Chapter 209 - Vol. 4 - 8

If Ash had eyes on her before, having Kaori on her back meant that right now, everyone in the street was sneaking glances her way. Having seen the citizens of this city in action, Ash knew that meant that at least a few of them had to be considering running up and taking something from her. 

With every step she took, she made sure to give anyone whose eyes met her own a look that meant, quite simply: "come close and you'll lose an arm, at the very least." 

However, this didn't last for too long, fortunately, as Satsuhiro walked up to one of the guards and said:

"Greetings. We're Saviors. We require an escort to the Arcane's Manor. Can you provide that to us?" 

"Of course, sir," the guard said as she looked back at Ash, who was wearing her Savior's Armor. "Men, flank them," she instructed a couple of soldiers, and Ash had to restrain herself from running away. She'd been on the receiving end of orders like these from officers too many times. "Make sure none of these people try anything sketchy." 

"Thank you," Satsuhiro replied and with that, they were now surrounded by soldiers wearing those baggy, cloth-covered outfits, who were watching the citizens with great caution. 

"So," Ash said to Satsuhiro, "what's the place like?" 

"It's been a long, long, time since I've been there," Satsuhiro replied. "It's probably changed a lot. We'll just have to see it for ourselves." 

"Hopefully they'll have some guest rooms ready," Metsumi added. 

"Probably," Satsuhiro responded to her. "Regardless, we'll need to get there first before we can really make up a plan of any kind for the coming weeks." 

"Eh," Ash shrugged, "the plan's pretty simple though, isn't it? I learn magic, I fight monsters. All I need is a place to sleep in between all that." 

"Don't take a good bed for granted, Ash. We've been getting spoiled lately, with the Lords of Onyx and Sapphire being so hospitable. We don't know what the Arcane will do though." 

"We're Saviors though, why wouldn't he let us stay there?" 

"I'm not saying he won't, I'm just saying you should manage your expectations. Remember, Saviors have authority but Lords still outrank us. Understand?" 

"Yeah, yeah." 

This time, Ash walked through a far larger portion of the city than she had before, but it didn't seem to change too much. The buildings were all the same dirt-covered spots as they had been before. None of the stores seemed too flashy. Rather, the difference she noted came in the form of the sheer amount of gates leading to the canyon's dip, with bridges and stairs that connected them. 

She couldn't see where they led to, from this position, but she wondered just how much more of the city was contained in that crevice. 

Eventually, they arrived at the Arcane's Manor. It was a lavish mansion-type of area, with a sprawling, beautiful garden in front of it and several white, porcelain statues spread out across the area, all leading up to a massive building lined with what looked like platinum that was just slightly smaller than the Grey Chamber was, back in Onyx. 

"Whoahh..." Luvine let out as she and Opah both jogged up just a bit, to look around.

"Holy shit..." Ash muttered as she looked around, finding that this was, by far, the cleanest location she'd seen in Amber. There was no trace, anywhere she looked, of the dirt that covered the rest of the city. Instead, bright green grass and bushes, along with stone paths were all she could see outside. 

There were two knights standing outside, as Ash could tell by their black armor, but neither of them was carrying weapons.

Level 29

MP: 400/400

Level 30

MP: 350/350

Mages?  Ash wondered.  Are they that strong? 

"Thank you, soldiers," Satsuhiro told the group that had escorted them here and they bowed, walking away as Ash and the others faced the knights. "We wish to meet with the Arcane," Satsuhiro stated firmly, and shortly. 

"The Arcane is busy, at the moment, however, the Arcane's Senate is likely available. Give me a moment, I will let them know you came," one of the knights responded.

"... Alright then," Satsuhiro said with a raised brow. 

As the knight turned around and walked into the manor.

"Hm. The Arcane isn't available?" Satsuhiro asked himself. "That's a little inconvenient, I guess." 

Ash looked around as they waited.

"Wow," Keiko said from her right, "this is all so pretty..." 

"Be it the desert or the forest, a Lord's home is always gonna look like this," Satsuhiro shrugged. 

This is different though,  Ash thought.  It's not like it's just a cool-looking castle, like in Onyx or in Pearl, or a palace like in Jade, this is more like one huge house. I guess that's why it's called a "manor", I guess. 

"Damn..." Metsumi said, and Ash noted that she sounded different. "This reminds me of Pearl," she sighed. "What I would do to just... walk through those streets again." 

"This is different to anything I saw in Onyx," Yumi stated from Ash's left. "Onyx felt like civilization just dropped into the middle of a forest. This feels like a perfect combination of both sides." 

"... Sure, until you remember the dirt we just walked through to get here," Ash muttered.

To her, this was nothing but nobles showing off, and she'd seen that enough in her life. 

However, as the group talked, above, Ash saw a balcony. Something caught her eye when there was just a bit of movement that she noticed. She looked up and found what looked like a woman, looking down from that place. Ash couldn't see too much of her from here, but she was wearing a white dress and her hair was a strange, bright rose color. 

She looked back at Ash, the half-demon could tell that much at least, and then she ran away, back into the manor. 

