Back at the fief, the first thing I did was check on its inhabitants. I always did that after a campaign. I knew that for them, almost no time had passed, but for me... it had felt like an eternity.
The relationship between Eileen and Andra remained stable. Eileen stayed in the fief most of the time, only leaving occasionally and always with extreme caution to avoid revealing her identity. Andra, on the other hand, frequently moved between both worlds—her brothel on the outside required constant supervision, especially due to the risks involved in staying hidden while remaining active. Fortunately, her new powers helped protect her business; not even the Ministry would dare interfere without serious thought. Perhaps among the Avalon spells I'd find some that could help her further reinforce her position.
The Evans sisters were still here too, living in isolation within the fief. I felt a bit guilty about keeping them locked away, but it was a necessary precaution—just like with Eileen. Still, I think I'll soon be able to take them out for walks if I prepare the right safety measures. It's not that I worry much about the truth getting out, but the time just isn't right yet.
With the many new things constantly happening in the fief, boredom is rare. And when it does hit, they come looking for me. I'm working with Petunia using the physical training manual, and so Lily won't feel left out, I'm also training her—though focusing more on developing her magical abilities.
I also went to visit Helena, as always, in the cemetery. I've noticed that her transparency keeps fading. Though her body is still intangible, it's getting harder and harder to see through. On top of that, her cold and dark aura has grown more intense and palpable. Ordinary people might not notice it, but anyone with a hint of magical sensitivity can feel the danger she gives off.
She's been here so long now that even rumors have started spreading at Hogwarts—about her appearance, her transformation, her new presence. Even other ghosts avoid getting too close, now that her essence radiates such intimidating energy. Luckily, Dumbledore hasn't come looking for me yet... unlike a certain Slytherin ghost.
I gave Helena some copies of Morgana's necromancy books, which I had sold and repurchased from a merchant. Thanks to her increased solidity, Helena can now handle physical objects with relative ease.
Her power has grown significantly—and not just magically. She's no longer a wandering spirit, but an entity capable of manipulating the dark and negative energies accumulating in the cemetery. She doesn't use magic like the living; hers is more primitive and instinctual, almost natural—born from the dark environment she now belongs to.
Every time a quest appears on the board about the City of the Dead, Helena shows up without fail, and all the rewards—both old and new—end up in her hands. Her understanding of death has already surpassed mine in several ways.
Like my arachnid daughter, Helena wields death as a weapon. Her touch is freezing and harmful, capable of causing paralysis and necrosis. She's learned to emit a sharp wail, much like a banshee's scream, that stuns and terrifies those with weak hearts. The most impressive thing, though, was when the cemetery itself began producing undead.
Skeletons started rising on their own from the graves. At first, they could barely stand, but the dark energy of the area has increased so much that they're now a real threat. Lily and Petunia, under Helena's protection, often come to train against the weaker ones. Eileen also gathers materials here as part of a side job.
What really caught my attention was how Helena began to control them. I watched as she infused a small amount of her spectral energy into a weak skeleton and moved it like a puppet. Over time, that same skeleton began to act more autonomously, though it remained under her control. I'm not sure if it means she has natural talent as a necromancer or if her undead nature amplifies her ability—but in any case, I might one day have a powerful commander leading dozens, maybe hundreds, of skeletal soldiers.
I said goodbye to Helena—who dove back into her books like the Ravenclaw she is—and continued on my way.
Before ending the day, I went to see my dear Gemma, whose belly was now enormous. It wouldn't be long before our daughter was born. I took a moment to gently caress her belly and feel the vibrant life inside. I also took the opportunity—purely responsibly, of course—to taste the milk she had just begun to produce. Just to make sure it was suitable for our child... nothing more.
Curiously, since I had edited our daughter's race, Gemma's milk didn't just contain physical nutrients. There was a trace of magical energy within it. At the same time, I noticed Gemma weakening after each feeding—sometimes to the point of struggling to stay upright. After a few tests, we confirmed that there was no serious danger: her condition could be managed with rest and proper nutrition. Still, during the nursing period, she wouldn't be regaining much energy.
Knowing this, I decided to make the most of her final days of strength to try out what sex during pregnancy felt like. It was good—and although I was careful not to be rough, we still got pretty wild. Fucking her while stroking the belly that held the fruit of our love and lust brought me immense satisfaction.
I left her resting in bed, her womanhood overflowing with white fluid, and got back to my tasks.
...
