Chapter 50: Dances and Songs
As Abium's shout raged, the soldiers around him suddenly got startled and became hesitant.
At that time, a booming voice from the roof of that fortress,
"Who is making trouble? Stop it right now!"
It echoed like a thunderbolt.
Meanwhile, Abium looked up, saw seven to eight people who stood over the edge of the roof, and appeared to be watching him.
At that moment, one of the guards stepped forward and announced.
"My Lord, an elf sneaked into our fort without permission. He is also shouting our young master's name,"
"Nicolaus! Go and look at what the commotion is about!"
The same booming voice came from the roof.
Abium thought that the voice must have belonged to Baron Tibbott.
After that, Abium and the soldiers around him stood in silence and waited.
A few seconds later, a young voice echoed as a figure walked through the stairs from the roof.
"What's the ruckus about?"
Those who stood at the place stepped out of their way, and a lean young man, around 18 years old, rushed through it. The young man looked at Abium and narrowed his black eyes.
He had long black hair, pale skin, an oval-shaped face, and thick eyebrows. He wore a neat red overcoat, black leather shoes, and a black leather cap covering only half of his head.
He was none other than Nicolaus.
"Have we met before?" Nicolaus came closer to Abium and asked in puzzlement.
"I am Navarre's elder brother, Thallan. My younger brother told me to help you solve the mysteries of a Maze." Abium lied without even flinching.
Meanwhile, Nicolaus's expression turned grim.
He stood there in silence for two seconds and finally heaved a deep sigh!
Then, he raised his hand, rubbed his temple, and nodded as he spoke.
"Oh, indeed! I completely forgot about that request. It's been two years since I told Navarre about this matter. But he told me that you are a reckless explorer and might bring me more trouble." He suddenly paused, looked at the running horses, and clicked his tongue.
"But can't you normally enter the fortress using my name?"
"I told them about my arrival, but they didn't listen to my words," Abium muttered casually and relaxed.
It might have looked more suspicious if Helena or other humans had accompanied him. Thankfully, he came here alone.
Elves wouldn't mingle with humans or any other race naturally.
Moreover, Thallan hated humans because of the frequent abduction of elven females and other young elves by the humans and enslaving them using slave collars.
After organizing his thoughts, Abium casually jumped down from the horse, gave the rope to the nearby soldier, and spoke.
"Navarre told me you lost something precious inside that Maze. So, I thought of visiting that Maze before going to the Wadel Kingdom." He deliberated for a moment, sheathed his sword, and added while yawning.
"Before that, I need to take a long rest."
On the other hand, Nicolaus made a forced smile and spoke to the soldiers.
"You guys can go back to your position! He is my guest."
Then, he grabbed Abium's hand and dragged him towards the gatehouse.
At the same time, Nicolaus thought of his best friend and cursed him in his mind.
'Navarre! Why didn't you send me a letter earlier about Thallan's arrival? I need to keep this crazy guy away from others. Otherwise, he will do reckless things and cause more troubles.'
Both soon arrived near a small gatehouse and moved deep into the Inner Fort.
At that moment, Abium also looked at the people in the inner yard and asked casually.
"Nicolaus, what is this banquet for? Why is there so much security here?"
Nicolaus felt chill all over his body!
He soon calmed down, stepped on the concrete path, and replied while glancing at Abium's face from time to time.
"Elder Brother, even if you know, it will not do any good. My father told me this was an important gathering that may change the Kingdom's future. Other than that, I also knew nothing. Also, stay away from those guests. We will talk about that Maze in detail later!" Nicolaus repeatedly informed him and escorted Abium to the inner fort.
Abium noticed many women chatting here and there when entering the main hall and appeared busy.
As they walked further, he saw Nicolaus's mom and greeted her.
He also saw a young girl hiding behind Nicolaus's mother and looking at him from time to time.
He gave her a curious look and thought it must be Nicolaus's younger sister.
Abium heard a lot about Nicolaus's sister from him in the past, but he was a little disappointed when looking at her upfront.
'In the past, she died during the demon's invasion. Let's see how things go in this future.'
While thinking, Abium looked around the main hall to see the mysterious girl in the red carriage but couldn't find her anywhere.
After that, both Abium and Nicolaus hurriedly moved towards the main hall's exit and tried to enter the gloomy hallway.
When two of them were about to step into the hallway, a woman's shout came from behind.
"Nicolaus!"
It was Nicolaus's mother.
Nicolaus looked back and hurriedly went inside while speaking,
"Wait for a while, Brother! I'll come back in a minute!"
On the other hand, Abium stood next to the tall wall and quietly observed the high-ceiling hall. He then looked at the beautiful candles that brightened the main hall from all directions, turned towards the left side, and soon zeroed his gaze on the portraits of a gorgeous lady.
The lady in the portrait appeared to be around 30 years old, had long wavy emerald hair, greenish eyes, a round face, and even had a mother-like aura.
She currently wore a dress made of natural leaves and held a blackish-gem embedded book in her hand.
