A bit later than what I would have liked, but not too late for everyone.

Enjoy!

The day of love… A day created by the Goddess Ilias to invite humans to confess their feelings to each other and celebrate life, a day where people were to offer gifts to their partner and show their own love, a day that was created to nudge humans to procreate and spread across the world…

A day that had been utterly corrupted by the Dark Goddess and her creations… How dare they!

The small goddess was absolutely fuming as she was traversing the hallways of the almost empty Pocket Castle. Monsters were out spreading their own twisted version of love that the Goddess of Creation personally disapproved. She had worked to create this day to develop the love between humans! Not between humans and monsters! That bond was an abomination!

Granted, some of her own angels (the cupids in particular) also... Freely interpreted this day for a reason she still didn't understand. But they were her angels, untainted by the hand of the Dark Goddess!

Of course, she herself had the goal to celebrate this day with none other than the hero Luka. He was HER hero. He had chosen her over that damnable small Monster Lord when he started his adventures, he had accompanied her all the times and supported her even if he had -Ilias shook her head and snarled- recruited monsters against common sense, he remained HER hero.

So it was only natural that she celebrated this day with him, right? She was wearing her pure white dress, as much jewelry as she could, and -exceptionally- panties that had the sole purpose of being removed. She had planned the entertainment at the theater Grandeur with a selection of programs she approved, the restaurant in Grand Noah, and the evening afterward in her own candle-lit room for a nice evening… She hadn't asked or told the hero anything yet, but there was no doubt that he would kneel in front of her divine offer.

So needless to say, the mood of the Goddess of Light was kinda spoiled when she saw that priestess discuss with that robot girl about Luka. There already seemed to be a conflict between the two, and the cause was all too obvious. She could already feel bile rising through her stomach. How DARE they think HER lover could be theirs?!

Ilias offered the sickliest sweet smile she could muster when she arrived in front of the duo before talking in a cold, dissonant tone.

"Greetings! I couldn't help but notice a conflict in this day I specially created so that people could share their love with one another! Could you enlighten me on its source so that it can be solved as fast as possible?"

Sonya was slightly taken aback by the assertiveness of Ilias. "Since it's the Day of Love today, I intended to go meet Luka and laze around…" She glared at Hild. "But that stupid robot refuses to let me have the day with Luka alone!"

Even Hild recoiled in front of the terrifying expression of the small goddess. "Hild believes that as Luka's servant, she should be the one to protect him. And besides, Hild is equipped with baby-making function to receive Luka's love."

Ilias and Sonya were both shocked, their jaws eating the floor as Mephisto passed behind them while carrying a large pile of books.

"Succubus ended up being the one to give her the talk."

"Ah…"

"In any case, I trust everyone to handle this responsibly… The human lords are tending to their own duty, and I'll get back to the academy…" She mumbled under her breath. "I really don't need the additional annoyance."

Sonya and Ilias glared at each other while Hild's expression didn't change for several minutes. Eventually, they were joined by Nuruko who silently joined the glaring contest. Eventually, after a few minutes, Sonya gave up.

"I hate to say that, but Mephisto is right… We are more civilized than that, and we really shouldn't attack each other for a reason so dumb."

Ilias nodded in agreement. "A small contest would be a good solution for those barbarian monsters, but we're more civilized than that. Besides, we also have to take into account other… participants that could be interested in Luka. Now… How could we do it?"

"While you try to think about that, I'll check if there are other people trying to get Luka."

As she walked away, a sly smile appeared on Sonya's face. Her first goal remained to get Luka for herself. Maybe she could even use this stroll as an opportunity to take out a few opponents…

All was fair in love and war…

Of course, if she had only taken one glance behind her, she would have noticed Ilias had the same expression and the same plan in mind…

At that precise moment, a telepath would have appreciated the irony as both had exactly the same plan to dispose of their rivals.

And a small hour later, Sonya was strolling through the streets of Grandeur, smiling as she was checking up what she had planne for this day with Luka. She entered the theater without issues, and went straight to the manager who, as usual, was drinking his sorrow. He instantly noticed the priestess entering.

