After a period of cataclysmic events that almost saw its destruction, Cephiro finally had the chance to heal. The first week or so was spent waiting and getting ready, as the landmasses grew back. With almost twenty-five percent of Cephiro back, people started expanding away from the Sanctuary that had housed them for the past three weeks. While the outer edges of the planet were still barren and lifeless, grass and other forms of greenery were spreading quickly from the Sanctuary.
Hotaru, now recognized unanimously as the Hero of Cephiro after defeating Debonair, was shocked by the rapid growth of plant-life. He knew the world would be back to normal in about a year from prior knowledge, but seeing trees grow a foot per day was still unexpected. The growth was even more rapid in areas where there was flowing water. To improve the irrigation of Cephiro, Hotaru was tasked with digging trenches and ditches. For ordinary citizens these tasks would take days of backbreaking labor. But for Hotaru, using his Titanium Power and sometimes Mazdakin, it was as simple as drawing lines in sand with his rapiers.
As the world continued expanding and it took people longer and longer to return to their old home regions, Hotaru was called to help again. With Cephiro's artisans working together, they built Hotaru what could be called a toolbox. Instead of tools however, the building-sized box with a reinforced handle, housed dozens of seats with straps. With The Box, it took Hotaru but a few hours' worth of round trips to transport an entire village's worth of people across the seas. The seas which at this point in time were nothing but dry lowlands.
In one month, the planet of Cephiro had become whole again, which was more or less the amount of time it had taken for it to disappear. To help create connections between the different villages, Hotaru had been requested to flatten out areas for roads. Using his huge feet and scorching aura, Hotaru cleared the roads of vegetation, and used his strength to move and carve out mountains. Though his work was quick, it was the citizens of Cephiro who took on the meticulous task of paving them with stones.
As for Alcyone, it took her about a week longer than Hotaru, before she found out how to help with the rebuilding efforts. Using her magic gem and ability to teleport, she managed to transport materials and goods between locations almost instantly. Once the people started trusting the former villainess more, she was able to lend a hand with planning out medicinal herb gardens. In the evenings, Alcyone would take her time to either read or produce medicine in her and Hotaru's tent. Though Hotaru had wanted to lend a hand to her, she had requested to get to work alone, as she needed time for herself after socializing with people all day.
For Hotaru, who would mostly work alone in the grand scheme of things, most of his evenings were spent with the other former defenders of the Sanctuary. Joining Ascot, Caldina, Ferio, and Lafarga, they would often end up playing cards, or scavenging other games from Sanctuary's game room. While playing, they would exchange ideas and plans for the future.
With Presea and Sierra moving onto developing a new kind of magic item for Autozam, Caldina had to figure out a new business venture. As Lafarga and Caldina would be moving in together, Ascot had decided to go live with Ferio. To help the young summoner make a living, Hotaru had suggested making a petting zoo of sorts with his monsters.
As two months had passed, the vast majority of people had left Sanctuary and returned to their home regions. Some forms of plant life and flowing water had returned even to the most remote of areas, and continued spreading. Eventually oceans began to fill up, floating, crystal covered islands started appearing in the sky, and volcanoes started emitting smoke, signifying the return to norm. While buildings and villages were still under construction, the people of Cephiro felt comfortable in returning to their old lives.
Although life was finally starting to return back to normal on Cephiro, it didn't mean Hotaru was left without work. Fields needed clearing and plowing, trees cutting, holes digging, rivers redirecting, docks foundations, people transport, and…
"FIRE IN THE HOLE!"
…mountains blowing up.
Using his Uranium Cannon spell, Hotaru blew a large hole in the side of a rocky mountain range. As his spell hit the mountain, it blew up a large chunk out of its side, before penetrating deep into the stone. Large pieces of rock and debris flew directly at him, but with his fully evolved Double Armor's mask down and Tungsten Defense active, it was like a light drizzle to him.
He was currently visiting the region of Caterham, a remote mining community known for its rich ore veins. The vast and barren mountain range dominated the prairie-like region that had only recently started having flowing water and vegetation. Despite the less than fertile living conditions, there were hundreds of people present, all taking shelter at a safe distance from Hotaru.
As the dust settled, revealing a hundred feet deep cavern, the people threw all caution into the wind and rushed in. For within the cave, the twinkle of different ore veins was plain as a day to see. Gold, silver, iron, and many others that Hotaru didn't even recognize, were running along the sides of the hole he had made. As the people started celebrating, the village chief walked over to Hotaru. He was an old grizzled man with silver hair and a moustache, wearing a black, wide brimmed hat, and red workers clothes.
"I'll be damned, I haven't seen the mines in such luster in great many decades," the old chief said with a smile on his wrinkly face. "This could be the start of a new gold rush in these parts!"
"I guess it is true that all of Cephiro has returned," Hotaru smiled, lifting the mask of his helmet.
"Yes, unfortunately the same cannot be said about the people," the chief sighed melancholily, looking around at the citizens.
"…Want me to expand the mine further?" Hotaru asked, trying to cheer the old man up.
"No need!" the chief spoke out in a slightly nervous tone. "You've already saved us two months work. Besides, another blast like that might cause a collapse."
Smiling understandingly, Hotaru nodded, "You know better than I do. Cya."
Activating his Aluminum Flight spell, Hotaru flew high up into the air, before lowering his mask and activating Silver Speed. Flying at top speeds, Hotaru headed towards Ford Vale. Having flown back and forth across Cephiro for hundreds of times now, he had memorized most of the major landmarks on the planet. Due to the greenery constantly spreading, the view was always different, due to which he couldn't afford to worry about the small details. With Caterham being almost on the opposite side of Cephiro compared to Ford Vale, it took Hotaru nearly three hours to fly back home. On his way he did his best to avoid flocks of birds and other flying creatures, while also zigzagging between mountains. While he had promised Alcyone not to fly recklessly, as a high-speed impact with a mountain without Tungsten Defense would end him,he enjoyed testing his limits
As he saw the crystal castle in the distance, Hotaru slowed down before reaching the mountain range surrounding it. The sun was already starting to set, meaning he was late for dinner. While most people had already left the Sanctuary behind, a village had been founded in the smaller crystal towers surrounding the castle. These former guard towers were slightly cramped, but made for durable foundations to expand upon with rocks, clay, and wood. Although the castle was too big and heavy to be restored as of right now, the people were reluctant to abandon or demolish it completely. Hotaru had heard from Clef about either turning it into the next Royal Castle, or keeping it as a memorial for future generations.
Landing next to his and Alcyone's tent, Hotaru condensed his armor into a pair of gauntlets. As his body had grown during his armor's final evolution, all of his previous clothes had become too small for him. As such, multiple tailors and seamstresses had worked on his new outfit, as a thank you for saving their world. Although Hotaru had requested for durable clothes with the air of a merchant, the clothiers had apparently been unable to resist giving them a heroic flare.
He had been given a beige, reinforced yet decorative shirt, with a black, protective leather layer that extended around his upper back, shoulders, and upper chest. Running down the middle of it, all the way to his waist, were leather lapels, connected with several golden clasps. About three inches to the sides of them, there were wide, golden embroideries running down the front. The sleeves of the shirt were beige and quite simple, with wider, black sleeves covering the upper arms. As per Cephiroan traditions, two small silver pauldrons had been attached to the shoulders of the shirt, decorated with golden trims and small peridots.
While his pants and boots were simpler, they too were quite exquisitely decorated. His pants were made out of black cloth, with a silver scale pattern running down the sides of his thighs from his waist, with golden trims and details. His boots were black leather and reached his knees, with ornate metallic knee guards and toe caps, all with gold trims to match the rest of the set. They were laced from the sides with sturdy cord threaded through metallic, reinforced d-ring eyelets, decorated with small peridots.
