Chapter 180 - The Castle in the Sea

Her ears and eyes peeled, Claire paid careful attention to her surroundings as she made her way down Vel’khagan’s main street. The overnight increase in the city’s centaur population was disturbing and kept her on her toes; she had to keep her features entirely obscured beneath her cloak to avoid running the risk of identification. There were too many of them. She felt as if it would only be a matter of time before her name was made known.

Though on guard, the lyrkress was using her senses for more than just tracking her countrymen. She was paying attention to the voices in the crowd, listening in on every conversation that discussed the Cadrian presence. Keeping up with them all was impossible, of course, so she listened primarily for keywords in hopes of learning the invaders’ motives. She knew that Sir Pollux had invited Nymphetel to join him in conquering a dungeon, but she doubted that was all they were up to. There wasn’t enough information; a complete grasp of the status quo would be necessary, if she was to truly foil her father’s plans.

To that end, the girls had consulted three different information brokers, none of whom were able to tell them anything useful. They were already on their way to a fourth, a supposedly reliable investigator recommended by none other than Ms. Olga herself. But while Natalya was still hopeful, Claire was already sold on the idea of doing everything herself instead. The men they consulted were all reputable, but they had known nothing; she doubted that visiting a fourth would provide them with any new knowledge.

The details they sought required a leak from the palace, and while money could often speak volumes, it still took time for lips to loosen. The castle’s guards were unlikely to reveal any details while the event’s confidentiality was still fresh in their minds; even the notorious loudmouths would keep their horns zipped for the first few hours.

Sylvia’s proposal, a direct infiltration, was more likely to prove fruitful; gathering the information first hand was the only way to avoid lagging behind their enemies. Had the marquis been a different individual, or the lyrkress more willing to depend on her fox, she would have opted to eliminate them within the dungeon’s confines and pry her needs from their cold, dying hands, but she was not so delusional as to think that she could win a fight against a man so powerful. Pollux was not exactly her father’s right hand, but he had accompanied him on a number of suicide missions and returned with both his life and sanity intact. If the rumours were to be believed, he was powerful enough to be a match for an aspect in single combat.

“Oh yeah, Claire.” Sylvia interrupted her owner’s train of thought with a light drum of the paws.

“What?”

“When are you gonna pick your third class? And what are you gonna be?” The fox paused for only a brief moment, not giving the lyrkress a chance to answer. “Oh, I know! You should become a seer like me! Then we can match and stuff, and it’d be perfect!”

“I don’t know… I think she’d do better with something more melee-focused,” said the cat. “She likes jumping in too much to be a real backliner.”

“Oh, come on! Seers are great in close quarters!” Sylvia swiped one of her paws through the air, leaving a sickly green trail in the space that followed it. “Like that! All you need to do is level it up enough, and you can start soul rending stuff. Easy peasy.”

Natalya slowly looked between the spell and its caster, her eyes blinking rapidly all the while. “Did you just say soul rend?”

“Yup!”

“Are you sure you should be using something that powerful in the middle of the city?” The cat took off her glasses and rubbed her temples. “We’ll be in a lot of trouble if any of the authorities catch wind of it.”

“It’ll be fine!” said Sylvia. “I’m just a fox. No one’s gonna see me and think that I can tear their souls out. Plus, it’s not like it leaves a huge trail or anything. It’ll take someone well over a thousand to even notice, unless they’re some kinda super mage.”

“Right.” The cat smiled, awkwardly, and tried her hardest to laugh off the claim. “Well, I’m glad you’re on our side.”

“You better be! I’m the best fox there is.” Sylvia stood up on her hind legs and puffed out her chest, her front paws on her hips.

“Stop.” Claire jabbed her tail into the catgirl’s face. “She’s getting carried away. Because you’re being an idiot.”

“I’m not getting carried away!” shouted the overly proud fox.

“Yes you are.”

“To be fair, being a soul warden is a pretty big deal.” Natalya’s remark was met with another violation of the cheeks, but the assault failed to dissuade her. The smile on her face was bright enough for Claire to back down under the suspicion that she was relishing the experience.

“See, Claire! She gets it! She appreciates me! And you should too!”

