Chapter 326: A Morning with the Family

"Wake up Yuki! It's morning!"

"I know, I know…" Though I'd acknowledged that I was planning to get up, the person intent on waking me didn't stop shaking my shoulders. "I'm getting up, stop rushing me."

It took a while for all my grogginess to go away; I spent a good few moments in a state halfway between asleep and awake before finally gathering enough energy to detach myself from the warmth and comfort of my bed. As I did, I finally realized that the culprit behind the over energetic awakening was Illuna. Right… I almost forgot Lefi and I slept in the room next to hers.

"Are you sure you should be up and about already?"

"Mhm! I think I'm all better now."

I placed a palm against her forehead and confirmed that her fever had receded.

"Is your throat still sore? And does your head hurt at all?"

"Nope, I'm feeling right as rain!" The smile she flashed was full of energy, and really didn't seem to have come from someone who was still sick. "I liked all the stuff Leila made for me while I wasn't feeling good, but I really miss normal food. I can't wait to have it again!"

"Well, if you have that much of an appetite, then I guess you're probably fine." I chuckled. "Alright, in that case, we can have whatever you want for dinner. How's that sound?"

"Whatever I want!? Really!?"

"Yup."

"Then let's have doria! I really really wanna have some doria!" After voicing her initial impressions, she hesitated and reeled herself in, just a bit. "But… I think some hamburg steak would be really nice too…"

"Gotcha. I'll keep both in mind."

"Yay!"

She raised both her arms into the air and cheered. I guess she really is feeling much better now.

The door opened right as I began patting her on the head, and in entered two of my wives. I wasn't surprised to see Lyuu up and about. She was always a bit of an early riser and was generally the first to wake. The same, however, could not have possibly been said for Lefi. I can't believe I woke up after her… I guess that trip to Drakenstead must've exhausted the shit out of me.

Unlike the dragon, I didn't quite have an infinite supply of stamina.

"I see that you have both awoken," said Lefi. "Has your fever persisted, Illuna?"

"Are ya feelin' any better?" asked Lyuu.

"Yup, all better! Thanks for worrying so much."

"Her temperature seems normal, so I'm pretty sure she's fine now." I got to my feet and raised my arms to the ceiling to stretch my back. "That said, you should probably take it easy, at least for today. We don't want it coming back, after all."

"Okay!"

Both of wives breathed sighs of relief as they confirmed that she was every bit as full of energy as she'd seemed at a glance.

"I suppose I need not worry any longer. You would do well to show yourself to the others and demonstrate that you have recovered."

"Shii was real worried. I'm sure she'll be jumpin' for joy if you pop in 'n show her that you're okay."

"I'll head over right now!"

She started running off, but the dragon snatched her out of the air right as she tried barrelling out the door.

"I know that you are eager, but you must first make your bed."

"Oh, right!"

"The same applies to you, Yuki. Do not forget."

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

I slid open one of the windows to let some fresh air in as Illuna went about folding up the futon and stashing it in the corner of the room. After filling my lungs, I went ahead and did the same. My process didn't go as smoothly as hers, however, as I couldn't help but find myself stopping to laugh on multiple occasions.

"Whatever is he thinking about now?" The question was addressed to the girl standing next to her.

"Hmmm…" Lyuu took a moment to ponder, before breaking out into a grin. "Y'know, Lefi, I think I've got a real good idea 'bout what Master has in mind right now. Heck, I think I could even tell ya what he's gonna say."

"Oh? And what might that be?"

The next line was one that Lyuu and I spoke in sync.

"I never would've thought that Lefi of all people would be telling me to make my bed."

"I never woulda thought that Lefi o' all people would be tellin' me to make my bed!"

I knew she'd understand.

"I-I fail to see how you would come to that conclusion," she stuttered, indignantly.

"Oh, I know, I know!" Illuna bounced around excitedly before revealing the answer. "It's because you always lie around in bed instead of doing things, so your bed almost never gets made or put away!"