Although he had been slightly embarrassed to wear them at the start, the people around him had gotten used to them quickly. Even with Alcyone already waiting for him outside, she seemed more interested in chatting with Clef, who had come to visit them. Although visits from the Master Mage weren't exactly rare for them, it was still surprising to see him. Without wasting a moment, Hotaru first greeted the fairer of the two.
"I'm home! How was your day, honey?" Hotaru embraced Alcyone, leaning in to kiss her cheek.
Chuckling lightly as her former master frowned for being ignored, Alcyone kissed him back on the lips, "It was a good day; five of the herb gardens I've planted are fully grown and I was able to harvest a lot of stock as a thank you from the villagers. But never mind that, Master Clef has some exciting news for us!"
Hearing Alcyone's enthusiasm, Hotaru turned towards the pintsized mage, "Oh? Let's hear it then."
Clearing his throat and calming down a bit, Clef spoke in a dignified manner, "Hotaru the Hero, after much consideration and discussions with Prince Ferio, we have agreed that it would be best for Cephiro, to appoint you as the new king."
"…Huh?" Hotaru's eyes widened and his expression froze up.
"Isn't that amazing!" Alcyone hugged him tightly, almost jumping for joy.
"B-But… Why me?" Hotaru asked, still overwhelmed and panicked by the news.
Easily able to see Hotaru's nervousness, Clef spoke calmly, "Because the people of Cephiro have great respect for you. You defeated Debonair, saved our world alongside the Magic Knights, twice, and have been constantly using your power to help everyone afterwards. Meaning in these trying times, you are the best candidate for our king."
"But what about Ferio?" Hotaru pointed out, trying to counter the Master Mage. "He is the brother of Princess Emeraude and knows the ways and traditions of this land far better than I do. I don't even know how the calendar works in this world…"
"Prince Ferio has already mentioned to me that he prefers you to become the king," Clef informed him with a sigh. "He thinks of you as more mature, responsible, and knowledgeable about the world than himself. Furthermore, after talking about it with Ferio, he says he wishes to live a quiet life after all that has happened."
Lazy bastard! So do I!
"…In addition," Clef continued professionally, "while Ferio is Princess Emeraude's brother, you are technically her direct descendant."
"Yes," Hotaru nodded slowly, "but being the descendant of Princess Emeraude also carries with it the implications of who the father was. I am not sure these people will want the son of Zagato running things."
"That may be true," Clef admitted, "but only a handful of people know about all three of your connections."
"But they are likely to find out," Hotaru raised his voice slightly. "Even now we are talking about this out in the open. Look, I appreciate the offer, but I am regretfully gonna have to refuse."
With Alcyone gasping behind Hotaru's back, Clef also seemed perturbed by this decision, "But Alcyone told me that you had direct interest in ruling the world. Why turn down the offer?"
"I turned it down twice already," Hotaru said, sighing and crossing his arms, trying to choose his words carefully. "I may have wanted to rule the world, but just like my uncle, I intend to enjoy living in it. Live and love with Alcyone, take it easy, be my own boss, spend time with my friends, raise a family, and so on. I don't think I can focus on being the king while doing all that, so I don't think I would be a good ruler."
Listening to Hotaru's reasoning and plans, Clef turned towards his former apprentice, "And what do you think, Alcyone?"
Leaning against Hotaru, Alcyone spoke in a sweet voice, "…If that is what Hotaru wants, then I will support him."
As an awkwardly stubborn silence fell upon the trio, Hotaru eventually spoke up, "Besides! It is not like Cephiro is in dire need of a king in the first place. We are only starting with the rebuilding; it is too early to start talking about the government."
"Maybe so…" Clef relented, before thinking for a moment. "…On another topic, Hotaru, what do you think we should do about the possibility of people from other worlds wanting to move into Cephiro, like Caldina did?"
Thinking about the question a quickly, Hotaru replied with another question, "How many people are still left on Cephiro?"
"Around six hundred thousand," Clef answered directly.
"…More than I thought," Hotaru admitted before continuing. "What was the total population before the wars?"
"There was no accurate census, but I think it was estimated to be around sixty million," Alcyone answered, to the best of her ability, looking deeply ashamed.
"…Didn't realize things were that grim," Hotaru thought out before clapping his hands together and speaking to Clef. "Anyway, in my old world, the number of people required for minimum viable population was around 160000 to prevent… extinction. While we have more than enough people, another potential disaster would spell doom for Cephiro."
"You believe there will be another disaster?" Clef asked, lowering his voice, as the young mage got more serious.
"I have no idea," Hotaru admitted shamelessly. "But it is always better to be prepared for a disaster than be surprised by one. I know we cannot exactly do background checks on the people who come, but I would feel more at ease if the population was in seven digits."
Calming down a bit after understanding the younger man's reasoning, Clef smiled, "It is precisely that level of forward thinking and insight why we asked you to be the king. I know you can feel nervous, but rest assured, we will all help you out."
Realizing Clef had lured him into a trap, Hotaru eventually sighed, "…I'll think about it. But I make no promises."
With the Master Mage saying his farewells and taking his leave, Hotaru and Alcyone withdrew to their tent for the evening. Alcyone had cooked and kept warm abatch of creamy and cheesy vegetable soup with finely diced veggies. A recipe she had come up with Stella. The flavor was nostalgic and brought bitter sweet memories, but due to their limited living-space, it was one of the few recipes they could cook. Sitting on the king-sized bed (which took up most of the tent space) while they ate, Alcyone complimented Hotaru's improvements in table manners. Hotaru in return thanked Alcyone for taking the time to cook for him, despite her busy schedule.
After the meal, the two of them headed for Sanctuary's western tower for a quick wash. As the bathhouse was open to the public, they had to bathe in separate sections of the two-story pool area. Cleaned up, they returned to their tent, feeling relaxed and deciding to turn in for an early night. As they lay on the last remnant of their old apartment in the light of a candle, they both stared at the roof of their tent. Though their current home wasn't as glamorous as the previous ones, it was the one they had shared the longest.
"Have any of the villages caught your fancy yet?" Hotaru asked Alcyone, holding her hand under the covers.
"No… I am starting to think we should try to make our home outside the villages," Alcyone answered, picturing their new home. "Have you found any cozy, remote but not inaccessible places while flying around?"
"Off-the-grid, huh? Well… there is this one place that comes to mind," Hotaru remembered back on his travels. "It is a nice mountainous area relatively close to several villages. It has a great view, a dense forest, a nearby lake, and something special."
"Something special?" Alcyone turned her head curiously.
"I'll keep it as a surprise," Hotaru winked.
There was a moment of calm silence as the two of them smiled at each other. The two of them had been searching for an ideal place to settle down to start out on their dream life, during their daily tasks. Even if the location was remote, it wouldn't be difficult for them to bring the people and materials required to build their home.
But as happy as they were, Hotaru could notice something bothering Alcyone, "Is something wrong?"
Slowly looking away from Hotaru, Alcyone eventually asked, "…Why did you turn down Clef's offer? I know you promised Stella not to rule Cephiro again, but she said she didn't want to deny you of your true nature."
Staring back at the ceiling again, Hotaru took a moment to gather his thoughts. It was clear Alcyone still wanted for him to be the king, but as much as Hotaru considered it, it just didn't feel right.
"I… I don't think I will be a good king," Hotaru admitted shamefully. "Not that I wouldn't be an effective one, but I'm more afraid I wouldn't be a moral one. People think of me as a hero, but I can still see the fear in their eyes when I do anything unheroic. And they're right to fear me."
