Preview of next Normal Guy chapter

Hey all!  Here is a preview of the first 20%-ish of the next chapter that I'm currently on the final edit of before posting.  I hope to finish the editing and post the next chapter sometime in the next couple days.

Also, as I mentioned previously, I plan on doing a standalone character side-story (probably a few thousand words) based on a Patreon poll.  I'll post that when I finish editing the rest of this chapter :)

A Swimming Pool, A Sea-Serpent, and a Steamboat

Lift Off

A week had passed since they had returned from the 'events' at Arpitan.  Mac had now been in Ositania, and it's King, for over seven months.  If you had asked him eight months ago, if he would have been watching his dwarven fiance and elven fiance proudly standing next to a steam engine they had built, he would not have believed you.

Obviously.

But, there he was, and there they were, and he could not be happier.

“This is amazing!” Mac said in awe, watching the little steam engine plug along.  They had connected it to a simple lift, and it was slowly bringing up a basket of bread to the guards on the wall that surrounded the palace.  It's slow, but it works!

Putting an arm around each of his fiances, he hugged them tight.

Charlotte blushed a bit, while Daisy reached over and kissed his cheek.

Still blushing, Charlotte asked, “What should we try to do with it next?  The 'train' you mentioned?”

Mac shook his head, giving a smile.  “I think that's a couple steps out.  You know how I'd liked to get a larger royal carriage eventually?”

Charlotte and Daisy nodded.

“It's probably gonna be too big to be pulled by horses, at least at any reasonable speed.  Instead, I wanted to to be pulled by one of these.”

Daisy seemed confused, while Charlotte pounded her fist into her palm.

“That would be incredible!  If we apply the force in a way to turn the wheels of the carriage instead of the pulley wheels...I don't think that will be very hard...” Charlotte started explaining, before trailing off in thought.

Daisy scratched her head.  “Well, I'll make whatever you need.”

“Actually, about that...how hard do you think it would be to teach other smiths to make these?”  Mac asked.

Daisy got nervous.  “Errr...Eleanor said not to let anyone outside of the palace even know about this, let alone how to makethem.”

Mac shook his head.  “Oh I know, I'm not going to incur Elly's wrath.  But, if we were to say, hypothetically, hire some dwarves to work on these, could you teach them to make it?”

Daisy looked at the still humming steam engine, the basket now on it's way back down, devoid of bread.  “Well, depending on how good they are, probably a month?  Then maybe another few weeks to make one and test and adjust until it's working properly.  We'd probably get faster with experience, of course.”

Mac smiled, “Excellent.  Instead of being upset, Elly is going to love this.”

Marie and Bella were in the palace basement, walking to a particular room.

“Erm, Marie, are you sure about this?  My whole family has been commoners forever, no secret fallen nobility here,” Bella explained.

Marie shook her head.  “I understand.  If that's the case, then even more so, I'd like to test you.”

They were heading to the Drain Stone artifact, as Marie had started formulating a theory about magic and it's usage.  If Bella has something, then it must be true.

Arriving at the room, Marie opened the padlock leading them inside.

“What...is this the...artifact-thing you mentioned?” Bella asked.

Marie nodded, walking up to it and placing her hand on it.  The Drain Stone glowed as the glass surfaced pull in fire from Marie's hand towards the black stone in the middle.  “You can see, it pulls my magic from me,” she explained, taking her hand away and forming a small fireball in it.

“So what do I do then?  I don't have any magic,” Bella said, again skeptical.

Marie shook her head.  “That you knowof.  Even if you don't know what your magic is, this would pull it from you.”

Bella shrugged, then placed her hand on the Drain Stone.

Immediately, swirls appeared circling around the inner glass of the Drain Stone, as if a cyclone was inside it.

Marie's eyes went wide, mouth grinning ear to ear.  Yes! I knew it!

Bella was aghast.  “Wha-what!?  Am I actuallya noble!?”

Marie chuckled.  “No, I think magic and nobility aren't as related as we've been led to believe.  I've actually seen this before, your magic is the ability to control the wind.”

Bella trembled a bit.  “Wha...this can't be...”

