As the group reconvened on the location of Bonner and Claire on their respective couches, Q and I merely stood at each end of the table near the two of them. Whilst his arms were crossed on his chest, my arms resided behind my back. My fingers admired the admittedly fluffy fur that safeguarded my tail. A tail that I had quickly grown fond of as if I had had it my entire life when in actuality, I merely had it for a few hours at best.
It has been an eventful first day in this world, but I had this nagging feeling in my gut that things were going to pick up drastically. While on the run from our encounter with Vanya and her men, we managed to meet the woman sitting before me at the Gate of Astana. Her elegant gaze hid no doubt the fierceness of a wild animal masterminded by an observant woman. With a single conversation, she was able to talk us into joining her cause.
From my understanding, Claire or Clarice Von Angea was a woman that sought both vengeance for her circumstance and voiced a desire to aid her countrymen as she viewed them in danger by some unknown entity working in the shadows.
Frankly, I am not a huge fan of entities that manage to lurk in shadows as cunning and manipulative monsters are one of the most dangerous types of monster. I would rather face down another Lynx rather than trade wits with some nefarious being that wronged Claire in her past. While I did not care much about Astana, I saw merit in aligning ourselves with Claire if not for the short term.
Since meeting with her in secret and learning the truth of her identity, an identity that she somehow hid from those around her, we somehow managed to encounter a no doubt dangerous foe within the Golden Manor of Astana.
The foe is the pompous, blonde prick bestowed with the name of Percival Blois. Percival is a hoity-toity, blonde bastard with a skill to run his mouth off, but not only that he is also sadistic towards those underneath him from the looks of it. While straightforward assholes are easier to deal with, the distinctive smell of his elder brother made an indent on my brain. You can even say that Mordred Blois lives in my head rent-free for now. Everything about that man seemed off to me, but I will credit him for his cunning.
It took me a moment at the time, but I could not reason why Mordred would enlighten strangers as ourselves to finer details of the problem with Astana and its heads of state. I could understand the reason for informing the person that he knows as Clarice, but the three of us should not be privy to knowing it. That was when it hit when I glossed over Claire's body posture at key moments during that conversation.
My hypothesis now is that Mordred told us in order to attempt to entrap Claire, and essentially use us as hostages to force her silence. Yet, things further became more complicated at the arrival of Arch Captain Vanya Silvers. The way she gazed at me, I imagined that a fight would break out right then and there. Whether we could win that fight in those circumstances is debatable.
Though in that moment I would thank the lord that Percival decided to run interference on our behalf to brazenly invite-no, order us all to attend a banquet that he was holding tonight. It was likely to celebrate his men and their last victory in Theoscyran, but I had new real desires to attend. That was until Bonner provoked me.
"Master Percival would likely be anticipating our arrival within a few hours following sunset.", Claire informed us.
From my limited understanding of how this world seemed to operate on a relative schedule with that of Earth, I assume that would be better understood as more days go on. I don't recall hearing that clown labeling a time for the start of that banquet, so I was left assuming that there was some custom that I wasn't privy to at the time.
"What is customary to wear at such an event? I am going to assume that what we are wearing would not be ideal.", Bonner states, matter-of-factly.
"Horace was sent to deal with that on your behalf while we were attending that meeting with Masters Mordred and Percival. He should be arriving with the uniform that I had planned for the event."
I couldn't help but spare a sharp gaze towards the woman as she spoke to us. Picking up on my expression, Claire would once again open her mouth.
"Curious about how we know your clothing sizes, Sir Shakey Tail?"
"I would prefer that you would not call me that. Especially in front of other breathing individuals, but I am curious about how you managed to gather our exact measurements to have a uniform made for us. We had met today after all. I feel like you are full of it."
It seemed my words seemed to amuse the female, but it seemed the other two men shared my curiosity as well. They essentially leaned closer, waiting to learn how she managed such a feat.
"Horace has quite the perceptive eye. Detailing your exact measurements on sight alone is the very least my retainer could do. He is a man of many talents, and I am quite fortunate to have him on my side."
"Nah…No way-, but that might not be the craziest thing that we'll encounter here.", Q says promptly.
His voice showcased his disbelief, but as his eyes bounced from me to Bonner, then one could understand his mindset. He would finish his thoughts after a moment of reflection.
