After a number of more attacks, Ash and the three picked up their spoils and found a place to rest. “I would have thought that I wouldn’t have any trouble until the fifties, but at this pace in less than five floors, I am going to have trouble,” Ash said as he sharpened the blade of his sword.
“Fifties, are you daft?” Halon said laughing. “The monsters in a labyrinth, well most of them anyway, some are different, go up about 1.5 levels per floor. This labyrinth likes to trick you a little by only raising the levels of the monster by one each floor than adding the saved levels after every tenth floor. Right now we are on the twenty-first floor, but the monsters are around the thirty-first level. Even then, monsters are stronger than humans so a level thirty-one monster can normally easily kill adventures of the same level. Most people believe you should have at least ten levels on a monster to solo it.”
“Not all of us can be like you,” Jacob said as he snacked on a light cake that one of the maids had prepared for him. “You might be able to face the monsters on the higher level, but our best record so far is making it to the twenty-fifth floor.”
“Then how do people level up so quickly to fight in the lower levels?” Ash asked. “I heard that there are thirty year old knights that are already above level sixty.”
“Easy, they cheat,” Halon said with a sneak.
“It really isn’t cheating Ash,” Lillanis said while hitting Halon in the arm. “They form six teams while each member belongs to a different group. They form up a group of six knights that are all the same level to fight, but their official groups are of one high level knight and the rest are lower level. That way the lower level knights can increase their level faster while the higher level can still fight with stronger opponents. In the guilds they call it ‘babysitting’ as a joke.”
“How close do you have to be to have the experience carry over to the other party?” Ash asked.
“Most the time you have to be within two hundred feet of each other, but there are items that high level alchemists can make that can work as long as a person is within twenty miles,” Lillanis explained.
“Then if I got one of those crystals, would you mind if I had two of my slaves join our group so they could earn benefits?”
“I wouldn’t really mind, but those crystals are expensive at least thirty gold coins at the cheapest. Would you really spend that much just to level a slave?” Jacob asked raising an eyebrow.
“Yes, the stronger my guards are, the safer my people will be,” Ash replied honestly.
After the break, the group continued to fight for a few hours killing another five shadow kin. Once Lillanis had exhausted her MP, the group decided it was time to leave and instead of staying back this time, Ash left with them so that he could stop by and check out the cost of what Lillanis had called leech crystals for his slaves.
The only store to carry the crystals was the one owned by the Tellamor family. It was one of the largest stores in the city and was heavily visited by adventurers and knights thanks to the benefits that many of their potions and items could give.
“Can I help you sir?” A young woman asked as soon as he entered.
“I need some leech crystals,” Ash said walking up to the counter.
“The young lady sat a satin cloth on the counter and placed five different size crystals on the cloth. “The smallest crystal can link a person a thousand foot away and cost forty gold a piece and the largest can link a person within twenty miles and cost five platinum coins.”
After checking them all out Ash decided on the second from the smallest crystal that would work as long as the person was within two miles. It cost eighty gold coins and for them to work with everyone he had to buy six of them. They worked by replacing the crystal that Lillanis had used to register their team so each person in the group had to have their own crystal to form a team.
As soon as he returned home, Ash gave a crystal to Lillanis, Jacob, and Halon as well as one to Shina and the last one to the two manor guards who would switch between themselves each day. Lillanis and the others were shocked that he had bought them a crystal as well and tried to refuse, but when Ash said that they were already bought and would only be wasted they begrudgingly accepted them.
At first, Ash had thought to give one of the crystals to Yuki but, he knew that she was still training. He thought that leveling up too quickly might harm her growth. Instead, he had decided on the guards sharing the last crystal.
After eating and drinking with the others, Ash retired to his room. While Allice and Yuki took care of his gear, Ash pulled out the orb that he had saved in his inventory. He had learned that it was common to give gifts to your spouse after the wedding and Ash only hoped that the core would work in that regard.
The idea had hit him when Emelia had heard that he had found a core and absorbed it. It seemed that nobles that gifted the king with an orb would be granted a five percent decrease in tax for the year.
5-11
Three days quickly passed and Ash found himself standing in a small room while two maids fussed over his clothes. Ash was dressed in a tightfitting black doublet and pants. Thinking about Jacob’s joke about it being his funeral, Ash smiled. “You know the reason men wear black and women wear white during a wedding?” the maid next to him snickered. “Because this is the end of your life as a single man, yet it is the birth of Emelia’s life as a wife.”
“That doesn’t sound very fair to me,” Ash said, staring at himself in the polished mirror.
“What do you mean,” the maid said. “That is just an old tradition. Most nobles have two or three wives to increase their household and power. Emelia can’t do that as a woman, so you will have to work hard on her behalf. The only thing that really changes is not everything you do should be done in a manner where her interests are put first. Even your lovers should be chosen so they can bring her some gain. Though you can always have a dalliance with a willing maid if you want,” She added with a wicked laugh.
