An unfamiliar ceiling.
Ducanor felt strangely energetic when he woke up. His body, which had been somewhat exhausted for days—and not just his body but his mind as well—was now brimming with energy, as if he had been reborn. He even felt more powerful and stronger than before, although this was merely a gut feeling and nothing concrete.
Upon waking, he found a naked figure resting on his shoulder, sleeping peacefully while holding him. A rather familiar figure; at least over the last few hours, he had managed to memorize practically every inch of her body.
Taking advantage of the fact that she was sleeping, he decided to reflect for a moment, furrowing his brow. The feeling that something was wrong in his mind was quite strange; it was an odd premonition—he felt energetic but at the same time, thirsty.
Strangely, Ernzu's naked body only awakened his thirst further.
"So you're awake, huh," murmured a voice that was warm yet strangely tired.
Turning his head, he met Ernzu's sharp gaze. Unlike before, when she had been giving him looks of desire and warmth, her gaze was now serious and almost cold.
It seemed sobriety had finally caught up with Ernzu's mind, though Ducanor himself didn't know if that was a good or bad thing at this point.
Perhaps a different person in this situation would have trembled with regret, or perhaps with fear; maybe even an older, more mature Ducanor would have acted more restrained when faced with such a strange existence as Ernzu.
But he was Ducanor Kal Arreus.
And he was not someone who trembled in fear under the gaze of a man or woman, no matter who they were.
Especially in the morning, with his manhood in one hand and a woman in the other.
A smirk crept across Ducanor's lips as he simply grabbed a surprised Ernzu's arms and pinned her beneath him with an arrogant look, his manhood aimed at her core, fully intending to fill her mature womb with his seed.
"That's no way to speak to the man who filled your belly until it nearly burst," Ducanor said with an arrogant smile.
Ernzu's face shifted, showing a mix of surprise and embarrassment. She glared at Ducanor in annoyance, yet allowed herself to be pinned down as the nipples on her mature breasts hardened and her core grew wet once more.
Trailing his tongue down Ernzu's stomach—drawing a sharp moan from her lips that she tried to suppress by biting down on them—she finally murmured after a prolonged silence: "Just one round and no more."
As his smile widened, he brought his face close to Ernzu's ear, biting it lightly. "Your wish is my command, my queen."
Unfortunately for anyone outside, it wouldn't be just one round for the pair of lovers.
.....
In a large, neatly decorated hall, several figures were gathered—figures familiar to Tolrik.
From the members of the mercenary group, to Benia and Ulrika themselves, who had returned after a few days with a new guest.
As well as, of course, his own small group featuring Fernand, Gedik, and Dracma.
And finally, there were two people drawing everyone's attention. The reason: their appearance. They were giants...
They were two women. The first was already known to him; it was the slave they had found on the outskirts of the city of Edna, named Leona.
And the second person present was none other than her mistress, who had been freed through the joint efforts of Leona and, surprisingly, Ulrika and Benia, who apparently had also infiltrated the party.
Her name was Matilde, and she stood before Tolrik right now. Her appearance gave away her race despite having hidden her most striking features behind a mask and tying back her hair.
But the totems covering her face and her height, which significantly surpassed Tolrik's, gave her away.
And now, the conversations had begun.
"Miss Matilde, as I understand it, you have some valuable information you can give us regarding the giant clan's invasion," said Dracma, acting as an advisor and mediator for Tolrik.
The woman with crystalline hair appeared to be from the Storm giant clan, and her golden eyes gave her away—but not only that, it was her voice, which rumbled like thunder.
"Of course, gentlemen. I will introduce myself first for those who do not know me," she replied in an affable tone. "I am Matilde, daughter of the former King Kyi, former king of the giants, as well as the sister of the current giant king, Toskhan."
Everyone's gaze froze on her. She truly was the princess of the giant clan and the younger sister of their king; her presence alone was a trump card for Ulheim, a hostage against the rebellion.
But Tolrik knew it wasn't that simple.
"That's not all, is it? Tell us the truth, Matilde. What is the reason for the rebellion, and most importantly, how did you end up captured in Ulheim without anyone knowing about it?" Tolrik's words struck at the heart of the matter.
Making everyone finally realize that something was amiss.
The woman in front of them was in Ulheim as a prisoner, but then, why hadn't the Princeps of Ulheim used her as a hostage to negotiate? Why did it seem that no one knew she had been captured?
And most importantly, why had the giants suddenly rebelled with such force?
"All of this has been planned for months, maybe years," Matilde murmured in a tired tone. "This started since the fall of the previous Great Giant King. That caused a fracture among the different clans and weakened the giant population."
"Even though I call my brother king, we could call him Great King, which is the title given to those who unify the different clans. But the unification wasn't solely my brother's doing; he received help from someone."
Those words made everyone frown. Ulstrost was too far from Ulheim, and no one had any interest in the frozen mountain range other than the giants. Who would want to help them unify?
"That's nonsense, who would help him? We are all servants of the Hegemony, no one..." Sandro said suddenly, glaring at Matilde with obvious distrust.
"But not everyone in the Hegemony is loyal. Or are there no longer three Hegemons?" Matilde said in an indifferent tone.
Sandro's expression turned ugly upon hearing those words, but still, seeing that no one argued back, he decided to say nothing.
"So you're saying that some rebel hegemon is staging an uprising in Ulheim?" Dracma said with a severe expression.
Tolrik noticed that most of the people present were looking at Matilde with a certain hostility, with the exception of Benia and Ulrika, as well as, of course, the stranger they had arrived with.
"No," Matilde replied with a serious expression. "I'm not talking about a usurper; I'm talking about a demagogue."