Venus Rouge

A Little Misdirection

May 1, 515IE, Main road, Viennes, Northern Verne Fief, Gestalt Kingdom

Yuan reaffirms that Viennes is an odd place in an equally odd fief, but now he has its Lord for comparison and decides that Kaoru Onyx is stranger by several degrees.

He still finds it a little odd and maybe even unsettling when he travels over the perfectly level, paved roads. It doesn't feel like a town. It's a little too spotless, too sedate, too... something.

It's just strange!

But the people living and working here don't seem to feel anything odd. They hurry about their business, chattering and ducking into buildings occasionally stopping to follow their group with curious faces.

Yuan wonders if the difference from the Verne fief of the past wouldn't be so jarring if he'd paid more attention to the upheavals happening here after the former Duke's death. But, then again, he didn't really have much incentive to.

The merchants, however, are clearly not lacking the incentive to come to Verne fief; all sorts of transactions are taking place along the main roads. Carriages rattle along passed their own in both directions, studiously avoiding their obviously armed party.

Honestly it would have been simpler and quicker to go around the town entirely, instead of swimming along through this traffic. Turning to the rather genial alto, Yuan questions their route.

"Why do we need to pass through Viennes anyway?" He asked, brows knitted in confusion?

"The young master has a short spot of business in the townhouse," The other brunet replied "He aims to tie up a few loose ends, you see."

Townhouse? There's another house?

Leave it to the rich to have more than one house. Yuan knows people who struggle to get and keep the one house, and certainly not one as huge as what counts as a house to these people. He scratches thoughtfully at his stubble.

'But why not do this before setting off on the journey?'

Far be it from Yuan to rush them since Silver Hawk was getting paid according to how long this journey took, but it still seemed a little insensible.

While he considers this, they come upon what could only be the "townhouse" which, while not as grand as Onyx Manor, it was still a good sight more impressive than most other buildings he'd seen with its neat blue roof tiles and pristine white walls.

The driveway was not as long as the previous one, but the neatly trimmed hedges and flower beds were just the same.

Once their group travelled past the great, black wrought iron gates, Yuan glanced back at the people on the road curiously peering in through the gaps at their retreating backs until they eventually went around the house entirely and disappeared from sight.

What was waiting for them around the corner made Yuan's eyebrows fly up in confusion.

There was a waiting caravan of no less than five incredibly ornate carriages surrounded by a veritable sea of guards in highly polished armour, several of which were holding aloft brilliantly crimson banners with the Onyx house crest proudly stamped in gold.

Even the horses had shiny armour!

He's assaulted by a sudden feeling of despair.

"Don't tell me..." This was exactly the kind of flashy impractical caravan Yuan had expected from all the horror stories and complaints going around guild halls about noble escort quests, and it was with a sinking feeling that he considered that this might be their true caravan.