Author’s Preamble: Since that last time, I have decided maybe it’s a good idea to prewrite them from now on. Alright, acknowledgements. Mr. Sunderkeenin, I love the gif (note to all my viewers. If you want to make my day, leave a gif in your comments. Or better yet, leave a rating and a gif!). But seriously, unfortunately, no popcorn is needed for this chapter. It will take a while before Abrum gets those nobles, but I feel you all will be extremely pleased with the result. Also, kudos to our new commentor, Lengzai. I had the pleasure of waking up two days ago and reading all those comments. Made me very happy. Now, many of you have been wondering when Abrum’s new team and his old team would reunite… Surprise! Anyway, rate, comment, and tell others about the fic. (I apologize for the lateness, I have been teaching at a dance camp). Also, this chapter is much shorter than usual. I think you’ll find it satisfying though. (Only 1400 words.)

Abrum sat on one of the hills contemplating his next move. He had gathered some disturbing information by questioning the players.

Apparently, these slaver trips happened every week. They had become a regular occurrence in the queendom, and now seemed normal. The concept of slavery was deeply engrained in the capital’s society, further reinforcing Abrum’s determination to see the capital burn. The players were promptly executed by the elves. Boy…hell hath no wrath like an elf pissed.

There was one thing that Abrum was very hopeful for. The liberation of the vampires. The guardians had discovered something quite interesting when checking up on the slaves. He could recall it perfectly clear.

“Master, you know how Sefica usually uses some kind of subjugation magic to control the slaves.”

“Yes of course. A silver collar with a red jewel at the nape of the neck.”

“We found something different on all the slaves. This collar.” At this point, Lothir had handed the collar over to him.

This was the collar that Abrum was now pondering over, sitting on that grassy hill.

It looked similar to a leather choker, and had an iron buckle. What made this collar unique was what was inside of it. Instead of a smooth, unblemished surface, there were 4 sharp protrusions. Looking at them longer, Abrum realized the identity of those protrusions. They were teeth, fangs to be exact. Abrum pricked his finger on one and saw his silvery blood magically disappear into the fang. Abrum could only smile. He had already found a lead for the vampires. He planned to interrogate the Wilsing royal family, and plausibly slaughter them.

Abrum drew himself out of his own mind and stood up.

“Alright folks, time to mobilize. Ugothir and Orthir will be staying with me. The rest of you, please escort the elves back to their nation. Try using your influence to get these poor elves cured of the vampiric curse. Ti-era, Liba, I expect you to help with the escort. Think of it as your apology for trying to screw the guardians over.” After giving the orders, he pulled Lothir and Bothir to the side. “I want you two to escort the carriage to the elves. I want it cleaned out and changed as little as possible. I have a plan for [email protected]

Thus, Abrum and the elves went separate ways. Riding back to the capital upon Ugothir, he wondered if they would reach the border without any trouble.

Of course, Abrum had very little trouble reaching the capital. The biggest monster he ran into on his way back was a Grass Bishop, a tricky type of Goril with a significantly larger mana capacity than the regular goril. The extra mana it absorbed through the sun was used to cast long range, and destructive spells. Of course, it would only be a problem if one were to be hit by the spells. Abrum and his two guardians were much too fast to be hit by some worm’s spells.

They were able to arrive at the imposing walls of the capital the following night. Abrum sat out of sight of the gate and looked at the hulks of fur and muscle. Abrum sighed, thinking about how much of an uproar that would make.

“Can you change into your fluffy forms? You mustn’t look imposing or they won’t let us through the gate.”

“We can’t protect you in those forms!”

“Hush brother. Fluffy forms now.” Said Orthir as she began to change.

The fluffy to muscle ratio started to change, heavily favoring fluffiness.

At the end, they looked like balls of fluff (Think fat Pomeranian, but with a bit more *poof*). They looked up at Abrum with those blue eyes, and shook themselves, their fur swaying slowly.

“That fluffy enough?”

“Dear goodness… I need a camera right now. *Ahem* Sorry, yes, I think that’s innocent enough to let us through the gate.”

And he was right, the guard let them into the capital without any trouble. The city lay asleep except for the adventurers who were gathering parties and the occasional merchant who had realized that night time selling was incredibly profitable (Those usually had massive bags under their eyes).

Abrum strolled through the city with a different look in his eyes. He had seen the darkness of the capital with his own eyes. He had seen the depravity. Now that he was looking for it, he could see the darkness.

The occasional person being dragged into an alley. The strained expressions of the waitresses as they were continually harassed, knowing they could do nothing. Many other things.

Abrum sped up his pace a bit, and his little fluffy vassals sped up as well, their now stubby legs quickly making steps. They finally arrived at the training hall, but Abrum barely recognized it. Gone was the peeling red paint and the chipped wood. The training hall looked better than new.

‘It wasn’t like that when I left…’

“Now, Ugothir, Orthir, it is important to be respectful to the master of this training hall. He is an Angaellis like myself.” Abrum communicated telepathically.

They just nodded their fluffy head, making their floofy fur to sway.

‘Gah… I need a camera…’ thought Abrum as he pushed open the doors to the training hall.

The smell of paint hit his senses, like a tsunami of a scent.

Looking inside, he saw Aleqe sitting in the middle of the room with another person. They looked like they were having tea.

“Come in Abrum. Bring the fluffies with you.”

Abrum walked in and started to observe the person sitting with Aleqe

“I see, well not see but you know what I mean, that you’ve noticed my guest. This is Cala, an apprentice of mine before you.”

Abrum sat down with them and nodded respectfully to Cala.

“I am Abrum. A pleasure to meet you.” He said as he prepared himself a cup of tea. He looked surreptitiously at Aleqe.

“No need to worry. She knows my identity.” Aleqe said. The tension in the air visibly decreased

“Wait, another one knows?! I thought that was a sacred secret?” Cala asked a bit frustrated.

“How’d your mission go?” Asked Aleqe, completely ignoring Cala’s frustration.

“If you mean purifying the forest, then yes, I succeeded. If you could give me some warning next time, that would be great. Lilith died in the process. I have no idea where she respawned and I am very worried if she is alright.”

While Abrum was giving Aleqe as serious telling off, Aleqe was just floating a smile.

“Hey! This is serious Aleqe! Someone diead!” Abrum said while shaking Aleqe.

Then Abrum heard the door close.

Abrum shut up quickly in that instance. He started to slowly turn around to face the door.

However, he didn’t have enough time to make a full 180 degree turn before he felt two mounds touch his back. They squished as they were pressed against his back. She rested her head upon his shoulder, and her silky blonde hair cascaded down upon his chest.

“Who’s that?” Ugothir asked curiously.

“Shut up moron, you’re ruining the moment.” Orthir said sharply.

Abrum sat and put leaned his head against Lilith’s.

“I’m so glad you’re okay… I’m so sorry I couldn’t protect you, and—“

“Shhh. It’s alright. Just let me engrain this moment into my mind.”

So Cala and Aleqe got to watch awkwardly as they had their little reunion. (If you’re wondering about the guardians, Orthir was sitting on Ugothir’s head to silence him).