Gifts?
For the next week or so, the Red Guardian did not appear again–Certainly digesting his newly acquired taste for feminine males… Edrick did not get to speak about it with the orcish protector, but he believed that it was nothing to be ashamed of. After all, these males needed to serve some sort of purpose, right?
From a natural standpoint, they were perfect for other males to relieve themselves without causing overpopulation. Also, it was a purely social endeavour to bed twinks and Foppoofs.
Though what Anoteros really believed was that if they made his man-meat rise, they were perfectly viable targets for him to relieve his endless lust with. It was as simple as that–There wasn’t a need for anything else, really. If you want something and have the means to get it… Then just take it for yourself.
‘Aah… Makes me think about Haoyu… I’ll really need to visit Labyrinth Palace and make him mine soon…’
Not only would owning another Foppoof be very nice, but Haoyu was also a top core disciple in the sect, meaning that he was very skilled at architecture cultivation. Having him around would make plenty of the crazy projects Edrick had in mind not just simpler, but possible.
…Who knows, maybe when visiting the sect, the scion would also find other disciples he felt like owning in some way. Though he didn’t want to take away too many disciples at once, as Labyrinth Palace was not a big sect to begin with.
Just making one of the disciples his wife would be enough. Putting a ring on Haoyu’s finger was different from taking a maid or servant. In the latter case, it would just be claiming a disciple as completely his, but the former? It was like performing a political marriage. At least, that’s how the sect would view it.
A noble scion from the clan sponsoring them would further tighten the relationship between the sect and family…
The fact that Haoyu was from a subservient sect would certainly make the job much easier for Edrick… After all, could the delicious-looking, dark-skinned Foppoof resist his advances? The answer was simple. He could not.
Anoteros would be able to bring the disciple to his bed, and from there, Edrick would have an easy time making Haoyu into a good wife just like all of the others… And once the crest came into play, the deal would be sealed.
Although technically the eighth wife in total, Haoyu would be regarded as the sixth wife once that happened. The Oie Alrinirs were placed in another category as ‘noble wives’, granting them a separate category to note their high status prior to becoming married to Edrick.
Regardless… Anoteros allowed himself some time to think about what he was going to do to Haoyu early in the morning before setting off to gather more bones. It seemed like he really was supposed to gather every single piece of the skeletons.
Not a single one was being forgotten.
Surprisingly, all of them were in absolute perfect condition every single time, and always far apart from one another. They were never buried very deep either, so it was rather odd that nothing else had dug out even one of them yet.
Considering how long the Underwood elves had been around, the humanoid species these remains belonged to must have been dead for a while. They should definitely be deeper and in worse condition–Were they normal remnants, at least.
Today, after retrieving a large femur bone. Something happened… This was the final bone belonging to the most distinct skull of the three. The bones all shone for a moment, and the skull stopped trembling completely.
‘...I was expecting some nonsense, but I guess this is it?’
He had frankly thought that a ghost or soul was going to show up to claim the bones, but it would appear that he had overthought it.
In the following days, he completed the other two sets, and the same thing occurred with them. Though once he returned to camp, all three skulls moved, flicking toward the same direction.
Edrick was prompted to go on one last bone-hunting adventure as the skulls all pointed in the same direction. He had to traverse the mountains and go back to the Cradled Region, finding himself going to a deep part of the woods he had never been to before…
There, he discovered a staircase leading down toward a pit of absolute darkness. For some reason, the noble felt like this place posed no danger whatsoever… Nonetheless, his cautious nature still prompted him to grab a random beast, subjugate it with a servant crest, and then send it down before him.
The creature touched the darkness and was promptly flung out. It was not harmed, but a voice rang out from the dark.
“Do not be wary, human”
“Step through. I want to meet you face to face”
The voice was almost hypnotising.
‘Well… I have a feeling I know who that voice belongs to’
“Oswulf. Ansbach. You two stay here, alright? I’ll be back”
He patted their heads and descended the staircase, soon passing through the darkness–Which felt like walking through a soft waterfall.
On the other side, he was inside a lavish temple. The colour of the stone was the same pale red as that of the temple, which the guardian was keen on not letting anyone enter.
Here, rather than a throne, there was an elevated Roman-style bed. It was a lectus of impressive width. The wood was carved and adorned in a most opulent manner. The bed itself was covered in a comfortable-looking mattress and many pillows. This reminded Edrick of his own bed in his residence.
The most interesting thing to look at wasn’t the bed, though, but the figure lying on its stomach upon it.
Their silhouette was obscured a great deal by a blanket draped over them, and seemingly held up by their swinging feet. Coupled with a flowing headdress, it was difficult to tell anything specific about the person other than that they had white skin, as well as dark and short hair cut into a bob with blunt bangs. Beyond this, all Edrick could tell was that the figure’s features were clearly very feminine and that she possessed a round face.
The figure smiled.
“Edrick Lucien Anoteros~ It is a pleasure to meet you directly. I am the realm… So I suppose that my name is Eltysia now, mmh?”
She chuckled charmingly.
“There is something about you that I quite like… But I must first make sure that you are truly worthy before proceeding…”
Suddenly, the three skeletons the scion had gathered appeared, floating in the air as they assembled. Soon after, a fourth skeleton similar to the first two he had discovered assembled itself as well.
“I want to offer you… Gifts... But as I said, I feel compelled to test you first. If you aren’t compatible… My gifts could have a very adverse effect”
“What are these tests about?”
“Well… I know that there are things you intend to do, so… The first test will be to take care of the albino Laughing Fox. Do with this beast as you see fit, simply make sure that it is defeated”
The next time Edrick blinked, he was no longer in the temple, but back outside with his two bestial companions.
‘...I wasn’t expecting the realm to have an actual form. Interesting…’