Racknar's bad feeling takes him to the office Leonardo works at. Marionette and Elizabeth follow. Once there he sees Leonardo sitting at the desk with Ariagoria standing next to him and someone standing in front of the desk who was getting impatient with Leonardo. “I'm going to request one more time that the duke be summoned this instant as the matter is of the utmost urgency.” Leonardo put his hands up. “And I told you that he requested specifically not to be disturbed so unless you're more specific about the urgent matter I'm not doing anything.”

  Racknar cleared his throat. “Thank you Leo, but I'm done with my task and can take it from here.” The person turned around and froze. After a moment of shock he shook it off and handed over some paperwork. “You are being summoned to Londinium castle to meet with his majesty King William.” Racknar grabbed the paperwork and looked it over before looking at Elizabeth. “The summon includes you. Should we bring the whole party? We're still on vacation from adventuring.” Elizabeth scratched her chin. “I mean I don't see there being conflict at the castle itself and if my father requests for us to do something that needs them we can always come back before we head out.”

  Racknar nodded. “I'll get the cart ready.” Marionette shouted as Racknar left the room. “I'm coming with you two.” Elizabeth sorted some things with the man and Leonardo before meeting up with Racknar outside with Marionette in tow. “Alright, I think we've got everything. I'm guessing this will be the last time I see dad alive considering he has about a month, three months tops left.” Racknar nodded as they loaded up the cart and started traveling. “Since this means you'll be queen soon and don't have much time before we have no choice but to have a conversation about our engagement.”

  Elizabeth nodded as she looked down. She wished she had more time. Racknar is still being stubborn, making excuses, and pushing her away. It's not because of self hatred so something else must be preventing him from allowing himself to be with her. “Are you… worried?” Racknar looked at her. “You'll need to be more specific.” Elizabeth twiddled her thumbs. “Are you worried that if you let yourself be in a relationship and care deeply about that person that something bad will happen because you love them?” Racknar brought his eyes back to the road. “You're asking if I think I'm cursed?” Racknar paused and thought about it. “Maybe a little. I mean look at me. I suffered through two lifetimes and look like a monster from a horror movie.”

  Elizabeth chuckled lightly. “Or one of those bazaar and overly horny monster lover novels. You know, the ones that usually featured werewolves.” Racknar let out a genuine laugh. “I mean someone would read it. Probably someone who is into bondage.” Elizabeth blushed slightly. “Y-yeah. It would have multiple scenes of the spider person tying up his partner and taking control of the situation. … Consensually of course.” Racknar blinked a few times and looked at Elizabeth. “Are… you into bondage?” She looked away from him and talked mouseily. “I wouldn't… be entirely opposed to the idea.” Marionette groaned. “Ugh, really?! Could you not? Also, in case you're wondering, I'm not letting anyone put strings on this puppet.”

  Racknar cleared his throat. “Right, anyway, we should focus on the mission.” The two ladies nodded. The trio traveled the rest of the way in silence and were let into the castle as soon as they arrived with Elizabeth disabling her ring of illusion while they were in Londinium. Once in the castle they were escorted to the King's chamber where he was bedridden. He gestured for everyone but his caretaker to leave the room so he could talk to his daughter and Racknar in private. Marionette stayed in the room as well and her presence was allowed.

  The king looked at Elizabeth and smiled weakly. “I probably look pathetic, don't I?” Elizabeth grabbed the King's hand. I'm here father, what is it?” The king coughed. “I have a secret chamber with a scrying orb, adjusted to work both ways for communication. I've been using it to communicate with the founder of our nation. He still lives, just in another realm. He's been guiding me and helping me try and restore this kingdom and even bring it up higher than ever and escape the shadow of the Empire. He was the one that pushed for me to groom Junior for the throne the way I did. Though that backfired a bit, things worked out in the end thanks to you. To think the youngest daughter, the one I ignored, would become the best fit to take the throne.”

