Chapter 195 195 The house at the border
[OP: ]
In a certain small border town of the great empire of Barnacle, there existed a large piece of land at the edges of the town, upon which stood only a single large two-story house of medieval construction.
The land encompassing it was so large that, if cultivated, one could produce an attractive harvest and, since the soil around the house was fertile enough to give birth to an attractive greenery, it certainly was a land any farmer of the town would wish to possess.
However, few dared to go even near this land, or the sole dwelling that occupied this land.
There were tells of a residence retold far beyond this border town, that, a certain house nestled in the shadows of an ancient mystical Elm on the edges of H?mino border town, which, in another age, was naught but a grave of Willows, a place that had been bestowed upon the Boroughs the Bugmasters of a storied lineage of insect researchers, by the twelfth emperor of the great empire.
The house situated on land that many had tried to get their hands on in the previous centuries, the same house that, even to this day, housed the last of the descendants of the Boroughs, the last heir that continued the traditions of their families and, took it to a step further from what had been passed down to her from her late father…
"Hmmmmuhuhu. They will arrive soon."
It was rumored that the enterprising Boroughs had forged the foundations of this attractive dwelling, as well as this green land, themselves, with the stones quarried from the heart of the "Mountain of blood", an ancient mountain lost to the flow of time, upon which peak it is said that a divine being resides.
However, few knew the truths regarding the Boroughs, a name that, too, has now been lost to the time after the attempts of many who lusted for the simple piece of land, and the house which was rumored to possess an astronomical value in the current world.
-KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
"Hulu, are they here?"
A prosperous family of the empire that had aided the crown for generations was banished to a small place just because a young emperor thought they were more dangerous to the society and the royal family than any threat present in that era.
They used to call them 'General Counts' of the empire, and their unique ability that ran in their bloodline was something that the crown had thoroughly used for generations to gain the powers it currently possessed, before throwing them away and going as far as erasing the records of their existence itself.
They repaid their loyalty by sparing their lives in exchange for the generational contract stating they would never do anything that harms the empire or the crown in any way.
They were outcasted and were thrown in a small place for which, they forgave the crown and accepted their orders, just like they had done in the past, just like their ancestors had been doing since the beginning of their lineage.
They had been the servants of the crown from the start, prepared to give away their lives and the lives of their kind for the sake of the crown but, the fact that the crown showed them mercy and spared their kind was something they had rejoiced over.
However, they did not know the plays of the crown.
The place they were granted was inhabitable, filled with poison and corruption.
No life could have been sustained there, however, they still persisted, found a solution, cured the land, and in the end, established their own house.
The crown had stopped paying attention to them and since there had been no record of them, with passing years, decades, and centuries, they were forgotten.
The land they had cured became a place where new people started residing and a city was created in a place where ferocious creatures had resided in the past.
Times changed, and, the Boroughs were forgotten. What remained of them were rumors that were just that, remorse.
None knew much about the house that was situated on the outskirts of the town, and no one knew much about the inside of the house, some knew the previous owner of the house was killed in an accident along with his wife, and mother, and that only their older daughter had remained there, but, that was the limits of their information.
None knew what went on inside the haunted house… none except the unfortunate fools who occasionally knocked at the doors of this dwelling.
"Hello~? Can I help you-"
"Inside! Let us in! Bees! Attack!! Behind us!!!"
Two individuals, desperately fleeing from a relentless swarm of angry bees, had stumbled upon the quaint and inviting cottage nestled amidst open greenery and found themselves in a moment of salvation. The young woman, with a serene countenance and an aura of kindness about her, cracked opened the door and right after evaluating their situation at a glance, she opened the doors, and they rushed inside as she closed the door behind her hurriedly.
"It's alright…"
Within the old medieval house, the passage of time had woven a tapestry of history, and the walls whispered forgotten stories. The interior was a harmonious blend of rustic charm and timeless elegance.
The heart of the house was the grand hall, with its soaring timber beams and a massive stone fireplace that dominated one wall. The hearth, ablaze with dancing flames, cast a warm and flickering light that played upon the aged tapestries adorning the walls.
These tapestries depicted images of unique creatures resembling insects and bugs along with the humans who seemed to be playing with them.
Worn flagstone floors, smoothed by centuries of use, guided the way through the various chambers. The furniture, hand-carved from dark oak, bore the marks of many generations, their imperfections a testament to the passage of time.
In one corner, a grand oak dining table stood, adorned with pewter goblets and tarnished silverware. The high-backed chairs that surrounded it seemed to beckon weary travelers to share tales over a hearty meal.
She walked to this table and asked them to take a seat.
"Haaaa… haaa…"
"Would you like some water, or perhaps, some honey tea?"
Her voice was pretty, and she looked attractive as well however, in her modest clothing, the air of elegance she had was hidden behind her gentleness and hospitality.
"Tea?"
The two of them looked around the house for a moment, then at the woman standing before them with a careful look, and, after a moment of observation and taking a few breaths, they nodded at her with a smile.
