Conclude your rest.

In retrospect, the period of rest you had wasn't all that long. After the defeat of Mistress Catherine, you had the journey back and then most of a day back at Dragonhide Manor to relax with your party. It's something. Though it seems like your work is never done, because now you have assassins watching over Niki's family. On one hand, you could simply do nothing. If you don't go after Sa'dis or his generals, they will never be taken out. On the other hand, this Demon King is now in possession of the Amulet of Stupendous Strength, and it is your fault. You're also not so sure your party would ever be able to leave it be.

There's only one option then--rescue her family.

What was a wild card to you is now going to be a wild card to be used against the enemy. Kashura is still here. You can tell by the shouting downstairs. As you enter the living room, you can see her and Eva going at it.

"Your outfit is super cute, but I'm still the better mage!" Eva yells back. "When we duel, I'll take you down, just like last time."

"Thank you. I like yours too. You're wrong and foolish, however! I am the better mage, and the last time wasn't even a duel," Kashura replies. "Do you even know what a duel is?"

"Of course I do. I'm not an idiot!"

It's them, Amara, Alice, Yin, and Snow here so far, dressed in pajamas as they usually are in the morning. Eva and Kashura are the only ones fully dressed.

You walk in and raise your hands. "Woah, woah. Calm down." What kind of argument even is this?

Yin approaches you with a plate of eggs. "Good morning, Master."

"Oh. Thank you. We should wait for the rest to wake up before we start talking, but I have a feeling that won't take long with how noisy you're all being."

"I don't know, Master. These walls are thick. You can hardly hear someone screaming from one bedroom to the next."

That was surely not meant to sound erotic, right?

As the rest of the household funnels in, they munch of some food, though you finish yours rather quickly. After taking a sip of water, you stand in front of them all, all while Kashura stands beside you.

"So what's up, Kyle?" Niki asks.

"We have a problem," you say. "We're being monitored."

Snow perks a brow. "Monitored?"

"That's right. Someone who works for Demon King Sa'dis has eyes all over. I bet it's that spymaster. Apparently they don't really think we're much of a threat, and they don't seem to know about the Vampire Queen, but I met with one of them last night. She told me something frightening. Basically if we do show signs of being a threat, they'll..."

You look to Niki. How she'll react is what you fear most.

"I have actual important things to do today you know," Kashura says.

Beep! Beep! Someone left the Fib-Not on the couch.

"Get that thing away!" she yells.

You take a deep breath. "Niki. I need you to do something for me."

She stands. "Of course. Whose ass do I need to kick?"

"I need you to remain calm after hearing what I have to say. Not because we're doing nothing about it, but because we need to be careful. We are doing something about it. What I need is for you to come with me on an incredibly important mission, and it's going to be just us."

"Oh." Niki doesn't look like she knows quite what to say, but then a smile comes to her lips. "I wouldn't mind that," she says quietly.

"They have people watching your family, and--"

"What?!" She steps up to you and grabs the collar of your tunic. "What did you just say?"

"If we show any sign of getting in their way, they'll kill them."

Her eyes are always red. Though as you look into her piercing gaze, they look more like orbs of fire. Though she's speechless now.

"And we're going to save them," you add.

She turns the grab into a full embrace, and it catches you off guard. She squeezes with a painful amount of strength, and you thank god that she isn't wearing her breastplate. The soft pillows against your chest are much less dangerous than steel. You feel her chest rise and fall with deep breaths, and she continues to hold you for a lengthy moment. "Thank you," she whispers.

"The alternative option is to just stop messing with the Demon King and live a quiet--"

"Let's kick some ass!" Niki releases you from her grip, and slams her fist into her palm. "I knew you wouldn't dream of letting this go. We could have just abandoned the idea of fighting Sa'dis and lived quietly here together, but that would be the coward's way out."

"Ah. So that's why I'm opening that portal," Kashura says.

Delphi raises her tiny hand. "Then shouldn't we all go? Who knows what you'll run into there."

"No," you reply. "If we show any signs of doing anything, they might do something immediately. It needs to be a small team. Really small. And Niki knows this place better than any of us. Plus, once this happens, they'll probably realize that we are a threat after all. That means you all need to stay safe together. They're watching our home, remember. It also means we need to work on finding the rest of the generals, or any information that can help us at all. It might be for a little while, but we're going to need to split up. I have to trust you guys to do things on your own."

I hope I don't regret this.

Amara, Eva, Yin, Alice, Delphi, Snow, Peony. They're a powerful team if they're smart about things. You're going to be leaving them to take care of Dragonhide Manor, and you're not certain how long it'll take to get back home. But you believe this to be the best way. If you're only going to be dealing with spies, all the way out there, it should only be the two of you. It's here that could get more dangerous, so they need all the help they can get.

"Alice," you say. "If things become chaotic, I want you to keep things under control. Work with Snow to strategize, and use the other girls effectively. You're smart. I trust you."

She widens her mouth in surprise. "I... I will not let you down!" She clenches her fists in determination.

"So what should we do to prepare, Niki?" you ask. "This is your homeland. I know it's been awhile."

"It's hot, but you'll probably be fine. If it gets too bad, we can pick up something for you to wear while we're there. The major problem we'll run into is that I was banished, remember? I want to kick the asses of those threatening my family, but I'm just going to cause trouble. Maybe you should take someone else."

You grab her arm. "That doesn't sound like you at all."

She gasps. "I know. Y-You're right."

She's scared of going home. I've never really seen her scared of much before.