Chapter 44

Chess Pieces

“Here—here they come! The… dead! The dead are here!”

The Fragments

On top of the marble-chiseled table, one of the fanciest Noah had seen thus far despite having spent months with a Princess of the Kingdom, lay perhaps even a fancier feast, spread out like a buffet of a five-star hotel. He barely recognized a few items on the table, such as the Green-pups, a small, round pear-like fruit that tasted remarkably like dark chocolate, and the Goattail Eggs, which were neither goat’s, nor from a tail, nor were even eggs or any sort, but rather egg-shaped fruits reminiscent of Earth’s plums.

Amidst the spread, there was a variety of meats, even a few species of fish, to say nothing of the bottles of drinks he was entirely unfamiliar with. Cutlery existed here as well, though it was slightly more primitive than back on Earth; there was no concept for 'household knives', so people either ate or ripped barehanded or used daggers. Similarly, there were no forks either, and spoons were fist-sized ladles that were used more as cups rather than actual spoons.

Nonetheless, he was hardly ready to be shy about it; a lot of the fruits Claire had spread out for him were of the exotic sort. Perhaps, in them, he might find a clue about the 'outside world' and what it's like. Not all fruits grow everywhere, naturally, and a lot about them is determined by the climate. Ah, wait, he mused inwardly for a moment, would the same rules for Earth apply here as well? Rather, even with the minuscule change in atmosphere, a whole slew of things that don't exist on Earth exist here. Doesn't that mean that climate may have different effects? As will the growing environment? Aah…

His problem was that he repeatedly compared everything with what he knew of back on Earth. While it may work for the nature of men and civilizations, nature itself may be an entirely different beast. For instance, while the horses existed here as well, they were distinctly different. From what he noticed, as far as his memory of horses from back on Earth served him, the ones here were slightly longer and leaner and had thinner manes. Furthermore, there also existed the 'exotic' beasts, like the multi-tailed fox he saw in the forest. What allowed, or rather assisted them in evolving? Or, better yet, is the evolution even responsible for the life here? He didn’t know answers to anything, as none of these questions were asked by the scholars.

As far as his reading went, none suggested something even remotely close to the concept of evolution as the way life came to be as it is. All of this was pretty much in tune with the pre-revolutionist civilizations, but his problem was that he had no means of even making up for the variables himself in the desperate calculations, as he was entirely unaware of those variables. Perhaps the atmosphere's makeup here had one additional element that the Earth lacked which could have attributed to the diverse evolution of the species, but it could also be exactly the same as back on Earth, and something else entirely is responsible for the way beasts and people are.

At least on the surface, he continued thinking while plucking away at the exotic fruits; bitter, sour, sweet, hot, cold… all began mixing on his tongue, and soon he could hardly feel any sensation, his entire mouth having grown numb. People here are virtually the same as back on Earth. They have no distinct features; as far as the skin color goes, it's just the same as back on Earth – further south means more exposure to the sun, so it's safe to assume that this planet is also on the tilt. The days, though I haven't precisely counted, do appear to be around twenty-four hours as well, so it's the same rotation. There are the moon and the star, so the basic elements are all here.

“Mr. Flint, isn’t your tongue numb by now?” Claire’s somewhat bemused voice interrupted his thoughts as she brought him back into reality, smiling at him. The table was around ten feet long, and she sat on the opposite end, in an open-ended room with a balcony stretching out behind her.

“I like the sensation,” Noah lied. “Somewhat queer, I know.”

“… we’re all unique in our own ways, I suppose,” she chuckled. Right… I’m nowhere near clever enough to actually understand what the fuck is going on, he concluded in the end, thankful that she pulled him out of the unnecessary thoughts. After all, his strengths were in the things that were the same as back on Earth, not in the differences. So long as he didn’t catch any local virus that will render him dead within days since he doesn’t have anti-bodies for it, everything was fine. However, seeing as it’s been months, he concluded that the likelihood wasn’t high. “So… the plan.” She asked, looking down.

“… right, the plan,” he smiled, putting down the fruit he was about to nibble at, a blood-red, crescent-shaped fruit the size of his palm. “For starters, I—” the sudden sound of the approaching footsteps caused him to stop and turn to the side where, from beyond the edge of the wall, a shadow unfolded over the tiled, sunlit floor.

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As the figure stepped into the view, Noah noted Claire’s reaction; she tensed up immediately and lowered her head, biting her lower lip. She was nervous and scared, he realized, and from who the figure was, Noah deliberated on the few possible reasons.

The man that stepped into the room was the eldest son of the House Myrsell, Sunnder Myrsell, a fifty-one-year-old with the fading, light-brown hair. He was on the taller end of things, breaking six feet as far as Noah could tell from the first glance, with the barely hidden protrusion around the abdomen. The most distinct feature of his was the burning scar over the right side of his face, running up from the forehead down to the jawline. With how lame it seemed, Noah was certain he used makeup to hide it.

