Chapter 75

Taking two of his guards with him, the Torakai man led Nicole and the girls back down to the first floor. Passing through the waiting room, he took a key and opened one of the doors. Behind it, there was a narrow, spiral staircase leading down.

Fuck, can't see shit in there.

Nicole held onto Soi's shoulder, thankful that her friend had the night vision of a cat. The stairs weren't too long, and soon Lord Obsidian opened the second door. It was made of metal and visibly heavy, and two guards had to strain their muscles to open it. As they stepped inside, the man's claws appeared on one of his hands. Instantly, they were engulfed in bright flames.

A trap?!

She gasped, yet before Nicole could reach for her spear, Obsidian's claws touched the wall, and fire spread out, blinding the girls. When Nicole opened her eyes, the dark room was lit by a couple of candelabras high on the ceiling. The man confidently smiled at their reaction.

"Scared of an ambush? I could order my people to kill you without the need for such dirty tactics." He turned to face the room, opening his arms wide in a grand gesture. "Welcome, girls, to my favorite place on the island!"

"Oh…"

"Wow."

"So much stuff!"

"It's going to take a while…"

The display hall was a big room filled with pedestals displaying many different items. Weapons, starting with swords and ending with strange mixes of edges and blades, armor, skeletons of creatures that would barely fill a hand, and skulls of giant beasts. There were even more paintings on the walls and a couple of locked chests left as if forgotten.

I wonder how often this guy gets people trying to rob him. I bet just one or two items from here could get you years of good life.

Before she got overwhelmed, Nicole took a breath and took a few steps forward. "We are going to explore it for a bit."

Obsidian nodded. "Of course. I can tell you what I know about all of those things. Just don't get too eager—some of those are not leaving this room with you."

All four girls slowly spread around. Soi was immediately drawn to the weapons on display. "The Bow of Periah… I heard about it once," she muttered under her breath.

Obsidian appeared behind her. "They say it was given to the Harpy tribe by their goddess, back when they were still around and their flying island was still a part of the land. I highly doubt it, though. It would have to be ancient to the point of crumbling, probably."

Soi leaned closer to the weapon. "It looks old, but with good care, there shouldn't be any issue with still using it."

Meanwhile, Iloe searched through the rows of stuff. "What would be good? It's better to get something really useful. Nicole already made us defensive clothes plus the basics, and everyone kind of have all they need… Soi has her bow, Annie has crossbows and that blade Nicole made her, and Nicole has her spear and sword…" Her eyes fell on a set of dishes. They were blue and white, placed in a glass cube to protect them from dust. "Hm… Reminds me of something…"

"This one isn't that interesting, though it is rare and worth a lot," the lord of the house explained. "It's made from porcelain, which in turn is made from blue clay taken from rare species of—"

"Crabs," Iloe finished before he could. "I remember now. Nicole showed us it. She said the porcelain is said to have some healing effects and could make water cleaner!"

"Right," the man said sourly, unhappy about being interrupted. "If I wasn't afraid of breaking it accidentally or the set being stolen, I would have used it myself. Though, not really useful in your situation."

On the other side of the room, Nicole stopped in front of an amber globe two times bigger than her fist. Inside the golden sphere was something strange—a black object with tiny insectoid legs and spikes on one of its sides.

"Oh, this one." Obsidian approached her. He looked at Nicole's missing eye and then back at the object. "It is a relic from the past, the remains of a parasite called Vespoculus. Legends say those things got into the eyes of others and forced themselves into the sockets, fusing with the original eye. Good thing those are no longer present on the island."

He chuckled darkly. "There is a story about one Narakai king whose favorite Krellip got infected one day." Obsidian glanced at Mignon behind Nicole. "After the poor thing died, that guy went crazy. He ripped the infected eye out and kept it as a talisman… Though I heard an even stranger version, where he replaced his own eye with it. Being forever together with his pet, kind of, hahah."

Nicole touched her eye patch. Contrary to Obsidian, she stayed serious. "How- how true is the story?"

"Desperate enough to try?" The man smirked. "I don't know. I collect items, not stories. Those just follow naturally. You'd better ask someone else about that king."

Who, though? The easiest answer would be Lortia, but how am I supposed to contact her? Do they have mail service going from one city to another? Maybe Varoria could help me here. They seem to be friends, after all.

After a while of looking around, the girls gathered again.

"So, have any of you found anything worthwhile?" Annie asked.

They shared their findings, and not long after, Nicole turned to Obsidian, who politely allowed them some privacy by wandering to the other corner of the hall.

"Here's the deal," she started. "We will take the porcelain set. You seem to not mind it too much."

Lord nodded, visibly relieved that his most important treasure was safe.

"And the second thing—the parasite in amber. But first, I have to consult someone about it. Then, if I am sure enough that it works, before we leave to get you the Beast, we will stop by to pick it up. Oh, and your trophy may be one-eyed."

