Chapter 361: A curious family tradition
"I have news, madam." In the middle of Linda's stupor, Yalda's voice broke her line of thought. "What?" She would have liked it if the maid didn't bring things up in the moment of her serenity, still, if she did, it must be an important topic.
"I was contacted by our people in the capital. After we left something extraordinary happened. Believe it or not, the epicenter is nowhere else but the town of Korua." Linda frowned her eyebrows, unsure what the woman was hinting at.
Seeing she had her lady's unimpaired attention, Yalda continued. "Around the time we had left the capital, the crown prince of Thera invaded our borders." The news was groundbreaking and it was no surprise that Linda brought her steed to a halt. "Are you kidding me?"
For obvious reasons, Linda had a hard time wrapping her brain around the event. "It wasn't a full-fledged invasion but he did sneak in an entire company of his men in our country and navigated over to this prefecture."
"Even then, how did they come all the way here, undiscovered?" It had to be noted that even though Korua was situated along the border regions, it was not at all on the same side as Thera, rather while the neighboring country was on the far eastern side, the town in question was on the western side of Cylon.
This meant the crown prince must have entered from the top eastern side of their country then traveled along the border to cross a vast distance to reach the north-western front. This misadventure simply exposed an inconceivable gap in Cylon's defenses.
"Well, he did. It can't be helped, most of our manpower is located over on the eastern side, in consequence of the beastmen invasions. He must have traveled undetected."
"What business will a crown prince have in a little town?" Linda questioned back and Yalda was ready with the answers. "Apparently from the official explanation of Thera, he was looking for a maid who had escaped his palace years back. They say he acted on an intelligence report that suggested her presence in or around Korua."
Linda tugged on her steed's reins to get it going. "A maid you say.." She had a hunch that the killer of her husband and son should also be a woman. This new development tangled the situation even more. "What happened next?"
"What else? You must have heard of the crown prince. It was a tragedy." Linda nodded, having come across the nature of the young man quite a few times in many gatherings. "Casualties?"
"Of course. Governor Pediot had his men around this area. Everyone was annihilated, including his son as well." For the second time in a row, Linda once again brought her ride to rest, staring at her maid with saucer-like eyes.
"Some say almost the entire house of the governor was destroyed in the clash." Linda knew the governor personally. She had been to his prefecture on a handful of business trips. Thus the shock was even more for her.
"This is a disaster." "It is. However, the crown prince didn't escape unscathed either." Yalda finally revealed a smile, as if glad to recount this part of the story. "Hahaha.. bastard tried to push his luck against the grand magus Emily. She taught the boy a lesson. From the news we have received, the crown prince had been shocked into a comatose state and hadn't recovered yet."
Linda's expression relaxed once she heard that. At least there was someone on their side who actually won back some face for them. Regardless, she remained unaware it wasn't Emily who did such cruel damage to the crown prince's psyche.
"If the news is correct, the king of Thera had rescinded the crown prince title as well." Yalda uttered in an exuberant tone, making Linda nod as well. "That's some compensation at least."
Some time passed and Yalda shared more details about Mrs. Emily's so-called trial in the royal court. Both women laughed at the farce.
"Do you think these events have anything to do with our case, madam?" Later down the line, Yalda raised her concern to Linda who had been mulling over the same matter.
"I don't know. It doesn't seem to be likely, the timeline is not matching. Jacob and Samuel must have lost their lives quite sometime before the Crown prince even stepped inside our borders." Linda rationalized.
"But don't you think we only have his records after he was discovered? Where he was or what he was doing before that.. no one knows? For all rhyme or reason, this guy might have invaded months back and just lied in wait." Yalda's had a strong point of view and Linda failed to counter that.
"Let's not bother with these things now. First, we will get over to Korua. Based on what we find there, we shall make up our minds." Not wanting to hurt her brain any further than that, Linda chose to strike down the topic for now.
***
The same day, in the late evening, Felicia sat together with Governor Pediot and his wife with a strange expression. When Mae told her about her situation, she believed her without any skepticism.
Still, when she informed her about the events planned for tonight, Felicia thought the woman was exaggerating. But now when she herself sat in the presence of a dozen or so dancers, she might be in for a shocker.
Wines were served to the guests and Felicia too didn't stand at the ceremony. All this while she had refrained from asking any questions to the governor, being in the mood to see where things are heading.
"You might be a little befuddled as to why we are holding these ceremonies at a time when I lost my child, princess." But before she could address her concern, governer Pediot himself raised it with her.
