"Will there be another defense force if they should attack again?" The next one to speak their concern was a young human woman without an interface. Without that, Cain could only guess who she's representing or if she's one of the Nobles herself.
The question is addressed as much to Cain as to the King, but Maria answers on both their behalf. "A rapid response force has already been assembled. They're on call 24 hours a day and can be anywhere that reports a Raid within 30 minutes. We ask that the local forces report any sightings quickly and try to hold on at least that long if possible."
The woman still looks unimpressed, but Emmeline knows what she needs to hear. "It is two thousand strong, all over level 150, mounted on fast steeds. They're heavy on tank-type classes and have multiple healers capable of resurrections."
That calms a lot of the muttering. Most of the Raiding Parties are only a few hundred strong because that's all it takes to capture prisoners from the outlying villages. Even if they only get a few dozen from farms and small towns, they would still count the raid as a success.
They can all be sold at the market after all.
The questions then turn to those with border territories, verifying that everything is settled. Cain checks in with his summons, finding that none are currently in battle, and they haven't found anything worth fighting all day, so he dismisses them all. No need to keep a roaming army around when the problem has been dealt with. Besides, plenty of other soldiers are patrolling the country now.
"The Palace will send notices should any movements among the Niman Raiders be noticed. Unlike in the past, we will not only notify those whose territories are closest to the movement but every noble near the border or with a sizable military force." Emmeline finishes up the meeting, and the King rises to leave.
"One last item for the day. For today and the two days following, we have scheduled meetings with potential suitors for the Royal Harem. We do hope you can respect our privacy, as well as the candidates, and not interfere or involve them in political agendas at this time."
With that, King James exits the room, leaving all the Upper Nobles smiling. So he was serious about diversifying the Harem and building alliances between now and his coming-of-age party.
Cain knows he just brought a lot of attention to himself and his skills, so he begins considering what he might need in exchange. They're not short on anything at the moment that he knows of, so Cain puts the question to the Guild.
[Is there anything that we need? Crafters, are you short on anything? Any particular sorts of items we might be short on?]
[Other than a leash for Neffie? Ever since King Aggramor started getting concerned about the spread of the war, she's been driving Lickity insane with her disappearing acts.] Cid half jokes.
[Yeah, plus he's leveled her up so far that you can't even lock her up.] Char teases the giant vampire.
[That was a spectacular failure, I agree. Who would have thought she learned lockpicking as a skill?]
[I could use some tourmaline for making these Moped parts.] One of the Crafters suggests.
[Any skill books are welcome as well.] Char adds.
[And breakfast burritos. Where did those even come from anyhow? Those were amazing.] Kone jokes, knowing what's truly important.
[I'll look for the gems, and ask about books for the library, let me know if the Inscriptionists need more materials for duplicating ones from Assah. But the burritos are easy; I gave a custom puppet skills from a top-notch chef. He's running the kitchen here in Long Fang Valley, and his name is Brother Liu.]
[That does it, safe or not, we're coming to visit this weekend.]
Kone's insistence brings a wave of agreement, so Cain plans for a party, sending the message to Brother Liu to give him time to prepare. He likes sending the maids for fresh ingredients daily, but for a party, they might need a few things that aren't on the regular list.
Cain is preparing himself to deal with the multitude of Nobles looking to gain favor with a Flesh Crafter when a small Cat Kin woman forcefully pushes her way through the crowd. She's over level 300 and looks to be in her late twenties, wearing the elaborate gown of a noble lady in the court faction.
"Is this my Cyrene? What have you done to yourself, my darling girl? Where are your ears? They were always so soft, but now you don't even have fur anymore." The lady nearly shouts.
"Grandma? Is that you?" Cyrene gasps before embracing the woman in a bone-crushing full body hug.
"We were just about to visit you to give you the news. I can see, grandma. Duke Cain leveled me up and gave me the gift of sight. Can you believe that? Not only that, this body is incredible. A Lamia is so much different than my old Beastkin body."
The Feline Beastkin, her Grandmother, pulls Cyrene away from her a little to smooth out the Lamia's dress. At the same time, the surrounding Nobles hide quiet laughter about her enthusiasm, mixed with a bit of horror from the lower level Nobles about how such affection might actually kill them. The small hazards of dating a Lamia.
"Cyrene, we're still at court. Don't forget your manners." Misha whispers, and the Warseer returns to the floor.
"Sorry, I've been a bit emotional. I hope I didn't embarrass my family." Cyrene mutters, mostly to herself, but her grandmother pats her head.
"Nonsense, a bit of energy is a good thing for the youngsters. Now, let's find a more suitable place to talk. I know an excellent restaurant nearby."
The Nobles are much better about avoiding stepping on Cyrene now, being aware of her presence and the influence her family wields politically and in the food markets. They're stopped several times by well-wishers and close friends of Cyrene's family, which the deceptively young-looking Beastkin brushes off.
MamaNeko17 is her official name, according to the system, indicating that she's the original transfer that began their family. As they walk to the restaurant near the palace, Cain learns that she was one of the original transfers the very first day the system was altered to affect many more species.
She started life on the southern continent but made her way to Skyview with a merchant ship. At the time, it was a Beastkin territory, and the war between the species was still ongoing. There weren't many transfers yet, and the next generation wasn't yet old enough to know that they might gain system interfaces if their own.
They were ambushed just offshore as they left the port, and she managed to claim the money in the hold into her inventory and escape the ship, swimming back to shore as the rest of her comrades perished.
After that, she slowly built up a business empire for herself, using the plundered savings, and started a family thirty years after the war with a human transfer who defected from the human armies in search of catgirls.
Mama Neko doesn't stay mad at Cain long, at least not once she learns the reason for changing Cyrene into a Lamia, but she keeps giving the three of them a look Cain can't understand. She's been holding a text conversation with Cyrene, though, so maybe it has to do with whatever they are talking about?
When Cyrene and Misha excuse themselves to the ladies room, the older woman suddenly turns serious. "I know my Cyrene isn't right in the mind after all those years living in a nightmare of visions, but she truly cares for you, and I don't want you to break her heart."
So that's what they were talking about?
"Misha and Cyrene seem very attached to each other. The moment they met, they became instant best friends. If you don't object, I would like to keep Cyrene with me for now. Both to help her adjust and to help her feel wanted. She told me about how her sisters liked to leave her random places to see if anyone would bother to send her home. How she never got abducted, I will never know."
"Well, if you're truly serious about taking care of my Cyrene, I'll give you a bit of advice. That fancy bracelet you wear matches Misha's necklace; focus on it and try the function [Add User Cyrene]. That might be just the thing she's looking for."
She's cut off by the others returning, going instantly back into grandmother mode and drowning Cyrene in affection. She keeps it up until it's time for them all to head home, not giving Cain a chance to talk about their conversation any further, so instead, he decides to keep it in mind and bring it up with Misha later.
Cyrene needs a sense of belonging, but if that action does what Cain assumes it should, it will probably be way out of line with Misha.
After all, Cain might rarely use the control functions of the Devotion Ring the way most would, just the shape changing. But that's only because he doesn't need to.
