Thick, grey clouds loomed over the city of Salhaven and it seemed only a matter of time before they too would release the tears they surely had to hold back. While the people below had already cleared the streets and waited for the inevitable, a lone boy was watching the sky from his seaside window high above.

Unlike the skies, he had already shed all of his tears days before. His mother had said these feelings of grief and sorrow would eventually pass with time and that, as the days went on, he would think less and less about the people who were taken from this world all too soon.

Lumen wasn’t really sure if that was something he was looking forward to or dreaded to even imagine. How could he ever wish to forget the people that just a few months ago had filled his life with so much joy, after all... even if it did only bring tears and an emptiness in his chest to think about them right now.

Worst of all, perhaps, was the humiliation that their loss brought with it. As if it wasn’t enough that his father, uncle, and many more of his friends and family would never return home, the very king they had been fighting for abandoned their homelands to the enemy.

The second Thalassian invasion had at first gone just as well as the first. The Kingdom of Ollasera might be smaller in area and population than the rising force in the south, but it made more than up for that with its martial capabilities. Every noble had to undergo rigorous training in commanding an army, as well as fighting on the front lines themselves. Add to that the special focus on nurturing the more arcane gifted people in the kingdom and it was no surprise that the centuries-old realm could punch far above its weight.

Naturally, Ollaseran victory on the battlefield had been the conclusion of the first invasion by their neighbours just over fifteen years ago, and back then the kingdom had forced their foes to sign a humiliating peace treaty. Many had theorised that such an act would only redouble their enemies’ resolve, but it was generally accepted that the kingdom would again come out as the victor if it ever came to that. Evidently, they had been wrong.

According to the reports from the front lines, the Thalassians had somehow mastered, and perhaps even bested, the kingdom’s magical and arcane arts in just a few short years, even though it should have taken decades for them to catch up.

As a result, one of the biggest advantages the Ollaserans had held in the first war was lost and, after the first hard-fought victories, the hordes of enemy soldiers proved overwhelming. Unwilling to give the enemy the initiative, however, the king had conscripted a new grand army to push back one last time in the hope of destroying the enemy’s leadership in one swift blow.

Lumen’s father, the Duke of the Saltmarches, had naturally been part of the assembled force. His imposing stature and prowess on the battlefield were only matched by his strategic thinking and cunning, after all. The mountain of a man had often been called the greatest military mind the kingdom had seen in generations.

While reminiscing about his father, Lumen absentmindedly noted that the rain had finally started pouring over the city and the tears of the sky impacted the glass panes with dull thumps. The only other noise came from the servants and maids rushing along the halls and corridors of the castle outside the room. At least, until a soft knock on the door interrupted the relative silence.

Lumen had made it clear over the last few days that he didn't want to be disturbed when up in his room, and obviously, the staff was well aware of that, so it was unusual for them to bother him. As a result, the young Duke was tempted to pretend he hadn't heard the noise, but when the knocking was repeated a few moments later he reluctantly gave in.

“Come in.”

A second later, the door opened. The maid that entered gave the room a quick once over, but wholly ignored the mess that was Lumen's bed or the barely touched food on his table, as she gave a small bow and spoke up.

“I’m sorry to disturb you, Your Highness, but your mother asked that you see her in her room.”

Lumen might have been tempted to ignore the request if it had come from anyone else, but his mother, the currently acting duchess - even if the line of succession was well defined - was perhaps the one person he couldn’t just make empty excuses to or ignore.

In the beginning, Lumen’s relationship with his mother had been quite cold. The marriage between her and the late Duke was, like many in high nobility, one born more out of political interest than personal feelings. Therefore, it was also expected for the bond to result in a new heir.

As a result, his mother had seen both Lumen and his older sister as a representation of the duties expected of her. The duchess hadn't been openly hostile or anything, but for quite some time there had been a tension between parent and child unless the situation demanded them to appear as a perfect happy family.

Over the years, however, her cold and sometimes indifferent persona had given way to genuine feelings for her family, and she started seeing her children as more than the duties that were expected of her. One incident that made that clear to Lumen as well, was his mother nurturing him back to health after an unfortunate accident early in his training as a combat mage.

Although nowadays, one look at the Duchess would reveal that the love for her family was getting strained by the sudden loss of her husband and the dangerous situation the Duchy found itself in. Consumed in his own grief, however, Lumen hadn’t really noticed the shift within his mother as he hadn't fully processed the loss himself yet.

Lumen didn't think too much about any of that though, as he made his way down the narrow corridor of the castle. Normally, he might have put at least some effort into making himself more presentable, but he couldn’t bring himself to care right now. Soon enough, he made the final turn down the gloomy passageways and the servant stationed before the Duchess’ room noticed him a moment later. The staff member swiftly opened the door and bowed slightly as the young lord drew closer before Lumen wordlessly entered his parent’s room.