"Oh, huuuh, it's you. About what we had planned that evening… Sorry, but I can't do that show with you. Sorry. We… Have a few structural problems and I will have to close shop, so don't come back this evening either."

Sonya looked at the man in surprise, then glared at him. In the blink of an eye, she had grabbed him by the collar and had brought his alcohol smelling face an inch from hers.

"Who paid you to replace MY show?"

"I can't tell… No seriously, I can't tell, they were covered from head to toe. I can say that they had some old manners and were freakishly large, but that's all I know about them…"

Sonya groaned and freed the man. Of COURSE, that idiot Spider Princess was trying to get HER Luka too. Maybe a good old strike in her chest would calm the old hag too. She left the still rambling man, determined to give that insect a piece of her mind while ignoring the man's ramblings.

"And then there was that whoooore…"

When Sonya stepped outside, she almost rammed into a large monster. Before she could apologize, she recognized Spider Princess.

"Hey, watch out you scoundrel!"

"Scoundrel?! Sonya snarled. "I heard what you did in the theater. You stole my show to try to get Luka for yourself!"

Spider Princess haughtily passed a clawed hand in her hair. "It is only natural that the hero gets with the best, namely royalty. Now, out of my way you country bumpkin! I have to see this manager for an issue of my own…"

"Oh, nonono! I have no idea what your issue is and you're gonna tell me later, but first, you will swear to renounce on Luka! I am his childhood friend! I am destined to be with him!"

"Destined? Don't make me laugh. You're just an annoying fly buzzing, and I wouldn't mind eating you right there to get you hindrance out of the way." Spider Princess pulled out her katana from under her dress.

"Oh, don't you think that it will be easy! I am raring to go against you!"

"ONE OF YOU GET LOST SO THAT I CAN DEAL WITH THE OTHER ALREADY!"

Both human and monster looked up to see Morrigan holding her mouth with her hands. Spider Princess pointed an accusing finger at the succubus.

"Were you waiting to ambush me to get Luka for yourself?"

"Hehehe, no! Not at all! I was talking about… Show organization! Yup!"

"You're not fooling anyone."

"GAH! Since when you're here?!"

Behind Morrigan, Alma Elma was hovering slightly above the ground, her expression an ever haughty smirk.

"Since I heard that you had plans for Luka for this very special day… I couldn't help but be concerned that this plan could involve your dear sisters… You didn't plan to bring them in, did you?"

"Pfff, no! I did want to do him alone! A good ol' face to face."

"I see…" Alma Elma cracked her knuckles and smiled evilly. "It would almost make me regret what I'm about to do… Because you see, I also want some of that sweet little Luka-boy…"

Morrigan defensively raised her hands.

"Hey, wait! Wait wait wait a second… Is that Ilias behind the corner ther?"

"Nobody's falling for that one... Actually you're right. It is Ilias."

In the blink of an eye, the Succubus Queen disappeared and a gust of wind knocked the small goddess in front of Spider Princess and Sonya, instantly stopping the hostilities between the two of them.

To her credit, the small goddess recovered her composure extremely fast and accusingly glared at Sonya.

"I thought you were finding out who else wanted Luka?!"

"I am! I thought you were looking for a solution to decide who should go with him?!"

Morrigan descended from her spot. "I have an idea. How about this?! We do that fair and square in the colosseum. A good show for everyone, and no underhanded surprise!" She gestured with her head to the street below them, where Spider Princess and Sonya were baring their fangs. "And we bring them in."

Alma Elma pouted. "It sounds almost too reasonable to come from you… Very well. I'm in!"

"Me too."

"Don't hope you can intimidate me that easily."

"That might have been a bad idea…"

Morrigan looked around her. Unsurprisingly, a few more monsters had taken the opportunity to step in and try to claim Luka. The result was that around a hundred monsters were now present in the arena, glaring and gauging each other. Officially, it was just a show of force. Officiously, the losers would step down and let the winner have Luka for herself.

She drew a plan for the battle in her head. Her absolute priority would be to lift herself at least a little to get sure that she wouldn't be caught by the area of effect of the many spells that would be inevitably cast in the chaos. Immediately on her right was Amara, a wolf girl. The beast was only taking a few glances at her and was afraid. The perfect direction to make an escape. On her left was Minamo. The kitsune kunoichi was looking completely and utterly focused, and her misleading abilities could prove threatening. Maybe she could focus on her… Although there were many more monsters that required her attention for this fight.

