With the weather turning colder and the days shorter as autumn arrived, the villagers focused on the harvest. Regina was pretty sure that it was now September; probably mid to late September, in fact. This new world used a calendar that split the year into twelve months of thirty days each that were named differently, with five of them having an extra day and a sixth a leap day from time to time - every four years, but not every hundred years, except for every four hundred years, following the pattern she knew. Clearly, someone had reformed the calendar at some point, although when she asked, no one could tell her any further details.

Regina got some of her drones to help the locals with the harvest. She had several hundred War Drones by now, and they might as well keep them busy. Besides training and the occasional hunt, she didn’t have much for them to do, anyway. Ivy and the other Harvesters also accompanied them on occasion, as did some of the Workers, learning about the humans’ farming methods.

Regina herself found time to finally visit the other villages in the barony. There were three of them, if you counted one hamlet that was basically just a few families’ farmhouses built next to each other. The others were also considerably smaller than Forest’s Haunt. Apart from that, they didn’t look too different to Regina’s eyes. Medieval houses, a few dirt or cobblestone paths, a well or two, and lots of fields around them. Their inhabitants eyed her with dark and skeptical gazes, but they didn’t make trouble and spoke respectfully, perhaps encouraged by the small group of the baron’s men he had sent along. Regina practiced her new Water Manipulation on the fields of one of the villages, and let the group of Swarm Drones she’d brought gather hay and weeds from the grassy hills beyond the village’s cultivated farmland.

Visiting all of the villages took about a week in total, though she stopped in Forest’s Haunt in the middle. It also let her get her first experiences with horse-riding. To her relief, the horses didn’t seem to mind her presence. Neralt himself gave her some tips when he lent her one of his for the trips.

Regina resolved to work riding lessons into her schedule after that. Janis could probably help her. Clinging onto a horse while it was led by another rider holding the reins for most of the journey felt almost humiliating and made her uneasy. At least her body shrugged off the unfamiliar type of exercise. Besides, she found that she actually liked horses. They might be skittish, awkward flytraps, but they were kind of cute. Well, the old me was probably a city girl who found the idea charming, I’ll just blame that.

In any case, it got her thinking about transportation. With stats and Skills, people could potentially move a lot faster than they had during the actual Middle Ages, even with mounts or carriages. Still, that didn’t mean something like a railway couldn’t help. For that matter, there might even be something like a railway network somewhere else. It wasn’t like she’d seen a lot of this world, or talked to people who had.

Anyway, she didn’t have enough metal, or the capability to smelt and refine more, to build rails, but it was something to keep in mind in the future. Along with potentially building airplanes, or maybe zeppelins or something. She could conjure helium, even if it might take a lot of time, and a lot of mana. Though with flying monsters around, that might be more dangerous than it was worth.

Regina also met with the baron to discuss sending messengers to the marquis. She wanted to establish lines of communication, and ideally trade. The enchanted communication apparatus in the castle had been destroyed, and she didn’t know if she would even want to repair it, so any messages traveled at a frustratingly slow pace. It couldn’t be helped, though. Eventually, her Winged Drones might be strong enough to carry a rider on their backs, but she was leery about sending them too far outside of the territory she controlled, let alone out of her psychic range.

She did take the chance of sending a few Winged Drones deeper into the forest, though, and while one of them was eaten by a giant bird, she found that her range had expanded again. It was hard to be sure how much, though. She still didn’t reach the major battlefields of the war in the forest, which were beyond and somewhat to the side of Ariedel for someone coming from the direction of her hive.

The first hint of the outside world touching their quiet life again came from Anuis instead of the local human nobles, though. She sought Regina out on a windy and overcast autumn day, a bit more than a month from the autumn equinox and the harvest festival it would entail, while she was standing at the edge of Forest’s Haunt, watching both the people in the fields as well as the drones setting up another defensive fortification at the entrance to the village. They’d been digging a ditch around it, though they still left several spots open, of course. And now, they were constructing what would basically be a short wooden tower to overlook one of the roads. It was probably more important than a wall. Regina supposed that there was a reason the village hadn’t previously had much of one, besides the way its houses further out were constructed to fit together and only allow entrance into it along the streets. Anything that got past the castle and the defensive line would probably not be stopped or even significantly slowed by a simple palisade.

