Looking at Stefanie, I could tell she regretted joining us in Gaia. She had originally come at Wendy’s insistence and spent the majority of her time with the wind mage. With Wendy gone, she often wandered around, unsure of what to do.

I tried to interact with her but was typically met with the standard Stefanie stonewall. That consisted of an eye-roll and a minimum of two sarcastic remarks.

Kalli tried to cheer me up when I confided in her about my frustrations with the girl. It also included some hard-to-swallow advice. I don’t think that was a good idea, Mel.

I was just trying to help her out. She was complaining about how much of a pain it is in Gaia.

Kalli sighed, trying to be gentle. You have to understand that girls don’t want boys to ‘help’ them out with ‘that’.

But I help you…

She continued to reason with me. That’s different, Mel. I’m your girlfriend. On top of that, I’m used to you.

I was just going to summon her a toilet. It’s not like I wanted to watch or anything.

That comment got a giggle from my girlfriend. First off, eww. Second, even though I’m sure she would appreciate that, she doesn’t even want you to think about her doing ‘that’. It’s best to just leave her be and think of some other way to be nice to her.

So I made her a village. Well, technically, I named a village after her. The next village we rescued, I renamed it, [Stefania]. She threw her arms up in outrage and told me, “Change it to something else. I don’t like this stupid town.”

Not that Stefanie ever used group chat in the first place but she preferred to speak to me in hushed tones so that the rest of the group couldn’t hear our conversations. Except for Kalli that was, but only Kalli and I knew about that.

I could have changed the name to something else if I wanted to. However, I mock-frowned and said, “Sorry. It doesn’t seem to want to let me change it.”

She huffed at me and pushed Bob as she stomped off. “Move this stupid undead cow out of my way. It’s unsanitary.”

“He’s not a cow, he’s a Ruffalo,” I called after her as she left.

Then, petting my undead beast, I said, “Don’t worry Bob. You’re not stupid. She’s just cranky.”

I was constantly awakening people, even while we traveled. The refugees walked alongside the Mecharriage as we traveled from village to village, sticking around long enough to get their cores jump-started. Then Esha, who had taken charge of both humans and trolls, assigned them duties and sent them back to the other villages.

We received word from the guild that the supply chain was up and running. Once we managed to take out whatever was causing the plague, our fledgling nation would be ready to trade with the outside world.

The World Editor was opening up to me with every new village that I added. It turned out that the overland territory of Meltopia was equivalent to the established villages I controlled.

On top of that, when a village grew beyond a certain population, it got upgraded to [Town] and then more options became available. The best part was that I discovered I could edit any town under my control from anywhere within the empire.

This came in handy in a very unexpected way. I was sitting in World Editor mode going over the controls when I noticed a familiar golden tether leading off into the horizon. When I followed it, I was suddenly hovering above the mountain, looking down at the old home of the trolls. It was called [Old-Wrotor], likely because the trolls had adopted a new home.

World Editor allowed me to spy on the newly vacant village completely unseen to the inhabitants. I smiled to myself, realizing that it had once been a city in the world editor. The mass exodus of trolls likely downgraded it twice back to the village status. Apparently, even if the population went to zero it still counted as a village.

Movement underground beneath many layers of rock caught my attention and I suddenly remembered the trolls that escaped into the depths. Was that also a part of Wrotor?

I zoomed in on the castle, following the dungeon to dark passages into the underworld. Once I hit the junction where the troll-built structure ended, I peered into the darkness. Yellow eyes peered back.

While they couldn’t see me, they were guarding against something. A quick look up at the town informed me that there was a human presence in the castle. A handful of armed humans occupied the throne room.

I pulled out of World Editor to discuss the situation with Esha. Finding her driving the Mecharriage, as she had the most mana out of all the trolls, I sat next to her and began, “Esha, I think the trolls in Old Wrotor are in trouble.”

She gave me a sidelong glance, trying to keep her attention on the road. “What are you talking about? We abandoned that place.”

Shaking my head, I explained, “I saw them. Trolls just beneath the dungeon.”

The mecharriage lurched to a halt when Esha slammed on the breaks, bellowing, “I told those fools to leave and not come back. What purpose does lingering around the castle have?”

“Do they know you escaped?” I asked, curious to know what their plan was once they escaped to the depths. “Where would they go if they left? Can trolls live underground?”

Esha chuckled, picking at her ear absentmindedly. “Of course. Trolls prefer to live down there. The underground leads everywhere. Few topsiders know this but the world in the darkness expands all over Gaia. There are passages beneath everything.”

Looking down at the ground below the Mecharriage, I asked, “ Are you saying that there are passages under the dark lands? Under Meltopia?”

The troll guffawed and nodded. “That’s right. There is another world that thrives right beneath our feet. Those who are shunned by the daylight walk in the darkness. Normally, it is for the best.”

As we approached the next village, she said, “I would like to save the trolls of Old Wrotor if possible.”

I stretched, getting ready to save some more villagers from the plague. “Me too. I have a plan.”

Since I hadn’t named any villages after myself, I called the sixth one, [Melvin Heights]. Kalli laughed at me but the villagers we ecstatic. They felt honored to live in a village named after the emperor.

Once the basics were done and the villagers were cured, I told the trolls about my plan. “We are going back to Old Wrotor to rescue your friends.”