Leaning closer to Hotaru until her head was resting on his left shoulder, Alcyone stroked his bare chest, "Fear and adoration are the two most powerful tools at a king's disposal. The fact you are powerful enough to truly earn them only makes you well suited."
"But that's not how I would want to rule," Hotaru countered, leaning his cheek against Alcyone's head. "…Not in this world. There are too many people I care about and don't want to lose their respect. Besides, I feel like the people of Cephiro need to be ruled by one of their own. There is so much about this world that I do not know, so I could end up making big mistakes or be misled."
"Maybe, but even Clef admires your foresight," Alcyone complimented him, nuzzling against his neck. "I have never seen Clef smile the way he did when you mentioned our need for immigrants in case of another disaster. I am sure that with me and others by your side, you would have all the knowledge you'd need."
Listening to Alcyone trying to build up his confidence, Hotaru sighed deeply, "The reason why I pointed that out to Clef, is because I am worried I myself might become the next disaster."
Raising his arm into the air and looking at his hand, Hotaru spoke out loud, "I have enough power that if I wanted to, I could wipe out all life on Cephiro, and no one could stop me. If I were to become the king and the people of Cephiro would dislike me, them trying to usurp me would be nothing short of a bloodbath. As such they would resortto less direct means, which would lead to me becoming paranoid. Considering how I treated Debonair, I am worried how I would deal with other people or nations that would earn my ire."
Heeding Hotaru's words, Alcyone started to finally understand Hotaru's point of view. While she would trust her very life to him due to the love they shared, she shuddered to think if they had remained enemies. Even if they were neutral, having someone like Hotaru as a king if she were but a peasant, would be daunting to say the least. Maybe Hotaru giving the people the façade of a benevolent protector instead of an unopposable ruler, was in the best interest of everyone.
"You've really thought this through," Alcyone smiled sympathetically.
"I've had two months to think about it."
Slowly curling her lips into an impish grin, Alcyone turned on her side, with her back away from Hotaru, "What will you do if someone else is appointed as the king?"
Turning on his side and spooning over Alcyone, Hotaru wrapped his arm around her waist, "I'll make sure they are a king I am happy with. I do not intend to let just anyyahoo rule the world I live in."
Leaning into Hotaru's embrace, Alcyone giggled happily, "Fufufufu, I guess some authority goes even beyond the crown."
With another peaceful night ahead of them, they blew out the candle and kissed good night.
The next morning started out the usual manner, with a quick visit to the Sanctuary for a morning wash and picking some fruits from the orchards. Finished with breakfast, Hotaru was about to take Alcyone with him to inspect the location he had talked about, when a number of people walked over to them. They were a motley crew of a dozen or so people of different ages, builds, and clothing styles. Most of these people they had never seen in their lives, but two of them they knew quite well.
"Presea, Sierra, it has been a while," Alcyone greeted her old acquaintances. "What brings you here?"
"Any progress on the magical batteries?" Hotaru asked, trying not to stare at the crowd behind them.
"Zazu is currently back on Autozam, to pick up some materials," Sierra answered, "so the whole thing is on hold."
Clearing her throat, Presea spoke in a formal manner, "In any case, we have heard about your… living conditions, and it seems you might need their help."
Turning towards the crowd, Presea extended out her hand to present them, "These are some of the remaining members of Cephiro's Builders' Guild."
While all the remaining people in the group shared the same profession, it couldn't be guessed at a first glance. There was a brunette man almost as tall as Hotaru with a large, wedge-shaped beard, and a leather apron. A middle-aged woman with a fancy purple dress and short, curly blonde hair. A short old man with grayish moustache, wide brimmed, black bowler hat and hunched over posture, using a hammer shaped cane. A blonde muscular man wearing a white, toga-like outfit with a gray and green shirt and shorts underneath it. A young green haired woman wearing brown leather boots, short shorts, a low crop shirt, and a leather harness on top of it. A middle-aged man with short black hair wearing an outfit of lavender silk wraps, and a pair of wooden sandals. A woman with paler skin and purple hair, dressed in an all-black suit without an undershirt, which Hotaru recognized as his own. A man wearing an elegant red outfit with the pelt of a white furred creature draped over his right shoulder, stepped forth from the crowd.
Placing his left hand on his chest, the brunette mustached man bowed politely, "Let me introduce myself. My name is Stelvio and I am the current head of the Builders' Guild. We, the remaining Master Builders of Cephiro would like to express our gratitude for saving the world, Mr. Hotaru, Lady Alcyone."
"You are welcome," Hotaru smiled, before tilting his head slightly. "I think I can already see where this is going."
"Most likely," Stelvio chuckled. "We simply could not believe our heroes were still living in a refugee tent. But as that is no mere rumor, we would like to extend our offer to build you your own home as a show of our gratitude."
Stepping up to the head of the guild, Alcyone spoke in a proud and firm tone, "Thank you for the offer, but we are not in need of charity. We are more than happy to pay for your labor."
While Alcyone's attitude could come across as haughty, Hotaru knew she was just reluctant to receive special treatment. Despite her noble background, Alcyone had wanted to distance herself from her roots, in order to better make up for her past sins. As there were only so many things she could do to help, she had refused gifts from citizens and discounts from merchants. However, Hotaru had no idea what Alcyone was planning on paying the builders with. They only had what remained of the ten thousand gold coins they had received from Hotaru's deal with Caldina, though maybe they didn't have to pay upfront?
Before Hotaru could request her to reconsider, the tallest of the builders poke up, "Nonsense! This isn't charity! This is about repaying debt! In these past two months, your husband has done the work that would take hundreds of laborers decades to complete!"
As Alcyone was blushing for him being called her husband, Hotaru interrupted with a wide smile, "You know you made itjustin time! Alcyone and I were just about to head over to see an area where we are planning to build our home!"
"In that case, may we please come and inspect it as well?" The woman in a purple dress spoke out in a dignified manner. "We need to establish if the location is good for laying a foundation."
"Of course, we'll take The Box."
Arriving at the western edge of the vale, Alcyone and the builders walked inside the toolbox shaped building. The building was quite cozy from the inside, despite only having black leather seats and straps for furnishings. The windows at the front, back, and roof of the house gave plenty of light, and the air smelled of freshly lacquered wood. The seats in the house were arranged in three tiers, with each row facing another. Sitting down on the lowest row opposite to the purple-haired female builder, Alcyone eyed out her outfit.
"Nice suit," Alcyone complimented her.
"Thank you," the woman smiled pleasantly. "I found it left behind in the Sanctuary. Never seen anything quite like it, but I knew it would suit me."
"Well at least you are honest about stealing it," Alcyone smirked, seeing the woman turn pale. "But do not worry, Hotaru outgrew it already, so I am sure he will let you keep it."
Once everyone was sitting and strapped in, Hotaru activated his Titanium Power spell, before lifting the house by its handle. Seeing their hero grow three times theheight of a Mashin and taking his leave once more, many of the people of Ford Vale commune waved him off. Knowing how easily his passengers could get airsick, Hotaru carefully gained altitude while keeping the house steady. Once he was flying higher than the tops of the Sanctuary's towers, he held the house with both hands, before slowly accelerating to hyper-sonic speeds.
As he flew across the continent, the scenery around him changed quickly. Flying up high, he saw large valleys of curving mountains and crystals. Rainforests with huge rivers flowing through them with large orchids in the tree canopies. Grasslands dotted with thin and tall mountains with bird's nests on their sides. Floating islands with large crystals on top, some of which had long fruit bearing vines hanging off of them. As they eventually reached the ocean, Hotaru realized they had gone too far, and made a wide turn at the shore.