  The king coughed again and looked to Racknar. “I'm guessing I have you to thank for that, you eight legged freak of nature. You've been advising her and helping her for years, haven't you? And don't think I don't know about you being a muse to Da Vinci. The real one, not that pretty face you put in charge of the castle when you are away.” The king laughed, then coughed. “Oh, but I also know you've been guiding and aiding her longer than that, haven't you? Yes, I know you are both reborns. Unlike many in the church I don't think you were sent to this world through the Yggdrasil by a higher power. Rather I think the reincarnation process is less intentional and controlled. A set of coincidences and happenstance that many reborn have influenced this world and shaped it greatly.”

  The King coughed again. “Even those of use who were not reborns have the power for great change and lasting effects on this world. It just isn't noticed as much or as soon. … I have rambled on a bit and suppose I should get to the point. The reason I requested a summons.” Racknar crossed his arms. “The person you sent didn't exactly make it sound like a request.” William nodded. “Yeah, but enthusiastic, that one.” The King grabbed Elizabeth’s hand. “I'm in no condition to lead, and will soon abdicate the throne. Before I do, I have a few requests to make of you daughter. Consider them my dying wishes.”

  Elizabeth grabbed her father's hand back and gave a nod. “Okay, I'm listening.” William turned a bit in the bed and stared at the ceiling. “First, I'm well aware you have no intent on actually marrying Racknar once you actually take the throne. You only agreed to the arrangement in order to keep your place as crown princess. I may have misgivings about his appearance, but it is clear under all that ugly is a beautiful mind. One of tact and wisdom. Keep him around as an advisor if nothing else. To hell with anything the church may have to say about that.” Elizabeth nodded. “That was already the plan anyway.”

  The King smiled. “Good, good. Make use of all the resources at your disposal and fulfill my dream of bringing Bramble to a new golden age. Do your best to find a good man of noble blood to continue the legacy.” He chuckled. “I was so thankful to find out the engagement was nothing more than a stratagem.” Racknar's fangs formed a scowl. “If you have something to say, you can say it to my face.” The King frowned. “I would say I'd rather die than see my daughter marry some abomination, but since I'm going to die anyway it would be a moot point.”

  Elizabeth shifted in the chair next to the bed, she obviously wanted to speak up but doing so would only aggravate her father. “Is there anything else you'd like to request?” William’s eyes darted back and forth as he looked at the ceiling. “I was told one day a child of this bloodline would manifest powers from both our draconic and celestial progenitors beyond anything seen before. I was hoping to live to see it but I know that won't happen. However, despite this, each generation has one mage and until now that mage always got weaker as the bloodline thinned. But you… you reached a height not seen in some time. Perhaps the ride has finally turned. Perhaps it's a sign that the time has finally come. I now believe you are the one that'll harald in the new golden age.”

  The King stopped looking at the ceiling to look at her. “But I want to be sure so there's a question I want you to complete. One that'll prove beyond a shadow of a doubt you're not just the next but the rightful leader of this kingdom. Indisputable proof you are the one that was foretold of. Then again the Pendragon has been telling me he'll return to this realm to fix things, so who knows.” The king laughed to himself as he handed Elizabeth a map. “The catacombs under Camelot Castle are a maze, but in that maze is the True Crown, an artifact that can only be worn by the true ruler of Bramble. The sword just responds to one's potential to be a leader, the crown is much more demanding and can only be worn by a true king… or queen.”

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Elizabeth looked at the map that would guide her through the maze and sighed. “Yeah, sure, why not.” The king shook a finger at Elizabeth. “And you must take the quest alone. You must pass the tests and trials without aid.” Elizabeth groaned. “Shit.” Racknar started to shuffle back and forth. Elizabeth put the map in her pocket. “I'll be back as soon as I have the crown.” The king smiled and waved her off. “Yes yes, you're free to leave.” The trio left the room and started walking their way back to the cart. No one spoke till the three of them were in the cart.