“I don’t think I can ever get used to this worlds way of thinking,” Ash said out loud, making the maid look at him oddly.
After he was dressed, Ash was taken to a large hall where hundreds of people had been gathered. The only people he knew were the three adventurers that had been seated so far back Ash had to squint his eyes even to see them.
After he was placed at the front of the hall next to the priestess, he noticed that she was the old woman he had met inside the church. Seeing him, she gave him a warm smile while they waited.
Shortly after he was positioned, three men began playing softly on their instruments. Ash didn’t know the song, but it had a warming feeling to it. As the music filled the hall, the back doors opened and Emelia stepped into the room.
She was wearing a tight white dress that hugged her body, showing off her petite figure nicely. The hem of the dress was just slightly above her knee and seemed somewhat showy for a wedding. On her head a small tiara made of sliver with a three bright gems rested. The gems were a diamond, emerald, and ruby. The gems signified the three stages of the harvest and of life; birth, growth, and death.
As soon as his eyes focused on Emelia, Ash’s breath was taken away. She was still young, only now about to turn seventeen. She was about the same age as Ash, yet she always seemed and looked much more mature and right now the glow she was giving off was enticingly beautiful.
As she walked to where Ash stood, every eye was on Emelia. Though it was only about fifty yards, it seemed to Ash as if that slow walk took hours and with each step he could hear the sound of his heart beating louder. When she finally reached where Ash was waiting, she took his hands and Ash feared that she could feel how sweaty his hands were.
Ash and Emelia’s eyes met and all Ash could think about was how soft her hands were.
“Today we are gathered to bring two souls together,” The priestess started as soon as Emelia arrived at the center of the platform with Ash. “As Altina says, there is no greater blessing than when ones
fields are tended with love. Nothing else can bring a greater, nor more bountiful harvest and the same is said when two people bind themselves together.”
Looking in Emelia’s eyes, Ash couldn’t pay attention to the priestess’s words. Suddenly, Emelia squeezed his hand and narrowed her eyes.
“Ash, say I do,” the priestess whispered.
“I do,” Ash said, his face turning a light shade of red.
“Do you, Emelia Hawkwing take Ash as your husband? Will you care for him and be his shade during the heat and his water in the time of drought. Will you always be there to tend to him no matter what storms you must weather?”
“I do,” Emelia said with a warm smile, her eyes never leaving Ash.”
“Then by the power that the goddess has given me, I now announce you Ash and Emelia Hawkwing bound together until the goddess calls you back from the earth.”
After the vows, unlike his previous world, there was no rings or jewelry to signify their bond, but it was customary that gifts be given. Emelia signaled and a small chest was brought forward and handed to Emelia. “Ash, I know that you have little care for worldly goods and you enjoy the time you spend fighting, so I ask that you take this in the hopes that it will help you come back to me each night,” Emelia said as she pulled out a small necklace and handed it to Ash.
[Necklace of the Dragon: defense +15- when HP reaches 0 necklace will break fully restoring the persons HP.]
“T-thank you,” Ash said as Emelia placed the necklace around his neck.
Ash didn’t have a pretty box to put the core in. He had just placed it in a small leather bag. Pulling it out of where he had placed it next to the alter, Ash held it out to Emelia and the whole room went silent. Most the room was made up of lesser nobles, merchants and the knight class so while many had never seen a monster core all of them knew what they looked like.
“I don’t have much that I could give you,” Ash said, his nervousness creeping into his voice. “Of all the things I have, I thought this would be the most help to you.”
Emelia took the monster core from him but instead of putting it away she put it directly to her chest in front of everyone and absorbed it. “It will always be with me,” Emelia said with a warm smile.
Once the main part of the wedding was over, next came the reception and dinner party. Everyone who had been at the main wedding came to the reception. Ash and Emelia were seated at the places of honor, but it was walled off so that only one group could enter at a time. Emelia said that it was so that nobles could talk which meant that Ash had to deal with hours of small talk as person after person gave their greetings and gifts. Since Emelia was the noble and Ash had been the one brought into the family, she was the one who formally accepted the gifts, but most of the gifts were of a nature that Ash knew they were meant for him.
Seeing how the nobles almost completely ignored Emelia, Ash gripped the arm of his chair, tightly fighting against the urge to speak out. He didn’t know if Emelia noticed his feeling, but she lightly placed her hand on top of his causing him to relax and gave him a gentle smile.
When it was Lillanis’s turn, she handed Emelia a small glass bottle of golden liquid. Emelia and Lillanis had met a few time over the weeks and while at first Emelia didn’t seem to like her, they quickly became friends. “I think you will find a good use for this,” Lillanis said with a wry grin.
“Is this a holly potion?” Emelia asked her face going slightly red.
“What is a holly potion?” Ash asked slightly curious.
“You see you give it to mufuffufff,” Lillanis started to say before her mouth was covered by Emelia.
“It is just a stamina potion,” Emelia said hastily.
