Chapter 33: Captive (10) (Patreon)

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Clover was only ten paces away from Jason Carid Akka Xalud when his guards blocked her path with their sword and spear. She wasn’t particularly tall and their helmets cast shadows on their faces, hiding their features. She felt Arione tense behind her but didn’t let herself flinch. She smiled at the two guards.

“I was hoping to speak to Jason Carid Akka-”

“Finish that sentence and I’ll pit your tongue on my dagger.” One of the guards snarled.

Arione’s mana signature disappeared.

For one fearful moment, Clover thought the powerful mage had either hidden himself or left. But the touch on her elbow reassured her that he was still there, he was thoughtful enough to let her know that he hadn’t abandoned her. The guards didn’t seem to notice anything either. The pink-haired woman realized that Arione’s mana signature hadn’t disappeared, it had been condensed.

She didn’t know how but she instinctively knew that he had condensed his significant mana pool into the shape of a ball, ready to be unleashed at any time. Swallowing her nervousness, Clover smiled at them again.

“You shall refer to him as ‘Lord’.” The guard finished, unaware of the exchange between Clover and Arione.

“I wish to speak to your Lord.” Clover complied easily.

This wasn’t the first time a soldier gave her a tough time and it wouldn’t be the last.

He sneered. “He’s not entertaining visitors.”

“But we are.” The other guard chimed in, giving her an once over.

Clover felt a hot flash of anger and suppressed it. “Oh really? Because I saw him entertaining the Zimmskar Kingdom’s emissary just a moment ago and right now he’s speaking to another merchant. My name is Clover Weinport and I’m sure he’d be very pleased if he finds out that-”

“That a no-name merchant like you failed to get his attention?” The guard’s weapons refused to move. “Find somewhere else to peddle your wares.”

She felt her merchant training come into play. “It’ll only be a moment-”

“Get. A. Move. On.” He said each word through gritted teeth.

Clover was at a standstill.

“And who are you to decide that she should get a move on?”

The voice came from behind the guards but Clover hadn’t noticed the woman until she had spoken.

She was wearing a dark green dress with a long slit that started right below her hips, leaving the long length of her leg exposed. Her lengthy black hair was smooth and silky, evidence of having the money to take care of it as well as the luxury to keep it long so long. The most shocking part of her hair were the two strands of orange that stuck out from the top, resembling the antennae of the orange centipede design on her dress.

Maria Biva Akka Xalud, Jason’s young sister.

“This is why hired help is no good.” She rolled her eyes comically. “I apologize on their behalf, Ms. Weinport. We have been running short on men and were forced to recruit rather hastily. I will talk to our Guard Captain about this at once.”

Then Maria turned her eyes to the guards, her voice turning husky. “As for you two… I’ll see you later.”

Normally an attractive woman like Maria talking like that would give them certain ideas.

Clover saw the two men go pale.

“Follow me please, Ms. Weinport.” Maria grabbed Clover by the wrist and led her through the small crowd around the oasis.

Arione followed wordlessly.

“If I had known that you were attending, I would have prepared a seat for you at our own section of the venue.” Maria continued. “Was your to the Desert ok? I’m sure it was not easy having to deal with these animals.”

She waved her hand towards the orc oasis absently, then turned around facing Clover. Maria was waiting for an answer.

Clover stuck with the truth, bending at the waist as was customary of her people. “I’m sorry, Lady Maria. But I believe we have never met. If we have met somewhere, you will have to forgive my lack of recall.”

After a heartstopping moment of silence, Maria began to laugh.

“Of course we have never met!” She covered her mouth with one hand, using her height to look down at Clover.

She put a hand on Clover’s shoulder. “It’s not everyday that a merchant with no name works up the guts to talk to us. A beastman nonetheless!”

Something about the way Maria said beastman bothered Clover more than the fact that she had casually disrespected Clover’s standing as a merchant. Fake backstory or not, Clover felt insulted by Maria’ attitude. Yet the woman herself looked into Clover’s eyes with those avian-like orange eyes; unaware that Clover felt insulted or the fact that Maria’s words could be construed as such.

