Pulling the Strings of Fate

Inside the Blumund castle, King Drum was sitting in his room with a stressed face, although his round, pumpkin-like face made it hard to tell his exact expression. His short stature, resembling a ten-year-old child, and his rotund belly contrasted sharply with the two others in the room who shared his tension.

Beside him was his wife, the Queen of Blumund. She was an absolute beauty, with a tall and slender figure, and flowing black hair. She exuded a mature, elegant charm that contrasted starkly with the king's appearance. Despite their differences, the love between the king and queen was well-known throughout Blumund. Tales of their romance were widespread, often recounted with admiration and envy.

The other member in the room was Velyard, a man whom the king trusted the most. Velyard was a seasoned noble, known for his cunning and ability to handle intricate matters with ease. He was a master manipulator, making tricking people as simple as taking candy from a baby.

The source of their stress was the report brought by Fuze. Fuze had relayed the shocking news that the empire of Tempest, announced by the Dwarven King, was led by none other than the Storm Dragon, Veldora. This revelation was baffling. Why would a dragon, known for his destructive nature, decide to build an empire? Nonetheless, the king was relieved that the dragon had not gone on a rampage.

"What do you think we should do?" the king asked Velyard, his voice tinged with anxiety.

"I think you should go and pay a visit to the Storm Dragon," Velyard responded with a serious face.

"And why do you think that?" Durm inquired, his curiosity piqued.

"My lord, according to Fuze's report, there are more than 500 A rank monsters inhabiting Tempest. They wouldn't break a sweat to crush Blumund. And since the ruler himself invited you, it wouldn't be wise to anger him, whether he is the Storm Dragon or not," Velyard explained.

The king pondered this for a moment. Then he spoke, "I think you are right. I will go and meet him."

"Honey, we should prepare some gifts for Tempest too. If we can please them, we might be able to win some of their favors. Having the Storm Dragon over us would mean we wouldn't have to worry about getting attacked by any neighboring countries," the queen suggested.

King Drum nodded, seeing the wisdom in his wife's words. "Velyard, prepare some gifts for Tempest," he ordered. As he gave the command, he started to think about all the possibilities and advantages they could gain from this alliance.

Drum, despite his unassuming appearance, was one of the competent humans in his realm. He didn't rely on superpowers but on sheer wit, some luck, and the decisiveness to grab opportunities that came his way. He was a bold gambler who often let things hinge on luck. However, this time he didn't realize that someone was manipulating the probabilities from the shadows, setting the stage for future events that would haunt him for the rest of his life.

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Several days had passed since Charys had arrived. The land of Tempest was calm once more. The construction of the main city of Tempest was complete, and the trade route to Dwargon had been finished. Merchants from both sides were now traveling between the two countries, doing business and bringing a great influx of high-quality goods to both Tempest and Dwargon. With Shuna's calculating leadership, she had organized everything perfectly, and everything was going smoothly.

Some small groups that lived scattered around the Jura Forest were now coming one by one, submitting to Veldora and seeking his protection. However, many groups still hadn't come under his rule.

"Veldora, why don't you declare yourself as a demon lord? If you declared yourself a demon lord now, I sure wouldn't complain!" Milim spoke as she swam across the hot spring, butt naked. She had been surprised to see the hot spring and was really excited when she saw such a big space for bathing. Since then, she had started coming here every day with Veldora.

Veldora thought about it for a moment as he sipped the wine in his hand. "Yeah, you are right. I would like to go to Walpurgis sometime."

Milim's eyes sparkled as she swam toward Veldora, not expecting him to agree. "Should I tell Guy about it now?"

"Nah, I don't want to deal with them now. Just tell me when the next Walpurgis is! Talking about demon lords, aren't you forgetting something?" Veldora spoke with a mischievous grin.

"Ohhh, I have to meet Frey today. I almost forgot," she replied.

"But before I go, I want to have some honey," Milim spoke as she went under the water and grabbed Veldora's dick, starting to suck on it underwater. She diligently stroked the big black cock with her cute little hand to bring out the honey. 

She had been doing it for months, so she had become quite skilled at it. She knew by stroking in which way the honey would come out faster. Sometimes she would play with his dragon balls or try to put them inside her mouth.

She also learned that when Veldora groped her ass or breasts, the honey would come faster. So she would grab his hands and place them there so he could grope them.

leaned back against the smooth, warm stone of the hot spring, the steam rising around him in gentle tendrils. 

The water was crystal clear, heated to the perfect temperature, and it relaxed his muscles as his dick was being sucked by Milim.

With one hand, he gently massaged her soft small ass. He could feel her ass hole close to his hand and, as much as he was tempted to playfully insert his finger in her ass hole, he refrained. He didn't want to risk angering Milim, even though the chances of that happening were pretty slim.

He took another sip of his wine, allowing himself to fully relax, savoring the peaceful moment and thinking about his future plans.

Veldora tightened his grip on Milim's butt as he released his honey from his dick into Milim's mouth, which she eagerly gobbled up like a greedy child.

After savoring all the honey, she splashed out of the water. Her beauty was mesmerizing. Milim's platinum-pink hair cascaded down her back, glistening with droplets of water that sparkled like diamonds. 

"Okay, I'm off to work! Will be back soon, Veldora," she announced cheerfully.

With that, she changed back into her bikini-ish outfit. She shot into the air so suddenly, just as she had come. In another moment, she was silently breaking the sound barrier, with no shock wave, and quickly falling out of sight. Despite the distance she had to travel, at that speed, it wouldn't take her long to reach her destination.

Veldora finished his bath and stood up. A group of dryads came over with towels and his clothes. They dried him off gently with the towels, being careful not to miss a spot. Then, they helped him put on his outfit—a fancy black robe with golden dragons on it.

