"I did it!" Elise howled, relaxing her furrowed brow slightly and releasing some of the tension built up from concentration—though not all of it. "I feel the connection."
"Good, but don't lose it. Now consolidate it. Solidify it. Envelop the entire landmass and claim it," I said from the side, my voice calm but firm.
"Alright," she nodded and continued her task, closing her eyes with determination.
I stayed by her side, watching her with the same focus she gave to the sphere. It had taken a long time, but we were finally seeing progress. I couldn't feel what she did, of course—I lack that divine sense—but I was still excited.
Although there was something I could feel. At first, it was just a tingling, but now that things were starting to work, the sensation became clearer. It was something strange, a sort of pressure, like someone was trying to take something from me—something that was rightfully mine.
And I knew exactly what it was.
The [Fief]. Elise was imposing sovereignty over a fragment that undoubtedly belonged to me. I felt that with just a thought, I could destroy everything she had accomplished so far. Because the [Fief] cannot be claimed by another, not even partially. But doing so would mean wasting her efforts, and it might even seriously harm her... so I simply didn't do it.
I let her power flow. From what I could feel, the existence of that small part of the fief was being covered by Elise's essence, but at its core, my authority remained intact. Even if she managed to consolidate her divinity there, I could still break it at any time by force.
Hours passed—many of them—until more than twelve had gone by. Elise began to relax, as if the process no longer demanded so much effort from her, and after another long stretch of time, she finally collapsed into the void, gently floating toward me.
"Done," she murmured, more mentally exhausted than physically.
It was clear that all she wanted now was to sleep. So I helped her. I held her head against my chest and formed a cradle of blood. It was liquid, yes, but dense enough to be comfortable, and with the gentle rocking in the void, Elise fell asleep… for almost three days.
When she finally woke up, she was still a bit dazed. In fact, she had been drooling on me that whole time, and I would have loved to tease her about it… but she had other things on her mind.
"Did I do it?" she asked, still confused.
"You tell me… but I think you did," I replied, looking toward the large earthen sphere.
Elise stared at it in silence, feeling that strange connection. But doubt appeared in her eyes.
"I think so… I feel it… like it's a part of me, like I could shape it with my will… but I don't feel anything different," she said as she approached the sphere and gently tapped it with one of her hooves. "Am I a god now? Because it sure doesn't feel like it."
"Hehe… don't worry. It must have worked," I replied. "The thing is, this really isn't anything impressive. A divinity in a world as small and empty as this doesn't bring change. Practically everything you can do here, you could've done with your own magic. That's why you don't feel any difference. That's why no god would try something like this—it's not even a drop in the ocean. It brings no benefits. In fact, it's a loss for any god."
"So all this was for nothing?" she asked, visibly disappointed.
"Oh no, it definitely wasn't. It's just the beginning… discouraging, yes, but necessary. We have a bright future ahead," I said, gently caressing her face. "Now, the important thing is for you to get used to this new connection, this bond. Even though you've established your divinity, it's likely it's not fully solidified yet. We need to make sure it's stable so we can move forward."
The truth is, neither of us was entirely sure how well everything had gone, and that's why I made that decision. Better safe than sorry. Taking a bit more time to make sure everything was okay wasn't foolish at all.
Elise went back into her focused state. She tried to feel if anything was off, or if she could further strengthen her bond with the sphere, while I remained by her side, silently accompanying her.
...
Time passed with surprising normalcy, as if nothing was happening… even though, in truth, a new goddess was being born. Though divinity was a momentous matter, we began to take things more calmly. Elise continued to strengthen her newly established divine authority, but in a more relaxed way. We even started taking time to stroll and explore beyond Avalon. Medieval England had much to offer—or so we hoped.
Of course, it didn't take long before Morgana discovered us together again. And as expected, her mental gears started turning once more, weaving one of her twisted schemes. More than once, she tried to be alone with Elise—clearly to talk… or rather, to wrap her in silver-tongued words and lure her into her machinations. She didn't have much success.
Elise wasn't exactly the sharpest, but she was still a unicorn—and now, more than that. She could feel that Morgana's heart was not pure. Before, the witch had such refined methods that she could even deceive common unicorns, making them believe she was the most innocent and pure maiden they'd ever seen. But with Elise, that didn't work. And while Morgana's twisted speeches could confuse anyone, Elise simply got lost in the convoluted logic and didn't fall for her traps… out of sheer confusion.
The worst came when Morgana decided to change her strategy. She tried to get to Elise through a different means: by seducing her physically, believing that I had once done the same. To achieve this, she used dangerous substances that would have killed any human—mage or not—through overstimulation so intense it would have caused the brain to collapse. Yes, that didn't work either. All she got was a solid kick when Elise felt someone touch a part of her body she considered reserved only for me. Though, to be fair, that cream Morgana had on her hands did cause some issues… which I then had to fix.
