"Daddy is going?" Jirot asked, panting after she finished her ilk.

  "Yes. We're all going to be going soon."

  "I going?"

  "Yes..." Adam smiled awkwardly. "It's going to be dangerous though."

  "Dangerous?" Jirot raised her brows, the way her babo did, and she flexed her arms, growling. "Look, daddy, look. I big and strong."

  "No, no, you're so small and cute." Adam lifted up his daughter and peppered her cheek with kisses.

  "No! I am Demon Load! Big and strong!" Jirot growled, only to be stopped by her father's tight hug, causing the girl to embrace her father too.

  "Yes, yes, my dear." Adam rocked from side to side, brushing her curly hair tenderly. "Some people don't like the Demon Lord, though."

  "Why?"

  "The Demon Lord did so many bad things before."

  "No! I am good girl! Mummy! Mummy!" Jirot called, reag out a hand to her mother for support, her eyes wide, urging her mother to inform her father of su important matter.

  "I know yood, you smelly girl, but other people don't know that."

  "How they do this?"

  "I don't know, my dear. It's because they're so smelly?"

  "All so smelly," Jirot firmed, huffing. "They saying Jirot is not good? Not good? I always good, daddy, always good!"

  "I know, I know..."

  "We ah going Red Oak?" Jirot asked.

  "How did you know?"

  "I know it," the girl replied, smirking. "I am so smart."

  "You are so smart."

  "Is big town?"

  "It's... bigger than the Iyr, I think."

  Jirot pulled her head back, furrowing her brows at her father. "What you are saying, daddy? So silly! So smelly!"

  "What, you think your father is lying? Daddy is telling the truth! There are so many people in Red Oak, about double thaire Iyr."

  "Mummy? You hear this?"

  "I hear it, but your father is right, in a way. Red Oak has more people, but the Main Iyr is certainly more expansive, from what I have seen." Vonda scooped another spoonful for Larot, who allowed the woman to feed him, with most graagnanimity.

  "We're going to leave the Iyr, but... Jirot, you o be good, okay?"

  "Daddy!" Jirot held up a finger. "What I say? You do not listen! You not listening to me?"

  "I'm listening, I'm listening, you're such a good girl, always a good girl," Adam assured, brushing the girl's hair back, though her dagger like finger remained. Adam reached over to take her hand and kissed the back of it. "It's just no one else knows, so that's why you o promise to be good, really good."

  "I promise I am good."

  "You promise you will be good?"

  "You are not listening?"

  "You 't bully your daddy like this! Your daddy is growing so old his hearing is already going!" Adam shook his head before leaning in to blow a raspberry against the girl's neck. Within Adam's heart, a seed of darkness began to sprout. He closed his eyes as he held his daughter, rog with her from side to side, feeling her warm cheek against his own, feeling her soft breath tig his neck, smelling the oils of the Iyr. 'I'll make sure to protect you from the world, my dear Jibaby.'

  Little Jarot waited patiently beside his father, until he was finally scooped up, and peppered in all manner of kisses. He opened his mouth for the potato his sister offered him, and ate slowly while their father held the pair of them, not uanding why the half elf was so eager to hold them, other than the fact that he loved them so dearly.

  Once lunch was over, Adam made his way about the fort, cheg on the rest of the businessfolk. 'I've got a bunch of Experts that should be able to protect them and handle most threats, but they're meant to be going to iheir families.' Adam then gowards the children within the business, from Alex to Elsie. 'Right, they o be protected too.'

  Adam let out a sigh, reag up to rub the side of his neck, feeling the gentle pulsing which began to ache. 'Do I o make my own army already? Should I go look for some more warriors?'

  Adam pleted his rounds, motioning a hand to Jonn, before making his way into the vilge, finding a particurly rge fellow. "I'm going to need you two to e with me."

  "Okay," Jonn and Nobby replied, though Nobby tinued with a, "mister boss."

  "Hopefully I won't need either of you, but... you know how it is."

  Jonn bowed his head. As a half elf, one who had once been a member of an order, he was still discriminated against, something whicreased after the Massacre of Rock Hill, which led to his exile from the Order. Nobby just hinking little of the issue, uanding that the others would treat the children poorly and he would o protect them. The reasons why, they were pletely irrelevant.

