Renard scratched the back of his head lightly in clear frustration, his fingers digging through his blonde hair as a small sigh escaped him.

Then his bright blue eyes shifted sharply toward Titania with an unmistakable glare, implying she influenced Benjamin to be this annoying.

The petite fairy queen immediately pulled a shocked face, her delicate eyebrows shooting up high and her mouth forming a perfect little "O" as she pointed one tiny finger at herself in silent protest.

She was silently mouthing "why glare at me?" while her butterfly wings gave a quick, indignant flutter behind her small frame.

Renard then turned his gaze to the smiling Seraphina standing composed behind him, his shoulders slumping slightly as he grumbled under his breath, his voice low and tired;

"Uhm, please fix the mess outside..."

Seraphina subsequently glanced once toward the wide arched entrance of the grand hall, where the heavy rain continued to lash against the living ironwood trunks and grey clouds blanketed the sky of the Whispering Wild, turning the soft golden light into gloomy shadows.

She blinked once, slowly and deliberately.

And in that single instant, the dark, stormy atmosphere vanished completely.

Bright daylight flooded back through the living canopy overhead, the rain stopped as if it had never begun, and warm golden rays once again danced across the glowing vine-inlaid table and the faces of the gathered leaders, the air fresh and clear with the scent of wet earth rapidly fading.

"Can we now talk about the demon invasion?" Renard sighed deeply, leaning back in his seat as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers, his posture finally relaxing a fraction after the chaos.

Sakura and the rest of the leaders sat utterly stunned in their chairs, their bodies frozen in various states of disbelief.

None of them truly understood what had just transpired between Renard and Benjamin, the sudden disappearance and reappearance leaving a heavy, unspoken weight hanging in the revived sunlight filtering through the vines.

[Is... Is Benjamin alright? I hope the evolution did nothing to twist his mind, turning him into something else entirely... The Benjamin I know... he is not this arrogant or... dull...? Gloomy?] Sakura’s thoughts raced silently.

Her sharp amber eyes were fixed on the young man across the table while she maintained a carefully neutral expression on her face, one pink claw tapping lightly against her kiseru pipe.

[Hahaha! You think so? Well, I was mostly acting, seriously.] Benjamin’s voice suddenly echoed inside her head, bright and familiar.

Though his outward face remained perfectly calm and composed, his spiky hair still settling from earlier.

[B-Benjamin?! What are you doing in my head?! I mean, how did you get in here?!] Sakura’s mental voice spiked with genuine surprise.

Her body was giving the tiniest involuntary twitch in her seat while she kept her cool exterior intact, the fragrant smoke from her pipe curling upward steadily.

[Huh? You weren’t speaking to me? I saw your thoughts out in the open, so I responded to it.] Benjamin replied casually inside her mind.

[What?! N-Now you just sound like Haha-ue or the spirits!] Sakura shot back mentally, a flicker of confusion and faint warmth mixing in her thoughts while her amber eyes narrowed just a fraction.

[Anyway, I’m still Benjamin here! At first, I was feeling down and sleepy from breastfeeding the kids—]

[What?!] Sakura’s mental voice nearly shrieked, her cheeks threatening to flush as she fought to keep her face neutral.

[—But when I came to, I was already fighting with Renard in the Higher Realm. I guess I just continued in the act then. Actually, I don’t even know how to go back to my cheerful form without feeling like a hypocrite right now.] Benjamin explained, his mental tone carrying a touch of honest exhaustion.

[Hahaha! Classic! I knew something was off. The usual Benjamin would be more respectful towards me!] Renard’s voice suddenly barged into the mental conversation, light and teasing as ever. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

[Hey, don’t just barge in here!] Benjamin protested immediately.

[Huh? With a mental link this wide open? It would be rude not to sneak in. And I didn’t know you could move in the Higher Realm like that. A gift from your recent ascension?] Renard asked curiously, his outward smile never wavering as he sat relaxed at the head of the table.

Sakura was sweating now, small beads forming on her forehead and along her neck, her body shifting uncomfortably in her seat as she realized she had seemingly no control over the chaotic activity suddenly happening inside her own mind.

The mighty beast queen sat there, outwardly poised with her kiseru pipe held gracefully, while two separate voices bounced around freely in her thoughts.

[Not telling! And stop using my Sakura’s mind as a damn chat group!] Benjamin snapped mentally, a hint of protectiveness coloring his words.

[Actually, she used to be more restricted mentally. Maybe you shocked her into complacency?] Renard added with clear amusement.

[Ugh, now it’s my fault somehow.] Benjamin grumbled in response.

[Hey, Lazarus, stop bullying the beautiful man!] A new feminine, soft but sharp voice suddenly rang inside Sakura’s head too, cutting through the exchange cleanly.

[Idiot, your voice here is the original. Or wait, has it gotten more feminine now?] Renard teased right back.

[Ah, I n-normally don’t use telepathy so I forgot. How is it now?] The voice quickly attuned and deepened into a noticeably masculine tone, the shift smooth yet jarring.

[Still different from the usual pot belly uncle, but I guess. Mentally, you’re still a woman.] Renard replied without hesitation.

[Hah?! What did you just call me?!] The deepened voice barked back indignantly.

[Uhm... I am completely out of the loop here. A female voice just deepened into a male voice and it’s honestly creepy.] Benjamin added, his mental tone carrying genuine bewilderment.

[Sorry about that, Benjamin Mark. It’s me, Mótsognir. Try to visit my nation first when you can, okay?] The dwarf king’s voice came through clearly now in its adjusted masculine tone.

[Who’s... Mótsognir?] Benjamin asked innocently, confusion evident even in his thoughts.

[?!]

Mótsognir’s mental presence recoiled sharply.

[Pfft!! Mótsy, you’re so not memorable!] Renard laughed outright inside the shared mental space.

[Your Majesty... there is a meeting supposed to be holding right now!] Seraphina’s calm, professional voice suddenly broke into the chaos, cutting through like a cool blade.

[Ah! Seraphina broke in! Run, you guys!] Renard exclaimed mentally with mock panic.

[Benjamin has left the chat.]

[Mótsognir has left the chat.]

"...O... Onee-sama? How come you are sweating so much? You should not even be able to sweat at all," Princess Lily’s soft voice came from behind Sakura as the goldden-haired lady stepped closer, gently wiping the beads of sweat from her step-sister’s forehead and neck with a delicate cloth.

Her movements was full of soft concern before she moved back to her position with a small bow.

[What... what have they turned my cute, harmless husband into?!] was the only coherent thought Sakura could manage as the mental chatter finally fell silent, her amber eyes blinking once as she tried to regain her composure while the meeting about the demons officially began.

"Okay, so far," Renard started again, leaning forward in his seat with his hands clasped lightly on the table, "Elara has killed three demons in the past week, and we saw no retaliation from them whatsoever... This should be good news... except it isn’t. It’s horrible news."