From that moment on, Elise wouldn't let Morgana get close to her. In fact, she faced her with aggression. Morgana, aware that she no longer had a chance with Elise—and that she couldn't hurt this new goddess because of me—decided to change tactics. This time, she turned her attention to me.
She accepted—at least temporarily—that the love between Elise and me was real. And instead of opposing it, she decided to use it to her advantage to avoid the disaster that would come from having a goddess against her. She even hoped to gain something out of it. I, instead of getting angry, just laughed, though I had to pretend a bit of disdain to make this arrogant witch beg a little more. In the end, I managed to mediate between them.
Since then, things became more manageable. Morgana, having no choice but to cooperate with me to get what she wanted, became surprisingly useful. Over time, our relationship grew more cordial.
Meanwhile, Elise and I would often go out walking or exploring together, whenever we weren't busy at the fiefdom working on the mini-planet. Though, of course, strange things also started happening, like...
...
Deep in the forest, still within Avalon, I was looking for Elise. She had gone ahead to find a good spot among the trees—probably to set up our… what? Sleepover? Picnic? Something like that. Meanwhile, I had been—let's say—"fulfilling the noble duty of pretending to extend the Fey bloodline," if you could call it that. Elise was never too fond of my "libertine" lifestyle, but luckily, she'd long since moved past jealousy and tantrums.
After wrapping up one last encounter with Morgana, I went looking for her. It wasn't hard to find her. I spotted her in a forest clearing, as beautiful as so many others on this enchanted island. But what truly shocked me was what I saw. For a moment, I didn't recognize her.
Standing before me wasn't the Elise I knew. What I saw was a strange and dazzling creature: the lower half of a horse with snow-white fur, and the upper half of a naked woman, her skin glowing faintly, ears long like an elf's, big blue eyes, and a white mane cascading gently over her shoulders. A centauride—and for a moment, I was speechless. I was stunned by her beauty. But it was our connection, that magical bond we shared, that made me realize: yes, it was Elise.
"Elise?" I asked, approaching cautiously, unable to stop my gaze from drifting to her bare, glowing chest.
"Red…" she said in her usual voice, soft and familiar. "I was experimenting with some magic and… well…" She seemed a bit confused, but not alarmed.
"Must be the centaur bloodline running through your veins," I muttered, thoughtful. "Gods often manifest a true form once their divinity stabilizes—like a pure reflection of their essence. Your divinity has just solidified, but it's still unstable. That's why your physical form is too. With time, you'll be able to shift into whatever form you desire. But your main form… will eventually become something else."
Elise nodded, understanding that this change was accidental and temporary. She didn't seem too happy about her new look, though she didn't entirely reject it either. But she was sure that when the time came to choose a final form to match her divinity, this wouldn't be it. Though then she noticed I hadn't stopped staring at her—particularly, at her breasts.
"Do you like this?" she asked, with a mix of irony and annoyance, pressing her breasts together with both hands.
"Oh, yes…" I replied with a sly grin, licking my lips. "You have no idea how long I've dreamed of this day. I must say—you're beautiful." This time, I spoke with sincerity, without a trace of lust. I looked straight into her face, and it was like beholding a perfect work of art.
"I know, you always say I'm beautiful," she laughed playfully. Though clearly enjoying the compliments, she wasn't fully aware of how different she truly looked.
"I mean it—as a human. Even your smile… shines brighter than any I've seen." I said, in awe.
I stepped closer, though now, as a centauride, she was even taller than before. Without thinking too much, I transformed a rock into a small bench beneath my feet and lifted myself up. I gently cupped one of her breasts, and before she could react, I kissed her. Deeply, fiercely. Like never before. It was sweet revenge—her unicorn anatomy had often left me helpless against her massive tongue invading my mouth, and now, at least this time, I was the one taking the lead.
We got lost in a passionate kiss. Elise didn't quite know what to do with her arms; her new form was still awkward, as if her body were learning how to move all over again. It wasn't surprising—after all, she had been equine her entire life.
And so, our "picnic" began. I reveled in her new, still-human upper half—kissing, caressing, groping her intensely. But she… she clearly wasn't enjoying it. Her clumsiness frustrated her. She made simple mistakes, like nearly choking on a piece of fruit. Again and again, she pouted and muttered about wanting to go back to her original form. But I didn't let her—not out of cruelty, but because I wanted to enjoy this new Elise a little longer: semi-human, and divinely beautiful.