Ouroboros

Chapter 16: Frustration

The gang approached the elder's residence. They did not notice it when they arrived, but the village was empty. It was devoid of life. That was why it was so quiet. Sure it seemed like a beautiful cozy serene town, but there wasn't a single soul in sight. It was as if the woman they encountered earlier was a phantom of the residents passed.

Frea knocked on the door. "Quentil Elder Sir?"

"Go away," a muffled elderly voice responded, "there's nothing for you here."

"Sir, I am Captain Fr-"

The door pulled wide open, and an elderly male stood in its place, "I SAID GO AWA-oh. Captain Frea, apologies." He lowered his head to Frea, "I...I did not know it was you."

"That's alright." Frea smiled at the man, "Please," and helped him up from his bowed position.

The village elder, was an old frail man. His head was bald, and the wrinkles on his head made soft "C" shapes. His skin was almost translucent, with his nearly all his arteries and veins being visible. Yet, with all that age, he did not require a cabe to maneuver.

"To what do I owe your presence captain?"

"Before I start, may we come in? My comrades and I have made quite the journey here."

The elder scanned the gang. When he made eye contact with Renge, he scowled.

"Will that be a problem?" Frea asked.

"Of course not," the elder smiled and notioned for the crew to enter, "please come in."

"Thank you." Frea bowed in respect. She signaled the others to follow her in. As they each approached the door, they were met with a different gaze from the elder. Frea had smiles. Yohan received an indifferent expression. Renge met more glares, and Solaris got a raised brow of confusion.

The man grabbed Renge before he could pass, "But not you snow-ilk," he growled.

Renge clenched his fist and was in the motion to raise it, but Solaris grabbed it instead. "Is there a problem?"

"You know there is stranger." The elder glared at Renge, "This man is a snow-ilk. As if we didn't have enough problems already."

"What if I said he was my guest?"

"And you are?"

"He's our Lord Vigil, as named by his majesty," Frea answered.

"Lord Vigil?!" The elder recoiled and bowed repeatidly. "My most sincere apologies."

Solaris smirked, "Thanks." He motioned for Renge to follow them into the house. The ladder shrugged his shoulders as he entered.

They surrounded a humble dining table. The room they were in was small and cramped, only enough to accommodate two individuals. The elder hastily brought them tea and kneeled in front of them. "So you were about to tell me?"

"We received reports of...odd events happening in your village," Frea answered. "Upon arriving here myself, the village seems empty and desolate. I understand that Quentil is a small village, but my past visits to this place showed that the community was very active. Whereas now-"

"Now they no longer exist," Yohan completed her sentence.

"Yes well we seemed to have suffered a case of," the elder pondered for a minute, "a case of disappearances. Frankly, I have no idea what happened. It was almost like they were plucked out of existence."

Renge scoffed at his statement.

The elder, still bigoted towards snow-ilk, scoured at him. "Is there a problem snow-ilk."