New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Astaroth, along with Phoenix and Rodney were brought to the first manor to the left, next to the castle, where they were led to a nice meeting room with very few guards watching them.

It looked to the three like they weren't considered threats in this part of the city. It did not surprise Rodney, but Astaroth wondered why this was the case.

Rodney knew this was the case because hardly anyone had ever tried fleeing from the matriarchal manors. But those that did never made it farther than three steps from the front doors.

And Astaroth quickly understood why.

Extending his mana senses outward once again, he quickly saw how the Ley lines cluster was denser under the manors, and powered them directly through some kind of magic tether. This tether was connected directly to a panoply of magical traps, defence measures, as well as concealed magic weapons, most likely of the projectile variety.

The manors were, plainly put, death traps. Once someone was in it, unless told otherwise, there was no leaving unscathed.

Of course, the representative of the head matriarch didn't come to meet them right away, letting them stew in a waiting room for over thirty minutes. This only made Astaroth even more on edge.

Not because he had anything to hide. But rather, because he didn't know in what state the prisoner would be, the longer they left him alone to the cares of Commander Alena and her son Castien.

The quicker they resolved here, the faster they could get rid of that burden. And who knew, maybe the matriarchs would let them deal with him how they saw fit.

Of course, to Astaroth, this meant a quick death and an end to the situation. But to Alena and Castien, this might mean something much worse.

But first, they needed to meet with all twelve of the representatives.

When the woman finally deemed them worthy of her time, Astaroth almost sighed in exasperation. But a quick elbow shot to the ribs from Phoenix made him remain polite.

The interview, or interrogation rather, took little time, Astaroth breezing through the situation's description in record time. Then he answered a few questions where the woman asked for clarifications, and they were done in ten minutes.

Almost just as they finished together, they heard a knock at the door. When the woman gestured to her guards to open it, in came walking another woman from earlier, claiming it was her turn to be briefed next.

The process of going through every house, and re-explaining each time, was tedious and stupid, in Astaroth's opinion. They could have done this in one go, and they would already be on their merry way.

He was ready to leave already, after the twelfth meeting, and he was then told there was one more meeting with the matriarchs themselves. Astaroth was about to blow, before another sharp nudge from Phoenix brought him back to clarity.

"Fine. We can go wait in the main castle for your matriarchs to meet us. But it has been hours since we arrived. At least let us have something to eat or drink. How bad of a host do you guys intend to be, just to prove you are the superior country?"

Phoenix withheld from reacting to this comment, as she wholeheartedly agreed with it. Even if they were receiving someone that they didn't want to see that much, it was just common courtesy to offer them snacks or drinks.

Yet, they had been lugged around all morning, as well as a part of the afternoon, without so much as a glass of water or a biscuit. This was beyond bad hosting.

It was direct rudeness.

As a country, both recognized by the rest of the world, and a member of the alliance, they should have been treated with equal respect as the hosts.

But it was far from the case.

However, the head representative, the one who escorted them to the main castle, assured them it wouldn't be the case there. A meal and some accommodations had already been prepared for them.

"Wait. Accommodations? Aren't we just needed to report to them, and then get whatever judgment they declare in this situation, before leaving?" he asked in slight confusion.

The representative of the head matriarch smiled at him warmly, before responding.

"Why, we have much more prepared for such distinguished guests such as you. How could we ever send you back home so late in the day, without at least treating you to typical Themiscan hospitality?"

Her tone left no room for discussion, and this threw Astaroth into another fit of anger. He had to bite the inside of his cheeks, to the point where the taste of iron spread in his mouth, before he said something he might regret.

Phoenix was the one to reply, given the dark gaze Astaroth was giving, and the tenseness of his body.

"We would be honoured to 'finally' get to taste your kingdom's hospitality. We have heard many good things about it," she said, emphasizing the word finally.

The woman facing her did not miss the stab at the lack of manners that had been applied to the king and queen of Stellar Woodlands, or to one of their commanders.

But she didn't seem to take offence at the quick stab. She instead elected to ignore it entirely, turning to guide them toward the castle waiting room.

It took them another twenty minutes, just to get to the waiting room, where there would be a banquet held soon after.

Sadly, from her understanding, Phoenix realized no matriarch would be present there either. It was almost like they were avoiding them like pest.

She could tell that even Rodney, who had grown up in this bureaucracy, was starting to find it tiresome. As for Astaroth, he had been on the verge of blowing up for a while now, and things were only adding up to the list of why.

But there wasn't much they could do, aside from following the flow. At least until they knew the clear intent of the kingdom.

'I just hope they stop doing this sooner than later. Astaroth isn't going to endure much longer. And if he blows, so do our chances at a peaceful resolution…'