Dorian sat at the side of the bed, Seraphina standing right in front of him, dressed in her black outfit and holding a book in her hands.

On the bed, Lili was rolling around and sucking on a sweet while Maria was trying to drag it from her.

Ishtar, on the other hand, had returned to her father's territory to finalize a few things in order to prove useful to Dorian.

"Darling, are you alright? You've been spaced out this whole time. You had to fill all those magic crystals with your mana, is that why?" Seraphina asked, leaning forward to get a good look at his face.

'Darling? Well, she's rather quick.'

Dorian sighed. "I am fine, just read me the report."

"If you say so…" Seraphina stood upright, her eyes moving towards the document she was holding. "First and foremost, I think we should get this out of the way first. Lord James has given me the contract for the transfer of ownership and title. Please sign this right away."

Maria picked up on it from the back.

"Are you serious? It's ready?"

She was surprised, considering just the night before, James had been telling Dorian about it.

Does that mean he already made up his mind a long time ago and just used the opportunity to spread the news?

Seraphina's eyes glittered with excitement. "I know, right? I was shocked as well when Lord James gave me this. Hehe, Darling is going to be a baron."

Dorian didn't say much and grabbed the paper.

'Baron, eh? It's small but worth it,' he grinned internally, a devilish look in his eyes.

'The moment news gets to the capital about the dragon I have, being a baron will give me the opportunity to ask for an even bigger title. Yeah, this is perfect.'

Seraphina handed him an ink pen, which he then used to sign the contract. However, signing it didn't stop him from asking even more questions.

"What about the cave to the mountains? Is that settled as well?"

"Right, that. Well, I informed Gatty about it. He has his team checking it out, but the blueprint is kind of confusing, don't you think?" Seraphina carefully picked out the blueprint from her stack of documents.

"I mean, darling, you're asking them to build what looks like a giant egg incubator. Are we planning to harvest dragon eggs or something?"

"Eh? Of course, didn't I make that clear?"

"You were serious? Dragon eggs are in that cave?"

"Certainly, which is why the workers need to move as fast as possible."

Maria threw a disgusted stare from the back, right before Seraphina did the same.

"You sure are a fast worker, darling," Seraphina glanced to the side with blank eyes. "You're already sleeping with a dragon… I should get used to this."

"I didn't sleep with anyone!"

Stare…

"Maria! Stop looking at me like that!"

Dorian stood up from the bed. "The point here is, we need to expand the barony. As it stands now, we might be growing in power, but not influence, which is a massive drawback."

He folded his arms, his gaze on the bed. Seraphina already knew what was coming next, so she grabbed her notebook and was ready to start jotting.

"So far, this barony has only three villages; we need to expand on that. Last I checked, there are a lot of homeless people scattered across the barren land. We'll bring them to our territory and turn them into citizens," Dorian kept going.

"Also, there is no reason for us to keep our trade private anymore. We'll start distributing the dragon ores to outside lands. Any land that wants frequent trades will agree to build a road linking to the main trade route."

"My father can handle that. Come to think of it, my father insisted on a meeting. He would like to discuss something with you," Seraphina hinted.

"Oh, so does mine. He says the weapon you asked for is ready," Maria added.

Dorian sighed.

'True, I have been neglecting them lately, not to mention I have another invention in mind, so it wouldn't hurt to check up on them for now. And mother is taking care of the farm issues, so I don't need to worry about that as well. Hmm, yeah, I can spare some free time.'

He looked at both of them.

"Okay then, get the carriage ready. We'll head to Albor first, then Seraphina's."

"Yes, I'll do just that. Please allow me to get them ready." Seraphina bowed her head and walked out of the room.

"Please excuse me as well, so I can get my soldiers ready to escort you." Maria took gradual steps away.

"What? We don't need security…"

"My lord, they have been nagging me about allowing them to escort you any time you leave the barony. And I agree with them. You're a man any noble won't think twice about killing. I don't want you to risk your safety over a bargain."

'I am so unpopular though. Sigh, nothing I say will change her mind anyway,' he shrugged. "Do what you will, honey," his voice was teasing.

Before he knew it, Maria had gotten close to him, her arms around his shoulders, before she kissed him on the cheek.

"I-I'll let you know when they are ready."

Though Dorian was surprised, his cheeks were nowhere near as red as Maria's in that moment. As soon as she uttered those words, she quickly turned around and exited the room.

Clink.

The sound of the door closing echoed.

Dorian placed his hand on the spot where Maria had kissed him, stunned. Maria wasn't the type to make moves like that. In fact, since the engagement, he noticed these girls had gotten somewhat braver.

'Heheh, heheh~' A lustful laugh left his mouth.

Lili, still sucking her candy, was in no way impressed by this. It was partially jealousy, but she was still not impressed, not after she had seen all the naughty things Maria and the others did to her master.

…

Later that very day, Dorian and his fiancées made their way to the barony's main blacksmith shop, owned by Maria's father.

Two carriages were set out.

One, painted with gold, was where Dorian and his wives settled, while the one in black was occupied by Aces, the assistant commander of the first division, and three other soldiers under him.

At the wings, in the shadows, were soldiers of the third division, the small number known for their stealth and information gathering.

Two of them were hopping from one building to the other, making sure everything ahead was safe.

It was no secret that the barony had changed a lot.

The buildings were more beautiful and the roads were cleaner, making it look more like a city than a village.

Everyone was dressed in high-quality dresses made and delivered by the Monteli family to the people loyal under Dorian.

Even as the carriages passed, Dorian could hear the cheers of the people calling out his name in joy.

In truth, he felt like he was a prince showing his face to the public.

The Aurelian barony was nothing like it used to be, and amongst all the changes were strangers from other territories sneaking in. This was the exact reason the soldiers were adamant about being security for him.

'I don't think I can ever get used to this feeling.'

After a while, they finally arrived at the blacksmith shop.

...

[A/N]

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