Led by Gwen, the group made its way through the hallways, pausing only briefly to greet the servants. Their guide politely declined the suggestion to let her mother know that they wished to meet, implying that she would already be aware considering her nature and talents. The last comment combined with a mysterious smile she directed at her sister and the short lady’s boyfriend made the duo wonder about the situation even more.
Soon enough, they arrived in front of the ornate entrance to what Asterios recalled was the office slash meeting room, where the visitors could be taken for a more relaxed conversation. This fact did align with the hints Gwen had been dropping on their way here.
But, he didn’t think much of it. Ultimately, their mothers were part of the wide connection he shared with his friends and subordinates. It wouldn’t be unexpected for them to keep an eye on him just like his amazing mates did. Especially keeping in mind how attached Kindra was at times.
The taller Nobelle knocked on the doors. “Mother, we are here.”
“Come in.” Lady Luna’s voice reached them muffled.
Pushing on the knob, Gwen took everyone inside and closed the door. The two women were sitting together on a couch in the resting corner, both holding steaming cups of coffee. The moment Ast’s group filed in, Kindra smacked hers down onto the coaster and rushed ahead.
“Asti!” She practically flew into his arms, knocking Asterios back a tiny bit.
He chuckled warmly and embraced his mother affectionately, wrapping his arms around her figure. They spun a little while she giggled into his chest, nuzzling her face into it with a big smile. After he slowed them down, she hopped back onto the ground and pressed her palm to his cheek, brushing it with her thumb.
“You took your sweet time, young man.” She sighed softly. “But, I’m glad to see you are doing okay. And you too, girls, of course. I might have received the means to feel your presence just recently, but it still felt like losing part of my heart when I couldn’t check up on you for almost two months.”
“Master took great care of us!” Miria smiled adorably, coming closer to let the cheerful woman ruffle her feline ears. “There is nothing he can’t do when our well-being is at stake, Miss Kindra.”
“There isn’t, is there?” Ast’s mom gave him a knowing glance. “Still, it’s good to see you in a more than fair shape. Your recent excursion sounded rather difficult. There’s nothing worse than going into a complete unknown. Right, Luna?”
The Nobelle lady lightly rolled her eyes at the obvious jab, which made Gwen chuckle on the side. “It’s as you said. Wouldn’t mean much if I didn’t, considering my trade.”
“Your trade?” Tina tilted her head with a shadow of confusion.
“We’ll get to that in just a moment, dearies.” Kindra winked at her mysteriously. “First, would you be so kind as to bring one more person into this gathering, Son?”
Asterios had an idea who it was so he stepped aside to take care of it, the movement uncovered a moving shade behind them both and the attentive Hestizo caught onto it immediately.
“Oh. And who is this?” Ast’s mom sauntered towards the dark but very detailed figure with a mischievous sway.
“My most respectful greetings, Mother.” The misty Dryad bowed low. “It’s my pleasure to meet you almost face-to-face. I apologize but this form doesn’t allow me to feel the real world much yet.”
“Mother?” Kindra’s brows traveled up to her hairline and she turned to grin at her son. “Looks like someone didn’t slack off during his sightseeing tour.”
Groaning quietly, Asterios shook his head, evoking a few chuckles and giggles from the women.
“Your name was Tia if I recall correctly?” she asked, receiving a nod in response. “Welcome to the family, then. I hope you can look after my son just as well as his other ladies do.”
Letting the shorter female kindly peck her cheeks thrice in some familial custom, Tia displayed a joyful grin on her monochromatic face.
“I currently lack the necessary capabilities to fulfill my marital duties properly, but I do whatever I can to soothe his mind and soul whenever we spend time together in his psyche,” the sly shadow girl replied with a cheeky smirk.
A moment passed between the pair before Asterios could swear he discerned a knowing flash between their eyes, which was followed by a very conspiratorial giggle from both. They were undoubtedly hosting another conversation inside their heads. One that might involve some imagery.
Sighing inwardly, he got to work, creating a tear in the space much easier and quicker than in the Nethernight Realm. And perhaps even in his own realm before. The difference was noticeable. Their journey had brought them a lot of benefits in the form of raw power. Which also eased up the control. His technique was much finer. The ripples he created by it were weaker, harder to discern by anyone who would find themselves near the points of exit.
