Finally, I can Retire, Or so I Thought

The next morning,

”Yaaaawn.”

Dion stood in front of his mansion and stretched his body, inhaling the fresh morning air with a renewed sense of vigor.

”Ah... It feels great to start a new day,” he noted.

”Lord Dion!”

Dion turned his head forward and was surprised to see three male villagers approaching. They were carrying a hunted forest boar, five horned rabbits, and five four-winged poultry, creatures resembling chickens but with four wings. Dion stepped down the porch stairs to meet them.

”Huh... Were you guys out hunting?” Dion asked, eyeing the food pile in front of him.

”No, my lord. We found them inside the crater right in front of the village gate. It seems they wandered too close and were taken down by the watchtower last night,” the first villager reported.

”That’s right, my lord. My wife and I heard the sound of the blast since our house is right near the entrance,” the second villager added.

”Ooh... I see. Let me double-check over there,” Dion said.

He immediately dispatched one of his surveillance spheres, casting its live feed right in front of his face. The villagers stood in awe as they watched the glowing holographic display floating in midair. When the sphere reached the coordinates, sure enough, several blast craters pockmarked the terrain near the bridge leading to the village entrance. It wasn’t just small game either, two orcs, three goblins, and three dire wolves lay neutralized in the area.

”Ooh... Look at that. My tower is doing its job quite nicely,” Dion remarked proudly, resting both hands on his hips.

”Indeed, my lord. Your tower is incredibly useful. It keeps our village completely safe from monster attacks at night,” the third villager chimed in respectfully.

”Alright then, feel free to gather the yields and distribute them among the rest of the villagers,” Dion offered casually.

”Understood, my lord! Thank you so much!” the three villagers replied happily, bowing low in gratitude. As the villagers departed,

Gyuuut!

Someone suddenly threw their elbow over Dion’s shoulder. He turned his head to see Sheila, looking as though she had just rolled out of bed with her hair completely disheveled, standing right beside him.

”What did they want?” Sheila asked, rubbing her sleep-heavy eyes.

”They brought over the game my tower shot down last night and wanted to show me. Take a look,” Dion said, tilting the display toward her.

Sheila peered at the screen, narrowing her eyes as she took in the cluster of small craters dotting the landscape outside the village. Her mouth fell agape, a look of pure shock washing over her face before she turned back to Dion.

”So the meat they brought over was harvested by the tower? As in, target practice for anything that wandered too close to the village?” Sheila asked.

”Spot on! How about that? Pretty handy, right?” Dion asked proudly.

”Handy is an understatement... You really are something else,” Sheila answered, pulling Dion into a tight side-hug.

”Hey... can’t... breathe...” Dion wheezed out, looking thoroughly squeezed.

”Hehe... What’s the harm? It’s been a while since we had some physical contact,” Sheila teased, affectionately patting Dion’s head.

”Give me a break. Do you even realize you’re strong enough to snap me in half?” Dion asked.

”Hmm... Nope, not buying it. The guy who flattened a giant tusk boar with a single punch and set up a walking apocalypse tower isn’t going to die from a hug,” Sheila replied nonchalantly.

”Grrr... You’re just as bad as Luna,” Dion grumbled, attempting to wriggle out of her grip.

Without warning, someone yanked Dion free from Sheila’s embrace. Dion turned to find Mei standing beside him, her arm already linked with his as she casually inspected the floating display.

”Hey, Mei... How long have you been standing there?” Sheila asked.

”Ever since you grabbed Dion,” Mei answered smoothly.

”Looks like you just woke up too,” Dion noted.

”Sorry about that. I was a second too slow,” Mei replied.

”It’s fine, don’t sweat it,” Dion assured her.

”Yaaaawn.”

All three of them turned around to see Luna stepping out through the mansion’s front doors. She let out a long yawn, covering her mouth with one hand, before making her way down the porch steps toward them.

”What are you three doing out front so early in the morning?” Luna asked, her eyes immediately drifting toward the floating holographic screen.

Dion brought Mei and Luna up to speed, summarizing the events of the previous night and pointing out the details visible on the screen. Once he finished,

”Oh, so that’s what happened,” Luna noted.