Beyond the door was a big chamber with an impressive canopy bed dominating one side of the room and an almost equally massive table the other. Lumen paid little attention to the furniture, however, as he focussed his attention on the only other person in the room. Sitting at the table, with her back to the door, was his mother writing in the dim light of a candle as she worked on some report or another.

Once she noticed the door opening and that someone had entered her chamber, she held up one hand to signal them to wait as she continued writing with the other. A few seconds later, the Duchess finally glanced back and, once she realised who exactly was the new arrival, her serious gaze softened a bit, although there also seemed to be a bit of sadness mixed in as well.

“Lumi, come here.”

Any protest about the use of that particular nickname was quickly drowned as the larger woman suddenly grabbed ‘Lumi’ and held him in a tight hug. Just like his father, the Duchess was taller than Lumen - though to a much lesser extent - and probably also physically stronger than him.

Physical exercise had never been all that high up the young Duke's list for training - even though he was well aware that those circumstances were only tolerated because of his focus on his magical abilities. As a result, most people in the city could probably beat him in raw physical strength, including his family members.

The hug lasted for another few moments, as Lumen resigned himself to getting his chest crushed in, and he only half-heartedly tried to push his mother off. Eventually, though, she loosened up, even if she didn’t fully release him just yet.

“Look at you. You really should put more effort into your appearance, you know... And when exactly did you take your last bath?”

His mother suddenly tucked at the edges of his clothes before she stroked his hair with one hand. The normally relaxing motion was interrupted when one of her fingers suddenly caught on a knot in his shoulder-long hair and Lumen suppressed a yelp of surprise.

“Is this really the reason you called me here? I can take care of myself...”

The words came out a lot less energetic than intended, but in his current state, Lumen would rather go back to brooding on his windowsill.

“No...it isn’t.”

There was an ominous pause in the Duchess’ speech, and her son at least managed to look up at her conflicted face.

“A letter came in today and... I think it’s best for you to read it yourself.”

His mother finally let go of Lumen as she grabbed one of the papers lying to the side and handed it to him. Even before he flipped it around, he spotted the opened wax seal. The Empire of Thalassia. Some of his previously subdued anger filled the empty void in the boy's chest again, but he didn't let it show on the outside.

Once the paper was flipped around, Lumen first looked at who had sent it. And even if the young lord might not have known much about the empire’s nobility, he still recognised the name at the bottom of the document. The fourth imperial princess, Pherine Thespiphelia Castophe. According to his father's reports, she had been one of the enemy commanders during the war.

Next, he looked at the recipient. He was sure the letter would be addressed to either his mother or maybe to his entire family, but the name he read instead surprised him.

To the honourable Lord Lumen Castiavella, Duke of the Saltmarches

Re-reading the line a second and then a third time almost threatened new tears to fall from Lumen’s eyes as he realised why he was the one getting addressed with that title instead of his father. Only a gentle hand holding onto his shoulder gave him the energy to continue reading.

Surprisingly, the first paragraph was mainly about the boy's father and how the man had fought valiantly, with honour, and how he had been a formidable opponent on the battlefield to his last moment. A part of Lumen was tempted to just burn the paper right then and there. First, they kill his father and then have the audacity to mock him with these empty words!? If he truly had fought so bravely, then why couldn’t they have let him live? Was the honour that the soldiers always talked about worth nothing to these barbarians?

The next few lines were about the princess herself. How she had actually been captured during the end of the first invasion - back when she was just nine years old - and picked up a few bits and pieces about the kingdom during her months in captivity before she was ransomed in the peace negotiations. After that, she had been taught the art of war, and in the second invasion took on a more active role as a unit commander. During the war, the princess had proven her cunning and tactical abilities and she even took part in the last battle of the conflict.

At this point, Lumen didn’t really comprehend what he was reading or more accurately why the princess had written these words. Was she mocking the kingdom? Did she really just want to gloat to the boy who had just lost his father and his homeland to the enemy?

Eventually, though, he reached the last part of the letter. As a part of the peace treaty of Aivoxunid, the Duchy of the Saltmarches had been vassalized by the Thalassian Empire and to strengthen that bond, a marriage was proposed between the new Duke and the fourth imperial princess. Both houses had earned great prestige during the war and it would only be adequate for the young unwed Duke to have the honour of marrying into the imperial family. The proposed date for the event was only a couple of weeks in the future, during which the new vassal would be taught imperial customs and procedures of an imperial marriage ceremony.

