Lewd King's Bucket List-Chapter 76: Despair’s Trail

It took a few minutes, but Andrea eventually began trying to teach Ixion in earnest. She mostly focused on keeping his arms straight and planar. He kept dropping them as if he were wielding a sword!

There was also a lot of time spent trying to get Ixion to stop fighting her lead. Yet that habit didn’t seem one that was going to easily change. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

’Blasted!’

***

After an hour, his first dance lesson ended. The trio parted ways. Andrea went back to the chancery and Ixion back to his room.

Only Se’van stayed behind in the ballroom, having become somewhat enamored with the piano.

’I knew she had it in her!’

She loved learning new talents. And it wasn’t as if she had too much work compared to the other chancellors. Schooling had become quite secondary nowadays, only a single one remaining in the capital.

One where only sons and daughters of low-ranking nobles attended. Most of the time, attendance was merely for socialization.

Most were schooled using private affairs.

As for faith...

That was an odd topic for Catatran. Maybe even on all of Kaldora.

There were plenty of temples all around the streets, but all had been abandoned.

It was a bit awkward for faith for the gods to be on the decline when that was all people had left, but it seemed more faith was being put in the living, breathing heroes rather than dead ideas.

Stranger still, no one seemed to know which gods the abandoned temples had once served, not even Ixion.

He could recall the patrons of the temples still in use, but the forsaken ones remained a mystery.

Not that Ixion cared all too much to solve the mystery. It was simply a fact that slightly fascinated him.

Bottom line was, Se’van had very little work to do, so her usual work amounted to helping the other chancellors. However, she was under no such obligation to do so.

If she wanted to take time in leisure to learn the piano,

’Why not?!’

That was on his list. He needed a pianist for ’The End.’

Ixion smiled as he plopped onto his bed. He rolled his head to the side and said:

"Zabaniyah, I’m leaving."

The shadow unnaturally wobbled, confirming Zabaniyah was watching. With that, Ixion felt safe to enter his soul form.

As for where he was off to on this fine evening...

’Dia.’

It was near impossible that he’d be able to meet her again by happenstance. If he did, it would be a clear indication of someone pulling the strings. Well, that was still likely the case no matter what...

Ixion’s soul floated out of the palace, through the streets, and ended outside the home of Pirithous. Not that he was going to enter that body.

Following the cobbled streets, he retraced his steps until...

’I met her right here.’

Ixion floated, scanning the area. Watching the patrols saunter by and the few scared nobles scamper about as if always being tailed. Perhaps they were returning from spectating the duel.

Sadly, Ixion didn’t have much to go on in finding Dia, a feat which was exceptionally difficult when considering who was hiding her. But, as for what he knew...

’She had dirt under her fingernails, yet her clothes, hair, and body were fairly clean.’

It was quite contradictory.

’Not only was wherever she’d been confined surrounded by dirt, but she was also able to clean up.’

There weren’t many places in Catatran where one would be clawing at dirt and not cobble to escape something.

’Is she underground?’

Perhaps none of the logic made sense, but it was what Ixion had to work with.

’If she possesses an Aspect that makes everything contentious.’

If she did manifest one, she may be able to defy common logic, erasing the value of all known variables.

’How vexing.’

Ixion could usually tell if someone’s Aspect had been awakened, as well as estimate their Rank and Class, but her soul had been so overpowering and odd it camouflaged all of that information.

With the little information he had, Ixion slowly floated in the direction Dia had appeared from, making sure to scan every detail he passed by.

The dilapidated houses, the abandoned ones, the ones inhabited by young families of barons and knights.

When he’d reached the end of the street, he discovered nothing. Nothing was suspicious.

He sensed a house with no soul inside.

While that wasn’t odd if he were simply counting human souls, Ixion was able to sense every soul, including animals and insects.

Meaning, it was near certain Despair had something to do with the house that lay before him.

But this discovery came with its own set of issues.

’This was... too easy.’

Despair wasn’t sloppy like that.

’Has he laid traps for me?’

Curiously, Ixion floated around the perimeter of the house, finding nothing odd about it.

’Should I enter?’

Even knowing it may be a trap?

’Obviously not!’

Ixion’s soul floated through the door of the one-story house.

The moment Ixion’s soul breached the wall, he felt thousands of gazes looking at him.

Gazes of the dead.

’...’

The inside walls of the small house had been demolished, creating one large open room. A room with countless human bodies tied upside down, hanging from the ceiling, their heads cut off.

As for where their heads were...

The floorboards had been demolished, giving way to the dirt beneath.

There, metal stakes stuck out of the ground, each piercing a brain stored in a water-filled vial.

’That bastard.’

Ixion knew Despair well, and he knew his abilities for the most part. At least, he knew what Despair allowed him to know.

’No wonder I couldn’t find him.’

Despair...

He’d been hiding in memories.

Memories of the hollow.

Even decapitated, none of the people hanging were dead, but their bodies had been stripped of their souls.

And this house of the dead? This house of Despair?

It was most likely simply one of many hidden throughout the streets of Catatran.