Last Man On Earth When There Is No Earth ?

With the mood lightening a bit I decided to stop the jokes and get a bit serious.

"Back to the main topic. I do realize that putting an end to the Verta religion was done without much thought on my part, however I still think it had to be done."

Though I wanted the affection of Herara -their females to be more precise- I didn't want them to see me as a God. Neither did Iris who is the real Verta.

Mythical beasts are indeed powerful beings that are well above any other living creatures, however even with all the energy and lower in the end they're still people. In fact if you only look at their reputation they're more like agents of death and destruction rather than deities which is why worshipping one only paints the bad image of a cult.

[If it's a holiday we need then can't we just create one?] Iris suggested and I proposed the idea to the rest.

After much contemplation Hir was the first to give his opinion.

"It won't be easy, but it's still plausible"

"We will need a reason to celebrate, and thankfully we already have one." Ginger said.

"Do you mean the founding of the colony?" Lilia seemed a bit dubious.

"Indeed, what better time it is to celebrate than that?" the snowy season has already passed while I was bedridden and spring is near. You could say it's the perfect time for a festival.

"We only have a little over thirty days to prepare…" Ginger stated the reason that bothered him.

"Isn't it enough? Since star light is near wouldn't everyone be preparing for it?" as I see it an entire month should be more than enough.

"As I said before, the civilians are still confused with the sudden change in lifestyle." Hir began "I expected not many would be willing to participate in the festivities, we might even trigger a pushback from the more… devoted members of the clan"

"I see…" so the fanatics who weren't pleased by how things turned out for the clan are gonna stir a fuss over their holidays being replaced. Noted.

"If we're going to do it then it would be best if we pass it as something that has to do with Verta, in other words, me" it seems like a contradiction since we tossed the god thing aside, but I'm confident it would still work. Kinda like how many still celebrate Christmas even when they barely practice the religion.

"Indeed." Ginger nodded in agreement

"Rather than the creation on the first settlement, we should instead paint it as the day the clan finally met lord Verta and thus entered a new age" said Hir.

A new age, huh. A lot has changed ever since then. I feel like I've changed as well, though I don't know if it's for the better or for the worse. My memories aren't coming back at all, I pretty much gave up on them, but even when I'm like this I feel I'm nothing like the person I was on earth. For instance I have a lot of friends, coworkers and acquaintances now. I talk a lot more and not just with myself. I actually have a job and don't spend much time playing games, and finally, I'm married to two of the most beautiful women I've ever met in my life. I also died quite a few times, though I'm still around for some reason.

I think it's worth celebrating. It also marks a year since my first night with Lilia and our official marriage, I need to make it count especially after forgetting about Lilia's birthday.

"We will need to work out the details later" I said, checking out what's next on the list "I want it big, and it will be a yearly event, understood?"

"yes!" everyone replied in unison.

Now we have a festival to look forward to. It will be a good breather after all the overload of work that's about to be dumped on me.

"Alright then…" it is time to tackle the main subject of this meeting "let's discuss the Layl incident"

The air inside the meeting room changed, only to be broken by some new arrivals.

"Sorry I'm late!" said Estel as she came in.

"We've already started" I said "what took you so long?"

"I was taking care of the children" walking to her place behind me, Estel looked over at Lilia with smile "Hono Nohi asked me to take care of Feather while he rested a little bit. Not only that but since Lilia was late as well I was left to attend to Blue as well."

She's angry. And at Lilia at that.

"Is something wrong with Hono?" I asked. Feather was young enough that him bathing her wouldn't be a problem and it's not hard for me to imagine the little one refusing to leave his side. It would be a problem if her powers leaked when she a bit emotional. "wait, where is Feather now?"

If the kids were left in her care and she was here then who is watching over them.

"They're in the next room" Estel said, handing me her tablet. I elected that everything would be fine until we're done with the meeting, but if it concerns you I can return."

The tablet showed a heartwarming security footage of Feather sitting in Blue's l.a.p as she read a picture book from a tablet. Just like a big sister taking care of her younger sibling, I could feel my sugar levels rising every second as I watch the two of them.

"No, they're fine" I said handing the tablet back before I got a heart attack. "and Hono?"

