Chapter 975 - Journey To The North
Two days pa.s.sed and it was time for William to leave the fortress city. Perhaps due to Joash"s influence, the barkeeper treated him like a VIP guest, and no one dared to cause trouble for him during his stay.
Half an hour later, three carriages left the Northern Gate of the Fortress. Two of them belonged to William, while the last one belonged to Vesta.
The green-haired lady"s carriage was simple looking, but it was at least twice the size of William"s carriage. Also, the one pulling it was so high profile that the Half-Elf couldn"t help but scratch his head.
In the end, he said nothing, because there was no use in saying anything. Even the Elves who were riding on the cage behind the carriage couldn"t help but raise their eyebrows at the majestic beast that was calmly walking side by side with the horses that pulled their carriage.
A Black Gryphon, that was bigger than a normal one, pulled Vesta"s carriage. It was clearly an Alpha Monster, and they were very prideful creatures. William didn"t know if the one that tamed it was Vesta or her father.
Regardless of who they were, he could only sigh internally because the Gryphon was like a big sign that said, "I am pulling a VIP Pa.s.senger. Get out of the way, Peasants!".
"Sir William, you looked troubled," Charmaine, who was seated beside William inside the carriage said with a smile.
"How can I not be troubled?" William replied in a helpless tone. "A group of slave traders, being accompanied by the daughter of a DemiG.o.d is something you don"t see everyday. Anyone who sees this will find it suspicious. This in turn will prompt them to investigate. I don"t know if Joash is playing a prank on me, but if he is, he got me really good."
Charmaine giggled because it was very rare for her to see William"s troubled expression. Clearly, the daughter of a DemiG.o.d wasn"t part of his plans to act low profile, while searching for Celine.
"Sir William, just look at the bright side," Charmaine stated. "With her by our side, no one will dare cause trouble for us."
William shook his head because Charmaine"s thinking was quite simple.
"You"re only half right." William nodded his head. "As one of the most popular beauties of the young generation, I"m sure that Vesta has a lot of admirers in the city.
"Seeing her accompanying us will make those one-sided admirers of hers stalk us on our journey, in the hopes that they will be able to use the opportunity of her being away from her father to become close to her. Not to mention, I am slave trader carrying Elves as merchandise. They can always use the excuse of checking our wares as a reason to approach us."
"Sir William, you think too much," Charmaine commented. "Even if that is the case, you just need to intimidate them and they will divert their attention from you to Vesta. Let her deal with her admirers."
Before William could even reply to the pretty Elf beside him, who for some reason had started to ma.s.sage his arm, two flying carriages landed on his carriage"s right side.
"Speaking of the Devils." William snorted.
"Sir William, they are Demons, not Devils," Charmaine commented in a teasing tone.
William rolled his eyes to ignore the pretty Elf who was now ma.s.saging his shoulders. He didn"t pry her hands off his shoulders, because Charmaine was quite good at giving ma.s.sages, which he had only discovered a few days ago.
"Halt!" a loud voice shouted. "The Young Master of the Desert Clan orders you slave traders to stop so that he can check the slaves in your possession. My Young Master is willing to pay a good price for them, so pull to the side and let him take a look at what you have for sale!"
"Stop at once!" another Demon shouted. "The Young Master of the Sky Clan wishes to conduct business with you. If he is satisfied with what he sees, he is willing to pay you a high price for your slaves."
Vesta, whose carriage was located on William"s left side, smirked after seeing the two that had come to cause trouble for the Half-Elf.
Truth be told, she had already met the Young Masters of the Desert and Sky Clans, as well as the other members of the young generation, two months ago during her birthday. All of them wanted to become her life partner, so they could have her father"s backing to ensure their clan"s prosperity.
Vesta hated these gatherings because she felt like she was an item that was being auctioned to the highest bidder. Although her father allowed her to do as she pleased, she still couldn"t shake the possibility of being set up in an arranged marriage, which was very common in the Demon Realm.
"Pull to the side, Zhu," William said with a sigh. "Let"s just get this over with. Sha, s.h.i.+ft the carriage to the side as well."
Zhu and Sha nodded and guided the carriages off the road in order to deal with the numbskulls who were using him as an excuse to strike up a conversation with the green-haired beauty, who loathed both of them.
