At midnight, the stars shone dimly in the sky above. The town of Enrain was quiet as the good folk of the town, as well as the refugees slumbered. Among the seemingly quiet peace, shuffling feet hurried across the grassland that surrounded the town.

A dark and wide open gateway beckoned as several silhouettes made their way through the gateway and into the town. They quickly hurried off into several directions as a continuous stream of shadowy figures followed after them.

What followed next was a series of scuffles and the occasional sound of iron against iron. However, the sounds faded quickly and when the sun finally rose in the morning, the people woke none the wiser.

Of course, as morn broke and the peasants began another fruitless day, they were met with the sight of a fierce army of Demihumans. While some of the Humans living in the kingdom were familiar with the Foxkin of the forest, most had never actually seen one.

Those living in Enrain were somewhat more familiar with them as they occasionally traded with the foxkin, and Reia was a common sight in the town. However, the sight of an army of thousands of Demihumans from various tribes shocked the Humans of Enrain beyond words.

The refugees especially had never seen a Demihuman in their entire lives and while the Demihumans were mostly human-like, they still possessed features that made them distinct from Humans.

As Fayde expected, the citizens of Enrain panicked in fear and initially lashed out at the Demihuman warriors. The citizens rebelled and fights broke out across the town injuring many. Fayde had given strict orders to the Demihumans not to kill any of the citizens unless absolutely necessary.

Those who rebelled attempted to occupy and barricade some of the larger buildings and streets within the town. Most did not possess suitable weapons and had to rely on anything they could find to resist.

In the end, it only took a couple of days to safely quash those who were rebelling and restore order. It would have been over much quicker if not for Fayde’s orders to not kill the Humans living in the town. He did everything he could to minimize the damage and to attempt to negotiate with the people.

Once peace was restored and the carts of food started arriving, most of the people calmed down and some even became appreciative. It was impossible to eliminate the prejudice and anger the Humans had towards the Demihumans in a short period of time though. Many still harbored anger and hatred in their hearts, but the people of the kingdom were much more open minded than Humans living in other kingdoms.

Over the next several days, a seemingly endless river of Demihumans snaked their way through the forest at the border of the Plains of Sorrow and made their way towards Enrain. Their numbers startled the Humans living in the town and many breathed a sigh of relief that they had not continued to resist the occupation.

As the Demihumans continued to arrive and settle in, their yurts and tents completely covered the grassland as far as the eye could see. Only the initial occupation army stayed within the town to keep the peace and order while the other Demihumans remained outside the town.

Fayde and Shar took up residence within the unoccupied lord’s manor and worked alongside Orban to handle the distribution of food, as well as oversee the maintaining of the peace of the town. Most of the administration duties were handed over to Orban since he had already been managing the town before Fayde arrived.

On the ninth day of the occupation, Fayde finally had a moment of peace as he sat down on a couch within a study in the manor.

He had only been resting for a short time when a sudden knock disturbed him from his thoughts.

Fayde sighed, “What now…. Come in.”

The door opened and one of the Demihuman warriors entered respectfully, “Great Khan. The tribal Khans with their families, as well as your wives and servants, have all finally arrived. They have sent word ahead that they would enter the town within the hour.”

“I just sat down… ah, okay. It was about that time anyway. Prepare a welcoming for them. We will need many warriors to guard the gate and keep the townspeople away. Shar, Orban and I will also welcome them at the gate. See to it.”

“Yes Great Khan.”

The warrior bowed respectfully and left Fayde alone in the study. Fayde felt far more tired than he expected and the weight of responsibility bore down heavily on his shoulders.

“Alright, looks like my rest time is over.”

Fayde slowly rose and readied himself to welcome his family and subjects. He had become so used to his servants taking care of all the menial tasks for him that he had almost forgotten what it was like to live normally.

He had begun to take it for granted and thinking about it, he realized what a convenience it was to have servants to take care of all of the daily menial tasks. He wouldn’t be able to handle all of his responsibilities as a leader and everything else without their service.

It didn’t take long for Fayde to prepare and he quickly made his way towards the west gate alongside Shar and Orban. Dozens of warriors surrounded Fayde and their menacing gazes kept any of the townspeople from getting too close.

“Look, there he is… I still can’t believe it.”

“Can’t believe what?”

“That he’s Human… a Human leading all of these Demihumans…”

“Well, at least we don’t have to go hungry anymore..”

“I still don’t trust any of them! What if they start going crazy and kill all of us?”

Many of the citizens whispered with fearful looks as they watched Fayde make his way towards the west gate. He was aware of their worries and concerns and while he didn’t necessarily blame them, it still was upsetting.

The town had become much more peaceful and quiet over the last few days. There was no longer any conflict within the town, at least on the surface. Of course, Fayde’s life had never actually been in danger. It was impossible for a regular person to injure him, nevermind to take his life.

Fayde had become so powerful that only truly extraordinarily powerful heroes could pose any sort of threat to him. Nonetheless, his guards took their job seriously and kept any possible threats away from him.

Throngs of people were also making their way towards the west gate. Many had heard that there was something going on at the entrance today, as many Demihuman warriors had gathered there and entry through the west gate was being restricted.

Refugees had still been trickling in over the past week, although they were no longer walking alone towards the town. Every day, dozens of scouts were being sent out to round up refugees leaving their homes and escort them to the town. The refugees were usually forcefully escorted since many of them tried to run once they saw Demihumans approaching.

“I wasn’t expecting there to be such a crowd.” Shar said while walking beside Fayde.