On a small hill within the forest of the fief, Elise was speaking to me seriously. We had briefly taken part in a few campaigns. In reality, I would more or less just drop us into one, max out the development of Elise's world as much as possible, and then kill myself to get the lowest possible rating—so I could come back the following month and aim for the next rank.
I did this with several campaigns—basically all the ones whose DLCs I had already bought and were available. Some I skipped simply because I didn't want to overload my brain-lock technique any further. But it was enough. I know I didn't spend much time in each one, but still… suiciding that many times was exhausting.
Finally, Elise's world now had a 10-kilometer circumference. Yes, it was still small, but it was starting to take shape.
We bought a tiny sun the size of a lightbulb from the [fief] panel, and Elise fused it with the fireball she had been using as her sun. She was having a hard time understanding exactly what a "sun" was, so we took a shortcut. We did something similar with the moon. In any case, she was already using her divinity to absorb the surrounding space into her planet, including these celestial bodies, so it wouldn't be a problem. I also tried creating stars—but for now, they're just shiny dots floating in black space. Still, it's looking beautiful.
Elise was exhausted from all the development. Although I could feel her divine power growing—despite still being mostly empty—she was tired. So, we decided to change the topic. And that's how we ended up here, arguing.
"There have to be unicorns," Elise said, pacing back and forth.
"Okay," I replied, jotting it down on my clipboard.
"There can be pegasi too. I like them—and I like flying," she added while still deep in thought.
"Noted…" I nodded.
"And there can't be any humans," she said, looking at me seriously.
"That's the third time you've said that," I sighed.
"Fine... I think we should also add hippocamps once we have oceans. I don't want to swim alone, it would be too quiet," she said, thinking about her ability to transform into an aquatic creature when submerged.
"I think expanding the marine fauna is a good idea," I agreed.
"I guess normal horses could be allowed too... I mean, we're related. And thanks to them, I made it this far. Oh! And those skeletal horses… they disgust me. I don't like how they look, but they're still part of my lineage," she added, thoughtful, remembering the pain she endured to become a goddess—and the species involved.
"So... centaurs too?" I asked.
"No. I don't like them. They're too human-like," she huffed, glaring at me.
"But they're not human. And I said centaurs—I didn't say anything about the wizard bloodline that's also part of your heritage," I raised an eyebrow at her.
"Hmph… fine. That part of them is acceptable. But they need to be the least human-looking centaurs possible," she gave in reluctantly.
"You know," I chuckled, glancing down at my notes, "with so many equines, your world is starting to sound like it'll be full of colorful ponies that sing and have butt tattoos."
"Right… there were ponies too..." Elise muttered, then blinked in confusion. "But why would colorful ponies fill the world? And ponies sing?"
"No, no, it's just from a show… a cartoon," I shook my head.
"Cartoon? A show? Like those movies you showed me?" she asked. Over time, I had shown her some films, though she hadn't understood many of them—so we eventually stopped.
"Yeah, kind of. It was a kids' cartoon… set in a world of equines. Everything was super colorful..." (Red)
"A world of equines? Like mine? There are movies about that? Why didn't you show me those?" she asked, part annoyed, part curious. She was visibly upset that I had shown her movies about humans instead of horses—like I should have—more and more convinced that I needed to abandon the idea that humans were superior to equines in hierarchy and beauty.
"Well, it was a show for little girls…" I replied thoughtfully. But now that I think about it, maybe a children's show was exactly what I should have shown her from the start; it would've been way easier for her to grasp.
"Show it to me. And all the other horse movies you've been hiding," she demanded, stomping her foot and lifting her head.
"Let me see what I can do," I said, knowing I had no way out.
I pulled a projector and several cards out of my inventory. These were some of the Christmas gifts [Father Christmas] brought during one of the holiday events. While gifts from campaigns are usually inferior to real-world ones, sometimes you get surprisingly fun stuff.
This projector works like a Pensieve, except instead of showing you the memory from the inside, it projects it onto a 2D screen. And not just memories—it can be used to watch shows and movies too. It doesn't matter the format: CD, VHS, even liquid format—you can insert it, and it'll play.
Then there are these cards, which I call "Merchandising Cards." You can select a franchise, saga, or universe, and it'll randomly generate a commercial product from that world. Of course, these are all entertainment-based—nothing particularly useful beyond collecting. Ever since I got them, they've been available in the [market]. By the way, there's also a cheaper version of this card… but it produces bootleg products.