"When he asked me to take care of Feather, he looked rather exhausted" Estel said, looking a bit worried "it seems he's barely slept at all for the past few days"

"I see…" I think I have an idea of what kept him up all night. "Well then, let's get back to work" I looked over at Ginger prompting him to pick up from where we left.

"The news spread rather fast, I fear it already reached the borders of the known universe" he said, summoning another window "as you'd guess, the widely believed thought is that the cause behind the disaster is you, my lord."

"Well, figures" I replied with a sigh. In the corner of my eye I could see Lilia shrinking in her place with clear discomfort.

"For the past few weeks we were bombarded with calls for an official statement, though with lord Seven's condition it will be a while before we can say anything, I believe we should address this right now."

"We won't be making any statements" my words caused Ginger to frown hard "we are not responsible for what happened, nor do owe anyone an explanation. Layl brought all of that on itself. We already said what needs to be said. If they want to investigate there they're free to do so, however we won't answer any more questions"

I don't plan on playing along and repeat the same process again and again and again and again just so they could feel they can get us to talk or that we're somehow on equal standings. I bet some of them hope to extract informations about the mythical beasts or guilt us into agreeing to put restrictions on the use of their power, but even with everything Iris says I'm not idiotic enough to chain myself in the face of foreign influence.

"If we get any more of those calls, let's see…" I stopped to think about it for a moment then decided on putting a definite conclusion to the topic "tell them that we already put the events behind me and are looking ahead, that's all."

We forced Layl to release a story that's strictly in our favor. To anyone who asks we're just the victims who were dragged into that disaster and thanks to my benevolent actions the planet was spared, unlike what happened to the other one in the same sector. By now everyone should be aware that it takes a beast to stand against another beast, a little thinking should lead them to realize how much danger I was in despite having nothing but the purest of intentions, and me choosing to shrug it off and go on with my life is a clear indication that I'm sparing Layl despite the injustice they committed toward me and my companions.

"My lord, I'm afraid that won't go well with the Zesioniens" Hir said, glancing over at Lilia.

"What do you think?" I asked my beloved wife.

"Rosaria contacted me as soon as we returned. She seemed worried but…" pausing for a few seconds Lilia then followed "it felt like she's pressing me for details. And since you ordered for the lockdown to continue I decided it would be wiser to not say anything beside that we are fine."

Rosaria Stoneheart, Lilia older sister, is the head of a very famous Zesionien military company. She has her relations in the upper echelon of the Zesionien empire and is often required to report to them any info she acquires about us. It's obvious that they would try using her to get more details on Layl's events, but it's rather unsettling that she tries to do so when she should be worried about her little sister. Maybe they're tightening the leash around her neck? I need to summon her later for details.

"You made the right choice" I told Lilia who seems to be bothered about the matter "we must be cautious when discussing Layl with outsiders. Many still doubt our story, what we say could still be used against us in some capacity."

"Indeed" Ginger said "but, what about Imar nine's governor? I have no idea what you two talked about, but I hope you were careful of what you said, my lord."

"You don't need to worry about governor Astragali" waving dismissively I responded to Ginger's worries "it's in his best interest that we face no further problems from what happened."

Unlike me he wishes to keep his mythical beast identity a secret. I don't think we have to worry about him disclosing our secret.

"There isn't much to do about the Zesioniens, but that said, there isn't much they can do about us either. In the end they don't have much of a reason to ruin the relationship we have so I expect they will stay back and watch . At least for now."

The problem is when they don't. The Zesionien empire stretches over five planets and I heard that they don't really get along as the original world wants it to look. I fear that they will try to get close to me in the hope of getting my backup in the chance that they decide to become independent. There is the chance that they're still hoping to get their hands Gorgola. I can always wipe them out using Verta's or Feather's power, but a massacre of that level isn't something that could be pulled off in the spur of the moment. Even if it's me we're talking about killing that many people might be too much for me.

[Want me to do it in your place?] Iris said telepathically.

'I know you aren't a Zesionien anymore but…'

[I'm saying this because I used to be a Zesionien] she added [the only thing I would feel about killing them is pride, since now I have the power to fight them head on.]

'Well, let's work hard so that won't happen' I want to avoid genocides whenever possible.

"Now, moving on to the next topic" I said, motioning for Estel to speak.

