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Title: Of Cats and Magic

Chapter: 14

Author: Riko Gonzalez

Riko sat on one of the three beds in the room. She, Ruko, and Timothy were

currently in the room they had rented from the inn. This inn was located in the

town of Shadows Edge. This was the town that had been specified to them by

Obscura. This was the town in which the three of them were to stop a cult.

However, they didn't really have much more to go on other than the town itself

for now.

The room they had rented wasn't that large, but --- due to the three beds ---

all three of them got their own bed. Apart from the beds, there really wasn't

much else in the room other than a dresser, a mirror, and a large chest.

Actually, the chest looked quite out of place. In short, it looked more like

some kind of treasure chest than the type of chest one would expect to find in

such a room.

"Any thoughts on how we should go about this?"

The question was posed by Timothy. He was standing in front of Riko, looking up

at the wheat-skinned catgirl.

"Maybe we should try checking out the dining area. Perhaps we'll come across

some info we can use."

Timothy nodded at Riko's words. For now, they didn't have any real leads to go

on in regard to the cult. However, even listening to idle gossip could

potentially turn up something. Furthermore, it was getting close to lunch

anyway, so heading down to the dining area was a good idea in more ways than

one.

"Uh... Ruko, just what are you wearing?" the winged cat asked after glancing to

her. The petite woman was most certainly not wearing her typical outfit.

Instead, she was wearing a light brown set of pants and short-sleeved shirt with

a slightly darker brown cloak --- complete with hood --- over it. A rope was

tied around her waist as a makeshift belt.

"That looks awesome! You look like some kind of rogue! Where'd you get that

outfit?" Riko asked of the blonde catgirl, leaping up from her seated position

as she did. Riko's cyan-hued tail swished excitedly, her eyes glued on her

fellow magical girl.

"Chest..."

Ruko pointed to the chest in explanation, prompting her rather giddy friend to

rush over to it. The next moment, Riko was rummaging through the large chest, a

prominent smile on her face.

"This is awesome! There's even weapons in here! Is this a sword? This looks like

some sort of knight outfit! I should so be a knight!"

"Uh... Riko, are you even a swordswoman?" Timothy deadpanned.

"I... see your point. Guess I'll go with the black mage outfit."

The happy catgirl proceeded to retrieve a black robe and a pair of matching

gloves from the chest. She didn't bother to take the staff out from the chest,

though. After all, she could already summon her own staff. A moment later ---

with Timothy having averted his eyes --- Riko had changed into the robe and

gloves.

"How do I look?"

"Not bad," Timothy commented. The robe was a perfect fit for Riko --- so much so

that one could say it was uncanny. It was as if the black mage outfit had been

specially prepared for the pink-eyed catgirl. The same thing could be said about

the rogue outfit in regard to Ruko.

"You want to dress up too? There's some cat-sized outfits in there as well."

Riko's tail happily swished to and fro as she referred to the smaller outfits.

"No."

There were even outfits sized for him. Was this really coincidence? Regardless,

he had no intention of wearing one.

***

The inn's dining quarters was a large, dim room that was filled with old, wooden

tables. Around each table was a collection of chairs. The number of chairs

around each table was not uniform, instead ranging from 1 to 4. While the room

wasn't quite packed, many of the chairs were already occupied.

Riko, Ruko, and Timothy had already situated themselves at a free table with two

chairs, Riko and Ruko sitting across from one another, a plate of steak in front

of them both. Timothy sat atop the table with a plate of fish in front of him.

Around them, the buzz of gossip could be heard.

"I made a real killing a few weeks ago. Lady Julia paid top dollar for this

crystal amulet I had."

"Lucky you."

"I wish lady Julia would marry me."

"She's never shown much interest in dating, so good luck with that."

"Has anyone seen lady Julia lately?"

"Actually, I don't think I've seen her since she bought that amulet. Hope she's

okay."

"They say she has barricaded herself in her manor."

"Surely, you joke."

"No joke. Something odd is up with that place. I heard someone headed to her

manor to check up on her and hasn't been seen since."

Riko, Ruko, and Timothy glanced to one another at the discussion of the manor.

Could this be the lead they were hoping for? Riko looked over her shoulder to

the old man sitting alone at the next table. Twisting around, she tried to get

his attention.

"Excuse me. This manor they are talking about... Where is it?"

"Edge of town. You should avoid it, though. It's... dangerous."

The cyan-haired catgirl looked at the old man inquisitively for a moment before

asking, "Why?"

"People have been disappearing around that place for a while now. A few weeks I

think. The local authorities are convinced it's just a hoax, though."

"Could I trouble you to take us out there?"

"No."

The old man answered the pink-eyed catgirl's question with no hesitation. He had

no intention of going anywhere near that place.

"I doubt I can talk you out of going, so I will give you a map, though."

Deftly, he withdrew a folded map and red pen from his pocket. After opening up

the map, he marked an area with a red 'X'.

"You will find the manor here. You're better off avoiding it, though."

With those words, the old man handed the map to the cyan-haired catgirl.