The snowfall continued drifting softly across Blackwater Hollow while steam still hissed from the massive locomotive resting at the station.

Workers unloaded crates nearby while Garrick directed villagers toward storage wagons and supply piles. The newly constructed station remained crowded with movement and noise as steel, machinery, and industrial equipment slowly got transferred off the train.

Meanwhile—

Leon remained trapped.

Specifically beneath Lillith.

The girl still clung tightly to him while happily pressing herself against his side like she planned to permanently attach herself there.

Eventually she suddenly looked upward toward him with bright purple eyes.

"So?"

Leon blinked once.

"So what?"

Lillith tilted her head slightly before smiling proudly.

"Did you like the gift I got you?"

Leon frowned in confusion.

"...Gift?"

Lillith immediately released one of his arms before dramatically turning around and gesturing both hands outward toward Blackwater Hollow itself.

The station.

The railway.

The territory.

The mine.

Everything.

Leon stared at her silently for several moments before rubbing one hand across his forehead tiredly.

"...So you were the reason behind this."

Lillith looked incredibly pleased with herself.

"Yes."

Then proudly—

"I am a lovely wife."

Leon sighed deeply.

"You’re terrifying."

"That too."

A while later the unloading operation shifted deeper into Blackwater territory itself.

The area surrounding the reclaimed mine had already changed significantly since Leon’s last visit. Additional workers from the village now moved through the tunnels regularly while smoke rose from temporary refining pits and ore processing stations nearby.

And farther beyond the mine—

Entire sections of forest were being cleared.

Axes echoed through the snowy woods while workers chopped down trees and removed stumps from the frozen ground. Garrick had successfully recruited dozens of additional laborers from Blackwater and nearby villages after word spread about the reclaimed mine and railway connection.

The villagers still looked slightly afraid of Leon.

Though now it mixed heavily with admiration.

And confusion.

Mostly confusion.

Finn stood watching several workers drag logs through the snow before glancing sideways toward Leon.

"You know what’s horrifying?"

Leon already regretted hearing that sentence.

"What?"

Finn pointed toward the massive railway station visible through the trees.

"People are starting to think all this is normal."

"That means it’s working."

"That sentence sounded evil."

The future gunpowder processing facility slowly began taking shape near the outer sections of the mine.

Large stone foundations got laid first before steel support beams and reinforced brick structures slowly rose from the snow-covered ground. Pipe systems, ventilation shafts, grinding equipment, storage areas, and refining rooms all got planned carefully across the construction site.

Leon personally supervised almost every section.

Mostly because exploding factories sounded deeply inconvenient.

Unfortunately—

Doing that became significantly harder while carrying a Lillith attached permanently to his back.

The girl refused to leave him alone for even several seconds.

At one point she literally wrapped both arms around him from behind while resting her face against the back of his neck as he tried reviewing construction measurements.

"Lillith."

"Mhm?"

"You’re crushing the blueprints."

"Good."

"...Why."

"Because they’re getting more attention than me."

Finn overheard that nearby and looked physically exhausted instantly.

"I need alcohol."

Leon ignored him while continuing work.

Hours passed this way.

Workers built foundations.

Steel beams got lifted into position.

Steam-powered equipment unloaded from the train.

And throughout all of it—

Lillith remained attached to him like some incredibly affectionate parasite.

Sometimes she hugged his arm.

Other times she rested against his back.

At one point she simply stood behind him quietly while rubbing her cheek against his shoulder for nearly ten entire minutes without explanation.

Nobody questioned it anymore.

Mostly because they valued survival.

Eventually darkness began settling across the territory while snow continued drifting downward through the forest.

Leon finally looked around the construction site before speaking loudly enough for everyone nearby to hear.

"That’s enough for today."

Workers gradually slowed.

"We’ll continue tomorrow."

Several exhausted laborers visibly relaxed hearing that.

The past months of railway construction already nearly killed half the workforce through exhaustion alone.

People slowly began heading toward the nearby tent encampment afterward while lanterns illuminated sections of the snowy worksite.

Leon eventually turned toward the worker tents himself.

Then immediately felt someone grab his arm.

Lillith pulled him backward slightly before staring up at him suspiciously.

"Where are you going?"

Leon looked confused.

"...To sleep."

"Where?"

He pointed toward the large collection of tents near the edge of the construction site.

