The first thing Alex Reed noticed was the silence.
His headset had been screaming—twelve voices overlapping in the final boss pull of Eternal Siege—and then nothing. No fans spinning in his tower. No hum of the fridge downstairs. No distant traffic from the 3 a.m. highway outside his window.
Only the soft rustle of grass against denim.
He was lying on his back, staring up at a sky that had too many moons. Three of them, actually: one bone-white, one bruised violet, and a third the color of molten copper. They hung low enough that he could see craters and swirling storms on their surfaces.
His hands shot to his face. Glasses—still there, miraculously intact. The cheap wire frames he'd worn since sophomore year. He sat up slowly, heart jack-hammering against his ribs.
A translucent blue panel floated three feet in front of his nose, glowing with soft white text.
[System Notification]
Worldshift Event Complete.
Earth Fragment #A-77 successfully merged with Elandris Continent.
Survivors: 3,927,114,003
Casualties: 4,072,885,997
Choose your Path within 300 seconds.
Below the countdown, two crystalline buttons pulsed.
LORD MODE | ADVENTURER MODE
Alex's gamer reflexes kicked in before the existential dread could. He'd theory-crafted this exact scenario in Discord at 2 a.m. more times than he cared to admit.
Lord Mode = base-building RTS with permadeath. Adventurer Mode = open-world RPG with no respawns.
Stakes: infinite. Reward: everything.
His finger hovered, then tapped LORD MODE.
The panel shattered into gold motes that swirled around him like fireflies. A new screen unfurled, larger, more ornate—bordered in what looked like living ivy.
[King's Ability Assignment]
Scanning soul signature…
Strategic Aptitude: 94th percentile
Charisma Latency: 87th percentile
Combat Instinct: 23rd percentile
Virginity Coefficient: CONFIRMED
Assigning…
Alex flushed crimson. "You don't need to announce that part!"
The System ignored him.
[Ability: Summon Subordinates]
Restrictions: Female only. Loyalty: 100% (Absolute)
Rank: ??? (Unidentified)
Hidden Evolution Path Detected.
The golden motes coalesced into a single line of text that branded itself across his vision like a migraine:
"She will kneel. She will kill. She will love. All for you."
Then the ground ignited.
A perfect circle of runes—twenty meters wide—etched itself into the grass, glowing with rose-gold light. The air thickened, sweet and electric, like the moment before a thunderstorm kisses skin. Alex's pulse thundered in his ears, in his wrists, lower.
A voice—not male, not female, but something ancient and amused—whispered directly into his skull.
"Name your first blade, little king."
His mouth was sandpaper. "L-Lyra."
The circle flared. Wind screamed. Grass flattened in a perfect ring.
She stepped out of the light as if the universe had been saving its best graphics for this exact moment.
Silver hair cascaded to the small of her back, catching moonlight like liquid mercury. Her armor was black dragon-scale leather laced with mithril thread—functional, but sculpted to curves that made Alex's IQ drop twenty points. Thigh-high boots. A pauldron shaped like a crescent moon. And wings—wings—of translucent light that flickered and folded against her back like a living cape.
She was tall. Six-two, maybe six-three in those boots. Emerald eyes locked on him with an intensity that should've been illegal.
[Unit Summoned: Lyra – Valkyrie Knight]
Level: 10
Class: Divine Blade
Loyalty: 100% (Irrevocable)
Hidden Trait: Divine Spark (Sealed)
Skills: Blade Dance III, Shield Wall II, Aerial Strike I
Lyra dropped to one knee, the motion fluid, reverent. The leather of her armor creaked softly. One gauntleted hand pressed over her heart; the other rested on the hilt of a sword that hadn't been there a second ago.
"My King," she said, and her voice was smoke and honey. "I am yours in battle, in counsel, and in bed. Command me."
Alex's brain short-circuited.
He'd spent twenty-three years as the guy who peaked at silver rank in Eternal Siege because he was too shy to voice chat with girls. Now a literal goddess was kneeling in front of him, promising everything, and his tongue was glued to the roof of his mouth.
Lyra tilted her head, a playful smirk tugging at lips the color of fresh blood. "First time being worshipped, my lord?"
He managed a strangled, "Y-yeah."
Her smirk widened into something warm, almost gentle. "We'll fix that."
A new panel pinged.
[Territory Claim Available]
Radius: 1 km²
Resources Detected: Timber (Abundant), Stone (Moderate), Mana Spring (Trace)
Build Starter Structure? Y/N
Alex exhaled shakily. Focus. Game mechanics first. Waifu later.
He tapped Y.
The ground rumbled. A faint grid overlay flickered across the meadow—hexagonal tiles glowing soft blue. In the center, a single foundation stone materialized, no larger than a dinner plate.
[Structure: Lord's Hut (Lv.1)]
Requirements: 50 Timber, 20 Stone, 1 Mana Crystal
Construction Time: 2 hours (Manual) / 10 minutes (System Assist)
Lyra rose in one smooth motion. "Shall I gather materials, my King?"
"Alex," he corrected automatically. "Just… Alex."
Her eyes sparkled. "As you wish, Alex." She drew her sword—three feet of star-forged steel that hummed like a tuning fork—and saluted. "Perimeter sweep first. Then lumber."
She leapt.
Leapt. Wings flaring, she shot thirty feet into the air, did a lazy barrel roll, and vanished over the treeline. Alex stared after her, mouth open.
Another ping.
[World Chat Unlocked – Global Channel]
The floodgates opened.
Player42069: "YO DID ANYONE ELSE GET A HOT KNIGHT CHICK?!"
IronFistLord: "Mine's a dwarf blacksmith. 3/10 would not bang."
QueenBitch99: "Already built a wall. Suck it, noobs."
xXDarkEdgelordXx: "Lord Mode is for cowards. Adventurers rise up."
