Who knew that a mere twelve words would alter the dynamics of a single situation? My best guess would be the man that uttered them. Mordred Blois, elder brother of the banquet's host, threw down the proverbial gauntlet right here in front of everyone. Not only was it a challenge, but It was also an opportunity.
"I think we'll pass, good sir.", I responded.
Mordred clearly hadn't expected my answer, and his serious demeanor was fractured. He was shocked, and his brother was completely outraged. No doubt my words would seem to be quite disrespectful, but that is exactly what I desired.
"You refuse?", Mordred asks. "And he speaks for the two of you as well?"
The blonde man shifted his eyes to my friends in order to seek their answer as well.
"What man in his right mind accepts a challenge from a guy that throws his tie?", Bonner responds with a question of his own.
"I am with the two of them on this decision. Ya'll dont get to challenge us after two of your goons ambushed me. I got my get back, and now I'm satisfied.", Q responds.
The man's actions reflected his answer. Unlike before, he relaxed his muscles and shifted his hands to the back of his head. He stretched, letting out an audible groan as he stretched.
"Very well. You may be on your way then.", Mordred responds, standing aside to allow us passage.
We had no reason to deny his offer and made our way towards the direction of Claire. Even as we approached, the woman had a glint of hesitation in her eyes. She appeared as if she was assessing the situation from a different perspective, but she would shake out of her trace when we arrived.
Considering that situation had become a powder keg, I imagined Claire had similar thoughts as myself. There was no need to prolong our exit.
After instructing us to follow, Claire turned around and began leading us away from the group. There was this different feeling about her now. She was a bit anxious now, but she didn't voice any complaints about our decision.
Percival began immediately voicing his disapproval and protesting to his elder sibling. His hand was placed on Mordred's arm and began shaking it in a pleading manner.
"Brother! Surely, you won't allow them to just walk away!"
"Calm yourself, Percival."
It was just as I expected. Percival was desperate for that duel even more so than his brother. It was worth denying his challenge in order to see him rage in that manner. Not only that, but the remaining goon of Percival seemed just as upset as his master. His fingers tightly clenched the empty scabbard on his waist.
It was incredibly difficult to hold back the laughter I wanted to do at that moment. It was just so perfect.
"Miss Clarice. This is your strength? These men?", Mordred asks.
My laughter will have to wait. Considering that Mordred had spoken directly to her, Clarie decided to stop right before we reached the door. Her action baffled me completely. Perhaps, she saw it disrespectful to leave Mordred's words unheard.
Since they were on similar statuses, then there could be some unwritten rule on etiquette within this region. Even if that was the case, there was a clear sense of provocation in Mordred's tone. She would turn to face the crowd of people, and there was a sense of hesitancy in her response.
"A low born… a halfling, and a foxkin…I can see why you deserted the Conscripted Forces! The whole lot of you are cowards! Cowards!", Percival screams at us.
The male had stepped in front of his brother and began pointing at us. His words boomed around the hall, catching all of those in attendance off guard. Even the old man seemed taken aback at the display of their young nobleman, who had become consumed in his raw emotions. Percival wanted us to accept that challenge so bad that he resorted to name calling in order to provoke us.
Unfortunately for him, we see him no different from any average squeaker in a first-person shooter. He's a person to laugh at and not to be taken seriously.
Though Claire was clearly of a different mindset. His words were like venom, and while we were immune, our patron was lacking the necessary antivenom. She flicked at his every claim in a way that I didn't expect from her. The life in her eyes shot around like grounded gunpowder in the wind, and even the smallest spark could set ablaze.
"Clarice von Angea! You are their leader! That makes you the biggest coward of them all!"
"Percival! That is enough!", Mordred demands, grabbing ahold of his brother's shoulders.
Even the smallest spark could set it ablaze.
Claire responded in a sudden hush tone, but thanks to my enhanced hearing, I could make out two words.
"We-We accept.."