"Two days ago a report our contact in the IU, Rajol Aley delivered had the grim news of Habs' destruction." Sliding her index finger on the surface of her tablet she made several holograms appear above the table. "According to it a battle between three mythical beasts took place on Habs' surface. Only one of the three was identified as lahab. Due to it's close proximity to Layl, many suspect that the two incidents are related. What will Gorgola's stand on this matter be?"

The holograms showed Habs, or what was left of it. It looked like an apple which someone took an oversized bite off it then smashed it into the floor. Some parts of it were still on fire while others were smashed inside. The report included the number of deaths, which had more digits than I know how to read, which species they belonged to and then their sentence, though most of them seem to have a lifetime of prison ahead of them.

Estel finished introducing the topic and stepped back. I surveyed the others one by one to see their reaction. I already sent word about this to both Hir and Ginger which means they shouldn't be so surprised, nevertheless seeing the images before them drew quite the grimace from their faces.

"Hir, if I remember correctly you went to Habs to get your records clean, right? Why didn't you mention it even though we were in the same sector?"

At my question, Hir frowned so hard that his tiger face seemed cartoonish. He let out an exasperated sigh then spoke while massaging his temples.

"Because it's the most unpleasant place I've ever been to. It makes even Namira look like heaven."

Hir told us about what he saw in that prison world. Habs is where prisoners who committed crimes on open planets or out in space go. As you'd expect from a facility of that size management is nearly impossible, nor is it constructed the way you'd expect a prison to be. Basically the planet is divided into countless districts overseen by drones and androids. The only constructions are the cells near the center of each district. Those are the five star hotels run by the big gangs that rule the land. Those who don't belong to the gangs wonder aimlessly and sleep on the ground. The gangs control the food supply as well so unless you show them obedience you'd starve to death. The same goes for all other resources. Since most prisoners have no hope of leaving Habs managing the prison in a way that keeps them alive is a waste of money and effort so they're just left there to die.

"When we arrived there they tried to drive us away from the gates to prevent us from leaving when the time comes" Hir said "we did our best to secure our place at the center of the district we were dropped in but it was a tough battle. And even when everyone else left I had to survive until I could as well…"

"I didn't hear anything about this…" I can picture what kind of place it is, I don't know why I never heard of what happened.

"There was no need to" shaking his head slowly, Hir continued "you already did us a big favor by securing a way out for us. We can only be thankful for that"

"I see…"

Despite being a pirate group most of the Verta clan members didn't have criminal records. Those were the first to settle on Gorgola. Only when we had enough citizens were we able to join the IU and gain the ability to clean the records of the others. Logan avoided going to Habs thanks to being under Lilia's supervision, however that's a privilege granted only to Zesionien warriors and only works for two at a time at most. That serves to show how much power Zesioniens actually have. They can make themselves exceptions in the rules that govern the rest of the universe.

By the way, Ginger's records were as clean as those of a new born so he avoided being imprisoned at all. He knew what he had to do in order to avoid being caught and his good intuition helped as well.

"We didn't have anyone there so there is no need to concern ourselves with those who died." Ginger said "That place gathers the worst of the known universe so there is no need to feel sorry for them"

He has a point but…

"Why would three beasts be there at the same time?" I asked.

Were they prisoners? Or did they choose Habs as the arena for their battle?

Why would they pick such place either way?

"We can conclude that at least one of them was hiding there" otherwise there would be no reason for them to be there "if so then they must have some way to locate each other. Since everyone and their mother knows that I'm Verta they won't have trouble finding me, but we have no idea what their motives are so we can't be sure they will target us…"

"I think…" Lilia began, timidly holding up a hand "I think we should go forward with the assumption that we will be targeted so we could be prepared."

"The problem is that there isn't much we can do if that happens" Ginger said "though we have to somehow avoid Gorgola turning to another battleground for mythical beasts, otherwise none of us will survive."

"I will do something about that" my current objective is to get as strong as possible. Strong enough to push against any threat a mythical beast could pose. "I will have to make a proper schedule…"

My duties as lord and governor, as a husband, as a father and finally training. I have to get my priorities in order and dedicate enough time for each. The hardest part will surely be making enough time to spend with Lilia and Estel, and since having s.e.x results in a lot of it wasted a certain someone will make sure we aren't left alone. Glancing over at Ginger, I decided that I would be best to find a solution to my s.e.x life problem as soon as possible.