“Justice would never come to a woman so vile. I regret nothing! may the gods punish all of you who hide behind these forsaken walls!”
Chapter 46: Of Mice and Men
Somewhere In a towering Castle inside the inner Kingdom.
“Yes Mother, everything is fine, you can rest, everything is in perfect condition, there’s no need to worry.”
“Child, an attack has just been made on our lives and you say there’s nothing wrong. What will you do? What is being done? You should already have made countermeasures. Have I taught you nothing?” She's a dud.
”Maman the city can come back from this. Only a couple thousand are rumored dead. That’s good news, fewer mouths to feed! The voice, whatever it was, did us a favor.”
I wouldn’t dare look at that face. I had failed Mother, the woman who gave me this Kingdom in its entirety.
My efforts have gotten me here and mine alone. I know that to be true.
“Look at me when you're talking!” How much longer must I put up with this? A glass came flying for my face only to hit the wall behind me. A long table at which we sat. Fit for a King. This is where she would hand-feed me in hopes that I would grow big and strong. Now she sits at the other side of the table detesting my very existence.
“You make me sick!” She just isn’t the same no matter how many times we go through this whole charade.
“Look at me when I’m talking to you, boy!”
“A boy!? Do I look like a boy to you? You're doing it wrong! What’s with the seething hatred? You’ve been here an entire week and you can’t even act the part? My mother loved me!”
“Am I allowed to speak freely my lord” All this effort and for what? She’s just another failure. And she speaks out of turn.
“I would make those words count. They may be your last.”
“I was informed that I was to play the role of the Queen to the best of my ability. I wasn’t given any reference besides being loving, kind, and concerned about the inner affairs of the kingdom.”
“Carry on.”
“On my relocation, I found a note in her Highness's bed chambers.”
“A note you say?”
“Yes, a note my lord. Though anonymous the writer of said note seemed to know much about the Miss’s before her untimely demise.”
“Is that so?”
“Where can I find this note? Would you do me the favor of summarizing it?”
“Well, my lord, the note had a few unsavory words about your mother. It also spoke of a diary that was located behind a picture frame.”
“That’s very interesting so you're telling me that someone broke into Mother's room just to leave a message for a dead woman.”
“No, my lord, I would say the letter was meant for you even though it was addressed to the castle as a whole. The diary was most insightful.”
“How old are you again?”
“My lord, I am old enough to be assigned the role of Her Highness. I was deemed most fit by the Excuse my lapse in memory, I was deemed most fit”
“Is that so, are you fit enough to tell me where I can find this so-called letter and diary?”
“Yes, my lord I made sure to leave both of the items behind the picture frame of a dwarven night.”
“You know you're not the first to take on this role.” I slowly walked across the room with nothing but a fork in hand.
“Is that so my lord? Why do you bring this up?”
“It’s time I finally put the role to rest. I’m positive this so-called diary never spoke of how my mother passed. Did the letter by any chance?”
“Yes, why my lord, her Highness was poisoned to death.”
“Hmm, no that is wrong dearest girl. Maman was poisoned and cured soon after. Though the rumors would say she died at bed rest, that is the truth.”
“My lord, why are you coming so close?”
“To tell you a secret my deer I’m sure it can rest safely in your ears just like the rest you may know.”
“Ooh, I love secrets.”
“I can tell.”
Going behind the woman with a face of most familiarity he held a silver fork in his right hand and a sense of tension in the left.
He hung his right hand over his mother's neck whispering into her ear. The King told the born actress something she had never considered.
As the woman gasped in shock, not yet able to process the information into fear.
The ginger-haired Dwarf shoved the three-pronged fork in her neck and watched as blood gruesomely splattered across the longest table fit for a king and Queen.
The woman’s agony would only be witnessed by a couple of mice and one incredibly stressed dwarf man.
Licking his lips Mindel had the room to himself for two hours. Enjoying himself in unspeakable debauchery, satiating his hunger in every way he could.
Leaving the room with greasy hands and sweat making his clothes stick to his body in a way unbefitting of the nobleman he claimed to be.
He ordered the four guards standing outside the room to inform a Conman that his facility would be shut down in the next six hours if he did not show any results.
“Incinerate the woman’s body within the coming hour or you’ll find out what it feels like to be a newly forged blade.”
The three newly assigned Dwarven guards in their darkest armors of blue had no clue who lay in the room. Neither did they know it would be their last day alive. Yet to find out the reason why the personal Guardsmen of Mindel was such an unwanted job.
“Where the hell is a servant when you need one!!! I’m not going to clean myself! There’s a lot of work to do!”
Tulin Mindel shouted as he set a path for a quick bath, his new advisers, and lastly his long-passed Mothers's sleeping chambers.
He hadn’t thought long or hard over his coming actions.
Actions that would preserve his kingdom.
A kingdom consisting of a castle standing alone in a mass of mouths that would either be fed, fooled, or silenced.
The King was yet to hear of the one death in the lightless night that held the most importance to the "livelihood" he sacrificed so much for.
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Chapter 46: Of mice and men (Part II)
Odesta of Tavaria
“What lies behind these walls is your home, a city, a kingdom! lay down your lives as men not for the present but for the future!!!” I had seen it.
