Eventually, Laz learned about the southern line where Athena and her people went along with the troops they had brought with them. While they held out for a while, they eventually were pushed back to the gate after suffering major losses. Luckily, once behind the gate, the special effects of the seal’s power that Tamesis had activated affected them, boosting their strength and weakening the enemies. Allowing them to keep holding on. All this happened after they smash the seal that prevented them from entering in the first place.

Even then, their losses were heavy. With just two god realm beasts showing up, Athena and her sisters were pushed back and could only hold the wall after they sustained grave injuries.

But even then, they fought on.

After hearing that Laz’s line continued to hold outside the gate and with reinforcements from the fortress, they were able to keep the wall. It helped that after the two god beasts appeared, none others seemed to show up.

After hearing about that, Hera and Pooja decided to check in on the front line Laz was holding, only to find the current scene taking place. After hearing about how many god beasts Laz had been fighting, they knew now why the pressure on the southern gate decreased.

Despite their loss, the ones that remained had grown strong, far stronger than any civilian or even a guard had any right to be. Every Death Walker was now at least a Void Lord with several at the peak to breaking through to becoming Void Kings.

Further examination of the camp showed them just how strong and connected each person was. Women were walking around naked after just having bathed, the drops of water still running teasingly along their skin. Even then, not a single man stared at them for long, instead only shouting things like "wrap a towel around yourself before you poke an eye out," Or, "I hope you left us some hot water this time. If I have to bath in another icy bath, my dick might fall off." Not that the women took this laying down, shooting back with their own replies.

"Your dick fell off a long time ago, you just don’t want to admit it."

"Fuck you. We won the contest so we get the hot water first. Not our fault you let that second level 6 beast get away."

Not every women was this forward though and some did walk through the camp with towels on, but once again, they were left alone.

Groups took turn doing work like delivering food, collecting clothing and exchanging it from the gate while others worked in the medicine tent, treating the injuries of those that they could. No one argued, no one fought. They just worked, played and did as they wished, knowing that tomorrow could be their last.

As for those enjoying a bit of naked companionship, it was at the agreement of both sides. Sometimes the man would ask, other times it was the woman. And rarely was the word no heard. After their realms had advanced, even the most plain woman was now a beauty while the men were lean, fit and strong. As for the action itself, it went off like a business transaction where both sides would leave happy, but there were no feelings to speak of. Maybe there had been in the beginning, but after watching so many people die next to them, feelings just stopped making a difference. It was all about pleasure and nothing else.

All the while, they were able to relax knowing that Laz was watching over them all.

"Boss. Dinner. Did your female companions want something as well?" Two called up to the rock. Both Hera and Pooja had wrapped themselves up tightly so as not to be seen by the others and Two had just assumed they were some women who were helping Laz treat his wounds. Women did usually gamble for the job of doing so so Two wasn’t surprised to see two of them doing so.

"No. It’s fine. They said they will eat later," Laz replied.

"Ok. Six is ok. They were able to stop the bleeding from the horn and he’s recovering now. Might not make it to battle tomorrow. I want to send him to the gate but... you know how he is..." Two said, knowing that Laz probably already knew, but wanted to ask him for help in sending him behind the wall.

"It’s the same test as everyone else. If he can’t do it, he can’t fight. And if he tries to be difficult about it, I’ll kick his ass myself. Tell him that and see if he shuts up."

"Ha. That’s all I needed to know. Thanks boss," Two said, setting down the bowl and leaving to head to the medicine tent.

"Test?" Pooja asked as she finished cleaning and applying medicine to Laz’s wounds.

"Yes. We had too many injured people being stubborn and saying they could still fight, so I devised a little test that showed if and when they would be allowed back on the battle field. To do so, they had to hold a shield up with one arm while someone else sat on top of it. If they could hold on for one minute, they would be allowed back on the battle field. If not, they were to remain in recovery until they could."

"And that worked?" Hera questioned.

"Not at first. But after I had Two hit the shield the person was holding with the remains of one of the large monster corpses and watched them collapse underneath it, unable to get back up, everyone got the point of being a liability. Yes we want you with us, but not if you’re going to get us killed. It was a pretty effective tactic," Laz replied with a chuckle. Hera had jumped down and brought the bowl of stew up to Laz to eat. It was thick with large chunks of monster meat thrown in, but it was pretty tasteless otherwise. Laz didn’t need to eat it, but he did so anyway. Seeing him behave in such a normal manner seemed to have a very calming effect on his Death Walkers.

After everything was said, they stayed their quietly for a while, looking up at the sky. Laz wondered how there could be starlight in a pocket dimension, but didn’t bother asking. Once the bell went off, the camp quickly picked up, stopped what they were doing and laid down for bed.

"Just like that?"

"Just like that. They know what’s coming tomorrow, but they want to be prepared for it."

"What if they all die tomorrow?"

"Then they die."

"That’s..." Pooja wanted to say, but Laz raised his hand.

"They knew this when they offered to join this fight. For many of them, they never thought they would make it this far, live this long. They just wanted the chance to stab one of those beasts to death. They wanted to mean something more than just as a meal to a hungry animal. They had gotten their wish. From this point on, everything else is just a borrowed day to them," Laz said, his voice a bit soft. Even though it was the truth, even he felt the harsh reality of watching so many people who trusted him to lead them die, one after another, and not being able to do anything about it.

"And what about you? How are you holding up?" Hera asked him as Pooja laid a hand on his leg.

"I’m alive. And I’ll be ok. Well. As ok as I can be..." Laz said with a sigh. His body hurt, but his spirit hurt more. He wondered just how many days there would be before he was the last one standing, Looking at the jaws of death as his last companion breathed their last breath.

Would he smile as he fought his last fight? Or would he regret.

Laz didn’t know.

"Come. Let’s change your clothing," Hera said, bring Laz to his feet. He followed along with her words, even if his mind was somewhere else.

Pooja disappeared as Hera stripped his clothing and returned shortly after, a bucket of hot water in her hands.

The two women used cloths they brought out of somewhere and washed his naked body while standing on the rock, his gaze both here and miles away.

With nothing but the bright light of the stars, the two divine women cleaned the parts of his body that hadn’t been injured, dried him, and then laid him back on a thick blanket. One by one, they removed the clothing on their own bodies and laid next to him, the heat of their skin penetrating his cold exterior.

One by one, they took turns treating his spirit, their cries muffled by a rune Pooja set up before hand. They didn’t stop, even when the light returned to his eyes and he started to attack, not content to just be used.

Pooja gave up first as she could could no longer feel her legs, mostly thanks to her long absence from the act, or so she said. Even then, the number of times she had been filled almost reached double digits.

But Hera kept going, taking every inch of him into every hole she could, every place he wanted. She might of been the Empress to everyone else, but tonight, she was nothing more than a fire to warm himself with in every way he wanted.

For her, it felt like bliss.