Flying back a bit, they eventually came across a set of five mountains. Four of the mountains were in a row, facing towards the ocean. The fifth mountain was behind the other four further inland, with a sloping, forest covered plateau between them. Together, the mountains formed the shape of a clawed left hand, with the plateau acting as the palm. To the east of the thumb, there was a large lake formed of two circular shapes, with an island in the middle of the larger circle.
Landing on a large rocky platform halfway up the "thumb", Hotaru placed down The Box gently, before shrinking back to his normal size. Opening the door for the passengers, Hotaru had to move out of the way, as the youngest of the women staggered out with wobbly legs. The rest of the Master Builders seemed to be in good condition, and began to observe the location right away. As Alcyone walked out, her eyes were immediately clued in on the middle of the platform.
"Hotaru… is that a hot spring?" Alcyone asked, gasping eagerly.
Smiling widely, he nodded, "That's right."
At the side of the mountain, there was a small wellspring that pumped out boiling hot water. The water then flowed across the rocky platform, in a thin, snaking, naturally carved trench, cooling it off, before reaching a basin. The teardrop-shaped basin was located near the middle of the platform, being deeper at the rounded end and shallower near the tip. While the basin was much smaller than the women's bath in the Sanctuary, it was still quite sizable, enough to house all thirteen people present. From the tip of the tear drop, the excess water flowed to another trench, over the edge of the platform, creating a thin but tall waterfall.
With Alcyone being over the moon about the inclusion of the hot spring, Hotaru turned to the builders, "So what do you think? A prime location for a mountain top castle, am I right?"
"The area is fine," the toga wearing blonde man replied while tapping the ground with his foot, "but I am not too sure about the mountain."
"Agreed," the woman in the purple dress spoke out. "While the mountain isn't exactly unstable, I doubt it could take the weight of any large buildings. The fact that there is a hot spring up here speaks volumes of its internal structure."
With cold water getting dunked over their fantasies, Hotaru and Alcyone were more than a little disgruntled.
"Would it not be possible to reinforce the mountain somehow?" Hotaru asked. "Like by using enchantments or such?"
"Only the Pillar would have such reality altering powers," the old man with the cane spoke out, tapping at the ground, inspecting for cracks, "If you want reinforcements, the entire mountain would have to be reinforced from each side to prevent a collapse."
"Alcyone, do you have any ideas?" Hotaru asked, not wanting to desert the location he had chosen.
"…I have nothing. Also, there might be a chance that the constant stream rising from the hot spring could cause mold to grow…" Alcyone said, thinking about it more carefully.
"That we could prevent with proper material and ventilation planning," the black-haired man in purple robes pointed out. "However, this mountain is still not an ideal place to build upon."
As Hotaru and Alcyone were trying to wrack their brains, the youngest of the builders spoke up, "What about down there?"
Seeing the brown dressed girl looking over the edge of the platform, the rest of the group walked over to her. All they saw below them was a coniferous forest that cascaded down the mountain side, towards a deciduous forest in the central plateau. However, there was quite a generous section of flat, higher ground between the thumb and the plateau, hidden by the coniferous trees.
Walking a sloped path down the mountain, the group slowly and carefully made their way to the upper section of the forest. The coniferous forest was quiet and tranquil, as well as densely grown, to a point where it was hard to see forward. While they heard no birdsong, they could see small animals scurrying about the forest floor.
Tapping his cane against the ground, the old man nodded approvingly, "This ground is fertile, but also solid. No danger of a mudslide or a rockslide."
"We'll have to cut down some trees, but this should do nicely," the largest of the builders said. "How much greenery do you want to remain?"
With Hotaru turning towards her, Alcyone answered, "While I would like to preserve its natural beauty, I think I'd rather enjoy the view with vegetation of my own choosing. Clear it all up."
"That is a shame, but at least these will make for good lumber," Stelvio stroked his mustache, looking at the trees.
"A woman of refined taste makes her own environment," the black-clad woman smiled.
"So have you yet decided what style you wish to go with?" the woman in purple dress asked authoritatively. "May I suggest Vauxhall style architecture? It is elegant, ornate, yet not overbearing."
"If you had your way, every house on Cephiro would be Vauxhall style!" the toga wearing man spoke out. "Two heroes of their status deserve nothing more than a bold and sturdy Lamborgian style home!"
"Personally, I think a Benzian style would fit this natural location the best," the largest builder mused, stroking his beard.
"You need to think of both the location and the customer," the purple-haired woman pointed out. "A secluded and mysterious location like this with such high-profile customers of exquisite taste, calls for a Morganian manor."
"I think Roluxian would also work," the youngest of the builders pointed out cheerfully. "It may be simple, but it is easy to expand once they start having additions to their family."
"Mitsubian style is the only correct option when cutting down so many trees!" the dark-haired man announced proudly.
"I thought a nice romantic Fiatian style would be good for them…" Stelvio suggested politely.
"Plasson! Bugattian! Alvian! Seatian!" the rest of the builders yelled over them.
As the group of professional builders started yelling and shouting about what the best style was, Alcyone and Hotaru slowly turned towards each other. They both pleaded with the other to help out in breaking the fight, but neither of them knew what to go with either. Alcyone couldn't decide and Hotaru had no idea what any of them were talking about. None of them had any visual aides on them for obvious reasons, and hearing about their history would do him no good.
After finally breaking up the fight, Hotaru took a moment to think about his options. To get a better understanding, Hotaru requested the builders to give detailed explanations of each architectural style. The explanations varied from simple, to romanticized, to extremely verbose, with corrections and objections being yelled every five minutes or so. After three hours of listening to the explanations and what the differences were, Hotaru's brain was starting to turn to mush.
As such, to get everyone to calm down, Alcyone suggested a picnic. She hadn't prepared food, but as their tent didn't have much room, she essentially carried an entire kitchen within her magic gem. Pots, pans, ingredients, as well as a simple iron travel stove. Since they were out in nature, it was easy for everyone to gather firewood as well as some mushrooms and some game. With Alcyone's ice magic, getting fresh water was all but assured, albeit it took some time to boil. While the Master Builders weren't exactly avid hunters, they knew enough to tell Hotaru how to get clean kills on the tastiest animals. So that they wouldn't have to sit on bare ground, the male builders cut down one of the trees. After sawing the log into suitable seats, they topped them off with moss to prevent the sap from getting to their clothes. With the female builders helping her, Alcyone was able to cook a generous spread for thirteen people. The feast consisted of soup, spit-roast, stuffed mushrooms, skewers, and salad. With Alcyone's knowledge of herbs and spices, the simple foods gained an appetizing aroma that mixed well with the scents of the coniferous forest.
"Praises to the chef!" the builders said their grace.
With the food ready, everyone started eating hungrily, though they couldn't be blamed. The sun was already starting to set, with no one still any closer to figuring out what style Hotaru's and Alcyone's home should be. As he was eating the leg of a round, snout-less boar-like creature, Hotaru couldn't help but chuckle, thinking back on the day they had spent.
Although they spent hours bickering, as soon as they started working together, they all helped each other without issue. They may be passionate but know the importance of getting the job done. I guess none of them would get angry if we chose one style over another, but I really want to let everyone show off their skills and know what each style looks like… So why not do that?
Leaning over to Alcyone who was sitting next to him, Hotaru whispered his plan to her ear. Giving her a moment to think about it, Alcyone then whispered back, causing Hotaru to explain himself. Eventually, Alcyone nodded approvingly.
Putting down the boar leg, Hotaru stood and spoke up, "Attention everyone! We have figured out a solution!"