“Gatarn the Admissible”
Was I scared of him? Am I scared of him? No, I need to get as far away from him as possible and warn as many as I can.
Something’s not right with that man. I know a front. It’s just a front, and I am no fool.
I'd never seen a Berserker like that. Every move was mad precisely. It was an extermination.
Why am I recalling his words? I should be moving. Even a girl of low birth could do just that and more besides it won’t be long before he returns.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
That woman had a gift. It's not every day you see someone from the slums moving the masses. She’s lucky he wasn’t around; he would’ve killed her for sure.
"I should be ashamed of myself."
How could I be deceived for so long? Those eyes should’ve told me everything I needed to know long ago.
Cold, ruthless, and deceiving the eyes of a barbarian. He didn’t care for any of us. That is the reality of it all and I best not forget.
Those words of intimidation may have rallied many, but I will not bend to him or anyone else. My people do not bend the knee or follow the lead of the untrustworthy.
I will warn as many as I can before this dungeon opens. They need to know about the monster in our midst.
Walking swiftly past the tents located in front of the Sealed Dungeon of Fallohum. I looked for my sisters in the hopes of spreading the word about an old friend's true intentions, an Ex-friend.
“An old friend” is three words that forced me to walk down memory lane.
“Please help us, sir, my sister has come across some trouble on our search for the city hidden in the mountain. “I was young and new to the cold climate of the snowy region. My sisters from the tribe had gotten us lost. It was then I came across the towering man.
No, it was then he came across me. Even then his eyes hungered but my desperation allowed room for deceit.
“Who might you be? A few mice lost their way in the snow.” He showed up behind me while I was sorely unaware of his approach.
Cowering I couldn’t move an inch. At first, I was scared beyond recognition on the snowy plains, but his words brought calm. They make you hold on to every syllable. In that calmness, I answered in the language he was most familiar with.
A language of the old “Hello there sir I’m Odesta from the” He didn’t even let me finish my sentence resting his hand on my entire left arm after aiming for my shoulder.
“Odesta what a beautiful name, uncommon that one, how may I be of service to one named after the goddess? I’m a bit lost myself believe it or not.”
“How did you know-?” He wouldn’t let me finish a sentence, but I think we both knew I was at his mercy in that black snowstorm.
“Would you have any food by any chance, little Odesta? How about it, my help for a snack or two?”
Turning to face the man I found myself cowering ever since his first words nearly pissing myself from dismay.
Before I turned around, I made it clear that we had a deal, so innocent that child. My sisters and I were completely out of our league.
Over a hundred years of age and I still couldn’t look into his eyes until today. My resistance to his intimidation and fear had improved dramatically at his side.
Whatever ability he had. Doubting his words didn't seem like an option. A charm perhaps.
Today I finally saw the eyes that evaded the mind. The eyes of the towering giant looked at us like we were less than. Those eyes looked at us like we were prey.
Those black eyes hungered for battle and saw all lives for the taking, even my own.
It wasn't the first time I had seen his grey frame covered in blood. But those eyes.
“Little Odesta, how's the Dungeon operation coming along?” I had nearly lost my life hearing his voice at my back like so many years before.
Only this time I could see him in his entirety and my skills no longer leveled aggressively when he was near so there was no overwhelming need to welcome him when he came.
“You seem nervous, did something happen?” Gatarn asked while people made sure not to interrupt him.
*Ping!* [Sister’s Sense] Lvl.132 is currently maxed!
“Oh hi, Gatarn didn’t expect to see you here so soon, what about the defense against the invaders?” I had recovered my composure as quickly as I lost it. Gatarn may be a monster, but he was still the chief Adventure in mind.
“Odesta, is there something wrong?” He was intimidating still, and I couldn’t tell what had brought on this change.
“Intimidating much, but other than that I hear the Workers from the Inner Kingdom are having trouble knocking down the wall much less unsealing it.” I had no say my words were practically stolen from me.
2nd Tier Skill [Fear Resistance] lvl.14 has forcefully been disabled! A level has been lost in the skill [Fear Resistance]!!
2nd Tier [Fear Resistance] Is now Lvl.13!
“Thank you, I hadn’t noticed after that whole debacle with the Goddess. It seems I will have to offer my assistance.” I was stopping myself from shaking but the notification had caused a panic in me I had never felt before.
Patting me on my shoulder he spoke again from his chest for everyone to hear. Something he would never have done before today never being too direct with his ill will towards the nobles.
“Damn, rats can’t do anything right!” He shouted for everyone at the campsite to hear and was instantly off towards the dungeon in seconds disappearing as quickly as he appeared.
Looking around to certify his leave. I rushed for my sister's four to help ease my worries. I knew they could feel my current state of unease.
Making haste I ignored those of lower rank calling for my name and found my sisters before anything could come of my momentary leave.
Finding my older sister Ode at the tent located in the middle of the campsite area a spot probably fought over by the guilds. I admired the silk linens of my homelands. Holding back my feelings that seemed like cracking glass after that encounter with Gatarn.
