Chapter 57 - Shackled Feather

Nearly every adult had gathered around in the cellar, drawn in by their curiosity for the captured harpy. The children were forbidden to gaze upon the harpy as the harpy was quite vulgar —almost completely nude—her body covered in nothing more than a few patches of soft feathers on her most private parts such as nipples and genital area.Aden noticed some kids trying to peek, only to be stopped by their parents' hands— It was almost comical. After all, those same children had already seen the winged women when they had ransacked the village. To think that their parents felt the need to shield them from something like this seemed almost ironic.The children were pleading with their parents to let them have a glance. Only little Jasmine remained uninterested—the only one who didn't attempt to peek.As Aden stood there, he suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to find Martin behind him. The mute gestured for Aden to step aside so he could get a better view of the harpy."Ooh," Martin's jaw dropped to be able to see a harpy this close without fear of getting gutted."Beautiful creatures aren't they?" Gilbert was astonished as he looked into the dark-skinned harpy."Yes, beauty—" Aden spoke, "yet deadly."The harpy glanced at Aden and then she looked around not in focus.Gilbert waved his quill in front of her face, trying to get the harpy's attention. The harpy kept looking around."Is she blind?" Gilbert asked.Marcus scoffed, "She?"Marcus seemed to not like the idea of identifying the harpy as people."Do you want to name her too, Neckbeard?" He mocked."No, I don't—" Gilbert stammered.Marcus menacingly closed at Gilbert. "I give you free advice, once you attached to them that's the part where you growling on the ground with your belly gutted by them wildlings."Gilbert stared down. He let out a sigh, "I just want to know whether they have a blind night or not.""Harpy was barely able to see when dusk came, they have nyctalopia—a night blindness. a condition which they could barely see in the night." Old man Jed butts in to clear the air. He explained. He appeared as if out of thin air."Like a human?" Gilbert asked."Aye, you got it right Neckbeard, some humans have night blind conditions if they grew up malnourished." Old man Jed followed up."Don't they have the ability to see objects when they were flying?" Gilbert brought up some info he read in his compendium."You mean resonance?" Old man Jedd cleared his throat, "Even with resonance, they are barely able to fly at night. Their resonance was not as powerful as bats."The old man explained about the harpies' abilities and conditions.The harpies' beauty was not their main weapon—it was their resonance. Their ability to utilize their voice. Their voice could sway the oblivious people, resonate with their souls, and lead them to their doom. Their voice could also utilized to talk with Mother Earth, an ability to see with sound.Gilbert's eyes widened—Amazed with the new knowledge he never read in any of the books or compendium about the wildlings."So, that's why they always cease fighting and rush to collect their kind's dead body before dusk." He murmured."Fascinating." Gilbert declared. "I need to write this down— I have to write this down."He rushed to the nearest table for his scribing bag, took out his scribing utensils, and wrote down the valuable knowledge he just got from the old pervert.All the people in the cellar listen to the old man attentively. Men, women, and even kids who peeked from their parents' side were astonished by the old man—as if they were hypnotized. They look forward to every each of information from the old man's head. every piece of information about the harpies is more interesting than what he just said before. The old man knew how to keep them engaged."Hey Ruhimi, look!" Ethan whispered to Aden, "It seems Victor got a new competition."Aden looked around to the face of the people in the cellar—then to the old pervert. Aden chuckled, he couldn't believe the fact that he was also swayed by the old man. The old pervert may be a deprived degenerate but he could surprise anyone with his deep knowledge about the harpies."How in the heaven you know so much about harpies, old man?" Aden asked in disbelief."What?" Old man Jedd asked Aden. "an old man can't have knowledge about harpies?"The old man smirked. he thought he was the smartest man in the whole realm. He didn't even bother to answer Aden's question.Aden contemplated. it must have been the old man's fetish, he was deeply sexually obsessed with the harpy. That's the only thought Aden could've come up with.Everything made sense now, the dangerous mission, his depravity, to the point he joined this mission, everything is just him trying to get