Scáthach POV
It was a pleasant feeling, to walk amongst the living once more. I had since been summoned for many moons, yet, the feeling had not vanished. The Land of Shadows would never become a distant memory, but times like this left a warmness in my chest.
They were not human, something I may have even ventured to hunt in my past life had there been the opportunity, however to these eyes of mine, there were very little differences. All manner of creatures, ghosts, demons, and Youkai.
Inanimate objects that had life breathed into them by the world, grudges that accumulated enough power to actualize into a coherent mass, and others that were simply born the more conventional way. Mothers held the hands of their children, non-human features swaying open in the wind. Fathers doted on their children and husbands showed affection to wives that differed so drastically at first glance.
It was odd to see so many differences, yet no blatant distaste among the inhabitants.
I was not unused to non-humans, many different peoples had lived among the lands I called home. However, rarely did they coexist in such a peaceful manner, especially in such confined settings.
I remember even Setanta causing waryness among many common folk due to his divine nature.
Though I suppose it was not the same. They all were welcomed under the umbrella of being 'Youkai'. A common title to draw them into a sense of community even if they did differ so wildly between one another.
Regardless, I could not help but enjoy this place, to accept it as an extension of my home. My student's home – my home was placed here, thus I believed this place too also be under my protection. And now I had a woman to call a sister whom ruled over this realm, and my interest in keeping it cleansed of filth had increased.
I can understand the difficulties that come with leadership, I believed most of Wilhelm's women could. For someone like me who had thus walked away from such nobility and responsibility, I sympathized with Yasaka.
I cannot comfort her in the same way Wilhelm could, and while I did take up the same guard that Raikou had in the past of Kunou, I did not have the same gentleness that the children would appreciate. Nor was I able to provide her with resources she would desire for her lands.
To render my aid, I believed I only could rely upon my spear like I had done so much in my life.
I ran my hand along the side of a building, allowing my Magical Energy flow out.
A frown made its way to my face.
"Soma." I called out lightly.
The Guard of Yasaka immediately answered my call. "Yes, Lady Scáthach?" He appeared before me, shadowing me along with several more members of the guard.
"We are close, I have found traces." I revealed to him. "A mark left behind, I have rendered it inert for the time being, thus we will not be revealed."
"I will tell my men, teacher." He bowed.
I twitched slightly upon him calling me that, but I couldn't deny the title from him and his people. I had spent many days at this point training them and a small bond has grown.
"If I may ask...why did you request me?" He asked, just before departing.
Hmm, I did ask for him by name, along with a handful of others to accompany me.
"I appreciate your talent, Soma." It was simple enough. "I have never trained a man who dedicated his life to guardship. As Yasaka is someone who has become important to me, I will forge you into a warrior accomplished for such a role."
This involves sniffing out potential threats before they could move. I will impart my knowledge of Fae in the hope of him learning for the future.
"Now, place your hand here and close your eyes to focus." I grabbed his hand, gently placing it upon the stone structure. "Spread your Touki out, but keep it restrained once you notice the irregularity."
He listened, as a good leaner does. He was hesitant, but I watched as his energy start seeping into the structure and he almost recoiled once he discovered what I had made more apparent by my own efforts.
"What is this?" His eyes snapped open.
I let out a small sigh. "A sign of Fae activity, a common action among many of their number. They have laid claim to this building in accordance with their own laws and customs. What you sense are their magics that have intertwined with it."
Soma looked offended but kept himself from acting out. Good, a cool head was required for this line of work. "Lady Yasaka has not spoken of any allowances. I refuse to acknowledge this."
"Yes" I felt the corners of my lips curl up. "It is as you say. Unfortunately, they believe their own laws supersede that of any lands they walk upon. It is why you must be cautious of accepting any debts or favors from one of their kind. A Geass is forced upon the recipient if they are not strong enough to resist."
"I assume I am not yet strong enough?" He asked.
"You would be correct in this assumption. A Geass, it is a difficult piece of Magic to maneuver around, even if you are stronger than the one who initiated. There are many ways around it, but they require predetermined knowledge of the one you are seeking. The most accessible solution would be to simply not speak but write down your words. A verbal acknowledgement is often required for a Geass to take hold, but not always. Names have power, remember this in all things. Writing your name on a parchment will often be enough to elicit a reaction from similar magics."
