章節 99: Chained Woman
"Captain Flex, you wanted to see us?" said some guys who were wearing clean and slightly wealthy clothes with some uncertainty when looking at Flex, who took of his military coat.
Seeing the 8 merchants arriving in his office, he waited for them to sit on some chairs beside the long desk.
"I'll cut to the chase, guys. Those inhabitants of the island give me his approval to let you guys trade your goods with them. Sell, buy whatever you know to do."
"Ohh, those are great news captain, isn't this why we sailed for this island? To buy and trade our goods with other people?"
"Heh, you think this is all? Have you wondered why mayor Aldenis or sir Blood placed such great importance on us the army and navy protect you, merchants?"
"Because we give some of our shares to the commerce chamber?" responded one of the merchants who had a slightly confused face.
"Well, that's one of the truths. One of the main reasons is for our Kingdom to spread out its influence. For that to happen, we need to show those islanders how nice it is to live in Kaysang and how our system works, from education to trade."
One of the older merchants suddenly nodded his head as if understanding what Flex was pointing at and said for the other merchants to understand.
"Guys, we the merchants are in a way the representants of the Sun District, or rather Kaysang. If we spread our goods with those islanders who clearly lack technology, it will make them more open. Especially if we give them a good deal."
The merchants pondered a bit before giving an "Ahaaa" as if finally understanding what they were getting into.
"So, sir Flex what are you expecting for us to do while we are inside those guys' lands?" asked Velomer and the older merchant.
"You'll take as attendants some of my soldiers who will disguise as your guys. They will scout and investigate this island of anything noteworthy. As for you guys, the same applies to you. If you're getting some interesting information from those indigenous guys, I will make sure that you'll be repaid well."
"Heh, that's quite easy, captain. We lived under the heels of the syndicates for such a long time. Doing this thing is nothing. However, I hope you don't forget about us when we get back to Sagletius."
Flex just nodded his head in agreement before seeing the merchants off.
As they left his office, he took a den-den snail from his pocket and started forming a number on the snail shell receiver.
The sound of the snail rang for a bit before, and an old voice resounded inside the office.
"Who is it now?"
"It's me again, sir Aldenis. I managed to pacify a bit those indigenous guys of the Rain Island and have the merchants and some of my men blend in as assistants. If everything goes as planned, we should get home in 3 days."
"Good, you did well, Flex. If you get any information about strange legends of their island or anything of great importance, prioritize calling home first."
"Understood, sir." said Flex as he ended the call, after that starting to write something in a notebook.
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** First day of arriving at Rain Islands. The weather seems to be as the information from the central seat.
The rain probably would damage some of the merchant's goods, but the gains we as a kingdom gain from having more information on the neighboring islands and their people would overtake the small losses of the merchants.
I look forward to hearing the new notifications from inside the island. ***
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As Flex ended writing some pages on his notebook recording about his journey from Sagletius to Rain Island, he closed the book and walked out of the officer's quarters.
When out, he could see from the high view of the ship some of the young soldiers, alongside Valen taking from the lower deck, the packaged goods of the merchants.
Soon, the soldiers and some attendants began walking following the merchants on the rainy day toward where Zeke and the other warriors of the island were.
Velomer, the one who seemed to be the representative of the merchants, took some more steps to Zeke, took his expensive-looking hat off, and bowed down a bit.
"Thank you, Chief, for giving us this opportunity. You'll not be disappointed by the goods we have brought from our kingdom."
"I hope you understand your time. You guys only have 3 days. Now follow me, I'll take you to the village."
The merchants nodded their heads with smiles on their faces and began walking, following Zeke and the other indigenous guys.
Valen and the rest of the guys carrying the merchants' goods moved along, and as they got deeper toward the island, they saw how extensive the forest was.
"Damn, this forest is so green. Even the trees are so high in the sky, covering us from the rain."
"That's right, foreigners, those trees are our guardians planted by our ancestors to protect us from the rain." replied Zeke when hearing one of the disguised soldiers.
He nodded his head as if getting what the tanned muscled leader just said.
After 15 minutes of walking on a dirt road, the soldiers and merchants could see the outline of a big temple in the distance.
