As the morning sun had dawned on the second day of their time here in Stormholme Fortress, Ash and Martha awoke side by side, although not embracing one another as that was reserved between Leini and the former general herself. The two of them got up and while Martha moved to the nearby cabinet to get her stuff and change into a fair-looking bck suit with white accents, Ash simply snapped her fingers and she transformed back into her mother once more.

  "Damn, I wish I could do that" Martha remarked as she looked at the spirit given physical form across the room

  "It is a skill that Mother taught me. She will teach you if you just ask Martha" Ash replied as she had a smile on her face

  "Hmmm, alright then. I will hold you to that, if she doesn't then I know who to bme" The former general teased as she straightened out her coat and looked at a nearby mirror, slipping on some fine ft dress shoes and taking out a small pen that she holstered in a coat pocket on the left

  "Oooo, was that a gift given by Mother?" The former empress asked with curiosity

  "Mhmm, three clicks and it transforms into a halberd, one click makes it a normal pen. It is very useful" The former general answered with a smile and a nod as she finished her look

  "So what is on the agenda today?" Martha added while turning to face Ash as 'Leini'

  "Hmmm, I believe the rest of the family will arrive ter and once they do, we are going to just interact with them while Mother does her thing and gets to know them better. That is pretty much the entire pn right" Ash answered as she looked at a mirror and adjusted her illusion magic by cycling power through the crystal neckce she was wearing

  "Right right. I just thought that Leini would have more to it in mind that she was not willing to disclose with me" The former general said with a slight blush of embarrassment

  "She will tell you everything if you just ask"

  "Hmmm, right right...I am just a bit embarrassed that's all"

  "Embarrassed to ask the love of your life questions?"

  "Yes! Leini is just so....amazing and I don't want to be seen as a silver-haired bimbo" The former general expined with a small blush

  The former empress began to giggle as she looked at the blushing woman before her and the former general saw for a fraction of a moment that Ash's illusion of her lover faltered for a brief second and went the spirit stopped giggling and looked at Martha, she could see nothing but genuine joy in her eyes filled with happiness for her.

  "Martha dear, Mother would not look at you as a lesser person if you were the one she loved with all of her heart. In fact, if anyone had a very loving partner, you could say you have as Mother would give her entire heart and soul to ensure that you lived a life of great comfort and joy while you are with her. So please, don't look down on yourself with pity, if Mother chose you then you are more than you realize and that means even seemingly foolish questions are questions she will answer in with intense seriousness"

  "Right...right, I forgot that part" Martha said with a small smile on her lips as she agreed with the words spoken by Ash, she had been so focused on the negatives that she had forgotten that Leini and her were beings literally meant to be together and that nothing was going to change that, a sense of calm washed over her while she took a deep breath and nodded her head

  {!}

  Just then, a knock on the door startled the two of them and while it would have been surprising for normal people, the fact that someone was able to sneak up on Martha whose danger senses had been honed through years of fighting and Ash, who was formerly the strongest being on the pnet besides her mother when she was still alive caught both of them the wrong way.

  The two of them shared a look and nodded before moving swiftly to the door, fnking the double doors and readying themselves to engage anyone who was on the other side of the massive object.

  "Wait...what if"

  "It's her?"

  The two of them then peered through the peepholes of the door and they saw a young woman who was a maid standing in front of an older man whom they recognized as Carter Alga, the former head of the cousins of the st generation and the one who had failed to introduce himself yesterday as he and the rest of the older adults had retired to some area of the fortress without telling anyone else before revealing themselves at dinner. But when the two of them saw him across the room, he looked quite fidgety whenever he gnced over at them across the room repeatedly, and from the power they could sense from him, they knew he was not the one who could have snuck on them without them noticing, meaning that the maid who was bowing her head and obscuring her face was the person they both knew was Leini. The two women shared a nod and then began to turn the knobs of the double doors.

  {!}

  Once the door opened the maid and the older man stepped in and then quickly shut the door behind them. Ash had turned back to her old elven form from her empress years and the young maid before them transformed into the lover of Martha and the ancient matriarch of the entire family that now spanned continents.