  Marionette was the one to break the silence. “Are you really going to go down there alone? Who knows what kinds of traps, monsters, and puzzles you'll find.” Elizabeth sighed. “I mean… I guess. Unfortunately this'll cut into my ability to hang out with Racknar during his vacation.” Racknar hummed. “Well, once you have the crown I'll go with you back to Londinium. So hopefully the actual catacombs don't take too long. A few hours at most. Then we can get back to trying to relax for what time we have left. Then regardless of anything else, I'll be getting back to the grind. I want to try and be ready to kill Lolith before your father kicks it.”

  Elizabeth sighed loudly. “You really don't have to push yourself and rush things.” Racknar shrugged. “I'd like to clear up as many loose ends as possible before you take over. I'm expecting the church to make a big move soon.” Elizabeth nodded and closed her eyes. “I see. So we'll be forced to move up our timetable and declare segregation from the Empire sooner than originally expected. That's unfortunate.” When the group made it back to Camelot Castle, Elizabeth waved as she made her way in. “I'll see you both as soon as I'm done.”

  Racknar and Marionette waved back. As soon as she was out of sight Marionette swayed back and forth. “So… it's just the two of us now. Wanna do something to kill the time as we wait?” Racknar shrugged. “I mean it's not like anything major will happen in the short time she's gone, so I don't know what you're expecting.”

  Elizabeth followed the map and made her way into the catacombs. As soon as she was there she cast a spell to detect traps causing them to glow. Thanks to this she avoided traps with ease. As far as enemies went, she encountered a number of low level undead. Since she had access to radiant damage it made dealing with them easy. She could handle just about any undead outside of magic casters solo just fine. The main challenge would be puzzles.

  The first puzzle was easy enough. Three short pillars each with three symbols that could be turned. The three symbols were a dolphin, a snake, and an eagle. She looked around the room for a clue when she saw a carving on the door with some text. After reading it she turned the pillars. “Snake, eagle, dolphin.” She then flipped a lever and the gate opened. Deeper in there was a hallway with pendulum guillotines already swinging back and forth.

  Carefully she dodged the blades to get to a room with a pressure plate. The plate opened the door but it would close as soon as she stepped off. She looked around for something to put on it. Lifting corpses from the catacombs she used those to press the button and leave it open. She rolled her eyes at how simple all the puzzles seemed. Even the riddles were basic ones she learned in school in her last life. Though some might not have been known in this world. Eventually she reached the deepest room. There was a skeleton in royal garb sitting on a throne with a crown on its head. The crown had an extremely high level of magic to it.

  Elizabeth sighed. “This was too easy, and that's suspicious. Are you going to get up?” She tossed a loose rock at the skeleton with no response. “No? Okay then.” She pulled the crown off the skeleton and it turned to dust and blew away. “That's… ominous.” She then sat on the throne and took several breaths before lifting the crown to her head but paused before putting it on. “Dad said only a true ruler could wear it so why was it on a skeleton?” She sat there for a moment but after a while she let out a sound of frustration and out in the crown.

  Elizabeth was sitting on the throne in the main hall of Londinium, tending to the court like she had done a thousand times. A man has come up to offer a report on the state of the kingdom. “Ambassador Da Vinci reports relations with Nidavellir have never been better. Ambassador Ebony from Svartalfheim is due to arrive tomorrow to renegotiate the Sky Silk trade terms again. Rebuilding efforts are on track in the formal imperial lands after the war are nearly complete. End of report.” Elizabeth looked to the throne next to her to her king consort and smiled. “We finally did it, it took some years but we've accomplished our mission.”

  Three kids came running in, playing and laughing. They were humanoid spiders like Racknar but they were fuzzy rather than armored. She smiled at the kids and laughed a bit. “Come on kids, I told you not to play in this room. There are plenty of rooms and a large outside to play in, so it's not like you don't have enough space.” One of the three, a girl, tried to object. “But mom~” Racknar sat up a bit. “Listen to your mother. We'll be along in a bit.” The three kids giggled and laughed as they ran off. Elizabeth smiled and looked at Racknar. “So what's next?” Racknar shifted to the throne. “Now I suppose there's nothing to do but raise our kids, grow old together, and maintain the peace.”