"That one is our ancestral mausoleum, built by them in their glory days."
Explained Zeke to the newcomers without even showing any disrespect or disdain. His tone carried reverence when mentioning the temple.
"Hmm, we also got a big building in Sagletius. But sure, it is not that big because it is meant to be used by the citizens."
"Foreigner, don't disrespect our ancestral temple. If you're doing that again, you'll pay for it." said one of the indigenous guys staring hatefully at the newcomers.
"Beloros, mind your tone, these people don't understand our culture. It is normal they would view the mausoleum differently." said Zeke to the guy who lashed out at one of the soldiers.
Meanwhile, some of the soldiers who masked their annoyance thought in their head.
'Hmph, ignorant fool, you should see the grandness of the University building, the Administrative Palace or the Royal Palace. This building is there just for show, what ancestral mausoleum? Just superstitious bullshit.'
However, Valen coughed a bit while staring with serious eyes at the soldiers while saying quietly.
"Don't enter in conflict with them. Ignore them even if they say something insulting. Remember why we are here."
The soldiers nodded their heads and continued walking arriving inside a village that looked quite decent and well maintained. The builds were made of wood and stones. They also had some sort of canal system but were missing the aqueducts implemented by Kavos.
As they arrived inside the village, they were meet by the villagers ranging from kids, young ladies who were wearing little clothing, women, and older people.
There was the case for one old man who had a staff decorated with something that clearly looked to be gold. He had a displeased face as he walked out of the crowd saying to Zeke.
"Young Zeke, this is how you respect the ancestor's wishes? By abandoning them? Shame on you."
Chief Zeke looked at this old man with a calm face and only said to him.
"Mind your words, priest, I know what I'm doing. If you want to make a fool of yourself in front of our guests from lands far away, be my guest but don't bring my name in this charade."
"Hmph, you better give me a better reason when we talk."
The old priest said that and walked out of the center of attention, moving toward the temple direction with a group of people wearing decorated clothes as if signifying their importance, followed by a boy who seemed to be walking slower than the rest if he was wounded.
Zeke turned to the merchants and said to them in an apologetic manner.
"I'm sorry for you having to take part in this. Come let me accommodate you to the right place to put on display what you have brought for us."
Velomer and the rest of the merchants smiled a bit, as if not minding what just happened, and looked around themselves, taking in focus the women of this island.
Except maybe the old, all of the women had an exotic feeling the merchants or soldiers couldn't describe or ever felt.
"Valen, look at those babes. Just wow. I can see most of their body. Do you think we can bed some of them before leaving?"
"Follow the rules. If you're approached, sure, but otherwise, no."
"Tsk, you are so serious. Just try and relax for a bit, look around you, so many gorgeous exotic girls."
Valen sighed and walked to where Velomer was, saying to him.
"Sir, we better begin. We got only 3 days."
The slightly fat merchant, Velomer turned to look at Valen, who was a bit taller and with a trained body.
"I understand Valen, let's settle our goods, and if something appears, I'll call for you."
As they ended their short talk, following Zeke, they arrived at a large wooden building that was something similar to a longhouse.
The soldiers placed down the merchant goods where they have been told and looked around this longhouse that was enough to accommodate and held many people.
Zeke and some guys walked to where Velomer had his goods and started looking with curiosity around.
The merchant had many goods on his improvised stall. From clothes for men and women to accessories, diverse spices and ingredients never to be seen by the island's inhabitants.
"Velomer, what can we trade for your stuff? From what I understand, your tribe uses a different way of trading for goods. We here use the cacao beans for trading around." said Zeke as he was looking around the stall with a curious expression.
"Cacao? What is that? Can you show it to me?" replied the merchant in a swift manner.
Zeke looked at one of his men, who nodded his head, walking out of the longhouse, and after some more minutes, arrived back with a full bag containing something.
Zeke took the bag and showed the merchant what was inside. It was a bag full of cacao beans, which made the merchant slightly confused.
"You're using those to trade in your island?"
"Indeed, these beans have much significance to our people, from everyday use to religious ceremonies. Here, let me show you how we use these beans."