Marie grabbed her hand, smiling.  “It's okay.  Just imagine a light gust twirling your gown.”

Bella nodded, closing her eyes.  As she did, her dress flapped around a bit, a small gust twirling around them in the room.

Bella's shock quickly turned into glee.  “This is...this is amazing!  I can...” she started twirling the wind around her more.

“Hold on, hold on,” Marie said, grabbing her arm.  “Don't use it too much, especially while you're pregnant.  Magic Fatigue could have adverse affects.”

Bella stopped the wind, slowly nodding.  “You mean, I can't use it?”

“No, no, just practice a little bit at a time,” she explained with a smile.  “And...don't tell anyone about this quite yet,” she added, her smile slipping a bit.  “In fact, don't talk or use it outside of the palace at all.”

Bella seemed confused.  “Why though?  Are you worried I shouldn't have it?”

Marie shook her head.  “No, not at all.  I'm more worried about the...societal consequences.”

Bella nodded, before giving her gown a little rustle once more.

Emma was currently in the palace yard, heaving huge clumps of ground with her magic.  Sheesh, even if I can take out more at a time now, this is hard work.

Mac had asked her to dig out a large square in the ground, one meter deep and ten meters long on each side.  She was able to use her magic a lot more now (Marie had been astonished at what she could accomplish before the Magic Fatigue set in) but even so, it was still a pain.

Said requester was walking up to her across the yard, so Emma stopped and ran over, pressing her sweaty body against him.

Mac smiled, leaning down and giving her a kiss.  “How's the pool coming?”

“Mmmmmm....” Emma hummed, looking around at it.  “I think I've got a ways to go.  What is this for, again?”

“Well, first I'm going to use it to finish cleaning the rest of the arms and armor from the bandit subjugation,” Mac explained with a bit of a grimace.

Using his magic to cause electrolysis and remove the rust off the armor was working...but incredibly slowly.  He needed a pool of water large enough to clean a bunch at once.

“No, no, the other thing.  You seemed really excited about it...” Emma said curiously.

Mac gave a sly smile.  “Yes, a pool.  An excuse to see all my lovely wives in bathing suits.”

“Bathing suits? But you just bathe naked...” Emma asked, seeming confused.

Mac shook his head.  “Not in a pool you don't.  Well, you could...but bathing suits are for bathing in public.”

“Why would you bathe in public though?”

Mac sighed.  I feel like Emma should be the easiest to convince, at least.  Thinking for a moment, he continued, “Okay, so did you ever go play in a stream during a hot day?”

Emma nodded and smiled.  “Of course!  It was always nice and cool after a long day on the farm.”

Mac smiled and nodded back.  “Exactly!  The pool is like that, except instead of just wearing your normal clothes, or being naked, its a special outfit designed specificallyfor going into a pool to swim in.

Emma nodded slowly.

“And...they can come in different cute designs for you to wear.”

Emma nodded faster, seeming more interested.

“Andyou can use them to sunbathe and tan yourself in.”

Emma nodded faster, a huge grin now across her face.  “Okay, I'll get back to work,” she said, taking out another huge clump of dirt with her magic, now convinced of the virtues of having a pool.

Mac held her from behind, giving her another kiss.  “Don't hurt yourself!”

That night, Mac was spending with Melissandra, his first night with her since returning from Arpitan.

Melissandra slowly made her way over, hugging him.  “Mac...”

Mac smiled, reciprocating her hug.  “Mel...”

They then shared a kiss, although Melissandra was exhausted after only a few moments.  Giggling, she went and sat on the bed.  “Sorry, I'm not a good wife.”

Mac shook his head, “Nonsense.  You're the best wife in the Kingdom.”

Melissandra giggled again.  “What about your other wives?”

“I tell them that too,” he teased.

Melissandra smiled and sighed and put her head on his shoulder as he sat next to her.

“Mel...” Mac started, before trailing off.

Melissandra raised an eyebrow, looking at him.  “What's wrong?”

Mac struggled with what to say for a bit, before asking, “What...was the whole deal with Fawna?  She said you talked with her and...I guess I'm just a bit confused.”

