Cursing his strength for the first ti, sobody cleared their throat loudly behind them. Sage turned around, surprised by the sudden new arrival. His Spirit Sense had been spread over the bamboo garden, yet sohow this woman was completely invisible to it. He quickly looked around, wondering if there were other hidden figures, wondering if he was about to be ambushed.
Xiezi, on the other hand, had imdiately bowed her head, Please forgive my rash words, Great Elder.
Hearing what she said, he carefully examined the approaching woman. She had that beautiful mature asian woman vibe, the kind where you couldnt tell if she was thirty or sixty. Her hair was pulled back into a bun and held with a pair of jade chopsticks, and her clothing was an altered version of the red robes and dress that Xiezi wore. What was the most troubling was that Sage had no idea of how powerful she was. That ant she either had so extraordinary thods, or she was far more powerful than he was. He imdiately realized it was likely the latter and he also bowed his head to her, Forgive this one for intruding.
He wanted to explain about Xiezi crying being the reason he approached, but given the strange temperant of the people in the Chong Clan hed t so far he held his tongue. What if seeing Xiezi crying was shaful to them and they decided to pick a fight with him? On the other hand, trespassing in a garden was a cri, but it was a minor one. Hed rather be in trouble for that then invite so other calamity by explaining too much. This Elder might have seen everything for all he knew, and hed seen enough cop dramas back on Earth. The right to remain silent was important! Dont incriminate yourself by talking too much. You never know what the other party knew, or at the very least what they could prove!
The Great Elder looked Sage over for a few seconds before snorting, Hmph. You presu too much, Cricket Kisser.
At that mont, there was an imnsely loud and deep voice calling out from within the building adjoining the courtyard, Whos out there!?
The power of that voice rattled the wooden doors and blew out a few of the paper windows, a wave of pressure emitted from the room and into the garden. One of the doors was knocked out of its track and hung at an odd angle. The Great Elder frowned and turned towards that fallen doorway, her own deanor instantly changed and she yelled back just as forcefully, Quiet down in there you deaf old coot! Im handling it!
Whats this about a dead boot? What are you doing out there you old hag?!
A furious look flashed onto the Great Elders face and she ignored Sage and Xiezi, picking up a bamboo switch from the ground and stomping into the building, Youre dead you old bastard!
Seeing the Great Elder storm off, Xiezi quickly poked Sages arm, You should get out of here before she cos back! She thinks youre a tool of the Jinxi.
Sage wanted to defend himself, but he stopped himself, nodding and leaping back up onto the wall in the way hed co. Passing over the grassy area and back onto the main path, sprinting back towards his own courtyard. He still had a lot of questions for Xiezi, but he did not want to get drawn into a conflict with that Great Elder, or whoever it was she was arguing with. Even now, he could hear a few loud impacts echoing through the night air from that direction. Whatever was going on, the parties involved were quite powerful.
A few minutes later, Sage had returned across the huge Chong Clan Manor and back to his courtyard. He checked carefully and could find no one following him, but it wasnt like his residence was hidden. He was a public guest of the Clan after all, so if that Great Elder wanted to find trouble with him, it wouldnt be difficult. Even if he ran away, he was a City Lord now, so hed also have to abandon Lionheart Town if he really wanted to run. Of course, why would he do that? Should he be afraid of a single elder? So what if she was stronger than him, hed faced many people stronger than himself in the past. The many strange and unusual ans he had available hadnt failed him yet. At the very least he was quite confident in his ability to escape.
Confident as he was, that still didnt an he would rest easy. He ditated through the night, leaving half of his awareness focused on his surroundings.
The next few days were more of the sa, being taken on tours around the town. Sage was no fool and he noticed they would always be taken to at least one establishnt owned by the Jinxi faction, or operated by people who loved them. He heard subtle complints and praise for them every few hours. Even a random group of people on a street corner might be gossiping about them when their carriage rolled past, just barely loud enough that details couldnt be made out. Sage began to think that they were actually experts in subliminal ssaging and grew even more wary of the things going on around him.
The more he paid attention to it, the more he noticed many subtle details and clues. He was reminded of ntalists, those magicians from Earth that were part psychic, part hypnotist, with a little bit of illusionist to put on a show. They used very subtle word patterns and visual cues to influence the mind. Theyd make you think of a number or a word and then ask you to guess that word or number and have so elaborate way to show theyd already predicted it long ago. It seems the Jinxi may be skilled in a similar sort of technique.
He had no way to stop it without calling them out, and even then they could easily deny him. Sage could only stay on guard against it and prevent it from affecting him. He also told Tujiu secretly, since the fellow was far more simple and lunk headed, he didnt want his ally to be lulled by them and turn against him when he needed him.
After a week, Sage was called to a gathering. It was in the great hall as before, but this ti there were hundreds of large tables set up. Instead of a formal eting, it turned out to be a feast. He greeted the Elders again and then was led to a table with four others. Jinxi Shi had brought him into the room this ti, showing him to his seat and also introducing him to the four at the table. It turns out they were also Chong Clan Branch Heads!
A beautiful mature woman in the sa style as the Xie Great Elder was wearing bright yellow clothing. She had a far more lively look on her face than the Xie Elder, like she was going to bite soone, and there were a few small wasps flying near her. She was the Ci Clan Head. With a na like Stinger, and the wasps in the air, it was quite apparent what her clan was about and Sage smiled politely while also keeping his distance.
Next, was a sowhat stocky or burly woman. She had the build of a commoner, a woman that spent her life planting rice or carrying boxes. She was also quite short and didnt seem to care about her appearance. Her clothing was very utilitarian and a very dark red. The Matriarch of the Yi Clan. Looking closely, Sage saw that her clothing was not all cloth, parts of her were carpeted in a dense layer of ants.
Further down the table was a very dense man. Not in an intellectual capacity, Sage hadnt spoken to him enough to declare such a thing, no the man was quite wide. Everything about him simply seed thick and heavy. When he placed his hand upon the table it warped from the weight. Sage wasnt sure if he practiced so sort of body hardening technique, was extrely bad at controlling his strength, or if it was sothing innate. He wore grey robes and was the Clan Head of the Jie, which ant Beetle.
Lastly, there was a very pampered looking man wearing an aqua blue color. He was by no ans a handso man, but he seed to spend an inordinate amount of ti grooming. His hair looked like multiple hair styles blended together in so odd new thod, sohow looking loose and relaxed but also not becoming ssed up no matter how he moved or played with it. Sage caught a glimpse of makeup on his cheeks and a shiny little glisten to his skin. He smiled at everyone and everything. The Min Clan Head, the Frogs.
For his part, Sage was wearing a bright erald green set of robes. He hadnt known why Jinxi Shi had asked him and Tujiu to change clothing, but now it was quite apparent now. Everyone in the hall was wearing different colors to show off their factional affiliation. Sage thought it was a bit odd to so encourage such disunity among a Clan, but he wasnt in charge so all he could do was greet the other Branch Heads and take his seat. Their table as well as those of the Elders were larger and placed around the main path of the room while everyone else sat further away, fanning out in a sea of colors that sowhat reminded him of an election tracker, or a sports stadium, all the swathes of color showing support.
The Ci Clan Head sent Sage a venomous smile and a few of her wasps drifted towards him, Isnt it impressive? The Jinxi have brought us prosperity for many generations.
Reviews
All reviews (0)