Esha stood, clutching a spear. “Are you sure? You said there are humans in the castle.”

I grinned, explaining, “I have a plan for that too. I think I can trap them in the throne room and buy you enough time to save the trolls.”

With that Esha sent for a team of a dozen of her best trolls. Additionally, a few of the human guards volunteered to join in on the mission, including Guinny’s father.

As we were getting ready to depart, I heard Kalli’s voice whispering in my ear. Be careful Mel. I don’t want anything to happen to you.

I smiled to myself, happy to hear her voice.

I’m always careful.

A loud pop and a flash heralded our arrival, informing me something was wrong. I entered World Editor mode as I whispered, “They shouldn’t have known we were coming.”

The system engine placed me above the mountain and I was momentarily helpless as I watched a rift open next to the trolls. Like some cosmic vacuum cleaner, it started to suck my rescue party up. I sprang into gear, encasing the trap in a tomb of granite, negating the effect.

Unfortunately, the damage had been done. Half of Esha’s team of trolls and one human were lost to the void. I spoke to her in guild chat.

Do you want to go back?

The troll was about at stubborn as she was smelly. Not until we rescue the others. Can you still buy us time?

The team of trolls wasn’t critical to my part of the plan.

I’m good. Do what you need to and try not to make any noise.

I began working on the throne room as the trolls made their way into the castle. As I had seen before, the humans were camped out on the throne, waiting for something. I barricaded the halls outside of the throne by silently sliding walls into place just out of sight of the humans.

When the trolls came to a closed door or gate, I deleted it. They were just entering the dungeon when a voice began to speak. “Greetings manipulator. It has been eons since our humble world has been blessed with one of you. It would be my honor to make your acquaintance. Perhaps we can arrange a greeting? A few troll slaves are but a small price to pay.”

I knew she was talking to me but I wasn’t sure if it was a recording or someone speaking to me through magic. One thing I was fairly certain about was that there was nobody down in the market where we had teleported in. The World Editor marked living things.

In any case, I felt a warning to Esha was warranted.

Esha, there was more to the trap. I hear someone’s voice up here.

Her reply came quickly. We just made contact. Give me as much time as you can. If you need to, save yourself.

I continued creating barricades to block everyone but my team while listening to the voice trying to goad me into replying. She wasn’t getting to me until she said, “We know who you are, Melvin Murphy. It has also come to our attention that you passed illegally into Gaia from planet Earth. As things stand currently, you are a fugitive. This can also be overlooked with a simple conversation. Just come to…”

Having had enough of the woman’s voice, I barked, “You better not hurt a hair on her head. If you interrogated Wendy, I’ll make you pay.”

The voice sighed. “Please relax. Your friend is a welcomed guest and is at the Earth embassy as we speak. She is currently waiting for your friends to arrive. I do hope you will be joining them as planned when they get here.”

It was a trap. They knew Kalli was coming though I didn’t know how. We didn’t tell Wendy about that. I was about to say something when the woman threw another curveball at me. “Additionally, we purchased young Kalliphae’s contract from the Hellquist family. We have a lot to discuss regarding that contract. They just aren’t done that way in a civilized society. I took care of it for you.”

“What do you mean took care of it? I asked furiously. “Did you void the contract?”

“Nonsense.” The woman cackled gleefully. “There is no point tearing up good money. That contract is valuable. Just wait until you see what we’ve found.”

Esha chose that moment to inform me that she was done. Okay, Melvin. We are on our way back.

My mind was racing about all of the new information that I had been flooded with. Kalli was freaking out as well. My contract? Did she just say she bought my contract?

Not only that but you’re heading to a trap. They know you’re coming.

She was a little calmer than me. It’ll be okay. We will find a way to sneak in and get her.

I still couldn’t get over how much she knew.

Why do you think Wendy told them so much about us? Do you think they tortured her?

Kalli cringed. I hope not.

Just then I saw Esha come out of the castle, followed by nearly one hundred trolls. Suddenly, two golems made of stone materialized in their path and the voice boomed, “I could crush you all like ants if I wished. The raw power of these golems…”

Not letting the voice finish her speech, I crushed both golems by placing castle walls on their heads. I had wondered if I could kill something using the World Editor before, and the voice had just given me a way of testing it.

The trolls gathered in the market as I looked around for any more traps. Not seeing any, I left the World Editor and reappeared in the middle of the trolls.

Without saying a word, I teleported. The first group arrived in Melvin Heights panting and wheezing from the effects of the short trip through the void. A guard ran up and frantically tried to get my attention. “Lord Melvin, your…”

I waved him off. “In a minute. I have to go back.”

I took as long as I dared to recuperate and teleported back to Old Wrotor. The voice had regained her confidence when I appeared. “As I was saying before you rudely crushed my constructs, I have no intention of stopping you from rescuing these, um, trolls. They have served their purpose. Just remember to come see me in Dabia when you are done playing in the dark lands. We have a contract to discuss, after all.”

It took me five trips to get all of the trolls. The voice had thankfully stopped talking and allowed me to focus. She also didn’t spring any more traps on us. Before the final trip, I re-entered World Editor mode and removed the barricades from the throne room. There was no point in burying the humans. Even if their master deserved it.

When I appeared in Melvin Heights, the guard flagged me down once again. I sagged against a wall and asked, “What is it?”

He flapped his arms and pointed. “Bob died!”