SystemBot: "Warning: PvP enabled in 72 hours."
Alex muted the channel with a thought. Sensory overload.
He turned back to the foundation stone. A progress bar hovered above it: 0%.
System Assist costs 1 Mana Crystal. I have zero. Manual it is.
He rolled up his sleeves—his Eternal Siege hoodie had survived the translocation, somehow—and got to work.
Two hours later
The sun—Elandris had one of those, too, apparently—was dipping toward the horizon, painting the sky in bruise-purple and gold. Alex's hands were blistered, his back ached, and he'd discovered that "Timber" meant chopping down trees that fought back with animated branches.
Lyra returned with the efficiency of a one-woman logging crew. She'd felled six oaks, stripped them, and hauled the logs over one shoulder like they were pool noodles. A bead of sweat traced the line of her collarbone and disappeared into the valley between her breasts.
Alex tried not to stare. Failed.
"Timber acquired," she reported, dumping the logs in a neat stack. "Stone quarry located two hundred meters west. I marked it with my sigil."
She flicked her wrist. A glowing crescent moon branded itself into a nearby boulder.
[Lord's Hut: 78% Complete]
Alex wiped sweat from his brow. "You're… terrifyingly competent."
"Valkyries are bred for war and service." She stepped closer, close enough that he could smell her—ozone and wildflowers. "But I find myself… curious. About the service part."
His heartbeat stuttered.
Before he could respond, the System chimed again.
[Construction Complete!]
[Lord's Hut (Lv.1) unlocked.]
[Territory: Unnamed Village (Lv.1)]
[Population: 2 / 50]
[Morale: 100 (Honeymoon Phase)]
[Defenses: 0]
The hut was modest—log walls, thatched roof, a single door with an iron latch. But it was his. The first brick in an empire.
Lyra's eyes softened. "A home. For us."
Alex swallowed. "We should name the village."
She tilted her head. "Something that strikes fear into rivals… and warmth into allies."
He thought of late-night strategy sessions, of the guild tag he'd always wanted but never earned.
"Aurora," he said. "After the lights. Because we're just getting started."
[Territory Renamed: Aurora Village]
[Fame +100]
[Global Announcement in 3… 2…]
The sky ignited with golden text visible to every survivor on the continent.
📢 [World Announcement]
Lord Alex has founded [Aurora Village] – the first player-founded settlement in the Grassland Expanse!
Rewards: +500 Fame, +3 Territory Points, [Beginner's Blessing] (Morale +20 for 7 days)
World Chat exploded.
Player42069: "BRO SUMMONED A WAIFU AND A VILLAGE IN 6 HOURS?!"
IronFistLord: "Hax. Report him."
QueenBitch99: "Cute. Enjoy it while it lasts."
xXDarkEdgelordXx: "I'm coming for that village. Mark my words."
Alex muted the channel again. His hands were shaking—not from fear, but from the sheer scale of it.
Lyra stepped behind him, resting her chin on his shoulder. Her armor was warm against his back.
"They'll come," she murmured. "Bandits. Rival lords. Monsters. But they'll break against us."
He turned in her arms. Up close, her eyes weren't just green—they had flecks of gold, like sunlight through leaves.
"And if they don't?" he asked, voice rough.
She smiled, slow and dangerous. "Then I'll carve their names into the dirt and fuck you on their corpses."
Heat flooded his face—and other places. He was suddenly, achingly aware of how close she was. How her breasts pressed against his chest. How her hand had settled on his hip with casual possession.
The hut's door creaked open behind them, inviting.
Alex took a breath. "Inside. We… need to talk strategy."
Lyra's laugh was low, throaty. "Of course, my King. Strategy first."
She stepped past him, hips swaying, and disappeared into the hut. The door stayed open.
Alex followed, heart pounding like war drums.
Inside the Lord's Hut
The interior was sparse but cozy: a wooden table, two chairs, a hearth that lit itself with blue flame. A single bedroom door stood ajar, revealing a bed wide enough for… multiple occupants.
Lyra leaned against the table, arms crossed under her chest. "Defenses?"
"Priorities," Alex said, forcing his brain into RTS mode. "Walls. Watchtowers. Traps. We have three Territory Points—"
A new notification cut him off.
[Hidden Quest Unlocked: First Night]
Objective: Consummate your bond with your first subordinate.
Reward: [Divine Spark] unsealed (Lyra), +1 Summon Slot, Territory Fertility +50%
Failure: None. (The System encourages… enthusiasm.)
Alex stared. Lyra's smirk returned, sharper now.
"Well," she said, pushing off the table. "The System does love efficiency."
She reached for the buckles of her pauldrons. Metal clinked softly.
Alex's voice cracked. "Wait. I— I've never—"
"I know." She stepped closer, fingers brushing his cheek. "That's why I'm here. To teach you. To take you. Every way you've ever dreamed, and a few you haven't."
Her armor hit the floor in pieces—greaves, vambraces, the breastplate that had defied physics. Underneath, she wore a sleeveless tunic of white silk that clung to sweat-damp skin. Her nipples were visible through the fabric, peaked and straining.
Alex's knees nearly buckled.
Lyra took his hand and pressed it to her chest, right over her heart. "Feel that? It beats for you. Only you."
He could. Fast, steady, hungry.
She guided his hand lower, over the curve of her breast, down the flat plane of her stomach, to the heat between her thighs. Even through leather pants, he could feel her—wet, ready, burning.
"Tonight," she whispered, lips brushing his ear, "I'm going to ruin you for anyone else. And tomorrow, we'll ruin the world together."
The bedroom door beckoned.
Alex took one step. Then another.
The war for Elandris had begun—but first, there was a different kind of conquest to claim.