Chapter 26: The Reality of Things

  Somehow the realization that this world was really like Xantia made everything more real. She was not dreaming. No, this was real, and she was in Xantia, the game where she had spent most of her time during the last years of her life.

  The last twenty-four hours had felt like a dream to Lily. Until now she had always thought that maybe she would wake up later, back on the counter in the Seven Eleven where she worked the night shift and sometimes dozed off when no one came in. But the people in front of her were real. Everyone she had met today was real too. They were not NPCs, even if it had felt that way at first. And no dream could ever feel this real, because after twenty-four hours she should have woken up by now anyway.

  So, this is really happening, she thought. No one is going to shake me awake. And no one is going to tell me my break is over. This is not a damn dream…

  It was a lot to take in. Not only because of the strange new world, but also because she would never see herself again—her real self. She was a Demoness now. Everyone she had known before was gone. There was no one here who remembered her, and no one she could go back to.

  There were also these strange thoughts she kept having. Somehow, she acted more impulsive and rasher than before, and sometimes she said things that sounded harsher than she meant them. Is this my real self? she wondered. The inner self I had always shown ingame when it was fine to be an asshole because it was online and had no consequences? Or is this something else entirely?

  She did not know the answer, and maybe it was not something she could figure out in one day. But since realizing that everything here was real, she knew she needed to be more careful. Her words and her actions could have real consequences now.

  Lily thought of the auction hall again and felt a quiet wave of relief. She was glad she had not killed the auctioneer. He was a real person too, she thought. I almost forgot that. What am I even doing?

  She sighed quietly and looked at the fire. The air around the lake had cooled a little, and the warmth from the flames felt good against her skin. It all felt different now that she was paying attention. The fire was not an effect or a texture. It was real heat, and the smell of smoke clung to her hair. Even the stars above her looked sharper somehow. Everything was real, and for the first time since her summoning, she finally believed it.

  What a mess. I really need to get myself together before I say something stupid again.

  After Marie had answered her question about classes and skills, silence had fallen again. Lily sat there, lost in her own thoughts, while the cultists shifted uneasily. They looked unsure of what to do or say, and no one dared to speak first. Someone poked the fire, and the flames cracked softly.

  Then Lily blinked and snapped back to reality. No, she was still herself. Everything today had only felt strange because she had to accept that this was no dream or game. Yes, that’s all it is, she told herself. I just have to adapt.

  And they still had something to do before they could sleep. Her crimson eyes went from the flames back to the cultists.

  “So,” Lily said, “thanks again for humoring my questions. I hope you’re all full now?”

  Marie almost jumped at being addressed. “Th… that was, of course, n… no problem,” she stammered.

  The others nodded quickly and agreed that they were not hungry anymore.

  Lily smiled. “Good, because before it gets too late, you need a house.”

  The cultists all looked shocked, and Lily could see what they were thinking. They probably believed she was about to make them chop wood and build a shack in the middle of the night.

  But Lily only grinned and walked a few steps away from the clearing. She opened her skill menu, the familiar glowing interface appearing before her eyes. She scrolled through the list until she found the [Structure Summon] skill and opened its subskills again.

  She had already used [Build: Home] to summon her mansion, which was a high-tier variant and still the one that had drained her mana the most so far, so much that she had actually felt it. For this, though, she did not need that level.

  So, she looked through the tier list of the subskill:

  [Build: Shelter] Basic: Summons a simple one-room shelter, formed from wood or stone depending on the local terrain. Ideal for emergencies, travel, or short rests.

  [Build: Cabin] Intermediate: Creates a small wooden house with minimal furnishing — bunks, storage, table. Designed for temporary bases or small groups.

  [Build: House] Advanced: Builds a modest, permanent home with a customizable interior layout. Uses a standard design template chosen by the user.

  [Build: Home] High-tier: Summons the user’s personalized residence. Reconstructs stored architectural data from previous designs.

  [Build: Fortress] / [Build: Stronghold] Epic: Manifests a large-scale, defensible base — complete with walls, wards, and infrastructure. Used to establish territorial control for factions, guilds, or armies.

  Requirement to use [Build] skills: It can only be activated in open, unclaimed wilderness — not inside towns, cities, or existing buildings.

  Ah, here it is, Lily thought. She selected the subskill in her menu, and at once that now familiar feeling returned. It was like the knowledge had always been sitting somewhere deep in her mind, just waiting to be used.

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  “All right,” she said quietly. She raised her hand and cast [Build: House].

  At once she felt the mana drain. A glowing circle appeared before her, spreading wider and taller as light began to gather inside it. The air trembled, and slowly, stone by stone, a small house started to rise out of the ground.

  The cultists, who had meanwhile also stood up, watched in silence. When the large circle flared fully to life in front of Lily and the house began to grow out of it, their faces froze in awe. The house had the same dark, gothic style as her mansion, though much smaller. It had two floors, pointed arches, and black stone walls that caught the red light of the magic circle like polished glass.

  They all looked amazed. The tall man was the first to speak, his deep voice breaking the silence. “Unbelievable,” he said.

  The twins only gaped, mouths half open. Marlon stared with wide eyes, and Marie covered her mouth, whispering something Lily could not catch. Then Sevrin stepped forward, his eyes bright, and began to laugh. It was not a normal laugh. It was loud, unsteady, and carried a strange kind of joy.

  “Oh Princess, oh my unholiness, oh Your Maleficence, your power is eternal! Ohhh dark goddess of the Abyss, we are your humble—”

  Lily snapped. “What did I say about your honorifics?”

  Sevrin froze mid-sentence. “Please forgive your humble servant,” he said quickly, “but I am once again blessed by your undivine power. You are our savior! Yes, you have saved us today, and you will save us all, oh great nocturnal nightmare!”