Even though Veldora could change his clothes with magic, he liked being taken care of like this sometimes. It felt nice to relax and let others do things for him. So, he enjoyed the pampering from the dryads as they dressed him, feeling peaceful and happy.

After leaving the bath, Veldora's next destination was Kurobe's shop. Trained by the legendary Dwarven blacksmith, Kaijin, Kurobe's skills had greatly improved. Veldora wanted to see the results for himself.

As Veldora walked through the stone-paved streets, he felt a sense of satisfaction seeing the bustling activity of Tempest. Suddenly, Souie appeared behind him, delivering a report.

"Lord Veldora, we have sent your message to the elven chief. He agreed to all of our conditions, and they have agreed to submit," Souie spoke, kneeling respectfully.

Veldora stopped and turned to look at Souie. He placed a  hand on Souie's shoulder. "Good job, Souie. But next time, don't come to me personally for reports. Send the dragonewt girl who's working as your assistant instead," Veldora said, before continuing on his way.

In no time, Veldora reached the blacksmith area. Hundreds of blacksmiths from Tempest and Dwargon were hard at work. The area was bustling with activity, filled with the sounds of hammers striking metal, the roar of forges, and the busy chatter of craftsmen collaborating on their projects.

The reason for this high number of blacksmiths was the new raw material in Tempest: Charys's scales. These scales had unique magic disruption properties and were incredibly sturdy. Even better, Charys could produce them almost endlessly, providing an abundant supply of raw materials. This resource influx prompted continuous work to create armors and shields from Charys's scales. Gazel, recognizing the potential, had sent a large group of skilled blacksmiths to assist in the efforts.

As Veldora passed by the industrious workers, he observed the dedication and skill with which they worked. They were crafting impressive armors and weapons, all with the signature resilience of Charys's scales.

Approaching Kurobe, Veldora was greeted warmly. "Welcome, Lord Veldora," Kurobe said with a respectful bow.

Kurobe then showed him the weapons they were mass-producing. There were axes and giant hammers being produced for the orcs, spears preferred by the dragonwets, and a variety of weapons for Benimaru's main army.

Veldora picked up a dagger, noticing its lightweight feel. On closer inspection, he saw magic runes engraved into the blade. "What is this?" Veldora wondered aloud.

{This is a fire enchantment, Master,} Raphael responded.

Veldora turned to Kurobe and asked, "Did you do the enchantment?"

"No, my lord. It was done by Elder Shiro," Kurobe replied, introducing an old kijin who looked about the same age as Hakuro.

The kijin bowed respectfully toward Veldora. "You did this?" Veldora asked.

"Yes, my lord," Elder Shiro said timidly.

Veldora was pleased to see such a talented individual. By that time, Raphael had analyzed all the enchantment runes and created a more efficient and powerful version of them. Raphael made copies of those runes in a book instantly. Veldora handed the book to Elder Shiro.

"Here, take this and form an independent group of enchanters under you," Veldora ordered.

Elder Shiro took the book, his eyes widening in surprise as he scanned the contents. "These runes... They're incredible! Thank you, my lord. I will do my best to form the group and utilize these runes."

As he gave the order, Tear appeared beside him out of thin air, startling the blacksmiths.

She knelt before him. "Master, the envoys from Eurazania are on their way to Tempest."

"Why are they coming?" Veldora thought. 

"Well, we'll know when they arrive," he decided, dismissing Tear with a nod and left the blacksmith shop. 

After leaving the blacksmith area, Veldora made his way to check on Charys, who was being taught various diplomatic etiquettes. Since Charys was the second strongest person in Tempest after Veldora, he decided to use her as his representative and messenger. However, for this role, she needed proper knowledge about diplomacy, so she was appointed under Shuna to learn from her.

When Veldora entered the room, he saw Shuna patiently explaining the nuances of diplomatic conduct to Charys. The room was elegantly decorated, reflecting the importance of their discussions. As soon as they noticed his presence, both Shuna and Charys stood up and bowed respectfully towards him.

"Welcome, Lord Veldora," Shuna greeted him with a warm smile.

"Master," Charys said, her tone respectful and eager to show her progress.Veldora walked inside and sat on a couch.

 "Call me Daddy when we are alone," Veldora said to Charys, nonchalantly , which almost caught her off guard.

"Y-yesss, D-Daddy," Charys stammered, her cheeks flushing slightly.

"Now come to Daddy," Veldora spoke, pulling her onto his lap.

**************************************************

An ashen sort of joy erupted across Clayman's heart, a smile running across his face as he looked at Milim, who stood in one corner of his room like a lifeless doll.

He had finally obtained Milim's power. The prospect of taking revenge on that blonde-haired bastard filled him with a twisted sense of triumph. Unable to contain himself, he erupted into maniacal laughter.

"Calm down, Clayman. Don't act like a fool," he muttered to himself, forcing his composure to return.

"First, I have to find enough souls for my awakening," he mused aloud. He removed a mask from his pocket and placed it against his face, feeling his heart relax as he did so. To Clayman, he only felt like his true self with this mask on.

His thoughts raced with plans and schemes, all revolving around the newfound power he had through Milim. This was just the beginning. With Milim under his control, he was confident that no one could stand in his way.

He glanced at Milim once more, her vacant stare unnerving yet exhilarating. "Soon, Milim. Soon we will reshape this world in our image," he whispered, a sinister grin spreading across his face.

With a final look of determination, Clayman turned away from Milim, his mind already calculating the next steps. The path to his ultimate revenge and domination was clear, and nothing would stop him now.

Give me stones