"How did you not know you t as royalty?" Gaston says some really annoying stuff sometimes.
"It's very simple, you see, prison. I only knew about Mazurian royalty and their strength in a broad sense, and wasn't really ied in knowing about them beyond that." The trip out of Bartholm was stupidly easy, there were no guards on the way back, despite the huge racket all the undead made. By the time we made it out through the sewers Jimmy had vanished most likely not wanting to have an attempt at eaining any royal guards with his party tricks.
"But this makes you a princess! This is so exg, we do our make-up together or do each other's hair!" At this point, I'm starting to respect Jeanne a little with how much she igails she doesn't want to know.
"Please no name-calling, now where is our ride away from here?" The royal guards actually give me a really fused look as I say that, luckily Pierre answers for me.
"We have a horse and wagon parked not far from here, after that we will head for Rivka. That is a major isnd city located at the border, which is protected firmly by the army. After crossing the bridge there, we will send word of our success back to the capital."
I try to follow them but e across a unique issue I don't remember having before.
"Uhh, one of you carry me? I have no legs and was getting carried by Jimmy's undead until a short while ago."
The sile is so deafening I have a hard time thinking. Jeanne however saves me by walking forward ing her arms around me and... failing to carry me as she is too weak, and I'm too slippery for her to get a good grip. She throleading gn the dire of the royal guards, who collectively look at each other before moving to pick me up.
"How did you lose? What went wrong?" Gaston asks with genuine curiosity in his voice.
"Nothing really went wrong and that is the real scary part, we ambushed her while she wasn't expeg us, she didn't know anything about us, we knew plenty of her and had her practically disarmed and unarmored during a ation. The crowd was suppressed during the entire fight, and our ons were uniquely suited for taking her out. Yet even with all that we lost simply because we were outcssed."
Some awkward silensues.
"You guys don't happen to have somepe to sleep, do you? As a half fish, I do so appreciate n up."
"When we were assighis mission we received multiple barrels of foodstuffs and drink for the travel, we still have some empty barrels we fill up that should do." So the royal guard be helpful, good.
The hoes by smoothly as the group all load up the wagon and prepare to head out again. I take my pside the cart, as the horses to their credit only get mildly scared by me.
"Why didn't you guys e by eagle?" Flying seems much more useful for something like this, but Pierre interjects.
"Great eagles have a rge and distinct mana signature, it would take some strong mages stantly w on keeping them cloaked or we would get spotted."
Other than the occasional tree shooting seeds in the dire of us or the horses, there aren't any signifit threats, and we mostly make small talk until...
"Drop your ons and nobody gets hurt!" The bushes yell out with a voice of gravel. Of course, no one of our party actually does so as the figures start stepping out of the bushes. Seven half wolves step out from the bushes surrounding us with ons drawn as their leader moves forward seemingly nonplussed.
"I smell a part of your cargo that does not belong to you svers." Everyoarts drawing ons as ready for a fight before I make myself known.
"I believe it is rude to talk about a dy while ign her presence." I say this while showing myself on the cart to the group of wolfmen and try to el some kind of inner spoiled brat. "What do you think you are doing, trying to attack my escort? Have you no shame?"
The wolfmen quickly switch expressioween baffled, awed and ashamed. "M-m'dy what are you doing in the presence of sors? They are vile and would seek to harm you!"
"They are indeed quite vile, but they are also my escort, so leave." I retreat bato the wagon and ignore what goes on iside world until the cart starts moving again.
"That worked? Why?" Gaston looks fbbergasted at that and directs the question at me.
"Why do I have to expihing? Go ask the actual royal guards a question of why they were scared of a wagon transp a royal, you meathead!" I say this as I retire to my barrel. These damn kids are w on my damn nerves.
Just as I try to sleep the rest of the way in my barrel, I'm approached by another person who only offers pints or questions. "That robably a bad idea you know, letting them go." Royal guard one looks tired as well as he says this.
"Could be, they will certainly pass this on to their and. Good thing *I* was he oo let them go, I merely gave the opportunity to spare them." The guard simply nods and heads off to sleep as well. "The horses are traio keep going until they reach their destination, we will hahe watch rotations under ourselves, goodnight."
I try to sleep ihe cramped barrel and have a hard time doing it until I'm suddenly awakened by the shouts of a man who is clearly tense.
"I am going to have to i you all before you are allowed entry, during this I request your full co-operation and no sudden moves! We doly get visitors from this side!" It seems I mao sleep until the gate, as I emerge the gate guards go from teo bat positions as they get within teers of a mermaid royal.
"FREEZE! DAM REINFORTS OVER HERE!" More and muards start appearing on the ointing mostly crossbows at me, they also raise the bridge behind us to lock us in. Even while being a fish in a barrel, it doesn't seem like too great of an idea, since I could just jump ier below.