Melissandra seemed a bit confused as well.  “What do you mean?  Do you not like her?  I thought...”

“No, I do, I mean...why did you want her to become my concubine?”

Melissandra sighed, before walking over and pouring a cup of water.  “I thought she would be a good one.  Nothing more or less.”

“I get that, but you know I don't want to take concubines.  I mean, I still don't, so...”

Melissandra took another drink of water.  “I think you might need too, though.”

Mac, a little irritated, replied back.  “Like I said, I don't...” he stopped shaking his head, losing his irritation.  “I don't wanttoo.”

Melissanda sat her cup down, before walking back to the bed.  Crawling onto it, she sat behind Mac sideways, wrapping her arms around his midsection.  “Do you remember when we talked about our future together?”

“Do you mean after we visited Cartegna and Stromvurk?”

“Yes.  Do you also remember when I asked you if you trusted me?”

Mac nodded.  “Of course.  I mean, I dotrust you, which is why-”

Melissandra put a finger to his lips.  “I was just doing what I thought was best for us, and the Kingdom, which is convincing you to take concubines in the future.  Fawna is very devoted to you, so I thought it might work out.  Obviously, you still don't want too, so I was wrong.  But, I tried what I thought I should try.”

Mac was confused.  “Why not just ask me though?  Why the roundabout method?”

Melissandra sighed. “If I had gone up to you before you left, and said 'Hey maybe think of taking Fawna as a concubine,' what would you have said?”

Mac scrunched up his face, “Okay, fair point...”

“Plus, I wanted to give Fawna a chance to win you over.  I didn't expect her to be so...aggressive.  I guess I shouldn't be surprised though, you have that way with women,” she added, clasping his head lightly and turning it to kiss her again.

“I was a bit surprised though.  Not that it happened, just that everyone approved of her so quickly.”

Melissandra shrugged, before lying on the bed.  “I think everyone likes Fawna, so that helped.  It's hard to not appreciate her...earnestness.  She's cute, too.”

Mac rolled his eyes, “You're all cute,” laying back on the bed next to her.

Melissandra smiled as Mac sidled up next to her, wrapping his arm around her.  “I'm still so happy you sleep with me.  Well, us.”

Mac gave her a kiss.  “Of course.  My time with you is precious,” he added, as she cuddled up into him.

“I guess you do have the other girls during the day,” she giggled, poking his cheeks.  After a couple minutes of cuddling she started breathing softly in sleep, and he smiled and gently touched her cheek back.

If I was really feeling sex-starved, I'd just call Fawna to my office or something.

Mac called Fawna to his office the next morning.

“Sire, you called for me?” Fawna asked after she closed the door.

Mac waved her over. I know I thought of this jokingly the night before, but...I guess I can't resist.

As Fawna came over, Mac stood up, wrapping his arms around her.

Fawna blushed, “Sire...”

Mac chuckled, “We're engaged, you should be calling me by name, remember?”

Fawna blushed deeper, but leaned up and kissed him.

Mac gently grabbed her butt over her maid outfit.

“Si-...Mac, I'm working right now.”

Mac nodded.  “I know.  You said you would relieveme if I ever needed you to though, right?” poking her cheek teasingly.

Fawna instantly understood, tearing his pants down and grabbing his member.  Stroking it a few times, she reached underneath her skirt and pulled down her undergarment.  Instead of a normal woolen brown one, it was instead lacy-looking black panties.

Mac looked at it.  “Wha-....were you expecting this?”

Fawna nodded, “I wanted to make sure I was prepared, just in case.”

Mac smiled, kissing her again, before gently pushing her up against his desk.  Inserting himself into her from behind, he started thrusting rapidly, grasping her breasts tightly as he slid in and out.

Fawna put her arm up to her mouth, trying to keep her moans in.

After a minute, Mac released inside her, grabbing around her midsection tightly.

Fawna turned around and held him,  “Are you fine now?”