Eventually, the fight started, and, just as she expected, the arena was drowned into a storm of spells that took almost three fourth of the contestants in the first few seconds. However, she didn't get the time to enjoy the light show as a light of arrow hit her in the leg, bringing out a yelp of pain from her. She checked around her and glared at the elf that had hit her as her hand was surrounded by her aura. The next instant, the elf collapsed with an expression of ecstasy across her face. The next instant, spider webs appeared around her and wrapped her up to bring her in front of Spider Princess. The latter had a delighted expression of sadism on her face as she was readying her katana to deal a powerful blow. Morrigan managed to free an arm and summoned her sword to defend herself. She managed to tear the web holding her, and exchanged a few blows with Spider Princess before the duo was interrupted by an amazoness and a dark elf stumbling through them while Hild was chasing them with a salvo of rockets. In the chaos, Morrigan took several projectiles through her body, and a strike from her opponent spawned a small gash on her free arm. She flew fast away from Spider Princess to vie a piece of her mind to Hild, knocking her down in a series of violent strikes from her sword.

When she was done with her, she could see Spider Princess wrapping someone else in her webs and being distracted. Sensing an opportunity, she charged her in the back, but, at the last moment, her opponent ducked and threw her own katana to parry the sword. However, Morrigan riposted with a sudden gust of wind, making Spider Princess lose her footing before knocking her once and for all with an ascending strike. She looked at who the spider monster had captured, and started grinning manically: It was Ilias herself. The angel shook her head left and right, completely terrified.

"Come ooooon… Just a kiiiiiiss. It's your Day of Love, after all…"

Before Ilias could scream, Morrigan had wrapped herself around her opponent and was draining her energy. Once she was sure her victim was knocked unconscious, she slowly removed herself to be hit straight on by another small angel. The succubus struggled for a moment before realizing her opponent was already unconscious and had just been thrown by someone else. Once she freed herself, she discovered that say someone was none other than Sonya, who was sweeping at her with her large club. The attack hit, and threw the succubus across the arena before she nimbly landed on her feet. She looked around her. Only herself and Sonya were still standing.

"Come on! You're a pain in my ass!"

"I will show you what pain is with a good spanking!"

In the tribune, two men dressed in dapper suits were watching the show with great interest.

"Man, I didn't think they would go on that hard all that for one evening with Luka."

"Indeed… I am surprised your dear Sonya herself would be so violent either… Although I must say she's holding her own extremely well given the circumstances."

Lazarus sighed. "Can it old man… Did you bring the popcorn?"

"Of course." Merlin held out a small box filled to the brim with different finger foods. As they continued watching the show like everyone else, an unusually sensual voice echoed just behind them.

"Say, boys, you wouldn't mind sharing some of that with us, would you?"

"Please don't be rude! What did I tell you before entering?!"

The duo heard a small slapping noise and a yelp afterward. Merlin and Lazarus looked at each other and smirked as they checked the two beautiful, unusually conservatively dressed ladies behind them.

"Sure, help yourself. Charming ladies like you are a welcome sight for those old eyes."

"You're too cute…" One of the ladies giggled. "But I don't remember seeing you often there. It's your first you came to watch a match at the colosseum?"

"We have some family involved today, so it's a bit personal."

"What a coincidence! It's the same for us… Say… What are you doing once the show is over?"

"Nothing much… We're free if that's what you mean."

"Mmmh… In that case, would you be interested to spend the evening with us? We'll be at the bar."

"Sure, why not! …It looks like the show is almost over anyway… Aaaand it's a double knockout. Good job Sonya."

One of the women sighed heavily. "Come on, sister, you knew better than just rushing in… Well, we'll be waiting for you at the tavern. Don't leave us hanging…"

The colosseum slowly emptied, and the two men found themselves separated from the ladies. Lazarus used this opportunity to light himself a cigar.

"Man, that's a good day. Let's get to see those ladies again. I have a good feeling about this..."