"STAND DOWN! THIS IS AN OFFICIAL EXPEDITION BY THE ROYAL GUARD, AND I ORDER YOU TO FIRM OUR PAPERS!" An odd if effective way to go about it as the gate guards send a nervous looking captain up front, after he checks our credentials he gestures for the gate to open as us through.
"Lovely atmosphere, I could really see myself settling down here" Gaston actually snorts at that while some of the gate guards within earshot who heard it give him some dirty looks. "Right? I don't bme them too much though, this is a frontier port city after all"
"There is a port? I would like to visit there if possible." I think I see our royal guard escorts actually gesturing to stop the versation taston, but while its clear he sees them he decides to ighem. "Sure, my dad was a sailor, so I would like to go myself as well."
"We should get the message ready, you guys head there in the meantime. Do take one of the horses with you, I get the feeling people will stop looking at you with so much fear if you are on a horse." Pierre is clearly tired of things and just wants to get his mission over with. Royal guard one is about to speak up, but Pierre holds his hand on the shoulder of the man. "e on, our job is done, don't you think?"
The man tries to say something, but Pierre is just shoving him along, and the uards decide to timidly follow after. "I wonder what the hell all that was about."
"Don't care, let's go." Ahis be known as one of the rare moments I would agree with Gaston.
As we arrive at the pier, garnering plenty of odd stares along the way, I am greeted by an awful sight.
Cages.
A lot of cages are scattered over the pier, some still being offloaded from a ship but it's clear that the process has been going on for a while. All of them filled with mermaids and mermen, kids and elderly, the strong and the sick. I had without notig been moving toward a fat man adorned in gold and silk. He carries a dagger too well decorated to be useful. "You the boss of this?"
The fat man turns around from iing one of the mermaids in the cages and briefly fshes with surprise when he sees me on a horse, but recovers quickly as he sees Gaston.
"That's quite correct, have you e to i if everything is up to standard, Ma'am?"
I ignore his attempt to gain information and put up an ung tone.
"Is this a sve trading operation? Or just subjects for live experimentation?" The fat man recoils slightly at my words before ret.
"Heavens no, this is not the empire or the li. We don't have such vile practices you speak of no, these mermaids are the lucky few. The navy nning on an offensive on the demon lord over sea, and these mermaids were moved away from the bat zone in the meantime. From here they will be sent innd towards a set of kes called sanctuary, where they work in fisheries and live in peace away from the war. I am surprised your friend from the pace didn't inform you."
I shoot a gaston as I dismount and notice him shrugging. Gaston is visibly from the pace? I couldn't tell.
"So these people are like serfs?" And ones acquired by raiders, no less.
The mert thinks for a bit before silently nodding his head while smiling.
Of course they are, why wouldn't they be? A light feminine giggling be heard. Why else would troops from the red star end up in this pce? The giggling turns to chug as the fat man gives me a strange look. He said it with such fidehen again what did I expect from a world where monarchs are a gehing, these disgusting freaks summoned kids to do their dirty undry. The chug turns to ughter, and the mermaids in cages nearby start staring at me, eyes wide. There is crazy magid monsters always threatening people, but I guess people never ge. The ughter grows louder, and I feel the stares of nearby sailors on my back. I get it now, there is truly only one reason for the red star to have been brought to this pce. The ughter goes shrill and turns to mad cag. Serfs? In another world? And they were still hungering for others to do their work? Ridiculous.
"Ma'am, are you okay?" And the ughter dies.
"I get it now, I'm not going i's all of you who are insane, and I'm the st sane person on the p"
Before anyone process my words, I dash for him and steal his dagger, using it to hold him hostage.
"EVERYO BACK OR I WILL SHOW YOU HOW GOOD I AM AT GUTTING GROWN MEN LIKE FISH WITH A DEMONSTRATION!" Several sailors who were moving closer now take a few steps back, Gaston shouts in surprise.
"What are you doing?!"
"Something I should have done when there was still a we. Alright, fat boy, tell the meo release everyone here from the cages or else."
"B-but my iments!" I decide to tinue his train of thought for him. "Are worthless if you die, besides the people of the pace are sure to be willing to listen to yrievings sidering the pace brought me out of prison."
The mert almost doesn't hesitate the moment I give him a way to reimburse his losses, predictable.
"D-do as she says! Release them!" The sailors simply look at each other before shrugging and moving to unlock all the cages.
"Don't do this Esstrey! You still go back!" Gaston tries to reason with a sane woman in futility.
As the mermaids leave their cages, I gesture for them to jump into the river and give one final yell as I see guards toting crossboroag.
"ЛЮДИ ПОЮТ, ВЫ ИХ СЛЫШИТЕ?"
Spoiler"THE PEOPLE SING, DO YOU HEAR THEM?"
[colpse]