Lucian was getting used to being woken up by urgent problems. He didn’t like it, but he was getting used to it.

  This time, it was Dorian—again—bursting into his chambers with the force of a man who had fully embraced panic as a lifestyle.

  "My lord!" Dorian gasped. "It’s an emergency!"

  Lucian groaned, rolling onto his side. "Dorian, unless the town is on fire, I don’t care."

  Dorian wrung his hands. "Well… it’s not on fire, but I’d argue this is worse!"

  Lucian peeked out from under his blanket. "Worse than fire? I doubt that."

  Dorian took a deep breath, then delivered his report. "With no formal law enforcement, people have… taken matters into their own hands."

  Lucian sighed. "I told them to handle their own problems. Sounds like it’s working."

  "Yes, but—" Dorian hesitated. "Well, it turns out that when you tell people to handle things themselves, some of them interpret that as ‘form an armed militia.’"

  Lucian sat up. "Wait. What?"

  Dorian pushed open the window shutters, revealing the town square below.

  What had once been a disorganized mess of merchants and beggars was now a training ground. Farmers swung wooden swords at each other under the watchful eye of a grizzled man barking instructions. Blacksmiths were hammering out weapons. A group of teenagers were attempting archery—badly.

  At the center of it all stood a tall woman in armor, arms crossed, overseeing the chaos with an expression of intense focus.

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  Lucian rubbed his eyes. "Dorian. Why do we have an army?"

  Dorian pinched the bridge of his nose. "Because the people of Duskwatch have, somehow, convinced themselves that this was your plan all along!"

  Lucian stepped outside and immediately regretted it.

  A small crowd of recruits cheered at his arrival. Some even saluted.

  The armored woman in charge strode toward him, offering a crisp bow. "Lord Veilwood. An honor to finally meet you."

  Lucian blinked. "Who are you?"

  "Elaine Stormcrest, former knight of the Imperial Order." She gestured toward the militia. "I have taken it upon myself to forge these citizens into a proper defense force, as per your vision."

  Lucian squinted. "My… vision?"

  Elaine smiled. "Yes, my lord. Your revolutionary approach—relying on the people to protect themselves rather than a corrupt centralized force—is brilliant. Never before has a noble placed such faith in his citizens!"

  Lucian stared at her. Then at Dorian. Then back at her.

  "Right," he said slowly. "That is definitely what I meant to do."

  Dorian muttered, "Oh no. It’s happening again."

  Elaine continued, clearly oblivious to Lucian’s confusion. "We have already begun basic training, and morale is high. Several former bandits have even joined, swearing loyalty to Duskwatch now that they have a true leader!"

  Lucian choked. "Wait—bandits?! We’re hiring bandits?!"

  Elaine shrugged. "Reformed bandits. They were impressed by your governance and wish to fight for your cause."

  Lucian dragged a hand down his face. "Of course they do."

  Dorian hissed under his breath, "My lord, you need to put a stop to this before it gets out of hand!"

  Lucian took a deep breath, turned to Elaine, and tried to sound like a responsible adult. "Listen, uh, while I appreciate… whatever this is, I’m not sure we need a full militia."

  Elaine’s expression didn’t waver. "With all due respect, my lord, Duskwatch is vulnerable. No standing army, no guards, and we’ve already seen the failure of Imperial enforcement. If we do not defend ourselves, no one will."

  Lucian hesitated. That… actually made sense. Annoyingly so.

  But before he could come up with an excuse, Elaine knelt on one knee, bowing her head.

  "We are prepared to fight for Duskwatch. For your vision. Just say the word, my lord."

  Lucian stared at her. The entire militia stared at him.

  A sane ruler would have stopped this immediately.

  Lucian sighed. "Fine. Just… try not to stab anyone important."

  The crowd erupted into cheers.

  Dorian groaned. "Why do I feel like this is going to be an even bigger problem later?"

  Elaine stood, beaming. "We shall not disappoint you, my lord!"

  Lucian rubbed his temples. "I need a nap."