Lillith stared at them.

Then looked genuinely offended.

"You’re sleeping outside?"

"...Yes?"

"That is disgusting."

Leon blinked once.

"What?"

Lillith crossed her arms dramatically.

"My husband should not sleep outside like some wild animal."

Leon immediately frowned.

"We literally slept in tents together during the Magneto situation."

That instantly caused Lillith to freeze slightly.

Then slowly—

A faint blush spread across her face.

"...That was different."

"How?"

Lillith looked away awkwardly.

"It just was."

Leon sighed tiredly before turning back toward the tents again.

"It takes several hours to reach the NightBane capital from here anyway."

"So?"

"So there’s no point."

Then he started walking again.

Immediately afterward—

Lillith scooped him directly into her arms.

Leon froze.

"...What are you doing."

Nearby workers stopped moving entirely.

Finn slowly lowered the cup he had been drinking from.

"Oh no."

Lillith smiled proudly while holding Leon effortlessly bridal-style against her chest.

"I am much faster than a carriage."

Leon immediately noticed the growing audience around them.

"...Lillith."

Then suddenly—

She crouched slightly.

And jumped.

BOOOOOM.

The frozen ground shattered slightly beneath her feet as the two launched violently into the sky.

Leon immediately grabbed onto her in complete panic.

"What the HELL—"

Wind roared past them while Blackwater rapidly shrank beneath the clouds.

Lillith soared upward effortlessly surrounded faintly by glowing purple mana while snow and freezing air whipped across Leon’s face.

He immediately shut his eyes.

This was horrifying.

After several moments he finally forced himself to look again.

And instantly regretted it.

They were unbelievably high above the ground.

Entire forests stretched beneath them while rivers, roads, and villages looked tiny from above. Snow clouds drifted around them while moonlight reflected across the winter landscape far below.

Meanwhile Lillith looked completely relaxed.

Leon stared at her in disbelief.

"Where did you even learn to do this?"

"The academy."

Leon blinked once.

"Didn’t you say they taught you nothing there?"

"They don’t."

"...Then how did you learn this?"

Lillith smiled happily.

"I figured it out myself during class."

Silence.

"...What."

"I got bored."

That sounded exactly correct honestly.

Lillith continued flying calmly through the night sky while hugging Leon against her.

"I kept thinking about flying away to come see you instead."

Leon sighed tiredly.

"That somehow doesn’t surprise me anymore."

The journey across Nightbane territory passed absurdly quickly through the air.

Roughly half an hour later the massive Nightbane capital finally appeared beneath them glowing beneath countless lights and snowfall.

Leon still wasn’t fully emotionally prepared for the fact Lillith could apparently fly across entire territories now.

The girl eventually descended gently toward the palace gates before landing softly against the snowy ground.

Several guards nearby immediately straightened in alarm seeing them appear from the sky.

Lillith carefully lowered Leon afterward before immediately grabbing his hand happily.

Then she started practically skipping through the palace.

Servants immediately lowered their heads the moment they saw her approaching while terrified maids and guards quickly moved aside from the hallways.

Meanwhile Lillith simply hummed Leon’s name cheerfully while holding onto his arm.

The contrast honestly felt disturbing.

Eventually the two reached her room once again.

The massive chamber looked exactly as luxurious as Leon remembered.

Large velvet curtains.

Massive bed.

Silver chandeliers.

Warm fireplace.

Everything looked absurdly expensive.

Lillith turned toward him proudly afterward.

"Now you can sleep peacefully in luxury instead of outside like some animal."

Then she smiled sweetly.

"And it’s all thanks to your glorious wife."

Leon rubbed one hand across his face tiredly before looking toward her.

"...Is this one of your sleeping days?"

Lillith blinked once.

Then softly—

"No."

Leon looked slightly confused by that answer.

Lillith however simply smiled at him again before slowly stepping closer.

"I just missed my husband soo much how could I possibly fall asleep."

Leon sighed deeply.

"You say some variation of ’I missed you’ every five minutes."

The girl continued staring at him with that same frighteningly affectionate expression while standing only inches away from him.

Leon was too exhausted to properly argue anymore.

The past several months had been nonstop work.

Railways.

Factories.

Steam engines.

Industrial expansion.

Mine reclamation.

Train construction.

And now somehow flying across half the duchy inside Lillith’s arms.