Anuis greeted her with a nod. “There is some news from the city.”

Regina returned the greeting, turning back to face the elf. She couldn’t help but tense up a little, wondering if this was where Anuis explained that she was being recalled. She didn’t look tense or concerned, at least. “What news?”

“Some status updates on the course of the war.” Anuis glanced at Max, who accompanied Regina again. “We can talk about those together with your commanders later, I would suggest. Beyond that, we’ve had some contact from further abroad that I thought you should know about. The first regular caravan from the Ilians arrived a few days ago. They tend not to come in summer.”

Regina frowned. That sounded odd to her. “Shouldn’t they not travel in the winter, when the mountains are snowed in, but be able to in the summer, when the glaciers and whatever have receded more?”

Anuis smiled faintly. “Sun and less snow means that certain monsters come out more. No one in their right mind tries to travel directly over the mountains, especially not the highest parts, but at the sides, the thinner parts of the mountain range that aren’t quite as high, you can pass. Especially in the spring and autumn, when the passes are still clear but the mountains’ dangers are less active.”

Regina nodded. She supposed that made sense. “So, what was it you wanted to talk about?”

“The merchants have brought some news. Apparently, the dwarves are stirring and growing restive, even fighting under the mountains again. That’s not very surprising, and we had gotten some indications to that effect before. Still, it might spill out into the forest and the border regions, or have indirect effects that will, so it’s best if you know. Additionally, we’ve had some inquiries from other lands. The Ilians brought a message, and there are ambassadors from other nations in the city as well, with many envoys coming because of the war.”

Regina stopped herself from raising an eyebrow in surprise. She hadn’t realized the elves were that connected on the international scene. Although she supposed it made sense. After all, Cernlia and Nerlia presumably hosted ambassadors from other countries, as well.

“Apparently, news of your connection to Alianais and your display of divine magic have spread.” Anuis hesitated a little and glanced around, before continuing in a quieter tone of voice. “My mother wrote to me privately that several envoys and other foreigners with some position or standing have been making inquiries about it. I am supposed to relate your reaction and your intentions concerning how to deal with them, if you have any.”

Regina blinked. This seems a bit shady. Although, on second thought, this kind of off-the-record, backroom dealing is probably normal. She’s just sounding me out so they know how to act, I doubt Enais would be keeping this a secret from the rest of the government or anything.

“I haven’t thought much about it,” she admitted. “But in principle, I’d be happy to talk to people from other countries. Although I would prefer not to disclose any details about my, uh, status or relationship to Alianais or any proficiency with divine magic.” Presumably, they were less interested in that than in whether she really was a champion of the goddess of change and progress, though. She grimaced for a moment.

“Of course,” Anuis replied. “I will pass that on. Travel between the city and Forest’s Watch or Forest’s Haunt is, of course, blocked at the moment, or at least restricted, so I doubt you will have to worry about an influx of visitors.”

Regina nodded. She was getting curious about this, but she was in no rush to deal with any other people. It sounded like potential headaches, and she should probably focus on stabilizing her own position before she started getting near international politics. Well, nearer than she already was. Assuming that was where things might go.

From there, the conversation turned to more mundane and practical matters. Anuis had not been recalled yet, but the city had already sent orders for part of her units to return. As Regina’s own hive and her forces grew, she knew that the elven soldiers would be called back to the battlefields of the forest. Especially since the war was clearly dragging on for longer than expected.

“We have many fighters in the second tier now, and with the truce and agreement with the marquis, I’m pretty sure we’re more secure here than we were at the beginning,” Regina said, smiling faintly. “I’ll miss you and your soldiers, but you won’t be abandoning us to excessive danger.”

