Llandra awoke slowly.
Sunlight filtered through the tall windows of the secluded cottage, brushing across her bare shoulders and warming her skin. She was sprawled across Jax's chest, his arms wrapped securely around her waist.
Something glittered against the light.
She lifted her hand slightly.
Her ring.
The crystal caught the sun and fractured it into shards of soft color across the ceiling.
Jax could have purchased the most expensive jewel in the kingdom.
He didn't.
The stone in her ring had been carved from the boss chamber of the very first dungeon they cleared together. A crystal pulsing with condensed mana — rare, volatile, priceless.
The jeweler had nearly fainted when Jax handed it over.
"You want… this… cut into jewelry?"
Jax had only smiled.
It had been shaped into a princess cut, flanked by two smaller crystals. Its color shimmered faintly — not quite diamond, not quite sapphire. Something between.
And identical stone circled Jax's finger.
Beyond sentiment, it carried magic.
A subtle tether.
Wherever they were in the world, they would feel the direction of the other.
If separated.
If lost.
If taken.
They would find each other.
But for Llandra—
It meant something simpler.
I am his.
Forever.
And perhaps most importantly…
It was very, very pretty.
---
Eventually they rose.
Jax stepped outside — entirely unbothered by the fact that he was naked — and wheeled in a breakfast cart left outside the door.
A small note rested atop it:
> To keep up your strength and rehydrate.
Enjoy your honeymoon.
He grinned.
Inside, she didn't even use chairs.
Llandra settled into his lap while they ate, feeding one another bites of fruit and fresh bread. Their skin touched constantly, warmth flowing between them like a shared current.
When the meal was finished, she turned toward him.
Straddled him.
Naked.
Radiant.
"So," she asked softly, eyes glowing, "what do you want to do today?"
He traced his fingers down her back slowly.
"Round two?"
She laughed.
"I think we're well past two."
He leaned forward until their foreheads touched.
"Let's see how high numbers can go."
The cottage echoed again.
---
The next twenty-four hours blurred together.
Passion.
Laughter.
Bathing.
Hair brushing.
Massage.
Whispers.
There were moments of slow tenderness.
And moments far less restrained.
Somewhere during it all, the system quietly chimed.
Bonus iPoints Awarded
First time — Wife variant
New marital bond bonus
Synergy amplification
The notifications continued.
The entire Vixen network felt the surge.
Back in the capital, Bunny blinked.
"Did you just get that too?"
Nyxian smirked.
"Oh, she's busy."
Zee covered her face.
"We are never getting privacy again."
Llandra, however, wasn't trying to earn anything.
It simply happened.
By the end of the second day, she was both glowing and thoroughly exhausted.
There had been a moment — one long, overwhelming crest of sensation — where Jax genuinely worried she might be suffering a seizure.
She hadn't.
But she had clung to him afterward, laughing breathlessly.
"There is such a thing as too much attention," she admitted softly.
He kissed her forehead.
She liked that.
---
The return to the capital was slower.
Unhurried.
Even the carriage ride had turned… adventurous.
But by the time they entered the city gates, they were fully composed.
Presentable.
Royal.
And immediately aware something had changed.
There was movement everywhere.
Wagons being loaded.
Crates sealed.
Merchants arguing over tariffs that did not yet exist.
The Vixens rushed forward first.
The embrace was immediate.
Familiar.
Home.
Bunny pulled back first.
"Thirty-one times? Really?"
Zee stared at her.
"How are you alive?"
Llandra lifted her chin.
"Thirty-one times was his count," she replied regally. "Mine was considerably higher."
She walked past them with perfect posture.
Nyxian nearly choked laughing.
The brothers, however, stood frozen.
Thirty-one?
In two days?
Legos blinked slowly.
Heiron did math in his head.
Neither liked the results.
Jealousy flickered.
But so did respect.
This human had outperformed them at every measurable metric since arriving.
Battle.
Hunting.
Politics.
And now apparently—
This.
Jax clapped both of them on the shoulders.
"Gentlemen."
They snapped back to reality.
"Can I get an audience with your father today?"
Heiron nodded.
"For you? Of course."
---
The King was already in discussion when Jax arrived.
Vaelrith stood beside him.
Jax caught only the final words as he entered.
"…another Summoned Hero."
The conversation ended instantly.
Smiles returned.
Pleasantries followed.
The honeymoon was praised.
The cottage admired.
Nothing improper discussed.
Then Jax leaned forward.
"I hear trade is opening."
The King nodded.
"It is."
Legos had not exaggerated.
The isolationist policy — centuries old — was ending.
"Solmere first," the King continued. "We test stability, mutual gain."
Jax inclined his head.
"I'd like to propose something that makes it easier."
Vaelrith folded his arms.
"Go on."
"Direct trade corridor protection," Jax said calmly. "Joint patrols. Shared intelligence on bandits. And…"
He paused.
"A permanent teleportation circle installed in a secure trade quarter."
The room went still.
Teleportation infrastructure was strategic.
Military-level strategic.
"You would allow us access?" Vaelrith asked carefully.
"Shared access," Jax corrected. "Mutual seals. Two-key authorization."
The King studied him.
"You trust us that much?"
Jax met his eyes evenly.
"You're family."
Silence stretched.
Then—
The King smiled.
"Draw up the framework."
Trade.
Alliance.
Infrastructure.
The first official step toward full integration into the United Kingdoms.