Soon after, Oria arrived through the breach, already informed about the portal by her daughter. He walked up to his own frivolous mom and lifted her by the armpits, dragging the shorter woman away from the sultry shadow of his newest lover.
“We’ll leave more detailed recounts of the events that took place in Umbra’s realm for later,” he stated with a tone brooking no argument. “Now that Oria is here, we can move on to the matters that brought us here.”
“Speaking of Miss Oria, how are things related to the Adventurer’s Guild doing back in your village?” Silvia chimed in curiously.
“Rather well, I must say.” Miria’s mother brushed her chin. “The guild hall is pretty much fully finished and furnished. We’ve been in contact with your guildmaster, talking out some details, but without the ability to travel through the fabric of realms, we were forced to delay a few things.”
“Already?” Selene frowned lightly. “I don’t mean to discredit your workers and artisans, but I was under the impression that your mate was the key figure in construction, alongside his helpers. Did you really build a whole guild while we were gone?”
“Ah, no, we didn’t exactly do it purely on our own.” Oria waved her hands. “The foxes helped a lot.”
“Foxes?” It was Ast’s turn to furrow his brows. “We haven’t exactly instructed them to assist us with this endeavor, nor did you mention needing it.”
“I heard that some young vixen started paying rather regular visits to that friend of your sweet kitty, Asti,” Kindra added while tapping her lips. “Was it Zoe? Yes, I’m pretty sure it was. Through that, she noticed what was being done and brought back a small retinue from the next time, aiding the construction as much as they could during what I assume is their free time.”
Ast’s group exchanged glances. No one had to guess that it was certainly Ronye. And Kindra’s next words only confirmed it.
“Anyway, she’s such a nice girl,” his mother continued, bouncing her brows at him. “A tiny bit boyish, but she’s still growing into her charms, no doubt. Still, she’s a short feisty cutie. And those tails, my dear, they are a thing of wonder!”
Rubbing his eyes with one hand, Asterios wrapped his other arm around Selene’s waist, pulling the mature vixen to his side, to which she visibly leaned into him, resting her head atop his shoulder.
“I already have a tail like that to fluff whenever I want,” he answered, running his fingers through the cloudy piece of heaven, evoking a sensual sigh from its owner.
Kindra’s attention flickered to that swaying appendage and Selene grinned impishly.
“Would you like to touch it?” the vulpine lady offered.
Biting on her lip and considering it briefly, the tempest of a woman couldn’t possibly hold her playful urges back and hopped closer to them while Selene spun around. Ast’s mom carefully slid her fingers over the exquisite fluff, then gently hugged it to her chest as a few more appeared on the sides. She giggled like a little girl during her birthday.
“Truly divine…” Kindra sighed in contentment. “But, do you know what would be even better? If, and just think about it for a moment, there was another fan like this on the other side to sandwich and drown you in the sea of softness.”
“Stop objectifying Foxkin women, Mom.” Asterios snorted. “They are more than just tails.”
“But we do have the best tails.” Selene preened under the teasing praise.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“Not helping.” He squinted at her. “In any way, it’s not like I can make any moves about now.”
Miria tilted her head adorably. “Why not, Master?”
“It’s rather clear that the two, or even three of them, have grown quite close together,” Asterios answered. “Choosing one of them might, at best, introduce a bit of awkwardness into their friendship, and at worst, ruin it completely.”
“I don’t think you should view them the same as the human females,” Althea offered her wisdom from the side.
“That’s true, but they are still females from possibly even prouder races,” he countered.
“In my opinion, they would definitely take that more as a confirmation that there truly is a chance for them to receive your affection rather than be jealous about their friend and create drama,” Grea said, for once without much of her usual bawdiness.
Meeting their eyes for a while, Asterios exhaled slowly. “I’ll think about this. As I said, though, later. Gwen, can I ask you to take over before they delve even deeper into my love life? This combination placed in the same room is a recipe for disaster.”
The women laughed, no one choosing to deny his quip, even taking it as a compliment.
“Well, at least Tina seems reasonable enough not to guide you into my panties.” Gwen chuckled mirthfully. “For now.”
