fall. If you do, you’ll wish that flying fuckery had eaten you. Unfortunately, I wasn’t expecting guests, so there’s no water drawn and prepared for baths or for drinking. We’ll sort that out when we wake.”

  “You have no servants, Your Grace?” the boy asked, puzzled. “A castle this large must be difficult to maintain.”

  “I’m all alone,” I said, shaking my head. “No servants. So this will have to do for now.”

  “Not to worry,” the woman said, bowing lightly. “You’ve offered us enough, Your Grace.”

  “Indeed,” the boy added, joining her bow. The gesture made me more uncomfortable than it should have.

  “Enough with all that,” I sighed, turning on my aching heels. “Sleep well.”

  Without another word, I left them behind and made my way through the maze of halls toward my wing.

  “Ephe,” I muttered as I turned a corner.

  [Yes.]

  “Don’t let me do shit like this again, please.”

  [Certainly, Your Grace.]

  “Did you say something?” I asked, hoping that the last line of hers had just been a hallucination.

  [Certainly.]

  “...Thank you.”

  Once I reached my room, I didn’t bother changing, just let myself fall into bed, letting exhaustion drag me under, praying that the dreams waiting for me were kinder than the day I’d just lived through.

  [REM Sleep: Detected.]

  [The ‘Subject’ has met the criteria.]

  [Reigncraft Seed - Level 1: Upgrade Possible.]

  [Initializing...]

  [...]

  [Upgrade Complete.]

  [The ‘Subject’ has reached Reigncraft Seed - Level 2.]

  [‘Subject’ Enhanced.]

  [Ephemera already Upgraded.]

  [Abilities Upgraded.]

  [Passive Abilities Upgraded.]

  [Free Slot added to Passive Abilities.]

  [Health: Increased.]

  [Mental State: Stabilized.]

  [Mental State: Increased.]

  [The Custodians are Pleased.]

  [The Most High Gifts the ‘Subject’ a-]

  [...]

  [The Fracture Widens.]

  [Gift Nullified.]

  It was morning by the time I woke up.

  Not unusual in itself, except I’d gone to sleep in the early afternoon.

  But Gods, did I sleep well. For the first time since Julia passed, I felt truly rested. My mind was clear, unclouded, like someone had scrubbed it clean. It almost felt as if I’d grown younger overnight.

  Yet clarity came with its own curses. Grief sharpened. The memories still lingered, clear enough to cut.

  So, with a groan, I forced myself to move, to dress, to do something before the weight in my chest could settle again.

  “Good morning, Ephe,” I muttered, stripping and changing into a clean set of clothes the Castle had in one of its many closets through the rooms of my wing. “Any movement from our guests?”

  [Good morning.]

  [The ‘Guests’ remain asleep.]

  It seemed the poor souls were more exhausted than I expected. Lucky for me, as I could at least act like a host and have the decency to boil some water and have it ready by the time they woke.

  After putting on a black, air-conditioned outfit with a cloak far too extravagant for breakfast duty, I left my wing and descended through the maze of halls toward the garden, which, as Ephe claimed, remained untouched by the godlike beast’s magic, just like the rest of the Castle.

  A relief, really. The sight of the wild flowers, their sweet aroma that assaulted my nostrils, and the sunlit leaves on the small fruit-bearing trees made me forget everything else. Almost.

  Hunger, however, did not forgive. I went straight to the fruit trees and devoured at least three before I remembered I’d come here to work, not to feast.

  Once my conscience caught up, I filled one of the larger buckets with creek water and turned to head back toward the castle, until I noticed something strange.

  The bucket felt lighter. Easier to carry than before.

  “Ephe,” I asked, voicing my concern, "Why does this feel easier to carry? Or am I imagining things?”

  [No.]

  [Increased Physicality is a Result of Reaching Reigncraft Seed - Level 2.]

  [Mental State: Stable.]

  “Is that so?” I muttered, mildly impressed. “So that’s why I can think clearly as well, no?”

  [Yes.]

  [The ‘Subject’ has Grown.]

  [The Seed’s roots are taking shape.]

  “Brilliant,” I nodded, smiling faintly at the metaphor, and started back inside, the bucket swinging gently at my side as I made my way toward what I thought was the kitchen.

  However, a kitchen ought never to be as large as the one in front of me.

  No, really, what kind of lunatic builds a kitchen the size of two whole apartments?

  Over twenty wood stoves made of black iron lined one wall, facing a row of long tables buried under ancient cutlery and utensils. Cobweb and dust as thick as half an inch littered most of the place.

  A day after I’d put on the crown, it had taken me hours just to clean one stove, enough to boil water, nothing more. The rest of the place remained a graveyard of cookware.

  Still, complaining wouldn’t boil water. I knelt, built a small fire the way Julia taught me on our hikes, and set the pot to boil. Then I returned to the garden, picked and washed a few fruits, and arranged them in a basket for the others.

  While I was waiting for the boiled water to cool down, I found myself wandering back to the throne room.

  “Ephe,” I asked, “What’s the throne’s purpose? Aesthetics?”

  [No.]

  [It is a Seat of Power.]

  [Your Seat of Power.]

  [It is Recommended that the ‘Subject’ Sits in it during Today’s Discussion.]

  “Why?” I wondered aloud, half amused, half tempted. The cringiness of the Modern Man was hard to overcome. It took half of my will to put the cape I had on without feeling embarrassed. But the air conditioning material made me do it regardless. But sitting on the throne… that might just finish the job.

  Yet Ephe wasn’t joking.

  [The ‘Subject’ is the Ruler of Calcan Castle.]

  [The Ruler’s Seat is the Throne.]

  [Not the Bed.]

  [The Throne.]

  “Okay, damn,” I muttered. “I’ll sit, happy?”

  With a sigh, I gripped the dark armrests and lowered myself into the cold seat.

  The second my back hit the back of the throne, the world shifted.

  Images flooded my mind, every hall, every corner, every crevice of the Castle appearing in perfect clarity all at once inside my head from every angle imaginable. Even the places that shouldn’t have been visible due to privacy violations.

  Curious and fairly embarrassed at the thought, I turned the vision back to the throne room and saw myself sitting there. Eyes empty, devoid of any light.

  Besides that, what stood out more than the clothes I wore was the now-visible crown, sitting comfortably on my head, its ruby glistening coldly in the low light, making the crown look as if it were made to be worn by me.

  And just as I blinked, pulling free of the trance, quiet footsteps echoed above.

  I turned toward the sound, knowing already that the young woman was in one of the higher balconies, staring down at me with steady intent.

  “Good morning, Your Grace.”

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