"That old man could tell our exact body measurements after looking at us. That shit is crazy, not gonna lie. Sounds almost fake, but-"
"We reside in a world of magic. I highly doubt that anything is off the table. Be prepared. Things will be quite lively going forward.", Bonner declares.
"Agreed. There are still some things that we should get a grasp on while we go through these next few days. Magic for one. Just having magic like what Claire has is already infinitely better than being without it, there doesn't seem to be much more than we can do, ya know. What we got right now might be strong, but that shit doesn't matter if we come across a more experienced person with a similar power set. Hell, we might encounter that type of thing at Percival's banquet.", Q states.
"We will have to be on guard. I don't trust Percival after that little display that he performed earlier. That man appears to be one with a mind that changes on a dime."
"Not to mention that both Arch Captains could be in attendance as well. I don't know about you, gentlemen, but I would prefer not to encounter Vanya again. It appears to be on sight with her.", I say, adding along to Bonner's statement.
My words must have caught Claire's attention as I felt them land on me following my own statement. She has been quite curious about the matter ever since we encountered each other at the gate, and it is possible that our meeting with the upper echelon further piqued it.
"If you do not mind, would you explain to me what happened during "The Disturbance" outside the gate?", Claire questioned us.
The eyes of my comrades were then placed upon me in order to properly author the story that transpired. Therefore, the gears in my mind began to turn.
"Alright, I suppose I shall start with the beginning. As you may know, the three of us do not know how to properly access the magic arts within this world yet, but we are bestowed with certain superhuman quirks. Some overlap, but from our knowledge they are unique to one another. On our way towards Astana, we decided at my suggestion that we should test out our abilities. Unbeknownst to us at the time, Q was more destructive than we had anticipated at the time. As a result, his test yielded what you seem to refer to as "The Disturbance".", I started.
"So that event was not the product of Bonner's magical display?"
"It wasn't. Frankly, the only thing that is going for me right now is my mind, and my echo hearing as you called it. Whether or not my strength is greater than your average man's is unknown since I didn't get the chance to try it. Vanya and her men arrived a little after that. That brought about-"
"The confrontation.", I say finishing Bonner's statement for the male.
"While we had originally planned to just scatter in the forest to hide, Vanya and her goons appeared before us faster than we anticipated. Mark was careless and got himself caught."
I would take offense to the claims of Bonner as soon as he uttered it. It was utter nonsense to accuse me of being careless when the truth was far from it.
"That wasn't the case in the slightest. Had I known that Vanya had echo hearing as well, then I would not have moved even an inch."
Claire didn't seem to be surprised at the fact that Vanya had echo hearing, so it must be common knowledge within her circles. Well, she is a member of the upper echelon within the Astanaian system due to her status of Arch Captain, so many of her abilities should be well known by those that she serves. Reflecting on the events of the day, I soon began compartmentalizing things that I figured would take priority in our immediate future.
Although we could expect to be paid by Claire based on our verbal agreement, a glaring issue would likely present itself to us in the future. I couldn't prevent myself from just analyzing the demeanor of the elven woman. While she did say that many of the people in this world equate people in race to that of demons, I began to wonder what her true thoughts were on the matter.
Sitting before me, she was rather composed and elegant despite bringing up such a bombshell in my eyes. In the end, I would likely agree with her advice on keeping that information on a need-to-know basis. It is already quite arduous to be treated based on merely looking like a fox demi-human. If the people in power in this world know that I am actually a Kitsune, then they might do something as crazy as going out of their way to try to defeat me.
"No-", I say, breaking our silence.
The eyes of my comrades soon returned to me and they seemed quite confused at my suddenness. I had become lost in thought during Bonner and Q's retelling of the events at the gate, so my speaking likely threw them for a loop momentarily.
"Apologies, Gents. I believe that Vanya is going to prove to be an issue for us in the future. That is if we continue to cross paths with her.", I bring to their attention.
"Arch-Captain Vanya Silvers is an incredibly busy person, and I do not think the three of you will take much precedence in her mind after a few days.", Claire responds.
While her words would normally ring true in her mind, I shared a different opinion on the matter. Claire likely did not notice the reactions of the woman towards me in both of our encounters. She likely was just saying that in an attempt to console me, but I remained unconvinced by it.
Assuming that her words had little effect on my morale, Claire would stand up and then approach me. Her hand extended and found itself spread across the leather guard protecting my heart. Her stance was gentle as if she were attempting to calm me down even though I wasn't that riled up in the first place.