“Never.” The lyrkress grabbed the fox off her head and squeezed her to her chest. “You’re just a stupid fox. I already respect you more than I should.”

“Wait! Does that mean you respect me?”

Sylvia perked up, her eyes sparkling and her ears at full attention.

“Not in the slightest.”

But she was let down with a boop to the nose.

“Oh come on! Now you’re just being mean for no reason. You even got my hopes up and everything.”

“I’m not being mean at all.” After scratching her chin and playing with her ears, the lyrkress presented the fox to the envious cat hovering beside her. “Your turn.”

“Finally!” said Natalya. “You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to do this.” She grabbed Sylvia by the sides and immediately moved to press her face into her fur, only to be stopped by the pull of a formless object. “Rubbing your cheeks against her belly makes you a pervert.”

“O-oh…” Slightly dejected, the cat lowered her vulpine captive with a sigh and moved to pull her into an embrace. But again, a magical force put an end to her ambitions.

“And don’t hug her either. That also makes you a pervert.”

“H-huh? Bu—”

“No nuzzling. No hugging. No petting. No paw holding. No scratching.”

“You can’t just make a list with literally everything on it!” grumbled the cat, “Besides, you do all of those things all the time. Doesn’t that make you a pervert too?”

“It does not,” Claire stuck out her tongue. “Unlike you, I don’t have a prior history of being depraved.”

“I don’t see how that has anything to do with anything.” Ignoring the mean snake’s warnings, she pulled Sylvia into her chest and rested her chin on her head. “And I’ve never been depraved.”

“Of course not,” said the bluescale, with a roll of the eyes. “And I’ve never killed anything.”

“Uhmmm… Claire?” Sylvia raised a paw. “One of those lies is a lot more believable than the other.”

“I wasn’t lying,” said the cat. Her eyes turned distant as she gave the far off castle a forlorn stare. “Why do the two of you always insist that I’m a pervert? I haven’t even done anything!”

“You barged into an innocent maiden’s room in the middle of the night, snuck over to her bedside, and defiled it with your bodily fluids,” said Claire. She grabbed the cat’s tail with her own and gave it a playful yank. “If that’s not being a pervert, then I don’t know what is.”

“She’s got a point there,” said the fox. “Sneaking into a girl’s room at night is kiiiinda sketchy.”

“Only because of the way you two are framing it.” Natalya breathed a sigh and scratched the spot behind the fox’s ears. “And it’s not like Claire is much of a fair maiden in the first place. Sure, she’s pretty, but maidens are supposed to be sweet and innocent, and Claire is well… Claire.”

“I am as pure as the driven snow,” said the lyrkress, with another petty jab, “and the fairest maiden that you’ll find in all the lands.”

“Right…” Lia averted her eyes, while Sylvia doubled back in laughter. The vixen cackled with such vigour that she slipped from the cat’s grip and rolled around the city’s stone-paved streets, laughing all the way.

Claire, of course, was not as entertained. Her lips twisted into a pout, she grabbed both the others by the cheeks and tugged.

“Ow! See! This is exactly why you don’t count,” said Sylvia, her voice distorted. “Fair maidens don’t resort to violence for no reason! Or ever!”

“Cadrian ones do.” Mumbling under her breath, she dragged both of them along until they reached their destination. Rather than a suspicious tavern or other degenerative establishment, the building that they entered was one that dealt in luxury goods. It was a news outlet, a rare location that produced weekly publications for those that could put forth the steep steep price of one silver piece a bundle.

The cost was not a factor of the quality, as the news was often penned in a hurry, but rather the pace of production. Still, the individual volumes were collected by well-to-do ladies, who frequently touched upon the topics detailed whenever they met to gossip. Having been forced to participate in such social events on more than just the odd occasion, Claire had not even the scantest expectations when it came to the outlet’s ability to gather information.

And surely enough, there was little to be gleaned. While there were certainly a fair number of investigators on the case, the publishing house had acquired little to no information. Their articles and experts offered not any notable facts, but rather a series of long-winded speculations no better than the ones the lyrkress had heard whilst strolling through the city. The topic was one of widespread interest; the first thing that any one citizen or other discussed, upon running into an acquaintance, was the foreign presence and its purpose, but none had any means of backing their theories.