  'It's not like I'll be able to strain them within the fort their entire lives,' Adam thought, tinuing to walk around the business, lost within his thoughts.

  "Executive Adam," Fred called.

  "Yeah?"

  "Do you need me to e along too?"

  "No, there should be someone who stays here, just in case."

  "Should..." Fred said, before catg himself.

  "Yes?"

  "Should I go instead of Jonn, since he's a..."

  "He's a what?"

  "He's a half elf."

  "e on now, Fred. I don't want to hear that from you."

  "I don't mean nothing by it, but the people from Red Oak..."

  "Ah," Adam said, slowly nodding his head. "You're right. You should e along instead of Jonn."

  Fred nodded, still feeling awkward he mentio, but he hadn't been able to leave to prove himself, and now was the perfect ce.

  'Should I take Brittany too? No, no, she probably should stay here, since she's better with a bow. I should talk to... Cobra? No, she's the leader. I should take Viper or Python.'

  "Viper," Adam called, causing the young woman to stand at attention. "Would you mind ing with us on our outing?"

  "I don't mind," Viper replied.

  Jasmiched hoard the pair spoke to one another, with the half elf lost in thought, while Viper waiting to hear more about her task. However, she also hat Bil had also begun paying attention to Adam for some reason, his eyes glued to the half elf for a long moment, deep in thought, before the moment passed.

  'I guess with the Golden Savages, everything should be fine...' Adam thought. 'It is nearing the end of the month, so I'll o drop another few hundred gold on them.'

  "What?" Adam asked, the smell of the evening meal filling the air.

  "There is no need for the Golden Savages to e with us," the old one armed Iyrman said, huffing. "You do not hem when you have us!"

  "It's just ara yer of prote."

  "We Iyrmen will watch over the children well," Jarot stated firmly, sipping his ale. "The Golden Savages are great, but there is no need for them when we are so close to the Iyr."

  "It's not like it's your money, old man."

  "It is best to let them go at the turn of the month," Sonarot said simply.

  "Okay," Adam replied, leaving it at that.

  "You should show yrandfather more respect," Jarot said.

  "Whose grandfather?"

  "Do you think I will not beat you with this leg of mine?"

  "Just you try it!"

  "Jirot, you must tell them to behave," Gangak said, brushing the girl's hair.

  "Okay! Daddy! Babo!" Jirot held up her finger. "You are behave now, okay?"

  "Okay," the pair replied, the fools smirking at one another.

  "Your daughter told you off first."

  "That's right, she mentioned me first, old man."

  Gangak blinked. 'I hope they are still only pretending.'

  As evening began to fall across the fort, carriages approached the fort from the west. As they veered off to the side, the children eagerly gathered to watch as the figures stepped out of the carriages.

  "You have e?" Shikan asked.

  "Did Minakan trouble you?" Halikan joked, lifting her daughter up to kiss her cheek, Minakan smiling shtly.

  "She is as troublesome as you," Shikan joked.

  Kavgak sucked her hand shyly, turning her head away from her mother, before looking back towards the woman, who kissed her forehead.

  Jitool rested her head against her mother's bosom, sug her thumb as she almost fell asleep.

  "Daddy," Danagek called, beaming up towards his father.

  "You have e?" Tonagek asked, lifting up his son, who clutched at his colr, as though refusing to allow his father to leave.

  "Daddy!" Danagek squealed with delight.

  Uwajin yawned, before her eyes fell to a particur Iyrman, suddenly less sleepy, though she rexed again.

  "Dado!" Lanarot called, charging towards the old man who wore a red bde at his side, though she was quickly scooped up within his arms.

  "Are you well, my Lanarot?" Shasen asked.

  "I am good," the girl replied, giggling wildly. "Look!" Lanarot pointed behind herself.

  "Yes?"

  "Is gone?"

  "What is gone?"

  "My bread."

  "Did you eat it?"

  "..." The girl smirked before cag with delight.

  'She's definitely my sister,' Adam thought, proud that his sister was itted to her one joke. 'I'd rather you joke about bread rather thaher thing...'

  "Shasen, the girl is my grandniece," Shagek said, reag out to take the girl from him.