"Shouldn't we be looking for master Luka first? The young man is nowhere to be found, and I came to hear that he was supposed to be a reward for the winner of this battle royale…"

Lazarus chuckled. "Leave it up to them to solve that one… And besides, I'm pretty sure he had some other plans and just forgot to tell us about it. He might even be on the road to defend the widow and the orphan…" He smirked lewdly. "And then getting it on with the widow…"

"How rude! He certainly doesn't act in that way!"

"Chill, old man, I was joking for the last part… But I'm sure he can handle himself, whatever this world throws at him. So let's get to that pub and relax, should we?"

"…Thinking about it, something about them reminds me of that legendary succubus Luka brought in after… Sonya's incident."

"That overpowered brat? You're shitting me. She's more vulgar and loudmouthed than I have to be during reunions. Those two are nothing alike."

"I know, but there's something…"

"Ignore that feeling old man, we're here to relax, we don't have guards or anyone like that behind us… Let's not keep them waiting."

Reaching the tavern itself only took them a few minutes. Curiously, save for the two ladies and the unusually floomy bartender, the place was completely empty.

"Man, I thought this place would be filled to the brim! Not that I can complain… So what can we offer you, ladies?"

"Mmmh… Let's start with something raw, but simple."

Lazarus raised an eyebrow. "Huh? Like what?"

"You."

The door instantly locked and a seal appeared on it. The next instant, the two ladies removed their disguised, and Lazarus and Merlin recognized Morrigan's infamous sisters. This time, the dons could only blame themselves for not picking on any of the numerous red flags that had permeated every single second between their encounter in the colosseum and this fatal moment.

"Oooooh, shhhhhhiiii-"

Further north, in Grand Noah's famous Magical Academy, Mephisto was comfortably lazing around on her chair, far from any disturbance usually brought by her students, her duties as Grand Noah's advisor, or the other residents of the Pocket Castle.

"Day of Love… My ass."

The yoma herself didn't see the utility for such a day… Were old believers in Ilias so dependent on their goddess that they had to ask for her authorization to love their so other more than her for a single day? Was her ego that frail that she considered that they had to ask her first?

She groaned when a magic missive arrived on her desk and interrupted her. Without surprise, they hadn't handled this story with Luka responsibly. At least, nobody got seriously wounded this time, although the next few days in the Pocket Castle would definitively be awkward.

Couldn't they just have done like her students and take this day as an opportunity to study the nature of love? Even Promestein was acting more reasonable in that regard.

She ground her teeth in frustration. At least, she didn't have to bear with anyone's teasing for her lack of lover this year. Even her students and the departed Monster Lord had gotten into this parody of mocking her last year. She had better to do than dealing with the drama intricate to relationships, and, in the end, she simply wasn't as big a hedonist as most monsters. She enjoyed available opportunities, but right now, she preferred being alone, and that paper was all but confirming her that those that chased a relationship for the sake of happiness had been thoroughly wrecked.

Mephisto got up from her comfortable chair and looked through the window. Sometimes the prize was simply not worth the effort. Maybe that lesson would eventually stick in their mind.

In the end she had no doubt that they would all be back to bickering faster than one could sneeze.

Maybe putting up a few more rules in place might become a necessity.

Ilias woke up in the early hours of the evening in the colosseum's infirmary, surrounded by healers. Her head and her arms were both covered in bandage, and several healers were milling around to make sure she was fine.

Her last memories involved that fight in the arena and getting trapped by Spider Princess before being… Incapacitated by Morrigan. She groaned as her body barely responded to her, and an horridly sweet taste was filling her mouth. That was not how this day should have happened! Those blasphemous monsters had disrespected the Day of Love she created. Those monsters had disrespected her! She looked around her and smirked: Every other participant from the colosseum was still unconscious. She slowly got up, still limp from the fight. Her supernatural healing skills would pick up the slack from her body soon enough. She only had to get Luka for herself now.

When she exited the infirmary, she almost ran into the Gran Noah Queen. The latter stepped back in surprise, but seemed unusually concerned, even after the latest events that had transpired.

"Ah! I initially wanted to ask Sonya, but maybe you can help me just as well… Do you have a minute?"

