The Sixth School.

Chapter Forty: A servant…

“I AM NOT MARRYING THAT FREAK!” these were the last words that Shalia shouted before running out of the room in tears.

Nalia calmly watched her daughter’s escape before turning to her spouse. The bear of a man was fuming. From the bulging vein in his temple and the way his fingers kept clenching and unclenching, it was clear that the issue wasn’t done with, not by a long shot. The question of her daughter marrying the strange young boy they’d visited a month earlier was one that she herself wasn’t sure how to feel about.

On the one hand, she could understand her daughter’s reticence. What young girl doesn’t dream of falling in love with a dashing prince? To be told that they should marry a disfigured commoner would cause many a girl to balk at the idea if not outright rebel. As such, she could sympathize with her daughter.

On the other hand, however, she knew why her husband was trying to set up this marriage between Shalia and Roka. One doesn’t remain in power for as long as her husband had without making enemies. The fact that he’d made enemies, in and of itself, wasn’t that much of an issue as far as either one of them was concerned. The real problem was that her husband was slowly losing his power. He had hit the peak of his power and now, he was on a steady decline. Within the next three to five years, he’ll be no more powerful than any average man in the town. He might be able to keep up pretenses for a year or two past that, but in the end, the truth will come to light.

To most in the town, the Town-head and the three families seemed to be peaceably coexisting. She, however, was perfectly aware of the knives being sharpened in the dark, ready to be drawn as soon as any opening revealed itself. The reason her husband was still in power was because the three families feared him. As soon as that was no longer the case, they wouldn’t hesitate to gut him like a common three-tusk boar. Much as Shalia may not like it, this union needed to happen if they hoped to survive the fallout of her husband losing power. Despite being standoffish and not involving herself with the leadership of the town or the three families, the healer was a force that none of the three families wished to cross. Even the hint that she might move against a certain family would be enough to get that family to back off. That’s why getting the boy to be on their side was so important.

A small smile crossed her lips as she walked over to her husband and took his face into her hands. “Give the girl time,” She spoke softly to the man, her voice soothing to the ears and assuaging her husband’s rage. “In due time, she’ll come around,” she urged.

“We don’t have that time,” The man snapped back. This time, however, it wasn’t anger, but frustration and a hint of fear. “Valla, Aria, and Ember aren’t stupid. They too can see the pivotal role the boy will play in the power dynamics of the town. The only reason they haven’t made any moves to win him over thus far is because I haven’t tried to win him over to my side. If they can, they want to keep all the power to themselves without having to share any with him. But if I try to bring him over to my side, they’ll be willing to also make overtures of their own to make sure he doesn’t get in their way. The only way to ensure he stands firmly on our side is by ensuring he’s permanently tied to us,” The man laid out his logic.

“I know Jarfa,” She replied, continuing to keep her voice level and soothing. “But you’ve been young and rebellious as well if memory serves me,” She countered with a smile. “I remember a young man that wouldn’t back down no matter how many times my father said no,” She stated, causing a roguish smile to cross the man’s lips.

“How could I when you are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen,” He said wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her even closer.

“Well, suffice to say, the girl took after her father’s stubborn nature. Much as you may wish for it to be different, trying to be forceful with her won’t work, just as it didn’t work with you. Let me talk to her,  perhaps the softer approach of another woman will do the trick,” She offered. “And as for the boy, don’t worry, I’m sure there are ways we can win him over to our side, with or without Shalia,” She assured, quietly thanking the spirits that her husband had no idea just how wet her pussy was at the thought of the young man.

***

Greg and Olivia walked up to the guard standing at the gate to the Town-head’s compound. Along with the dark pants that Olivia had had him buy, he was decked out in all the title items he could get his hands on. The CHARMING mask was merged with his face under the normal wooden mask that he had on. The TEMPTING pendant around his neck, the ADDICTIVE, and the SENSUAL TOUCH bangle on both his hands. The DISCERNING ring on his right mid-finger next to his storage ring. The only title items that Greg didn’t have on were the VIRILE and STERILE rings. Having millions of lust points, Greg had already bought the two final title items. They were now safely stored away in his storage ring. Greg wasn’t as yet sure which of the two he should have on. The rational part of his mind told him that he should always have the STERILE ring on at all times. He, however, would be lying if he denied the fact that some deep, dark, part of him wasn’t turned on by the idea of impregnating someone’s wife and leaving the poor sod to take care of the little bundle of joy he left behind.

Deplorable? Yes. Sick? Yes. Twisted? Also yes. Still, it had long since become clear to Greg that he was no saint. It would be all too easy to blame the system for warping his desires. Greg, however, knew that if he was ever going to develop the third level of willpower that Olivia had spoken of, that is, self-willpower, he’d have to be completely honest to himself about who he was. This was a new life, and while he wouldn’t abandon all his morals, he also wasn’t going to limit himself the same way he would back on earth. 