I did not think I was required to elaborate as the concept of 'contracts' was one known. Wilhelm's race was one such notable example of a species that thrived off them.
"I will take your teachings to heart." He bowed his head.
A polite one as always. Not to mention his eagerness to learn anything I deemed to teach, a truly pleasant experience.
"Good, now call the others."
He put his fingers to his mouth, silently whistling. A sound that I would have to take a secondary measure to hear as it was beyond normal hearing.
Four more Guards appeared beside him, bowing their heads respectfully. "We await your orders." They intoned as one.
"Do not speak unless I give you prompt." I commanded. "Otherwise you may follow my lead. I am not in an official position of authority here, thus you are all acting as extensions of Yasaka. I am merely lending my expertise on this occasion." I wanted them to understand that I would not be holding their hands at every moment during any continued threats in the future.
Seeing their hardened gazes, I believed they understood my intent.
"Now, can anyone tell me about this building?" I tapped the brickwork.
One of them stepped forward. "It's an Inn, Lady Scáthach." He replied. "They have a handful of rooms for rent and offer food and drink in the common room."
I nodded along. The concept was not one foreign to me as I had patroned many similar establishments.
"Speak your experience here." I told him to elaborate.
"I've been a couple times, mostly due to their good prices for decent food and drink. The place had been owned by the same family for…..a few decades." He looked contemplative as if trying to remember some information.
"That is enough, let us enter." I ushered them forth, walking to the front of the building.
Placing a hand on the door, I cast a quick spell before pushing it open.
We were greeted with all eyes looking upon us. A noticeable bar was in the corner, with a kitchen behind it. A half dozen patrons were spread out across the tables and a few wait staff served them.
However, my eyes were not fooled. The wisdom and sight I had gained from Dun Scaith could see through the illusions.
My Spear appeared in my hand and I slammed it against the ground. "By orders of Yasaka, you all are to relinquish yourselves to her custody pending an investigation." I sent a wave of Magical Energy forth, distorting the glamours they wore.
Every person inside was of the Fae Folk.
And apparently, even they can look shocked.
"But resist, if you prefer, I would much like to exercise."
[***]
Wilhelm POV
An awkward silence filled the area.
"Join my Peerage!" He repeated, as if that was the proper thing to say in this situation.
"No."
"Damn, alright." His shoulders slumped, before perking up again. "How about a fight?"
"Also no."
"Oh."
I just stared at him, not knowing how to respond again. But I guess I didn't need to as a blonde woman – from his peerage – ran up and smacked him upside the back of the head.
"Idiot!" She barked. "Did you forget what we talked about a couple hours ago!?" She began to berate him.
"Hahah! I couldn't help it" Sairaorg threw his head back, laughing happily. He seemed unconcerned that she continued to hit his shoulder. "He was strong and I acted without thinking."
She turned to me. "I'm sorry for him he was not supposed to ask you that." She dipped her head.
"I think someone else is owed an apology more than me." I crossed my arms with a frown.
She furrowed her brow, reaching her hand out and created a black portal-like sphere in the air. Suddenly, another opened up below that Orange Haired guy that pissed off Atalanta.
Interesting.
"Hey why'd you –" The strange guy was abruptly shut up as the woman lifted her leg up and slammed her foot down on his head, pushing his head into the ground.
"We sincerely apologize." She spoke again, grabbing Sairaorg and pushing his head down. She lifted her foot up, and smacked the other guy again, pushing his face further into the ground.
"I'm Sowwwy." He mumbled out, barely audible from how far his head was buried.
I let out a sigh, rubbing the bridge of my nose.
"Hmph, just keep him away from me." Atalanta huffed.
Sairaorg scratched the back of his head. "Haha…..sorry about him, he's usually more behaved."
"Why are you here?" I decided to cute right to the heart of the matter.
If Atalanta showed any further discomfort than just annoyance, I would have not been so quick to gloss over that little bit.
