Quest 93- Outside Orario- Telskyura, The Country of Blood

Midnight

"Ugh..."

Thud!

The bodies of several Amazonians litter the premises where the Poseidon Familia resides.

"Fuu~" An Amazoness with a scarf covering the lower portion of her face let out a deep breath. "He is my prey. Keep trying to slip in and I'll make sure to kill you."

"I have never seen you like this, Bache." said another Amazoness with a red skirt.

"...That goes for you as well, Argana."

"Heh~" she smiles, like her goddess. "Don't worry, you can have him if he isn't to my standard."

Morning.

"Hmm…"

Waking up, Cirrus finds himself not surrounded by Amazoness.

"Well, this is a good morning…so far."

Cirrus gets up and checks the locks. Seeing that they are all good, he gets himself ready for the day with a shower when he hears a knock.

‘Cirrus it’s the Amazoness! I can hear their voices! I'll bar the door until you get dressed!' Nox turned into her human form without a flash and held the door back.

Cirrus quickly dressed himself as fast as he could. Once he was done, he put on his clothes and his Lernaean armor that hides everything but his eyes, and in case he needs to really hide, he just equips the rest and blends into the shadows.

'Get ready! I can't hold on much longer!'

'You're good! Turn back!'

As Nox turns back into an owl, she flies back onto his head.

Creak! Bam!

The door is broken open with brute strength. Walking in were two Amazonians.

"Hey there, kid!" said a woman with long sand-colored hair and a red skirt.

Another one came after her with semi-long sand-colored hair and a black scarf covering the bottom half of her face.

"You were a scarf like me?" said the one who had just entered in a calmer tone of voice.

"Who are you two?" Cirrus said as Nox watched the both of them intently.

"My name is Argana Kalif! This one here is my sister!"

"I am Bache Kalif. Lady Kali sent us to be your guide to Telskyura."

"Ah I see. Very well lead on."

"Before that, I want to-" Argana said, walking and standing before Cirrus.

"Bache was it? Lead on."

"Hm, very well."

Cirrus walks past Argana, ignoring her as Bache leads him.

"Hey, wait!"

As Cirrus and Bache leave out onto the streets, Argana comes with them.

"I said wait dammit!" she shouted.

"Hm? What is it?" said Cirrus. "You aren’t my guide, your sister is, so what’s the problem?"

"The problem is you think you’re the boss!"

"…Do you just want a fight?"

"What!? Of course, I do!!"

"Alright..." Cirrus cracks his neck and warms up his arms. "Well come on then, I would rather not have you screaming all day long. It is a waste to throw out your nice voice."

"Kuk! Fine then! Bache! Get out of the way!"

"Argana…" Bache said, walking up to her sister. "You saw the fight Lady Kali showed to the whole country. He can easily crush you."

"Don’t care!! Like I said last night, I want to see where he stands!"

Cirrus hearing this made a smirk that was hidden under his scarf.

"Heh~ I don’t know whether you're brave or reckless, though there is a blurred line distinguishing the two."

"I’ll show you reckless!!!"

She then charged ahead and went in with a straight right punch.

Smack!!

"!!"

"Is that all?" She punched his head, but Cirrus met her strike with his forehead, and nothing happened.

Argana was a level 4 and she had never faced one stronger than her or her sister. She didn’t expect the difference to be this severe.

Cirrus placed his hand at her solar plexus and simply…pushed.

"!!!" Argana's eyes went blurry as the scenery quickly changed.

Whoosh!

Bam!

Whoosh!

Bam!

Whoosh!

Bam!

Argana was sent through several buildings, and many of the Amazoness who were watching were astounded.

Cirrus turned to Bache, who looked okay if not, but her cheeks were a bit more blushed.

"So shall we get going?"

"Y-yes!" she said, leading the way.

Walking around the city Cirrus was rather excited that the architecture resembled that of the Aztec and Hindu cultures. Cirrus could guess where the Hindu came from, but the Aztecs? He only figured that Kali usurped the country some time ago.

