Kapitel 194: Spy Disinformation
Matilda scowls as she stalks through the streets of Tristania, Tiffania's trail having gone cold days ago. And now what was she left to go off on? A dead rat-faced weapon seller whose rotting corpse she'd found in his shop. A dead city watch commander called Nicholas Grimpt, which rumours say the False-Familiar had personally ended... Judging by the state of his corpse, Matilda was more leaning towards the man's dogs being responsible though.
There were other rumours going around as well, one relating directly to her, as one of her scorned information brokers must've been waggling his tongue about 'Fouquet the Crumbling Dirt' being in town. There were two that peaked her interest though, one stating that a hooded fairy with blue eyes and beautiful golden hair had been renting a nearby inn. And the other, that suggest that the Princess may or may not have been kidnapped.
She'd looked into the latter but found the information basically on lockdown. With anyone daring to utter a word of it getting a visit from one of the town guards. This overreaction had Matilda believing its validity, and she had an idea who would be brave enough to kidnap a princess right out of her own capital city.
Still, she'd leave that perilous meeting for later, for now she was headed towards the inn that Tiffania and the False-Familiar had been staying in.
Once she reaches it, she follows some fellow patrons inside before they head towards a table already filled with other people. Clearly, this place was quite popular, both as a bar and restaurant than as an actual regular inn.
She steps past some boisterous day drinkers and waits for the bar tender to notice her after serving another tray of drinks. "How're you doing, can I get you anything?"
Matilda nods, "Some wine if you have it... Also, would you mind if I asked you a few questions? I know you're quite busy but, it's important, and I'd make it worth your time." she says, dropping a small bag of silver coins on the table.
The man nods, quickly sliding a glass of wine in front of her before leaning over the bar, "So, what's on your mind? Maybe this old man has caught your eye?" he asks with a wink, he and some other patrons laughing good-naturedly afterwards.
Matilda smiles and shakes her head, "Not originally, no, but now that you mention it, you remind me of my great grand-uncle, my father used to call him 'Jeweller', mainly because of all the rings his ex-wives had thrown at him." she retorts before taking a sip of her wine.
...
"Ahahahahaha! My, miss! I spose' you got me nailed there, makes me want to start a collection of my own. already got a head start with two divorces. Might even beat your Jeweller's record by the time I have kids!"
Matilda nods amusedly before turning serious, "Now, I am actually here to inquire about this 'Fairy', and the men she had come with."
The man quirks a brow, "I've had many folk come looking for the fairy, most of them young men for obvious reasons. Why're you looking for 'em anyway? One of the men your husband or something?... She did rent a room with both of them... Maybe we should call her succubus instead of fairy, eh?" he jokes, but trails off when Matilda doesn't laugh.
She shakes her head, "The girl is my sister, and I've not been able to get into contact with her, any idea where they might've gone?"
The barkeep shakes his head, "I'm sorry to say I haven't... You say she's you're sister, prove it... What's her name?" he asks out of the blue, quiet enough so that the other patrons couldn't listen in.
"Tiffania." Matilda easily replies, causing the man to nod.
"Good enough for me I 'spose. Listen, that lot left a message with me for someone. How about I let you know when they get here? Maybe they'd know how to contact them."
Matilda smiles, "That sounds perfect." she slides the pouch of silver towards him, but he returns it with a grin.
"Don't worry about it miss, getting two kind sisters back together is reward enough for me. As you can see, my business is doing quite well! Use it and buy your sister something nice for me, oh," he leans in to whisper, "And I'd suggest you and her stay outta Tristain for the time being. Rumours might say thing'll be fine, but I'm not daft enough to believe we have any chance to even touch those fat sods in Gallia." he stands back up straight, "Maybe Romalia is a good place to settle down, if you can find some vacant land there at least."
Matilda nods knowingly, all too aware of the tumultuous state of the world right now. "I'll do that, thanks for your help. I'll have someone let you know where to reach me should my sister's guests come." she says as she finishes her wine and stands, intending to go visit the palace for a talk with the princess... Hopefully not while in a prison cell.
"See you later, miss! Come back some time" the bar keep says while waving her off, a smile almost permanently plastered across his face.
Matilda leaves and heads directly for the royal palace, fortunately, she was just in time to be present to see the princess holding court, specifically, dealing directly with issues that her citizens were facing, from property disputes, to presiding over crimes, to greeting foreign nobles who'd felt the need to introduce themselves while in Tristania... Indeed, there were even some looking to try and woo the currently single princess... Not that the girl gave them any face at all, sending them out with their tails tucked between their legs.
Finally, it's Matilda's turn to step up. She walks before the princess and bows slightly to show a degree of deference, even if it's not what the guards other side of her would have wished.
"Presenting Miss Matilda, who says she has vital information against the Kingdom of Gallia." a man standing beside Henrietta announces.
Henrietta leans forwards in her throne with a look of interest, "Oh? And what information would you have that you felt needed to be delivered to our public court?"
Matilda shakes her head, "Actually Princess, I'm here in search of my sister, a girl with longer than average ears called Tiffania," she states, causing Henrietta's eyes to widen, "I was wondering if you had heard of her at all?" she asks, but has both of her arms seized by some guards. Obviously, lying about her reason for being there must've been illegal to some degree.
