Tomry followed Seth back to the camp, struggling to keep pace.
"Who was that woman Seth?" Asked Tomry.
"None of your food loving business." Seth's reply was cold and curt.
Tomry pressed his lips tighter and looked back trying to get a good look at Gretchen.
Then he turned to ask Seth again.
"C'mon now, don't be like that Seth. Was she a courtesan? Or an innkeeper's daughter?"
The fat boy didn't know when to shut up and his honesty had more dismerits than merit, and it has landed him into hot water more than once in the past.
Seth didn't answer the fat boy instead he asked a question.
"The whisperwinds arrived aye Tomry? Do you know why my Lord sent for me?"
Tomry's pale eyes moved nervously in a great round moon of a face, and his plump sweaty fingers wiped themselves on the velvet of his doublet.
"Yes the whisperwinds arrival was unexpected and there.. there have been some rumors that some of our peasant guards mistook them for bandits, leading to minor altercations."
The fat boy wiped the sweat off his forehead with a handkerchief he stored in his breast pocket.
Then he continued.
"Anyways… be careful, you know they might attack you considering you are a… you are different."
Seth nodded and bid him farewell.
It didn't take long for him to reach the camp outside the Onara's village.
There weren't enough inns in the small ramshackle of a village so some of the men camped outside.
There were slaves too and peasants as well.
He showed his insignia to the guards before entering the village, which was of course hustling and bustling with activities.
The small businesses in the village already had a hard time catering to the services of house Gideon but now that whisperwinds arrived, taking care of both hosts seemed impossible for the small settlement.
He passed by a group of Gideon squires. They gave him brief condescending stares before deciding to greet him half-heartedly.
Seth knew all their names and backgrounds.
They trained together when Sir Valar required him to gain experience in duels.
He laughed with them too, sometimes but not very often.
On the way to the capital, he used their company as an excuse to escape the main family.
There were almost twenty in the group he trained with, yet not one he could call a true friend.
Most were two or three years his senior, yet not one saw him as their friend. Why? because he was a Kaphanite.
Yes there was a silent prejudice they used while talking to him. Even in their jokes around him, there are as subtle mockery.
'To hell with them! I'm better than them, they couldn't beat me at anything. So they choose to mock my blood.'
Herkins possessed only half the fighting prowess Seth had at fourteen. Casti displayed agility but harbored a fear of being struck. Rye wielded his sword akin to a dagger, while Terek lacked strength, resembling that of a girl. Karr moved sluggishly and lacked finesse. Although Halkem's strikes were powerful, he often left himself vulnerable to counterattacks.
The more time he spent with them, the more Seth despised them.
So he never spent much time with them, only entertaining them with hollow laughter and false smiles.
He quickly walked past them and arrived at Onara's keep. A few security checkpoints and he was inside.
Onara's keep is one wide circular castle. The walls are one story high with small narrow windows.
He spotted a maid and a slave girl passing by and decided to speak.
"You… yes you. You are a maid right? Show me to my quarters. I need to freshen up before meeting My Lord father."
"Yes milord." She replied before sending the slave to carry out some orders.
Seth was taken to a small room upstairs where he found his belongings.
Inside, he hung sword and scabbard from a hook in the stone wall.
There was a bed with a straw mattress, a flimsy chest, and a tiny desk.
On the desk, there was a basin filled with water, a few strips of clean cloth and an oil lamp.
There was even a small round mirror made of polished bronze hung on the wall.
Methodically, he began to strip off his mail, leather, and sweat-soaked woollens. Chunks of coal burned in iron braziers at the end of the room.
He took off the leather cuirass, chainmail underneath and the rest of his clothing, before washing his face in the basin and changing into proper attire.
He wore a dark grey doublet embroidered with crimson towers and a black ketill pants.
He combed his hair as he stared at his reflection through the bronze mirror on the wall.
Washed and refreshed, he left the comfort of his room to attend to his Lord father, but not before contemplating carrying his sword and deciding against it.
