116: Towards the demi-humans
The demi-human capital of Magnolia. It was a town that had a warm climate and received blessings of the river. It was a town very in touch with nature. Many large trees were found inside and the roads were very wide.
The residents seems kind and cheerful, and because it was so comfortable, the number of people that settled down here wasn’t small.
The vicinity around here pretty dangerous, but the beastmen are equally strong. Even so, there was no mistake that it was a convenient, warm, and beautiful city. Beats Vilethorne in terms of beauty, that's for sure. It had a large circular outer wall. The canal, where water was pulled out from the river, ran the circumference as a moat. It also streamed to the center of the town, making a shape that looked like the town was divided into parts. The stone wall and the moat functioned as protection from beasts.
We were currently riding a carriage and Vanis was the one driving. As we entered the town, no guard stopped us because of Vanis' position. The streets were crowded. Soldiers as well as civilians. And all of them were demi-humans. Centaurs, cat people, mice people, dog people, harpies… you name. We were all wearing cloaks since demi-humans in Magnolia don't do well with outsiders. Even more so if they are from a different race. Our destination was the imperial castle.
The demi-humans might be divided into 5 tribes, but they still needed a place where the Beast Emperor could live and rule. So inspired from human architecture they build a splendid medieval castle. In fact, it's pretty much a larger version of the Windsor Castle from England, back on Earth.
"Please wait here. I need to go make some arrangements. If you walk right in, you might get attacked."
Vanis was surprisingly polite and doing his job properly. I wonder what type of person the Beast Emperor is. To start things on the right track, I should address Bessie with her real name in his presence. Although Yarina… it's not hard to remember, it's just… I totally can't get used to it. As I filled my time with these thoughts, eventually we were granted passage inside.
The castle had a large beautiful garden displayed which you need to circle around to get to the main building. When we were inside we took off our cloaks. For a second I thought that everything was going to be okay. But I spoke too soon.
"HAAA!!"
A big shout could be heard. From the floor above somebody jumped in front of us. I was taken aback by her boyish looks, but it was no doubt a girl. A girl with short spiky orange hair with small white strands and a pair of fluffy lion ears. Her beautiful topaz eyes sparkled like 2 gems. She had a skimpy outfit consisting only of a white cape, a bra-like top and a pair of hotpants, and 2 fluffy boots. Her hips were pretty juicy but her breats were on the smaller size. As for her hands, instead of normal humanoid hands she had a large pair of cat paws.
"Hyaaa!!"
For some reason this girl charged straight at me, ready to scratch my face. For a second I thought I had to blow her away, however Bessie stepped in front of me and stopped her charge.
"You're still as short tempered as ever. Haven't I taught you better? That's no way to treat guests."
"..."
For a moment the lion girl was left speechless, but she soon found her voice.
"Onee-chan!! It really is you! You're back!"
She shifted from aggressive mode to a lovy dovey cat in an instant and buried her face in Bessie's chest. The height difference between them was pretty obvious. And judging by the way she called Bessie…
"Yeah, I'm back, Mimi....I got it, I got it already, so hurry up and get off of me!”
As she said that, Mimi tightened her embrace even more.
“I don’t wanna! You’re gonna go off somewhere again, aren’t you?”
“Hah? What are you saying….”
While the girls were busy cuddling, Vanis turned towards me and tried to explain the situation.
"Please excuse this rudeness. That person is Mimi Rex, the first princess and the daughter of His Majesty Regulus Rex. Although lady Yarina was adopted, lady Mimi treated her no less as her older and beloved sister. I tried to avoid this scenario but…"
"It's ok. I've had my fair share of weirdness."
Mimi turned her eyes towards our group again.
"Hey sis… I can smell that Mazoku's scent all over you. So it's true… you really were enslaved. Let me at her! I'll tear her heart off, eat it and burn the body. Let me at her!!"
Like a fiesty cat, Mimi wiggled in Bessie's arms trying to charge at me again.
"No no. That person is the Maou. You can't charge like that towards another dignitary, now can you?"
"Grrr!!"
"We have a indeed a lot of catching up to do, but first things first. We can't ignore protocol. We need to see father."
"You're right. Pardon my reaction. If you would be so kind as to follow me, I will take you to the throne room."
------
Hou, so this is the Throne Room, huh……and that must be... Sitting on it was the Beast Emperor, who gazed at us, with doubtful eyes.
My eyes scanned the room thoroughly, assessing his surroundings. Near the throne stood a birdman. He seemed to be on guard against me and was glaring at my girls with sharp eyes.
“What’s with this visit, Vanis? I didn't order you to bring more than one person.”
“No, forgive me my lord. I have brought back lady Yarina as promised, but my squad suffered immense casualties. This was… the only way."
"Hou?”
Everyone focused their gazes on me. Upon doing so, the birdman, attempted to approach Regulus Rex in an attempt to protect him, but was stopped immediately by the Beast Emperor himself.
“……Is she the one?”
“Yes!"
"Then I suppose I should great you properly."
In the next moment the Beast Emperor who was sitting on his throne vanished and appeared in front of me. If you blinked, you would have missed it. Even for me it was hard to follow his movements. This guy… is incredibly dangerous, but I didn't flinch gambling that he wouldn't through a random cheap attack. We stared into each other's eyes. His presence is intimidating as hell. But I can't back down now.
It's still your move, kitty. What will it be? You wanna clash with me here and now? Or will you show the proper etiquette of a ruler?