Chapter 24 : So I Woke up to a New Alnovir

He rushes at me with speed and swings his sword towards the right side of my neck. This is a trap. He wouldn't repeat this move. And I know why he did. I duck to dodge the sword. In that split second he tries to kick me with his left leg. I was expecting that. I catch his leg and pull it towards me, and with that force I land a kick on his face. He lets out a sound of pain. 

I don't waste a second. I quickly strike a punch on the right side of his left knee. Then I release his leg and step back a little.

Ronvil stands up. I can see his pain in his expression. He rushes towards me. Yes, his speed is reduced to a normal human's speed. He swings the sword from up to down. Trying to cut my head into two. I easily dodge that and strike a punch on his right ear. He flew a bit to the right side.

That stubborn man stands up again with the support of his sword. Let's finish this up. I push the floor with my toes and get close to him on his left side. Then an uppercut, a solid punch on his chin from below. He falls on the floor, knocked out completely.

Vaelya comes to me and says, "Done already?" I say, "Yes. Let's go." Vaelya says, "Don't you want to kill him first? He is dangerous. He may come back for you." I say, "I am not feeling the need to kill him unnecessarily. If he tries to harm us again, I'll deal with him then. Now let's go." 

We go to the underground room through the stairs. This underground room is similar to Alnovir's prison chamber. Prison cells, more than 200 women of different races, including some humans. All of them have white collars on their necks, and they are handcuffed to the wall.

Almost everyone looks at us. I say, "Princess Vaelya, talk to them." Vaelya says loudly, "Listen everyone, I am Vaelya, daughter of the demon king. This is Agni, the hero of demons. We are here to rescue all of you. Humans, don't be afraid of us. I'll explain everything later. But first we are going to get all of you out of these prison cells. Please don't panic." 

Vaelya looks at me. I nod. I clench my fists and activate the flame. Then destroy every cell's gates with punches. After that I burn every collar on their necks. Now the problem is the handcuffs. We can't spend hours searching for the keys.

I pull every handcuff from the wall one by one. Took some time and strength. But I can't think of any other way. 

I say, "Princess Vaelya, open the portal." Vaelya opens the portal and says, "Everyone, please enter this portal. It will take you to the demon realm. We will explain everything to you there." 

Everyone is hesitating. It's a normal reaction. They witnessed the cruelty of the human form for this long. And now two strangers are telling them to enter a mysterious portal. They should be scared. 

A wolf woman says, "Why does a man want to rescue us?" Vaelya says, "He is a hero. And a hero doesn't need any reason to rescue someone who is suffering."

A lizard woman says, "Everyone, we've been through a lot. If they didn't come here, we may be sold to another human tomorrow. And I can't even imagine what they would do to us. I know we can't trust anyone anymore. If we do as these two say and later they betray us, our situation won't change a bit. But if there is the slightest chance that they are actually here to rescue us and we are too scared to let them help us. We might regret it later. So, let's trust them a little." She walks to the portal. She takes a deep breath and enters the portal. 

Vaelya says, "Please, everyone. We have to hurry. Please trust us." All women enter the portal. Vaelya and I check everywhere to confirm that no one is left behind. Then we enter the portal.

After arriving at the demon realm, Vaelya starts explaining everything to them. After she finishes explaining, she goes to Varthion to report everything. I am left alone with them.

That lizard woman comes to me and says, "Thank you for saving us, Hero." I bow and say, "Thank you for trusting us." She smiles.

After a few moments, Varthion arrives. He takes full responsibility to heal all the women except humans and to send them to their homes. And I take responsibility to give medical treatment to human women and to send them to their homes. 

After that I return to Alnovir with 24 human women and place them in Ferminaka's care. Then I surrender myself to my bed. 

Slowly, slowly, almost 4 months passed. 

- "Agni! Agni!"

I open my eyes. Vaelya smiles and says, "How long are you going to sleep? Get up." I say with a smile, "Sure, Vaelya." I wake up way before Vaelya called me. I was enjoying her smell with closed eyes. Yes, we are calling each other by names. Many things changed with the times, in only good ways. I leave the room to freshen up. 

Alnovir is one of the best kingdoms now. Foreigners who knew Alnovir from before become amazed when they see the present Alnovir. 