She wondered if this was behavior typical of a Scion.

Maria looked at Clover like a kid who found a new toy; her eyes practically sparkling.

“Thank you miss.” Clover slightly dipped her head.

“Of course!” Maria clapped once and then began to lead the way towards Jason. “So what did you want to talk to my brother about?”

“I have information about the slaves that are coming up for auction tonight. I’d like to offer him my services as an advisor of sorts.”

Maria glanced back, making sure Clover and her guard were following. “Oh I’m sure he’d love that. Are you from the Zimmskar Kingdom?”

“Yes… and no. I have been following my parents all around the world since I was a little girl. I was born in the Zimmskar Kingdom but I would not call it home. My home is with the merchant company.”

“Hmm… interesting.” Maria grabbed two drinks off of a server and handed one to Clover. “And your hair is real?! I’ve never seen it before!”

“Share a drink with me!” She said as Clover nodded in affirmation. “Even if my brother turns down your offer, I hope you will sit with us. There’s no other girls our age here and I was terribly bored.”

Clover held the drink in hand, thinking.

“Oh just say yes!” The girl clinked her glass against Clover’s. “I’ll make sure my brother says yes!”

Clover couldn’t get a read on the girl; whether she was faking or this upbeat personality was her real self. But seeing no harm come from being on the Scion’s good side, Clover sipped at the drink. Maria’s eyes shone with mischief.

“Oh boo! Down it! In one shot!”

She knew Arione would be glaring at her disapprovingly but saw no other choice. The Akka Xaluds were obviously the most powerful faction in this entire place and she badly needed information from them. She had to get Maria Biva Akka Xalud on her side; even if it was only temporary. So Clover downed the glass.

“Yes!” Maria cheered and then took the glass from Clover, throwing the two cups behind her. They shattered but no one paid attention to it.

“We’re friends now!” The orange-haired scion linked her arms around Clover’s. “And friends stay together forever! I’ve never had a pink beastman friend before!”

Arione stiffened but didn’t say anything. If he spoke, there was a higher chance that they’d pay attention to him or gods forbid, someone would recognize him.

But with that one sentence, Maria had just made it that much harder for them to sneak out unseen.

Mario and Clover waded through the crowd and finally reached the deepest part; Jason sat on a chair and he was talking to another beastman. It was obviously a representative from the Zimmskar faction; a beastman with dog ears on his head.

“Please, Lord Jason. If you could lend your-”

“As I’ve said, my hands are tied. My condolences.” Jason stared straight into the man’s eyes as he said this, unwavering. “Perhaps there will be a future where we can better confirm the Turina Empire and the Zimmskar Kingdom’s partnership. But even I, with the Akka Xalud House’s backing, cannot speak for the entirety of the empire.”

“Yes sir, but I have heard that your House has brought funds and men, dedicated to liberating the slaves from the grips of these barbaric orcs. The treaty between the Turina Empire and Zimmskar Kingdom dictate that no beastman are to be enslaved!” The man’s tone gained volume and Clover saw more than one individual starting to pay attention to them, while pretending not to.

Jason laughed, his tone flat and callous. “I assure you, the Turina Empire takes no part in enslaving or the capture of beastman from the Zimmskar Kingdom. But it was never in our treaty to prohibit their sale. Besides, the Turina Empire has vast borders, we cannot police everything that our people do.”

“Yet you are here, a representative of one of the Great Houses! If word got back about this to the Circle back in my home country-”

Jason slammed his hand on the stone table, cracking it.

The crowd around them went silent, emphasized by the hums of arcane contraptions flying about the night sky.

“Are you threatening me?” He whispered.

“I,I,I-er, W-What I m,m,m,meant was that-”

“Enough.” He shooed the man’s excuses away. “You can go back and tell your Circle what you want. I am here to fulfill my duty and you yours. Let us speak no more on this matter. I wish you best of luck for the rest of tonight.”