Mac picked her up, setting her down on his desk and kissing her again.  “I'm not that selfish,” he explained, unzipping her maid outfit, he started squeezing her breasts, delicately licking her nipples as he wrapped his arms around her again and inserted once more.  He started thrusting quicker and quicker, until Fawna was red in the face.

She then started moaning in pleasure, before spasming in his arms, shaking the desk.

“Now we're both fine,” he smiled, giving her another kiss.

Fawna blushed, taking a few moments to calm herself down, before fixing her clothing and getting up to leave.  Halfway to the door, she stopped and ran back, and hugged him again, burying her nose into his chest, her antlers ticking his chin.  After satisfied with her hug, she then ran back to and out the door.

Mac sighed, I wish she could have stayed longer, but I guess we're both busy.

Matters of Land

Marie, Mac, and Eleanor sat in the council chamber, a map of Ositania on the table.

Eleanor, despite hunched a bit with her baby bump resting against the table, was especially excited.  “My first meeting as Finance minister!” she said, reaching over and hugging Mac.

In his effort to formalize his and his wives jobs a bit, he was slowly doling them out more official titles.  Emma was already the Agricultural minister, and now Eleanor was their Finance one.  Granted, she wouldn't really be doing anything different than she already was, at least for the time being...

Bar smiled, hugging her back.  “Alright, let's get started.”

Marie nodded.  “First off, we need to figure out what we're doing with the confiscated estates of Lord Oran and Lord Arpitan.”

“Lord Oran's should have been put in the Agricultural fund, right?”

Marie nodded, as Eleanor handed him an account statement for the Agricultural fund.  “His money has, but the land is currently just being run by Lord Cartegna.”

Mac looked at the map.  He assumed it had to do partly with the fact they were related, but Lord Oran's land butted up against the northern part of the Cartegna estate.  “Errmmm...maybe this is just me being lazy, but wouldn't it be easy to just give it to Lord Cartegna permanently?”

Marie shook her head, “No, I don't see an issue with that.  We could just announce it as a reward for his successful leadership during the bandit subjugation.”

Mac nodded, “I'm good with that.”

Marie hurriedly wrote that down.  “Now, Lord Arpitan's case is a little different.  He has a city, if a small one, and we haven't done anything with his assets yet.”

Mac scrunched his face.  “I'm assuming just giving this to Lord Cartegna as well won't work?”

Eleanor giggled, “Father would think you're trying to kill him through work.”

Mac raised an eyebrow, “I thought you were running the estate?”

Eleanor nodded, “I do, but there's only so much I can do from the capital, some of it father has to do on location.”

Mac nodded in understanding.

“I have a suggestion,” Marie said, thinking.

Mac and Eleanor looked at her expectantly.

“Some of your wives are now of noble status due to your weddings, but don't have any estates or houses to fall back on.  We could give it to one of them.”

Mac was confused.  “What do you mean?  They're part of the royal family...”

Marie nodded, “Yes, but that's only the case right now.  Those of more than two connections away aren't permitted to live in the palace, so it's fine right now, but once your a couple generations in, they can't all stay.  And honestly, I don't even want to think about how many grandchildren you might have...” she said, grabbing her head.

Mac was a bit incredulous.  “But...you're the one who first told me to have a bunch of children!”

Marie smiled, blushing a bit, “Yes, and I'm glad you are, but we can only fit so many of them in the royal palace.  If we were to give the Arpitan domain to one of your wives as a bequeathment, that gives your grandchildren and great-grandchildren who aren't part of an established house somewhere to go.”

Mac slowly nodded as he comprehended the importance.  It's hard to even think about grandkids when my own aren't even out yet, but I need to make sure I'm planning for their future, too...

Marie, seeing Mac was considering the idea.  “I'm thinking-”

“Emma,” Mac finished her sentence.

Marie smiled.  “Nothing against Felicia or Fawna, but I think their strengths lie elsewhere.  After seeing her develop over the past few months, I don't see any reason she couldn't run an estate just fine.  With some help from me, of course,” she adjusted her glasses and smirked.

Mac wrapped an arm around her, kissing her cheek, causing Marie to blush a bit.

