The water level decreased day by day, and the activities of the people of the Demonic realm increased as they spread their influence on more land.
Emersyn, meanwhile, was collecting monsters all around the globe that got killed in the ice. There were numerous corpses, and the items in her inventory increased exponentially. Since there were no more monsters than the dragons and the beasts that were under Emersyn's protection, the people were ecstatic to be able to live peacefully. The land indeed turned peaceful within Emersyn's rule. No one tried to steal; more like, they wouldn't be able to steal. Emersyn also gave work to those that needed money as she patiently instructed them.
The great library was cleaned and various books were now available to read for just a few pennies. Of course, they were only borrowed. They could only reproduce those books by hand and they had to pay a lot.
Since the influx of monster carcasses in Emersyn's inventory, she decided to donate half of them. She made everyone participate and bought their services. After all, she would leave once she finished all the work that needed to be done here. Crop seeds were also harvested to sell them to other prospecting farmers. Available lands started to broaden and they needed more people to plant more crops. The demand was already catching up to the supply, and they needed more help to expand their activities.
However, Emersyn was worried. If there were no more monsters, they wouldn't be able to hunt for their share of meat besides the carcasses she donated. The only races left were the humans, beasts and the dragons in their humanoid form.
She already tried buying the normal cattles, but they all died because of the high concentration of mana. Their bodies couldn't handle the pressure, so she abandoned the idea of raising animals. The only thing she could think of was to capture a pair of monsters from another world that could withstand the high concentration of mana; and most importantly, the meat should be delicious. Suddenly, her eyes gazed at the nearest dragon, which was Carnash who was quietly doing paperwork. The old man's spine shivered as he felt danger coming from Emersyn's eyes.
"What… what is it?"
"Hmmm…. Nothing."
Emersyn would travel again anyway. She would find them something to enjoy soon. Oh, and of course, seafood and a variety of them. That was… if she could find them suitable in this environment. She massaged her temples as she leaned back on her soft chair.
"Is something the matter, My Lord?" Carnash politely asked.
"I just never had the chance to rule over a territory, so I am stressed. Hey, Carnash, want to have something cold to drink?"
"Sir Elodiaren will be bringing us tea."
Emersyn sighed.
"That guy is always so diligent."
"That is only for you, My Lord."
"Okay, I understand. By the way, I'll be gone for a few days, so you and Aren could oversee this world for the meantime."
"... where are you going, My Lord?"
Emersyn grinned.
"To get us some food, of course. Also, I need a break from being a Demon Lord or whatever."
"Understandable. When will you leave?"
"Why? Excited to see me gone?" Emersyn teased.
"What?! That can't be! The world without you is just going to be chaotic! I can't bear to deal with that. Just thinking about it is already giving me nightmares."
Emersyn rested her fingers on her chin then nodded.
"Okay then, let me do something quick about it," she said as she pushed back her chair and stood up.
"My Lord?"
"I have an instinct that I can leave my crystal here. I'll just build, or buy, a pedestal. I'll just be in my room."
"My Lord, we still have work."
"...," Emersyn immediately sat down and pulled her chair nearer to the table. "It's like I am back to my research days…."
After a grueling session of signing and reviewing paperwork, Emersyn shot up and left her office with an "I'll be back". Carnash, meanwhile, was arranging the papers for tomorrow's work.
There was a knock on the door and Elodiaren appeared with a trolley of tea and sweets. He scanned the room, and didn't find Emersyn there. One of his eyebrows arched and asked, "Carnash, where is Emersyn?"
"... in her room, sir. She has something to do, and she said that she'll be back."
"... why am I sensing a huge disturbance in her room?"
"... ah!" Carnash exclaimed.
"What is it?"
"My Lord said that she'll be gone for a few days. I addressed the issue of her being absent would be chaotic in the realm, so she wanted to deal with it after work."
Elodiaren's eyes went wide and rushed to the highest point of the castle. His heart beating loudly against his chest. His eyes were unfocused as he ran upstairs. When he forcefully opened the door leading through Emersyn's room. As soon as he saw Emersyn, relief wafted through his system and hugged her tight, cradling her head against his chest.
"Aren? What's wrong?"
"I'm just… so scared that you will leave me again. All you ever do is to disappear from my sight."
Emersyn laughed, "You're traumatized now, huh?"
"Yes… you can say that. So, please, don't disappear without me. I'm begging you," Elodiaren said as he stared right through Emersyn's beautiful eyes.
"I can't say for sure, Aren."
"..... then I will never leave your side. Where are you going, by the way?"
"Strevalia, of course. I am going to catch edible monsters and see if they can survive in this world. That's my project. Of course, I'll be bringing capable people with me, so you don't have to worry. I'll be back, I promise."
"Bring me with you."
"Aren't you too strong against ordinary people?"
"... I can say the same about you. You're even more powerful than me."
"I am not going to fight though? I will let the strongest warriors of Locruna fight them, in the sea and on land. What's the point in me participating?"
"I am also not going to fight though?"
"Fair point, I'm afraid."
"So, let me come with you."
"Hmm… fine."
Elodiaren smiled then let her go; while Emersyn sighed with a small smile.
"Let's go now. I already installed the crystal in my room. I still have a few documents to stamp my seal on."
Just as she said, she only had the crown floating above her head and there was no crystal embedded on her forehead. For some reason, it made her head lighter and she felt comfortable. Her steps were light as she almost skipped all the way to her office with Elodiaren in tow.
***
"Chu Yubin."
"Melody Kisa."
"Yao Yun."
"Elodiaren Lukessia."
"Yao Chen."
"Jiang Hao."
"Emersyn Lachlan.
"Now, we are all complete. We will be going to Strevalia for a month. I presume everyone already knows what we are going to do, right? As you already know, we will be capturing monsters we can use as our delicacy. We will obtain a couple of them and release them in Locruna for them to settle down in a home and copulate. Also, we will be selling our products over there for a week. Their currency is completely different from ours. They use bronze and silver coins rather than half mithril coin and a full mithril coin. First of all, we would go to the blacksmith to sell our mithril coins and convert them into gold coins.
"Once we get our gold coins, we will go to the bank to exchange some of our gold coins into silver and bronze coins. Set up our stall under my servant's name, Flora. Yao Yun, Jiang Hao, Yao Chen, Chu Yubin and Melody would be in the exploration team. I'll check up on you from time to time. Oh, and I have something for you all."
Emersyn took out five mithril bracelets and gave each of them.
"I installed the portal function that connects our world to Strevalia. Also, I added a huge capacity of inventory for your convenience. Once you wear it, it'll recognize you as an owner and it will only work if it's you. Any questions?"
They all shook their heads.
"Understandable. Follow me," Emersyn smiled then opened up a portal leading to Strevalia. Her heart quickened its pace with excitement as her body disappeared through the portal.