The beastman stopped stammering and got up from his seat. He gave a stiff bow to Jason, which was not returned with a gesture of any kind. The Scion was ignoring him completely now; their business was done.

Clover and Maria waited until the man was completely gone and the sound of conversations filled the air once more. Maria led the way, Clover in tow and Arione in his hood behind them. Arione fell back several paces, giving the three individuals the illusion of privacy.

“Brother. This is Ms. Clover Weinport.” Maria introduced.

Jason looked at her.

Clover was used to men’s looks lingering on certain part of her body or giving her the once over. She was also used to being sized up as a merchant, seeing how competent she could be. Lately she had gotten used to being seen as merchandise, a slave whose value was being measured. Jason did none of those things.

He just looked at her like a bug then dismissed her.

“I’m tired.” He rubbed his temple then leaned on the table with his elbow, supporting his head with a fist. “I wish to be left alone until the auction starts. I apologize to you, Ms. Weinport, but perhaps we can talk another time.”

“But brother.” Maria started. “I promised-”

Jason’s head snapped to the younger Scion and then he snapped his fingers.

He said nothing.

Maria’s head drooped in obedience. “Ok… Come, Ms. Clover, perhaps we can find someone else to hold a conversation with us.”

As Maria’s sentence finished the guards who had been blending in with the plantlife nearby with their chitinous armor came out of hiding, barring the way. They didn’t take out their weapons like the two from before. The very air around them was different and Arione sensed the silent promise of death. These guys wouldn’t give a kind warning to Clover; they’d just kill her.

They weren’t the hired help… These guys were real Akka Xalud fighters. Branch House members trained from birth to protect and serve the Scions from the Main House.

Clover grew desperate. She needed to talk to Jason. She needed to get information. She needed to rescue L’teya and Lock. This was the only thing that she could do for her friends.

“Wait, please Lord Akka Xalud. I have information about the slaves that are going for auction tonight!” Clover yelled out to Jason.

“I don’t care.” Jason muttered and that was the end of their conversation.

Because Clover rocked back on her heels by the implications of what he was saying.

Jason Carid Akka Xalud didn’t care about the catalog of slaves that were going on for sale? He didn’t even seem interested and dismissed her entirely. Not a single moment of hesitation, an arched eyebrow or anything. He showed nothing at her mention of the knowledge of the slaves. Any merchant with a head on their shoulders would know how much her information was worth.

Did he have that much money? That still made no sense, unless the Great House truly outfitted this entire Scion with enough money to rival the Jayu State Colosseum and the Zimmskar Kingdom.

“No, that can’t be true.” Clover’s merchant knowledge came in.

In most auctions, the major players all possessed roughly the same amount of gold. The game of placing bids didn’t come down to overwhelming the other parties with your wealth. It was about placing smart bets, saving your coin and getting the best deal, squeezing out the worth of a single coin. That was what auctions were about.

So why did Jason not care about her information?

“It’s ok, Ms. Clover.” Maria said in a false hushed whisper, her arm linked around Clover’s. “I’m sure my brother will come around. Perhaps we can sit next to him during the auction and let slip a few vital pieces of information? Then he’ll see your value!”

“BECAUSE HE DOESN’T CARE ABOUT THE AUCTION.” Clover felt like she got hit in the head with the gold bag of a Lucky Beckoning Cat.

Arione must have come to the same conclusion that she did.

“M’lady.” He mumbled. “Perhaps we should try our luck elsewhere?”

He was hinting that they should talk. Privately.

“Y-yes. Perhaps we should.”

Clover’s head was filled with all sorts of ideas. Just what were the Akka Xaluds planning? Why didn’t they care about the auction? Was there something else that was going on for sale that only they knew about? Was there a collaborator here with them?

But now, everything had changed and they needed a new plan.