Again, Lumen read the words but failed to understand what exactly they meant. A bond by marriage with newly subjugated territories was nothing unusual. In fact, he had once visited such an event himself when one of his cousins in the north had gotten married to the baroness of some conquered town or another, but this time the marriage would be... his?

Re-reading the whole letter from the top still didn’t make any more sense, so the boy helplessly looked up to his mother, but instead of a reassuring smile, he was met by a sad facade hiding the more calculating and political-minded thoughts of his mother, and perhaps a glint of something else.

“We- We surely can decline this offer, r-right? I mean, I-I already have a marriage proposal with Lady Kar...”

But his mother just shook her head before Lumen could even finish.

“I’m afraid it isn’t that simple. According to our guest, this offer is non-negotiable. Any refusal would be equivalent to rebellion.”

If Lumen had been paying more attention to his mother, he might have noticed her eyes losing some of their sharpness, and a subdued purple glow appearing for just a second. In his current state of mind, however, he was far too preoccupied with what her words meant.

“For now, you should rest and prepare for tomorrow.”

Lumen was just about to agree, as his mind was still racing with the implications, but one of his mother’s earlier statements suddenly stopped him in his tracks.

“Wait, you mean this messenger is still here?”

His mother answered with an absentminded nod.

“Yes, in the, uh... one of the guest rooms. As I understood, she is to be your teacher in the coming days.”

That was the last said between the two as Lumen stood shocked in his parent's room before he rushed back to his own. His mother didn’t seem too offended by that, however, and just a few moments later the Duchess was already resuming her previous work.

A few minutes after Lumen had originally left his room, the servant who was cleaning up the young lord's chambers was suddenly interrupted when the owner of the room threw the door open with a loud bang, a mixture of grief and anger clearly visible on his face. The woman didn’t even need to be told to leave, as she suddenly decided now was the most opportune moment to take a break and she made sure to give the angry young man a wide berth on her way out.

First, they take away his family, his friends, and even his own homeland, and now these... these invaders have the nerve to show up like they were suddenly best friends. Just because a treaty said so. A treaty his traitor of a king had signed. Throwing away his loyal vassals just to save his own skin.

Lumen didn’t even realise that the maid had been with him in the room to begin with, as he rushed to his bed and pulled out a big wooden box from below. Despite its size, the container was surprisingly light, and not a moment later, he was already working on the lock. In his emotional turmoil, it took him a lot longer than usual, but eventually, the chest was thrown open. The young Duke's anger hadn't calmed down in the slightest though.

Just a few hours ago, Lumen had been more than content to wither away, lamenting his father’s loss, but now his fury at the enemy took centre stage, as he soon found the item he had been looking for in the chest. There was an assortment of different focus items, ranging from defensive bracelets and necklaces to staves and even a pair of mage gauntlets inside, but for now, Lumen was only looking for a single unimpressive-looking wand.

Despite its humble appearance, the weapon was one of his most prized possessions, and the scorch marks along its shaft told more than enough about how often he had trained with it. The fact that the focus was still working after all these years was also a testament to how much progress Lumen had made as a mage. Originally, the wand had been a gift from his father on his twelfth birthday, and it had been expected that it would end up destroyed in a misfire sooner or later, but the magic weapon was still more than usable in the right hands.

Under different circumstances, feeling the comforting weight of the wand might have quelled Lumen's worries, but right now it only filled him with a new wave of grief when he remembered who had gifted it to him. If he had been more clear-headed, Lumen would have realised that even attempting a spell while in such an emotional state couldn’t lead to anything good happening, but, with the logical part of his brain currently being pushed into the background, the young Duke was already running out of the room again.

The guest rooms were located in the northern wing of the castle, so Lumen only had to descend a few floors before he was already there. Arriving in the wing, he quickly found the room his enemy had claimed as its own, as a single maid was standing outside a closed door. As soon as the girl saw Lumen marching down the corridor, she gave a quick bow and spoke up quite loudly, probably forceful enough to be picked up from inside the guest room.

“Ah, Lord Lumen, I’m afraid Mistress wishes to be left alone for the evening. She had a tiring journey, after all.”

Like the Duchess', the maid’s eyes seem to possess a strange violet afterglow where the iris met the sclera, but Lumen was in too much emotional turmoil to notice anything strange with the girl. The maid might have ruined his advantage of surprise, but he was still a trained mage. If the stories of how there hadn’t been any Thalassian mages during the first war were true, then he should no doubt hold the advantage. In fact, even if the invader in his home was a mage themselves, Lumen had been training for almost half his life to come out as the victor of such a duel.

