House of Memories [Closed]

Liseran panicked as Valen left her side to hide behind a tree. She quickly followed suit. Her height made her look like a child as she hid behind him and subconsciously was grasping on his shirt and vest. As the two watched, the conversation would continue.

"Well, if you're not gonna believe me, there's nothing I can do about that," the dark-haired man said. "I'll still do the work to investigate, of course, but I'm tellin' ya, it's not a vampire."

The man would start walking away and going up the path in their direction. Liseran would pull Valen closer behind the tree as he did.

The couple at the bottom shook their heads.

"Is he really our only choice?" the farmer woman said. "I don't like the idea of trusting a man who can't even trust us."

"Not like any other adventurers come by often to these parts of town. We could ask the Expiate but...you know. They don't like our kind all too much."

Valen listened silently to the conversation and as it concluded, he could see the odd man walk uphill towards them. Before he could make a decision though, something the farmers said made his ears perk. Narrowing his eyes, he let out a breath before stepping out and heading down in the direction of the farm, making it look like he was calmly walking down the hill from the market.

"Good morning," he waved to the stranger as they passed, appearing none the wiser. He walked up to the farmers, waving towards them. "Pardon. I have a few things I need to pick up for my household. Would you be able to help me?"

The farmer and his wife straightened up upon seeing Valen.

"O-oh, hello," the wife said with a small curtsy. "What may we do for you good sir?"

"We usually sell our goods at the stall in the market, if you're looking to shop," the farmer meanwhile said. "But we can make exceptions for particularly large orders. What is it you need?"

Liseran, meanwhile, trailed behind Valen, keeping her hood up. She didn't seem to want to talk.

"Sorry, I just wanted to make sure I got the freshest possible," Valen lied with a straight face. "Did I catch you at a bad time? That gentleman earlier wasn't bothering you, was he?"

The farmer looked away when Valen asked about the man, his posture uneasy. The woman, however, was quick to answer.

"Our daughter went missing," the woman blurted out. "She wasn't in bed when we tried to find her in the morning. The man earlier was a hired hand, but he doesn't seem to believe it's vampires like we do."

"What makes you think it's vampires, if I may ask?"

The meek voice came from behind Valen. Liseran was now just a foot away from him, and her cloak was still clutched close to her face and upper half.

"Well, aside from the murders and missing people in general recently," the woman said. "It's not like our daughter to straight up leave. I heard vampires can lure people out at night, and the only sign of leaving was my daughter's open window."

"That said, it's none of you two's concern," the farmer finally chimed in. A tiredness was in his voice. "The man can handle tracking her down, I'm sure. Anyways, you said you wanted fresh supplies? What do you need in particular?"

"Oh my, how frightening," Valen feigned. "I do hope she's alright."

Valen pulled out the grocery list and read random marks on it. "Eggs and milk. Some cheese would be nice if you have any. The maid here will carry it."

Valen pointed to Liseran, maintaining a straight face.

"So have you contacted the Expiate?" Valen asked, already knowing the answer. "It would put our hearts at ease to know they're on the lookout."

Liseran flinched as Valen called her a maid. Her hand almost its way to punching him in the gut, but it quickly drew back as she let out a huffy sigh.

The farmer's wife took note of the list and nodded. "I'll get these right away," she said. "I'll be right back."

As Valen asked about the Expiate, the man scratched his head.

"Well...the Expiate might say they'll help, but I doubt they'd want to," he stated. "They're busy with the main investigation, plus...I doubt they'd help people like us."

"Like you?" Liseran asked, her voice suddenly loud.

"Well..."

His eyes shifted but he then heaved a sigh.

"Our daughter is a Walpurgis," he explained. "At least, she was. Even if my family has practically no connection to any Walpurgis bloodline, the Cantus cursed our daughter. She got purged. But that was enough to make people steer clear of us. The only reason we can keep a business is because we're one of the few farming places here that ships directly to town. Everyone else is focused on exporting. That said, we have to keep our prices cheap so people will pay."

Valen would hear Liseran let out a low grunt.

"That's horrible," Liseran said, her voice angry. "Trading is hard enough in these times, let alone lowering your prices when you're the only ones who'll sell here."

The farmer looked at Liseran in surprise. His eyes tried to look into Liseran's cloak.

"So you don't agree with them."

Liseran would remove her hood for once and her forget-me-not irises would stare hard at the farmer.

"Not at all," she said. "Unfair is unfair. That said, if you don't trust the Expiate or that adventurer, I'd happily look into the situation. The butler here can be the one to take the orders home."

It was when Liseran took off her hood that the man's eyebrows raised.

"Althea...?" he murmured. He then blinked and shook his head. "I'm sorry. You're the...spitting image of the lady of the Veiller house before. Are you perhaps..."

Liseran looked to the side.

"I have no association to the Veiller name if that's what you mean," Liseran said stiffly. "Anyways, would it be alright to investigate your house?"

It was clear Liseran was taking a bit of an aggressive lead now even if earlier she had been so keen on keeping her identity hidden.

"Aah, sorry sorry, this new hire is a bit of a gossiping goose," Valen apologized with a bow to the farmers. "Please take your time selecting produce for us while I talk to her."

Valen grabbed Liseran's arm and dragged her around the corner.

"Oi oi, are you trying to arouse suspicion??" Valen hissed in a harsh whisper. "I can content with covering for why you seem to stay attached to my back all the time, but this is too much!"

"H-hey! W-what are you doing!?" Liseran squeaked as Valen pulled her away.

The farmer looked at the two curiously, tilting his head and scratching it.

"Odd couple that be," he said.

When Valen confronted Liseran, he'd notice her face red and her cheeks puffed up in anger.

"W-well, I never asked you to cover for me!" Liseran hissed in return. "I can do things fine on my own! I-it's not like I'm following you for fun, either!"

Liseran would sharply turn her head away with Valen and cross her arms. She'd then let out a small exhale.

"I just wanted to help them out," she said. "Besides, weren't you going to do that anyways?"

"Right, because barging in and taking a peek at their daughter's room isn't gonna arouse suspicion," Valen retorted. "Or do you already have a reputation as a voyeur? Certainly explains a lot."

Valen crossed his arms and huffed.

"And what makes you think I'm going to help by default?" Valen muttered. "I'm just here to satisfy my own curiosity and observe. That's the kind of thing a narrator does."