Obsidian shook his head. "What?! You want two relics?! We haven't talked about that!"

Nicole smirked and crossed her arms under her chest. "Really? The longer we talk here, the more time other groups have to get the Beast. For someone who is not you and for someone else's collection."

The man swallowed hard and licked his suddenly dry lips. "Y-You! Threatening me like that? Ugh…" His jaw clenched.

Soi took a step forward with a softer smile. She made her hips sway more than usual. "You know, maybe there would be a way to make you less hesitant?" Her voice purred.

Hah, after so much time with Soi, I can differentiate when she is trying to seduce her way out of something just by one or two first words.

Obsidian cut her off. "No. Stop it. You don't fit into my… tastes."

Soi was stunned. It wasn't that she had never been rejected, she had, just never in such a way. "W-What? Excuse me?"

He chuckled. "I am only interested in Zunthari women."

Oh, right. I bet that cute little rabbit is his favorite girl. And that opens a new door…

"Then allow me to get you something in return. From where we humans come from, maids and assistants have a type of uniform that I haven't seen on the island. I could make one for your Zunthari helper. Consider this an exchange instead of payment."

"…Fine," he grumbled. "But that uniform better be worth it."

* * *

"Good to be back in a proper room." Nicole fell onto her bed. This time, they had enough money to rent a place with four rooms instead of one big one.

"Yeah…" Soi nodded along before sighing hard. "H-Hey, Nicole. Do you think we can do it? You agreed so easily to hunt the Beast, and I know we grew in strength, but…"

Iloe smiled. "Of course we can! Nicole will get rid of that thing in no time!"

Nicole herself smiled softly. "Don't worry, I didn't get blinded by the reward or something. I have a plan." She raised the pouch with the starting money they got from Obsidian. "We will have to find someone to help us. Tomorrow I will go to the guild to look around. Maybe we won't find someone like Tiralie, but I am sure there will be plenty of strong guys."

Iloe pouted. "Oh, come on. I am sure you could do it all alone, Nicole."

The girl giggled, petting the catgirl's head. "Stop it, this is just pure flattery. I am definitely not that strong."

* * *

The next day was a busy one. First, Nicole went to see Queen Varoria. When she stepped into the throne room after a short line, she got down on one knee in a bow.

"What do you ask of me now, human?" the Voru'kai woman on the throne asked.

"I am investigating a legend, Your Majesty. It's tied to a Narakai king from old times. To confirm some details, I would like to contact Her Majesty Queen Lortia."

"And why are you here, then?"

"I suspect that for a person like me with no status, it would be hard to get a letter to her. Could I ask you to send one on my behalf? The matter is urgent."

The woman tilted her head to the side. "Why don't you just check the library and archives? You need real information and not another mixed-up legend, right?"

Fuck, I haven't thought about that.

"C-Could I? Of course, if Your Majesty would allow me to check there first, I would be grateful."

"Right, I will notify my guard."

Nicole bowed again and stood up. "Thank you, my Queen."

Instead of heading to the library immediately, Nicole went back to the inn. "Annie, get up! You got a chance to explore the royal archives. I am sure a nerd like you will love it."

"Wait, what?!" The girl flew up in excitement.

"Just make sure to find what we need. And then, have fun!"

Annie left the room before Nicole finished speaking.

Nicole's next destination was the guild. She could hear loud conversations through the open doors of the building. It was packed with people, her eyes gliding from one person to another as she tried to quickly assess their battle strength by their appearance.

When she saw familiar light-blue-furred bunny ears, she quickly approached the table.

Rakk was sitting, or rather lying, on the tabletop, surrounded by empty clay cups. Across from him sat another guy from the Zunthari tribe.

Damn, he is a cute one.

White hair and floppy bunny ears were the first things that drew her attention. Going down, her eyes met his big, soft blue ones. His face seemed innocently delicate, unfit for the dangerous job of an adventurer. Yet the bow and quiver of arrows on his back told a different story. He was wearing a simple shirt and light leather protection.

"Something wrong, miss?" he asked, his voice soft yet confident.

Mmh, get it together, Nicole! You are not here to find a fuck. …Maybe after we are done, though…

She forced her eyes onto Rakk to stop staring. "What happened to him? I saw him less than a week ago and he seemed fine."

"Oh, you are Nicole, right? I am Rakk's friend. He told me the story of what happened. My name's Irian." He poked Rakk's head. "Hey, open your eyes, at least."

"Hm, and what did he tell you?" Nicole smiled.

Judging by his reaction when he recognized me, it's nothing bad. I would be so mad if Rakk destroyed my chances.

"Not that much, to be honest. That Lipa and Sart are dead, both because of their own stupidity. In my opinion." He whispered the last part, yet loudly enough for the girl to hear. "I don't blame you or your friends. I am a stranger in this story, and I don't want to think badly of someone I never met."

Haa~ he is so sweet~