Given the extremely low crime rate in the small town, the man served more as a doorman than a guard. Even the few men that patrolled the Town-head’s compound served more as sentries to raise alarm if something was up, as opposed to an actual fighting force.  The man was enthralled as soon as his eyes landed on Olivia. If he left the familiar there and walked past the man, Greg doubted he’d even notice. Loudly clearing his throat to get the man’s attention, Greg spoke. “We are expected for dinner,” he said.

“I… uh… I was told to expect one guest,” The man countered, seemingly caught between doing his duty and leering at the seductress smiling warmly at him.

“My friend visited me from afar, it would be rude of me to leave her on her own to go visit someone else, wouldn’t you say?” Greg easily offered up the explanation they'd chosen to go with. Given how small the town was, there was no way that Greg could pass the familiar off as a distant cousin. It would be a short-lived lie as it would soon fall apart after even a little scrutiny. Neither his late father nor mother had any relatives who lived outside of the town. Not to mention any with a daughter anywhere close to being as attractive as Olivia. While it was rare, it wasn’t unheard of for people from other towns to occasionally visit. After all, the one road that led in and out of the town didn’t end in the woods. If one follows it for about two to three weeks, depending on their speed, they’ll come to a town on the plains at the foot of the mountain. Before the healer settled in their town, the townspeople would make the long trip to this town when members of their family fell ill. Greg knew this because he could remember being taken along on the trip by his parents once when his sister fell ill.

The man eyed Greg with a critical eye for a few long moments. Greg could tell that he was trying to make him squirm and perhaps reveal anything he might have been hiding. The effect, however, was ruined by the fact that the man couldn’t keep from casting leering glances in Olivia’s direction every few seconds. “I’ll escort you up to the house,” The man finally asserted, acting as if Greg was some sort of security risk. Greg knew that if he’d been on his own, the man wouldn’t have bothered. The only reason he wished to escort them was because he wished to ogle Olivia even more. Greg didn’t mind. With a smile, he and Olivia moved past the guard and started toward the Town-head’s house.

Greg noted the diverse reactions he got from the three hosts standing by the door. From the town head, there was a look of surprise as he took in the young beauty that Greg had brought to the dinner. This was followed by a scowl as if Greg had somehow thrown a wrench into some plan he was hatching. The man’s wife had an even more curious reaction. The slight hint of jealousy, Greg could understand. Comparing oneself in terms of looks to the familiar wasn’t good for any woman’s self-esteem. What Greg couldn’t understand was the slight look of unease that crossed her expression every time she looked at Olivia. It’s almost as if something about the familiar bothered the woman on a fundamental level. Last in line was Shalia and while the girl had never once been happy to see Greg, this time there seemed to be a deep anger and resentment in her eyes as she looked at him. It’s almost as if Greg had kicked her pet or something.

Offering a small bow before getting up once again, Greg was first to speak up. “Forgive my impertinence, Town-head. I really did want to honor your invitation much earlier than this. Training, however, turned out to be far more intense than what I’d initially anticipated,” He explained. This time Greg didn’t bring up the healer. He knew that Shalia had probably already conveyed his reasons for not having come thus far. To bring the healer up a second time would make it seem like he was flaunting his new status. Something he didn’t, in any way, feel inclined to do.

“No need, no need,” The Town-head spoke up waving his hand dismissively at the apology. “Instead, why don’t you tell me who this beautiful young lady is?” he asked. Much to Greg’s surprise, the words had a water-on-hot-oil effect with the two women beside the man. Greg knew that the man only meant it as a light compliment and nothing more. Greg could see it in the man’s eyes that he was preoccupied with whatever plans he was trying to come up with to rope Greg to his side. His wife, however, first looked at his husband as if he’d betrayed her in some way, then turned to narrow her eyes at Olivia as if she’d suddenly become her enemy.

Shalia who’d so far been glaring at Greg like he was her archenemy, was snapped out of her glare-fest as she suddenly became aware of the fact that there was someone else present. When she caught sight of Olivia, the look on the girl’s face immediately soured even more. It was as if she’d been personally affronted by the very fact of Olivia’s existence. Just like the mother, the look that Shalia was sending Olivia’s way was not even remotely friendly. And if Greg had noticed this, then Olivia almost certainly had as well. Still, acting like nothing was out of place. Olivia mimicked Greg and offered a polite bow to the Town-head, putting her ample bust on display for a second before rising to stand upright once more.

“My name is Mika,” She said in a cheerful, bubbly voice that lifted one’s spirits just by hearing it. “I’m a friend to Roka, from the town of Aran down in the plains. It seems that I chose to visit at an inopportune time, I apologize for intruding on your plans,” She offered politely.

“Nonsense,” The Town-head countered. “We’d be more than happy to accommodate Roka’s friends. Tell me, how is Fena doing?” he asked conversationally.

There was a pause as Olivia regarded the man. Greg grew nervous as he feared they’d be caught in a lie. Greg had no idea who Fena was. He, however, suspected that it was someone from the little town in the plains, Volta, as it was called.

