Dungeon of Niflheim-Chapter 926: Welcomed home

"Eh? Lord Frost." The first gate guard who’d been walloped on the head and forced to bow a full ninety degrees spoke in a confused manner. His brain recognised the words of his colleague but took a couple seconds to process their meaning. Eventually however he came to understand exactly what kind of offence he’d caused.

The young man had relocated to the Niflheim city state in pursuit of ambitious freedom and the chance to make a name for himself. He didn’t come from much, but his family had already planned out his future, a future he couldn’t get on board with so he fled and ended up here, a newly built and quickly growing territory beyond the reach of the Northrend Empire yet at the same time being close enough to not feel foreign.

The man had never worked as an adventurer nor was he all that good with business, but his body was strong, his work ethic reliable and his heart honest. Within the first day of his arrival he searched for work and was shot down several times due to a lack of experience, skill and or references but before he was set to drink away the sorrows of his failure a posting was placed within the centre of the camp as well as each of the established guilds. Lady Yuna who was serving as Lord Frost’s representative during his absence was hiring guards from the local populace to serve as part of the territory’s military arm. The requirements to be hired were incredibly lenient, one simply needed to pass a test that was given by one of the ronsos, the current most established military presence within Niflheim.

The young man saw this as fate and applied immediately and by some miracle he passed muster along with several dozen similar aged youths and a few experienced veterans. Lodgings, food, equipment and even training were all provided for as a part of their salary so for someone like him who’d ran away from home without too much preparation this was literally a dream job and a sure way to achieve his ambitions.

Alas in his reckless vigour to be as impartial and considerate to all those who wanted to enter Niflheim regardless of their standing he ended up offending the person who stood at the very top of the hierarchy, someone who even his boss’s boss would bow to in reverence, an action that happened not a moment later when half a dozen on shift ronsos ran up to the gate and greeted their master on their knees.

’Well I’m fucked’ The gate guard after realising the gravity of the situation kissed his dreams goodbye, his gaze anxiously craning upwards to see his angry harbinger but strangely Frost was smiling as though unbothered by the treatment he’d just received.

’If he’s new to the territory then I can’t really blame him.’ Frost initially wanted to blow off a little steam, to inflict a degree of injury on the young guard after seeing how his prestige momentarily faltered in the eyes of the Lunar maidens but after seeing the other guard and the ronsos welcoming him in an exaggerated manner he decided to let bygones be bygones.

"It’s fine no harm no foul he was just doing his job, if anything it’s my fault for not be known well enough within my own territory." The latter half of his words came off as a little passive aggressive, unconsciously of course but more than enough to make several people nearby shiver uncontrollably, the offender most of all.

’Maybe I should get a statue commissioned then there’d be no chance of such a debacle occurring in the future.’ This event planted a strong unease in Frost who was immensely proud of his appearance.

Thankfully with the ronsos leading him and his guests into the city the situation resolved itself, allowing work to return to as normal but for the young gate guard he promised to never forget Frost’s face for as long as he would live.

The entourage of ronsos kitted out in their armour and each wielding intimidating halberds reassured Neve and her kin that Frost was indeed someone with great power. As they walked through the city, observing the many buildings and people within they saw at least 40 of them serving as security let alone the bevy of adventurer groups that had come to call this place home. The forces under Frost’s control were far greater than that of Valend, an exiled frost giant and perhaps even greater than what they had before the ogres crushed them.....Neve’s heart couldn’t help but feel hopeful and ambitious upon seeing such sights personally.

Soon the group found themselves before the Lord’s manner, halting in place as Frost laid eyes on the two women he’d been pining after for days.

’They look even more beautiful and ravaging than when I left, perhaps absence really does make the heart grow fonder.’

Dropping everything else the moment Frost entered range of the Dungeon’s influence Maya and Daki dolled themselves up and made a beeline for the Lord’s mansion so as to welcome their man home.

Frost was mesmerized by their beauty for but a brief second before dashing to their sides and sweeping them both in a hug so tight it looked like he wanted to fuse with them so as to never part again.

Feeling the depths of his longing, a love and attachment so strong that she could barely keep herself from melting in his embrace Maya’s eyes grew red as she fought back her tears...she had missed him dearly.

Daki was a little better when it came to managing her emotions, Frost wasn’t her first partner after all, but she was no less moved by his actions, her heart beating a mile a minute as she felt his hands wrap around the small of her back. His behaviour wasn’t lustful rather an expression of his bottomless affection so even she found herself getting a little choked up.

"W...Welcome home my love." Wriggling her right hand from his entrapment Daki reached up to cup his face before pulling him in for a kiss.

Their exchange wasn’t short, but it wasn’t long either, borderline on what people would accept for a well-deserved display of public affection. After getting kissed by his green enchantress it was Maya’s turn but since she was still a little shy in that department he made the move.

"It’s good to be home." Saying these five words aloud Frost felt himself becoming unencumbered, as though a great deal of his stress vanished instantly, letting him relax, truly relax after two weeks of intense activity far away from his place of comfort.

"Welcome back master." Yuna appeared a moment later from within the manor, holding off on her greeting until the two ladies of the house had finished.

"Yuna you’ve done a great job as interim Lord in my absence and such efforts deserve a reward, please tell me if there’s anything you’d like to receive." Frost spoke with a growing smile on his lips as he was embraced by two flowers, Daki on the left and Maya on the right.

"There’s no need master; it’s my honour to serve you." Yuna responded humbly and as though bereft of greed but internally she was screaming and thinking about what she could possibly ask for, her eyes imperceptibly glancing at both Daki and Maya with envy. If only he’d let her serve him in the same manner.

Frost knew Yuna pretty well, there had to be something she wanted but perhaps she was too shy to ask for it directly or couldn’t in present company.

"[I’m not a stingy master so we’ll discuss your reward at a later time, think about it until then]" He used the Dungeon menu to speak telepathically to her.

"[Understood master]" Yuna failed to maintain her decorum, her expression faltering as she started to think about her possible request.

"I see, then I have another task for you please arrange lodgings for my guests and see to it that they’re well taken care of."

Yuna looked towards Neve and the Lunar maidens standing behind her master, their faces and bodies were completely obscured but her instincts alerted her that they were all women and not just regular women either, beautiful and somewhat dangerous similar to the feeling Daki gave off.

"I’ll set them up in one of the higher quality lodges used by the adventurers, there should be more than enough space for their entire group and by designating it as a private reservation they won’t be bothered." Yuna only had to rack her mind for a second before coming up with the perfect solution, her time as both Frost’s secretary and the interim Lord serving to provide her with a vast array of managerial skills.

"Good, for their meals have either the sleeping fenrir or a restaurant with a similar level of quality prepare them." Frost didn’t want to stint on their luxury in the slightest, determined to show of his territory’s worth before discussing their future under his wing.

"Neve I’ll leave you and your kin in Yuna’s capable care until tomorrow, please follow her to your temporary lodgings."

"Yes master." Frost had already apprised them of what would likely happen upon their arrival, so Neve didn’t bat an eye, merely nodding her head in acceptance before greeting Yuna on behalf of the Lunar Maidens. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"You can call me Neve."

"....Yuna, follow me please." There was a subtle arrogance in Neve’s voice that seemed to irk Yuna but since it was her master’s command she held herself back and gracefully escorted the maidens to their destination.