Ilias frowned. How did this human queen dare put up on the same level as a silly priestess? Granted, said priestess was Luka's childhood friend, and the queen herself was one of the four leaders of the human kingdoms, as well as one of the most reliable support in the Pocket Castle (which didn't mean much). Still, she relented, at least out of curiosity.

"Will it take long? I wish to see Luka as fast as possible."

"This is precisely about this matter… You see, we have no idea where he currently is. I searched through the Pocket Castle and asked several people, but I don't have a single clue as to where he could currently be. While the calm situation doesn't warrant his presence, I estimated that it was necessary to sooth the population's concern to show that he was alive and well as he was supposed to be the rewards for your tournament… Now, can you please bring me to him?"

Ilias' eyes widened in shock. Only then did she realize the issue with her master plan: Even if she had won the colosseum, even if she had removed every last one of Luka's competitor, even if she was the last woman on earth, her plan was for nothing: She had no idea where Luka simply was.

Ilias whimpered and slowly started inelegantly blubbering, something that surprised the Grand Noah Queen.

Her master plan, her beautiful master plan had failed because she had made one of the most basic mistake she could.

She didn't even know where Luka was.

For all she knew, he could be currently travelling, ignoring everything effort that she had deployed to get his attention, or, even worse, currently be copulating with one of those horrendous monsters.

Confused about what to do, the Grand Noah leaned down to be on Ilias' level and started patting her on the back.

And even further away, in a place that could only be reached in a few people, Luka himself was fully sunbathing on a lounge chair on a beach that was itself located in a place between dimensions. There was not a single intruder present, only a small but comfortable cabin with a large lounge chair in front of it, covered by the sound of waves crashing on the sand.

The hero looked on each of his side a bit awkwardly. White Rabbit and Reaper were cuddled up against him, the former purring regularly and the latter keeping her usual stone mask. He was still confused, as the White Rabbit had called him earlier that day for an "urgent mission born from an issue that required every bit of his attention", and then she asked him to show up in Hades. When he got to the pocket dimension, Reaper greeted him with her usual cold cordiality, and then guided him to this place where the White Rabbit herself was already waiting. He was given a "special" outfit that consisted in a bathing suit, and then…

"…Can you now please explain this to me?"

"…You still didn't figure this out? Sheesh, I knew heroes could be dense, but not quite on this level."

"I told you so."

"You're the one who came out with that idea! …Anyway, you know what day it is, right?"

"The Day of Love… And I'm afraid of the link."

Both monsters glared at him.

"Consider it a repayment for everything we did for you! With all the pain you caused us, this is the least you can do, don't you agree?"

Reaper approvingly nodded…

"…Then why don't you change of outfit too? I mean…" Luka hesitated. "You both look a bit overdressed."

"Do you think we can choose? We were born like that! You're so lucky to be able to dress up like you want!"

The hero shrugged, deciding to abandon this point and simply enjoy their calm attention while wondering what his other partners could be doing.

It didn't matter much. Right now, he was more focused by the pleasant sensation rising through him.

"…I might need to take a break inside."

"Awww… Already? Wants some company? After all, this is why we're here."

"I called in first round."

"Sheesh, fine, I'll get the second!"

Luka dramatically sighed, but he was actually quite happy with this little unexpected break. He hadn't planned anything for the Day of Love, as he knew beforehand that whoever wasn't chosen for this special day would make every effort to make it miserable.

If it had been at the beginning of his adventures, it could have been manageable. With three hundred monsters looking for him, however? This could only end very badly. Maybe he could officially announce going on dates with monsters he really disliked to get rid of them…

Luka shrugged. In the end it was only a small price to pay for having his very own harem.

"…How much damages are we talking about this year in term of cleaning?"

"I would say around fifty thousand gold."

"And the death toll?"

"Around fifty people, all regions mixed. Most were either sucked dry by succubi or by a partner who lost control."

"…And Luka?"

"He's fine."

"…"

"Should we proceed as usual? The artificial flood might look excessive, but if we let the situation be, the streets are going to reek for weeks."

"Please do so. Clean the streets, the inns, and let us forget this day as soon as possible."

"I agree."