Chapter 631 Chapter 630: New Leg of the Journey
With the recent revelations and a strong - yet hidden - desire from the ruling Family inside Vulpe City, we packed our stuff after another few hours of double checking and cross questioning that got us to the answer that we had known already.
If we wanted to follow the clues, we would need to depart for the Witrani Barony and question the Baroness about the necklace as soon as possible, which would likely lead to another location with a set of elaborate, confusing clues that no one wanted to really follow thanks to the wild goose chase we'd be on, but...
It had to be done, and we loaded into our carriages and departed the city, with me making a mental note to return here when everything calmed down and we had free time in the future; I wanted to experience the fun night life with each of my three lovers here, and that likely would never change.
Thankfully for us, the Witrani Barony was not only nearby, but also a smaller territory ruled by just a single woman - the Witrani Baroness - and her land was 'within' the land of the Renacla County since they had ancestral ties or something.
It was just a few hours away, and it gave us - me in particular - time to rest and sleep as we went from one locale to another, and with a battle most assuredly being on the horizon within this Barony, I needed the rest.
Cali had 'disappeared', and one of the Wisps remained behind to make sure everything was truly alright with Lady Vitra going forwards, double checking and triple checking her mental health as best they could from both the shadows and the light before making their way over to meet up with us at the Barony, so the carriages were lighter this time around.
I fell asleep instantly, the warmth of Leone on my left and Anput on my right lulling me into that blissful state as I rested my head on Leone's shoulder, while Anput kept her arm around my waist.
It was comforting, though it ended up being the sort of nap that felt nothing like a nap; I closed my eyes and opened them back up like I had blinked, only to find myself having gone from the rolling hills around the beautiful white and red city of Vulpe to a rocky valley leading up towards a plateau that was a drab mixture of browns, tans and greys that was utterly unappealing to look at.
Jahi was the one to wake me up, nudging my leg with her foot and rousing me from that sea of blackness that was comforting to drift aimlessly in - otherwise known as a nap.
The necklace rested in my pocket, linked to my pocket watch and made sure to be secure so that we didn't lose it, since this would be something worthy of being studied in depth when we returned to the Palace.
Perhaps the Empress and her wives could glean something more from it that we otherwise wouldn't see, or perhaps not; either way though, I had a feeling that this wasn't the only artifact that the cult dedicated to Tza'Delira had amongst themselves, and if we really did end up meeting another controlled cultist - or perhaps a normal, willing cultist - we would need to search them thoroughly for anything else.
Ascending through the valley and onto the plateau, we found ourselves heading towards a quaint little farming village nestled on top of the plateau, growing golden wheat and plucking the fruits from trees, their hard work here feeding not only themselves and their neighbors, but others inside the Empire as well; work that wasn't the most glorious, but work that was fulfilling and necessary.
The single story stone houses that were gathered in small rings around the plateau weren't the most beautiful or largest houses either, but considering the various Beastkin that milled around and went about their day, it was enough for these people.
Situated far behind the small collections of houses and large fields of crops was a slightly larger, yet still humble manor that overlooked everything with its two stories, and that was where we were heading.
Simple roads of cobbled stone led us there, and many of the farming Beastkin glanced at our carriages curiously before shrugging, uncaring about what was happening as they returned to their jobs, likely deciding that we were here for their Baroness and that she would deal with us.
The plateau was expansive, and the multitude of acres covered in crops and orchards was a wonderful contrast from the drab mountains around us, though our focus was solely on the manor as we drew closer.
Guards resting against simple spears shook themselves back to awareness and approached the carriage, raising their hands and asking us to stop so that they could question us.
The Wisps handled the talking just like before, and we resumed moving forwards as we made our way towards the front of the manor, where the Wisps told us to disembark, the guards letting out quiet gasps as they saw the Marquess step out, followed by Jahi.
Whispers flowed between the guards at the sight of the two Demonesses, with one of the guards making their way inside to speak to the Baroness.
All of us caught that movement, our eyes narrowed as we waited out front, wondering if the Baroness would meet with us or run; we were curious about the woman's allegiance, after all, and if she ran we would have confirmation that she was up to something.
But a few moments later a scrawny, average height woman came scurrying out of the manor, her simple red dress making her auburn hair stand out even more as she rushed to stand in front of us.
Her swarthy brown skin and rough hands spoke of labor in the fields alongside her people, while the sharp brown eyes that looked worriedly between the Marquess and Jahi conveyed quite a bit.
Wringing out her hands, Baroness Witrani gulped before hastily curtsying the Marquess, her voice shaking a bit as she said "T-To what do I owe the pleasure, M-Marquess Asmodia..?"
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