The others who didn't possess my gift were thrown off by her hushed response. Yet, Bonner soon tapped me on my shoulder, and we shared a knowing look. Percival had made it personal with Claire, and it was obvious for those present that his words radiated with her. Her head was lowered, and the woman tightly clenched her dress in her fingers.
"What? The commander of cowards and rejects speaks! How low have the Angea fallen to bring in such trash in our presence?!"
His words kicked my ass in the side as well. Trash?! That wasn't just salt at the tip of his tongue. That was just potent disrespect! I wasn't going to let that slide easily, but Q beat me to the punch. The man stepped forward like a bat out of hell and pointed directly into the soul of Percival. His voice boomed as his anger took over.
"Aight, Motherfucka, game on!", he declares. "Clarice says we accept!"
His voice shook the room, and Percival flinched at his intensity. Even Claire's head shot up from his display. Her eyes widened as he clearly took a 180 in his decision. His words filled me with a flood of excitement, so much so that I just had to join him at his side.
"If it's a fight that you want, then asshole, you've come to the right place!", I proclaimed with vigor.
I joined my comrade at his side, and with a mighty toss, I threw Mordred back his tie and stared him directly in his eyes. I clenched my fist tightly as it hovered in front of me and above my waist. After my display, a voice deeper than the Mariana Trench blasted like a shotgun as another figure took my side.
"A place and time! Speak it!", Bonner orders. A slight jolt ran through my body when I felt the impact of my elven comrade's hand against the center of my back. His other hand pointed out towards our challengers, and he too shared that same vigor. That same competitiveness. "That it is..if you have the courage."
There was one thing that we all shared in common besides the time we've spent together. Although we three were fundamentally different, no self-respecting gamer would allow such disrespect to be slung on our names. It was amusing to see him rage now, but it will be even greater to completely crush them under our feet.
It was then that Claire popped in between the sides of Bonner and I and appeared like a meerkat. Her shorter figure stepped in front of us and held her arms stretched out in front of us.
"Yes- Master Morded. These are my men! They are my strength! Bring all the men that wish, and they will defeat them! The House of Angea accepts the challenge of the House of Blois!"
With our decision being revealed to all of those in attendance, Mordred seemed satisfied. The nobleman placed his hand on the shoulder of his brother. The action alongside our decision seemed to shape the younger brother's mood once again. The scowl that once plagued Percival's face was replaced with a smug one. This gave off a different sense of satisfaction in comparison to his elder brother.
"Two weeks.", Mordred says. "In two weeks' time, we will all meet in the training arena located at the Adventurer's Guild."
"Very well. We will see you then, and not a moment earlier.", Claire responds.
Despite her actions being full of hesitation before, I was able to notice a new vibe to her. It was as if she had found her resolve. I didn't think that it was possible for her to lose it, but then again, we barely knew much about her. Two weeks, and we will face the House of Blois in a duel, but for now, the four of us made our exit. That was the only real choice we had at that moment.
Claire had led the way out of the banquet hall. The moment the door closed behind us, there was a sigh that escaped her lips. The carpet below our feet ruffled as the man collapsed to her knees. It was an action that threw the three of us for a loop. Before we could even ask, Claire promptly returned to her feet. Her hands brushed off any dust that might have been on her outfit.
"Let's go. Do not draw any more attention to us.", Claire orders.
My eyes bounced from the perplexed faces of my comrades, and we all came under an agreement. We would heed her warning this time. Our route out of the parthenon was the same route as we entered. On this occasion, there was no hitch in our plan. Even as we passed the same sets of guards from earlier, we didn't do anything to antagonize them. Admittedly, I wanted to, but here I fought off the urge to do so.
It was not long after our exit from the banquet that we all managed to arrive at the inn that we resided in. Although Claire took us on this obscure route to the same location, it didn't really hamper our arrival time. Instead, before the lanterns on the streets had been fully lit, we arrived at the door of the inn. It was there that we heard Claire's voice.
Amongst the soft creaking of the front door, Claire says, "You three brought quite the trouble our way. I hope you know that."
