Chapter 2: The Cursed Lands of Arcana (Umbra) Part II
1228 Words
The establishments here are composed of brick walls that are covered in moss and healthy vines, yet the interior seems to be well decorated. I’m not sure why but I get a strong Lord of The Rings vibe even though the style is typical for most 16th century royal households. Dark, gloomy, and cold atmosphere paired with beautiful lights coming from the lanterns and fireflies literally took my breath away.
“You seem to be enjoying the view Eka,” My mother said as she called me by my nickname.
“Yes, yes, this is my first time here. Everything is preeeetty!”
Mother held my hand as we went towards the first floor of the treehouses. From there, the scent of cooked seasoned meat made me drool so much, mother had no choice but to buy me a few skewered steaks and kebabs. Even my nanny is amused upon looking at my stuff face (she said I look like a squirrel full of nuts).
We roamed around the vicinity of the first floors then immediately went to the elevators, leading us to the accessory section of the swamp. Various gems, raw ores and other forms of minerals can be found in this floor. It was there and then that momma told me that she’s going to buy some “liquid magic stone” for the house’s defense mechanism. Because Daddy will be gone for a few weeks, he suggested that we install a magic barrier to prevent trespassers.
The manor doesn’t have any guards except beasts that have been tamed by the family, and our relatives can be found several hundred meters away from our location, making our security a bit open to attacks. That isn’t a problem most of the time because Daddy uses his eyes to ward off enemy attacks.
Walking towards the northeastern part of the second floor, the three of us entered a small stall that smells like incense. A woman can be seen, wearing a gypsy outfit with a face mask and purple sash, reading a book about taxonomy. Upon hearing our steps, she looked at us and her eyes widened as she approached momma and hugged her.
“I’m happy to see you Lizzy!” The woman spoke in a cheerful tone.
“It’s been a few months since my last visit.”
Her eyes are fixated on me as she spoke in a seductive tone, “this must be the little miss of the house. I could tell since you have your father’s sexy eyes.”
“Before anything else, Eka, this is Bevie, and Bevie this is my daughter Ekaterina.”
Bevie hugged me as my head was caught up in between her breasts. “Aww, anyone from my frienny is cute!” I
“I get the p-point so please let me go!” a little more and I would’ve choked…
She placed me back on the floor as I hid behind my momma. Those things are dangerous…
“Lemme guess, you here for some magic gel?” Finally, we getting somewhere.
“Yeah, I would like to buy seven bottles.”
“Give me just a sec,” Bevie replied as she went back to her stall opened a few boxes. The sound of clanking bottles could be heard.
“I have ten bottles left. If you want, I could sell it all with a discount. How bout eight silver coins a piece?”
“Sure, I’ll go with that. It’s nice to have a few bottles if ever my daughter is interested in alchemy.” My mother paid her with a gold coin and received the change. Momma strapped some sort of belt around the box, then she used magic to make it float like a balloon. We went to the third floor because I insisted that I wanna see more of the place. Since it is my first time visiting here, I might as well enjoy going through the entire treehouse.
Upon arriving, the smell of mild and woody perfume greeted us. This floor sells various clothing and cloth related to our tribe’s culture. The Umbral people are known to be dancers and performers that travel the continent before they settled here. In order to commemorate that, we incorporated most of that in our modern clothing if not ornaments that we wear when we go out.
Embroided sashes, wood carved necklaces, bone bracelets and colored feather earrings; these things are showcased in separate racks for the customers to get a clear view of each. The sellers are also wearing traditional clothing, adding more to the ambiance of tradition and history.
My eyes were excited to see every nook and cranny of the place. I rushed to see the necklaces and the earrings and asked Momma to buy me a few things since I don’t have enough accessories at home. However, I didn’t know that she was that enthusiastic about me pointing pretty things... Momma bought all of the accessories and had it delivered to our manor with complete receipts. She also selected a bunch of cloth for my future dresses.
The entire third floor heightened their respect and admiration over the Bathory household as we were ushered with various products. We went down to the first floor to dodge their sales talk and got inside a restaurant just a few blocks away from where the carriages are parked.
“Da Swampsteak” unfortunately that’s the name of the restaurant that we got in, and I’m not sure if I should be enthusiastic about it or not…
I gotta say, the place is actually quite big, granting a lot of seats for simple accommodations and parties. Momma availed for the seat upstairs since there are fewer people and we have a bigger space to move around. The atmosphere is a cozy nook with most of the furniture consisting of wood. The large chandelier that hangs above the oak ceilings emits a pale yellowish light, giving a soothing and warm feeling for the customers.
“Pig goes oink and birds go chirp, I wanna eat so I could burp!” I began singing a nursery rhyme as my legs began to swing and my body bouncing from side to side. This is the first time that I went shopping with momma in the swamp and I never felt so satisfied. We ordered some light meals and their signature sour cream wedges with ground lamb cheese dip. Like a hungry mammal, I began to snack the veggie meat wrap and immediately went on the potatoes.
Nanny and Momma were constantly staring at me, laughing each time I chew my food. It’s disturbing but I can’t help it since this is the first time I ate something so good even in my past life as Mary Ann.
As soon as we finished our meals, my Nanny helped me walk outside since I’m wobbling my way going downstairs. Good thing the carriage that we are riding isn’t bouncy or else imma throw up mid travel.
Momma hugged me as we went home after that trip. Slowly, my eyes began to close. I tried my best to fight it but damn I’m weak against this type of skinship.
Sleep vs. Ekaterina
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Nice try but it ain’t enuff!
P.S. I lost every single fight...
(To Be Continued)
- Writer