“I hope so,” Anuis said. Then she shook her head. “Forgive me, I did not mean to sound as if I doubted your abilities. Even when my own recall order comes, a part of me will be reluctant to leave. Even if I do, to be frank, look forward to getting back to the real battlefields and defending my home against those who try to harm it. But I’m sure we will have many opportunities to meet again.”

“Of course,” Regina agreed.

They split off, and Regina looked after the elf for a moment before she turned around to get back to her drones. Her contemplation was interrupted by an incoming System message.

You have leveled up You may now select another Ability

Finally. Regina grinned. She had taken longer to reach level 30 than she’d hoped, but now she finally seemed to have gotten enough Experience. Now she was already halfway to Tier 3. At least in terms of levels, it would presumably take a lot more Exp and a lot more time to reach level 40. But that was okay, she supposed, she was still leveling up very quickly compared to pretty much anyone else, apparently.

Regina quickly let Max know, then carefully unfolded her wings and got them through the slits in her tunic. She took to the air and started flying towards the castle. The few humans and more drones stationed on its walls looked up, then got back to their tasks. Regina landed lightly on the roof of the castle. A tree in the forest would have provided more privacy, but she had to be mindful of her security. She folded her wings up again, more or less, then leaned against the balustrade and pulled up the System message.

You may now select your fourth Class Skill. Please choose one of the following: Queen’s Fecundity: Your efforts grow your Hive. The production of any drone eggs will now be easier and the mana required will be reduced. The number of eggs developing in any clutch of the same type will be automatically increased by a factor of 1.25 (at the current level and Tier). At higher levels of mastery, this will also occur in clutches with any mixture of Templates and may strengthen eggs and hatchlings. Queen’s Strength: Your power is your Hive’s power. Once per three days, you may boost your own abilities and strength drastically for a limited period of time. Your effective Int and Wis are increased by a factor of (Tier-1)*0.25. Your Spells will be more easily cast and mana fatigue delayed. Your physical stats are increased by a factor of (Tier-1)*0.1. This Ability lasts for level/2 minutes at baseline, but increased draw on your mana will reduce its duration. Afterwards, your stats will be reduced by half and your effective casting time doubled for twice the duration. Psychic Focus: Your path is one of the mind. Your psychic link of your Hive will be strengthened, it will be more resistant to potential harm and its range will increase. You will gain greater facility at sensing minds near you. At higher levels of mastery, the ability to project your mind and senses through the link will be increased.

Regina frowned thoughtfully to herself. Queen’s Fecundity was a rather, well, weird-sounding name, but it sounded like what she needed most right now. She supposed there had to be some circumstances where Queen’s Strength was an opportune and necessary choice, even if it didn’t seem very much so to her. Now that she’d seen it twice and would have passed on it twice, it should stop appearing as a choice.

Of course, the other new option would probably come up again, then. She might want to take it in five levels. It sounded like it could be quite useful. Although she already had Enhanced Telepathy. She didn’t know if those would stack, or if it was supposed to unlock benefits she largely had already. So far, she hadn’t really used her telepathy much, especially lately. Still, she could see it had the potential to be a very useful tool.

But increasing her hive’s numbers was the priority for now, and something that was arguably much more time-dependent. Regina sighed and nodded to herself, then selected the more practical option. She was definitely keeping the other choice in mind, though.

With that done, she stretched and unfolded her wings. She didn’t feel much different, but she supposed she’d find out what had changed soon enough when she would add the next batch of eggs to the hive.

Her hive still didn’t have a name, even. She was kind of tired of seeing ‘Unnamed’ in her hive status window. Maybe she should call a hive assembly or something. Regina jumped and caught the air with her wings, soaring down. The wind tugged on her clothes and she almost got a flying bug in her eye, but she couldn’t help but smile.

It was always nice to grow in power, even if it was in a less direct way.