“Anyway,” she coughed, “what about Lord Arpitan's non-land assets?  Since he both committed tax fraud and tried to kill a royal, there's no issue with us confiscating it.”

“For the gold coins, I think we should use that for my program,” he said, pointing to a stack of papers.

Marie nodded.  “For resettling Toulouse?  I think it's an excellent idea.  I'm worried about the long term costs, but...” she trailed off.

Mac looked at her.  “But...?”

Marie shrugged, “It's hard to quantify.  It's expensive, but you're basically trying to force something that normally happens naturally over generations to happen in a few short years.  Every ruler, even 'bad' ones, want settlements to grow or new ones to pop up, since that means a larger tax base and more soldiers.”

Mac nodded.  “Of course.  In this case, since they're refugees, it makes sense to help them out.”

Marie tilted her head.

Mac seemed concerned.  “Do you not agree?”

Marie shook her head, “No, of course I want to help our refugees.  It's just...”

Mac waited while she thought.

Marie continued, “After reading Emma's program documents, it made me think a lot about supply chains.  Not just for food, but everything.  Clothing, tools, even arms and armor.  You know how we lost a lot of population in the last war?”

Mac winced a bit, “Yes, I remember from your lessons.”

Marie nodded, “I'm wondering if that had less impact on supply chains then it could have because while we lost people, the ones who remained were packed in a smaller space.”

Mac understood where she was going.  “So you think moving them around could hurt them?  But wouldn't it take pressure off because people will be more spread out?”

Marie, to his surprise, shook her head.  “Six years ago, right after the war, I would have agreed.  But now, everything's adjusted.  Remember Emma's report about the food in Loren?  The whole reason the price gougers were upset was because even just a few refugees leaving meant they couldn't sell all their food.  And that's with Loren still having a decent number of refugees.”

Mac sighed, closing his eyes.  Ugh, and this will exacerbate that.  “You're way too smart Marie.”

Marie blushed a bit, “I did get the Magistrate position for a reason...”

Mac scratched his chin.  “So, what do we do?”

“Nothing.”

Mac looked at her, raising an eyebrow and lowering his chin.

“Nothing yet. I think it's just something we need to keep an eye on.  Emma's plan will already take care of food shortfalls, so we may need to step in if they occur with other essential goods as well.”

Eleanor's eyes lit up.  “That's where I come in!”

Mac nodded.  “How are we doing, actually?  I haven't seen the treasury in a while.”

Eleanor smiled, “Really well.  We've sold a lot of zipper dresses.  They've started to fall off with sales to other nobles, just because most have quite a few at this point, but we've started selling the tracksuits as well.”

“And?” Mac asked.

Eleanor frowned, “It doesn't seem like the men of the kingdom are as keen on them as you are...”

Mac shook his head.  “Maybe I'll wear one on my next official outing.”

Eleanor giggled, giving him a kiss on the cheek.  “Thanks.”

Marie asked, “I remember you said you wanted to collect the gold bars...” she said, as if to remind Mac.

Mac nodded.  “Oh yes, about that....what are all the uses of gold bars?  We talked about Lord Arpitan potentially using them to pay foreigners.”

Marie nodded.  “That, or used as tribute if you need to pay a foreign country in a more official capacity.”

Mac grimaced, “Let's hope we never have to do that.”

Marie nodded.  “Additionally, we could use them to smelt more currency.  We haven't actually done that since the war...”

Mac nodded.  “Elly, I want us to start stocking up on gold bars.  Any funds we have that you don't think we'll need to convert for a while, buy them up.”

“Are you...going to do something with them?” she asked.

Mac shook his head.  “Not right away.  I want them in an emergency.”

Marie looked over her glasses at him.  “What emergency though?  We can't help you if we don't know what you're doing.”

Mac averted his eyes a bit, embarrassed. “It's kind of...mean...”

Marie raised an eyebrow, while Eleanor gave a devious grin.  “Oohhh, Mac, you haveto tell us now.”

“Well, this goes back to what Marie was talking about earlier with supply chains.  What happens if we cut off the supply of money?”