“GWEN!” The person in question squawked indignantly, getting all red. “We are family!”
“Still, I have a feeling you wouldn’t really do a lot to stop me if that was my intention, would you?” The younger sister raised a curious brow, seeing the older twin chewing on her lip. “Rest assured, though. While I might fawn a little over at least one person hanging around you, I’m not pinning after your man. Besides, someone has to inherit mother’s craft someday, even if your draconic boyfriend finds a way to somehow extend our lives without mating us.”
“And what exactly is that craft?” Tina looked between her mother and sister. “How come I know nothing of it while you seem fully aware?”
The pair peeked at each other too.
“First of all, please, accept my sincerest apology, Tina.” Lady Luna walked closer and lowered her head. “It was solely my decision to keep you out of the loop. Even if it wasn’t something I planned from the start. You were my chosen person for the majority of your life. Things have simply… changed… when you arrived at the academy.”
“Yeah. That was a shocker.” Gwen snickered knowingly. “I never imagined my perfect sister would be able to fall this strongly. I heard you almost dropped out right before the end.”
The implications were obvious. Tina’s cheeks bloomed with a rosy tone as her family brought up her obsession with Asterios. Maybe it had been a tiny bit too much to be considered normal by the usual standards.
“Okay. That’s understandable. I have a feeling it’s something very important, and you did teach me how crucial it is to keep all things in consideration, so I don’t blame you, Mother. You need not apologize.” Tina took a deep breath to recollect herself. “So, what is it?”
“You see, there’s a side to our family that only several members are aware of. And the new recruits receive full initiation during their study years. Before that, they are trained more covertly, of course. I didn’t push you so hard in certain areas just because of some silly notions like noble pride or superiority,” Lady Luna started to explain. “In short words, I’m the head of a secret organization that specializes in information gathering throughout the realm. Amongst the operatives, I’m called The Director. We originated a long ago in this region and thus closely worked with the king’s men to ensure the prosperity of the domain.”
Tina blinked at her blankly. “We… what?”
Gwen placed a reassuring hand on her sister’s shoulder. “To put it simply, we are spies. Espionage is our craft. We have operatives in multiple places of high standing throughout the kingdom and the realm. Though, any missions outside of our borders always come at certain risks because the main force consists of humans, more or less. Our people gather all kinds of information and deliver it into proper hands if it’s something that might impact the common folk negatively. And no, we don’t really do assassinations or such, even if we might have a unit specialized in extracting compromised agents.”
“That’s… crazy.” Asterios put his hands on his hips, looking between all the blue-haired women, then at his and Miria’s mothers. “But, I suppose it’s not as unbelievable as it might have been a year ago.”
Tina, in turn, didn’t seem to be able to find the correct words to form a response, her mouth opening and closing repeatedly. Her sister and mother hugged her close apologetically.
“Not that I’m mad or disappointed, but why would… how I behaved in the academy… disqualify me from this position?” she asked as they finally stepped back.
“It didn’t take me long to realize that your heart has chosen its way. A lot of duties and responsibilities that I was going to bring upon your shoulders would oftentimes go against it. Just look at your younger sister. And no, I don’t mean her not having a lover. Abstaining from emotional or physical bonds isn’t some kind of a rule,” her mother replied.
Giving her words some pondering, the Summoner girl cocked her head to the back. “You need to be ready to travel to many places and stay undercover there for gods know how long. It’s a difficult thing for relationships. Especially budding ones. You wanted to spare me this trouble.”
“Exactly.” Her sister smiled warmly. “I mean, at that point, he was still a normal boy that caught your eye. You two needed space, time, and support. Mother couldn’t have expected things to develop how they had. We might have had our secrets, but his? It was the biggest case in the entire history of the organization.”
“Does Father know?” Silvia inquired.
“About the organization? Yes.” Lady Luna nodded. “About us? No. If you asked about me by name, he would tell you about our nobility. But, if you brought up The Director, he would grow rather concerned. Actually, that might be fun to watch. His expression when hearing his sheltered daughter demanding to know about us would be priceless.”
Kindra’s eyes glinted dangerously.
Asterios pointed a finger at her. “Stop. Don’t torment the poor man. His heart is already stressed enough. Just thanks to your very person.”