  "Dado?" Lanarot called, noting the older Iyrman, who wore the tattoos that were so simir to another who had arrived with them, though ied.

  Tarukan stared down towards Inakan, who blinked up towards him through her gsses, before she smiled.

  "Dado!" The tiny girl held up her hand, allowing the old man to hold his hand.

  "You finally reise me?"

  "Is dado."

  "Yes," the old man replied, dropping to a knee, ruffling her hair, before the girl quickly scampered back to her father, his nephew.

  "Did y drinks?" Jarot asked the approag Iyrman, who had grown out his beard longer, wearing a greatsword upon his back.

  "I did not e for drinking," the Iyrman said, though he offered his own gourd.

  "You did not e for drinking?" Gangak asked, raising her brow.

  "I have e to escort the children."

  Jarot and Gangak exged a look of bewildermeween the pair of them.

  Otkan tilted her head slightly. "Rajin?"

  "I wished to py chess with the children," Rajin said, simply.

  Jurot was busy paying his greetings towards Tarukan and Shagek, each of whom he was teically reted to. Kitool, too, was greeting the returning pair, but Jaygak, who had spotted the old Iyrman with his growing beard, had paused a moment. She eyed up the figures, Steel Strike and Silver Sword of the Wastes. It made sense for them to e, in a roundabout way. Shagek was Sonarot's uncle, and Tarukan was close to the Rot family since he was a Kahe Bearded Dragon?

  Jaygak blinked. 'He gave up his position to e?'

  "What is wrong?" Kitool eventually asked, noting Jaygak eyeing up the Family Elder of the Jin family. Kitool hadn't heard the versation, and there was nothing out of the ordinary of a Family Elder ing to the fort one of the Jin family worked within. It was within the Iyr's nds, after all.

  "Granduncle has e to escort the children."

  "He ot," Kitool said, eyeing up the troublemaker.

  "He is no longer a Family Elder."

  "..." Kitool threw a look towards Rajin, then he air between the older Iyrmen around him, from the ughing Jarot, to the slightly bewildered Gangak, and the ptative Otkan. 'He gave up his position?'

  "You must be Adam," Tarukan said, reag down to brush Adam's hair. "I have heard what you have done for my grandniece."

  "What did I do?" Adam asked, allowing the old man to brush his hair, before the pair shook forearms. He uood the old man was a Kan, not because of his tattoo, but because he was so damn handsome. "ht, yeah. Any time, of course."

  "You do not o speak with me so awkwardly, we are not strangers."

  "I mean, it's the first time we've met."

  "I am Tarukan, Shikan and Halikan's uncle."

  "Are you reted to grandaunt Otkan?"

  "I am her brother."

  "Oh!" Adam said, suddenly recalling the name he had heard now and again. "I didn't realise you had returned."

  "I returned retly."

  "Did you have fun?"

  "Yes," Tarukan replied, smiling slightly.

  Shagek also introduced himself, before the group were informed of how the childreo be to escorted, with each child assigned an Iyrman at all times. There was one Iyrman for each child, including Adam's own, though Adam spotted a difference.

  Whereas the likes of Shikan and Kaygak were assigo their own children, with Jurot, Jaygak, and Kitool also watg out for their own siblings, Adam gowards the group which had been assigo his own children.

  Shasen, Gangak, and Shagek had been assigo Konarot, Kirot, and Karot. Rajin and Jarot had been assigo Jirot and little Jarot. Tarukan had been assigo Larot.

  “Hey,” Adam whispered. “How strong are the granduncles?”

  “They should be strohan yrandfather,” Jaygak replied, though irely certain. She was certain that her grandmother, a Grandmaster, and one of the stro Gaks, was certainly the weakest among the group.

  “Whose grandfather?” Adam asked, though his voice wasn’t in the joke. ‘What? They’re that strong?’

  Jaygak retty certain Adam didn’t uand the importance of Rajin’s presence. She gnced around to see if anyone else was going to expin it, but it seemed to be the case that no one was going to bother. Jaygak gnced between the pair of goblins, who gleefully teased their babo.

  ‘I’m gd you are our Elder, Elder Zijin.’

  I wish I could tell you how important this chapter is, but you'll have to se how important it is iure.