  "Hello there my darling, it has been a short while has it not?" Leini purred as she cupped her beloved Martha's face and pced their foreheads together, causing Martha to blush as she locked eyes with the Old Schor

  "I...I missed you dammit" Martha replied before quickly pulling her lover into a grapple and then moving faster than any of the people in the room could comprehend as she pinned Leini down on the bed

  "Damn...how the hell?" Ash remarked as she saw what happened

  "What the fu-" Carter also remarked with a surprised smile before Leini shot him a look that shut him up

  "Give us a few minutes please" Leini asked her two descendants as she looked at them, seeing Ash and Carter nod as they then exited the room and left the couple to their own devices

  "So...where were we?" Martha purred as she looked down at the pinned Leini, licking her lips as a look of lust filled her face"

  .....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

  After around 30 minutes of heaven for Martha and Leini, the two of them peered their heads outside of their room and saw Carter and Ash patiently waiting for them, sitting on a table that Ash had conjured up, said table was holding several bottles of beer and some snacks that both the spirit and the old man ate while waiting patiently for their matriarch and her lover to be finished, thankful that the soundproof barrier of the room was enacted as it was kinda weird thinking or even hearing the moans of the woman they respected and loved so much despite their own age.

  "Sorry about the wait" Leini apologized as they all regrouped back in the room, the two people who just entered watching as several devices they had never seen before currently washing the bed behind them

  "It's not a problem Grandmother" Carter said with a small nod

  "Yes Mother, it is not a problem. We were able to use the time to get to know one another better" Ash added with a nod of her own

  "Nevertheless, let us get down to business. Today is the day that the rest of the retives are coming, these people are the ones I wish to meet without them knowing who I am. I believe you have also told Joachim not to announce us and to just let us mind our business for now right?" The Matriarch asked as she turned to Ash who nodded at her with a small smile

  "Good. Now that no one will possibly get in our way, the pn is to simply keep up appearances as Joachim and Prisma will most likely try their damndest to ensure you do not meet the rest of the family until everyone is ready. I get that they wish to ensure that the kinks of everyone are ironed out but I wish to see who these people truly are"

  "That sounds reasonable Grandmother, I too would wish to see if the people who are called my 'Family' are either those who have lived to the creed we have been living by for so long or are some money-grabbing lowlifes who will sell-out their own flesh and blood for a quick buck" Carter chimed in with a nod as he agreed to the words spoken by the Matriarch.

  "Good, now that we all know the pn, let's see just how much we can get away with before they catch on. Hehehehe"

  .........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

  The sun was beaming down on Stormholme Fortress as a massive convoy of carriages guarded by the revered Ashen Guard of the Ashen Empire along the long winding well-paved road that led to the massive fortress that sat upon its mountainside. Many of the people in these carriages were quite excited to see who their family members were after finding out that they were part of such a rge cn that spanned across the continent. Others were excited to see familiar faces, mingle with new ones, and create new connections that would undoubtedly serve their purpose in familial and even business retionships someday down the line.

  In the head carriage at the front of the convoy, fnked by the Ashen Guard riding atop their mounts which moved in lockstep with one another was the current head of the Ashen Empire, Emperor Gustav Ashen the Second and his family, Empress Lorenna Ashen and their sons, the eldest named Marcus Ashen and the youngest Tiler Ashen were all sharing in their father's excitement to see their extended family and have fun for the week with them. Gustav had been told that someone special was joining the festivities this time around, someone he had yet to meet since the family gatherings that Gustav had with Joachim were ones that involved only their families. But now, it was going to be a family reunion that spanned across continents and generations if Gustav understood correctly from his cousin's wording.

  Gustav was a handsome man with fair skin, standing at 5'8 (172.72 cm) or rather sitting down at the moment, with slicked back blonde hair, his well-built physique cd in a resplendent regal suit of white and gold with a white cape that had a red lining. His chestnut-colored eyes were resting on his wife Lorenna who was just as tall as him and beautiful while having a slightly tanned complexion, with a head full of flowing ptinum hair that cascaded down her back like a waterfall and matching her vender-colored eyes that looked back at him with a loving gaze. She was cd in a white dress that had crimson accents and csped in her hands that were on her p was a matching white purse that carried several personal items.

  Next to them, aged 11 and 8 years old respectively were Marcus and Tiler Ashen, both of them being the spitting image of their father except for the fact that they had their mother's hair and eyes. The two boys were caught up in their own world, chatting about what they would do with their cousins and retives for the week and what they were expecting once their father told them even more cousins and retives would be joining them for this event.

  "By the Gods I am absolutely excited!" Gustav told Lorenna who was smiling at him

  "I imagine you are dear. It has been quite a while since we have been with Joachim and the rest, hell, the st time we saw our dear old cousin was in the emergency assembly a few months ago. I hope they have all be doing well" The current empress said with a smile as she looked out of the carriage window at Stormholme Fortress which was closing in on the distance

  "I heard that Joch wants us to meet with someone before everyone else. Do you have any idea who it may be?" The current emperor asked

  "No clue, but I am assuming it is someone important, extremely important if we are going to meet them before anyone else"

  "True..adds to the excitement don't you think?"