When he ended saying that, Zeke turned to another of his men who walked toward a secluded room of the building, bringing out some golden cups and a jar. The chieftain took the pot and one of the golden cups and poured half of the cup.
"Go on, foreigners, take a taste of our drink. It is made from those exact beans using a secret technique."
Velomer eyes shifted from the golden cup to the brown-dark liquid and took it in his hands before taking a small sip just to be safe.
The merchant's eyes enlarged a bit as he downed down the entire cup.
"This drink is really one of the best I've had in a while. Good, I kind of understand the worth of your beans. You can look around to what you wish to buy from my stall. We'll talk about trading using an equivalent exchange. Also, this can apply using other things you have here, such as this cup or the shinny accessories."
"The accessories are not to be traded, Velomer. However, there's something that might work."
While the merchants were already charged for business, Valen gathered around himself the infiltrated soldiers and started telling them something in a quiet manner.
"Okay, guys, so far, so good. We arrived here without much suspicion on our asses, but this doesn't mean we'll lower our guard. You saw how some of those guys were looking at us as if wanting to kill us. Do you still remember the first lesson of the codex?"
"Yes, Valen. Never lower your guard in any circumstances you are situated. Only allow your friends and comrades to see your back." replied another young soldier quickly.
"Good, now start dispersing, sticking to the merchants, and ask those guys questions about their daily life or whatever noteworthy."
"What about you, Valen?" asked another soldier seeing that he stopped from moving to a merchant.
"I'll go look around this building to see if I can find anything while not stirring any suspicion."
The soldiers nodded their heads, and each one of them walked to a different merchant while their expressions seemed to be of a genuine attendant, looking after their boss and the clients. However, there was a meaning behind this approach.
Time passed inside the longhouse, and Valen slowly walked around the building while his real intentions were masked by a natural, curious expression.
'Nothing interesting here, just some old and rather primitive weapons or decorations.'
Walking a bit more around the building while most people were focused on the merchant's stall, he went deeper inside the building, passing some doors. He stumbled on a stairway going downstairs.
'The fuck? Are those indigenous guys actually hiding something down here? Hmm, let's check quickly while they are busy with the merchants.'
Taking the stairs down, Valen looked at the torches lighting the path going down. There was a slightly creepy atmosphere around this place, but he still walked out to check on some vital things going on with these islanders.
His footsteps resounded inside this poorly lit path, but as he was going down, he heard a woman's voice saying something with anger to him in a language he listened to the indigenous talk with.
'Ohh, there's someone here? Let's see who's this voice belongs to.'
Step by step, he arrived down to a place that looked relatively close to a prison, in the sense that it held some cells built using iron and spread on two rows. This place was dark compared to the still-lit stairway, but he still could hear low and clear the woman who talked aggressively, something he couldn't understand.
He moved faster to where the sound came from, but going forward, he still noticed some skeletons or dead bodies when looking left and right.
Bounded dead people, cadavers with only some skin and putrefied flesh. A sight that will haunt any simple person with a weak mind.
"What the fuck? Such disgusting people, they left their people to root here? Curse them!" cursed Valen when seeing this mess, barely managing to suppress his disgust and a little puke coming down his throat.
Then as he said that, the talking woman stopped talking in her own island dialect and said to Valen, who was approaching.
"You are not from Tamuin. Who are you? Are you one of those seafarers the elders of the island talked about and the ones the ancestors warned not to let in the island?"
Valen, only after walking for a bit more, arrived at the end of this prison and could see a naked girl around his age bound and full of wounds on her body, visible whiplash wounds on her entire body.
"Keep your voice low, woman. It is as you can guess, I'm not someone from this island. Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is who you are and how you got in that mess you are in?" responded Valen in a rapid fashion while staring with severe eyes and the naked girl.
"I'm Maisha Moriah, the one to be the wife of the so-called priest grandson. How I got bound here, you might ask, because I stabbed him when he tried to force himself on me."
"Hoh, quite the wild girl. The one you stabbed lives?"
