"How long are you going to be gone?"

Tetsuda looked over his shoulder. Hair in disarray and posture loose, Rinna sat up in the bed they shared. The sheets covered his lower half, but his torso was covered in dark spots and tiny cuts—all marks of ownership from Tetsuda.

He'd been scared at first, just as any newborn demon would be, but after realizing Tetsuda's gentleness, Rinna had gone from trembling mess to domesticated pet. He was little more than a showpiece most times, remaining quiet and compliant at Tetsuda's side or in his bed, yet there were times when the little incubus provided Tetsuda with comfort.

Five years had passed since the ceremony in Naiyan, and since then, Ceniyan had nearly tripled in populace and doubled in civility. The council Tetsuda worked with were compliant as well as competent, and though they fought him at times, they were open enough to allow new ideas that Tetsuda brought—the most important of which had been the trade posts.

He'd noticed early on that caravans traveled through or near the town—now a city named Enkyull—at least twice a day, and they did so on stretches of unpaved, unsettled road. He'd acted gradually at first, establishing little shacks along somewhat improved trails, and on their own, those shacks evolved into hamlets, then villages, then towns. The only city, previously the tiny town Tyrannus had taken him to all those years ago, was Enkyull, which had become a terminus of activity from both Naiyan and Suiyan. The latter remained a bit sporadic, and when they did come through, they made themselves scarce quite quickly. But they came, and that was all that mattered.

Why Suiyanic demons rarely interacted with Naiyanic ones, Tetsuda still did not know, but he did know a bit more about Suiyan than he had. The king was called Tairo, and he and Tyrannus had a long-standing history of animosity and tension. Ceniyan had been established as a result of—depending on what nationality explained it—Tyrannus or Tairo's belligerence against a settlement along the Haissen. One of them had burned it down without a reason—other than hatred, that was.

No matter how much he could see Tyrannus doing that, Tetsuda still doubted it had ever happened, from either side.

"I don't know," he replied, turning back to the mirror. "It all depends on how long Lord Tyrannus keeps me there. The messengers said he only wanted reports on my progress, but...I have a feeling he wants me for far more." A smile crept onto his face as he spoke.

"You love him a lot, don't you?" Rinna asked.

He nodded. "We had a very intimate time together before I left, so it's been a bit painful, being apart from him. Then again, there's so much work to do that it keeps my mind away from it most times. Still...there are nights when I stay up, thinking."

"I've noticed."

"Have you?"

"You...tend to be more passionate when you're...thinking."

With a soft sigh, Tetsuda stepped over to the bed and leaned close to Rinna. He cupped the boy's cheek and pressed their foreheads together. "I don't mean to hurt you—I promise."

"I didn't say it hurt, Master," he mumbled, blushing.

"I'd hope so," he chuckled, kissing Rinna briefly. "I don't want to mistreat you. It'd go against my nature." Tetsuda stood up and stepped over to a hook, on which hung a uniform. Tyrannus had sent it a year after Tetsuda became governor, and though he still disliked clothes, the discomfort wasn't nearly as strong, and the slight scent of Tyrannus that lingered on it made wearing it all the more desirable.

As his hand touched the chains dangling from the left breast, his eyes lingered on the window. The sun shined bright overhead, positioned north. The direction of Naiyan. The direction of Tyrannus.

The direction of home.