Marie and Eleanor looked up, thinking.  Eleanor was the first to respond, “It would be harder to do business, and people would resort more to bartering.”

Mac nodded.

Marie added, “If we're talking about gold specifically, commoners wont be affected much since they normally deal with coppers and silvers, but merchants and nobles would be affected, since they aren't able to barter as well.  Plus, stuff like taxes always needs paid in gold, not goods or services.”

Mac smiled, seeing they were getting it.  “It's not an issue with our country right now, but what happens if countries who need to mint more every year...can't?”

“You create inefficiencies, and at worst you cause tax collection issues for the kingdom.  Or force the nobles to pay in other ways,” Eleanor replied.

Mac wrapped an arm around her now.  “Exactly.”

Marie seemed confused, “What do you hope to gain by hoarding the gold though?”

Mac pointed to Provent.  “Hypothetically, what happens if Provent wants to march on us again, but they don't have the gold coins to pay their soldiers?  Or buy equipment?  It's not like we'd be able to completely cut off their supply, of course, but maybe they'd only be able to raise eighty percent of what they could have if they'd had access to more gold to mint to pay the troops or buy other supplies.”

Marie's eyes widened, as if she'd had an epiphany.  “That's...that's genius!  And you were calling me smart.”

Mac blushed a bit.  “It's just my economics courses, and applying them to this world...”

Marie was looking at the map, as if doing calculations.  “It's like fighting a war, but with...economics.  We still need our soldiers, of course, but to do something like knock out that many troops before the battle started...”

Eleanor had other thoughts on her mind.  “And what if a friendly or neutral country came to us seeking gold?  Would we sell some of our stock at an inflated price?”

Mac nodded, “Exactly.  Which is why we need to keep our buying on the down-low.  Especially the reasoning.  If anyone asks, we could just say the Otherworlder king is fascinated by gold.  Or maybe I want to pave my room with gold bars.  Or have a suit of armor made from solid gold.”

Eleanor's eyes looked in the distance, as if she was actually imagining it.  “Such a golden king...”

Mac poked her cheek.  “I'm not serious...”

Marie had been furiously writing the last minute, hunched over piece of paper, before grabbing another and continuing.  Eventually she finished, and slapped the table.  Looking up at Mac, she grinned, “I'm going to go set this in motion.”

Dwarf in a Dress

Daisy looked over the railing on her veranda, the wooded countryside around the palace stretching out around her.  Probably not many dwarfs have seen this view...

Actually, nodwarves had seen that view, as Marie had checked and there were nothing in the Records about a king having taken a Dwarf Queen before.

She then looked at the railing she was holding onto, which came up to almost her shoulders.  I guess this wasn't meant for a dwarf either.  Still serves its purpose, though... she though, instinctively inspecting the handiwork of the metal.  Not bad.

She was still getting used to her new room in the palace.  It was a big adjustment from her shack, as she wasn't used to having such a large room.  Or being so high up.

Shaking her head, she walked over to her large wardrobe.  Inside was a smattering of dresses.  Grabbing an orange one, she put it up against herself and looked in the mirror.

She blushed as she thought about wearing it.  What a lovestruck fool of a dwarf I am, getting excited about dressing up for a date.  Her thoughts couldn't hide the giddy smile on her face, though, and she quickly took off her sarashi and pants, before putting on some proper undergarments (which Eleanor had helped her pick out) and then the orange dress (which Felicia and her sister had made for her).

She did an awkward twirl in the mirror, blushing a bit as she watched herself.  I really am-

A knock came at the door.

“Come in.”

The door opened, Mac coming through, acting a bit surprised at Daisy.

“Whaddaya think?” she asked.

Mac came over, leaning over and giving her a smooch on the lips as he wrapped his arms around her.  “Absolutely beautiful.”

Daisy blushed, “Oh, you, stop it...”

Mac shook his head.  “I'm torn.  I want to throw you on the bed and make love to you, but I also want to continue seeing you in your dress...” he said, as if pondering an impossible dilemma.

Daisy chuckled, lightly elbowing him.  “Oh, shut it.  I wouldn't mind getting in the sack with you, but I dressed up so we could go out!”