"I wanted to meet you!" He smiled brightly as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
The woman at his side sighed again. "And to clarify, we were not coming here to recruit." She glared at Sairaorg again. "Not to mention, his peerage is full, so he couldn't add you even if we all wanted."
"…..oops." He chuckled, somewhat embarrassedly.
"And we told Lord Nurarihyon that we wouldn't try to recruit while visiting."
"I got swept up in the moment, I'm sorry." Sairaorg dipped his head of his own initiative. "I just wanted to visit my cousin though." He regained that dopey smile of his.
Technically a first cousin once removed…..but I'm willing to bet he didn't care enough to know that difference. And the sincerity in which he said that....was it strange that I actually believed him?
How am I supposed to even answer that?
I felt really conflicted right now. I would have usually told someone like this to fuck off, but he's so... He reminds me of Thorum.
I think Artoria noticed my hesitance because she was standing over me almost protectively.
The woman next to Sairaorg nudged him with her elbow. "Introduce everyone first."
"Oh, right!" Sairaorg took the cue. "I'm Sairaorg Bael. We haven't met before, but I'm your cousin!" He shot me a thumbs up.
The woman next to him let out a sigh. "I'm his Queen – Kuisha Abbadon." She said politely.
"Oi, guys, come introduce yourself!" Sairaorg shouted to his peerage who were still standing to the side.
I could only shake my head at his inability to read a room. Either that or he was masterfully destroying any tension that had built up.
"Greetings to you, good sir." A man in a full set of armor was the first to offer an introduction amongst them. "I am Ser Beluga Furcas. I serve my Liege as his Knight."
"A true knight?" Artoria spoke up, looking at him with an inspecting gaze.
"Why yes, my Lady." He smiled. "I do not denote myself as such just because of the Piece I was gifted with by my lord. I have held my lance since I was but a boy and squired under a reputable Knight in my youth."
Artoria seemed impressed. I don't think she expected a Devil to be a proper knight.
Well, someone won brownie points with her.
"A Devil Knight? Didn't think that was a thing." Mordred walked over, seemingly more interested now.
"I believe Knighthood transcends race." He chuckled. "As long as one holds to their oaths and lives up to their own honor, a knight they are."
"Well said." Artoria nodded, summoning her own armor around her. "I greet you, Ser Beluga Furcas. I am Artoria Pendragon."
"Mordred Pendragon, yo." Mordred said much more casually.
"The Pendragon family?" His eyes widened a little. "Yes, the honor is mine."
I guess her name still held weight within their own 'community'.
Well, it felt like the previous awkwardness faded. A sort of common ground now found.
"Haah, my turn then?" Another one of his peerage walked forward. He had long blonde hair, wore light armor and had a sword at his waist. "Liban Crocell, also one of my King's Knights. Though, not that kind of knight. I'm more of a Magic Swordsman." He rested a hand on his sword.
"Heya, Cutie." A second woman with long blonde hair skipped over. "I'm Coriana Andrealphus, Bishop." She finished with a wink. She sounded…. flirtatious, but it came off as ingenuine. Maybe just a quirk of her personality?
"Misteeta Sabnock, Bishop." Another introduced, wearing a hooded robe and carried a more traditional staff. He was a little shorter and had a greenish teal hair color. Honestly, I thought he was a girl before he spoke. He didn't seem like the type to say much.
With heavy steps, perhaps the most eye catching member of his peerage join them. He wore no shirt and his skin looked like it was made from stone, yet you couldn't deny the muscles he showed off. "I'm Gandoma Balam, how ya doin? I'm a Rook servin under my King." He had a jovial tone even if it rumbled a little.
The last unknown stood next to Gandoma, a bit talker than the others, but also pretty lanky and somewhat gaunt. He gave me a...odd feeling. Like my Draconic parts were being tugged at. I glanced at Artoria who also twitched a little upon him coming closer. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance." He stated with a surprisingly posh tone. Despite his appearance, he held a certain nobility to him. "I'm Ladora Bune, Rook for my king." He lightly bowed.
"And this is Regulus!" Sairaorg finished up, pulling the other guy up from the ground, who looked no worse for wear. "He's my Pawn, took all my pieces to reincarnate!"