"Tea please."
"Alright~!"
She smiled joyfully and seeing her smile made their hearts skip a beat.
There was something about this woman, something mysterious that they could not understand.
They weren't from this part of the country, they were just travelers who were unlucky to have been attacked by an angry mob of bees out of nowhere. The two of them had barely managed to run away from the bees but, their party was not as lucky as them.
They did not know what had happened to them, but, thanks to their superior abilities, they had ended up with this pretty maiden.
"Here. Please tell me if you need anything."
"Yes…"
They accepted the chipped teacups as she sat down with them, and after taking a deep whiff of the brew, they put the teacups down after a few sips.
They liked the tea.
"Do you live here alone, madam?"
"Huhu, don't call me madam. But yes, unfortunately, I am the only human present here."
But they liked something else more than that.
"Is that right…?"
They were tall muscular men in good clothing so, it seemed they were adventurers, and from their auras, it seemed like one of them was a mage, while the other a swordsman.
Both seemed pretty strong and capable of dealing with a bunch of bees, however, for some reason, they followed their instincts and ran away from them instead of facing them and saving their party members.
"Then madam…"
They talked with the woman over their cup of tea, with the fire in the fireplace crackling and producing a calming effect that lasted… only until there was a strange gleam in the eyes of the two adventurers.
"Madam, by any chance, are you interested in trading?"
"Hmmm? What do you mean?"
One of them stood up and the one that was sitting smirked at her, putting a bag of coins on top of the table.
"Of course madam, by that, he meant your attractive body. Is it for sale~?"
The one sitting at the table started chanting something while the woman's face was suddenly covered in darkness.
"W-what do you mean! No! Of course not! Get out of our house-"
"You should have just said yes, madam."
The bigger one, the swordsman, with a face painted with a dark smirk, took one step towards her, and in fear, she tried to run away from the two scumbags… only to be stopped in her place after walking only a few steps.
"Ahhhhh! What is this-"
"It's magic, darling. Magic~."
There was a rope of blue light binding her legs and her movement had been restricted.
"Hehehe, who would have thought those fucking damned bees would take us to this amazingly sexy catch~?"
The swordsman licked his lips and walked towards the lady, and, the magician also stood up to walk towards her, to have a taste of her himself, have a taste of her innocence.
"Kekekeke…"
However, after only taking a single step, he fell to the ground, his body devoid of any and all strength, almost as if he had been paralyzed.
"Hmmm? Are you laugh-"
Right after him, the big, tall swordsman also fell to the ground, his eyes still open, however, his mind was unable to perceive even a muscle in his body.
"Did you say magic, mister~?"
The rope binding her feet vanished after he had fallen to the ground and, she stood up, smiling, her silhouette created by the fire of the fireplace on the wall depicting something the two of them had not noticed in all this time.
"Do you want to see some of my magic as well~?"
The ends of her lips cracked and the sweet smile she had turned into a devilish smile as rows of sharp teeth appeared in her mouth… before suddenly vanishing completely.
"Ah, wait. This isn't the right place to show my magic trick~. Let's go down and chat~."
-Snap!
Out of nowhere, the ground beneath them started wiggling after her snap, and, weird, earthworm-like beings surfaced from the old stone floor.
"Hehehehehehehehe… kehahahahahahahahaha~."
She walked to the back of the room while laughing like a maniac which froze their hearts in an instant.
However, since their bodies were not in their control, to begin with, they couldn't even feel the weird wiggling bugs under them which were taking them somewhere…
They did not know what was happening, however, from their years of experience, they at least knew, they had fucked up…
-Dhum!
They reached the basement after passing through two doors and, she opened the door with a flowery smile, revealing a world, that… was not something the two of them, or, any human, could possibly want to witness, ever, in their lives.
"Kekeke, hello everyone~. Sorry, I was gone for a little too long~."
-Snap!
"I have brought snacks~."
The basement was far bigger than the room they were in.
And, anywhere the eyes could see, creatures, bugs, insects, and beings that one usually just wants to destroy, were visible in not hundreds or thousands, but, their numbers exceeded hundreds of thousands.
"And they are filthy bastards that have done bad things as well~ so Hop and others will looooooove them as well~!"
There were all kinds of bugs and insects present in this hell-like world, wiggling, jumping, flying, buzzing, making all kinds of irritating sounds that, when combined, the audiovisual senses that recorded this view and the poor mind that would have to process this kind of information, would rather want to commit suicide rather than endure the torture of just the sensory input…
"Hehe, but first, let me have a little chat with them~!"
"BUZZZZZZZZ~!"
"SQRRRRRRR~!"
"BLOPBLOPBLOPBLOP!"
However, the two who were, in fact, seeing this, hearing this, perceiving this… the two who couldn't even speak since their mouths had been paralyzed along with their bodies, could have never, ever, ever… Ever, ever thought they would see something like this when they started their morning by betraying and looting their own party this morning like they usually do.
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