Shin stared at them, his mind a blank canvas of pure, unadulterated panic. The three most beautiful, powerful women he had ever seen—a goddess, the sun, and a living library—were all looking at him with the calm expectation that he was about to agree to a magical, divinely-mandated dating spree.
"No," he said, his voice flat and final. He started pacing, a caged animal in a library of a billion books. "Absolutely not. I'm not doing it. Find another way. Fight the Void with an army. Build a big wall. Something. Anything but... this."
Luna watched him, her expression patient. "Shin, an army cannot fight an anti-creation. A wall cannot stop a concept. The only thing that can push back the silence is a song. Your Rite is that song. Every time you perform it, you add a new note, a new harmony, making the music of this world stronger and more complex."
"It's not a song, it's... it's an awkward, public..." he trailed off, unable to even say the word.
"Oh, come on, it's not so bad!" Solara chimed in, floating lazily in the air. "You get to be with the most powerful, beautiful women in the world! Or are you just... scared you can't handle it?" She wiggled her eyebrows provocatively.
"I'm not scared, I'm... I'm principled!" Shin retorted, his face flushing. "This is ridiculous! You're treating it like a... a power-up in a game!"
Elowen, who had been listening silently, glided forward. "My King," she said, her voice as calm and clinical as a doctor's diagnosis. "If I may, the analogy is not entirely inaccurate. According to the 'Treatise on Symbiotic Energy Convergence,' the power differential between you, the Anchor, and the encroaching Void is currently at 37.4% in the Void's favor."
Shin stopped pacing and stared at her.
"Each successful Rite with a new, high-energy source," she continued, her eyes unfocused as if reading from an invisible script, "is projected to increase that differential by approximately 12-15%. To achieve a stable equilibrium and begin pushing the Void back, a minimum of three more Rites are required within the next lunar cycle."
She finished her report and looked at him, her expression perfectly neutral. "The data is quite clear on the required course of action."
Shin felt his legs give out. He sank onto a nearby reading bench, his head in his hands. Data. Projections. A lunar cycle. It was the most insane, terrifying project plan he had ever heard. He was a project manager for the end of the world, and his only tool was... this.
He sat there for a long moment, the weight of it all pressing down on him. The others watched him, letting him process. Then, slowly, he lifted his head. The panic was still there, but something else had taken root alongside it. A flicker of his old self. The man in the suit. The guy with the spreadsheets.
"Alright," he said, his voice suddenly calm, measured. "Fine. If I have to do this... we're not just going to grab the first powerful woman we see. We're going to do this properly."
He stood up, his back straight. The Aura of Kingship, usually a dormant hum, now felt like a focused current of energy. He looked at them, not as a flustered man, but as a manager laying out a new strategy.
"We need a plan," he said, his voice crisp. "We need information. I want to know who the potential candidates are. We need profiles. Strengths, weaknesses, magical affinities, personality types, strategic value to the kingdom... everything."
He started pacing again, but this time he wasn't a caged animal; he was a CEO outlining a new merger. "I'm not running a harem. I'm managing a strategic asset portfolio. Each new... acquisition... must provide a unique and necessary power set to counter the threat. We need to maximize our return on investment."
He stopped in front of them, his eyes blazing with a newfound, slightly terrifying purpose. "Elowen, I want you to compile a list of every high-ranking female in this kingdom with significant magical or political power. Cross-reference it with the historical records to see who has the strongest connection to the land's energy. Luna, you can help her interpret the magical data. Solara, you... you can go make sure the sun doesn't go out."
The three women stared at him, utterly speechless.
Luna was the first to react. A slow, proud, deeply impressed smile spread across her face. He wasn't just accepting his fate; he was conquering it with spreadsheets and project management. It was the most Shin-like thing she could ever imagine.
Solara just looked confused. "Strategic... what?"
Elowen, however, simply nodded, her eyes gleaming with intellectual excitement. "An excellent and logical approach, my King," she said, already conjuring a floating piece of parchment and a quill. "I will begin the data compilation immediately."
The surge of adrenaline that had fueled his sudden transformation into a magical CEO began to fade, leaving a profound exhaustion in its wake. The sheer absurdity of his new job title—"Strategic Asset Portfolio Manager"—hit him all at once. He stifled a huge yawn, his eyes watering.
"Whoa," he said, stumbling slightly. "Is it... is it time to sleep again already? I feel like I just woke up."
Solara, who had been trying to decipher the term "return on investment," suddenly froze. Her head snapped up, and she looked towards the magical dome of the ceiling, as if she could see through the stone to the sky beyond.
"Oh, nova! My shift!" she yelped, her face paling. "The 'day' cycle is about to begin! The eastern plains won't illuminate themselves!"
In a flash of golden light and a gust of hot air that sent a dozen ancient scrolls skittering across the floor, she was gone. The faint smell of ozone and burnt sugar was the only evidence she'd ever been there.
Elowen watched the chaotic departure with a serene, almost academic interest. She then turned to Shin and Luna, giving a formal curtsy. "My King, My Queen, the Scriptorium's energies must be conserved. Now that it has been consecrated, I must seal it for the 'night' cycle. It will rest, and I with it."
She began to shimmer, her form slowly becoming translucent once more. "I will have your preliminary list of strategic assets ready for you upon your next visit."
And with that, she faded back into the very shelves she served, leaving Shin and Luna alone in the vast, quiet library.
Shin rubbed his eyes, feeling the weight of the long, bizarre day. "Alright. So, we have a plan. Now we just have to walk all the way back through this creepy castle."
Luna let out a soft, melodic laugh. She walked over to him and gently took his hand. "My love, did you think I would make my tired husband walk that far every time he needed a book?"
She raised her free hand, her fingers tracing intricate, glowing patterns in the air. A low hum filled the room, and a shimmering, golden circle of light, about six feet in diameter, appeared on the stone floor in front of them. Within the circle, the stones swirled like a whirlpool, revealing a clear, magical view of their own private chambers—the canopied bed, the soft moonlight, the plush chaise lounge.
"A teleportation spell?" Shin asked, his eyes wide.
"A simple convenience," Luna said with a wink. "The Scriptorium is a place of focus and study. The journey there should be a choice, not a chore. But the journey home... that should always be swift."
She gently pulled him towards the portal. "Come, my strategic asset manager. Time for you to recharge."
Too tired to even be surprised, Shin let her lead him. They stepped through the golden circle, and the world dissolved in a warm, pleasant rush of light. The next moment, they were standing in their room, the vast, silent library gone, replaced by the familiar, comforting quiet of their chambers.
Shin looked at the bed, then at Luna, and felt a wave of gratitude so profound it made his heart ache. He might be the king of a world on the brink, and he might have the most ridiculous job in the universe, but he also had her. And for now, that was more than enough.