[OH! I know who that is now. The name was a big clue.]
Someone you actually recognize?
[Yeah I've run into him several times over the years since getting sealed in here. That's another Longinus, the Nemean Lion.]
And suddenly, a lot of things made more sense. Hell, his name really was a huge clue just as Ddraig said. Named after the brightest star in the Leo constellation. Not to mention his attention towards Atalanta whose legend involved being comrades with Hercules. I wouldn't be surprised if he was able to 'sense' that part of the Greek Hero on Atalanta who was a Heroic Spirit. An intuition that came about from being slain by a Greek hero perhaps?
Or maybe it's just because Atalanta was part Lion at this point.
Who knew, but regardless.
"Color me surprised." I crossed my arms, staring at the Lion masquerading as a mere Devil. "You managed to actually reincarnate the Nemean Lion and add him to your peerage."
There was a flash of surprise that went across everyone's face amongst his peerage. I could guess that this was probably a secret amongst them. Not that I could fault them, it wouldn't be something to advertise, and it should be hard to guess based only on context clues.
"How'd you know?" Sairaorg also looked surprised. "I thought I hid it well." He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.
I'm curious how he's able to walk around like this if he was sealed within a Sacred Gear. But at the moment, I didn't feel comfortable asking.
"Neh, it's because he's cheating~" Regulus adopted a mischievous grin. "If he could recognize me, do you think I couldn't smell him? Hey there, Ddraig, it's been awhile." He waived towards me.
[Busted.]
Well, that's annoying. I thought my best bet was to pretend I don't care. "He sends his regards." I made sure not to react even if I was peeved. "And if this was your only reason for coming here, I think we're done." I looked back at Sairaorg.
Well, they didn't question Ddraig, so…..
Sairaorg sorta let out a sigh, rubbing his neck again. "Look, I...I'm not really good at this." He looked like he was having trouble getting the words out. "I plan on becoming a Satan in the future." He said with a resolute look on his face.
"Good for you?" I blinked in confusion.
"I know it doesn't mean anything to you. Old Man Nurarihyon said you don't really like us, so I doubt you'd care. But I wanted to come over as soon as I heard about you." He expression shifted to something melancholic. "The Gremorys had been really good to me, even when I was disinherited and kicked out of the house with my mom. I was surprised when something like this happened to you to and if I found out sooner…..I would have offered you a place in my Peerage because when I become Satan, I'm going to make sure stuff like this doesn't happen again."
As much as I disliked those Evil Pieces, the way he genuinely said that...I would be lying if I wasn't a little moved by the confession.
"We're all the same." His queen spoke up next. "All of us are cast aways. Some of us have Human Heritage so our pillars are considered extinct, others were simply tossed aside due to other reasons. We all…..had no where else to go until Sairaorg came along and took us in."
There was a silent acknowledgement of that fact based on the looks they all had. I wasn't entirely familiar with Devil politics, but I knew that some of the pillar families were gone. I didn't know that some were 'gone' because they didn't want to recognize non-purebloods for whatever reason.
"I should have handled it better." Sairaorg confessed with a sigh. "I was just excited to come see you and didn't really think things through and now you probably hate me also. I just...when I heard the truth I couldn't help but remember when I was all alone with my mom and I didn't want another person of my family to suffer like that." And I barely knew him, yet I could tell he meant every word of it. "I saw you fight and stuff and you didn't look to be in bad shape. I guess at the very least…..I just wanted to come and see if you wanted to be friends…."
He wasn't really good with his words, it came off kinda awkward but the intent was what mattered. And I don't think he had a deceitful bone in his body. Which made it all the more annoying that he was tugging hard on certain heart strings of mine so easily.
"Old man Nurarihyon said to come over because the festival was starting in a couple days and I wanted to fight in the small tournament they do." He didn't have the same fire in his eyes that he had a few moments ago. "I'll...see you around I guess." He forced an awkward smile.
Gods dammit…
I let out another sigh knowing I folded so easily. "You got a Devil Phone?"
[***]
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No Chapter thursday/friday, got family stuff that came up.