himself to the harpies."You degenerate, old man," Aden contempted at the depraved hwacha specialist."Tee hee," The Old Man giggled like a young girl and smirked with degenerate face. Dwelled in his moment of victory—Indulged in the attention of the people around him.The old man's eyes sparkled with a sense of triumph, his usual unkempt appearance forgotten as he basked in the newfound respect of those who once dismissed him as a mere lewd eccentric. The very villagers who had regarded him with disgust now looked upon him as a sage, a keeper of ancient knowledge."She is secured, isn't she?" the old man inquired, his gaze fixed upon the harpy's cage."Yes, we used harpy shackles on both her wings and legs," Marcus affirmed, his voice tinged with a hint of reluctant admiration.The old man's attention shifted to Captain Willem, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Hey, captain.""Huh?" Willem responded, his tone guarded."Give me the key," the old man demanded, extending his hand expectantly.Captain Willem hesitated. "Why?"Without waiting for a response, the old man approached the cage, his movements exaggerated as he attempted to communicate with the harpy through a series of lewd gestures."You. Me. Fuck," he declared, his words cutting through the tense silence.Ha! I knew it! Aden couldn't help but roll his eyes, his thoughts echoing with a sardonic refrain.The harpy responded with a vicious hiss, lunging forward only to be yanked back by the shackles that bound her."Look at you, old man," Aden sneered, his lips curling into a mocking smile. "Even the harpy rejected you."A chorus of laughter erupted around them, and the brief moment of reverence shattered as the villagers once again regarded the old man with disdain."Tsk," the old man sulked, his shoulders slumping as the fleeting taste of victory dissipated, leaving him to confront the harsh reality that his triumph had been all too brief.Aden found himself grudgingly admiring the old man's persistence, as twisted as it may have been. His depravity knew no bounds, relentlessly pursuing his desires with a single-minded determination that was almost admirable, if not for the disturbing nature of those desires.Fortunately, the captain had not relinquished the key, denying the old man the opportunity to indulge his depraved impulses."Okay, everyone back to your quarters. The show is over," Captain Willem announced, his voice carrying a note of finality that brooked no argument.The Recon knights sprang into action, dispersing the crowd with firm but respectful gestures, their presence a reminder of the authority they wielded.As the villagers began to disperse, murmuring amongst themselves, Aden's gaze lingered on the harpy's cage. The once defiant creature now seemed hollow, her eyes devoid of hope, defeated. The fire that had burned so fiercely within her appeared to have been extinguished, leaving only a shell of the fearsome being she had once been.The old man, deflated and sullen, shuffled away, his shoulders slumped in defeat – for now. Aden had no illusions that this would be the end of his twisted obsession.As the cellar emptied, leaving only the knights and their captive, a heavy silence descended upon them, punctuated by the occasional scrape of the harpy's talons against the iron bars – a sound that now carried a note of resignation, rather than defiance.Aden couldn't shake the sense of unease that settled over him, a nagging feeling that they had merely delayed the inevitable. The old man's confession had laid bare the depths of his depravity, and who knew what lengths he might go to in pursuit of his twisted desires?As he turned to leave, Aden cast one final glance at the harpy, her once blazing eyes now dull and lifeless, as if she had lost all hope. In that moment, he couldn't help but wonder if they had truly tamed the beast, or if they had merely broken its spirit, leaving a hollow husk in its wake – a fate that seemed almost crueler than any retribution she could have unleashed upon them.⁕⁕⁕When The villagers went back to their place. Marcus stayed to watch over his prized capture.Aden ate his dinner by the dining hall with the Regalyon knights, Hjalmar, and Kazama. A mini war council at the dining hall while having dinner. He didn't see Laura who usually served him meals. It was Indry's maiden who served him.Ser Cedric was left to guard the rooftop as lookouts with the Old man Jedd.The knights were talking about what they gonna do with the captured harpy before they handed it over to the smuggler gang. Captain Willem already suggested putting her on the rooftop inside the cage and holding her hostage.Aden remembered little Jasmine who wasn't interested in the captured harpy. the reason must've been the girl had been seeing or meeting