When the carriage stopped before the only gate built into the massive wall, nobody came out to greet their arrival. No guards were standing before the decorated, giant, solid gold door that was closely shut. No sentries walked above them, along the top of the wall, and they only heard flags flapping in the wind, without the accompanying footsteps and armors rattling as patrolling guards would pass along.
"Creepy," Kitten said as she stepped out from the carriage, looking upwards, while some curious onlookers gathered around the surrounding buildings, watching them from afar.
"You can say that again." Ariana nodded and jumped out of the carriage, followed by her Master. She felt the place was filled with deep fear and disturbingly lethargic emotions.
"I suppose it should not look like this?" Ren asked, looking at Sentios, standing in the driver's seat, shaking his head.
"No. But I am not surprised, to be honest with you. The door is enhanced with a formation. Those not recognized as part of this branch can not open it after it is closed."
"They have formations?" Ariana raised her eyebrows.
"Not them, but Zelig," Sentios answered, stepping beside Ren. "Remember that I said this city is made by him? There are things here that are used by people living through all their lives without knowing how some things are made or what makes them work… it… Those things are… just work. Same with the gates to the rest of the four other courtyards. They... work. They were made by Zelig but used by the rest. I guess this is why it is closed now. So the others would not try and come to wreck things inside while nobody is at home."
"Why not just fly in?" Kitten tilted her head with question marks in her eyes.
"You can try!" Ren smiled at her.
"Oh! Noooo, no, no, no! If you say it like that, it must have some kind of defensive mechanism, and I would lose a life again! You are really mean. I'm on your side!" She crossed her arms, puffing up her cheeks and pouting.
"Ahaha, you would not have lost a life!" Ren laughed, walking up to the door. "But yes, you would have problems with it!" she explained while placing her hands on the door.
The people watching from far away looked on with curiosity as, since the day Rudrick turned traitor, the door rarely got opened. Before the news of his death, only a few people left the courtyard and only at night. But since the news of his death, it had never opened up. Not until today. A new face arrived, clearly someone from the Naulin bloodline, and she was trying to open the door to their courtyard. All the informants of the different branches were already here, pointing their recording crystals toward her. As Ren's palms made contact with the door, she could feel that it automatically released a small strand of energy traveling inside her body, but only for a brief moment. Then it retreated back into the door as it opened up, exposing the extensive but empty-looking courtyard to them.
A road made of white tiles led towards the middle of the courtyard from the door. There lay a medium-sized pond filled with sparkling, golden-scaled fish swimming slowly inside it. Circling around the lake like a roundabout, the road split into three directions, leading towards separate parts of their new home. One of them was the spire seen everywhere in the city. Before the spire was a second, smaller, only 2-meter-tall wall with another closed entrance. On the left side was a three-storied, luxurious, expansive villa with its own little town around it; on the right side, they could see stables, workshops, and even a training ground.
Alongside the roads, tall and lush cherry trees were standing, in full bloom, gently showering the tiles with their petals. By the amount already covering them, it was clear nobody was here to swipe them clean for a long time. Same with the garden's flowerbeds and decorative bushes growing out of wild branches, everything was slowly showing signs of negligence.
"Compared to this, the imperial palace in the Capital is but a minor noble's holiday mansion…." Ren whistled. Even she was amazed by the scenery as they walked inside, and the gate closed behind them automatically.
"I thought about it the same for the first time when I arrived here." Sentios agreed. "But this is only my fifth time stepping inside the courtyard."
"Oh? You were not allowed in?" Ariana asked with a surprised voice as they walked towards the pond.
"Not really. When I was brought here or summoned, I met with Rudrick in the "official" palace. It is inside the middle of the city. These places are… even more secure than the royal palace." he said, looking around, trying to see anyone present. Still, it was like a wholly emptied-out and haunted place and not something where people lived.
"Ariana?" Ren turned towards her disciple as they reached the pond where the fishes already swam towards the edge, right before them, begging for food.
"How yummy!" Kitten yelped, but her cat tail was grabbed by Ren as she was pulled back, screaming out loudly, "My tail! Don't squeeze it so hard, please!"
"No touching or I'll take you down to one life only," Ren said calmly, still waiting for Ariana's response.
"There are people here…" she replied after a bit of time had passed, pointing towards the villa with her head. "I can feel something from there, but it is very lethargic."
"Let's go and check it out. What is that building for?" Ren asked while they were approaching it.
"It houses the servants of the courtyard. The main family members are living in the spire. Or lived." he added after a bit of pause.
Ren walked up to its main door without hesitation when they finally arrived at the villa, pushing it open quickly. What greeted them was dozens of terrified pairs of eyes watching them coming in. Most of them belonged to young teens between the ages of 14 and 18 and a handful of young adults, but none looked older than 24 or 25. Most wore plain clothing that indicated they were only servants or someone even lower on the social ladder.
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"Hm…" Ren looked over the group calmly, seeing the fear in their eyes, not knowing what would happen to them now. "A few of you look promising," she whispered under her breath.
"And a few of them look like purebloods." Sentios transmitted his words to her, "That is what they call those who have both characteristics of the bloodline." He pointed out eight teens with silver-colored hair and somewhat violet eyes.
"W-welcome… I… I am Seya…." Stepped forward, a girl around the age of 16 with long, straight, silver hair, just like Ren. It was accompanied by almost bluish but still, somewhat purple eyes, trembling with anxiousness. However, she still gathered all her courage to perform a noble's curtsy before Ren, recognizing her as a true noble. She was taller than Ren, and her womanly features were already in full bloom, but under her eyes, big, black bags were eroding her beauty. The aura Ren felt coming from her was someone in the 4th body refinement realm, but it was also evident that she did not receive proper training. It was not a stable aura filled with a bunch of incoherent vibrations.