Their food was very nutritional and hearty, with meat and vegetables of the highest quality, even by Orario standards.

"So where does your food source come from?"

"Oh from the slaves." She said it flat out. "We have the men farm while the women fight to get stronger."

"…" Cirrus didn't know what to say to that. Cirrus decided to focus on the job on hand and sorta just...ignore it, as it was not his place to change a literal integral part of the Amazoness' culture. "So could you show me to the port?"

"Hm, sure."

Now that he realized that Cirrus was gone, he took a few glances around himself to find two men, both of whom were wearing rather raggedy clothing in comparison to the Amazoness. Cirrus tried to recall all the men he had seen, and aside from Poseidon’s and the ship's crew, there were very few in between.

‘Hmmm…this really doesn’t sit too well with me…I can feel a disgusting layer forming on my skin looking at these men.’

‘Ah…still the same matriarchal brutish refinement as it was when Evelda founded this place…it’s much better now.’

'Goddamn Nox, how much have you seen?'

‘Hmm…I really don’t know. It all kind of blends together?’

"Is something the matter?" Bache asked.

"Oh um no!" Cirrus said he was putting on a façade. "Just that the men sort of giving me a bad vibe."

Bache looked around and nodded.

"Yes, the male population is a bit dreary." She turned to him. "I apologize for the sight. I assume you know what their statue is in the city, correct?"

"I do. They are slaves. Honestly, I'm not comfortable with the concept."

"...I am-"

"Do not apologize. I know you need them to keep the Amazoness race and Telskyura alive. Besides, it's not like you have the power to do something about it. It's an integral part of your home."

When he was in the Kaios Desert, he would stamp it out like the plague, but in Telskyura? Their entire culture and way of life revolved around keeping men around solely for breeding and agriculture, not for profit. It was a necessity, but that doesn't mean they should be treated like shit.

"...Yes. So shall we-"

"But if you do somehow get the power-" Cirrus interrupted her. "You could at least get them better treatments. After all, they are a vital part of your survival, plus if they are healthy, they can, you know..." Cirrus looked Bache in the eye. "Last longer."

Cirrus could see her eyes widen by a very small but noticeable margin.

"I shall keep that in mind. Shall we keep going?"

"Let's."

When they arrived at the docks, Poseidon and most of the crew were there. The crew were waited for hand on foot with beautiful Amazoness'.

"Lord Poseidon." Cirrus stated firmly.

They looked toward him, and he quickly got up to talk with him.

"Ah sorry! Sorry!... Say, did you have a taste of the country's "delicacies"? " He said it with such smoothness that it was really natural for him to say it.

‘Greek gods...'

"..." Cirrus remained silent, looking at him sternly.

"Not saying huh? That’s fine! Nothing more trustworthy than a guy who doesn’t gloat!" He said, shaking his clenched fist. He then let go of it and placed his hands on his hips. "So about the seal, Lance went on and checked it out, and um, well… it's underwater."

"… It's underwater? As in its in a ruin under the sea?"

"Yup, there is even air down there, but Lance doesn’t know what to make of it. Nothing was out of the ordinary and nothing seemed broken."

"Where is he now?"

"Uhh probably with some girls."

'He is still his child, despite being rather noble.'

"Well…guess I'll go down and see for myself." Cirrus turns to Bache. "I'll be back in a second."

"I shall wait for you here." Bache said.

"Hm."

Nox flies up and lands on a nearby crate.

‘I’ll be keeping an eye out on the place.’

Cirrus nods his head, and just before he jumps into the sea, he gets his charms and puts them in his bag and hands them to Nox, who walked over the strap.

"I’ll be back in a minute."

Cirrus then takes a running start and dives into the sea.

While in the sea, Cirrus’s magic circle appears and fully equips him, activating the armor.

Cirrus truly moved through the water as naturally as a fish.

"He’s a pretty dam good swimmer," said Poseidon. He turns to Bache. "So...you like the kid?" he said with a shit-eating smile.

"Hello, what is your name?" Bache said, sitting next to Nox, ignoring Poseidon.