With the builders still eating, they turned towards Hotaru, with varied expressions from annoyed to expectant.
"Instead of a castle, we request of you to build us a country house. The mansion will be split into several sections, each one built in a style of your choosing," Hotaru explained.
Swallowing before speaking, Stelvio spoke up, "While that is quite the generous compromise, mixing up that many building styles would… how to say it…"
"Lookridiculous," the old man blurted.
"What he is trying to say," the toga wearing man raised his voice, "is that you do not have to make compromises for our sake. We are happy to let you take your time to choose a style for your dream home."
"But that is the thing!" Hotaru pointed his finger up with a confident smile. "This willnotbe our dream home. This will be our homebeforethat!"
"Why not just go for your dream home straight away?" the young female builder asked, a little bit of soup over her upper lip.
Having put down her cutlery, Alcyone stood up as well, "Because whatwedream of is so grand in scale that it would be sheer cruelty to expect you to build it for free. This will be our home for a while and we will use it to get to know each architectural style very closely. Once we have the funds and feel ready to move again, we will ask you to build the real deal."
The builders looked at each other for a while, considering the suggestion. As none of them could find any further objections, they all only had one question left.
"How do we decide who gets to do what section?" the old man asked.
Walking over to the old man, Hotaru grabbed his bowler hat, revealing his bald head, "By an impartial selection."
By drawing the rough outline of the country house on the ground with Hotaru's rapier, the mansion was split into eleven sections. The main building would be in the back of the mansion, with a gate house directly across it on the other side of a large courtyard. On the right side of the mansion from the gate house to the main building, the sections would be: storehouse, kitchen, scullery, and bathhouse. On the left side, the sections were: stables, servants' quarters, guest house, and a tower for Alcyone to practice her craft and make medicine.
With the different sections decided upon, Alcyone pulled out a piece of paper, cut it to pieces, and wrote the names of the sections onto them. Placing the folded-up paper clippings into the old man's hat, each of the builders pulled their target from it one at a time.
Going first, Stelvio looked at his paper piece, "Ah… the kitchen, the heart of the home."
"Storehouse, simple enough," the bearded giant mused.
"Scullery? Drat…" the purple dressed lady clicked her tongue.
"SCORE! I got the main building!" The man in the toga jumped for joy.
"…I got the courtyard…" the dark-haired man frowned before sighing deeply.
Walking over to the man in lavender silks, Hotaru wrapped his arm over his shoulders before pulling him aside, "Don't you fret. I've got a special assignment for you."
With everyone given their respective section of the country house to complete, everyone was roaring to get started. When Hotaru asked what the first task would be in the building process and the builders replied cutting down the trees, he acted quickly. Pulling out a miniature version of his Titan Slicer, Hotaru swung a powerful sideways wind cutter to fell fifty trees in a single swing. The builders had quickly told him to stop, as they first needed time to secure the materials and draw some plans.
After stacking the felled trees into a pile, Hotaru had brought The Box down for everyone to get inside for a return journey. Although Hotaru had offered to take each builder back to their home villages, everyone had insisted on being brought to the Builders' Guild's headquarters in the village of Chevrolet. As it was getting late, Hotaru and Alcyone returned to their tent near the Sanctuary.
The next day started out with tempered excitement for Cephiro's number one power couple. While Alcyone and Hotaru were excited about soon getting to live in a mansion instead of a tent or apartment, they knew it would take a while. The builders had estimated the work to take about a month with Hotaru's and Alcyone's help, but no consensus on the design phase. They discussed if they should move their tent over to the mountains and live next to the hot spring. However, while lack of privacy was an issue, the benefits of living near the Sanctuary outweighed the cons. Freely available food, bathrooms, and night time lighting from the glowing crystal castle, were all something they would sorely miss in the woods.
This however didn't mean they couldn't enjoy the benefits of their new home yet. After finishing their breakfast, Alcyone was just about to leave the tent, as Hotaru sprung up behind her.
Placing his hands on her shoulders, Hotaru whispered, "Want to go and take a trip to our hot spring today? I doubt anyone else will be in the area…"
Leaning the back of her head against his chest, Alcyone politely refused, "That would be nice, but I would rather save our first dip for when our country house is finished. Besides, I have some work to do today."
"That's shame, but I guess it will be worth waiting for," Hotaru chuckled. "What do you have planned out?"
"Well, since people won't always be in need of medicine, we need another source of income," Alcyone explained, now fully leaning against Hotaru. "While you were still unconscious, Hikaru gave me an interesting idea."
"Hikaru?" Hotaru raised an eyebrow, as she was the last person he would expect Alcyone to take advice from.
"That's right," Alcyone nodded, smiling smugly at Hotaru's reaction. "She asked me if I knew how to make candy, as she wanted to make up with that tall Autozamian man for eating his. I asked her why she expected me to know how to make candy and she explained that in your world, apothecaries used to make and sell candy."
Listening to Alcyone's explanation, it took Hotaru for a moment to understand everything, "…Huh, I didn't expect her to be aware of that piece of history. But yes, that is true."
"I figured that I could get into making sweets as a side business in addition to medicine making. A lot of the herbs, spices, and medicinal plants used for making medicine can also be used as flavoring for candy," Alcyone explained knowledgeably. "Plus, with your knowledge of the other world, we can have Mokona give us flavors the Cephiroans don't even know about!"
"That could be very profitable," Hotaru stroked his chin, thinking of all the various possibilities, before hugging her close. "I am sure your candies will be just as sweet as you are~."
Chortling slightly at his flirting, Alcyone looked up at him, "What? You mean an acquired taste?"
"And what a delicious taste it is~," Hotaru spoke sensually before kissing her on the lips.
Feeling Alcyone's tender lips against his own, Hotaru's heart was filled with joy to have such an industrious woman. But even as Alcyone wrapped her slender arms around his neck, he couldn't shake the feeling of leeching off of her hard work and innovation. As such, he felt the need to hasten his plans a bit.
Breaking from the kiss, Hotaru smiled while looking into her indigo eyes, "But, if you are planning on expanding your sources of income, I guess I should also start putting food on the table."
Smiling gently at him, Alcyone reminded him, "But Hotaru, I've told you that you don't—"
Placing his finger on her lips, Hotaru smirked back, "I know, but it just so happens I have figured out a way for us to earn some serious cash flow by honest means."
With her eyes widening from surprise and wariness, Alcyone leaned further back, "What exactly do you have planned?"
"Simple," Hotaru grinned, "I'm going to start a subscription service."
In the village of Daihatsu, the recently elected village chief Terios was spending a normal day in his office at the town hall. The town hall was a simple wooden building with a stone foundation and tiled roof, which had housed most of the villagers during the first couple of weeks. Due to this, the space remaining for Terios's office was quite cramped, but it was still enough to get his job done. He had a sturdy wooden desk, two bookshelves, and a wooden coffee table. In addition to the simple décor, he also had three upholstered floating armchairs, as well as a crystal couch that had been salvaged from the Sanctuary.
The village had been one of the first to be built after the abolishing of the Pillar system, giving it plenty of time to develop and grow. With new houses being built every day and farmers producing crops, things were starting to look up for the villagers. This however added to Terios's workload, as he needed to keep track of the villagers' wages and taxes. In the future, when the village would grow into the town it used to be, he hoped to be able to have secretaries and accountants to do the work for him.
But for now, he had to make due with what little he had, and the shortage of paper available wasn't helping. As such he was forced to do most of the math in his head, or carve numbers into his desk or other pieces of wood. Whittling on a piece of wood was something he quite enjoyed, but he knew he would have to write the calculations down again once they did have some paper.
He was about to cut his own finger, as there was a knock on the door, "Ow! …Who is it!"
