Keith's POV

After he had woken up from Mana Burn, Keith had summoned all his wandering constructs from around the Dark Enchanted Forest.

Being near death had reminded him that just because no one had ever broken into his home before, didn't mean it was impossible.

So he had decided to rethink where all of his toys - cough - harbingers of death and destruction should live.

The reason he let them loose throughout the dark wood, instead of hoarding them at the castle, had to do with a few key factors:

The first being that they were just plain useful. They maintained roads, they protected his villages and his minions, and they were his eyes upon the entire kingdom.

The second was that they were a physical demonstration of his power and a reminder to some of his more excitable minions that he was the King and he could crush them under his feet if they thought to challenge him. Many clans, kin and folk of Nilheim were used to being ruled by the smartest or punchiest or bloodiest among them - so letting them see dragon-sized golems walking past their families let them know they were safe and they were weak.

The third, and arguably the most important, was due to a class Perk that he’d gotten when he hit Master at Level 60 over a decade ago… his creations could gain sentience. Oh, it wasn't the same as talking to a real person. It was more that the essence of that creature came into being with it. Like a cat is a cat is a cat. A cat construct no longer moved like an inanimate wooden toy - it moved like a cat. And sometimes it pushed things off cupboards and onto the floor; he didn’t make many cat constructs anymore.

Keith could still give the sentient golems commands and order them about… but it no longer felt like he was a Puppet Master making finger puppets dance. Instead, he felt like a Mind Magician making people dance against their will.

It wasn't pleasant and it wasn't fun.

So he set them loose to go have adventures of their own. They had a job to do, much like everyone else, and basic rules they had to follow, just like everybody else… and he could reach out and contact them whenever he needed them.

Like now.

"Behold!" He said dramatically, waving his hand for added effect. They were standing on the top of the parapet overlooking the clearing west of his castle.

Beside him, Henrietta breathed a soft, "Wow."

Keith was immensely proud of his work.

They both stared out over hundreds of constructs, from a troop of mice sitting still in ranks, to the towering behemoths of rock or stone or wood that silently dwarfed the trees.

"I've stationed a large construct golem at every military base in the forest, along with a flying type scout to relay messages for us." Keith explained. "I've summoned all others here."

Instead of focusing on the legion of impressive feats of magic in front of them, Ria asked Keith the one thing he didn't want to talk about. "Keith?"

"Yes Ria?"

"Why do you need relay messengers when you’re the King? Why don't you just use the Crystal Cast like every other ruler?"

He scratched his head. "You know my Godmother is a Dragon right?"

"Yes."

"She added the Crystal to her hoard," He sighed. "And now we can't find it."

"You lost your King's Crystal?!" Henrietta stared at him incredulously, then giggled. Then doubled over laughing.

She obviously wasn’t disappointed in him, which made this much easier. Keith explained, "I didn't know until it was too late and she'd flown off."

Henriette asked, "Why not just hire the Wizard’s Tower to make you a new one?"

"I didn't need it." Keith shrugged and waved all around them. "I can directly relay messages throughout the entire Dark Enchanted Forest - even places without a crystal - using my minions or constructs. It's a waste of money when I can just ask Feliwyn when she wakes up."

"When is Her Eminence supposed to wake up?"

Keith shrugged again. "She just wanted a light ten to twenty- year nap."

"That's not helpful." Henrietta retorted, she looked back over his constructs. "But these are. I don't think my father has enough higher level personnel in his army to get past the constructs let alone the Dark Army. Even with mercenary adventuring parties added on. No wonder you haven't been worried."

"My hobby also happens to align with a healthy desire not to die,." Keith joked. "Convenient when I'm so often sent assassins. Most of the smaller constructs were complete before I came into the throne."

Ria whistled. "Impressive."

"My plan was to mix them between the troops. Have the larger golems distract any powerful foes while buffed by Rufus's enhancements, then send in the mid-sized creations to take down basic ground soldiers. Most of the smaller constructs need my concentration to utilize so I'll scatter them along the border where my elven scouts can't reach."

"Can I make another suggestion?" Ria grinned at the mice, bringing her fingers together in a look that would be much more menacing if she weren't such a cinnamon bun.

He would have to use that motion himself in the future. "Of course."

"How much do you know about battlefield logistics?"