'Mother Goddess!' He muttered.
After his rebirth, this was the first time he saw his favorite Goddess's portrait and quietly prayed in his mind.
At that moment, the voices of several women asking questions and Nicolaus's stuttering replies fell on his ears.
Abium thought that they were laughing and teasing him.
A few minutes later, Nicolaus ran away from the main hall, arrived closer to Abium, and said in a hurry,
"Come on, Brother! Let's go and look for a spare room!"
Abium nodded his head and stepped forward.
While they walked past the dining hall, Abium suddenly thought of something and spoke.
"This place looks so lively. I also heard the laughs and giggles earlier. Don't tell me they are laughing at me?"
Meanwhile, Nicolaus froze for a moment and soon shook his head.
"No. These ladies aren't laughing at you, Brother. Have you heard of Margrave Eliot? After all these years, that old man married a young beauty. He also brought her here to attend this banquet, but he locked her up in his room and didn't let anyone approach her. They are laughing about that!"
"Hey! I may not be from this Kingdom, but I read more about him in the Elven Library."
At that moment, Abium suddenly got curious about that young girl and asked.
"How long has it been since Eliot married this mysterious beauty?"
"It happened around two years ago. Many say that Margrave Eliot is always keeping her close after the marriage. Wherever he goes, he takes her along with him like some treasure. Maybe he thought she would run away. There has been some mock talk around the Kingdom about their relationship. I also want to see how beautiful she is!" Nicolaus said with a hint of excitement.
Abium suddenly found the story more interesting.
In the past, he also heard about this mysterious beauty and always got curious about her background.
Some said that she was a charming queen, while others said she was a princess from a neighboring country.
But no one knew her real identity except Margrave.
After Margrave got assassinated during the Grand Nobles' gathering, this mysterious beauty also disappeared from this Kingdom and never showed up again.
'Hmm, the girl in the red carriage is this mysterious beauty, huh.' He raised his eyebrows and then responded.
"That's not the reason, Nicolaus. Let me tell you the real reason. That girl is pure gold, so it caused jealousy among other women. That's why they mock Margrave to vent their frustration."
At that moment, Nicolaus suddenly looked at him with a surprised face and gave him a suspicious look.
"Why do I feel like you knew so much about that girl than others? Okay! Let's stop talking about that matter. We have to find a room for you sooner. I hope you promise me not to wander around, Brother."
Abium smiled back at him and nodded.
But just as he took another step in the hallway, he heard a musical rhythm from outside.
Drums, flutes, and other instruments sounded together.
"What music is this? Traditional one?" Abium subconsciously hummed while glancing at Nicolaus and asked curiously.
"I think the banquet is going to start. It's a tradition to play dance and other dramas before the banquet."
Abium suddenly recalled Hemarc's words about dances and dramas as he heard Nicolaus's response and soon grinned.
"I also want to see the function. I had never seen traditional dances and dramas of your Kingdom."
Although Nicolaus got stunned by his words, he didn't put much thought into it and agreed to his request.
Both moved a few meters on the hallway, made a left turn, and exited the Inner Fort through a small gate.
Soon, a stage appeared within their visions, and the congregation had also begun in front of the stage.
Surrounded by walls, the stage was laid out in the spacious courtyard, covered with white sand. Young women, handsome men, and even a few old-looking men stood near the stage and were in the middle of doing makeup. They also wore traditional dresses and even wore many ornaments on their hands, necks, and legs.
When all the chief guests arrived, they worshiped in the congregation and began to sing and dance.
Abium and Nicolaus slowly moved closer to the elevated podium, sat on the metal chairs, and started watching those dances and dramas. At that moment, many nearby territory nobles like barons, viscounts, counts, and their loyal knights, their wives,
children, young masters, and young ladies came from the inner fort, sat in the front and middle rows, and joined them. The first thirty minutes were full of folk dances and traditional songs. After that, the artists played dramas about wars, love, and history.
While the drama was going on, Margrave Eliot, Baron Tibbott, Viscount Raoul, and other important guests glanced at each other and made some hand signals.
Their eyes talked to one another without others noticing.
Suddenly, Baron Tibbott stood up from his seat and signaled the guard captain to finish the show.
The artists stopped their performance within a few minutes and ended the show.
The soldiers also told everyone to go back to the fort and started helping the artists pack their belongings.
Abium and Nicolaus frowned at this but didn't refute anything.
Slowly, the congregation dissolved in silence.
But somewhere outside, howling sounds suddenly echoed.
'Wolves?!'
Abium showed a startled look on his face and looked in the direction where the howls of wolves came from.
He soon noticed that a massive wall was blocking his eyes and sighed.
As he was about to turn his gaze, he noticed something odd on the wall.
At that moment, he saw that a human's head was placed on the fortress wall and looked eerier.
As he took a closer look at the particular, he realized that the face appeared more like a familiar one and soon widened his eyes.
It was none other than Hemarc's head!