Chapter 604: Metamorphosis

It was still snowing heavily outside at 9:30 in the morning. The Empire was like this, with snow falling all day around the Winter Festival, whether in the deep Black Forest or the capital, Brunswick.

In the Royal Hotel, in a large suite on the top floor, the room door was suddenly flung open as a little boy ran in. "Mom! Mom!"

The Imperial Lady lay in bed, covered by a blanket, seemingly unresponsive to the intrusion.

"Mom!" Little Frederick ran in excitedly, jumped onto the bed, and pressed his small body against his mother's. "Mom! Wake up! It's already 9:30!"

"Ugh!" Waking up to her son pressing on her, Emilia groggily opened her eyes. Her face was flushed with a charming redness, and she looked utterly exhausted. "Frederick?"

"Get up, Mom, and play with me!" The little boy urged excitedly. "It's 9:30!"

"Oh, Frederick, it's the holiday. Let Mommy sleep a little longer," Emilia replied half-heartedly. She looked sleepy and tired. "Go find Daddy to play with. Let Mommy rest a bit more."

"Daddy went out!" Frederick was a bit upset, tugging at his mother's blanket and yelling, "Daddy left early with Aunt Sulia. Mom, get up and play with me!"

"What?! Your daddy went out with Sister... Aunt Sulia?" Emilia reacted as if bitten by a snake, shivering but too weak to move. She pulled the blanket over herself. "Be good, Frederick. Go find Aunt Sylvia or Aunt Olica, or go play with Devonshire. If that doesn't work, ask Uncle Wagner to take you to see your godfather. Mommy is very tired and needs more sleep, okay?"

"Okay." Frederick, not understanding why his mother seemed so tired, obediently ran out of the suite.

At the door, two of Emilia's knight attendants were waiting: former Reiksguard Wagner and a member of the Nuln Ironclad Corps, Captain Thomson.

"Uncle Wagner, Uncle Thomson, Mommy said I could go see my godfather!" Frederick shouted excitedly, calling to his brother Devonshire, "Devonshire, are you coming?"

"Yes," Devonshire nodded eagerly.

Sylvia wanted to follow, but Wagner assured her that it wasn't necessary. Both Sulia's and Emilia's attendants were enough, not to mention the protection of the Nuln Ironclad Corps and the old guards.

This was Brunswick, the Empire's capital, the heart of the Old World's human realms, and the affluent district. If danger could find them here, the Empire would already be finished.

Understanding this, Sylvia realized her role wasn't suited for visiting the Imperial Palace. So, she stayed in the room.

The head maid felt a bit lost, having stepped out of her role. Her mistress was out with her husband, not needing her. Little Devonshire was with his brother, and staying at the Royal Hotel meant Sylvia had no household duties to manage.

This sudden detachment from her duties left her feeling uncertain, as she looked around, confused.

The dark elf appeared before her.

Olica's bewitching face held a faint smile. She wore her usual black-and-white maid's winter outfit, white garter stockings, black velvet strapped high heels, and a gray cloak over her shoulders. "Miss Sylvia?"

"You! What are you doing here?" Sylvia instinctively feared the dark elf.

"We're all alone now," Olica said sweetly.

Sylvia reached for her sword. "What are you planning?!"

"Don't be so tense!" Olica moved faster, pulling her butterfly knives from her sleeves in an instant, flashing two arcs in the air.

Sylvia's speed was fast, but Olica's movements were almost invisible. Before the maid could react, the knives were at her throat.

"You!" Sylvia's face changed as she was forced to stand by the dark elf.

"Let's get along well!"

***

Meanwhile, in the northern docks district of Brunswick, the slums.

Duke of Mousillon, Count of Glamorgan, Baron of Jean, the Lady of the Lake's Champion, "The Devout" Ryan had been out early.

He liked to ride his pureblood elven warhorse, wandering aimlessly in the dockworker district.

Seeing an old man with a limp, he offered help.

This simple act of charity and compassion filled Ryan with satisfaction.

At their destination, the old man grabbed Ryan's hand, clutching his chest, refusing to let go, possibly out of awe or recognizing the grail knight badge on Ryan's chest.

Soon, the old man's entire family of seven or eight surrounded Ryan and his wife, demanding 500 gold crowns.

Ryan smiled at this.

The Emperor had long taught him that money doesn't solve fundamental issues.

Quickly, he called for Felix, a Kislev Winged Hussar General recruiting in Brunswick, known as "Iron Felix."

The stern Winged Hussar General arranged a one-way ticket to Lustria for the old man, ensuring full board and lodging.

The old man probably never imagined that his morning street performance would end with him sailing to Lustria for the best medical care.

But Ryan worried that the old man's family couldn't afford the travel costs to Lustria.

Feeling sympathetic, the Duke of Mousillon arranged jobs for the old man's family as sailors and workers in the Knightly Order's Crusade to Araby, doubling their current earnings and providing an opportunity to reunite with their grandfather in Lustria.

Grateful and tearful, the family knelt to thank Ryan, moved beyond words.

Seeing the family well-settled, Ryan smiled like a blooming iris.

The joy of a grail knight is often simple.

And dull.

For some reason, after that, Ryan and Sulia encountered no more street performers when riding their pureblood elven warhorses.

"Hahaha!" Sulia, dressed in her regal best, rode her pureblood elven warhorse Lichth, laughing heartily. She wore a dreamlike gray-blue unicorn wool coat over a white, ribbed, snow-silk blouse, black velvet tights, and high-heeled boots, her golden curls cascading over her shoulders. "This is so amusing! Ryan, I never thought you could handle them like this! I've learned something new today."

