NOVEL NEXT Chapter 45: Isolated
Venn was surprised when he noticed that Ysera was already present inside the tent after stepping inside. He was confused as it made no sense to him that Ysera would arrive earlier than him when General Brugvun wasted no time in leading him directly to the war tent.
"Didn't she take a detour to change her attire?" He uttered to himself as he looked at Ysera.
Ysera was standing quietly with her lips pursed behind an elderly female Oni that was sitting on an exquisite looking wooden chair. She was covered in black tight clothing with multiple bandages wrapped around her thighs and arms while equipped with a dagger on both sides of her thighs. Her expression was aloof and cold, carrying no emotions, much different from the face she had shown to Venn previously while they were alone in the guest room.
As he walked further into the tent, Venn could sense multiple eyes on him, including Ysera who was staring at him and scrutinising his every action with her large crimson red eyes.
He took his time to survey the room trying to cram the scene inside the tent into his mind, and when he saw Ysera, his gaze stopped at her face as he couldn't help but sense that something was off with her. Just as he was about to figure out why he would feel that way, he heard his name being called.
It was the granny that called out to him.
"Lord Night Raid, I'm so glad that you finally came. Lord Lilith had addressed in a letter to us that she was going to send reinforcements to help in our fight against the terrible goblins." The granny that was sitting down in the chair spoke, her tone carried a tinge of friendliness that General Brugvun lacked.
Faced with such hospitality from a NPC, Venn humbly replied. "Yes. I was ordered by Lilith to come here to help. Rest assured, I will do everything in my power to defeat the goblins. May I know how to address you?"
"Obari from the Shuten family. You can address me as granny like what my grandchildren do since you look to be around a similar age as them."
The granny introduced herself with dignity and pride unlike what her age suggests. She was so old that her face was full of wrinkles and her hair was silvery white, but Venn could tell from the game status that she was extremely powerful.
[Level: ???]
[HP: ???/???]
"I'm level 10 now, equipped with Murasame sword that increases my level by five, I should be able to see the status of any NPCs that are level 35 and below. Seeing that I could not tell her level, that means she is at least level 36."
"The Shuten family that Princess Ysera belonged to. Is that why she called out to me? Is she supporting me and the Blood Serpents behind me? But why is she being hostile towards me?" Venn mentally thought.
To test her actual attitude towards him, he extended his hands towards the granny which the latter warmly held his hands like an elderly would with the younger generations as a friendly gesture.
This further made Venn confused.
"Enough! Introductions can wait. Let's focus on the important matter at hand. Night Raid of the Blood Serpents, the Oni Clan welcomes your help. You are allowed to listen in the war meeting, but please keep in mind that you are not allowed to interfere in the clan matters. If you agree, then wait at the side quietly."
A loud grumpy voice boomed in the tent and interfered with Venn in his conversation with the granny. The owner of the voice belonged to another elderly Oni who was sitting down grasping a large wooden clutch in his hands. As he spoke, he slammed the clutch to the ground with great force. Standing behind him were several heavily armored soldiers and General Brugvun at attention.
"Noted." Venn nodded his head and stood aside after taking a quick glance at the granny. He agreed to comply when he saw that the granny was calm about being interrupted. As a level 10 player, he had no say in dictating the matters of the Oni Clan. Thus, he went towards Ysera and took his place beside her naturally.
"For now, I need more information."
He had no information on the internal workings and the political struggles of the Oni Clan, but even as an outsider, he could tell that there existed underlying conflicts happening between the parties of the clan.
The difference in attitude towards him by everyone in the tent, the conversation that General Brugvun and the Princess had, and even the positions of where everyone was standing currently in the war tent were clues he could utilise.
Players often neglect the dynamics of the NPCs' relationship and would fail their quest unknowingly, but not Venn. He truly understood the importance of them. Thus, squinting his eyes, Venn continued to observe everyone in silence.
The war tent was large and spacious inside. Multiple light sources in the form of glowing orbs illuminated the tent well, allowing Venn to take in everything in sight. In the middle of the tent, a round oak table was placed, and on the table were wooden pieces and blocks of various sizes. Based on the arrangement of them, it seemed to Venn that they were using the wooden blocks as simulation pieces.
Weapon racks that displayed various weapons like maces, swords, shields, and more were present inside the tent as well. Compared to the smaller weapons that humans wield, it was clear that the larger sized weapons on the rack were specifically produced for the usage of the bigger sized Onis.
Besides the granny and the elder who was grasping a wooden clutch, there were three other Onis that were sitting down on wooden chairs. Among the three, two of them were middle-aged whilst the remaining Oni was around the same age with the Shuten granny based on their appearances.
Behind all the 5 elders, stood several soldiers that seemed to serve as guards. Venn could guess that each of the representatives and their groups were representing their respective Oni families based on the color of their clothes and armors, with some of them dressed in blue, red and other colors.
And on a related note, a distinct difference could be seen between them and the Shuten family's representatives. Consisting of Venn, Ysera and the granny with respect to the dozens of soldiers that were in the tent with their respective family heads, they looked extremely out of place.
"This is not good. I now understand the reason why the Shuten granny and Ysera wanted me on their side. Everyone is isolating the Shuten family." Venn concluded after his observation.