His brain genuinely felt dead.

Eventually I gave up entirely before walking toward the massive bed and collapsing onto it without even bothering to fully undress.

The mattress felt absurdly soft compared to the worker tents back in Blackwater.

I immediately understood why Lillith called them disgusting.

Moments later the other side of the bed shifted slightly as Lillith quietly climbed in beside me beneath the blankets.

Then—

Silence.

Mostly.

Because I could physically feel her staring at me.

Constantly.

I opened one eye slightly.

Lillith immediately smiled.

"...What."

"I missed you."

I closed my eye again.

Several minutes passed.

Then—

"I really missed you."

"I know."

More silence.

Then again—

"My husband smells like smoke."

"...Because I work near furnaces."

"I like it."

I slowly started questioning whether this girl actually possessed the ability to stop staring at me for longer than thirty seconds.

Then suddenly Lillith spoke again.

"I want lots of babies."

I opened one eye again tiredly.

"...What."

"Like the gorilla."

Silence.

I stared at her blankly.

"The what."

Lillith simply moved closer beneath the blankets while resting her chin lightly against my chest.

"The gorilla from the mission."

My brain still felt too exhausted to process that sentence properly.

Before I could even ask what she was talking about.

Lillith suddenly grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled herself and me upward.

Then kissed me deeply.

My eyes widened instantly.

She pushed directly into me without hesitation, parting my lips with her tongue as it forced its way into my mouth aggressively. The kiss immediately became heated as she pressed herself tightly against me beneath the blankets.

I could physically feel the warmth of her body through the thin fabric covering her.

Lillith’s tongue tangled insistently against mine while one of her hands slid upward along the side of my neck.

The kiss lasted several long seconds before she finally pulled back slowly—

A thin strand of saliva stood still connecting our lips.

Lillith stared at me with half-lidded purple eyes before calmly hooking one finger beneath the strand and drawing it away.

Then she slowly placed the finger into her mouth releshing it.

My brain completely stopped functioning for several seconds.

Only then did I fully notice what she was wearing.

Or more accurately—

How little she was wearing.

The black nightgown clung softly against her body while one side had slipped down her shoulder enough to reveal pale skin beneath the dim firelight. The thin fabric barely hid anything as she leaned over me on the bed.

Lillith crawled closer again immediately afterward.

"I want your babies so badly..."

I finally regained enough mental function to gently push her back slightly.

"No."

Lillith blinked once.

"...No?"

"We’re too young for this."

Instant disappointment spread across her face.

"But I want them!"

"No."

"I could have ten!"

"Absolutely not."

Lillith frowned harder before moving closer again anyway.

"I’d take care of them!"

"That is not the issue."

"I already picked names!"

"...You WHAT."

Lillith ignored me completely.

"Leo junior would be adorable."

"There is not going to be a Leo junior."

She pouted visibly afterward before resting both hands against my chest stubbornly.

"But I want little Leons..."

I sighed deeply.

"No."

Lillith continued staring at me for several long moments.

Then eventually—

She smiled.

"Fine."

I immediately became suspicious hearing that tone.

Lillith slowly moved herself closer again until her lips hovered near my ear.

"But after our wedding..."

Her voice lowered softly.

"You’ll be out of excuses."

Then she slowly dragged her tongue along the side of my face.

I physically flinched.

Lillith looked incredibly pleased with herself afterward as she licked her lips before finally resting her head comfortably against my chest.

One of her legs tangled lightly with mine beneath the blankets while her arms wrapped possessively around my side again.

"...I really missed you."

I stared upward toward the ceiling silently.

My life had become deeply unreasonable.

Factories.

Railways.

Steam engines.

Industrial expansion.

And now somehow surviving whatever this was.

Meanwhile Lillith simply relaxed happily against me while tracing small circles against my shirt lazily with one finger.

"You’re warm."

"...It’s winter."

"Mhm."

Several quiet minutes passed afterward.

Eventually I could feel exhaustion finally catching up to me completely again.

My eyes slowly started growing heavier.

Meanwhile Lillith remained awake beside me still occasionally pressing soft kisses against my neck or jaw while quietly mumbling things about weddings, children, and how handsome I looked covered in soot.

I stopped processing half of it.

Then eventually—

Still trapped beneath an overly affectionate future disaster—

I finally fell asleep.