The Asmodean
By
Neztro
Chapter 16: Women of Qaulity
Authors note:
I see you have come back for another chapter of the harem anime owl house… thank you and I am sorry for the cringe. Hello everyone I hope you are enjoying the chapter and I want to say thank you for sticking with me to this point. Let me know what you think of my story on the reviews… please don't be a creep.
Storm clouds hung over the blackstone keep of the comformitorium. The thunder rolled and lightning shot in the distance. The entire castle was poorly lit by torch light as three figures walked toward it.
The first was dressed head to town in leather armor with a towel around their head.
The other two were being led on a chain connected to the suppression cuffs on their wrists.
"are you sure we can't just blast our way in?" Eda asked blowing some of her hair out of her eyes.
"No, we need to be discrete I can't risk the empress finding out you defied her." Luca explained from under his towel.
"Yes edalyn, we need to be cautious because if we are found out it will make life harder for us." Lilith added, acting like a dignified prisoner.
"At least these cuffs are faulty… one command word and we can take these chumps down."
"Amen to that." Luca looked at the castle. "all those poor girls being forced to stay here."
Lilith leaned forward and placed her hand on his shoulder. "it's not your fault Luca. The empress imprisoned these girls and we'll get them out… promise."
"thank you lilith." Luca looked lilith in the eyes and immediately turned his head thankful that lilith couldn't see him blush.
Lilith turned her head and did the same.
The three came upon the front gate which was made of equally dark steel as overhead was a couple guards that would be well hidden by anyone but luca who had sense enhancing magic placed on him.
"who goes there?" the guards yelled from their hiding place.
"A purveyor of women of quality." Luca replied in a gruff voice he had been practicing.
"and what is your business?"
"I'm here to see the ladies of the farm to sell them some livestock." Luca learned the code phrase by interrogating the slaver gangs before making them disband.
The guards emerged from their hiding spots and one ran away from the spot toward the keep.
A few minutes later a woman dressed in blue robes that hung to her feet and blue accents on the sleeves and trim. She was a older woman in her thirties with pale skin and black hair. Her eyes were appraising and looking over the characters.
"let us see these women of quality you have brought to our temple." She said taking a few steps toward eda and lilith with two guards behind her.
Temple? Luca thought as the woman looked eda over. The first thing she did was grab her face and look her in the eye.
"she's got wrinkles and crows feet." the woman clicked her tongue. "her hair is not properly maintained and her teeth." The woman opened her mouth and looked at eda's teeth. "they need a whole crate of tooth paste to be presentable and her breath would require an ocean of mouthwash to make it less toxic." the woman shook her head and looked at Luca.
"where did you find this one? The streets." she said with obvious disdain. She then looked at Lilith.
"Now this one." The woman looked Lilith over and smiled. "her face has fewer wrinkles and almost no crows feet, her hair is beautiful and well brushed, her teeth are properly clean and her breath has a good fragrance. I believe she will excel here."
"does that mean we can do business?" Luca asked, sweating under his towel at the womens rough appraisal.
Meanwhile eda was glaring at the woman trying to hide her disdain for this lady.
"Yes, I believe we can do business come along and I'll introduce you to the high priestess." the woman turned her back and took a couple steps toward the prison.
"Come along girls… let's move out." Luca pulled lightly on the chain and led the witches to follow the woman.
"Too many crows feet and wrinkles." Eda said in a mocking tone. "well I'm sorry for being old you pretensious witch."
"edalyn shush." Lilith demanded as they passed the front gates and entered the main hall.
Luca noticed that a small army of guards were covering the walls of the prison armed with wands, maces, and flails while being dressed in a chain tunic and the empresses crow guard mask.
"it's like a fortress in here." Luca said under his breath. "and this is supposed to be a temple… a temple to what?"
The huge stone gate opens to reveal a brightly lit room of pure white marble and blue décor. In the center of the room is a statue of a luca in a robe holding out his hands to people below. There are three witches kneeling before the altar praying.
"what the hell." Both eda and Luca whispered under their breath.
"welcome mercenary, ladies, to the temple of lord luca. Son of the titan, uniter of worlds, and the asmodean who shall bring the isles to a new golden age." the priest beamed, pride clear on her voice as she lead the group through the temple.
Luca looked at the tapestries of himself doing deeds that would be considered biblical in proportions. Feats like bringing food to a starving village by reviving the crops, healing the dead and dying, and uniting what looked like humans and witches together.
"admiring the wall of famous deeds are we?" the priestess asked taking a couple steps into the next room which had a stain glass window of Luca as a baby being held by the titans hand and then him being grabbed by a man in yellow horned mask throwing him to a pair of monstrous grasping talons.
