The world is great. After the Godking’s Brawl, I got my promised reward of land and a living space from the second prince right away. The emperor that was supposed to die of an illness in three months was trampled to death by a predator, so the second prince ascended the throne. Algar tried to contest it, but since he turned out to be a pervert who stole even his second sister’s underwear, no one supported him. I only found out after the second prince was crowned that Ilya had stuffed all the miscellaneous items into one ring, which happened to be Algar’s. Talk about a stroke of bad luck, but that’s not my problem!

I got the half of the empire that was closer to the demons and fae, but I don’t really mind even though Ilya says I’m being used as a buffer. The closer I am to the demons and fae, the closer I’ll be to Ilya and Ilya number two. Also, my portion of the empire is the more wooded one. The predators love it. After Snow died, I rounded up all the predators and tamed them with my fists and acorn stew. Thinking back, I should’ve left that dragon alive instead of killing it. I could be riding a dragon right now if I hadn’t, but I was too preoccupied with killing one in a single strike. At least that action made everyone see me in a new light.

To the common people, I am a savior! To the nobles, I am a savior! To the ruling class, I am a disaster! Everyone in the world knows Lucia Fluffytail scored first place in the Godking’s Brawl, robbed the man in the sky of his treasures, tamed a group of predators when others could only tremble, and slew a dragon in a single strike! Compared to the Godking who tamed a phoenix, isn’t taming a group of predators much more incredible? After all, the Godking just tamed a red baby bird. I tamed a savage beast with a history shrouded in blood. Before I took action, no one even knew what the predator’s fearsome appearance looked like since all who saw one died.

I’m still a bit peeved that there were no males amongst the batch though. I went for a short romp through the desolate mountains, but I couldn’t find any there either. According to Ilya, predators might not be native to our lands, whatever that means. All I know is my dream of having an army of predators probably won’t come true anytime soon. A shame, really. As for my other dream, Durandal and Puppers are working hard to cross over to the legendary realm. I can’t wait for the day Durandal crosses over. Speaking of the legendary realm, after I got used to controlling my strength, it doesn’t feel like a lot has changed. The only noticeable difference is the density of my bloody qi when I use it. I made Reena piss herself by circulating my qi. It was hilarious.

Ah, Reena. She’s living in my territory now—along with half the population of the human empire. I tried kicking them out, but the second prince said they came with the land, so I should keep them. So now I tax them cocoa beans and acorns. It’s really nice having someone manage your own lands for you. There’s no way I’d be willing to spend that much time and effort growing things on my own. And Reena takes care of Mrs. Wuffletush and company. It’s funny. I used to be a slave, now I’m practically an empress. Aren’t I an empress? I think I am. The three factions are treating me like I’m another faction of my own. Ilya’s reputation amongst the demons increased a lot because of that. Everyone knew she was my encyclopedia! Err, friend. So the demons treat her extra well in fear of provoking me. This is what it means to have face! The day has finally come!

And since I accomplished Durandal’s goal, he’s been getting depressed a lot less recently. He doesn’t sigh as much as before, and there’s always ice cream around to cheer him up when he’s feeling down. There’s lots of cookies and cuddles too, but he doesn’t ask for cuddles very often—at all—so I have to drag him to bed using force. Even though he makes an upset face when I interrupt his training, he enjoys our time together. I know I do!

Durandal had promised to make me into a legend, but thinking back on my journey to legendhood—is that a word?—didn’t I accomplish almost everything by myself? Durandal still tries to claim credit for my achievements because, according to him, he set up my foundation. I can’t help but roll my eyes at that. All he did was torture me into compliance while teaching me a few techniques. But I guess I wouldn’t have gotten as far as I did without his initial guidance. He also feels like I’m not a real legendary warrior because I used beast cores to advance. And I think there are some merits to his words. There were a few more people who came by with plants growing out of their heads, and none of them have referred to me as a warrior. They call me a fierce body practitioner instead. It’s hard to understand what they’re saying about different worlds and whatnot, and the plants growing out of their heads remind me of Snow, so I kick those people out of my territory and into the demons’. Ilya says Rogath likes studying them, so it’s totally okay.

So now, here I am, at the top of the world. I have my own mansion, my own workers, my own hot chocolate and acorn stew factories. I have two good friends: Ilya and Ilya number two. Wealth is meaningless to me now; the days of saving and scrimping for a month just to buy a rusty old firestarter are over. I still have that little metal bird. I don’t need to start any fires, but I like having it around. I don’t have to work as a punching bag or a luggage porter in an army anymore. I don’t have to go to sleep hungry and cold. There’s no more crying myself to sleep and struggling to wake up. And most importantly, I have Durandal! And he’s the only thing, err, person I need in this world!

“Durandal!”

“Yes, Lucia?”

“Head pats!”

Ah, that feels good.