Sequence Thirteen: Misleading

Morning comes and the day has arrived for the people of the village to start their search in the afternoon. Anastasia, the adviser and administrator of the search party as Stella requested, gathers volunteers since they are lacking in needed manpower for the day’s quest.

But since the people are very eager to help the lady of their village, the gathering for prospective volunteers has been an easy task for her.

Now they are all gathered up at the village square as Anastasia stands in front of a noisy crowd of abled men of their village.

“Okay people, gather up.” She said, easing the crowd gathered at the square.

“Our main objective for this afternoon is to find any clues leading to the missing children from the town that is next to ours.” She said in a loud voice for the volunteers to hear her clearly.

“We will be searching on the west side of the Noire forest located east of our village.” She added.

After saying that the search perimeter will be the Noire forest, the crowd started to mumble until it became quite loud that Anastasia could hear some of what they are saying.

“The Noire forest? Isn’t it that restricted area where no one dares to enter?” a man said to the one near standing near him.

“They say there are a lot of wild beasts there that existed since the early age.” A man that seems to be a hunter in profession said to the other guy that he is facing.

“Excuse me my lady, but isn’t this a bit too risky for us common folks to enter such a dangerous terrain?” a man from the crowd said.

“You don’t have to worry about your safety.” Anastasia answered the man.

“I already sent advance troops guarding the perimeter of our search area; the purpose of this recruitment is for us to cover a larger ground with our limited time.” She added, assuring them their safety.

After hearing her words, the crowd murmured again, but this time she could hear them saying some positive remarks about the task while some are still second-guessing while giving their personal opinions to the other members of the crowd.

But in the end, they all agreed to help for the search of the lost children of their neighboring town.

“If you don’t have any more concerns about the task, then we will meet up at the southern gate this noon.” She said, concluding the recruitment for volunteers.

After the crowd scattered and went to their individual homes for some needed preparations, Anastasia gave off a deep sigh.

“It is still tiring for you even if you are used to ordering people around?” a voice of a man said that instantly catches her attention.

“Oh, it’s you sir Josh.” She said upon looking on the direction where the voice came from.

“You can drop the ‘sir’, I don’t really mind.” Josh answered as he took a seat on a bench near them and gaze on the buildings nearby.

The place is still under repair due to the previous attack on the village, but the people there are very diligent in repairing their homes and other facilities that are ruined on the recent outbreak.

“The more I look at this village, the more I wonder if it is a village or not.” He said, as he continued on scanning the place.

“Well, it is going to be a town soon enough, we are just waiting for the decree to be passed down.” She said with a smile on her face. But was instantly replaced by a sudden gloom on her expression.

“It’s about that letter she received yesterday, isn’t it?” Josh said, noticing the sudden change in the air around her.

“Yes, it is.” She answered Josh, still having a distressed look on her.

“Why don’t you have a seat then?” He said, as he points to a vacant space on the bench he is sitting on.

“If you don’t mind then, excuse me.” Said Anastasia, as she strokes down the back of her skirt, straightening it as she slowly bends down her knees and sat on the empty space on the bench next to Josh.

“You know, Stella is a very kind and loving girl.” She said, opening up the conversation with Josh.

“Even if a person does her harm, she still forgives that person if it just asks for her forgiveness.” She added.

“And I think that’s kinda dumb of her.” Josh inserted, making Anastasia look on his way after hearing it.

“No offence.” He added instantly upon seeing her sudden reaction on what he just said.

“Yeah I think so too.” She said with a slight smile, agreeing to Josh’s opinion to her lady.

“The moment I read her that letter and break to her the sad news about the death of the duke, she never stops on crying until she fell asleep last night.” She said, having a sad face.

“But isn’t it too much for a father to despise his own daughter too much?” She added, questioning the fact that his father even ordered someone to kill his own flesh and blood.

“I don’t know what kind of dispute they have and I want to keep it like that.” He answered, unwilling to become involved with other people’s issues.

“Well I can’t force you to, can I?” She said, now having a gentle smile on her face.