"Terios," the timid voice of his wife was heard from behind the door, "you have some guests…"
Realizing he may have scared his wife, Terios knew he would need to apologize once he got home, "Alright, send them in. Not like the door is locked…"
Upon his door opening, Terios's eyes widened as he quickly realized why his wife had sounded so nervous. A man over a foot taller than him in fancy black, beige, and gold clothes entered his office, followed by a woman in similarly colored, revealing outfit. Compared to the middle-aged village chief's plain lilac tunic and orange pants, he felt sorely out of place. Getting over the shock of their appearances, Terios recognized the man who had transported the villagers here and the sorceress with him.
"H-Hotaru! What a surprise! What brings you here?" Terios asked, standing up. "Please, have a seat…"
While Alcyone elegantly sat down on one of the floating armchairs in front of Terios's desk, Hotaru picked up the heavy crystal couch with one hand. After swapping the too-small floating chair with the couch, Hotaru sat down, leaning against one of the armrests and crossing his right leg. While Terios had nothing against him switching to a more comfortable seat, the speed and swiftness he did this left both him and Alcyone speechless.
"Now then, Terios was it?" Hotaru asked with a wide smile. "Congratulations on getting to be the village chief and good job on rebuilding. You are way ahead of many of the other villages."
"Uh… thank you very much," Terios smiled back awkwardly while nodding, before finally sitting back down. "So, what brings you here? If you don't mind me asking! …Again!"
"We would both like to know that…" Alcyone whispered under her breath.
"Well, you see my good friend," Hotaru addressed the chief in a loud voice, "Cephiro is starting to require less and less of my services in terms of rebuilding, so I need a new way to occupy myself. Since I need to keep putting my powers to good use, I was thinking of starting monster hunting."
"M-Monster hunting?" Terios blinked confused. "I mean… that makes sense! With you around the monsters have no chance! But…"
"Isn't that an incredibly unstable income?" Alcyone pointed out, seeming a bit concerned. "You only get paid by the monster, and I doubt there will be that many monsters around with Cephiro being stable as is."
"True. That's true," Hotaru nodded along. "But, consider me an entrepreneur and a philanthropist."
"Phil- what?" Terios blinked confused.
"To make my job as a monster hunter more beneficial to both the village and myself, I have a suggestion," Hotaru explained. "Instead of paying me per monster, I request you to pay me per month. With this monthly payment, I will be obligated to defend the village from every monster that attacks."
"…Naruhodo," Terios nodded along, stroking his short beard. "…But what about months when there are no monster attacks?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Hotaru spoke bluntly, "You will still pay me. In return, if there were to come a month when there are several monster attacks, you don't pay extra."
"Isn't that… a gamble then?" Terios asked, starting to understand the risks and benefits. "There haven't been any new monster attacks since Cephiro began to rebuild itself. People aren't afraid anymore so no new monsters are being born."
"Yes, but that is because people are currently preoccupied with getting their lives together," Hotaru pointed out, straightening his leg and leaning forward. "Besides, that is only around these parts. In the more remote areas of Cephiro, there have already been a couple of monster sightings."
"There have?" Alcyone and Terios asked simultaneously.
Hotaru nodded, "That's right. Now, I am not saying the same will happen here all of a sudden. But eventually, when people settle in and start living their day to day lives, new monsters might start popping up. This is a brand new Cephiro without the Pillar, being upheld by hundreds of thousands of hearts. There are no guarantees about how commonplace monsters might become."
Seeing the village chief start sweating slightly, Hotaru spoke in a lighter tone, "Granted the number of attacks may be even lower than previously, leading to even greater developmental growth of Daihatsu. But that is only if the villagers feel safe. And what better way to make them feel safe, than knowing that the Hero of Cephiro is there to protect them~."
While Terios was taken aback by the Hero of Cephiro phrasing his offer in such a manner, he couldn't fault him for it. While expecting payment for their work wasn't very heroic, even heroes needed money. Furthermore, having the guaranteed protection of the most powerful man on Cephiro, would indeed keep the citizens at ease. Being the village chief, Terios if anyone knew how terrifying Cephiro's unknown future was, for it was he who was meant to prepare for it. But before he could make his decision, there was one thing he needed to know.
"How much?" Terios are asked carefully. "I will be allocating the village's funds for this, so there is only so much I can afford."
With a straight and honest face, Hotaru smiled, "Five hundred gold coins per month. But, if you accept my offer now, you will only have to pay four hundred per month for the first year."
"Four hundred!?" Alcyone and Terios yelled again, causing the village chief's eyes to widen, "That's… That's not much more than what tradesmen earn per month. Even at five hundred that is only as much as a single monster-kill during Emeraude's reign… are you sure it will be enough?"
"Certainly," Hotaru nodded with a warm smile. "I am a hero after all. Though I will ask you to pay me up front for the first month."
With a deal struck, Terios quickly gathered the funds, handing Hotaru a medium sized bag of gold coins. Storing the gold into one of his gloves, Hotaru and Alcyone bid the village chief a farewell, before leaving the office. Once outside the town hall, they were greeted with the sight of a bustling village in the middle of expanding, with young children playing outside in the sunlight. Despite the sight of so much life after years or war and struggle, Alcyone couldn't feel at ease.
"Hey… are you sure about this, Hotaru?" Alcyone asked. "Four hundred gold per month isn't all that much to go with, if we want to save up for our dream home."
"…I know I could ask for more, but I don't want to bleed these good people dry," Hotaru smiled gently, before turning to Alcyone. "Besides, the good thing about subscription services is that there will always be as much supply as there is demand."
Furrowing her brow in confusion, Alcyone's eyes widened as she understood what he meant, "…You mean you will request other villages to pay for their protection as well?"
"Correct. With the monster attacks being on the low, I might as well provide my services to as many villages as possible," Hotaru pointed out. "With this I get to fly around Cephiro and smash any monster that I come across. I get a reason to leave the house, some exercise, and paid as well. It is a triple win!"
Looking at him suspiciously, Alcyone asked skeptically, "And how many villages do you think will agree to this double-timing protection racket you will be running?"
"…Twenty… villages," Alcyone stared up at the sky tiredly, while being carried through the air.
With Hotaru carrying Alcyone in his arms while flying, the two of them had visited every village near the site of their future home. Near being relative to the fastest living being of Cephiro, as this included all the villages within a thousand kilometers. While not all of the villages had agreed to it from the get go, Hotaru's negotiation skills had eventually won over the governing seats of each village. Furthermore, all of them had paid the four hundred gold coins of the subscription cost at the start, meaning their current funds had almost doubled.
Although she had been carried by Hotaru when traveling and stayed quiet when he talked, Alcyone was exhausted after all the negotiations. Some of the talks had taken close to an hour and as soon as they had finished, Hotaru had flown them to the next village without rest. Had it not been for the snacks some of the village chiefs and councils had prepared, she probably would have been starving as well. By the time they finally returned to their tent, the sun had set ages ago.
As Hotaru laid her down on the bed, Alcyone looked at him amazed, "I can't believe you found a way to make eight thousand gold coins per month…"
"Ten thousand when the next year rolls around," Hotaru smiled cockily, taking off his gloves and placing them on the night stand. "I don't know how much it will cost to build our dream home, but I am sure we will have enough in a few years."
"…Are you sure you will be able to handle protecting so many villages?" Alcyone asked, slightly worried for her beloved. "I am glad we have so much disposable income, but I don't want you to overwork yourself or anything…"
Taking off his clothes and folding them neatly into the drawers of the nightstand, Hotaru smiled, "Don't worry, it is not like I am taking it upon myself to protect the entire planet, or that each village will be attacked every day. I might expand to more villages later, but first I will see how I will fare with the current ones."
