District 42-Chapter 209: Eoin Family
Casper, Leonel, and the two Sgails entered the Mansion. They needed to have their GBI’s checked at the entrance, but the concierge wouldn’t take theirs. He was someone working for the Princess, and he got the order to ignore those four after Leonel said the password for him.
The concierge just pretended to scan their GBI, so the people at the waiting line in front of the entrance wouldn’t get suspicious about it. Then he let them enter the Mansion.
The place was really big. Just the entrance hall was bigger than anything that Casper had seen in all his life, and he had been in pretty big mansions throughout his life. There were huge torches disposed on the walls, as well as weapons used in the old times by Nordic people, skulls of different animals, fur, and so on.
There was a carpet made of fur in the hall as well, leading to stairs that led to the second floor. On the right and left side of the stairs, were corridors to other parts of that mansion on the first floor.
Casper was kind of amazed by all of that structure. It was hard to believe that something so incredible could be there and he never noticed, though he never passed too much throughout the residential floors since there was nothing of his interest there.
Casper continued to walk inside there by himself. One of the objectives there was to socialize and get some information with the Sgails. He needed to be friendly with them, and try to make a quick acquaintance, and make them comfortable to talk about things he needed to know.
The Mansion was already full of people walking here and there. They were conversing with each other, but there was nothing worth to Casper to get out of those conversations since it was mostly just gossip or complaints.
’The only problem here is to know with who I need to talk with... There are a lot of Jarls here, of different families, and working on various sorts of things. I don’t have all the night to keep talking with whoever appears in front of me and get nothing out of it... But, is there a family that I know that can be useful here?’
He was walking through the place while having those thoughts. He ended up in one of the various living rooms of that place, looking around and just seeing more of the same: Jarls dressed in formal clothes of their culture, always with the crest of their families. The White masks turned it difficult for Casper to grasp any major characteristic they had.
’Here in District 42, it’s hard to see a woman representing a Jarl family... They really are into a monarchy, huh? I mean, I can see a few of them around here, but the majority are men; the difference is pretty big, to be honest. It’s something outstanding...’
As their culture was still quite methodic, they were still stuck on some ideas that should be very old and unbecoming with the level of technology and progress they showed.
’Maybe that’s one of the problems I see in District 42. Indigo Energy allowed them to do incredible things regarding the technological field, but there is still a lack in other areas. They are very bad economically, socially, and politically as well. It seems to be a futuristic society, but they are slaves of their own ignorance...’
Now that Casper could understand more about how Indigo Energy worked on the progress of that world, he understood why the district was so unbalanced in its structure. They had a powerful factor that compelled the society to evolve to another level, but there were a lot of things that were bounded with their culture.
’If they can get rid of those limitations I am sure that it would be a very prosperous place to live... I mean, if everything was like inside this Castle...’
While he was rambling and walking inside that huge living room, he bumped into someone. He was going to apologize right after, but his eyes stopped at the crest of the family of that Jarl.
"Ah... I am sorry..." He was in shock before, but apologized as soon as he realized it.
"Is there something wrong, sir?" The man asked. He had a very youthful voice. He wasn’t asking that because Casper bumped into him; the reason was that he realized the intense stare of the soldier at the crest of his family, and it got him very curious.
’Hey, come to think of it, isn’t it the crest of...’
"Hmm, are you ok, sir?" The man stepped near Casper, also looking to the crest on his chest, then staring at his fake white mask again.
"I never heard much about you family crest... Is it your first time here, by any chance?"
Casper saw in that question the perfect opportunity to fix his first impression and to make that guy take him under his wing. He knew that a good part of powerful people liked to have their egos inflated by influencing people weaker than them.
"Yes, that’s it. I am sorry for not paying attention to where I was walking..." He kept his voice very formal, but with a hint of insecurity behind.
"Oh, don’t worry about it. In my first Seasonal Meeting, I was just as lost as you are right now. Tag along with me, so I can show to you more people. Once you get acquainted with the other Jarls and have someone to talk with, these reunions seem to become easier." The man had a kind voice, and Casper couldn’t find a hint of malice in his actions, but he knew he ought to be cautious with that man. He was still a Jarl, after all.
"Ok, it seems to be something really good. I am thankful."
He tapped Casper on the back, making him walk along with him.
"By the way, sir, I know about your family crest. If I am not wrong, your family is called Eoin, right? You are that family that is charged with the creation of the Drakkars and other vehicles that circulate the Castle..."
The eyes of that man shone once he heard him saying about his family. He seemed to be very proud of himself for being acknowledged like that, which left Casper with an impression of that guy as being an arrogant person.
It was not just the fact that he was being so proud of his own family, but the way he acted, his voice, his posture. Those details were noticed by the soldier, and it helped him to be sure about his personality.
"Yes. Eoin! That’s the name of my family. It is one of the biggest and famous families here in District 42, by the way. I mean, our products and ideas are all based on our culture. We have the blood of true warriors on our veins, and true faith in Odin. We are not just charged to bring to life all those magnanimous vehicles, but also to keep alive the old traditions and beliefs of our folk!"
He then started to explain a lot about his family, and everything that they made so far for the District and the Royal Family.
He seemed to be someone really devoted to Odin as well and believed in their culture and religion like no one else. His influence inside the Royal family seemed to be high as well (at least, that was what he said all the time). Also, his family was incredibly rich, and all that part on the Fourth Lab that served to built and develop the Drakkars belonged to them, and the money that was invested in those projects was highly provided by the Eoin family themselves.
While he said those things, Casper couldn’t bring his mind to not think about Olaf, and how that man was doing those days. He had stated before that he was going back to the Frelsis, and was willing to fight for their ideals against the Royal family and all their subordinates (Ridires, Aesirs, and Jarls).
He wondered if the Frelsi had taken him with them again, or if he couldn’t make it until them. The Princess knew about Olaf and his inclinations, so, most likely, she had sent Ridires to, secretly, prevent him to do so and increase the power of their enemies. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦
"Well, hehe, anyway, it’s no good to just talk about me and keep saying all the numerous conquers of my huge and prestigious family. You probably already know most of them since you heard about our name and recognized our crest, right?"
He didn’t even wait for Casper to answer to him and continued talking nonstop.
"Well, since you are under my protection here, I will do my best to make you have a good first Seasonal Meeting of Jarls! Follow me, and I will show to you a lot of interesting people to talk with. Let’s socialize!"
The father (or grandfather) of the Eoin family kept slapping him on the back while making him walk towards other rooms of the mansion, still talking nonstop, and promising to make his acquaintance with the other Jarls.