Her words were followed by an audible sigh, and the soft thump of the door closing happened after. The building was dimly lit in comparison with before, and Claire led us back to the den from before. The woman was quite troubled from the looks of it. Her normal devious nature was shrouded with indecision.
Briefly, her hands went up, and her fingertips gestured across the room.
"Hah- God of nature, I beseech thee to conjure a ball of light to illuminate my targets; Illumination."
With those words uttered, the once dimly lit den was brought into the light. Several fixtures resting on the wall were now sharing its light with us. It was obvious that Claire had now cast a magic spell. Those words were no doubt an incantation, but I had noticed something. As she sat down in her seat, those familiar green ripples radiated from her body. Her true form laid bare.
'There was no incantation for her transformation. It merely happened likely on her command. Now that I think about it, she has had that spell off and on for hours on end. That would take tremendous magical power, or the spell doesn't cost her much. I mean, she has been able to elude detection from the likes of Mordred for weeks now. Perhaps Claire is a magical talent..'
She flipped her golden hair, and her face was ripe with discontent.
"Trouble? If that's that big of a deal, then refuse the challenge.", Bonner says.
The elven male had followed far behind the rest of the party for most of the journey. When it was time for the four of us to take our seats on the couches, Bonner opted to lean against the wall on the far side. He positioned himself so that our patron could look his way when he spoke.
I would take my place on the couch across from the tense woman. The couch was actually softer than I imagined with my body weight sinking slightly in the spot. I sprawled my arms against the back of it.
"We can not do that now. It is too late.", Claire says.
Q, on the other hand, actually propped himself on the arm of the couch. He could barely fit his frame on it, but he made it work. His arms were crossed, mirroring the position of Bonner. Unlike our stoic comrade, Q had a look of curiosity on his face. No doubt, he was like me. He wanted to know what she meant by that.
"Then what's the point of acting all depressed? We'll just hand them their asses.", Q says, raising his eyebrow.
"I second that. From what I have seen, things should be manageable.", I add in.
Claire immediately snapped her attention to me. Her eyes seemed to be scolding me coldly.
"You do not realize the attention that you have brought upon yourself tonight. Mordred Blois is a determined man. He will find out that you have lied about your connection with the Conscripted Forces. I do not know why you decided to drop your act, but antagonizing Percival was not the ideal play.", Claire says.
"No, it was.", I responded.
The woman seemed perplexed by my words. It was clear to me that she viewed my actions as a disaster. I saw them as progress.
"Allow me to ask you a question, Claire.", I started off. My body leaned forward with my wrists resting on my thighs. "Who stands to gain from the disappearance of your mother?"
Claire seemed to hesitate in her response. Yet, I could sense the gears in her mind, turning as she prepared to answer my question.
"The Blois.", Bonner says. His frank voice cut through the brewing silence.
Q voiced an audible hum as confirmation at Bonner's words. His head nodded as well. Claire seemed to not buy what we were selling at the moment.
"It is unwise to point fingers at the Blois. It would be easy to do so. The Blois have worked side by side with my family for centuries now. We both aim to protect Astana from threats of all kinds. Why would they suddenly throw away our friendship?", Claire asks.
"How many influential families are at the helm of Astana's politics?", I ask in response.
"Well, there are five major families here in Astana. Each with members that have excelled in one or more facets in our society."
"I'm guessin' that the Angea and the Blois reside at the top, correct?"
Claire nodded in confirmation at my words, but it appeared that my accusations were falling on deaf ears at the moment. She genuinely believed that the Blois were not responsible. Q was the next to chip in. The man would lean forward as well.
"You've been here for weeks, right? You got any leads?", he asks.
Claire didn't offer an immediate response. Her silence spoke volumes to those present.
"I have not found anything substantial yet. There are two many eyes on me whenever I exit this place. So, I only had the time to exit when I met with Mordred on official inquiries or when I left the city.", She explains.
If she was that busy, then it is likely that she was not that far into her own personal investigation.
"Right. Right. Claire…You told us that you were ambushed, correct?", Q asks.
