Fate Online: Shadow

Chapter 343 - Count's Mansion

Solitary Tempest rode beside Tiera, and the first thing she quickly noticed when she got inside the city were the numerous squads of soldiers patrolling the streets.

The once busy street where she would always see numerous peddlers and stalls that are hawking their wares all over the street have disappeared, and what replaced those people are now just a few players who are busy hawking about their own wares, but they are well aware not to mess or get too close to the soldiers.

"Delicious and freshly plucked fruits over here! Come get them!" said a hawker in a fruit stand.

"Guys, freshly baked melon bread! It gives +3 Strength for an hour! Come, come, come! We have limited stocks only!" said a player wearing an apron while shouting in front of his small bakery.

"The others are already waiting for...Miss Tempest?"

Tiera wanted to say something but quickly stopped when she noticed that Solitary Tempest suddenly turned around and went somewhere, forcing the knights behind them to halt their movements as they curiously watched Solitary Tempest make her way towards the bakery.

A rough looking and somewhat old knight, clearly not a player approached Tiera, "Maam, this…"

"Leave it, she's an important guest"

Tiera cut him off before he could even finish, as she could also understand Solitary Tempest's action of wanting to have a taste of that melon bread, as its smell is already tantalizing enough to make someone hungry.

Even she would send someone to buy a bundle of them from time to time, because she can only eat to her heart's content in the game with no worries of ever gaining weight.

"Yes, ma'am"

The people on the line quickly dispersed when they saw the woman riding a huge warhorse heading towards them.

The players wouldn't have cared about it, but they were afraid of the soldiers that accompanied her, especially when they saw that the woman was accompanied by the Guild Leader of the War Dragons herself.

"How much for one again?"

Solitary Tempest eyed the people who made way for her with a raised eyebrow before jumping off from her mount and stood before the baker that's only Level 10.

"It's two silvers a piece, ma'am" said the baker with a smile, he didn't seem bothered that Solitary Tempest is being escorted by a group of knights who could easily kill him as he just smiled like it was just any ordinary day.

And besides, there's also laws in the kingdom that protect its citizens.

Solitary Tempest took out two gold coins and handed it to the man and said, "Give me sixty of those then"

When the man saw the gold coins in her hands, his smile beamed and he happily said, "Right away, ma'am!"

He quickly wrapped up the sixty melon bread inside a paper bag and carefully handed it to Solitary Tempest while being eyed by the people waiting for their turn.

Some of them swallowed, while some felt sour because the stock had dwindled a lot because of her purchase and they weren't even sure if they'll be able to buy one.

So some of them left, and while some people at the back of the line stayed praying that the people in front wouldn't buy a lot.

After all, a bread that provides a +3 STR buff for an hour is almost like gaining one level, which certainly helps them a lot with hunting monsters or raiding dungeons.

Of course, these players wouldn't have continued lining up for the melon bread if only they knew who the woman was before their eyes.

"Thanks," said Solitary Tempest as she took the two bags of melon bread from the man and walked back towards where her mount was.

'I'll eat one bag, and leave the other bag for Michael when he comes back' thought Solitary Tempest with a giggle, but then she frowned.

'Hmm..maybe I'll just eat all of them, and just tell Michael about it later?'

'Yeah, I'll just eat all of them, and they smell delicious, I can't wait to have a bite out of them' Solitary Tempest stored them inside her [Storage] space with a giggle before she rode back towards Tiera.

"You won't regret it, those melon bread are truly delicious" whispered Tiera to Solitary Tempest the moment she got back.

"Really?" replied Solitary Tempest in a soft voice, and this time, she finally couldn't wait for it and took one melon bread and had a bite out of it.

"Omo, omo! It's really delicious!" exclaimed Solitary Tempest after she had taken a bite while looking at Tiera with shining eyes.

"Right!?" said Tiera, looking really pleased to have someone to casually talk to who isn't really afraid of who she is.

And the players who had been with her through a couple of games couldn't help but be mesmerized by the rare sight.

"Ahh..such a beautiful scene"

"It's been a while since I've seen the guildmaster talking like that without putting on airs"

"Such beautiful women, I think I'm falling in love"

"Shut up man, you always say that but you don't even have the courage to tell that to the guild leader"

"Tsk, you single dog"

"W-wha-! Why you!"

"ATTENTION!"

The leading knight who looks like he is in his mid 50s with an air of authority glared at the players arguing with each other at the back.

The players quickly shut their mouths when they saw the old knight glaring at them. They might be one of the unruly bunch in their squad, but they know who should they not be messing with.

After all, even though they are members of the War Dragons Guild, they are also knights who serve Count Azuna.

A few minutes later, the group finally arrived at their destination.

"That's one large house," said Solitary Tempest to himself as she stared at the building before her eyes as they passed through the spacious gate that could fit two cars at the same time.

It was a really large mansion that probably occupies more or less than two hectares. It doesn't have the beauty of a modern mansion, but it certainly has the grandeur of the house of nobility which has a similar architecture to those victorian style houses.

Tiera and Solitary Tempest dismounted from their mounts while the knights made their way towards the training grounds at the back of the mansion.

"The others are already waiting inside," said Tiera as she gestured for Solitary Tempest to follow her.

Solitary Tempest just nodded at her and quickly opened up the game settings and enabled her name to be seen by others who are way behind her level.

Both of them entered inside, and what greeted Solitary Tempest is a very luxurious interior design, and the very first thing she noticed was the large stairs leading to the second floor that's facing the door.

"Good Afternoon miss, and honorable guest"

Greeted the maids they passed by on the second floor, and two minutes later, both of them arrived in front of a room with double doors, where both of them can already hear the sound of conversation happening at the other side of the door.

"Bastard! I will kill you!"

"Screw you, you as*hole! I almost got killed because of you!"

And at the same time, Solitary Tempest can also discern the voices of Genesis and Viper arguing with each other from outside.

'Geez, these two...even inside the game, they always argue with each other like its some daily routine'

Solitary Tempest just sighed helplessly while Tiera opened the door, and both of them entered.

"Tempest?"