The man glanced at Noah for a moment, then at the spread on the table, before his eyes shifted over to Claire, his expression distorting and growing dark. He came to a halt, gritting his teeth.

“E-Elder Brother—”

“What is this?!!” he asked in an annoyed and angry tone, shuffling over to Claire, suddenly reaching down and pulling her lush hair, jerking her head up and forcing her to look him in the eyes. Hm? Booze?

“I—I—”

“What has the Mother told you?!! No unauthorized visits!!” he sent his hand flying against her cheek, the sound echoing out wildly into the room as she spat out a trickle of blood, her eyes growing teary. “And yet you even dared to dig into our warehouse?!! Who the hell do you think you are, you Bloodfilth?!" he slapped her again, this time even harder, letting go of her hair. Her head shanked against the table, more blood spilling out. Yet, even such a violent hit didn't cause the stone-table to quiver.

“And you—who the hell are you?!” the man turned his attention to Noah at last, glaring at him with murderous intentions. He’s definitely drunk, Noah noted, taking a bite of the fruit indifferently. Hmm… from what Olivia told me, he’s the violent ilk, largely so because his younger brother is to inherit the House Seat… “Hey!! I’m talking to you!! How dare you ignore me?!” he stumbled over to Noah and clumped his fingers into a fist, aiming straight at Noah’s face. Right before it reached him, however, he clasped the man’s wrist and held it tightly, causing the already flushed face of Sunnder to grow a shade redder. “H-how dare you—”

“You should take a bath,” Noah shoved him aside casually, getting up and reaching into his inner pocket. “Rather,” he flashed the Royal Seal only for a moment, until he was certain that Sunnder saw it by the change in the latter’s expression. “How about I escort you? I am worried, you see.”

“I—I—”

“We can have a nice chat along the way,” before giving the man a chance, Noah pulled him away, glancing at Claire who was whimpering and sobbing lowly, hiding her face with a bloodied veil. “Ah, as I don’t know where your bath is, you should take the lead.” He added as they cut the corner, out of Claire’s sight; right then, Noah shoved him to the floor.

Sunnder stumbled and fell over his feet, rolling twice over on the floor before coming to a halt. The sudden jerk of the body must have been too much as he bent over and let his innards go, unfolding onto the stone floor. The pungent scent immediately assailed Noah’s nostrils, though he ignored it completely, accustomed to far worse, as he crouched down next to the man.

“… don’t hate me too much,” he said as the man glanced at him, a mixture of fear and anger in his bloodshot green eyes. “Vomiting helped you regain your senses somewhat, no?”

“…” the man remained silent, but Noah didn’t know whether it was because he couldn’t speak, or that he didn’t want to speak.

“If you ever decide to grow up,” Noah smiled faintly. “And turn your life around, ask for me through Lady Claire. What does your brother have over you? Nothing except the perception of others, Lord Sunnder. And perception is like the veneer; temporary, slim, and destructible. And I just happen to be the hammer in that metaphor. Well then, I should be going; do be so kind as to help your sister. She merely entertained a guest enthusiastically. We cannot fault her for that, now can we?”

Noah patted the man’s back twice over before getting up and walking away. This seal thingy is really useful, he mused as he left behind the stunned and the wordless Lord. In reality, the seal he carried had virtually no power outside of being a symbol – a symbol that he, one way or another, had a direct connection to a member of the Royal Family. It mostly acted as a deterrent, which was why he couldn’t push too far with Sunnder. After all, no amount of connections would save him if he slandered an actual Lord too much, especially so considering the ever-decrepit status of the Royal Family in the Kingdom.

Nonetheless, what it was useful for, was obtaining pawns. On the word of a merchant alone, hardly anyone would give him an ear; yet, flash them a simple seal, and your words suddenly obtain far more power and persuasion.

He had planned on making Claire the head of the house sometime in the future, but it would be much easier if it was one of the two sons – and he absolutely preferred Sunnder, a man who was a whole lot like Olivia – helpless, but with a dream. In the future, when he helps Olivia ascend to the throne, he’ll have to reshape the way nobility behaves toward the Royal Family – even if it’s just for a few generations. His overarching goal has no room for the internal instability, and one way of ensuring that the conflicts don’t happen is to secretly control all of the houses – help the least-likely, yet the most fervent, beat down all the others and obtain the Seat of the House.

It was just a musing for the time being, as he hardly had any concrete plans for it just yet. However, it never hurt to set up a few side-pieces that might become useful in the future. Even if it doesn’t pan out, there was always Claire, whom he knew would now desperately seek to leave this place. I should start wrapping up here, he thought for a moment, deciding to unload his goods through Sunnder once the man contacts him. This fire thing turned out to be a bit more serious than I anticipated; it’s best I go back and see what Olivia wants to do…