The meeting with the baron dragged on for another half hour. But at least I’d filled both my belly and the conversation quota. I headed upstairs, letting my thoughts drift.

  I had once swallowed my pride and asked Alice how she managed to shadowmeld with her clothes. Her answer? She simply considers herself and her clothing as one whole. As simple as that.

  After some back and forth, I decided to try doing "an Alice", that is, shadowmelding while including my clothes in the spell.

  The test yielded only partially successful results.

  Part of the clothes came through just fine. The problem was the rest, the part that didn’t. Most of the fabric ended up fused into my skin.

  Maybe I leaned too much into the idea of considering the clothes part of myself. I’d definitely need to refine that part a bit more.

  Lucky me, it was only a limited area of skin that had been affected, since for the experiment I’d worn just a pair of shorts and a blouse.

  But in hindsight, I’d been an idiot.

  The pain was like a thousand needles stabbing at once, but even worse than the pain was the irritation. It was unbearable, and no amount of scratching helped.

  In the end, the only way to get rid of that awful sensation was to burn the affected skin off.

  I never imagined I’d resort to such radical solutions, and yet, I voluntarily cauterized patches of my own sensitive skin just to get rid of it.

  I can only hope neither the universe nor the gods kept any recording of that test and the resulting drama.

  I sighed and shook my head.

  Never again.

  What’s a bit of nakedness in comparison to that?

  But even after mentioning that little point that was still bothering me, the meeting with the baron had been satisfying.

  After they recovered from the shock of seeing Alice, the baron expressed his gratitude for my decision to order the orcs to retreat.

  What had he said again?

  “A new era of peace and prosperity is now possible.”

  And why not? Wouldn’t that be nice?

  I’d also asked him whether the kingdom had any diplomatic relationship with the dwarf republic on the other continent, and to my surprise, they did. Not only did they maintain trade, but they even had an established embassy.

  Diplomatic relations and embassies here weren’t as formalized as they are on Earth, but they did exist in some form. Typically, high-ranking nobles or otherwise respected individuals served as ambassadors.

  In this case, I learned that Prince Aloun, one of the King’s younger brothers, was living there as the King's envoy.

  After I explained Tina’s situation to him, and after he asked for more details about her and the incident with the dwarves, he promised to contact the court and get back to me with an answer as soon as possible.

  He seemed optimistic that a solution could be found. Well, his exact words were that he didn’t see why the dwarves would be so stubborn as to refuse her release. It’s only a matter of resources, he said.

  The only thing that seemed to trouble him was the fact that Tina belonged to the Golden Empire. That, he admitted, might complicate things.

  So… Ju had been right!

  Maybe I could give diplomacy a chance. But I wouldn’t bet on that.

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  If diplomacy didn’t work fast enough, I would find a way to get to the other continent myself and free her.

  The baron had insisted that I visit Uldaman—the sooner, the better, he said.

  We could sign a treaty of non-aggression.

  We could improve commerce between the two kingdoms.

  We could do so many things!

  Well... I don’t even really know what’s going on in my own kingdom, so fat chance I’m ready to sign anything.

  But talking with them? Listening to their offers? That couldn’t hurt.

  Then I’ll go back to Hologomora and speak with the orcs.

  I scratched my scalp in frustration. My little domain was still full of problems, and every time I thought I was making progress, something new cropped up.

  We didn’t even have enough food stored for the coming winter, and the harvest risked rotting in the fields for lack of hands to gather it.

  Even now, in the yard, several peasants were queuing, waiting for my judgment with old grudges simmering between them. Why did they insist on having me, and only me, pass judgment? Especially in that unresolved case against the Church of Light.

  And then there was the paladin’s remark about the orc bands. They’d withdrawn, yes, but had they taken new slaves and gathered loot during their raids?

  Oh, well for sure they did that! What was I supposed to do about that?

  And then he asked me just that: what was I going to do about that?

  “Besides,” he had added, “the attacked nobles will surely demand reparations or even revenge.”

  I sighed. How could I start thinking about kingdom-wide issues, when I couldn’t even get a handle on my own little domain?

  So… should I accept the invitation to the court in Uldaman?

  Well, maybe I should. My presence there might help Tina’s case, it might push them to act faster or take the whole thing more seriously.

  If showing up could put pressure on their diplomatic effort, then it’s worth it.

  I need to get Tina back. The rest can come later.

  As I reached the upper floor, I saw in my domain that Ju was still lingering in bed. So, I took the left corridor and headed straight to the room where I was supposed to meet with my boys. I needed to sit down with them and sort through the mess I called ruling.

  They’re smart, full of ideas, and most importantly, not afraid to tell me when I’m being stupid. I trusted them more than anyone to help me sort through this chaos.

  First step: dump all my problems on them. Then maybe, just maybe, we’d come up with something that didn’t involve me hiding under the bed until the end of the long winter.

  With those thoughts swirling in my head, I stepped into the room... and stopped, confused.

  The room was empty. Where did they go? I was sure I’d just seen them here a moment ago through my domain.

  I frowned and shook my head. Was something wrong with my domain? A glitch?

  No... they were still here... just not on the chairs. They were lying under the table.

  A prank? Tom might pull something like that, but this wasn’t funny, and the other two wouldn’t have gone along with it.

  Unconscious? Dead?

  My heartbeat quickened.

  Had someone attacked them? Did they drink something meant for me?

  According to my domain, they were still alive… but barely. Their life signs were struggling.

  “Ju! Help! Ju!” I shouted in panic as I shadowmelded, appearing instantly beside the boys.

  Mike had a pulse, but he wasn’t responding.

  “Ju! Mike!” I cried, then turned quickly. “Hew! Ju!!!”

  Hew’s pulse was faint, barely there.

  At that moment, Ju appeared in the doorway, barefoot and in her pajamas, rubbing her eyes.

  “What happened?!” she asked, but didn’t wait for an answer. The moment she saw them, she rushed forward and dropped to her knees.

  She grabbed Hew’s hand, murmuring,

  “He’s still alive… Not poison.”

  She turned to check on Tom and Mike. “They’re alive, but—”

  Then she gasped, her head snapping toward me, eyes wide.

  “You! It’s you! Stop it! You’re killing them!”

  She pointed. “Your aura! Restrict your aura, Lores!”

  Drats. When I came up the stairs, I’d let myself relax… maybe a bit too much.

  I closed my eyes and focused, pulling my aura back in.

  Ju shot me a sharp, reproachful look.

  “It’s still too strong,” she said, “but at least it won’t kill them.”

  I sighed. I was doing my best.