After Retirement, Living a Stud Life in Another World - 217

Chapter 217: The Birth of the Ice Goddess

The First Magic Unit, led by Sister Liese, had been active from their base in Baden for the next ten days. They had monster hunts as part of their drills, patrols along the border, and deep into the cursed forest. It seemed like a lot of hard work.

The First Unit, in particular, was known for being a group of magic nerds. Whenever it was time for Gretel to swing her magic silver axe and chop down trees in the forest, a crowd would form, watching in awe, practically drooling over the sight. Well, Gretel’s strength had long crossed the line into something almost unfair. Even I, who had seen it many times, couldn’t help but be amazed.

Despite all this activity, Sister still made time for me every night.

“I’m sorry, Sister, you have work tomorrow, but I keep asking for these things…”

By “these things,” I meant the naughty things we had been doing just a moment ago. Sister didn’t seem completely averse to it, but unlike me, who could sleep as much as I wanted, she was living the life of a soldier. I felt bad about the burden I was placing on her.

“Heh, don’t apologize. I’m here because I want to be with you, too. After all, once I get pregnant, we won’t be able to do this for almost a year.”

When Sister, who had always seemed so serious and pure, smiled seductively like that, my desire flared up again. She quickly noticed and moved closer, and before long, we were in the middle of round two… but I couldn’t completely blame myself for that.

After enjoying a more relaxed and slower round than before, we drank some water and then started a quiet pillow talk. But even at a time like this, Sister’s mind was still on her duties. The subject of the conversation quickly turned to her recent patrol in the cursed forest with her unit.

“I’ve been in the cursed forest before, but… I feel like the monsters’ appearances have changed.”

“Changed? How so?”

“Clearly, there are more monsters even in the outer edges. And even strong ones that shouldn’t be appearing here are showing up. The spawning seems to be intensifying.”

I felt a bit uneasy hearing that. Could it be that our constant cutting into the forest—well, mostly Gretel—had some sort of effect? I’d heard similar things in my past world, that when humans encroach on wild animal territories, the animals lose their homes and start moving into human areas. I hadn’t really believed it before, but there might be something to it here, with the cursed forest.

“That doesn’t seem to be the case,” Sister immediately denied after hearing my concerns.

“You’ve only cleared a small portion of the outer edges of the vast cursed forest. It hasn’t affected the forest’s ecosystem. What’s happening now feels like pressure coming from the depths of the forest. Something must be happening in the deepest part, where we can’t go.”

When Sister spoke with her usual calm, cool demeanor, I couldn’t help but agree with her assessment. But still, it felt terrifying to think that, whether we developed the area or not, monsters would eventually start spilling out of the forest. After all this effort, it seemed like such a waste.

“Well, it won’t become a big problem right away, but we should prepare for defense. If the monsters flood out, we just need to hold out for a week, and our national magic troops will be there to help. But the city of Stuttgart doesn’t even have walls yet, so it won’t last a day… we need to start thinking about this soon.”

I could only nod along as Sister, now more of a military leader than a lover, gave me her lecture.

After two weeks of patrol and drills, the First Magic Unit, led by Sister Liese, began their journey back to the capital. And somehow, I found myself riding with them.

Well, this happened because, when Sister told Gretel about the abnormality in the forest and declared she was going to report it to the king, my childhood friend casually suggested,

“Lutz, you should go with Sister Liese. The king will probably order some preparations against the monsters in Baden, and it’s better if the local lord is there.”

I understood the meaning behind Gretel’s slightly softened gaze and didn’t argue, just nodding. She didn’t really care if I personally received the royal orders. If she wanted to give the order, she could get it to Baden in just a few minutes by asking Adele.

So why? Well, it was obvious. Gretel was trying to give me and Sister some time together.

Since the church officially forbids siblings from getting together, Sister and I couldn’t be openly affectionate during the day. Our relationship had to be kept secret, only shared after nightfall. Plus, Sister was always busy, whether it was day or night, as a soldier. Opportunities to spend the night together were rare.

So, Gretel must have planned our little “honeymoon” for us. Although it felt strange to have my lover arranging my nights with my wife, ever since she got pregnant, Gretel had become incredibly thoughtful, especially when it came to the women around me.

So, it wasn’t that I was just “okay” with it, but I was now waking up every morning in the commander’s tent. Thanks to Antonia’s help, my attendant had been sent away, and I had the chance to spend quiet, intimate nights with Sister.

On the third day of the march, we were hit with cold rain. Sister, who had been riding ahead of me, suddenly stopped her horse and seemed to check something on her body. After staring at her hands for a while, she held them out toward the wet ground.

It was a strange sight. Before Sister, the ground began to freeze like a silver fan opening up. The trees ahead quickly froze white and then cracked with a loud sound, splitting in two. This was… ice cracking?

Soon, the barren land in front of us had turned into a vast field of ice.

“Sister… what is this?”

“Yes. I know now. Strength is rising from my lower abdomen. From the child… the treasure growing inside me.”

At that moment, a low, powerful murmur spread throughout the First Magic Unit. The soldiers cheered in unison, witnessing their commander transform into, without a doubt, the most powerful ice mage on the continent. The voice of joy echoed as Sister stood proudly at the center.