While still enjoying their deer meat under the dark sky, Fay seated himself near a fire and glanced back at the parent and child sitting nearby.

He passed another skewer of meat to the red-haired lady.

"You had it rough, boy, to have three kids under you while dealing with so much," Harriett commented. Somehow, she had managed to get all three small children, Mari, Tomo, and Rina, to fall asleep, something that amazed Fay, who normally had to use Somni to accomplish the same thing.

"Well, I love my little sister. I'd do anything for her. As for the other two kids… I guess they remind me of her, in how they act reserved," Fay replied with a shrug, looking toward the woman as she gently patted her son's back, urging him to speak.

Joan looked at her, then cleared his throat.

The boy was clearly too sheltered.

"I guess… thank you, Fay, for letting me have my new creature. I'll help however I can…"

Fay nodded, then glanced at Horin, who was sitting beside her father. He felt a bit lonely, seeing how those two had their parent beside them.

"It's fine. Just learn the basics for now, as for the rest… I'm sure you'll get better with time."

He was about to hand the boy another portion when a silver-haired girl suddenly dropped in from above.

She gave Fay a glare before tearing off a leg of the deer with ease. She didn't even flinch at standing directly over the fire; her dress didn't burn, even while draped across the flames.

"Mirage? I thought you went back to sleep. Did you want more food?" Fay asked. He was starting to learn how often she changed her mind, as if her personality hadn't fully settled.

Sometimes, she spoke and acted like an ancient being, but other times, she was exactly as she looked: a ten-year-old girl.

"I just got bored, alright? There's nothing to do in that stuffy place. I can't even turn into my true form... it would take up too much space and drain all my energy. I really don't want to return to the other realm. Food just tastes bland there."

Fay nodded, quietly thankful each time Mirage offered information freely.

She was very stingy with her knowledge, if he just asked, she wouldn't answer at times.

The boy believed it was for his own good though.

"That's fine then," he said. "Just please leave the rest of the meat for the others. I'm waiting for it to cook thoroughly so I can pass some to those who didn't find food today."

He kind of wanted to remind her that they now had a whole city full of people, some of whom needed food to eat.

"Aren't I supposed to be your priority?" Mirage asked, pouting slightly. "I know! You mentioned a savanna far away. With my wings, I bet we could reach it and bring back loads of meat! Oh, and help deal with that overgrown bird, I could roast it myself while draining its mana."

Fay gulped at how casually she spoke about the Sumarg, the same monster that had driven them from their previous home.

"I think we should wait… While you could definitely fight it, that battle will be a symbolic one. It belongs to someone else."

He glanced toward Horin, whose ears twitched, as if she was listening to their conversation.

"Fine…" Mirage huffed. "I know what happened. Remember, I'm a mind dragon. You summoned me, which means I can freely access your memories."

She clicked her tongue before taking another bite of roasted meat, bones and all.

"Good. That's all I ask, for now... But that doesn't mean I don't want to go hunting!"

Fay added excitedly.

He felt like he could solve more than one problem that way, feeding his creatures real food, keeping their strength up, and helping them grow.

He also knew it wouldn't be long before soldiers came to reclaim the fort. Some of the humans had already told him: the reason this kingdom had flourished for so long… was because the Eluwyn had been sold as slaves.

Each one was enough to feed a villager for ten years or a noble for one.

"We'll go early then. I'll be taking Horin too. Would you mind if she rides with us?"

Truthfully, Fay hadn't seen Mirage turn back into a dragon since her transformation into a human form.

"I was just planning to grab you by the hand and drag you along," Mirage said casually. "If you think she'll be fine with that too, then sure have her join."

Fay turned to look at Horin again. Her ears were perked up, and he took that as a sign she was already set on coming.

"Good, we'll count on you then," Fay said with a nod, accepting the offer. He then turned toward Harriett and her son. "Well then, I'll be taking the kids and heading to sleep. You and Joan can sleep in one of the rooms in the palace… if you don't have a home yet in the town."

"I appreciate it, but no," Harriett replied. "We have a room we used back when we lived here. That'll be our home again now that the original owners are gone. I'll be reopening their shop too it was an old pub, so I'll have to figure out where to get ingredients to keep it running."

Fay didn't really know what a pub was, but he nodded anyway.

"Don't worry, you're too young to visit it," Harriett added with a small smile. "But I'll also be making food, so if you can help me get a steady supply of meat, we can work something out. I can sell meals from it."

Fay thought of the restaurants he'd seen in books and the food they served in exchange for money.

"That'll work. I'll bring some tomorrow, then we can figure out how to make money from it... You know how that works, right, Mirage?"

He was trying to appeal to her more intelligent side.

The dragon girl stood up with a confident nod.

"Sure! I'll mint the coins and then ask for gold in exchange for notes… Perfect. That'll be something I'll work on, Fay!"

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