Page 23 of I Dated a Retired Hero

The man looked at her. “You know her?”

“Yes. We are friends.”

“Tell me everything.”

“Put on some pants.” Dmitri grinned.

The man growled and stalked over to where one of the lab techs had a set of cotton pants for him in black. He slid the matching open shirt on, and Nelith blinked. “Oh, dear. General Midnight.”

He growled. “Sergei. My name is Sergei.”

Nelith closed her eyes and tried to remember his stats and settings. She opened her eyes, and he was in front of her.

“You are the Blade of Uradda?”

“I was, but I escaped, and Uradda has fallen. The actives have found refuge in a number of countries, and the thrashing serpent has no help rising.”

He blinked. “Were many dead?”

“More on their side than ours, but it was a multipronged effort. We tore their structures and organizations apart. There are still several key actives missing, but it was quite a blow.”

Sergei nodded. “And you are in love with Dmitri?”

She wrinkled her nose. “I wasn’t at first, but he wasn’t afraid of me, so that wore me down.”

Dmitri chuckled. “I am too dumb to be discouraged. And the Crowd insisted. I came around when she stopped looking like a child.”

Nelith snorted and explained. “My growth had been stunted by starvation and torture. I was given accelerated healing, and it kicked in, so now, I am almost normal-sized for my family.”

Dmitri murmured, “I don’t suppose you have any of that with you, do you?”

“No, but I can go with you to get some. I just have to contact Khytten and see what she can do. What is the desired effect?”

“Sergei up to full strength and power.”

Nelith shook her head. “Not until we have a full scan that I can show to the doctor or Khytten, at the least.”

He sighed and looked at his friend. “Will you let the researchers scan you?”

Sergei nodded. “Yes, but handheld units only. No enclosures.”

The team looked at each other and nodded. “Of course, General.”

Nelith sent a text to Khytten and blinked when she saw the before picture projected up on the wall for comparison. “Whoa.”

Dmitri snorted and lifted her hand to kiss the wedding ring. “Too late; you are mine. He could have any woman in several countries and often did.”

“That isn’t the flex you think it is.”

He shrugged. “I have you under my spell, which takes the effort of subduing ten women on a nightly basis.”

“Is that flattery?”

“Is it working?”

She laughed and smacked him.

Sergei turned his head to look at them and shook his head with a slight smile.

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