"We were. The men there were calling for the destruction of my family. They were stated to be bandits with no known allegiances." , Claire responds.
I looked at the face of the woman to see if she was joking when she said that. It was clear to me that she was serious. It was not that she was too busy for her investigation. It was the fact that she was blind to a pathway.
"Bandits with no affiliation? What a coincidence.", Bonner scoffs.
"I'm willing to bet that it was supposed to be a secret, so I'm also willing to bet that those men were more like mercenaries. You know what mercenaries like, Claire?"
"What are you getting at? Mercenaries desire coin above all else, excluding their very lives.", Claire answers. Her face muddled with confusion.
"Men that call for the destruction of your family indicate to us that they had an agenda. That much is clear. What isn't clear is how they found the path that ya'll were taking. There are two options here. Those people stumbled across the right path and attacked or…it was an inside job. Two options.", Q elaborates.
The man had pushed off of the place he sat on. His hands now rested firmly on his waist as he stretched his body. Claire seemed to reflect on the man's words. I had believed that perhaps a breakthrough was evident. I was wrong. A hint of stubbornness appeared in her eyes as she shook her head in disagreement.
"I could be… I actually think so as well, but.. I do not believe that Blois would do such a thing. It is.. Not in their nature.", Claire says.
That was quite the odd thing to say, but it stood out to me. I wonder what she meant by that. Despite their potential involvement, Claire was adamant that they were not involved. She wants to protect Astana, and based on what I am hearing, the House of the Blois does the same thing. Loyalty is all that I could think of. Even now, Claire views them on the same goal. That is probably why she invoked her mother's name earlier at the gate.
"How long have you known, Mordred?", I asked her.
"I have known him for a majority of my life now. We have been aware of each other due to our familial standings, and we were even classmates at the Hall of Mages at a point. He has helped me a lot. Although the others were skeptical of my arrival as Clarice, Mordred has still assisted me."
My eyes drifted to Q and to Bonner. It was clear to us what was going on here. My glasses began sliding down my snout, but my attentive finger pushed them back up by its bridge. I was halfway uncertain, but I saw this as no time to address it tonight.
"You mentioned earlier that the tiny woman had been assigned to..High Mage was it?"
His question was directed towards his fellow elf. The elven male had begun making his way to stand next to Q's side. The contents of his question immediately sparked my interest. There was an individual that fit that description at the banquet. She was there at the table with Mordred when we had arrived.
"Yes. Acelina Cofers is her name. Much like Mordred and myself, Acelina was a classmate of ours with immense talent. I was surprised when I learned that she had been selected to occupy that position. After the sudden disappearance of the previous one, there was a vacancy.", she answers. "It was not long after the coronation of Mordred as Commander of the Astana Guards."
Now that is quite the convenient timing if you were to ask me. From what I could tell, Mordred has now surrounded himself with another influential member in Astana's society. Not to mention that he himself has ascended to a position of extreme importance. The more I hear, the clearer it is to me who the trail is led towards. Although it isn't really concrete evidence, there is substantial motive.
"Oh yeah. I think I've absorbed enough information for tonight. We have had a long and rather eventful day, so I think I earned a nice bath before bed. There is a bath here, right? An indoor bath, I hope.", Q says.
"Hm- There is. Fortunately for us, there are several indoor bathing areas within this specific inn. There are two on this floor and two upstairs.", Claire responds.
I was actually surprised by her answer. This world has progressed to the point that indoor plumbing was a thing. It is convenient for us now, but I guess I won't be able to check that off my Isekai bingo list. My two comrades had decided to leave earlier than I anticipated. I could hear their brief chattering as they walked up the staircase. That left only myself and Claire, who had just started to make her exit as well.
"Claire. Could you reach out to Horace for me. I will likely wake up late, so could you ask him to fetch a book for me?"
At the sound of my question, Claire would stop in her position at the doorway. She seemed to be interested in my final words, so I was quick to ask before she gave a proper response.
"I would like for him to bring me the texts of Cyto. In whatever form they may take. The more, the better."