Fortunately, Henrietta steps in, deciding that this might be more important than some simple information on Gallia. "Stop... Escort miss Matilda to my guest room, I believe I have some things to discuss with her."
And with that, Matilda's plan works out perfectly... Kind of...
AUTORENGEDANKEN 
Niggross
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Kapitel 195: Relocated
Henrietta arrives at the guest room thirty minutes later, guards escorting her inside and waiting by the door as she seats herself opposite Matilda. She brushes the creases from her skirt and looks the woman up and down, feeling as if she'd seen this woman somewhere before. "You asked about a girl named Tiffania?"
Matilda nods, "My sister... I heard that you've met her, is that true?"
Henrietta nods, glancing at the guards at the door and waving them off, "The elf girl purporting to be my cousin, that Tiffania?" she asks after the guards leave.
Matilda's face goes icy at that, why did the princess know about that? Tiffania was told to keep such information secret, for her own safety and the safety of everyone affiliated with her father. "Oh?... I didn't think she'd tell anyone that. But yes, that's her."
Henrietta nods, "Well, unfortunately, you're out of luck Miss Matilda. Since we parted ways, I haven't received any news about her or her travelling companions."
"Michael the False-Familiar, and the Dragon Knight from Albion named Ralf, right?" she asks for confirmation.
"Yes... Understand I don't want this information becoming public, even if one of my men seem to have slipped at some point... I had been kidnapped by the False-Familiar, and I met Tiffania while being held prisoner at their camp. This camp itself was somewhere in the forests to the South East, but I doubt they'll be there now." she says, actually knowing that for a fact as she'd sent many hunting parties after them, but aside from a few burnt out campfires, their trail was cold.
Matilda frowns, well, that's another avenue lost to her. She still had a lead at the bar, but she wasn't liking her odds of actually catching up to them before they left for a completely different country. Their movements until now had been completely random, going from Albion, to Germania, to Tristain to kidnap the princess for some reason... "Princess, may I ask. Why did they kidnap you in the first place?"
Henrietta's face wrinkles in anger for a moment before she hides it behind a face of neutrality, "No, you may not ask."
...
Matilda nods, not wishing to push the princess further than her patience would allow, "Did she look happy?" she suddenly asks, "Tiffania. Did she look healthy?"
"She looks both happy and healthy. Though, her infatuation with the False-Familiar is unnerving at best." Henrietta remarks before shaking her head and changing the subject, "Listen, you are searching for them, and so are we... We could come to an agreement of sorts, you work with us and when you find them, we get the False-Familiar, and you get your sister."
Matilda pauses, wondering if the princess could be trusted. She was still technically a criminal hunted by Tristain, even if they didn't know her true identity... Or did they? Maybe this was just a ruse to get both the False-Familiar and her... Still, despite her suspicions, having access to a kingdom's resources would drastically speed up her search. Once she confirmed with her own eyes that Tiffania was happy and healthy, maybe she'd be free from her oaths...
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Louise slowly gets off of the Dragon with the assistance of her escort, Julio Chesare. This Dragon Knight had been the one to pick her up from Tristain after Princess Henrietta finally accented to their letters.
Julio was handsome, tall with blonde hair and heterochromatic eyes, his right being blue and his left being red. He was like a better, more honourable Guiche, in the sense that he woo'd women unintentionally with his charms and wits. Back in the Palace alone he'd charmed every maid that'd attended him for the short duration he stayed there... A record if the grumbling palace guardsman were to be believed.
The ride was pleasant, and Julio was a phenomenal travel companion, detailing each and every landmark they passed as they travelled through Romalia. Still though, Louise' mood didn't improve.
She was still incredibly bitter that Henrietta, her best friend, had forced her away. It was only after their confrontation after the battle between Michael and that intruder did Louise find out that Romalia had given Tristain many artifacts after Henrietta had sent her away... Indeed, it felt like she'd been sold after her usefulness was over.
When Louise thought back on it, the princess hadn't visited or spoken to her once when she was in the academy and her inability to use magic was known. Then she'd been kicked out, and the princess had pitied her enough to take her as an attendant... Or not? Perhaps she already knew that she was a Void Mage since she'd been able to summon Michael?
Louise' expression darkens, wondering if her friendship with Henri was just lies. Once the Prayer Book had been stolen, the princess 'suddenly' had a revelation and sent her away. Sure, her reasons made sense, but to Louise, it still felt like she had been abandoned.
Julio notices the long sigh she lets out, "What's wrong, Miss Valliere? Was the journey disagreeable to you?"
Louise shakes her head, "No! L-let's just get this over with." she grouses, glancing around at the area in search of an exit. They'd landed atop a broad white tower that looked built to receive dragons and their riders, but there were also many ballistae and cannons positioned around in preparation for an air assault.
Julio just shrugs, "Then follow me, Miss Valliere. His Grace has already made preparation to properly receive you. If I may?" he asks, offering his arm to her which Louise bluntly takes, not getting flustered like she usually would. Her thoughts on the Princess had all but stolen her focus, leaving her with none to even care about anything else right now.
AUTORENGEDANKEN
Niggross
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