“You’re the second one to ask me that.” Josh answered.

“Anyway, I have to go now.” He added, as he stands up while stretching his arms a bit, lifting it up to the sky and is about to take a step.

“Oh yeah, Sir Josh.” Anastasia said, stopping Josh from walking.

“Do you really need to move out of the mansion?” she continued, making Josh halt for a bit and think for a valid reason of him moving out.

“Well, first of all, it is better to have a place where I am not just lying down while being served by multiple maids…” Josh said, looking straight to an uncertain direction as he says it.

“And I’m just a stranger in this village, aren’t you trusting me too much, for me to stay there as much as I want?” he added, as he walks away from Anastasia.

“More importantly, you should focus on your task ahead.” He said, waving his hand without looking back on Anastasia as he walks to a certain direction.

“And please, drop the ‘Sir’ will you?”

Walking on a paved road, Josh took a few turns and reached a certain facility where people are coming in and out of a certain door. He opened the door and a loud noise of people drinking and eating welcomed him.

He entered the vicinity and walks straight to the stairs leading to the second floor, as he enters two girls around their teens are running around in a hustle, taking and serving the orders of their customers.

“Oh, hey Josh! Someone was looking for you earlier.” One of the girls shouted as she placed down a tankard on the table where two customers are sitting.

“Really? And who could that be?” he answered, as he stops on walking on the stairs and went to the bar to take a seat instead.

“He didn’t bother to tell me his name, but it seems like I saw him somewhere here in the village.” The girl said, while thinking carefully when and where she met the guy.

“He immediately went off the moment I told him that you’re out.” She added.

“But that guy really has this perverted look on his eyes, like, he’s been staring at us the whole time while we are doing our job.” The other girl said, entering the conversation with Josh and the other waitress as she shivers with disgust on her face, while she strokes her shoulders with her hands.

“Well, if your uniform shows off your best curves and the other best parts while still making you look demure and wholesome, I think some fetishes would trigger.” He said as he scans the girls.

“Please, don’t say such things; we might lose our will to work.” The girl that informed Josh said, having a worried look that they might not wear it again for such reason.

“Hey missy, another round here!” a guy from a distant table shouted.

“Coming.” The girl other than the one talking to Josh said, rushing straight to the customer who called her.

“Anyway, it seems like a busy day for the both of you?” he said, noticing the sudden increase of customers.

“Yeah, even I was surprised by the sudden inflation of our guests.” She answered.

“I think it has something to do about the urgent subjugation quest given.” The girl added.

“A subjugation quest?” Josh said, wondering what it could be.

“It is a subjugation quest for the alpha of a dire wolf pack.” A man said, as he sits on an empty stool of the bar joining Josh.

“Another refill here!” a customer shouted while waving his hand to the girl that is unoccupied.

“I need to resume work now Josh, talk to you later.” She said in a hurry, as she waves goodbye to Josh and resumes her job on placing orders of their customers leaving Josh behind along with the man who seems to know more about what is happening.

“Are you one of those who will subjugate it?”

“I’m just here to supervise the quest, more like a witness to confirm that these bastards did slay the real deal.” The man said, referring to the noisy men occupying the whole place.

Then, there is this sudden pause to their conversation, as the man ordered a drink to the bartender stationed and slides the glass of liquor to Josh.

“My treat, it’s better to drink while talking.” He said, as he sips to the glass that is in front of him.

“Since you are here in this area, does it mean the pack is near here?” Josh asked the man that is sitting next to him, because if it is, then there will be another problem the village will be facing and that would be a bad scenario. Thinking that the normal beasts here are likely to be different from what he is accustomed.

“Who knows? We are just blindly following what the higher-ups want and then get paid after.” The man answered, as he chugs down the drink on his hand.

“Is that so? Then why here?”

“Some random citizen reported that there are children missing in a town next here and requested a subjugation quest for the wolves that is said nesting on a vast forest in midst of this village and the town where children are reported missing.” The man said, making things a bit chaotic.

Because the man relates this dire wolf alpha case on the missing children, which Sera and the others are currently taking care of.