As Hotaru laid down next to her, Alcyone retracted her evolving armor into her gem, before leaning against him, "Do you really think there will be more monsters now that Cephiro no longer has a Pillar?"
"Maybe, but I doubt it will be as much as when Cephiro was collapsing," Hotaru answered confidently, before turning towards Alcyone. "Now, you said you were going to start making candy, correct?"
"Yes?" Alcyone looked at him innocently.
"Then let me have a taste of your goods~," Hotaru said suggestively, before leaning in to kiss her neck.
"Ah! Hotaru…" Alcyone groaned, feeling his hands firmly trail down her body under the blanket.
With their housing and money worries behind them, Alcyone and Hotaru spent a night of passion.
For the next two weeks, Alcyone and Hotaru mostly spent time together, taking things easy and focusing on enjoying life. To familiarize themselves with the area of their future home, they spent time wandering the mountains, woods, and exploring the lakes and the seashore beyond the mountains. They revisited the different towns to check if there had been attacks, as well as to spend their money to help the local bakeries, bars, and vendors.
When he had the time and desire to be alone, Hotaru would visit the site of their future home to cut down more trees. Taking his time and trying different methods and weapons, it still took Hotaru only two hours to have all the trees cut down. To give himself more to do, he cut off the branches and sawed the trees in half to stack them better.
During his multiple journeys back and forth, Hotaru spotted and chased down three monsters. Knowing some monsters were naturally born from Cephiro and not out of people's fears, he had made sure to approach the monsters peacefully at first. All three of them had attacked him without provocation and had left no traces of black blood upon eradication. Although the idea that monsters still existed in his personal paradise, somewhat saddened Hotaru, it did mean two things. One, he wasn't just scamming people out of their money, and two, he had something to indiscriminately use his powers on.
As the two weeks were up, Hotaru and Alcyone were contacted by the Builders' Guild. They had finished drawing the plans for the different sections of their country house and were ready to start building. With Alcyone and Hotaru helping Stelvio and others to transport materials, the Master Builders were able to work without interruptions. Using magic, they levitated and connected pieces of the buildings, as well as cut the materials in correct shapes and sizes. Although the builders preferred to work unsupervised, Hotaru couldn't help but follow the building process while hovering in the air above them.
While their house was made out of stone, wood, metal, and clay instead of magical crystals like the Sanctuary, there was still plenty of magic being used. Several light fixtures were connected via a remote system of light and control crystals. Instead of plumbing, water was produced, heated, and cooled down via magical gems, which were placed throughout the mansion. The water was also used to flush refuge outside and down into the forest below, away from the lake. Ventilation worked mostly the same as in Hotaru's old world, but was improved by urns that sucked in particles in the air, such as dust and pollen. The builders were also given permission to experiment with a new heating system, a feature that had gone undeveloped during the reigns of the Pillars. Now that the world was new and unknown, Hotaru and Alcyone decided it was best to be prepared in case cold nights returned.
As Hotaru studied Cephiroan architecture, Alcyone was giving insight and guidance on the inner courtyard and the gardens surrounding the mansion. Picking out the right trees, flowers, herbs, Alcyone worked together with the dark- and purple-haired builders to make the most out of the mansion's greenery. While she wanted to grow plenty of materials for her medicine making and experiment, she also wanted to be able to enjoy and relax in her personal grove. By Hotaru's request, she also left some land open a bit further away, west of the mansion, to be used as farmland.
Although the Master Builders had estimated the work to take a month, they managed to finish work in just over two weeks. With the servants' quarters and guest house being built ahead of time, the builders were able to sleep on the worksite comfortably. With the kitchen and the bathhouse finished, their day to day lives became even more efficient. The last part of the country house to be finished was the main building, as its size and scale made it difficult for one builder to finish. But with everyone's help, the mansion in the hand-shaped mountain range was finally complete, with each section thoroughly unique.
The gate house was wide, beautiful and detailed, built mostly out of marble with glorious arches and ornately carved pillars. The Beaux-Arts style building had a large entrance to the courtyard covered by an iron gate, with a curved, oxidized copper roof. On both sides and above the gate, there were small reinforced rooms for controlling the gate and its defenses.
To the right of the gate house were the stables, which were made with skilled and decorative redbrick work and ornate masonry. The Jacobean style stables had three entrances, surrounded by round-arch arcades, and the roof was flat with openwork parapets. Instead of defensive reasons, the parapeted roof was intended as a patio, with a staircase leading up to it from the courtyard.
The servants' quarters were a simplistic, Colonial Revival style building with white wooden walls in the front, and a gray stone wall at the back. It had a red gambrel roof with broken pediments, walls with symmetrical facades, and fanlight and sidelight windows. It was two stories tall with a raised floor and steps leading up to the door. Three small balconies on the upper floor facing in different directions.
Past the servants' quarters was the guest house, which was the completely opposite of the former. The three-story Queen Ann style house was built out of multiple different materials and was packed with features from all sides. Its walls were dark gray plaster, with olive green frames and white wall carved pillars and supports, with multiple different textures. Its many overhanging roofs were made out of black shingles and its numerous different shaped windows and bay windows had dark green frames. It had towers with both conical and pyramidal roofs, and a huge veranda surrounded by intricate white and olive pillars and balustrades.
The guest house would have looked overbearing, had it not been for the five-story tall, stone and crystal tower next to it. Its walls were made out of silvery-gray stone and pinkish purple crystal, with golden trims. The packed-with-detail Churrigueresque style alchemy tower was covered in ornately carved arcades, arches, and even statuettes. It had thin emerald-cut windows running along the side, and several round pinkish purple gems decorating and giving color to the smaller details. The base of the tower was rectangular in shape, with a circular middle, and an octagonal top that flared out. The roof of the tower was domed with crystal spikes protruding through it, with a miniature spire at the top of it. The base of the tower was connected to the guest house with an arched walkway, with a smaller iron gate below it.
On the left side of the gate house was the storehouse, with a red brick built lower floor and a white masonry wall with black timber framed upper floor. The Tudor styled storehouse was quite large, enough to store food and other supplies for long periods of time. Its roof was made out of large slate tiles and had a weathervane on the southern tip. On the northern wall of the storehouse's second floor, there was a lowerable ramp that was currently hoisted up.
Next to the storehouse was the kitchen, which was a cozy two-story building with white masonry walls and red brick tile roofs. The Mediterranean style building had large arched doors and windows on the bottom floor and large open square windows on the second floor. The kitchen had several chimneys and flowering vines and ivy growing up the walls, all but creeping through the glass doors and windows.
Past the kitchen was the scullery that shared many similarities with the guest house, but was simpler and more elegant. For a building meant for washing dishes and laundry, the Victorian style building still seemed overly lavish. The lower floor was made with gray bricks and marble arches and pillars, with the second floor having purple wooden walls with white window frames, edges, and decorations. The dark purple slate roofs had several sharp angles and even two round spire tops. The front of the house had a large and wide terrace on the second floor, with several clotheslines.
Next to the scullery and opposite to the alchemy tower was the bathhouse, which was another case of ornate stonework. The combination of Greek and French Renaissance created an opulent, two-stories-tall white and gold building with a curved cobalt blue roof. The bathhouse had colorful stained-glass windows with golden frames, and plenty of carved, statuesque pillars. The walls were covered in intricate marble facades, and there was a miniature grand staircase leading up to the door. The second floor had a closed up arched walkway, similar to the one between the guest house and the alchemy tower, with a gate beneath it.