Clover carefully began to pull her arm out of Maria’s grasp. “Lady Maria, I thank you for your hospitality. But I must try my luck elsewhere. Such is the fate of-”

Maria’s fingers dug into Clover’s arms so hard that it drew blood, sinking into her skin.

Clover bit back a cry.

“But you promised.” She muttered, her orange eyes dilated with obsession. “That we’ll be together forever.”

Clover saw a small centipede crawl out from the the sleeves of Maria’s dress, pausing at the Scion’s shoulder then back inside.

It had been a light blue, a color that she’d never seen before.

“I’ve been looking for a pink friend… it’ll be so fun!”

Clover leaned back, trying to put distance between but Maria’s grip was like a bug bite, pulling back only ripped her own arm apart.

Arione prepared to teleport them out of there.

“Ladies and gentleman!”

The mage looked to the source of the voice and found a glasses-wearing elf wearing formal armor in the orcish fashion. It was a mixture of leather and metal, lavishly decorated with warpaints of different colors. The elf did a little bow, with exaggerated handmotions.

“The Auction will be starting! If you could all make your way down to the first floor!”

Madame Damur was the first to get up and move her procession towards the stairs. The Zimmskar and the Jayu factions soon followed. Before Arione could teleport them out, Jason walked by them.

“Shit… I knew I was going to get ganked. If I teleported here, one of them could shut me down and then it wouldn’t be a Free For All, it’d be All versus me. Damn.” 2nd-grade mage as he was, he did not have the confidence that he could escape all these different forces at play.

There’s only so much one person can do in MSS, that’s why you always wanted a party.

“Maria. Come.” Jason ordered and Maria obeyed, dragging Clover behind her.

"Leave your toy behind. We have work to do."

Maria pouted. "But brother-"

Jason didn't answer and continued walking.

"Oh fine!" Maria looked at Clover one last time before heading downstairs with the rest of the Akka Xalud contigent. "Don't go anywhere ok, Ms. Weinport? I'd love to see you again. I'll come look for you!"

Arione sighed in relief. He had debated abandoning Clover, writing her off as a lost cause. The stakes were getting higher and he felt the hands of fate starting to close in around his neck. His 10 years of surviving as a [Player]-mage told him to get out of here. The only thing that had made him hesitate was the Mana Vow. But no amount of maximum MP was worth his life. There were ways to make up for lost MP after all.

He walked up next to her. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine." She snapped, slightly annoyed.

He didn't let it get to him. It was directed more at herself than at him, her nerves getting the best of her. Arione saw that the arm was already back to normal. She had healed it without anyone noticing. The priestess was improving at a scary rate.

"They're not interested in the auction at all. They have something else planned." She said to him, out of earshot of anyone else.

"I should've known. Those bug bastards are always planning something." Arione scratched the back of his head, thinking.

"Should I just nuke this entire place? Honestly haven't been in a SNAFU this bad in awhile." He was no closer to finding his apprentice than before and still had no clue where Clover's allies could be.

"...We need to register for the auction." Clover pointed towards the staircase. "Down there lies our best chance of finding the people we're looking for.

"Agreed." They were on the same page for once. "I have the gold that we can use as a deposit. They won't even let us on the bidding floor without it. You do know that, right? Ms. Merchant?"

"Thank you." Clover had been worried about that exact part of their plan.

She knew that Arione would have some gold, just not sure how much. But if he could answer so confidently about fronting the deposit all the while knowing that he might never get the gold back, he must have more than enough money lying around. Then again, it'd be strange for a powerful mage like Arione to not have emergency funds for moments just like this.

"Hey! You can't suddenly answer so sincerely like that!" Then the grade-2 mage did something strange, poking his index fingers together while looking down. "I just wanted you to notice me, Clover-chan."

Whatever Arione was doing, it sent shivers up Clover's spine and made her reassess their working relationship. She ps"I'll pay you back. One day. I swear it."

The mage smirked at her, back to his usual self. "Oh, I'm counting on it."