Reasoning such, Lumen barged past the maid and threw open the door, wand in hand, only to be met by... the most beautiful woman he had ever seen looking back at him. The young lord had heard from his father and uncle how the Thalassians possessed a skin tone darker than what he was used to, as well as the fact that they usually had coal-like black hair and wore exotic dresses that captivated many of the soldiers during the campaigns, but these stories didn’t seem to do their beauty justice in the slightest.

The woman in front of him seemed like she was a masterwork of sculpting more than she was an actual person. To Lumen’s confused mind, she was like a Goddess made flesh. Her caramel-coloured skin was hugged by an exotic dress with some parts made out of almost transparent fabric that left her legs, arms and much of her torso clearly visible, showing off her trained muscles and soft skin in equal measures.

Her exotic beauty was already the most intoxicating sight imaginable to the young man, and it was only further enhanced by the aspects Lumen usually found so alluring about the other sex. The woman’s outfit left little to the imagination, as it openly displayed thighs and belly and with a neckline that dipped scandalously low. Finally, as the knockout blow, her backside was hugged by almost skin-tight fabric as opposed to the frilly dresses that the young noble was used to from the upper ranks of society.

By kingdom standards, no self-respecting noblewoman would have dared to wear such a dress - except perhaps in the bedroom - and the jewellery she wore was the last needed touch to perfect her looks. It was neither too much nor too little: a small gemstone affixed to her navel, a few bracelets, and a necklace with a big shining stone as its centrepiece.

The eyes of any observer would naturally have been drawn to it if the woman’s own eyes weren’t that much more mesmerising. They too shined in an otherworldly purple coloration, and it was almost enough to miss how her mouth moved unnoticeably behind a veil of thin, seemingly transparent fabric.

A moment later, Lumen came back to his senses. This was the enemy! No matter how compelling her eyes or beautiful her skin was. He was here to end the threat she represented... but was she really a threat? She was a single messenger and if he attacked her now, that would only serve to get the empire’s wrath re-focused on his homeland.

If he actually managed to kill her, he would instantly become a fugitive in his own homeland. He would have to flee, probably to the kingdom, but was it even safe there? And perhaps more importantly: was that the legacy he wanted in the wake of his father’s death? A cowardly son who couldn’t accept when it was time to give up? When it was time to submit to an enemy?

As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Lumen became alert again. What was he thinking? He would never surrender. He was a Castiavella, dammit! Didn’t his family name mean something?! As his new internal turmoil played out, the castle’s guest just watched with barely hidden amusement before she repeated her last question.

“Again, is there anything I can help you with ?”

Lumen finally looked back at the woman’s face but didn’t seem as fascinated as he had the first time before he looked back at the wand in his hand and wordlessly ran out of the room.

By the time he finally reached his quarters, Lumen was utterly deflated. Had he seriously spent his last energy reserves contemplating the murder of his own guest? Even though he knew that the act would have represented an unforgivable sin, the more he thought about what had happened in that room, the more conflicted he became.

He didn’t quite remember what it looked like when he had entered the room, but from his recollections, it seemed like the woman had been ready for a fight at first before she had quickly relaxed her posture... but looking back he had just barged into her room, probably looking ready to kill someone, with a weapon in hand. Even if the woman may not have realised that the wand was a weapon...

Thinking over the encounter, Lumen finally reached his bed and lay down. Remembering the exotic woman, however, he also felt another emotion stirring within him. One he hadn’t really felt in months, ever since he had started to worry about his father and the war. He was getting aroused… and one look at his pants, even in the last light of dusk, revealed that that fact would also be quite obvious to any onlookers.

Thankfully, there shouldn’t be any more surprise visitors as the day had already concluded for the castle staff. Lumen only hoped that he hadn’t looked like this when he visited his guest earlier... even if a part of him responded to that thought in quite the opposite way.

Obviously, Lumen wasn’t totally inexperienced when it came to enjoying the pleasures of the flesh, as he had sometimes snuck out to visit the town when his father was out on one of his hunting trips, but it had never felt quite like this. The desire he felt for the town girls paled in comparison to what was happening in his nether regions right now, as not a moment later, he had hastily discarded his pants and was already holding his shaft in hand. Barely a second later, it was like he got possessed by an animalistic instinct that took over his human mind as his hand started moving up and down.

His thoughts were dominated by the strange visitor, but instead of fantasising how she might look naked, with her full breasts and backside on display, his imagination kept returning to the woman’s glowing eyes.

As soon as it felt his orgasm approaching, Lumen's body redoubled its motions, while his mind held onto the image of her mesmerising eyes. He didn’t even notice when the climax finally happened as his cum sprayed onto his belly and upper legs. By the time the orgasm was over, Lumen was already fast asleep, dreaming of the new woman.