"That one is the tale of how belos betrayed the titan when the asmodean was made and he sent the boy to leave with a vile stepmother and her wicked duagther. But the empress came on the titans call and defeated the emperor. But his last evil act was the cloak the asmodean from the titans gaze." the woman seemed to have a couple tears come to her eyes. "it's so tragic. It gets me everytime."
eda groaned and rolled her eyes earning a elbow from lilith.
"it was the empress who iniated this program to train unruly and unwanted girls to become ideal companions of lord luca. It has been hard work but we have seen many great success stories." she waved her hands to indicate the many girls inside the room.
The girls were all from missing persons poster and this made Luca feel sick. These women are here because of me? He thought as his eyes began to water. They were taken because of me. Luca looked at a couple of them and they seemed dead eyed as they did there prayers and lacked the life they showed on the poster.
What are they doing to these girls? Luca thought looking around at the place.
The priestess came up to a set of stairs and walked up them. Luca followed close behind and at the top inside an office with the nameplate high priestess emblazoned on the front door.
The priestess knocked three times and the door opened.
"yes love sister, what is your business?" the high priestess asked. She was a petite woman barely five foot tall most of her bodycovered by her desk. She had a warm smile like a grandma.
"I have brought another collector with new additions to our family, love mother." the priestess said smiling.
"excellent, Luca will be pleased." the high priestess rose from her spot and sauntered to inspect the girls. She looked eda and Lilith over then shook her head. "you couldn't anyone better?"
Eda growled in anger at that and if lilith wasn't holding her hand she would have torn that woman from limb to limb
"i'm sorry misstress but these were all my boss gave me. Pickings have been slim since someone has been attacking our boys." Luca hated lumping himself in with the men who took his sister but it had to be done.
"Of course dear, well I can give you one hundred snails. Maybe lord luca will need nursemaids for his many children… these seem like good grandmother types." woman said climbing to sit on top of her desk.
"grandmother! Me! Oh you must have lost your mind!" eda said, stomping her feet toward the woman.
"Edalyn stop!" Lilith commanded.
Eda ignored her "I have had to listen you insult me, lower my self esteem, and act like you kidnapping girls for some sick slave harem is part of a divine plan… you're an idiot."
"How dare you! I am the leader of this covenant training women who are unwanted by society to become something greater."
"No, you are turning children into mindless drones because the empress told ya too… you're worse then belos."
"Blasphemy! Emperor belos betrained the titan! We are seeing his plan through to the end."
"I don't think the titan wants this and I know that if lord luca was here right now he'd be disgusted at what you are doing."
"You witch! How dare you insult our lords desire."
"you mad tiny, maybe you want to pick a fight with a grandmother type" eda used air qoutes.
The woman was flushed and her face was twisted in a grimace. "Hand!" she ordered and did a spell circle.
"Hand?" Eda left wrist began to glow as she was pulled to the woman. "Hey what are you–?" Eda's body froze and her left arm was straight out.
"you made me do this." the priestess said summoning a three foot ruler.
"w-what are you gonna do with that, miss?" Lilith asked concerned.
"show this harlot what defiant girls get." The woman smacked the ruler on edas wrist.
The witch winced in pain as a small bruise started to show.
The high priestess did it nine more times each smack followed by a wince from all who witnessed it save for the other priestess.
Eda's left hand was bright run with scars as a tear fell from her eyes.
"today's your lucky day collector. This one needs our guidance and thus I'll give you three hundred snails for the both of them." she said hoping down from the desk and taking a few menacing steps toward lilith.
"Uh ma'am may I make a request?" Luca asked seeing eda in her frozen horror.
"depends on the request."
"I would like to learn more about this religion. It seems interesting."
"and why would one of your lifestyle wish to learnt he glory of lord luca?" the woman asked genuinely curious.
"My ma and da before they passed were fans of the titan and wanted me to do everything in his name and if you serve this son of the titan I want to learn how I can help."
the woman watched luca and looked him up and down. She then smiled "excellent. We'll put you up for a week and then we'll arrange a meeting of the angel's choir to teach you the hymns of lord luca."
"Angels choir?"
"Yes a group of the prettiest and the most obedient of our flock who we use bard magic to heighten their magic and make them sing beautifully."
"sounds great." Luca replied.
"Guards! Take these new arrivals to their rooms and make sure they are Informed by a love sister about what is expected before the pre dinner love letter writing session and prayer."
two guards go into the room and grab the witches and lead them out.
Luca looked on with worry and when he meet lilith's eye his heart dropped as he feared for the safety of not only his sister… but his whole family.