---
After the most terrifying morning of his life — six babies crying in harmony — Arin finally crept down the marble stairs.
The main hall looked like a battlefield.
Five couches.
Five exhausted women.
Five mothers who'd faced monsters, dragons, and gods… but were now defeated by infants.
Kaelith's hair was a mess of gold and fury, Lyra had an ice pack on her head, Sara's eyes twitched like she'd seen the afterlife, Mira had fallen asleep mid-prayer, and Evelyn — the saintly one — was trying to smile while rocking two bottles at once.
Arin chuckled softly. "Good morning, my heroes."
He walked past each couch, leaning down to press a gentle kiss on every forehead.
Each one smiled faintly, the kind of tired warmth that melted his heart.
> "I feel bad," Arin murmured. "You all did that by yourselves…"
Seraph — calm and motherly as always — opened one eye.
> "No, you've been taking care of us these past weeks. It's only fair we take care of them."
Lyra groaned and stretched, smirking.
> "Yeah, besides, we need you at full strength… for other things."
Her tone carried that playful danger that made his stomach twist.
Arin blinked, then frowned. "Other things?"
All five of them turned their heads at once.
Five harmless smiles.
Five pairs of eyes that glowed faintly with that mischievous energy.
Even Evelyn.
Arin swallowed hard and started inching backward toward the door.
> "Uh, right. That reminds me… I have to, uh, slay some beasts. With, uh— with Renn and the rest. Important stuff!"
He spun on his heel and bolted.
> "See you later!"
A collective shout echoed behind him:
> "Oh no you don't!"
"We left you last night to recuperate!"
"So we could drain your energy properly today!"
Arin's scream echoed through the halls as five super-strong wives gave chase — each more determined than the last.
---
Arin's boots thundered down the corridor.
He'd fought ogres, wyverns, and a dragon once—but nothing compared to escaping his five wives when they decided he'd "rest."
"Arin! Stop running!" Mira's gentle voice echoed through the hall.
It was the voice of a saint. A terrifying saint.
He turned a corner, leaping over a chair—only for blue ice to crawl over the floor. He slid halfway across the hallway, arms flailing.
>"Lyra! That's cheating!"
Her laugh rang out. "You always say that when you lose!"
He barely regained his balance when a gust of wind spun him around like a leaf—Evelyn's spell, subtle and merciless.
Sara appeared behind him, glowing sigils flickering around her hands.
"Don't resist! It's nap time, hero!"
"I don't need a nap!" Arin barked, dodging past her—only to run straight into Kaelith.
The lioness stood in the doorway, arms crossed, golden tail swaying.
"Caught."
"Not yet!"
He darted sideways—but Kaelith snapped her fingers, and a ring of harmless flame rose around him.
Arin sighed in defeat as the others caught up, surrounding him with that familiar mix of affection and mischief.
"You could've let me go once," he said, hands raised.
"Let you overwork yourself again? Not happening." Lyra grinned.
"You need balance," Mira added softly, though her eyes sparkled with amusement.
"Rest keeps you strong," Evelyn chimed, clasping her hands together.
"And we like you strong." Sara teased.
Five smiles. Sweet. Harmless. Completely terrifying.
"You're all evil." Arin muttered.
"Only for your own good," Kaelith said cheerfully, picking him up as easily as a sack of grain.
"Wait—Kaelith! Put me down!"
"Not until you promise to rest."
Seraph: "I doubt the twins would let ren go hunting, Not after what happened last time."
[Author's Note:
No, they didn't. He's home—after the twins convinced him otherwise.]
He groaned as they carried him back toward the hall, laughing, ignoring his dramatic protests.
"I married five kidnappers…"
"And you love us," they sang in chorus.
Arin could only sigh, defeated but smiling.
Arin smiled faintly as he finally gave in, surrounded by laughter, warmth, and chaos.
There were days he wondered how any of this happened — how he, a once-ordinary boy, ended up in a castle full of legends who called him husband.
But if life taught him one thing, it's that peace never lasts long for those touched by fate.
"You're probably wondering how I got this beautiful, exhausting life," he said softly, half to himself.
"Well... it all started when a certain adventurer died on an expedition."