Felicia gracefully sipped from her wine glass and then darted her eyes ever so slightly toward the man. "Not at all, governor. Everyone has a different set of traditions to hold onto. I try not to judge someone's lifestyle keeping my own beliefs as the standard."
That was a very diplomatic answer and it made the man chuckle. "I guess you have already gone through a rigorous training program to become so good at tackling any situation, your highness."
Felicia didn't stand in the ceremony and laughed freely considering there were a limited number of guests invited to this exclusive ceremony. "You can say that I have worked really hard to fit in."
Governor Pediot nodded in agreement. "You pointed out correctly. Mourning in our family is different from others. We don't believe in sulking and crying for the dead. Rather, we believe in sending the departed soul with a commotion."
While she maintained a refined expression outside, Felicia was smirking in her mind. She was genuinely curious to know if this guy would have acted in the same nonchalant manner had the boy been related to him by blood.
"Ohh.. I see. Then does the tradition only include a dance or are we expecting any other programs?" Felicia had expertly hidden her intentions and for a brief moment, she chanced upon Mae's stiff facial muscles.
"I am glad you asked. I think we are more or less done with this." *Clap* *Clap* Governor got up and clapped his hands together, bringing the gorgeous scantily dressed women come to a halt.
Felicia sneered, finding the women obey the man and without any words of response, start crawling over to the more than two dozen guests. "In our tradition, all the guests try to satisfy the mother of the departed soul such that she can get over her grief."
He turned to face Mae with a malicious grin. "If you don't mind it, my lady. Please allow us to proceed with the further process." Felicia noticed the dancing women had all found themselves a man and had settled between their legs, ready to attach themselves to the organ beneath their chins at the drop of a hat.
'Tradition my ass..' Felicia screamed in her mind, fully aware that this nefarious man was only imposing his designs on the woman he called his wife. "Sure.. why would I mind. Please feel free to go ahead."
Governor Pediot sat back down in his seat, signaling to the eager women who at his call exposed the series of hardwood out in open. "It's time for you to take the center stage, dear. Please let all these guys share your grief."
Having no other choice, Mae gritted her teeth and got up. Anyone can tell the woman was mad as she didn't bother to hide her scowl. Obviously frustrated, she was aware of how much satisfaction her husband was going to draw from her.
Mae's glance shifted over to the lady in red, but since even she didn't bother to intervene, she knew she was doomed. Next, she can see a group of familiar men stand and walk up to her.
These were the same 'friends' of the governor who he used to share his wife with. They came over to her and reached out to feel her up. One person groped her melons, the other touched her face yet others moved behind her and cupped her ass.
"My wife is a horny woman." The governor commented, thoroughly enjoying the scene of his wife getting violated by more than a single person at once. Felicia just replied with a small hum, seeing the musicians in the hall put aside their instruments but not leave the area. She assumed they were probably going to be the audience here.
Concurrently, Mae was losing the clothes on her body at an alarming rate. She was from a noble background, and as such, she had the luxury of having multiple layers of garments over herself.
Nevertheless, six men worked hard to rapidly undress her as if eager to present the show to the princess of the country. Looking at their practiced steps, Felicia can tell this was definitely not the first time they had participated in a depraved exhibition like this.
Soon Mae's naked body was put on display with a dozen or so hands roaming freely all across her bare skin. Slight shame made way to her visage but it wasn't the case for long. Other than princess Felicia all other women in the room had seen her physical attributes multiple times and as for the men, almost everyone had been inside her at least once or twice.
Belonging to an aristocratic family meant Mae can care for her body much more. This meant she held much more sex appeal than a regular commoner woman. This can be corroborated by the fact men around her all had tents in their crotches.
One by one, they revealed their pricks and the lady under the limelight slowly bent her knees. Reaching the same level as the cocks she was supposed to serve, Mae grabbed the first shaft that was on her face.
A strong musky smell was imbued in the air, making Mae's nose shrink. Languidly stroking the penis to life, she reluctantly opened her jaws and after sucking a deep breath, landed her tongue on the first cock.
"Doesn't she look more beautiful like this?" Her husband kept Felicia company, taking time to appreciate the art presented by her wife. "Can't comment on that but yeah.. it's certainly a sight I don't come across often."
Felicia spoke the truth. She had never witnessed anything like this. To have a single woman serve the whole company of men was not a common practice in their country. "So I am intrigued by nothing else haha.."
She refrained from speaking her heart out because of being conflicted on how to take in all this unusual occurrence. On one hand, while she felt sympathy for the woman involved, Felicia didn't know why but a part of her was actually interested in continuing to watch the erotic show unfold.