  The other cultists began to lose their awe, shifting uncomfortably at his display. Some looked at the ground, others exchanged worried glances. Before the mood could spiral further, and before anyone could think that this was something she wanted, Lily felt her face twitch in annoyance.

  But Marie came to her rescue. She stepped forward, laid a hand on Sevrin’s shoulder, and gave Lily a small, nervous bow. “Yes… we did not thank you properly for earlier, in the auction hall. Come, Sevrin, bow with me.”

  She pressed him down, and both of them murmured their thanks. Lily saw her chance and took it.

  “All right, no problem,” she said, forcing a calm tone. “I care for my people. And so, this house is my gift for you. Use it well, rest, and make sure you are ready to serve me properly tomorrow.”

  She gave them one last look, then turned around and started walking back toward her mansion. She really wanted to leave before they came up with more praise. But then a thought struck her, and she stopped.

  “Ah, and Sevrin?” she called.

  “Yes, my Princess!”

  “The thing with the babies.”

  “Yes?”

  “It was a joke. I don’t eat babies, all right?”

  Sevrin blinked. For a second, he actually looked disappointed, but then he straightened. “Yes, Princess. I would never dare to think such a thing.”

  “Good,” Lily said, already turning away again.

  As she walked toward her mansion, she heard Marie’s quiet voice behind her. “You didn’t really plan to bring actual babies for her to feast on… right?”

  Lily sighed and rubbed her forehead. Oh gods, she thought. I need to stop talking around these people.

  ???

  It was late in Tiara, and the streets outside the Asara Bank were already quiet. The city lights shimmered faintly through the tall windows of Director Durham’s office. He sat at his desk, surrounded by neatly stacked papers, when a knock came at the door.

  “Come in,” Durham said without looking up.

  The door opened, and a small, pale man stepped inside. He closed it carefully behind him.

  “Director,” the man said with a nod.

  “You’re back,” Durham leaned back in his chair, “so, how did it go?”

  “At first, nothing special,” the man replied. “She went as predicted to the auction hall with Master Vexley. He introduced her to several noble collectors, and I overheard some rumors that Lady Greenwood intends to sell a high-grade named item at the auction, something much rarer than the one she sold to Vexley here.”

  Durham paused. He already knew that Lysaria Greenwood was no ordinary woman, but hearing that she had come to Tiara to sell items of that level confirmed his suspicion. It was no wonder she could deposit a mithril crown without hesitation.

  A mithril crown was not an unbelievable amount of wealth, especially for someone from the capital, but no one simply tossed one onto a desk without care. Her resources were likely far greater than he had first assumed. His first impression had been that she wanted access to her guild account because she needed money, not because she intended to deposit it.

  Durham had been thinking about it the entire day. When he went over the meeting again in his mind, the picture started to make sense. She had claimed, and even officially complained, that her guild was still part of the old Empire of Xares—an empire that had ceased to exist for nearly three hundred years. And when she said they were still aligned with it, that meant, technically, the guild was still a state entity. Which also meant, in a way, that the Empire still existed through it. And if she wanted to access its account…

  A chill went down his spine.

  Accessing such an old account could mean only one thing, if she did not plan to plunder it. It was to transfer funds quickly to other members still aligned with the guild, or perhaps with the Empire itself. And why would anyone need to move money so fast across the continent? For Durham, there was only one answer: to raise support and rearm allies.

  If that account became active again, everyone with even minor access to the banking network would notice. It could be seen as a sign that something long thought gone was stirring again.

  Durham did not like that thought at all. Why here? Why in Tiara? And why my branch?

  He focused again on the pale man standing before him. “You said it was nothing special… at first?”

  The man nodded. “Yes. Besides the high-grade item, of course. But after a few hours, Lady Greenwood left the auction hall and, after a short shopping spree at the market, returned to the Golden Swan Inn, where she is renting a suite.”

  “So, what’s so special about that?” Durham asked.

  “Nothing, Director,” the man said, lowering his voice slightly. “But after she left, the city authorities were called to the auction hall, and even an inquisitor arrived.”

  “An inquisitor?” Durham frowned. “Why?”

  “There was apparently an incident with cultists. They robbed an auctioneer and injured him. I didn’t look too deep into it, but it seemed strange that this happened at the same time Lady Greenwood left. I thought I should mention it.”

  “Cultists here…” Durham said quietly. “That is indeed strange. What are the chances Lady Greenwood is connected to them?”

  “Probably less than five percent,” the man said. “The auctioneer is still alive, the cultists escaped, and Lady Greenwood is an elf.”

  “Yes, but it’s still odd,” Durham muttered. “Good of you to report this.”

  “Thank you, Director.”

  Durham opened a drawer and pulled out a small pouch filled with silver crowns. He placed it on the desk. “Here, for today. I have a bad feeling about this. I want you to look into the cultist case tomorrow. Also, keep an eye on Lady Greenwood. Shadow her throughout the day. I want to know more about her.”

  The man nodded and took the pouch.

  “Categorize her as a high-risk, high-gain client,” Durham continued. “We don’t yet know if it’s smart to approach her. Bring me your report tomorrow at the same time.”

  “As you wish, Director.”

  The man bowed slightly, turned, and left the room.

  When the door closed behind him, Durham exhaled slowly and looked out the window toward the quiet streets of Tiara. The moon hung low, reflected in the polished glass.

  He sat there for a long moment, the ticking of the clock the only sound in the room. A noble elf from nowhere, old imperial ties, a guild account from the Xares age, and now cultists. What in all heavens is happening here…

  He rubbed his temples and muttered, “A mere merchant, my ass. Damn elf.”