Orban chuckled and said, “Humans are naturally curious as you know, but these people are especially bored so it’s no surprise. Although there was a bit of excitement this past week, things have died down. The people have been cooped up in this packed town for a while now so it’s expected they would crowd around hoping to see something exciting.”

“I suppose you’re right. Let’s just hope nothing untoward happens.”

Fayde gave Shar a nice punch on his arm, “Stop being such a worrywart. Let’s go welcome our guests. I’m looking forward to seeing my wives again. Although if I have to be honest, I’m more looking forward to seeing my servants…”

Shar gave Fayde a wry smile while rubbing his arm, “Can’t the all powerful Great Khan handle taking care of himself for a few days?”

“Shut up before I punch you again.”

A great hubbub of people welcomed Fayde and his group as they approached the west gate and even though he had been expecting a crowd, it was much larger than what he had expected.

Two columns of warriors guarded each side of the gate, keeping the crowds away from the main road leading into the town. Fayde waited patiently at the end of the column of warriors while he ordered his men to blow their horns in welcoming.

Several large horns bellowed, cutting through the clamor and chaos of the crowds on each side of the gates. Thousands of fierce warriors kept any from approaching the road and after several blows of the horns, a steady procession of resplendent Demihumans made their way through the western gate.

At their head, were Fayde’s three wives, each adorned in beautiful tribal dresses. They walked calmly and with a regal bearing befitting the wives of a Great Khan. Their beauty was so alluring that it caused the chaotic din to quiet as the people stared at them in awe. They had even forgotten that the women before them were not Human.

“Look how beautiful….”

“Are they divine creatures?”

“I’ve never seen anyone so beautiful…”

Many voices cried out from the crowd as their initial shock wore off and the crowd became lively again.

Fayde stood waiting for them with a look of anticipation and when their eyes met his, three beautiful and radiant smiles almost caused many to swoon and sigh in admiration. Fayde could only shake his head, wondering at his good fortune. Even the dark thoughts that clouded his heart daily were blown away in that moment.

Fayde was surprised to see that even Tris was among the entourage and was wearing a tribal dress. For some reason she was sulking while following behind his wives, but it didn’t seem to detract from her beauty. Becoming a Raccoon-kin had truly done wonders for her appearance and Fayde admired her silently.

Following behind were many beautiful Foxkin women, who while not as radiant as Fayde’s wives, were only slightly inferior. These were of course Fayde’s Rej’gan and he was equally happy to see them.

Behind his wives and servants were the many Khans of every tribe and their families. These would include the various Khan’s many wives and children. There were easily more than a hundred in the entourage.

Beside the impressive and mighty Khans, there were many regal and proud youths among the group. The sons of the many Khans were equally splendid warriors, while their daughters were exotic and pristine.

They cheerfully and proudly walked through the western gate casting occasional looks of disdain on the Humans. However, their eyes were filled with respect and expectation whenever they glanced towards their Great Khan.

The youths especially venerated Fayde greatly. Many of the daughters of the other Khans wished to be among his wives while the sons hoped to fight under him and gain glory in battle.

“Haha, welcome!” Fayde greeted his wives and the many Khans in high-spirits.

Fayde had grown quite close with the other Khans despite their competition in the past. Once they had become united and witnessed Fayde’s power for themselves they had quickly fallen in line. None of them doubted Fayde any longer nor resisted his authority.

Reia and Laila approached Fayde confidently while Allein followed nervously behind. She was still unsure of her place in Fayde’s heart but she couldn’t deny her happiness at seeing him again and her heart fluttered as she neared him.

“Reia, Laila. I am so happy to see both of you.” Fayde hugged them each in turn and lightly kissed them.

“Has it been hard for you without us?” Reia asked while holding tight to Fayde’s arm.

“It’s been hard.”

“Then it’s a good thing we are together again!” Laila replied coquettishly while holding Fayde’s other arm.

With a beautiful woman on each arm, Fayde cut a majestic picture that caused many to admire the charming scene.

When Fayde noticed Allein standing there nervously, he didn’t know how to react. The atmosphere became somewhat awkward until both Reia and Laila pushed Fayde towards Allein.

The two stood within a hair’s breath and Allein looked up at Fayde at a loss for words. Her heart was aching and she longed to hold him just as Reia and Laila had, but she couldn’t take the initiative.

Fayde hesitated only for a moment. He had already chosen to forgive her so there was no point in dragging things out.

Fayde wrapped Allein in his arms and she was filled with a heartwarming joy.

“I missed you..” Allein said, forcing out a whisper.

“I missed you too.”

Allein took her place at his side and Fayde continued to welcome the others in the entourage. Many of the Khans wished to express their praise at Fayde’s ability to conquer Enrain without any trouble. They laid on him one compliment after the other.

Their wives emphatically pushed their daughters towards him while winking and the young ladies shyly greeted him. Fayde patiently greeted each and every one out of fairness while also being nagged by the many hot blooded sons of the Khans. The only thing they cared to know was when they would face a real battle.

Even this was extremely tiring, but this was all part of his responsibility as Khan. Khan Rhaegnar was standing next to Accadeas and was the last of the Khans to greet Fayde.

“The long journey has finally come to an end!! But this is still just the beginning!” The wizened Wolf-kin Khan said while grinning.

“Bah, that talk can be saved for later, where’s the food and wine?”

Fayde smiled when he heard Accadeas, “Brother, I don’t think there’s enough food and wine to satisfy you in the entire town!”

The two shook hands and laughed while catching up. Having finally greeted everyone, Fayde led the way as the entourage and the many guards headed merrily towards the lord’s manor where food and drinks had been prepared.