"You shouldn't overthink things, Sir Shakey Tail. Vanya might be a tenacious woman, but something big would likely pull her attention away from you guys. You might be my muscle, but you can count on me to protect you as well."
I couldn't help, but laugh at her slyly sneaking in that god awful nickname alongside her soft tone. Perhaps, she had been correct about me overthinking things. It would be the height of arrogance to believe that this person would just go out of her way. After all, I am likely just another foxkin in her eyes. No- I will have to play that role instead believing myself to be some type of main character in an Isekai.
"Let's just assume that you are correct since you know her better. I will forfeit the role of main character for the time being, and showcase myself as your below average foxkin.
Only while it is convenient for us though."
From my position within the building, I could hear a sudden rattle of a doorknob transpire from another room. From that door open, footsteps followed suit and ultimately the figure entered the room with the rest of us. While Claire was completely undisturbed by that fact, I would recognize the familiar old barkeep that we met earlier in the day. His figure stood firm as the elder presented a warm smile towards the collective. That man would be horace donning the same suit as earlier, but now he carried a large briefcase with him. It was then that his body arched into a brief bow before his superior after placing the briefcase onto the floor.
"Lady Claire, things are taken care of as instructed.", he informs her in a dry tone.
His words brought me back to the muted conversation that they had earlier in that day. While I couldn't pick it up at that time, Claire recently informed us that she had sent Horace to collect the uniforms that she desired us to wear for Percival's Banquet. Logic dictates that locked within that briefcase was the item that she spoke of.
"Nicely done Horace. I appreciate your work as always. Would you mind taking these gentlemen to their chambers for the time being. Seeing that sunset has now occurred, I believe that we should be making our arrival to the Banquet soon. Master Percival will undoubtedly see our absence as disrespectful."
Almost on cue, Claire would stand up from her position on the couch and side eye me. Standing aside, I allowed the elven woman to pass me as she made her way towards her desired position at the room's door.
"Oh. I would recommend that you try not to interact with anyone that is too important looking, Sir Shakey Tail. Considering that a lot of people will be there that fit that category, then that means remaining vigilant. I nearly forgot to mention that the people that were tailing earlier would likely make an appearance as well. While I do not know what they look like, I suggest being careful with who you choose to interact with."
I would simply nod my head to the requests- no orders of the elven woman. Although this is merely temporary, Claire is still my superior in a way, and knows more in this situation. As long as things do not go in unexpected territory, then I can adhere to that order. Her eyes bounced from the three men of our group before nodding to Horace. The man would bow before stepping forward into the room.
"We will reconvene within the hour, so be prepared for that time."
"Just leave it to us.", Q responds to the woman in which she nodded as her response.
Upon receiving verbal confirmation of our next course of action, Claire would simply exit the room and disappear beyond the doorway. That just leaves Horace here as our guide for the moment. The man didn't offer much words, then and instead turned to face the doorway that he had entered mere moments ago. Taking that as his cue to follow us, I was the first one in line and Q, then the sitting Bonner joined us in line.
On the other side of the doorway was indeed a hallway as I anticipated, it was more spacious than I thought. Though in comparison the length of the walkway was not as long. It took about two minutes to get from our location in the living room to a staircase tucked away into the wall. It led upstairs on this occasion and I watched the older man effortlessly reposition the briefcase before advancing up the stairs. On our way over here, Q had offered to carry it for the man, but he merely thanked him for the offer when he declined. Although he wasn't that talkative, Horace explained to us the contents of the briefcase and its importance.
He had also mentioned that he will not be attending the event with us as Claire instructed him to take care of something else during the meantime. It was not long before we reached the second level of the building and was met by the sight of several doors up here. Apparently this building used to serve as an inn before the previous owner was met with suspicious circumstances, and Claire took ownership.
"You may choose whatever room that takes your liking. As retainers of Lady Claire, she has decided that you get your pick at the best that we currently have to offer."
That was quite considerate of her if I am being honest, but that's likely to be expected. If she really did want our loyalty, then it is only natural that she treats us well. The three of us separated, moving up and down the hall to choose a door, and subsequent room behind it. It was the luck of the draw here, but in a way it was exciting. This place will serve as the main camp of our adventures. I couldn't prevent myself from laughing at the thought of it. The cold metal touched my skin and I could feel my tail swaying to showcase my high spirits.
"Alright… Let's see what this place looks like.-"