"Young Masters, my apologies but this slaves are already reserved for the Demon Lord," William stated with a smile. "If you have any concerns, feel free to look for him. I"m sure that he will be more than happy to settle this matter with the two of you."
The two Young Masters, who were planning to buy the slaves at a high price in order to make a good impression on Vesta, immediately held back the words that they were about to say. If they were to really buy the slaves that were meant for the Demon Lord, their Patriarch"s would definitely roast them in an open fire for their stupidity.
Seeing that the two Young Masters didn"t dare to make things difficult for him, an idea popped up inside William"s head, which he executed right away.
"Dear Sirs, I really apologize for disappointing the both of you, so allow me to make it up to you," William said with a smile that he and James used when they were about to scam people. "You see, Lady Vesta is traveling with me, and I admit that I am not very good at socializing with someone of her status. Would the both of you like to travel with us in order to keep her company?"
The two Young Masters looked at William as if he was their long lost bro, who understood their suffering.
The Young Master of the Sky Clan, walked up to William and shook his hand.
"Bro, my name is Kira," Kira said. "I am the third son of the Head of the Desert Clan. It is a pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is mine," William replied. "Feel free to call me William."
Kira looked like a normal human teenager with tanned skin. If not for the fact that he had a short horn at the middle of his forehead, and red-eyes that were as red as rubies, no one would think that he was a demon.
His looks were above average, and even more handsome than William"s current form, which was his face back on Earth.
It was at that moment when the Young Master of the Sky Clan approached the black-haired teenager in order to introduce himself.
"Elder Brother, my name is Athrun, the fourth son of the current Patriarch of the Sky Clan." Athrun smiled. "It is an honor to meet you."
"Likewise," William replied as he happily shook Athrun"s hand. "Just call me William."
Unlike Kira, Athrun was more of a scholarly type and his skin was creamy white, similar to that of a girl"s. He was also quite handsome, which gave William the impression that, if the two young Master"s were to woo others girls aside from Vesta, their chances of success would be very high.
"Bro, where are you planning to go?" Kira asked. "Are you headed for the capital? If Yes, why don"t we stay at our residence there. It is very s.p.a.cious and I guarantee that you will not be disappointed."
Athrun just stayed silent at the side and didn"t volunteer to invite William to the lodging of their clan in the capital city. As the Fourth Son of his father, his position was the lowest, and he wasn"t treated with much respect in their clan.
Fortunately, Athrun was very good when it came to business. He was able to become a successful merchant without the help of his family, and had long gained the confidence to stand on his own.
Still, his business was only medium-sized at the moment, so he didn"t dare to brag or anything. He knew more than anyone else that there was no one he could rely on, but himself. The reason why he was enamored with Vesta was not because of her status, but because she was a hard worker.
As someone who also understood the hards.h.i.+ps of making a name for herself, without relying on family connections, Athrun believed that she was the perfect match for him.
"I am planning to go to the North first before going to the capital city," William replied. "I am looking for a friend, and according to those who saw her last, she was traveling towards the North in search of someone."
"That is a long detour, Elder Brother." Athrun rubbed his chin after hearing William"s explanation. He then glanced at Vesta who was looking at them from the window of her carriage and smiled. "Elder Brother, will Lady Vesta accompany you until you reach your destination?"
William nodded. "Lady Vesta said that it had been a long time since she had left the Fortress City, so she decided to accompany me on my long journey."
Vesta who was looking at them from her carriage window suddenly had the strong urge to breathe fire at them. She was waiting for a good show, and to see how the two Young Masters would cause trouble for William. Unfortunately, things didn"t play out the way she thought it would.
Instead of a confrontation, the two Young Masters started to call William Bro and Elder Brother, which made the green-haired beauty wonder if she had misheard things.
However, after seeing how the three teenage boys were all smiles as they talked about the details of their journey, Vesta felt like she had swallowed a fly.
When she heard that William even invited Kira and Athrun to accompany them, the green-haired beauty almost jumped out of her carriage to deliver a strong kick to the black-haired teenager"s b.u.m.
The Half-Elf laughed internally because he was finally able to return the favor to the father and daughter pair. He wasn"t too worried about Kira and Athrun accompanying him, because their presence was just a means to an end.
In the end, Vesta was forced to swallow a bitter pill as their small group suddenly gained two more members, who were more than eager to accompany them on their journey to the North.