with the harpy she was talking about. As farfetched as it seemed, Aden couldn't help but entertain the possibility that there existed a harpy who harbored no ill will towards humans, one who had shown compassion to the young girl in her time of need.His gaze settled on Captain Willem, and Aden straightened his posture. "Ser Willem, permission to speak?"The captain regarded him with a guarded expression. "What is it, Aden?"Aden took a deep breath, gathering his thoughts. "Remember when Kazama and I rescued Indry's daughter?"A flicker of recognition crossed the captain's face. "Ah yes, I remember.""From little Jasmine's testimony, she said that a harpy helped her by hiding her inside a wardrobe in her chamber. The harpy later lured away the other harpies who followed Jasmine to her mansion," Aden explained, carefully omitting the details of the bat creature for the time being."When we came and picked her up, the harpies were already gone. If only the said harpy didn't hide her and lured the other harpies away, maybe we would have had to fight our way up to her room – I don't know if we could have come back alive."Captain Willem stared straight at Aden as he processed Aden's words. "And? What's your point?"Aden steeled himself, his voice carrying a note of cautious optimism. "I think we could reason with them. Don't you think we can have some kind of parley with the harpies? Like a truce or armistice?"The captain's expression remained inscrutable, but Aden could sense the weight of his words hanging in the air. At that moment, the fate of their conflict with the harpies seemed to teeter on a knife's edge, balanced precariously between the prospect of further violence and the glimmer of hope for a peaceful resolution.As the silence stretched on, the air thick with tension, Aden couldn't help but wonder if his words had fallen on deaf ears or if they might just have ignited a spark of possibility – a chance to bridge the divide between their worlds and stop the ongoing bloodshed."It's a child talk. Children love making up things in their heads, especially when they are heavily distressed. even if it was true, diplomatic action with wildlings is unwise." Captain Willem brushed off Aden's idea."The empire's last diplomatic action involving wildlings was about fifteen years ago with the orcs —it didn't end well," Ser Percival chimed in."Hmph," Ser Gareth agreed with Ser Percival, he seemed like he had something to say —yet, he kept digging his meal. The huge knight put down his fork. swallowed his food, drank his wine, and was ready to talk."There is reason why people call them wildlings." Ser Gareth said. "They have very low authority in their groups."He drank another sip of wine. "today their leader is Carl, tomorrow is Bob, we can't make a deal with Carl and expect Bob to honor the deal.""Words," Hjalmar confirmed.Captain Willem, "Of course making diplomatic contact is one of the options, but not today's option. after the winter passed, we may have to consider your idea."All the men at the dining hall finished their meal, they went back to their posts or their resting corners.As the mini-war council disbanded for the evening, Aden approached Captain Willem once again about his idea to slaughter the horses for emergency rations if provisions truly were becoming scarce."Captain, a moment? I have another matter to discuss," Aden said respectfully. "It's regarding our food stocks."Willem eyed him intently. "Go on.""In my cavalry days, when supplies ran low, we would butcher our mounts to sustain the men," Aden explained. "One horse could provide enough meat for several days' rations if portioned out carefully among the village."The captain stroked his chin, considering this. "A grim prospect, but you may have a point. How does the village fare in that regard?""I've only heard rumors, but it seems our stores took a heavy toll from the harpy raids upon our arrival," Aden said grimly. "If the whispers prove true, drastic measures may be required before long."Willem let out a weary sigh. "Aye, I've feared as much myself. Very well, I'll make preparations just in case, but pray it doesn't come to that butchery."The Captain stood up from his seat and fixed his gear. "Now, sleep early! you need your strength tomorrow. The battle isn't over yet.""Yes, ser," Aden answered. He already used to refer to Ser Willem as his superior.Aden made his way from the dining hall to the front yard where the men would sleep through the night—in the tents behind the barricade. He looked around, seeing men lounging and taking a break. He glanced to the rooftop, the tinkering of old hands on siege weapons had ceased, as had those of the smugglers' gang who were tasked to help the old man.The labor was over—yet, Aden didn't feel tired.⁕⁕⁕