Dungeon of Niflheim

“Hehehehehe still such a charmer young Frost, thank you.” Cassandra smiled joyfully; it was always nice to be praised. She moved in a gave both of them a quick hug before asking for everyone to sit down on the sofa so they could catch up.

“Douglas told me that it was thanks to your scout work that the red alert is being enacted, thank you.” Cassandra first gave thanks in her capacity as lady Viscount of the territory.

“No problem Cassandra just doing what I was requested to do, no need for thanks.”

“Ok then what brings you here to the manor? We’re rather busy at the moment with the red alert about to go out so I doubt the old men could spare anytime for you.” By old men she was referring to Bastion, Douglas, and Ryuu.

“We noticed that. Everyone seems incredibly busy including you given what we just witnessed.....by the way where’s Leo and Luna shouldn’t they be here helping out?” Frost finally asked the question that was bugging him.

In response Cassandra’s lips twitched and a guilty expression could be seen on her face before she let out a sigh. “Leo and Luna decided to move out of the manor, apparently staying here with me and Douglas was a bit.... distracting would be an appropriate word.” Cassandra couldn’t help but blush a little from embarrassment, knowing full well what drove her near adult son and his fiancé to leave the house. Maya couldn’t help but smile towards Cassandra as she gave her a thumbs up, praising her actions.

“Anyway alongside that problem Leo was a bit overwhelmed with the whole endless stream of paperwork and meetings that he had to manage while Douglas was in recovery. By the time he was healthy again and able to take over the majority of the duties required by the head of the household, the frost wolf battalion had arrived, so Leo and Luna ditched their governing jobs to help out with the army and the town’s defences. The dull paperwork and mind numbingly boring stuff was thus reverted back to Douglas who well let’s just say it pissed him off a great deal so try not to bring it up in his presence.” Cassandra lightly giggled as she remembered her husband’s face when he learned he would have to deal with the entire monster stampede protocols himself while his son was off doing exciting physical work.

He was supposed to be doing this alongside Leo or rather Leo doing most of it while he advised from the side, enjoying the feeling of passing the torch on just like his father had done for him all those years ago. But given that the little bastard moved out he couldn’t shout and yell at him when he came back home after work. Leo even avoided contacting him through his communication crystal, focusing entirely on the fun parts of the monster stampede i.e. the non-paperwork stuff. The things Douglas really, really wanted to personally do this year given his newfound health.

.....

More than a few times Cassandra, Ryuu, Bastion, and even the servants could hear him mutter traitor under his breath whenever Leo was brought up.

In hindsight however it was probably better that Leo wasn’t in charge of this monster stampede, best to leave it to the more experienced individual when things were looking bleak. Adam’s actions casted a pall upon the territory, making everything twice as hard to accomplish and with much greater cost if they should fail.

Given the fragility -as some other nobles put it- of the Furano household’s control over their own territory and family, if they failed to properly defend against this stampede some houses may request that they be removed from their duties as defenders of the north.

After so many stampedes and Douglas’s apt leadership the monster stampedes which used to be disasters and plights changed into great deals of profit which some insidious nobles wanted control of, by any means necessary. Douglas was sure that his younger brother’s betrayal and actions were assisted by these same said nobles, and he’d do anything to make sure they didn’t get their way.

Douglas knew this so his anger towards Leo was only skin deep, caused by frustration from the severe lack of sleep and problems that kept cropping up. Plus to be honest Leo and Luna were being very helpful in their own way just not in regards to paperwork and the dull parts of the job.

“I’ll try and call him later; it’d be a shame to come all this way and not meet up.” Frost offered to reach out to Leo who was likely avoiding taking his parents calls.

“Are you not staying long?” Cassandra asked rather surprised, the red alert was about to be enacted so she thought for sure Frost would be sheltering in Furano with Maya and the kids. It was the most defended place after all.

“No we’ll be staying for one night before heading back home. This visit was mainly to report our quest’s findings as well as to do some shopping in town. Maya wants to get some new outfits for herself and the kids while I need to visit the weapon shop Leo took me to, to get some work done on my glaive.”

“Actually given that your meeting has just finished would you like to join us for lunch, Douglas said it’d be on him so we can go wherever you want.” Frost told Cassandra about Douglas’s offer making her feel loved. Even though his workload was so hectic he still made time to make sure his wife was doing well, a very devoted husband.

“That sounds magical, It’s been almost a week since I’ve left the manor for anything relaxing.” Cassandra’s eyes sparkled as she accepted the offer, very keen to get out and relax with friends. “Do you mind if I join you in your shopping trip as well, I know some amazing outfits that would fit these two angels perfectly.” Cassandra leaned down and lightly pinched Nanna and Loki’s cheeks.

“That would be perfect, Nanna, Loki would you like to go shopping with Lady Cassandra?”

“...” Nanna and Loki were quiet, still not used to being on the receiving end of such strong affection but eventually they both nodded with smiles, eager to spend time with Cassandra. The woman in question felt an arrow pierce her heart at how cute and adorable these two munchkins were.

‘I’m so gonna buy them the best clothes available.’ Cassandra looked at Nanna and Loki with determination, she’d spare no expense to doll these two up.

With their plans set the group headed off to the [money pit] district where in the best restaurants and shops were established. The head butler had already arranged for Cassandra’s carriage to be ready and waiting in the courtyard for their arrival.

Frost visited the monster stables to check in on Kiba. They wouldn’t be taking him with them given how impractical it would be. The [money pit] would be incredibly crowded so a large, winged tiger would likely be refused entry just like how carriages were. Better for him to stay in the monster stables instead of the carriage park.

When Frost arrived at the monster stables Kiba was sitting across from two ice wolves -the mounts of the high ranking officers in the frost wolf battalion. They appeared to be getting along really well and seemed to be having a discussion, given the back and forth howls and chuffs.

“Kiba we’re heading off for some shopping and will be back later, are you good here?”

“Rawr!” Kiba turned around and patted his chest with his paw before returning to his conversation with the ice wolves. Frost understood that as a yes, so he turned away and headed for the luxurious carriage with a smile on his face. Kiba was making friends, that was good news.

The carriage managed to fit all five of them without any issue and came with ample storage space for their inevitable shopping bags. Cassandra even brought with her some storage rings just in case it wasn’t enough.

‘How much are you planning on buying?’ Frost shook his head in confusion still underestimating the desire for clothes that many women had, especially those with a lot of coin to spend. As Cassandra saw it her spending copious amounts of coin within her own territory not only got her nice things but was great for the local economy, a win-win.

In the carriage they engaged in friendly chatter, using the time to catch up on what happened to one another since the last time they met. Maya boldly asked about Cassandra’s and Douglas’s attempts at producing another child which caused Cassandra to blush and Frost to cough out of shock. Not expecting Maya to be so upfront.

“Unfortunately nothing yet but I’m not one to give up.” Cassandra replied while showing a resolved expression before whispering a few other details into Maya’s ear, things that she didn’t feel comfortable with Frost overhearing or the kids who were looking rather confused. They were too young to understand her embarrassment and didn’t know the process in how a baby came about. Frost however did and now the image was stuck in his head, he looked out the window to distract himself, causing the two women to giggle before re-engaging in their girl talk.