She looked at me in worry, inviting me in. Ever since I had met Gatarn a line had been drawn between my sisters and me. They disapproved of me taking up the role as his right-hand woman in a strictly business-related relationship. My sisters all agreed long ago that "I should be the one to interact with the barbarian." In those words, without any reason as to why.
Ode greeted me with a warm big hug. “I couldn’t wait to see the day.” Her voice was something I hadn't been allowed to hear. It had been a decade since our last meeting, my last hearing.
They welcomed my return and were waiting for me to realize the error of my ways. I being the youngest had always thought they simply didn’t trust me with managing such an older man.
Tes the second daughter of my stepfather's spoke up after the tent closed and a barrier magic barrier was erected to protect our words from nearby guilds and outsiders.
“We felt your heart waver. So did you finally have the courage to look the barbarian in his eyes?” Her dark brown hair fell to one side as she sat at the table with my other two sisters almost identical to her.
“How could you four continue working at the guild hall knowing about that maniac?” I spoke holding my left shoulder that felt a bit numb under Gatarn's heavy hand.
Odet the third spoke in her stead. “You're our youngest, we need to stay close to you no matter what.”
Almost tearing up I closed my eyes and said what I needed to say. Things were getting too real and all the warnings they had given about the chief had made sense.
“I’m sorry.” Slipped out and Ode hugged me from behind Aleer, my other sister who had never spoken a word in her lifetime followed in pursuit. I had missed the comfort of our sisterhood for many years now and I had only myself to blame.
As my four sisters surrounded me in a hug, we shared what was unlike any other in my entire world.
*BING!* Primary Class:
"Oh, congrats sister" Tes signed. As I nodded my head so she would receive the thank you that was long overdue.
“So, what do we do now regarding that Man?” I signed and spoke trying to get my mouth off of Tes’s shoulder.
Ode broke us up and put both of her hands on my shoulder observing my left.
“We do nothing.” She said while blowing on my shoulder like a tiny bird had been using me as its perch. A weight had been lifted by her not-so-random action. Nothing was ever random with Ode.
*Ping!* [Sister Sense] has leveled up! Lvl 132 to Lvl 133
“Sister, you've been marked. I can’t remove that, only silence it. One of you girls fill her in while I do my work.” She spoke in urgency while I felt betrayed and exposed on so many levels by that gray-skinned giant.
He was a bastard.
Signing Aleer was telling me of how “Ode had Anonymously warned the officials of the inner Kingdom and some of the city guards. There’s even a rumor going around about him being related to a God or something. Either way, he’s not the only enemy in our midst or the most worrisome problem.”
“What could be worse than high-tier beings?” I raised the question awaiting Odet’s answer.
“Well, I don’t know. How about the sleeping Dungeon right outside of this tent.”
Ode spoke up in worry cutting into our conversation. “We only spoke about the mark Odesta. Make up an excuse if he asks about it but don’t lie, girls get down!”
[Sister Sense] transferred Ode’s feeling of fear so we all dropped to our knees and covered our heads just in time for the sound of an explosion that sent wind and dust whipping through the campsite.
“BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!” A huge explosion went off bringing the wall covering the sealed dungeon down.
Shaking the tent and the barrier. We were all relieved the barrier still held strong from the force.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! More explosions continued shortly after. It was all anyone could hear for miles.
Shockwaves went across the campsite blowing some of the lower leveled adventurers, fighters, and willing citizens back. The barrier being powered by three of my sisters excluding me and Ode had cracked considerably from the unending barrage.
After minutes of nonstop shockwaves screams dust clouds and explosions from the direction of the sealed Dungeon entrance. We all fell silent at the Notification that greeted us after the grand finale.
“BOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!”
[DUNGEON ENTRANCE UNSEALED!!!.. DUNGEON INITIALIZED… WELCOME TO THE DUNGEON OF SNOW MOUNTAIN’S DEPTH!!!!]
We five were at a loss for words exiting the tent.
The surrounding area as far as anyone could see was covered in thick fluorescent blue flakes of mana almost like ash.
Tents were blown left and right, and someone out there had suffered an injury of some sort. That much could be gathered from the few screams that were quickly being tended to after being singled out and located by ear.
The rest of us were at a loss for words, some deciding to sit and take in the thick mana in the atmosphere that was dangerous and near fatal to the novice mana user.
Ode the oldest of us sisters was the first to think of taking the mana in at first sight. Overcome with the need to reinforce and strengthen her mana’s realm.
“Girls we should take. " Mid-sentence Ode had fainted and me and my sisters panicked.
Bringing her back into the tent and bringing up another barrier with my help this time around.
“She looks perfectly fine so what caused her to faint?” Aleer asked. Before any of us could answer that question we all fainted soon after.
Everything had happened so quickly we hadn’t thought of the obvious and immediate problem with unsealing the dungeon of old.
The high-level dungeon released so much mana into the atmosphere we had been overwhelmed. There was no time to gather information or help my sister regain consciousness.
A massive wave of mana-like pollen from a trickle tree.
Unconsciousness soon swept across the campsites, and Gatarn thee Admissible was first to hit the snow.