At the other end of the walkway, between the alchemy tower and the bathhouse, was the mansion's main building. Four stories tall, the rectangular main building was less ornate than some of the surrounding sections of the mansion, but much sturdier and heavier in its façade. The walls were made out of large grayish brown stone bricks with arched window frames and heavy-set stone window sills that wrapped around the entire building. The first floor was wider than the higher ones, with a wide-open air terrace that overlooked the courtyard on top of it. The sides of the second floor connected to the alchemical tower and the walkway leading to the bathhouse, both directly and via the terrace. The first-floor entrance was an ornate wood and crystal pair of double doors, with a second smaller set above it leading to the terrace from the second floor. The second floor and up were all same sized, with two octagonal towers at the back corners of the buildings, with conical spires on top. The roof was tall, mansard style, made with blackened metal sheets, with the spire tops being covered in smaller shingles.
At the center, surrounded by all the buildings, was a large and lush courtyard with a sizable pond in the middle. The courtyard had several decorative bushes and colorful flower beds, as well as tall leafy trees with hanging branches. There were grassy patches left open in several areas and even small knolls. While a paved stone path surrounded the courtyard and connected the surrounding buildings together, the paths going through the courtyard were very natural. Roughly cut but skillfully linked stone slabs snaked their way across the greenery, leading to small bridges going across the pond. The pond was full of vegetation and had a small islet near the middle of it.
While this ragtag combination of building styles shared not much in common, they at least created an interesting panorama. Having watched it all come together day by day, Alcyone and Hotaru were already used to its disorderly yet opulent nature. While it wasn't what either of them had imagined, it did feel like home.
With the builders still admiring their handiwork with wry smiles, Alcyone turned towards them, "Thank you all for your hard work. We will make sure to treasure this country house for the rest of our lives."
"Oh, it was nothing," the toga wearing builder grinned while stroking the back of his head. "You said it yourself; this is but a temporary residence until you are done deciding what your dream home is."
"That may be the case, but we are sure to use this as our vacation home even after we have moved," Hotaru smiled confidently. "It is after all, a permanent reminder of the peoples' gratitude for us. So of course we must show gratitude towards it as well."
With everyone shaking hands and saying goodbyes, many of the builders talked and discussed with Alcyone about future modifications and expansions. In the meanwhile, Hotaru pulled one of them aside; the dark-haired man dressed in the lilac silk wraps.
Leaning close to him, he whispered, "Nice work on that special project. I saw it from the air. It looks perfect."
"It was a building style I most enjoyed," the man grinned. "I will have to find more similar locations to get to explore it more!"
By the time Hotaru and Alcyone finished moving what little possessions they had into their new country house, the night had already fallen. Despite this, both of them were fully awake, and not just because of their new grandiose living space. While there were so many things they could have done, tonight was a full moon without a single cloud in the sky. With the stars shining bright, they made their way up the mountain to the nearby hot spring, which had received a major upgrade.
A reasonably large, yet very cozy onsen had been built next to the hot spring. It had a timber frame veranda with a wooden floor, as well as a Japanese style showers, firepit, and a bedroom. Outside, around the hot spring, there were large potted trees and some shrubberies, to give a sense of privacy. The hot spring was open air, letting the moon and starlight pool in on it.
Having already finished washing himself at the showers, Hotaru was laying in the deep end of the hot spring, with his legs spread out. The water was hotter than what he was used to, but after a while it became quite relaxing. Floating next to him, he had a round wooden tray with two earthenware cups and a bottle of alcohol. Having asked around what the closest spirit Cephiro had to sake; he had bought a bottle of booze called starta. It had taken him a few sips to get used to it, but eventually he had grown to like it.
Just as he thought he saw a shooting star up in the sky, he heard the door of the onsen slide open. Having finally finished her shower, Alcyone walked out of the wooden building, naked as the day she was born. Before Hotaru could mention that she should dry herself off before entering, he was enraptured by her beauty.
Though he had seen Alcyone naked plenty of times before, the way she looked now was on a whole new level. With the moonlight illuminating her pale, smooth, and wet skin, she glimmered like the stars above. With her ankle-length raven hair contrasting her radiant body, she looked like a living embodiment of a moon goddess. As she walked over and into the water, Hotaru was unable to resist following the jiggle of her curves.
"I see you've already started without me," Alcyone said teasingly.
Sitting on the shallower end of the hot spring, Alcyone slowly acclimated to the hot water. Before she could request Hotaru to send the tray over, she was surprised by the intensity at which he stared at her.
"Is… something wrong?"
"You look… absolutely stunning in the moonlight," Hotaru stared at her, having barely heard a thing she had said.
Trying to act casual about it, Alcyone gave a smug wink, "T-Thank you for noticing."
Little by little, the two lovers moved closer to the middle section of the hot spring. Once their arms pressed together, Alcyone leaned her head against Hotaru's shoulder, enjoying the feeling of his warm skin. Pouring them both a drink, Hotaru offered one to Alcyone, before they clinked their cups. Sipping the drinks slowly, Hotaru wrapped his left arm around Alcyone, as they enjoyed the warmth, silence, and admired the starlit sky.
After a while of staying silent, Alcyone huddled into Hotaru's arm, before smiling, "You know, I was a bit skeptical about it first, but maybe you did make the right choice."
"Concerning what?" Hotaru asked, slightly tipsy. "Choosing you as my partner in life?"
"You couldn't have chosen better!" Alcyone returned his teasing tone, before getting more serious. "No, I was worried you had thrown away our chance of obtaining Cephiro's crown fora third time. But if you had become the king, where would we be? Stuck in some fortified palace with guards galore, always dealing with the troubles of the people and constant legislations? Certainly not here, right now, just the two of us."
Hearing Alcyone approve of his choice, a weight Hotaru hadn't even known was there fell off of his heart. Placing his right hand on Alcyone's cheek and turning her head, he leaned in for a slow kiss, which Alcyone returned with a burning passion. Although they were both aiming to be better people than in the past, right now, they were allowed to be honest with each other. Indulging in the comforts of their new life and each other's company, they eventually broke away from the kiss.
Looking at Hotaru with misty eyes, Alcyone smiled, "And I love it when it is just the two of us."
Pouring them both another round of drinks, Hotaru toasted happily, "To the first day of the best years of our lives."
Author's Afterword: Yay I finally managed a shorter chapter without an asterisk . I felt like I could have used a break after the last chapter, but I was far too impatient. It was nice to get to do some scenes with Hotaru and Alcyone that didn't include tears, heartbreak, or incredible violence after so long! Although things going so well for our lovey-dovey couple will get boring after a while, I figured this was a good place for them to enjoy it.
The biggest challenge in this chapter was the design of the mansion. I had already decided on its shape and feel, and use of close to a dozen architectural styles. But choosing the styles and giving them all Cephiroan names took me a whole day. While it isn't exactly a giant robot, I hope the description was clear enough, because this mansion will be the site of many-a-scenes in the future.
Another thing that had been on the backburner for a while was Hotaru's means of generating income. In fact, I had it chosen before I started writing this chapter, but I needed to make it feel natural for Hotaru to eventually come up with this money-making scheme.
Since this chapter focused mainly on Hotaru and Alcyone taking their first steps to make their dreams come true, there wasn't much of the other characters. In the next chapter, we will probably have more cameos from the other cast members, but also the introduction of some new long-term characters.
As always, reviews, questions, and critiques are welcome! Let me know what you thought of the chapter! I would like to thank Antoinette Veronica for your review on the season 2 finale! I was a bit disappointed that the chapter didn't get more reviews… Remember, even if you leave a review on an older chapter, I will always be grateful and make sure to mention you in the next chapter!