"Nice to meet you, Seya." Ren nodded with a small smile. "You are the leader of the group?"
"I…" She looked back at the rest, and they clearly told her with their eyes what her answer should be. "Y-yes. I am."
"Are you part of the main bloodline of Rudrick?" Ren's second question came after her answer.
"No!" She protested immediately as if she had asked something dangerous "I am only a bastard from a whore in the city and was taken in because of my looks. I dare not to even think about being a true pureblood!"
"Bah…" Ren rolled her eyes. "I'll need to administer some changes!" she clapped, letting out a long sigh and raising her voice. "My name is Ren, great-granddaughter of Rudrick! From now on, I am the new leader of this family branch!"
As she said that, the servants before her immediately trembled, but with their upbringing, they quickly remembered what they were trained to do. All of them stood straight, placing their hands on their chests, bowing almost 90 degrees, including Seya, as they spoke up in perfect unison.
"Greetings to you, Your Highness."
"Rise." Ren waved her hand, forcing them up with her powers. "Is this all of you?" she asked, looking at Seya.
"Yes," she answered immediately, grabbing onto her clothing, not daring to look directly into her eyes. "Most of the adults and experienced people just… died one day. We… we…" She tried to find the words, "We buried them behind the villa."
"I see." Ren nodded, shaking her head. She realized Rudrick was more into controlling others than Zelig. "What about those who were not dead? It can't be that all of the older staff just… died."
"They left," she replied to her after a bit of hesitation. "They took… a lot of things, we… we dared not to follow them! We did not steal anything, we swear!"
"Oh? How interesting! So there were people who took what they thought was valuable and left? Heh… well, I can't blame them." she chuckled, shaking her head. "Why did you not leave?"
"We have… nowhere to… go." She answered honestly and with a lowered head. "We could go out from the courtyard... but we couldn't come back in... the door would not open for someone like us!"
"Haah… at least I have something to work with." she stretched, moaning a little. "Okay! Sentios, go, check out the villa and make a full inventory of what we have here."
"Yes, my lady!" He bowed respectfully, almost making Ren stumble forward, hearing his words.
"Eh… khm. Kitten, you go outside, scour the garden, and whatnot for anything interesting or suspicious. Also, please check out the other side where the stables are."
"Sure thing!" She saluted with a grin, turning into a cat before everybody, surprising them as she rushed off.
"Seya."
"Y-y-yes, your highness?!" She yelped out, scared, seeing them flashing into action so suddenly.
"Please make a list for me of everybody present here. I want to know everybody's names, ages, backgrounds, strengths, what you are good at and what you are bad at, etc. Okay? I want it written down and compiled in alphabetical order before dusk."
"Yes!" Seya bowed before her. "It is going to be done!"
"Good! Also, everyone should relax! I won't send away nobody! I won't mete out punishment, either! I just want to know what kind of jobs you are good at! Please be truthful, as it would be worse if I assign you a job you can't handle and cause trouble for me with it!" She said to them, looking into their eyes. "Oh, and… Seya?"
"Yes, your highness?" She asked, trembling a little.
"Were any of you in the spire?"
"No, your highness! It is closed, and we can't open the door! It is closed shut!"
"I see. Okay, do what I asked you to do. I'll go check it out; come Ariana!"
"Yes, Master!" She said, following her with quick steps, and when they were farther away, she spoke up with a sigh, "They are deeply traumatized…."
"No wonder. It seems Rudrick planted his seed into more people than I previously thought. And he did so quite literally. Seeing every adult who previously told them what to do every day falling dead must have been pretty harrowing! What a control freak!"
"Yes… and… Master?"
"Hm?" Ren looked at her with a half-smile.
"I felt like Seya is connected to you, Master," Ariana said, looking back over her shoulder.
"As I said, Rudrick planted his seed into many people. Literally." Ren nodded while they were nearing the tall spire. They could see the white walls and an amethyst-carved door with images of the branch's crest engraved on it. "She is probably a bastard of Rudrick or one of his children's offspring. She should be another cousin of mine like Astair was." When they finally stood before the door, Ren placed her hands on it, but she got none of the feelings from the main gate. "Oh? This is just… heavy."
"Heavy?" Ariana tilted her head as Ren started to push, easily opening the door before them.
"Yeah. It is simply heavy. No wonder they thought it was closed; someone under the 7th body refinement realm would be unable to open it." She said as they walked into the spire. "Maybe we are going to find others ins-" Ren wanted to say, but her words were stuck in her mouth as soon as she opened the main door. Ariana quickly turned backward, holding back her breakfast from coming up from her stomach. "Oh my… what a strong smell…" She held her nose together, watching the gross scenery before her.
The main lobby had two already decomposing bodies with white hair, and their violet eyes rolled backward, lying on the ground. Judging by the powerful odor from further inside and from upstairs, they would find more dead bodies, not just the two in the lobby.
"It's too strong…." Ariana said, retching a little but still following her Master. She was covering her nose with her arm as she walked inside. "There should be dozens here who died… fuck…."
"Heh~" Ren chuckled, hearing her swear, which was a rare occasion. "Well… figures! Those who lived here were all Rudrick's people or descendants. He took the strongest with him to Ironclaw, and if they all fell dead after his death, why would those he left behind fare any better? But I can't deny something…" she walked inside, waving her hand as all the windows in the spire opened up at once. The draft luckily quickly started to push the stench outside.
"What, Master?"
"He spared me the pain to go through everyone, one by one, and see who would try to trip me up! Zelig thought he was screwing me over, giving me a literally dead branch family… yet he gave me a blank paper." she smiled, stretching her hand out, looking upwards in the middle of the spire as a spiraling staircase was leading up the many levels. "I can paint on this, whatever and however I feel like!"