"Different people require different methods," Ryan grinned broadly. "Don't forget, I climbed up from the bottom. Even Emperor Karl Franz couldn't fault this approach."

Sulia, recalling the old man's expression when told he was going to Lustria, burst into laughter again. She wasn't holding the reins, yet her horse seemed to follow a clear path, keeping pace with Ryan's.

The knight looked particularly lively today. After laughing, Sulia tidied her waterfall-like golden curls and excitedly asked, "Ryan, where should we go next? What other fun places are there in Brunswick? I've never found this city so delightful. Being with you makes everything more enjoyable!"

Ryan smiled wryly, shaking his head.

Only he knew that the woman beside him wasn't Sulia but "Sulia."

The Lady of the Lake was currently occupying and controlling his wife's body, enjoying a day out with Ryan in the Imperial capital. The real Sulia was a passive observer, sharing in the double joy.

It was indeed a metamorphosis.

As the Lady of the Lake's chosen champion, Ryan thought to himself.

He suddenly understood why little Devonshire called both the Lady of the Lake and Sulia "mom." The goddess had long laid the groundwork, and Ryan was thoroughly captivated by her.

It was clear that at his young age, Ryan had been a bit too naive.

"Do you want to visit the university district? Brunswick University? The Cathedral of Justice, the Temple of Morr, the Temple of Verena, the Temple of Shallya... shall we visit these places?" Ryan, having finished exploring the dock district and avoiding the slums, casually asked, "The dock district is just as you've seen, with thousands of people living in just a few streets. The entire dock district reportedly holds 200,000 people crammed in."

"How many people are you planning to relocate from Brunswick?" the Lady of the Lake, controlling Sulia's body, frowned. "I don't think Emperor Karl will easily agree."

"200,000 to 300,000," Ryan nodded. "We're already negotiating the proportion of able-bodied adults."

"Are you planning to relocate all the dockworkers?" The Lady of the Lake asked with interest. "Will the Emperor be so generous?"

"The population is already a heavy burden for Brunswick," Ryan said quietly. "Handling part of it benefits both the Emperor and us."

"Hmm." The Lady of the Lake thought for a moment and agreed with Ryan. "Massive immigration has many problems, but now we can't care too much. Overall, this is more beneficial than harmful. As long as you've thought it through."

"It's better than leaving Mousillon empty." Ryan could only helplessly say. "After years of turmoil, Mousillon's population has dwindled to about 120,000. Even with the added population from the newly ceded territories, it's only around 250,000. Mousillon can accommodate a million people."

"Lyonnaise originally had 800,000 people, now down to less than 400,000," the Lady of the Lake gave Ryan a sidelong glance. "Don't complain after getting the benefits."

Though the goddess rolled her eyes at Ryan, her using Sulia's body made it quite a rare sight. As a noblewoman, Sulia almost never made such expressions, giving Ryan a unique feeling. He smiled. "My Lady, what about the proposal I mentioned earlier?"

"This is Charlemagne's city, not my territory. I should remain low-key here," the Lady of the Lake thought for a moment but shook her

 head, as Bretonnia was her domain, not Brunswick.

"Then how about we visit the shopping district?" Ryan suggested. "I'll buy you anything you like, whatever you want."

"That works," the Lady of the Lake seemed interested. She said playfully, "Last time you and Sulia came to Brunswick, you bought a lot of things. Actually, human goods aren't as exquisite as High Elven ones and aren't as practical as Dwarven ones. I don't have anything in particular I want."

"How about visiting the Imperial Royal Zoo?" Ryan, thinking the goddess was a bit hard to please, continued to ask. "Last time, when we came to Brunswick with Teclis, we planned to visit, but because of that incident, we left quickly after getting what we came for."

The incident referred to was kidnapping Archbishop Vekmar and sneaking into the reliquary to steal items, a matter that Vekmar considered a great humiliation and that the Church of Justice kept quiet about.

"Let's shop first, then visit the zoo tomorrow," the Lady of the Lake tapped Ryan's forehead with a finger clad in a white lace glove. "Don't miss a thing!"

"Alright, today we'll do as you wish." Ryan said no more, the two sharing a smile.

So, during the Winter Festival, Ryan accompanied his wife and the goddess residing in Sulia's body on a shopping spree in Brunswick's shopping district. The goddess showed interest in everything, buying a little of everything, filling dozens of bags and two wooden crates before stopping.

After a long day of shopping, they returned to the Royal Hotel, where Olica and Sylvia greeted them and prepared lunch.

For some reason, Ryan felt something was off with Sylvia. The head maid, usually pursuing perfection, seemed unsteady, and her complexion wasn't quite right. But Olica soon clung to his back, asking about lunch, so he didn't think much of it.

Emilia slept until almost noon. As the Imperial Lady woke, her son Frederick burst in again. "Mom! Mom! Look what my godfather and godmother gave me!"

"Huh?" Emilia looked closely. "What's this?"

Frederick held a brown bunny with light brown fur, fluffy and adorable, its long ears standing tall. The boy carefully cradled the bunny. "My godfather gave me this bunny. Mom, isn't it cute?"

"Oh, it's really cute!" Emilia smiled, stroking the bunny's head. "What's its name?"

"It doesn't have one, Mom. Can you name it?"

"Let's call it Amiya!"

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