The shadow of the manipulator

After three months since Lumina's wedding and the weddings of his other wives, as well as the opening of the tailor shop and the new district, the first adventurers began their travels in Little Franconia and Franconia as grave guards and soul priests. Mortis stood on the balcony of his study and went over some documents related to the administration of his kingdom. When he finished and put his seal under them, he looked south. Although all but Edna were pregnant, he was determined to move on and grow stronger in the coming days to leave this continent.

Suddenly Opera, a servant of Mortis, ran into the study, bringing with her a multitude of white letters from various barons and counts. It seemed that the king had died or, as it was claimed by others, had been assassinated. In addition, things were said to be worse in the south of the continent, and sentiment against the queen had fallen sharply. There were vocal voices claiming that the queen had submitted to the dark emperor and was making people suffer. Some even claimed that she was to blame for Ulm being overrun by demons and the undead. The mood was slowly leaning in that direction in the north as well.

Mortis sat down and let everything sink in. He was sure that something was going on here that had too great an impact on various levels to come from peasants or petty politicians. He pondered what exactly was going on and then gave Opera the letters to read. He then told her to get Leonie and Marina.

Opera read through the letters and was disturbed at how the beginning continent, which had existed for millennia with firm laws and strong cohesion, could break like this. After she finished reading, she got Mortis' wives to show them the documents. Leonie and Marina were nervous about why they were called in such a hurry, but when they read the letters, they no longer understood their world. There had been no royal murders for centuries, besides, many new cities were being built and prosperity was increasing in all generations. So what could be the reason that so many opposed the queen of Bayaroma and her king?

But when Mortis turned to the three women and saw their shock, he said, "It will be a born-again, either a politician or one who leads a cult. A real manipulative asshole who dreams up a utopia for the people, thinking only of his own good. But this bastard didn't count on me. Leonie, contact your father and his barons. They should be here tomorrow, and preferably the Count of Erfurt and the Baroness of Eisenach as well. I'll find the wanker, and with a few laws we can counteract him well and find his followers easily. But that only applies to us in Franconia. I don't really have friends in Bayaroma, even if they celebrate me in the north. So I should leave tomorrow to find out what utopia this manipulator is spreading to cause chaos."

What kind of laws do you have in mind, honey?" asked Leonie eagerly. But Mortis only took out paper from his desk and said, "You'll find out with the others. Now please contact the others quickly. The longer we take, the faster our opponent's ideology will spread and he will only grow faster. We must make sure that we get to the root of the evil as soon as possible before it spreads further like a virus. This would not be the first world to be infected by spiritual garbage and end up in a civil war or religious war."

As Mortis' wives made their way to the contact crystals, Opera asked Mortis, "Do you think this new enemy might be planning to introduce democracy?" Mortis shook his head and replied, "No, that is not the case. Times here are too warlike, and there have already been some who tried to spread it, but they always ended up on the scaffold. I rather think he wants to introduce more retrograde ways, with more subservience. He will probably tell people that he will manage to make them all stronger, especially considering that the gods now grant fewer blessings and have introduced trials. He'll probably also hand out blessings from dark gods who have changed or disguised their names."

Opera looked at the letters and said, "But the laws are already very close to the Middle Ages. Do you really think a strict cult can prevail?" Mortis was surprised by Opera's naiveté and replied, "You must remember that people en masse are already called lambs in our ancient world, wanting a shepherd who will crack down. You could say that our king and his entourage are so friendly that they offer such groups a target. Besides, the queen of Bayaroma should be a young woman without a husband, which already stirs up great unease among the lambs."

So is that why you are friendly, but also not afraid to punish a criminal? Opera asked. Yes, that's exactly why I always have a stern demeanor outside and make it look like I know everything, because it reassures the people and gives them a sense of security. It seems arrogant, but I am their light in this dark world. The Count smiled and took the piece of paper on which he had written down his thoughts and went to the garden to train until the guests arrive and the important political meeting takes place.

In the garden Kathrin was already training with Valeria and Helga with Jasmin. Edna was busy in the forge while Lumina was teaching Zara how to mix potions. When Mortis arrived in the garden, he was immediately challenged by his wives, who had all reached level 50 by now and wanted to show him that they were now his equals. Mortis grinned, pulled his scythe out of his ring and poured a potion over it, covering it with a protective gel so he wouldn't hurt his women during their little sparring session. Finally, all of them were pregnant, even Helga for 2 weeks, which left Mortis somewhat speechless. However, neither Lumina nor Valeria mentioned the reason why everyone got pregnant so quickly. However, Lumina got pregnant because of a red potion she drank before mating to be more receptive. Gods are not particularly potent in this regard, but Lumina had received a recipe and a few bottles from her mentor to get around this problem.

For Mortis, this was more of a small game, because even though his women had perfect stats and were given all the potions that could make them stronger, they were nowhere near Mortis' stats. Still, his women were not deterred from defeating him. They used everything from shields and buffs to potions to at least make Mortis sweat. After 15 minutes, however, all four women were out of breath or over Mortis' knee, which they accepted with laughter. Even Valeria, who is the most stubborn of his women and has the greatest drive to get stronger, could not overcome him. When Mortis was done with them, he took a rune from his ring and threw it about two meters away from him. An echo of his father appeared and helped Mortis train by beating him green and blue.

When Mortis' training was over and it was starting to get dark, the guests arrived and dined with Mortis and his family. The mood was somber, however, as it seemed that all the counts and barons were upset and unsettled by the news they had received.