"I think it's very likely he lives since his grandfather is the high priest of the temple. He could have all the doctors heal him since he's far stronger in authority than Chief Zeke. Argh, curse that old monster and his evil spawn. I should have stabbed his heart instead of just his stomach." cried out the girl in indignation and pain while chained on the wall.
"So the priest, the guy with the golden staff, is far more important than Zeke."
"Yes, that's him. The priest holds the power of the ancestors. He is the one to confer Zeke with the power of the ancestors. Only the Chief and the Priest hold that power. You should get out from this island, less the priest starts scheming on you guys. Run from this island, this isn't a place for outsiders like you to come."
"Why are you so scared? Do you even know who we, the ones who come for your island, are? From our view, you guys are backwaters compared to our Kingdom."
Valen shared some information with this girl about Kaysang and how beautiful Sagletius was compared to this place.
"That's what you guys think? Hah, I really would love to visit this kingdom of yours, and especially look at that majestic building. But unfortunately, I will probably get sacrificed to the ancestors in a couple of days." replied the tanned girl with a deep sigh when she heard Valen speak about Kaysang.
Valen looked at this tanned girl standing wounded and naked right in front of him. He checked her features and chiseled body and could only agree that she was beautiful.
The girl likewise could see Valen's facial features and the light skin tone clearly belonging to other places. The young soldiers had a height of 1,80 meters and a well-built body. Obviously, for the girl, this guy was a trained warrior. His facial features were clean, similar to the boys around her age, but his new features made her view him more positively in her eyes.
"I can take you out with me, but you have to promise to tell me and my superiors everything you know about this island. Everything, regardless that it breaks your traditions or laws. Once you arrive with me back to my kingdom, the only authority you will have to bow is His Majesty the King and Royal Prince."
The chained girl raised her head slightly and stared at Valen with her beautiful blue eyes.
"If you can take me out from this cursed island and these chains, I'll do whatever you ask me to do. Please, I don't want to die yet. I still haven't avenged my family against that old bastard."
Seeing the girl tearing up from the chains made Valen grip his fists, looking with a sharp expression at the prison cell and the beautiful girl who was tearing up.
"Maisha Moriah, calm yourself. We soldiers and men of Kaysang are people holding our heads high with honor, only bowing to the Crowned Silver Eagle and the royal family. How could I abandon such a woman? Aside from your beauty and intelligence, your information will be worth more to my kingdom.
Now think well and try helping me with information on where the keys of this prison cell are. Otherwise, if I try taking you out using force, it will alert those indigenous guys, and my men will be in danger."
"The keys should be at Zeke's resting room, I don't know where exactly, but his men slipped some information without even wanting. It's on the upper level of the building straight in the opposite direction."
"I understand, Maisha Moriah. I, Valen, future general of Kaysang, promise you that I will take you out of this dirty place. Just hang in there until I get the keys. Act as your usual self if people check on you."
Proclaimed Valen with a hand on his chest, as if he was doing a pledge to this girl he barely knew for 10 or so minutes, but who he knew from how she looked at him and talked, from seeing her emotions and changes in her tone that she was genuine in what she told him.
Then he turned away from the girl and walked back to the upper floor of the building, quietly and calmly, not alerting anyone.
"Please, by the ancestors' name, Valen, return safely. "said the girl while looking at Valen's back as it was disappearing in the darkness while tearing up.
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Morpheus's Note: Heh, cursed cliffhanger. How long will you pester us with your presence? BEGONE. (lol)
There's new information on the islanders and their culture and way of trade, together with inside information from this imprisoned girl.
Would Valen live to his pledge or fail? Find in the next chapter ;)
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P.S: I hope you will like this mini-arc because I had a blast writing on this small work. We will see many things and get more information on Kaysang, the neighboring islands/kingdoms, some secrets of the islanders, and especially will be a built-up for the later stages of Volume 2. (YES YOU HEARD IT, WE'RE GETTING THERE)
I'll look forward to hearing your thoughts now or when you see more progressions on the soldiers, Valen, and this indigenous woman. (I'll leave a picture for her reference, check the comments + Valen's reference)
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Bonus chapter [132/350] powerstones (Will you get it?? I see you have a chance, but it remains to be seen - Good Luck)
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