Steel and Mana

Chapter 100 – Party

It was early evening. The sun was getting ever so close to disappearing below the horizon while we were gathering in the main square once again. This time, none of us wore any fancy clothes because I knew full well that there was a chance we would have to dance. I think Sasha was even more nervous about it and would have worn high heels instead, so she had an excuse not to do it. By her words, even after training a lot, she could only move around like a scarecrow being tugged and pulled on strings.

From our podium, we could easily see the smaller one built for Mikan, her violin standing ready while the microphones were set up so she didn't have to hold them by hand. The people around us were excited; those familiar with Mikan's sermons already knew she had a great voice and talent for music. For me, everything was new, so I observed curiously, waiting with excitement.

"Keep an eye on him!" Luna whispered, leaning over to Sasha and Yuri, but continued speaking at a volume I could still hear. "Mikan is dangerously sexy in her costume. If we are not careful, she will end up as the fourth wife! That is too much!"

"..." Sasha remained silent, trying to keep up a non-caring front, but I knew she agreed with her friend, watching her nod her head ever so slightly.

"I'm fine with that!" Yuri argued, "I would want to massage those titties; damn, I want to suckle on them like a baby while she is rubbing my tummy! Or pussy! Or both!"

"Damn, girl..." Whistled my Father, leaning forward, looking at me, "How can you keep her tame, son? You are making your dad proud, you know that?"

"The priestess does have a very breedable body," Mom added under her breath, making me freeze. I looked around, happy that Merlin was not here—the poor guy; he would not understand half of it, huh? At least he was still innocent.

"Get used to it. Louise was a wild child from what I re-" Elliot spoke up but choked on his words after my Mom looked at him with glowing eyes. Oh, was there a secret hiding from their childhood? Something I don't know? What were you like, Mom? Curious...

Before the whole conversation would be irreversibly derailed, Merlin's voice echoed from around the square as he walked up to the stage, holding his own microphone.

"Welcome, citizens of Avalon! Tonight will be the first night for our beloved Priestess Mikan to play some songs and make sure everyone can have some good fun! We are here to celebrate the peace that our Sovereign has brought us!"

"Where did he come up with this speech?" I asked nobody in particular while listening to the shouts and applause spreading amongst the crowd.

"I think he wrote it himself." Luna answered, placing his finger on her lips, "I read all of his books because he writes really good stories! But I noticed that most of them have a character like you, who always saves the day and the people. Maybe he loves you. Will you take him into your harem?"

"No." Answered Sasha, my Mom, Dad, and finally, Me.

"I would watch them do it," Added Yuri, but I knew it was best to ignore her.

"I ought to spank you for this," I continued, watching Luna, whose eyes became slightly brighter at once.

"I will hold her down." Sasha agreed, further intensifying the light in my little maid's mismatched eyes.

"Son, you should make things clear!" Father warned me, looking serious, "Young Merlin is still impressionable! You need to talk with him, or this can turn nasty in a flash. You already have wives and an heir in the making! You can't fool around with an innocent soul if you don't want anything from him."

"Wait, w-what?" I stuttered, thinking I had misheard, but my Mom quickly agreed.

"As your Father says, Leon! If you don't want to do anything with him, tell Merlin about it. Don't break his heart! It is evil, and I will spank you as you spank Luna! Hmph!"

"Wait a minute, you would be..." I didn't know how to say it. I was floored by how open they were, which I didn't expect. What the hell? "I thought you..."

"You can't take a boy into the harem," Mom continued, explaining without flinching, ignoring Sasha's deeply red face and Yuri's uncontrollable grin. "Because what if he makes one of your wives pregnant? That would be a complete disaster!"

"I did not even think about it in the first place!" I moaned, wanting to tear my hair out, looking at Luna, who was also enjoying this chaos that she produced out of nowhere. "You little devil, I will so, so, so spank you that you won't be able to sit or sleep on your back for a WEEK! Just you wait..."

Luckily, we couldn't continue because Merlin finished his speech, and Mikan was finally ready to appear. The girls weren't lying; she did look gorgeous. She was wearing a white, elegant dress with a golden belt going around her waist. I had never seen her with such revealing clothes as it left her arms free, having a deep cutout above her chest, and with every step she took, the side of her legs became visible right up to her waist.

"Damn." I muttered, watching Mikan take her place and raising the violin to her neck. I guess she was nervous because she wasn't paying attention to us or the crowd; instead, she began to play without hesitation or pause in her movements.

If I want to describe the melody echoing through the city, she was playing something that would fit very well into a happy, fantasy movie in my old life. I can't complain because I do live the life of one, don't I? Am I such a character? Nah... that would be weird. Anyway! It was good and really catchy. Looking at the others, it was obvious that they also enjoyed it, and it gave me an idea.

"What are you doing?" Sasha asked, looking stunned and turning red while I stood before her, hand extended towards her.

"I am inviting you to dance; what else?"

"But-but-but... this not like what we practiced!" She answered in a panic, and of course, it wasn't. What Mom was teaching us was the typical noble shtick. The music right now? It was much more upbeat and lively. It didn't need any choreography, only instincts.

"Come, don't be shy! Just follow the rhythm!" With a laugh, I pulled her out of the chair, holding onto her waist as I began dancing, completely random, trying to match Mikan's music, and if I failed, that was fine, too. "You are too focused and stiff~ Let it go, Sasha. Just... enjoy it!" I whispered, looking into her eyes, keeping her from overthinking things.