  "I know it does. I am also quite curious as to who this person is. GASP! Maybe it is someone like the Tower Master from the Sultanate of Ghabir! I have always wanted to meet her!"

  "Maybe it is! Oh! That would be so cool to learn we are reted!"

  "Yeah!"

  "But let's not get our hopes up"

  While the Imperial Family was gushing about possibilities, somewhere down the long line of carriages was a beige-colored carriage carrying the massive family of 8 that had just arrived from the continent of Fristasia, the Amadeus Family who were a group of commoners not used to this sort of thing. The head of the family, Joshua Amadeus was reted to the head of the Apparn Family who was one of the main 12 families. Joshua was a close cousin to Lika Apparn (A mia) and both of them had spent many years studying together. While Lika and her family continued on their family lineage of great and powerful adventurers and schors, Joshua and his side of the family were modest farmers who served under the crown of the Kingdom of Hollerda.

  "Oooo boy, I can't believe we are attending something as grand as this! I had no idea that Lika was reted to such...royalty" Joshua muttered to his wife Scarlet

  "I know right?! By the Gods what have we done to be here?? I am honestly very scared dear" Scarlet replied as she csped her beloved husband's hands into her own

  "You are not the only one"

  Joshua fixed the suit that was clinging to his rge frame, what used to be a well-built body was now a bit rounder than what it previously was and his chubbiness also somehow affected how his usually short and spiky hair into nothing but a rge bald head due to the stress of life and his kids, leaving only a small mustache and goatee. His tanned skin complemented the beige-colored suit he was wearing and the small spectacles resting on his nose completed his look. His wife Scarlet on the other hand was still as slender and beautiful as the day they met, dressed in a nice white suit with a lovely red overcoat draped over her body, and her crimson-colored hair was tied in a bun resting on the back of her head, and while both of them were at their supposed thirties, Joshua was a pure human while Scarlet was an elf, aiding her appearance.

  Seated next to the two who were trying to comfort one another were their kids. There were six in total since Joshua and Scarlet were...busy, throughout the years. They had three boys and three girls and all of them were around the ages of 29 to 17 across the board and the young adults of the family had taken time out of their busy schedules to go with their parents to this event that they had never heard about but were curious enough to see what it was.

  "You think we will see some princesses or princes?" Avery, the youngest girl at 17 asked her siblings while keeping her gaze at the distant fortress coming into view

  "Probably...How we are reted to them is a question I want to be answered" Torent, the middle child at 21 answered as he kept his gaze on a magi-crystal he had brought projecting the image of some textbooks for school

  "Who knows, maybe we can exploit some sort of loophole to throw our hat into the succession ring of whatever kingdom is there! We can finally be royals!" Ygard, the oldest at 29 said with a cocky smile

  "Oh please. The moment you become a monarch, the people will hang you for a fraction of the bullshit you have said across your life" Sarit, the second oldest at 25 said as she rolled her eyes at her older brother

  Further down the line of carriages, there was a simple oak-colored one that housed a single occupant. He was a tall-statuesque dragonkin man with brownish scales that blended nicely with his tanned skin. His horns were ornate with a single golden dot pced on each one and his eyes, simirly golden, had a very eccentric aura coming from them. His golden hair was styled in a recognizable executive style cut and he was dressed in a tailor-made bck suit with a white interior, the golden buttons and cufflinks matching the golden ornaments on his horns, his smile was calcuted, curious, and downright devious as he had pns upon pns to squeeze the most out of this so-called 'Reunion' of families. His name was Farhent Gahhad and he was a direct cousin to Arturious Aime from the continent of Penfeider. By day he was a local antiquities shop owner but by night, he was a man who had links to the underworld and headed one of the most notorious criminal gangs currently active, his gang was simply known as 'The Cornerstone Bandits' and its primary goal was to get rich at any cost, even if it meant stealing from family and friends.

  "Hehehe, I came here looking for a quick buck and what I have found is the ultimate jackpot. Sorry Arturious, for all the love you and I share, this is far too big of a prize NOT to loot. I hope you will understand" He said to himself in his deep charismatic voice, practicing the lines that he would say to his beloved retive when he pulled off the greatest heist anyone in the history of the world has ever seen.

  "Now, all I have to do is wait for the Crimson Rider to do his job and everything will go as pnned. Hehehehe"

  A/N: HAPPY NEW YEAR! Hope you are all having a wonderful start to the year and sorry this came out ter than scheduled! I hope you enjoy the chapter and the arc!