”Hmm... That’s actually great. Now we don’t have to worry about stray monsters creeping up on us at night,” Mei added thoughtfully.

”Yeah... That’s precisely why I built the watchtower in the first place, to keep watch over us. It’s just a shame I could only craft one since our shopping trip got cut short,” Dion replied.

”Hmm... What if we head out to Millfrost instead? Though this time, we definitely leave Gina behind... Speaking of which... where is Gina?” Luna asked, glancing around to locate the little dragon.

”Sleeping with Cleo,” Dion answered with a grimace.

”Huh... Gina and Cleo? What a bizarre combination,” Sheila scoffed.

”Tell me about it... For some reason, Gina was glued to Cleo all night... Maybe because Cleo is crazy strong,” Dion pondered out loud.

”Could be. Cleo’s no pushover, after all,” Luna said, resting a hand on Dion’s shoulder and patting the back of his head.

”True. Cleo is incredibly strong, probably just a step below Dion. It makes sense that Gina would be drawn to her. What bugs me, though, is why Cleo went from openly treating Gina like an enemy yesterday to sleeping in the same bed with her last night,” Mei pondered aloud.

”That’s exactly why I said it’s a bizarre combination,” Sheila added.

”Hey... I’m weak! I have zero power,” Dion protested.

”Sure... sure... Whatever you say,” Mei, Sheila, and Luna chorused in unison, completely dismissing his classic line.

Dion simply grumbled under his breath, deciding it wasn’t worth the energy to explain himself further. Suddenly, Mei pointed at the screen, her grip tightening slightly on Dion’s shoulder.

”Dion, look... We’ve got company,” Mei pointed out.

Dion narrowed his eyes at the display. In the distance, a caravan of six carriages was making its way down the trail, clearly heading straight toward his domain. Dion swiped his finger sideways across the interface, adjusting the perspective as the surveillance sphere zoomed in to inspect the incoming group.

As the sphere closed the distance, the official crest of the Aetherias Trading Company came into sharp view on the lead carriage. Carriages two through four bore the same emblem, loaded with massive wooden crates filled with weapons, alongside several large, reinforced containers. The final two carriages in the rear, however, looked distinctly like passenger transports, one of them clearly tailored for royalty or high-ranking nobility.

”Hmm... We’d better head to the entrance before the watchtower decides to fire off a warning shot,” Dion suggested.

”Good idea. Let’s move,” Sheila agreed.

”Alright, lead the way,” Mei added.

”I’ll go wake up Cleo and grab Gina first, just in case,” Luna volunteered.

”Thanks... I appreciate it,” Dion replied.

Luna nodded before turning to dash back inside the mansion. Meanwhile, Dion, Sheila, and Mei made their way toward the settlement, heading straight for the main gates. Villagers who spotted Dion and the girls passing by stepped out from their newly allocated quarters, flanked by automated golems assisting them with repairs. By the time the trio reached the bridge at the perimeter, the caravan was already within clear viewing distance.

”If they’re heading straight for us, Luna might have successfully established a trade route out here when she traveled to the capital of Thetor alone,” Dion noted.

”Could be,” Sheila replied.

”Still, we need to stay sharp. It’s not uncommon for bandits to disguise themselves as merchant caravans to target settlements populated by former slaves,” Mei cautioned, maintaining her guard.

”Yep... Relax. If anything goes south, I’m leaving the fighting to you and Sheila,” Dion said casually.

”Perfect... I’d prefer it if you just stayed back and kept your hidden powers under wraps anyway,” Sheila replied with a broad grin, flexing her arm.

The caravan continued its steady approach, drawing a crowd of curious villagers who gathered behind Dion, Sheila, and Mei to observe the newcomers. Meanwhile, Cleo, still looking half-asleep with messy hair as she rubbed her eyes, was practically dragged out to the perimeter by Luna, though Gina was nowhere to be seen. As Dion’s eyes locked onto the noble carriage bringing up the rear of the convoy, his heart suddenly gave a sharp, heavy thud.

”Hmm... Something tells me things are about to get complicated. My gut never lies,” Dion muttered to himself in his head. His eyes remained locked on the caravan as it slowly made its way toward his village.