  Elizabeth’s smile started to fade. “No new mission? No new task? Are you going to at least pick up a hobby?” Racknar shook his head. “Why would I do that? I already have everything I want.” Elizabeth looked around the room and at her clothes. She had somehow gained everything she had wanted, it had all gone so smoothly, and Racknar was content to stay around all the time with her and their kids. “You really think you're going to be able to sit still? I mean it's not like having a hobby or new smaller mission would prevent you from spending time with us. You're allowed to have a life of your own.” Racknar rubbed her hand and smiled. “My life was here, with you.”

  “(This is everything I want, everything I've ever wanted. So why after finally getting it am I not happy? It feels off. Racknar wouldn't sit still for long, even if it's what I want. He wouldn't abandon our kids but to give up doing anything outside the family? It was uncharacteristic. Sure, he's changed and grown but he was still the same stubborn man who couldn't sit still. … Shit.)” Elizabeth looked at Racknar who was rubbing her hand. “Racknar, what's our daughter's name?” Racknar gave her a perplexed look. “What do you mean? You helped name her. You helped name all our kids.” Elizabeth made a serious face. “I want you to say her name.”

  Racknar sat up. “Eli, you're starting to scare me. What's gotten into you.” Elizabeth grumbled. “This… isn't right.” Her hand started to shake as the kids came back through playing tag. She looked at the children as a rear ran down her cheek. “Oh God.” She tapped her crown, the true crown that sat on her head that she got years ago from the catacombs of Camelot that could only be worn by a true ruler of the kingdom and the skeleton it was sitting on. “The crown test.” Racknar was distracted by the children and looked over. “What about it? You passed it with flying colors. The entire thing was so easy that it was hardly a test. You put it on, proving you were a true queen.”

  Elizabeth’s hand shook. “No, the problem isn't putting the crown on. Anyone could put the crown on. The problem is being able to take it back off again.” She put both hands on the crown, her hands shaking as tears ran down her cheeks. Her kids are now looking at her. “Mom, what's wrong?” Elizabeth sobbed. “I'm sorry. I'm so so sorry. But… none of this is real. That's why I couldn't get your name earlier. I wouldn't name you without Racknar and I have no clue what kind of names he'd like.” The daughter looked scared. “Mom, you're scaring me. Also, my name's Natasha after one of daddy’s pet spiders.” Elizabeth let out another sob. “It's okay Natasha, everything is going to be okay. Mommy is just tired. I'll be going to bed. I'll see you… I'll see you really soon.” She stood up, and removed the crown.”

  Elizabeth’s hand removed the crown, and she saw she was still sitting in the catacombs of Camelot with tears running down her face. Then her eyes widened. “Shit, I forgot to ask the other kids for their names. … Right. None of that was real anyway.” She stood up and started walking out. She placed the crown back in her head but this time nothing happened. Then after a few seconds a green notification screen showed up. “Congratulations! You've passed the test. Reward: Mark of the True Crown.” Elizabeth was shaking, tears still running down her face as she made her way out of the catacombs.

  Elizabeth cleaned off her face as she walked out the door and back into the outside, she walked around a bit looking for Racknar and Marionette only to find them both talking to Morning Glory. Racknar was checking to see if she needed any accommodations she didn't already have or if she wanted adjustments to the garden. Marionette was simply tagging along. Elizabeth walked over to the two. “Hey guys, I'm done.” Racknar turned around and gestured towards Elizabeth. “See Mari, I told you it would only take a few hours. I see you've got the crown. How were the trials?”

  Elizabeth looked at the ground. “Everything leading up to the crown was really easy for me. Though it probably wouldn't have been for someone else. The hardest part was the test the crown gave me.” Racknar gave a nod. “Ah, 8 figured there'd be more to it than simply not letting you wear it. Anyway, it's getting late. We should turn in for the night.” Elizabeth nodded in agreement. “Yeah, I'm exhausted. I'll tell you all about the test in the morning or whatever.” The three gave Morning Glory their goodbyes before heading into the castle together to turn in for the night.