"I-I cannot believe even the young ones have this opinion of me…" she muttered under her breath. "Hmph! Very well. I am also one of this young one's guardians. I shan't allow myself to be shamed any further. I swear that, from this day onwards, I will endeavour to both wake and sleep early."

"I'm calling that bluff. We all know you're going to stay up late tonight anyway."

"I will do no such thing. I will be turning over a new leaf and proving myself capable of habits that promote good health! I shall not stay up with you, not even should you beg me to keep you company! If you wish to play board games at night, then you will have to do so entirely by yourself as you wallow in loneliness and despair!"

"A healthy lifestyle, huh? If that's what you're going for, then we're definitely going to have to cut all the extra treats out of your diet."

"…D-do not misunderstand, Yuki. S-sweet treats certainly may contain extraneous nutrients, but they are crucial in alleviating the weariness that comes with everyday life. They are absolutely necessary for the sake of soothing our spirits, and a sudden lack of them is sure to lead the young ones to suffer. A-as one of their guardians, I could possibly allow you to make such a wicked decision!"

"Well… that was a rant if I've ever heard one."

"Times like these, she always just starts goin' on and on, doesn't she, Master?"

I finished tidying up and putting everything away right as we finished joking around, so we took the opportunity to transition into the true throne room. We were greeted by a pleasant, stomach-rousing scent right as we entered our usual living space. Breakfast was ready. The table had been set, with a plate of toast, bacon, eggs, and broccoli for each of us. There was even a nice bowl of corn soup to boot. There wasn't anything "special" about the breakfast per se, it was pretty typical and more or less reflected what we had every morning, but that didn't mean it looked any less delicious.

"Good morning, My Lord. Good morning Illuna." The cook responsible for the wonderfully appetizing meal was there to greet us alongside it. "How are you feeling today?"

"Are you better?" asked Shii.

"…Your cold. Is it gone?" added Enne.

"Yup yup! I'm feeling much better. Thanks for worrying about me, everyone!"

"Let's save that for later, girls," I said. "It's time for breakfast, and Illuna's gotta eat up to make sure she stays better."

A corner of the true throne room began to distort right as we took our seats. And from the odd warped space came a familiar face.

"I'm home!"

"Nell! You're back!"

Illuna practically jumped out of her chair as she flagged the newly arrived hero down as one would a plane. Each of us followed suit soon after and greeted her in our respective manners."

"Welcome back, Nell." I was pretty happy to see her, but let everyone else go first before engaging her in conversation. "Looks like you succeeded in convincing Carlotta to give you a vacation"

She'd used the Orb of Correspondence Mk. II to let me know that she was probably going to be able to sneak a few days last night.

"Mhm. Unfortunately, it isn't going to be a long one. I'm going to have to leave tomorrow morning." After responding, she took a long hard look at the vampire. "I heard you caught a cold, but I guess you must be all better now."

"Yup! It went away!"

"I'm glad to hear it."

A bit of a lull in the conversation followed, so Lefi, who had been in the middle of nibbling on a slice of toast, took the opportunity to butt in.

"Have you eaten, Nell?"

"Not yet. I was thinking of grabbing some leftovers if there were any. If not, I was just going to whip something up myself."

"There is no need for that. I was aware that you could have perhaps returned and prepared an extra share. Take a seat. I shall retrieve it for you, as it is clear that you are exhausted, and that you have worked late into the night."

"Oh… I didn't realize it was that obvious." Nell awkwardly tried to laugh it off. "Thank you, Lefi."

"Are you really that busy?" I asked.

"Mhm. I'm going to be going on a very important, long term expedition soon, so I had to get everything ready," she explained. "I think they only let me take today off because they wanted to make sure I was as well rested and motivated as possible."

"In that case, you've gotta make sure you take it easy today," I said.

"I'll make sure you do!" said an excited Illuna. "Everyone was really worried about me, so I really want to help someone else because I'm feeling really grateful. Just leave it to me! I'll give you all the hospitality you could ever hope for!"

"Thanks Illuna. I'm looking forward to it."Nell giggled as she took a seat at the table.

And so began another day in the life of a demon lord.