“I’m starting to think we should just get in a bubble and sneak onboard.” Claire groaned as she walked out of the building. She was disappointed, even though she had known better than to assume competence on the journalists’ part.

“I’ve been waiting for you to say that!” Sylvia, who had been in Natalya’s arms only a second prior, appeared on her head with a pop and excitedly stamped her tiny paws on the half-snake’s skull. “Are we going right now? ‘Cause I can hardly wait!”

“What’s this about a bubble?” asked Natalya. “I don’t really see how breathing underwater is going to help us sneak aboard the ship.”

“That’s ‘cause my bubbles are way more than just for breathing!” said Sylvia. “They’re good shields, they can turn you invisible, they can eve—”

The explanation was cut off with a pinch to the snout. She looked down at the perpetrator and tilted her head, as if to ask what it was for, but Claire remained silent. Following her gaze, Sylvia found a woman in a black dress with an apron on top, walking towards them on a pair of high heels. She had only a few of the aquatic properties shared by those around her; her throat had gills, her head was adorned with flippers, and a long tail fin grew from the back of her skull. Blending in with her blue-green hair, the dolphin-like appendage extended all the way down to her waist. Her skin was only a little lighter than her mane, a shade of teal that clearly marked her as something in the vein of a shark. It was a distinctive appearance, the sort that couldn’t be missed, but she almost seemed invisible to the crowd. No one so much as gave her a second look.

Stopping directly in front of them, she performed a quick curtsy before opening her mouth and revealing her beautiful, piercing voice. “Good morning, ladies.” She took a moment to look at the fox before turning to the cat. “Miss Vernelle, I am a servant of House Ray’esce, here on my Master’s behalf to request a brief meeting.”

The suspicious request had Claire narrowing her eyes, but the maid was ready with a response.

“We recently purchased an item of interest, and Madame Popov referred us to you when we asked for the opportunity to speak with the group that procured it.”

“Would that be for a later date?” asked Lia.

“If that is your preference, then it can be arranged, but my Master was hoping for the opportunity to converse with you sometime today.”

“I’ll need a moment to confer with my companions,” said the cat. Grabbing Claire by the hand, she pulled her aside and spoke in a whisper. “What do you think?”

“It’s suspicious,” said the longmoose.

“I think so too, but I think it should be fine if Auntie’s given her the go ahead.”

“Maybe, maybe not.” Claire brought a finger to her chin and frowned.

There were a number of red flags, with the first and foremost being the maid’s awareness of their location. There was certainly reason to believe that she had arrived at the local news outlet following Olga’s instructions, as she had stated, but her eyes had been locked on them for quite some time; it was like she knew exactly where they were.

The meeting itself was another point of concern. She failed to see why they had been called upon. It wasn’t uncommon for well-known adventurers to meet with members of nobility, but Lia’s reputation failed to warrant such an encounter. She had only been active in the region for a few months at most, not long enough for any sensible aristocrat to think her worthy of trust. And that therein was the keyword. There was always a chance that the individual in question was an idiot driven by ill intentions.

“I think we should do it.” Still, the lyrkress lowered her arms and nodded.

It was impossible to dismiss the notion that it was a trap set by her countrymen, but neither could she write off the potential payoff. The nobleman was likely to know more about the Cadrians and their affairs than any of the common rabble, and she was confident that she could escape in the event that the encounter turned sour. The assumption of her true form was sure to provide a moment of disorder.

“What a coincidence. I was thinking the same thing.” The cat flashed a toothy grin. “Sylvia?”

“I’m all for it! I’ve never been to a noble’s house before, and it sounds like it could be loads of fun.”

“It isn’t.” Claire flicked the fox’s nose. “If you run around, you’ll get us in trouble. You’ll need to be quiet and calm. Throughout the whole thing.”

“Wait, really!?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, come on! That’s so boring…” The half-fairy sighed. “Alright, whatever! Fine! I’ll just take a nap then.”

“Okay, I guess that’s that.” Breaking off from the others, the cat returned to the maid and spoke with a smile. “We’ll see him right away.”

“Excellent. Then please, right this way.”

With the maid at the helm, the group proceeded through the city’s streets and sought the manor of House Ray’esce.