Alnovir's citizens need to pay the lowest tax. Alnovir produces every single necessity. Vegetables, fruits, fish, livestock, clothes, construction materials, medicine, jewelry, furniture, different kinds of tools, weapons, armor, solar crystal lamps, etc., are produced right here in this kingdom. And they are in better quality compared to most of the kingdoms. So we don't need to import anything from another kingdom. The crime rate of Alnovir is almost equal to zero. There is no existence of poverty in Alnovir. All cities and villages of Alnovir are clean. Caelgrand, the capital city of Alnovir, is considered a beautiful city among 8 other capital cities of different kingdoms. 

The team named 'Recovering Lives' started the changes. Citizens of Alnovir and members of the royal court made that permanent. Now everyone is happy here in Alnovir. And I am proud to be the king of Alnovir.

People of this kingdom for some reason love me very much. Every day, I receive gifts from them. Vegetables, flowers, paintings, etc. They invite me on every occasion, even celebrations like birthdays and marriages. Of course I join every event. Their love for me is very warm to avoid. 

The royal court is filled with talented people. Their contribution to the kingdom is very admirable. Four new female members of the royal court are proving their worth every now and then.

After freshening up, I have breakfast with Vaelya. Then we talk for some time. 

Suddenly Lukemir knocks on the door and says, "Your majesty, it's time." I reply, "Alright, Lukemir, I'll be there in a moment." 

I wear a new dress and prepare myself. I leave the room. Vaelya, who is standing on the other side of the door, says, "Looking great. But Velzaroth's royal dress would make you look more awesome." I smile and say, "This dress is heavy with the responsibilities. I always prefer my old clothes from my world." Vaelya's expression changes for a moment.

Vaelya gets close to me. She gently starts adjusting my dress to perfection and says, "You have a lot of things to do here. You have many responsibilities towards your subjects. People need you here." She completes the adjustment. Then she looks at my eyes and says, "So, for now, rather than your previous world, focus on this world, Hero Agni."

That is unusual for her. I hesitantly say, "Of course." Vaelya smiles.

I come outside in the yard. People from various cities of Alnovir gathered here. They prepared a stage for me. There is a throne in the middle of the stage. Lukemir and other counselors are standing on the corner of the stage. 

A lot of residents of Alnovir are telling me to accept the crown and the throne for a couple weeks. I delayed the ceremony. But now I have to do it. 

I get on the stage. The crowd is cheering for me. It's a very good feeling. I give them a sign to stop cheering. They let me speak. I say loudly, "Residents of Alnovir, today I stand before you to obey one of your orders. Many of you have been telling me to accept the crown and the throne. But before I do that, I have to confirm something from all of you. Which is whether you are proud to be called the residents of Alnovir or not. And if a single person replies 'no,' I won't accept the crown and the throne. So, Hearts of Alnovir, Are you proud to be called the residents of Alnovir?" 

Everyone shouts in unison, "Yes!"

I smile and say, "Thank you very much, everyone. All this is accomplished by all of your help, and I can't accept the credit. But only to fulfill your demands as a king, I now accept Alnovir's crown and throne." 

I sit on the throne. Everyone cheers for me again. Lukemir calls out, "Lady Vaelya." Vaelya gets on the stage. She takes the crown from Lukemir and comes to me. She placed the crown on my head. 

People start chanting my name, "All hail King Agni...All hail King Agni."

After a few seconds, I give them a sign to stop. They stop chanting. I say loudly, "There are some people who worked a lot to make this kingdom as it is now. And they are working a lot to make this kingdom a better place. I am grateful towards them. And I want to reward them even if it's little compared to what they have done. From now on, Lukemir Grandwise is the prime minister of Alnovir." 

Lukemir turns to me with surprise. He quickly kneels down and says, "I am grateful for this honor, your majesty. I accept this responsibility for what you've given me. I'll always be devoted to you and Alnovir. Because serving you and Alnovir is a blessing to me. I'll never disappoint you, your majesty." I smile.

Then I announce 8 male councilors and 4 female councilors as ministers. They show their gratitude to me. 

Vaelya says, "You really have some good people serving you, Agni." I smile and say, "Yes, Vaelya." 

Suddenly, Nordial gets on the stage and kneels. He says, "I have urgent news, your majesty." I say, "What is it, Nordial?" Nordial says, "Lesious Hamarland, the King of Hamarland, is coming towards Alnovir with an army of eight thousands." 

We all become speechless in a second. Ah! What now!