Making it worst, if it is true that a pack of dire wolves exists in that region, then entering their territory is a suicide especially if they are not armed for such instances.

“Hmmm? Isn’t it kinda random to relate missing children to dire wolves?” Josh asked the man, because even if he thinks about it carefully, there is definitely no relationship between missing children and the pack of wolves, unless they are feeding on the children but that is not the case because it will neglect all the information he has regarding the matter.

“And what is the crime of this wolf pack to be subjugated?” Josh added.

“Boy, let me tell you one thing about this world.” The man said looking at Josh with fierce eyes somewhat annoyed for him asking too much.

“As long as something is not in a human shape then someone paid the price to slay it, then there is no buts and whys, you hear me?.” He said in an aggressive tone, ordering another shot as if he is somewhat depressed for some reasons.

“So you humans haven’t changed a bit even this pass hundreds of years.” Josh said in an almost whispering manner as he takes a sip to the liquor the guy gave him as he shows an evil grin while looking straight up the shelves containing bottles of liquors of different variety.

“What?” the man responded to what he just heard that somehow ticks him off for no reason.

“Nothing, just thinking out loud.” Josh said to the man as he glares him with his eyes that seems to pierce through his soul.

The man noticed an evil intent making him stutter and forcing him to flee from Josh’s sight, walking back to the crowd of people that will subjugate the dire wolves.

“Um, Josh? Did you have an argument with the customer just now?” the girl earlier asked Josh, noticing that they have some disagreement with the man that just walked away.

“Eavesdropping is a bad habit you know.” Josh said, as he gulps down the remaining of the drink he has.

“Well drinking while still not in the legal age is also a bad habit.” The girl pouted, responding to Josh’s accuse to her on listening to his conversation with the man as she watches Josh stands up from the stool he is sitting.

“Trust me; I’m older than you think… I think I’m even older than the owner of this inn.” He answered the girl, as he pat’s her head gently.

‘I also think I have this kind of liking to pat the head of someone.’ Josh though, because is seems to be a conditioned respond of him.

‘Maybe I’m an animal lover perhaps? Can’t remember though.’

“By the way, I have to go to my room now.” He said, taking off his hand from the head of the girl and walks up stairs to his room.

***

On the other hand, somewhere on the northern parts of the Noir forest, an unexpected event happened making the search for the missing children not just difficult but extremely dangerous.

‘I didn’t expected it to be this severe.’ A woman with a blond hair thought standing behind the line of armed men forming a wall to protect the person behind them.

Displaying their razor sharp fangs and horrific growl, a group of four legged predators are marching forward to a bunch armed men with their weapons pointing to the marching enemies closing in towards them.

“Hey, those are a bunch of cute little puppies aren’t they Fraise?” a woman said in a delighted tone, somewhat happy seeing the group of horrid beast not far from them.

Looking to the direction of the one who called her name, Fraise saw a woman in a short hazel brown hair wearing a plate cuirass, under it is a padded undergarment with an elbow-length sleeves and a skirt above knee level and a pair of plated greaves and gauntlets to complement her style.

“Miss Cecil, if you don’t mind, you are supposed to guard our lady Sera at the back line.” Fraise said, wondering why she is here on her post, and somehow annoyed for leaving the one she supposed to protect.

“Oh please, it’s so boring back there.” She exclaimed as if she is going to die out of boredom.

“And besides, it seems you are having a hard time with those pups.” The girl named Cecil added while she points to the enemies at their front.

“I don’t know if there is something wrong with your eyes, but they are already fully grown dire wolves.” Fraise corrected the woman.

“Aww, then they are no longer puppies? I really want to keep one.” Cecil said with a sad look on her face.

“Then… I want a coat made with their furs.” She added as she gave off a murderous grin while looking on the wolves in front that are growling and is about to attack them.

“Five minutes…” Cecil said as she holds the scabbard of her sword on her side.

“And you and I will have a whole new closet made of dire wolf fur for the winter.” She said, dashing forward to the wolves.