The keep wasn't difficult to navigate and retracing the route he came from he made his way to the main hall.
On the way, he was careful to avoid any doors and corridors marked with the symbol of the a red sword in the middle of two white wings.
He had to keep a low profile and avoid trouble.
Finding the main hall was not hard, as many others were going there to partake in the feast the steward of the keep decided to throw to welcome the two prestigious houses.
Servants and slaves moved to and fro attending to guests, it was a real hub of activities.
Finally, he entered the main hall of the Keep, where long wooden tables were placed to accommodate the crowd of hungry and tired hosts.
Suddenly, hundreds of eyes turned to stare at Seth.
Feeling cold shivers running down his spine, he gulped. 'Crap.'
The main hall of the modest keep was grandiose and majestic in appearance.
'The original Lord that built this keep must have neglected the town.'
The gentle light of the tranquil moonlight was cascading through the tall windows and reflecting from the white marble walls. Rows of torches lined the walls filling it with a bright radiance.
At the far end of the hall, a set of stairs led to a dark alcove.
The back wall of the alcove had numerous small holes cut through it, and with moonlight shining through them into the deep darkness,
Beneath that light stood an elevated platform with a large table littered with all manner of food the cooks could produce.
Grey, white, crimson: the stone tower of the Gideons, Whisperwinds winged crimson sword. The banners of the respective houses.
There sat the main families of the Whisperwinds and Gideons.
Kit was there entertaining Meer with his theatrics, Pitrak sat trying to look as imposing as possible. Lord Karun and Lady Kaelith sat together towards the right end of the table, both dressed in beautiful grey attire, with crimson embroidery and ornaments.
Then there were the Whisperwinds. There was a relatively young man with long pale blonde hair, his face was as though sculpted by the gods and his ivory skin spotless and full of vigor and life.
He wore a heavy cloak with a fur collar, fastened with a winged sword brooch, hidden underneath was a white doublet and he had the effortless manner of a high lord.
'He should be Lord Damascus Whisperwind.'
The woman next to him sat like a regal ornament, she wore a frilly red dressed with gold embroidery, decorated in priceless ornaments and accessories.
'Lady Invis..'
Madame Irene had made him memorize the names and descriptions of all the members of the main families of all the venerable houses in the empire.
Lady invis had vibrant auburn hair, a beautiful heart shaped face and flawless pale skin. Her chilly blue eyes seemed to pick the faintest of movements.
Lord Damascus' golden pupils surveyed the great hall while listening to occasional chatter from his wife.
There were two other younger guests, a boy and a girl, both around the same age.
The boy was handful just like his father, having a chiselled face and the softer features of his mother. His blonde hair was shoulder length and his light blue eyes seemed ethereal.
Strangely enough just looking at the damn charming man got Seth a little peeved and annoyed.
But He was too beautiful to hate. He wore a deep crimson doublet studded with a rows of winged swords.
The woman besides him stood tall…. Stood? No she was sitting. It's just that she was so tall it seemed as though she was standing.
'Just how tall is she?'
She had deep crimson hair and fierce golden pupils. She had shallow burn scars on her skin, most noticeably on her face.
She wasn't as beautiful as one might expect from a highborn. She wore a heavy crimson cloak with fur collar fastened by a winged sword brooch.
'Sir Cleves and Lady Anne whisperwind, they are the children of lord whisperwind and Lady invis.'
A singer was playing the high harp and reciting a ballad, but down at this end of the hall his voice could scarcely be heard above the roar of the fire, the clangor of pewter plates and cups, and the low mutter of a hundred drunken conversations.
Seth stared at the high platform for a few moments, then lowered his gaze and glanced at the several hundred people that were looking at him.
Long wooden tables were placed along the length of the grand hall, with a motley crowd sitting on crude benches behind them, busy consuming their food and rejoicing in merriment.
There was some sort of hierarchy in how they were grouped. Currently, most of them were staring in his direction.
Seth gulped.
Then walked over to the elevated platform.