Soon enough, she began loosening up, and after that, she finally managed to follow my steps. It didn't take long before we were like two silly kids, dancing without rhyme or reason, simply enjoying ourselves and laughing when one of us made a mistake. Glancing to the sides, I saw the crowd noticing us and beginning to clap, following our lead. A few minutes later, everyone was forgetting about everything, only enjoying the moment. Yes... This was precisely what I wanted from these festivities.

"My turn!" Shouted Yuri, jumping up from her seat, followed by Luna, not wanting to stay out of the fun, so with a smooth switch, I handed off Sasha to Luna while I took Yuri's arm, quickly adjusting to her much more pronounced and erotic moves. She was like a snake, trying to hypnotize me with how silkily she could twist and turn her waist. In another life, maybe she would be a world-class belly dancer.

When it was Luna's turn, her submissive personality quickly resurfaced as she followed my lead, never telling her body to say no. If I began spinning her, she heeded my will, and if I pulled her closer, she did so without any resistance, giggling all the way, enjoying being led by the nose—or hand, in this case.

I don't know how long we did it, but by the time Mikan finished, I felt my legs hurt and was sweating buckets. Still, she only took a small break, refreshing herself before starting all over again. Looking at my people finding joy in the music made me realize that by wanting to build a city for myself, just because I wanted to enjoy my second chance at life, I also made it so that those around me could also find delight in their lives.

"I will need to teach this to our child."

"Dancing?" Sasha asked, catching my whispers.

"No," I continued, caressing her face. "The lesson that if they do something, they must do it so others can enjoy it, too."

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The following morning, the city was quieter than usual as the little party at the main square went on for a long time. My wives were still asleep when I slipped out of my room and headed to my study. I was meeting with Merlin, who was visiting me and bouncing like an energy bomb to make a report on yesterday's event.

"It was a great success, My Sovereign! The people loved it; we should host something like this yearly!"

"Mhm, we can mark the first week of spring as such. We could center it around welcoming the warm and saying goodbye to winter, a start of a new year, if you like."

"Oh, that is a good idea, I will write that down!"

"Let's not tie it to a concrete date; let it be held at the time when our first warm weeks have come. Also, I have something that I need to talk to you about. Please, sit."

"Did something happen?" He asked, getting a bit nervous as I was way too serious. Well, it was a weird topic, so I didn't really feel comfortable either. I just couldn't chase out the thoughts that my parents' words planted in my mind. I like my Prime Minister, but not in any weird way. I would hate if our friendship went awry for some stupid reason, so I decided to talk openly with Merlin before it was too late.

"We need to chat about us." Shit. That sounded so wrong. "This is not about laws, plans, or ideas. I want to know what you think about me."

"Um... what I think about... You?" He murmured, becoming shy and nervous, beginning to play with his fingers. "Well... You are my Sovereign!"

"No, leave the protocol and whatnot behind you. We are talking like men here! Right now, you are Merlin, and I am Leon. Tell me, Merlin. What do you see when you look at me?"

"..." He began hesitating once again, but seeing that I wouldn't drop the topic, he finally spoke up, avoiding eye contact. "I look up to you... very much so! You are not just my ruler but also someone who inspires me, and I want to be like you! You... you are like the best big brother who I could ask for!"

"Big brother...?" I asked, feeling relief wash over me. Thank the Gods, it wasn't anything weirder! Damn it, Luna, damn it, Mom! You made me worried for nothing!

"I'm sorry! I know... I shouldn't because that is so improper! Hauuuh!" With a sobbing cry, he lowered his head, holding it between his hands, acting so shy that it was hard not to laugh.

"Ahahaha! Good, good! I am glad you look at me like that!" I exclaimed while standing up and walking over, hugging him, and patting his back. "I don't mind, quite the opposite; I am happy if you think of me like that, Merlin! For a moment, I was worried you harbored romantic feelings towards me."

"Whaaaat?!" Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, he yelled, "No! I-I-I... I am not! Promise!" While he tried his best to explain it, I watched his eyes, and I felt that he wasn't lying. "Why did you think that?! Hauh, not fair, Sov-, khm, Leon! Not fair! You can't tease me, even if you accept me as your younger brother! Bullies are bad!" He pouted, looking like a little chipmunk.

"Sorry, sorry! It was Luna who brought it up, and thinking about your books..."

"Oh..." He flinched, going red in the face again. "I never wrote romantic things into them, so I don't know why she thought it like that. There are no heroines there or, you know, um... that part..."

"Sex?"

"Yes... because..." Huh. He was getting even more troubled, his voice lowering so much that I barely could make it out.

"You never did it. I know. You already told me that."

"Ugh... No bully... Stop..." He continued sulkingly, looking at the ground and drawing circles with his feet.

"Tsk! I told you I will get you a wife, hm, hm. I will need to work on it, it seems."

"Please, no!" he exclaimed, snapping his head up at me. It will happen when... When I meet someone, um! Yes, I am sure of it!"

"Haaah, okay, okay. I'll drop the topic! So I should not try to make you and Mikan a thing?"

"What? Why? Why Mikan?"

"Duh, your bodies are a perfect match!"

"I don't get it."

"Haaaah... No matter!" I shrugged and began rubbing his head because I saw that he really did not get it. At least it was finally cleared up. I can be calm from now on, but to be honest... I will still try to seek a proper wife for my little brother. I need his lineage to prosper! I want my future heir to have their own good friend and a potential, perfect Prime Minister...