She looked like she wanted to say something, but ultimately chose to keep silent for now. From her gaze, Asterios easily discerned that it wasn’t a tease or some comedic quip. This was a topic she would like to touch upon with fewer people involved. Possibly only him.
Sending her a mental acknowledgment, something he now could do, which felt very nice, he moved his focus to Tina’s mom.
“Does this organization of yours have a name too or does it not exist on paper?” he pondered out loud.
“Noblesse,” both Nobelles answered in unison.
Asterios deadpanned at them.
“Really?” Grea cackled. “Don’t you think it hits way too close home?”
“The darkest place is right underneath the lantern.” Lady Luna shrugged. “Plus, hiding in plain sight is kind of our mode of operation.”
“No wonder Gwen picked up this specific profession.” Tina chuckled at her sister. “As a wandering guildmaster, you can get in everywhere, as long as our family creates a pretext for it. Brilliant.”
“But wait, Suanori seemed to recognize her, didn’t she?” Bryn pointed out and they all recalled the first meeting between the two women.
“That was a close one.” Gwen laughed awkwardly. “Guildmaster Suanori worked with King Welrond before, and it so happens that we were involved too. I might not have been an operative at that time yet, but she interacted with our organization, and still sometimes submits requests with us. We don’t have the obligation to accept them, though. Nevertheless, she is a clever elf and an S-rank adventurer. I’m not surprised she picked up on the hints, already witnessing one of our swaps during her service.”
“And so, this supposedly undercover surveillance clan has moved its base of operations to Dragon Valley.” Asterios massaged his forehead. “Now that I think of all this, how much did you know about me from the very beginning?”
Tina’s mother displayed a dangerous smile, making him shiver.
“Well, now. As a man who stole my dear daughter’s heart, it can be said that she wasn’t the only one stalking your every step.” She chuckled nobly.
“I wasn’t stalking him!” Tina objected.
“To answer your question, we obviously knew every detail of your life that was known in public and in private. I must admit, my friendship with Lady Kindra began for that specific reason, and I apologized for that a long time ago, even if she didn’t hold it against me,” the scheming woman admitted.
“Oh, you know I would have done the same for Asti if I had the skills for it.” Ast’s mom swatted her playfully. “Just look where it got us. Without you, I wouldn’t have been able to locate Radir so quickly.”
Grea’s jaw hit the floor at the revelation.
“That’s how you found my old man?!” she questioned in a dumbfounded voice.
The pair of mothers chuckled mysteriously.
“Back to you, Asterios, though, do you perhaps remember a lady with the name Ellie?” Lady Luna raised a brow at him.
“You are kidding?!” Miria gasped loudly.
Asterios fully shared her surprise. “She’s part of this?”
“As you know from my daughter’s career path, the guild is one of the best sources of information and places to keep an eye on things.” Gwen’s mom spread her arms innocently. “After the girl who treated you like some underage bum when you first interacted with the guild while delivering that package suffered a tiny accident, we put someone more appropriate in her place. Ellie isn’t the elite, but for just reporting about your visits, she was more than enough.”
Silvia stared at her with wide eyes.
“She’s alive,” Gwen cleared up. “But considering the state of her reputation, she might as well wish not to be.”
“Is that why no matter what my mother tried Ellie had not an inkling of interest in me?” Asterios asked, multiple of their interactions flashing before his eyes.
“Maybe a small part of it.” Lady Luna hummed thoughtfully. “But she truly considers you a real best friend and is simply not someone who is easily seduced. I’ve never seen her show any interest in the romantic side. Once in a while, you find a real loner from within the soul.”
“I guess we’ll have to pay her a visit to let her know she doesn’t have to lie to us anymore, Master.” Miria smiled at him sweetly and he nodded.
“We will. That will certainly take a weight off her heart.” He nodded. “Now, I don’t think this is the investigation Gwen had in mind when she told us she had finished her report. Should we move on to more serious matters?”
In just a moment, the jolly mood was replaced with something more sober and earnest while still remaining fairly relaxed. The time for jokes had ended.
“I guess we should.” Gwen’s mother agreed with him. “Introductions and explanations behind us, we can finally share with you all we have managed to gather. Sweetie, would you mind sharing what we know?”