Jarrod gave them a small bag of white powder, and Halon gave them a pair of small elegantly carved wooden rings. The powder was another item Emelia refused to tell Ash about while the rings were warmly received. After Halon left, Ash asked about the rings.
“The beast tribe give rings to those that they believe to be truly meant for each other.”
“But they are so small,” Ash said looking at the rings that were far too small for his finger.
“They are meant for our children. One for both a boy and girl,” Emelia said slightly blushing.
After receiving the gifts came the dinner. Ash had always thought that the food and drink that Emelia normally served was top quality, but what he was eating now was divine. Some of the food looked odd, but it melted on his tongue.
The only thing that took away from the meal was that once again, Ash was sat next to Emelia at the center of everyone’s attention. Though there was only a little conversation during the meal, Ash could feel everyone’s eyes on him judging his every movement, looking for any weakness that he might have.
After the meal, a small party was started. This was the time for the nobles to talk amongst each other. The bride and groom normal walked around and greeted people, but Emelia and Ash took their leave with the excuse they wanted to greet the common people and share their happiness.
Outside, just like inside the manor there was a large gathering of people having a good time as they celebrated the marriage of their beloved duchess. In the two years since she had taken over the duchy, she had done everything she could for the people and had become loved. The people saw her not just as a noble, but as someone who cared about the common people, which was rare among the nobility.
As they walked through the town, many people greeted them but they were given their space. After moving past the merchant district, Ash and Emelia were met by Shina and Ash’s two house guards and escorted the rest of the way to Ash’s manor.
“Congratulations,” everyone yelled as soon as they entered through the main doors of the manor.
Allice and Yuki rushed to Ash and clung to him. Yuki was laughing while Allice had tears streaming down her face.
After a quick greeting and a few drinks, Ash and Emelia had to leave and return to her manor to see the guests off. Though it was short, Ash was happy that he could celebrate it with those that he truly cherished instead of just people he didn’t know.
“Thank you,” Ash said as they moved through the still busy streets back toward the manor.
“For what?” Emelia asked slightly tilting her head.
“For spending some time with Yuki and the others,” Ash said honestly.
“They are part of your life so it is only expected,” Emelia replied warmly. “Though Shina really is a handful…”
Remembering the small outburst of Shina’s about wanting to be his first, Ash couldn’t help but blush. “She is a little bit of one…Yes.”
“Do you like the necklace?” Emelia asked, breaking the awkward silence that started to fill the air. “I know it is a little gaudy but…”
“It is great,” Ash said as he lifted the small silver necklace that slightly resembled a cross from under his shirt. The center of which held a bright orange stone that slightly reflected the dim moonlight. “Ah…Speaking of gifts, why did you absorb the monster core. I thought you would use it as a gift for the king?”
“Huh what do you mean?” Emelia asked, grabbing his arm and pulling him close to her. “It was a gift from you, how could I give it away? So of course I would absorb it.”
When they arrived back at the manor, many of the guests had moved out into the garden and were talking. Emelia greeted those that they passed and called the maid in order to start getting people out of the manor. Even though most of the nobles had already left, the few left behind were trouble getting rid of. After the last person was out of the manor, Ash and Emelia headed to the bath room on the second floor.
Ash was nervous so while Emelia quickly disrobed and entered the main bathroom, Ash found his hands trembling as he undid the buttons on his tunic.
Wrapping a towel around his waist Ash took a deep breath and walked through the door. Emelia was sitting on a small stone waiting on Ash with her front carefully covered by her own towel. “Please wash my
back?” Emelia asked as she turned her back to Ash.
Picking up the soft sponge, Ash poured a silver liquid from a glass decanter on it and dipped it in the small pale of water. Soft foamy bubbles soon covered Emelia’s back as Ash nervously washed her back doing his best not to scrub too hard. After he finished, Emelia forced Ash to turn around so that she could do the same for him but from the way her hands moved, it didn’t seem as if she had the same shyness that had overtaken him.
After they finished washing, they rinsed off the soap from their bodies. Emelia and Ash entered the steaming water with their towels no longer coving their bodies.
After the bath, they dressed in their night clothes and headed back to Emelia’s room. Ash crawled under the cover and snuffed the candle next to the table and turned to his side to sleep.
“Not yet you still have one more job tonight,” Emelia said while hugging Ash from behind.
5-12
The next morning Ash was woken by a soft kiss. Turning his head Ash looked into Emelia’s soft brown eyes. “Morning,” Emelia aid with a warm smile.
“Morning,” Ash replied, his face turning slightly red as he noticed that Emelia was pressing against him while not wearing anything.
“You’re so shy,” Emelia said laughing when she saw his face.
Ash quickly dressed while doing his best not to look at Emelia who was still lounging on the bed while watching him. After getting dressed, Ash bent down to give Emelia a light kiss, but Emelia grabbed his face and gave him a warm deep kiss.
Pulling back, Ash blushed again and quickly left. Since it was already late, Ash quickly ran out of the manor, only grabbing some of the leftovers from the night before from the kitchen.
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