Footsteps rang into the room from the hallway, and Alice opened her eyes. She was greeted by the sight of so very white and fluffy hindlegs. Good morning, Burc, she said and sat up. She blinked a few tis and yawned before rubbing her eyes with her fingers. The soldiers, who had introduced themselves as Janissaries, had brought her to their barracks and gave her a room to stay in, telling her the Padishah would see her tomorrow. She was still wearing the clothes she had worn yesterday, but her leather armor was propped up on a nearby chair. There was a knock on the door, and Burcs tail twitched.
The white cats ears twisted to the side, and Burc smacked his lips a few tis before saying, Theyre asking if they can co in.
Alice didnt respond, climbing out of bed instead. Even if she did respond, they wouldnt know what she was saying, so she opened the door herself. Two n dressed in the robe-like clothes that were the Janissarys uniform were waiting outside. They nodded at her and gestured towards before turning around.
They want you to follow them, Burc said and leapt onto Alices shoulder. She debated on whether she should remove him to put on her armor but decided against it. All she really needed was her shield, and she didnt plan on getting into any fights. They said theyll bring you to eat sothing first before giving you ti to look presentable for the Padishah.
What part of doesnt look presentable? Alice asked and snorted.
Burc shrugged and slumped forward, leaning over Alices shoulder, his front paws almost reaching her waist. Im just a cat. Why would I know?
Alice sighed. Well, at least she was getting sowhere, even if she couldnt understand the local language. If she spent so ti learning it, she could use the Padishah to help her look for Tafel them. She didnt know how large the empire was, but it was clearly better than her searching by herself. As for causing a ruckus? Wasnt a whole empire clearly searching for soone a large enough ruckus? It probably was.
The al that the Janissaries served her was similar to what she had eaten the previous day at the inn. There was just less fish inside. It only took her a few scoops with her spoon to finish what was in the bowl. Did they purposely give her a smaller serving because they thought she was a child? She looked around, but the Janissaries were eating the sa thing. Perhaps breakfast consisted of this little food. Alice shrugged and ran her fingers through Burcs fur. He was gnawing on a piece of fish. At that point, soone ca and sat in the seat across from her. He said sothing, and Alice nudged Burc.
Good morning, Burc said.
Alice furrowed her brow and tried to repeat the mans words. He smiled at her clumsy pronunciation before chuckling. He was young, about twenty-five or so. Unlike the other n here, his beard wasnt completely filled out, and his face still had traces of baby fat.
He said its really true that you can talk to cats, Burc said. And he wants to know if all cats speak the sa language.
Alice raised an eyebrow and glanced at Burc. Do you?
Burc shrugged. I havent t all cats, so how would I know?
I guess thats true, Alice said and scratched her head. She looked at the man sitting across from herself. Did he introduce himself? Is he here to take to the Padishah?
Nope, Burc said. He put down the remains of his fish and licked his paws. He was just curious. Now hes saying goodbye, he has to pick up his salary.
So, what, Im like an animal in a zoo now? Alice asked and raised an eyebrow. She frowned and stood up. Lets go back. Im going to make myself look presentable by putting on so armor. Earlier, she had thought she wouldnt be getting into any fights. She still didnt plan on getting into any, but it never hurt to wear armor just in case a fight spontaneously happened. Safety first.
After finding her way back to her room, she saw a bucket of water and a rag placed on her bedside table. Soone probably delivered it to clean her face, so she did. She also combed down a few frizzy hairs with her wet fingers before putting on her armor. Her shield was strapped to her wrist like a watch, but her pouch of food seed to be a little emptier than yesterday. Alice frowned. Did you take jerky out of my bag?
Burc cleared his throat. Yes. Its my salary.
You couldntve asked before you took it?
I couldve, but I didnt want to. Burc licked the back of his paw, ignoring Alices gaze. Why should I have to ask for whats mine?
Alices expression darkened. Burc reminded her of the stray cat one of the secretaries at the guild had taken in. It had stared at her and knocked over a pile of her papers without breaking eye contact. It wasnt allowed inside the building after that. A sigh escaped from Alices lips. Thats fine. Take jerky whenever you want as long as you continue translating for . She could survive without a few sticks of jerky but navigating through this world would be a lot trickier without Burcs help. So even if he was inconsiderate and stole her food, shed have to put up with it. Alice tightened the straps on her armor before rotating her arms and stretching her legs. Just in case she got into a fight, shed make sure her limbs were ward up. She didnt want to pull any muscles after all. The Padishah was the ruler of the empire. If she pulled her leg muscle while pumling himnot that she was going tohow was she going to escape properly?
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