Mac smiled, grabbing her hand and leading her out.  “Let's go then.”

Mac and Daisy made their way out of the palace, and started heading towards the city.  Ever since the assassination attempt, he wasn't allowed out of the palace without guards (even if going incognito) so two guards were accompanying them as they came.

“Sorry it's not just us,” Mac whispered to her.

The guards weren't exactly shadowing them, but they were probably close enough to hear any normal conversation they had.

Daisy shook her head.  “It's okay, I don't want you getting stabbed again,” she explained.  “Although...they'd regret coming after you while I'm close...” she said, smacking her fist into her hand.

Mac blinked a few times as he watched her heavily muscled arms (clearly visible since she was wearing a very short-sleeved dress) ripple with each punch.  “Yeah...”

Daisy blushed as she saw Mac staring at her.

“Do you have any combat training?” Mac asked, curious now.

Daisy nodded.  “Course.  All dwarfs get trained the basics, at least.  I was always a good smith, though, so I made arms during the last war.”

Mac realized he had never even considered that before.  His non-human partners would already have been decades old six years ago.  “How was living through that?”

Daisy shook her head.  “Terrible times.  Really, the dwarfs didn't have it as bad as some, though.  My father and and uncles were a part of Lord Harald's force.  They fought in the battles near the border, then retreated to defend Stromvurk when the royal army retreated to the capital.  Provent tried sieging us, but that didn't really work since we could take the lifts up top of the mountain.”

Mac nodded.  “I feel like Stromvurk is easily defensible, you just have to defend the entrance, and it's not like you can fling stones through a mountain...”

Daisy seemed confused but nodded anyway.  “Only thing we really had to worry about was food, but since we can grow some crops on the mountains, and import supplies through tunnels from Navar, it didn't really work.  Eventually, when Provent was weakened by invasions, the besiegers were thinned out enough Lord Harald led a sortie out to blow 'em away.  Then, he marched on the capital, and caught the remains of the army there in a pincer with the royal army.”

Mac nodded, thinking he had mostly followed along.  I'm glad I have people who actually understand military matters.  “Thanks for telling me, I didn't mean to make our date depressing...”

Daisy smiled and shook her head. “That's what bein' married is about, right?  Sharing memories and stuff...”

Mac wrapped an arm around her as they walked.  “That's right.”

They stopped by the royal family's favorite cafe, grabbing some coffee (as dwarves, including Daisy, much preferred that over tea).  As she started taking chugs of it, Daisy asked, “Why don't you tell me about yourself?  What did you do before you came here?”

Mac raised an eyebrow. “You mean in my previous world?”

Daisy smiled and nodded, “Yeah.  I forget about it sometimes, but you weren't even born here.”

Mac thought for a moment.  “Well, before I got summoned here, I was a student.”

Daisy sat down her coffee, a bit confused.  “Aren't you a bit old to be a student?”

Mac gave a wry smile, “Even in my world, yes, although not that old.  I was taking classes to prepare me for a job.  Think of it like...the administrative lessons Marie gives Emma.  Or even the lessons you got on smithing.”

Daisy nodded, understanding that analogy.  After a few more gulps, she asked, “So, why'd ya stay though?  Did you not like being a student?”  she got a naughty grin, “or you were just crazy over the girls here?”

Mac chuckled, “I won't pretend like that wasn't a large part of it, but...” he trailed off looking as if he was reminiscing.  “I guess...I didn't really feel like I had any goal.  Or any purpose.  But I had that here.  People needed me, relied on me.”

Daisy blinked a few times, before smiling.  “I sure rely on ya...”

Mac shook his head.  “And I rely on all of you.  Especially my resident dwarfsmith.”

Daisy blushed, before leaning over and giving him a smooch.

Mac did his best seductive look, before whispering over, “While I did enjoy seeing you in this dress, I think I'm ready to switch and throw you on the bed now.”

Daisy chuckled, before grabbing Mac and swinging him over her shoulder, and running out the door and towards the palace.

The two guards that had been watching them from outside were momentarily stunned at the turn of events, before quickly taking off after them.