My Servant System



Cali's whisper floated into my ears as we made our way even deeper into the Manor, the Arch Fiend half hissing, half growling as she muttered "It reeks of dry ambition in here... the stench is coming from that furthest room there, down the last hall... Such an unpleasant scent..."

Tapping the Wisp's shoulder, I gestured towards the furthest hall and whispered to them silently, a small tunnel of wind connecting my lips to their ear as I whispered "Cali said the furthest room has the strongest Fiendish scent; most likely Vitra's room."

The Wisp nodded, continuing down the hall and keeping an eye and an ear out for the guards or servants that were still roaming about at this late hour, though we were thankful so far to have not encountered any of them.

With silent steps and smooth movements, we stuck to the wall before looking down the hall that led to where we assumed that Vitra resided, the two of us frowning as we tried to think of a way to get from here to there without the guards seeing us.

It was a problem and a half, but eventually the Wisp gestured for me to join them inside one of the closest rooms, which I opened swiftly and let them breach first, the Wisp slipping inside like a ghost and moving to subdue whoever was inside.

Entering behind them, I locked the door and saw the Wisp holding their hand over the Foxkin man's mouth, along with a small, black metal dagger pressing against the man's throat.

"Say something, and you're dead."

The man was breathing heavily as adrenaline swept through his exhausted body, his reddish brown eyes covered in the haze of sleep that was slowly being washed away with every passing moment, though he nodded as the dagger pricked against his skin and drew blood.

"Good. When did Lady Vitra begin to act different?"

Our voices were low, and after a moment I had a wind barrier around the entire room, concealing any excess noise and allowing us to work freely.

"A-About... t-three weeks ago..?"

The man didn't want to test his luck though, so he responded to the Wisp in an equally low voice, which was trembling as he remained stiff in their arms.

"What was the noticeable sign that she changed? Did she openly flaunt that change, or did she try to conceal it?"

"U-Uh... N-Noticeable..! She c-came home o-o-one day and was talking about how she f-found a special artifact th-that could help her become stronger! For the f-first few days, it was different, but a g-good different, you know..? T-Then she got... a-arrogant. Insufferable. W-Went from the kind, gentle w-woman that we all looked up to to a p-pompous ass of a Noble... Looking down at us, yelling at us constantly... s-she even t-t-took... She took..!"

His eyes grew wet before he dragged in a breath, managing to say "She took advantage of her maid, who had raised her since she was a baby alongside the Countess! B-Broke G-Ginny's m-mind! And showed n-no remorse for it! None!"

Fear permeated his moist eyes, and the man let out a sob before trying to calm himself, his previously bottled emotions fighting to the surface.

"Artifact, what did it look like?"

With something to focus on, the man's emotions steadied out - albeit slightly - as he answered "I-It was a necklace. N-Not the pendant, b-but the necklace that was r-radiating magics. S-She never let anyone a-appraise it though... no one, n-not even the Countess!"

While the Wisp continued to question the Foxkin man, I looked around the room before approaching the window, gazing out of it and appraising the security around us, taking quick note that all of the guards below were looking out towards the red lit city of Vulpe, with only a few ever glancing back at the house - and even they were once every few minutes it seemed, with only two looking back towards the guards behind them, likely wanting to have the cozier, easier job of being on one of the doors.

Noticing my movements, the Wisp continued on even as their eyes flashed at the unspoken question, a small, barely noticeable nod making me begin to unlock the window and slowly lift it up, taking note of the thin bars that were inside the glass itself.

Perhaps meant to give an illusion of further security, whilst remaining practical in case of emergencies?

Either way, I took a deep breath and slipped outside, grabbing onto the side of the house and beginning to scale up towards the roof, deciding to reach a spot that no one would look towards as I awaited the Wisp.

The cool, soft breeze of the night brushed against my skin, while the pale light of the moon would've illuminated my pale skin easily, but not the multicolored me that was currently sitting atop a Noble's Manor inside of 'hostile' territory.

Like always, my eyes were drawn to the sea of stars lounging lazily in the heavens above, the clear sky allowing full view of the dozens of constellations that dotted the space above, surrounded by thousands of other stars and gigantic nebula's that colored the sky red, purple and blue.

It was stunning, but I tore my gaze away from it and instead looked towards the Wisp as they climbed up to me, the lithe infiltrator nodding before leading me towards the other side of the Manor silently, the two of us sneaking far above the guards, just out of sight.

Leaning over the edge of the pagoda like roof, we located a window and began to scale down towards it, with me taking the lead once more as I unlocked the window - after checking inside to see that no one was moving around in the room - and slipped back into the Manor, finding myself inside an ornate, posh bedroom.

To the left was a large bed covered in white linens, while to the right was a small sitting area nestled between two other doors; one likely led to a study or the live in maid's room, while the other door led into the bath.

The room was large, but not as big as Jahi's room back at the Asmodia Estate, so we had that to thank as we looked towards the bed, where a sleeping Foxkin woman lounged out, unaware of intruders.

Closing the window behind us, I set up a wind barrier again while the Wisp looked around the room some more, checking the various shelves and drawers just in case, before she slipped into the unknown room to make sure we wouldn't get interrupted.

"That's her. The scent of veiled ambition and darker desires for power lingers around her like a cloud..."