Hm? 

Before Ash could think too hard about that though, the same knight from earlier walked out of the building, followed by a man in a white robe, with his hands behind his back. He had tan skin and a thick black beard. His eyes were kind, but not really in a natural way. More like in the same way that the Royal Council's representative, Talo's eyes were. 

Satsuhiro's expression surprised Ash though. He seemed to be confused, as though he didn't recognize the man. 

"Welcome, Saviors," he bowed to them. "My name is Zafir, I am a member of the Arcane's Senate," he said, eyeing each of them carefully. "You must have traveled a long way, given the recent news of the demonic portals in Onyx, but I am confused, as we have not had any issues with demons in this area for quite some time. Is something else the matter?" 

"Yes," Satsuhiro tapped his cane on the stone as he walked forwards, "my name's Satsuhiro. I, and the half-demon, are Saviors. Her name is Ash," he pointed back at her, "and she needs to train, and it was decided that Amber would be the best place for her to do that in. We also are looking for any high-level Dark or Light magic that could be taught to her, as well as a place in which we could rest for the duration of our time here." 

"I see..." Zafir nodded slowly. "I suppose, there are resources we can give you. Come, I will show you to them." 

"Thank you," Satsuhiro replied and with that, the group was led into the Arcane's Manor. Inside it was just as elegant as the garden outside, with lush gold and exquisite leather furniture as far as anyone could see. The walls displayed various paintings depicting different kinds of people, all wearing the same outfit Zafir was wearing right now. 

"Who are they?" Keiko asked, pointing at them. 

"Old members of the Senate," Zafir replied. "Some of these paintings are decades old, but the work ethics of the people depicted in them will never be forgotten." 

A few halls lead to other passages that Ash could just barely see, with many closed doors that made Ash wonder what was behind them. They went up a set of stairs and were led even deeper into the manor, where the rooms began to grow scarce. Eventually, they arrived at an open door, leading into a library of sorts. 

"This," Zafir said, gesturing forwards, "is the home of our Senate Magician, the Arcane's Right Hand. While none are more powerful than the Arcane himself, I believe we can trust this man to lead young Ash to greater heights in her magical studies." 

Inside was but just one individual. A tall man with silky black hair and a thin beard was looking back at the library with contemplation in his eyes. When he heard Ash and her group enter the library, he looked over at them and raised a brow. 

"Greetings..." He said, with a smooth, low voice as the group walked in. 

"Sorcerer Alys," Zafir bowed, "I bring to you, Savior Ash," he gestured at the half-demon. 

Alys bowed to her, but he looked up with questions in his eyes. He didn't say anything though, instead, he just waited for Zafir to continue. 

"Well," Zafir cleared his throat after that awkward silence, "she requires some training in the realm of Dark and Light magic, was that right?" He asked, looking back at Ash, and she nodded. "Are your duties keeping you occupied or are you able to train her in these coming days?" 

"... Not today," Alys shook his head. "Tomorrow." 

"I see," Zafir replied. Alys didn't even wait for that though, instead, the mage just walked away, looking back at the library. "I apologize for his curtness, but Alys is not one for conversation. He is a, what you would call, 'action over words', kind of person." 

That's fine,  Ash thought.  Hell, that's probably for the best. 

"However, tomorrow, you have yourself a teacher," Zafir stated. "Now, I believe you were looking for a place to stay in?" 

"Yes," Satsuhiro nodded. 

"Very well, we have a few guest rooms you can use. Right this way, please." 

They were taken to a different, smaller part of the manor where six doors in total lined a hall to the right. Zafir opened one of the doors and Ash saw a fairly barebones bedroom. There was a bed, some drawers, and a mirror. 

"There are bathrooms at the end of the hall. Feel free to take up however many of these bedrooms you want to, though. Finally," Zafir said, "as for your combat training, there is a path behind the manor that leads out into the region. You can surely find monsters to fight if you head out through there. Also, feel free to bring whatever food you buy into the manor and dine at our tables, you are more than welcome to. Does that cover all of your needs?" 

"... Yes," Satsuhiro nodded. "If anything comes up, we'll let you know." 

"Good, good. We will let the guards know you are allowed to come in and out of the manor at will. That said, if you wish to speak to a member of the Senate, please, ask one of the knights to contact us first. Also..."

He cleared his throat.

"Excuse me, if you see the Arcane's daughter, please, do not pester her. She is in the middle of important studies and must not be interrupted. The same can be said for the Arcane himself. If you need anything, we will provide it. Thank you, and please, enjoy your stay." 

With those words, Zafir walked away and the group was left alone. 

"Well," Ash said, adjusting Kaori, who was slipping a little, "that was... quick." 

"Yeah," Satsuhiro said, looking like he was wondering about something. 

"Anything on your mind?" Ash asked as she saw that. 

"... Nothing serious, I just... I didn't recognize him. Senate members tend to be in place for a long time," Satsuhiro shrugged. "I guess Zafir's new.. Anyway, get yourselves settled in, and, Ash, you can keep training whenever you want to."