The Struggles of Being a Queen!

Elara shared the issue with Raze and Dorian.

“According to that annoying voice in my head, I have to stay in this world… forever.”
She paused, then suddenly cried out, almost in tears:
“I don’t want to stay here! It stinks like cow poop! And I swear, only me and Ben know what a bath is in this place. Everyone else smells like old cheese!”

Raze stayed quiet, but Dorian responded:

“Well, to be honest, I didn’t think you’d be good at anything other than being a circus clown… But I’m still proud you’re climbing so high.”

“As usual, you’re worse than my enemies, Dori!”

Raze replied with a worried tone:

“Elara... I hate not being able to see you. But this is something you were chosen for.
You're meant for it. So please, do your best. If I was there, I’d stand by you.”

“I know, bro. I miss you... I even miss that annoying Dori.”

“Hey! Don’t call me that out loud!”

There was a moment of silence, then suddenly the sound of laughter echoed in their minds. Raze and Dorian heard it too.

“What was that sound?!”

Elara sighed.

“Sorry, that’s just the unwanted voice in my life... again.”

The voice laughed.

“Apologies for interrupting your touching family moment, but I’ve got some good news!”

“You better not be spying on every single moment of my life, you golden eavesdropper!”

“Relax, Elara. I only wanted to share something hopeful with your brothers too.”

Raze sounded confused:

“Elara? Is someone with you? Only we’re supposed to hear each other, right?”

“I don’t know, but it seems like this…”

The voice interrupted:

“Sorry, forgot to introduce myself.
Ahem! I’m Lux, the guide of the Golden Eye and Elara’s loyal assistant.
Pleasure to meet you both!”

Elara blinked in surprise.

“Wait, you had a name this whole time?!”

“Of course I did, dummy!”

Lux cleared his throat dramatically.

“Anyway, here’s the good news:
If Elara continues down the path she’s on and completes a few more stages…
she’ll eventually be able to summon both of you into this world as well.
You’ll see each other again. Just not yet.”

The three of them lit up with happiness. Elara especially couldn’t contain her joy.

“So you can say nice things! Thank goodness!”

Lux said a quick goodbye to her brothers and ended the connection.

“Well then, Elara, family time is over.
Now get ready. One of the major threats in this world is getting closer to us.”

“Wait—can you tell the future now too?!”

“No, I’m not a fortune-teller, genius. That’s just your upgraded purple eye ability kicking in.”

“Oh. Right… forgot about that…”

“Anyway, your next task is simple:
Go train some of the people here—show them basic close combat, help them improve.
Start with at least three.”

“Wait, didn’t you say I had to use my eye power to grow stronger? What’s this training stuff?”

“I’ll explain later. For now, just do it. When you’re done, I’ll let you know.”

Lux’s voice faded, leaving Elara sitting in silence on her bed…

A few seconds passed—then the sound of pounding on her door made her jump.

“Hey, little missy! What’s going on in there? You’ve been talking to yourself for ten minutes and there’s a ton of banging noises. You alright?”

Ben’s voice. Elara opened the door, flustered.

“I, uh… was just… you know—”

Suddenly realizing, she grabbed his collar, shouting:

“WAIT A SECOND! How do you know what’s going on in my room?!”

Ben laughed innocently.

“There’s a magic spell that shows me what’s happening inside…
But hey, don’t worry! When you were changing, I turned it off—"

BAM!
Elara punched him straight in the face.

Ben now sat in her room, holding his swollen cheek.

“Seriously... For someone so tiny, you hit like a truck.”

“Then stop acting like a creep and I won’t have to!”

Ben laughed again, then his tone shifted.

“Alright, time for something serious.
Little missy… listen carefully.
I’m the one who summoned you into this world.”

“Yeah. I already knew that.”

“Wait, really? Oh… whatever.
There are evil beings—like your kind—here. They claim to be the rightful rulers…”

“Knew that too. Get to the point.”

Ben blinked.

“…Okay then. So here’s the real issue:
One of them has gained major power.
Instead of helping rule this world… he’s attacking us.
Our people are being taken. Not just from our base—but from nearby tribes too.”

“Why? What does he want?”

Ben looked frustrated.

“The first few times he came, he took about 900 of my people.
This base used to be packed with warriors. Now? Almost half are gone.
And because my tribe is the biggest around… he targets us the most.”

He paused, looking grim.

“I followed his army once. Secretly.
I found his lair—some huge cave.
And what I saw made me furious.”

Elara didn’t speak. The mood shifted.
If Ben was this serious… she had to be, too.

“He was turning everyone into undead.
Those who surrendered became part of his forces.
Those who refused… were thrown out.
Left to wander the wild lands as cursed monsters—until adventurers came and hunted them.”

Elara clenched her fists. Her voice trembled:

“I’m sorry for what you’ve lost… but I still don’t get it.
Why would he do all this?”

Ben sighed, his voice shaking.

“I think he wants to weaken us—break down the tribes, and build his own undead empire.
I don’t know when he’ll make his final move… but I know we’re running out of time.”

Suddenly, Ben did something unexpected.
He knelt before Elara. Tears ran down his face.

“Please… I’m begging you.
Stop that monster!”

“I can’t stand watching my comrades become undead anymore!
I can’t lie to those kids whose families are taken away!”

Elara froze.
She felt the full weight of what was being asked. And it crushed her.

But slowly… something inside her shifted.

“I was just a regular high school girl, living with my brothers in our world.
Sure, we had powers… but I never imagined this kind of responsibility.
Still… now that it’s on me, I’ll carry it to the end.
There’s no turning back.”

She looked Ben in the eyes, voice shaking but strong: