Chapter 54 - Vampyres (3)

[294 Days Remaining]

“Tell me, Verath, is this white-hair of yours natural?” Lady Iona Serle asked, her voice soft, but firm, indicating that it was by no means a question, but more of a command.

“I was born this way, my lady.”

“Please. Call me Iona. There is no need for titles here,” she said, locking an arm around my own. The action brought us so close together that I could feel her large and shapely bosom on my right arm. Her long, silky jet-black hair brushed the side of my black garments.

I ignored the soft sensation as we walked among the garden located at the Second Manor House. I was a little surprised at her forwardness; it was close to being scandalous for a highborn noble lady.

I could also observe a shadowy figure following us surreptitiously, always behind a set distance. Were it not for my vigilance and sharp reflexes, I would have missed that shadowy figure quite easily. I paid the follower no mind though, figuring that it must have been one of her protectors or someone akin to that.

“Very well, Iona,” I replied in a stoic voice. “And might I ask you a question?”

“You may, Verath. But as to whether I will answer it, we shall see.”

I decided to be blunt since subtly asking for what I had in mind would only alert her sharp mind. “Do you know of a merchant named Falin Mead?” I ventured.

She paused for a moment to think, while continuing to stroll along the garden path. “Yes, father has spoken of this merchant many times, though I personally have never met him. He also says it was a shame that the merchant was killed by stray bandits. If I remember, I think this was about two years ago?”

Her brown eyes turned sharp as they looked searchingly into my face. “Why do you bring this matter up, Verath?”

I did not hesitate before answering, “Truth be told, Iona, that merchant had been an acquaintance of mine.”

“I see,” Iona said softly in reply. Then she let out a small laugh. “Because you seem affable and I like you a little, Verath, I shall divulge to you that father always admired that merchant. How should I put this? It was sort of like friendship between rivals, you could say.”

“I also like you too, Lady Iona.”

“Now, now. You would not want to make me repeat myself, Verath. Just call me Iona.”

I nodded, a slight dip of my head, before saying, “I shall keep that in mind, Iona.”

We strolled amiably around the garden after that conversation, Iona clutching at my right arm in silent contentment.

Then she broke the silence.

“Now then, I shall have to bid you farewell for today. But I shall have you join me for lunch tomorrow. I would love for you to meet my four younger sisters and my little brother.”

Iona explained further, seeing the questioning look on my face.

“Of course, the lunch will be done after your interview where you shall apply to serve as a retainer for my father. Also, I have somewhere to go, so I apologize for not seeing you out. Instead, my guard shall do so in my stead.”

Lady Iona unlatched her arm around mine and left the gardens after bidding me a farewell. Her gait was of a slow and relaxed pace, an unworried fashion.

And I knew I had been dismissed.

Seconds later, a female guard clad in black garments appeared before me. She walked lithely toward me, her face hidden by a black hood that left only her blue eyes to be seen.

The black clothing was loosely fitted around her and showed hints of a chain armor shirt underneath. Behind her back were twin swords with white straps. I did not recognize the weapons and judging from the white scabbards, they were too thin to be normal swords.

“Follow me,” she said, her voice a soft muffle against her cowled mouth.

My interest had been piqued from her attire and those twin swords which seemed to be around the length of a short sword.

“What are those weapons of yours called?” I asked unreservedly.

The female guard did not reply, only leading me toward the gate as we exited the garden. Along the way, we passed some servants working in the garden and a few guards placed at strategic points.

When we reached the gate, the guard finally broke the silence with her muffled voice. “They are called Wakizashis, and I am not paid to answer inane questions. But since I somehow have the feeling that you will ask Lady Iona who I am at the first chance you receive, I will save you the time. I am a contracted Shinobi.”

Just as I was about to thank her, she had already turned around and was walking away while sticking to the shadows and the least noticeable places.

I exited through the gates of the Second Manor House, passing the two male guards who gave me back my longsword. And before I knew it, I was back on the bustling streets of Asolance. I also put my cowl on, since I wanted none to recognize my distinct white hair, a feature that had been widely witnessed in the tournament.

I had learned some interesting information and my initial guess as to who had killed my father and my past human self had been wrong. Baron Serle as the suspect was becoming more and more unlikely as time passed, and Lady Iona had seemed sincere enough.

I also had a feeling that it was not Baron Serle who had perpetrated the foul deed.

Questions. Questions. Questions.

They swirled around at the forefront of my mind.

Was it just some unlucky occurrence due to chance when those group of black elves bandits and goblins raided our caravans? It couldn't be though. The timing had seemed too perfect, and the raiders, too professional and efficient.

For now, I would bide my time.

These were my thoughts as I jostled through the streets of Asolance, which were still busy even at nighttime. There were some straying glances from the crowd here and there, but thankfully, none of them recognized me, since my cowl covered almost the entirety of my face.

In the rich and enormous city of Asolance, the cobbled streets were lit by metal lanterns fixed at key parts of the streets, so as to give the most light. There were also the rare few magic stones that gave off a brighter light on certain streets.

These magic stones were sold and produced by the Mage Academy, which was located in the central region of Shail Kingdom. This vital academy was the one and only of its kind in Shail Kingdom, for mages were rare and too few. They were sought dearly by the kings, so thus this academy was naturally built in the central region, which was where the king of Shail Kingdom resided.

Some time afterward, I arrived at the Silver Beauty inn and as soon as I went through the door, I was tackled by two soft sensations.

Alice Silver, the daughter of the innkeeper, was smothering me between her well-endowed chest. She was also excitedly praising me for winning the tournament. In her excitement, I heard her say that she also liked how I had tried to be mysterious with the black mask. But given my distinct white hair, Alice had easily guessed my identity.

I stayed unmoving, as Alice's excitement became infectious, causing the other patrons of the inn to stand up and congratulate me. The few ones who had no interest in the fighting tournament, however, chose to remain seated at their respective tables.

It took quite a long while until everything had settled down. Peace and silence were qualities I often like when I was eating, so I deflected most of the people congratulating me with just a quiet nod. The other patrons soon gave up on bothering me when they saw that I was only going to give them a simple nod in response.

That was how my night went after I had won the Tournament of the Wolf. There were also other little things that happened here and there in regards to Alice Silver, but I won't say much on that.

The rest of the night I spent practicing the finer points of my fire magic. Using earth magic would have resulted in a mess, so I had stuck with fire magic. For example, I practiced control by letting my black-colored magic flow to the tips of my fingers and create small, dancing flames that jumped gracefully around in controlled arcs.

I kept this practice up for the majority of the night and meditated on what had happened so far, until I went to sleep for little more than an hour.