The World Is Mine For The Taking-Chapter 1057 - 163 - The Negotiations With the Dwarven Queen (1)

It had been six days since I began staying here in the Kingdom of the Dwarves, and at this point, I felt like I’d been sitting around like a duck waiting for someone to pluck me. Time here worked differently—it kept slipping through my fingers the moment I tried to grasp it. The days came and went so fast that sometimes, I’d blink, and the sun had already dipped behind the mountains again. It honestly messed with my sense of time.

I never imagined that I would actually end up living here, even temporarily. The whole experience felt surreal—like I was being shoved into a world I’d only seen in fantasy books. The stone halls, the metallic smell from the forges, the constant clanging of hammers echoing through the underground corridors... yeah, it was weird. Pretty damn weird. And yet, here I was.

"Master," Amon said softly from behind me. She was kneading her thumbs into my back, pressing into a knot just beneath my shoulder. A wave of warmth shot through me, and I almost groaned from how good it felt. Her fingers were slow, firm, and ridiculously precise—like she had some sixth sense that let her hunt down every stiff muscle in my body.

I swear, she was good at everything. Cooking, flying a helicopter, giving massages, sex—sometimes it felt like she was deliberately trying to spoil me.

"What is it, Amon?" I asked, relaxing into her touch.

"How’s the negotiation with the Dwarven Queen going?" she asked, her voice gentle but curious.

Naturally she’d ask that. Since it was winter, I didn’t even have to go back to the Academy, which meant I’d been stuck—well, "stationed"—in the Great Forest for way longer than I expected. Long enough that Titania and my other girlfriends were already saying they missed me. And honestly, yeah... I missed them too.

They knew what I was doing here wasn’t some leisurely trip. They knew I was working toward uniting the Great Forest’s kingdoms. Because of that, they didn’t nag or cling or guilt-trip me into coming back—no, they were surprisingly patient. But of course, that didn’t change the fact that they wanted me back in their arms. And it had been quite a while since I last held them.

And, I missed their warmth.

As much as I wanted to drop everything and go home, I couldn’t. I was practically chained here by responsibility—stuck until Agneis gave her verdict. I couldn’t move forward without it. Couldn’t go back home either.

Sacrifices. That’s what this whole mission was built on.

But that didn’t mean I was ignoring them. No, far from it. With everyone having smartphones now, it wasn’t hard to send messages back and forth, check on them, hear their voices, see how they were doing. But even so... sometimes that wasn’t enough. Especially with winter creeping into every corner of the forest. When it was cold like this, I craved their warmth even more.

Sure, Amon, Anne, and Filia were here with me, and they kept me company on the cold, lonely nights, but... well, that didn’t erase how much I missed the others.

"We still have to wait for Agneis’ verdict," I finally said. "So for now, that’s all we can do. Just wait."

Waiting—my least favorite thing in the world—yet here I was, doing it day after day.

"Should I give you the reports on what you’ve missed so far?" Amon asked.

"Alright," I said.

"Lady Irene and Lady Rose have officially taken maternity leave from the academy," she began. "It seems the entire academy knows about their pregnancy now, and many are starting to think their children have the same father."

Of course they would think that. It wasn’t even surprising.

"That’s because the father appears to be mostly absent, and no one knew Lady Irene or Lady Rose had lovers. And since they got pregnant at almost the same time... many assume they conceived during a threesome."

Well. They weren’t exactly wrong, so I couldn’t complain.

"And Lady Charlotte is starting a new business venture," Amon continued. "She’s graduating this year, so she wants to build something for herself."

"Charlotte? Starting a business?" I raised an eyebrow.

"She plans to create an organization," she said. "A mercenary group, I believe."

"A mercenary group?" I repeated, a little stunned. "That’s... not something I expected from her."

Charlotte heading an organization, especially a mercenary one—it caught me off guard. She was always elegant, composed, refined... not really the "mercenary commander" type.

"She said she wants to be useful to you. She wants to help with whatever she can," Amon said gently. "She said it was the least she could do."

That was sweet of her. Very sweet. I was definitely going to fuck her in a beautifully masochistic way the next time I saw her.

While Amon continued her report, the air shifted. Suddenly, the door opened, and Agneis appeared with that usual bright, confident smile that she always wore like armor.

"Sirion," she greeted.

It was hard not to stare. She was wearing barely anything despite it being the middle of winter. The wind slipped through the hallway, rustling her minimal clothes and showing flashes of her skin. She wasn’t nude, but she was close enough that my eyes didn’t know where to settle.

Wasn’t she cold? Seriously, how was she not freezing?

"What a lovely morning, isn’t it?" she said, her voice light. "And you seem to be enjoying it the most."

"Trying to," I said.

"But I’m sorry to ruin your moment. May I borrow you for a bit?" she asked. "I want to speak with you alone." 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Oh. This might finally be the moment the real discussion began.

Well, no more waiting.

***

Agneis led me into her throne room.

Compared to the grand halls of other kingdoms, the dwarves’ throne room was small, compact, and sturdy—like everything else they built. The stone walls were carved with ancient runes, glowing faintly in the torchlight. The air was warm from the forges nearby, and the faint metallic scent lingered like perfume.

She sat down on her throne, the stone seat carved with astonishing detail, and casually crossed her legs. The movement lifted her clothes just enough that I caught a glimpse of her panties.

She didn’t even try to hide it.

"Now then," she said with a sly little smile, "how about we start our conversation?"