“From what Roka has so far told me, you have a far better healer in this town as compared to the old herbalist we have in our town. So, do you really care how the old woman is doing or are you just testing me to see if I’m lying?” Olivia asked.

Greg’s eyes went wide as the memory came back to him. He had been young back when they visited Aran. That’s why the name Fena didn’t ring any bells with him. When the familiar mentioned that it was an old woman who was also a herbalist a memory had indeed been shaken loose as Greg remembered an old wrinkly woman who smelled strongly of herbs tending to Tayani who’d been sick back then. He must have heard her name back then as there was no other place for the familiar to get the information from. Greg couldn’t help but thank all his lucky stars that the Town-head had asked about the one person that he had locked away in his memories. Anyone else and she probably would have slipped up.

Calling the Town-head out so plainly might have been considered rude, but from the look on the Town-head’s face, it was clear that Olivia was right on the mark with her assessment. A fact that left the man unsure how to respond. “Why don’t we head inside,” The Town-head’s wife intervened at this point. “As beautiful as the night is, it’s getting a bit chilly and the food is getting cold,” She added before turning around and looping her arm around her husband’s and walking forward. Shalia glared at the two of them for a second longer before turning around and walking after her parents with her nose high in the air.

‘Interesting,’ Greg heard Olivia's voice ring out in his head, her eyes fixed on the two women walking before them.

‘What’s up?’ Greg inquired likewise mentally.

“That woman,” Olivia answered, nodding towards the Town-head’s wife. “She has the bloodline of a nymph,” She revealed.

It was a good thing that the three before them had their backs to him as Greg wouldn’t have been able to hide his eyes going round as saucers at the revelation. ‘What? She’s a bloodline mage? I thought you said that there weren’t any mages in this town?” Greg mentally questioned.

‘I didn’t say that she was a bloodline mage. If she was a bloodline mage with the nymph bloodline, you wouldn’t even be able to string two words coherently in her presence,’ Olivia calmly replied. ‘She’s likely a sixth or seventh-generation descendant from the actual bloodline mage. Her nymph’s bloodline is very weak but has not completely disappeared. No wonder this man seems to be completely under her charm,’ Olivia commented with a glance at the Town-head.

‘What is a nymph?’ Greg found himself asking through their connection.

‘Humanoid monsters that primarily take the female form. Their usual means of attack is through charm and enticement. They love to lure especially powerful men in, causing them to fall deeply in love with them. Once they have their hooks in, you’ll believe them to be your soulmate and would be willing to do anything for them. You’ll fight and kill anyone that they command you to, even if said person is trying to save you by breaking the bond between you and your captor. In fact, especially if they are trying to break that bond. You’ll be completely convinced that they are trying to take your place at the nymph’s side. While most nymphs you meet will be between tier-one and tier-three in terms of strength, there have been a few instances where they attained a higher tier. The strongest nymph to have ever lived managed to attain the eighth tier in terms of power before it was killed by a ninth-tier mage.

While the enslavement is bad, the real danger in a nymph is that they get stronger by feeding on the vital essence of the men they ensnare. The more powerful the man, the more power they gain from the drain.  If you’re lucky, they might use you to impregnate themselves to bear powerful offspring. For most, however, they are solely drained of their essence. A process that, while not lethal, will leave you as a shriveled husk of a man with barely any strength and life force. The really scary part is that even after they have completely drained you, you won’t hate them, if anything you’ll grow more and more in love with them. Most of the husks they leave behind die within a year of being let go. Not because of the draining, but because of the abandonment. Without the nymph, they grow depressed and see no reason to go on living and so they kill themselves!’

Greg could feel a cold chill creep up his back the more Olivia spoke of the nymphs. Memories of how the Town-head had acted when she thought there was something wrong with his wife flashed in his mind, only this time, they were in a very different light. While it was normal for a man to care for their wife, in this small and very patriarchal town where public displays of affection weren’t even looked upon positively let alone the norm, the man’s behavior had been odd. With Olivia’s explanation, however, things suddenly made sense and not in the way that he wanted. Like the fact that she looked almost a decade younger than she should be. Greg had assumed that it was because she led an easy life being attended to hand and foot by all the servants that her husband had employed. Now, however, Greg couldn’t help but wonder if the actual reason for the woman’s youthful looks was because she was slowly draining her husband’s essence.

A part of Greg wanted to turn and run out of the Town-head’s house.  Olivia’s giggle, however, sounded in his mind as she assuaged his fears. ‘A bloodline mage and the beast are two very different things. While a few do get overwhelmed by the potency of the bloodline they’ve imbibed and lose themselves to the nature of the beasts, most bloodline mages are no saner or crazier than mages from other schools of magic,’ She allayed his fears. ‘Besides, this woman isn’t a bloodline mage, she is the far-removed descendant of one. I doubt that even she is aware of her bloodline let alone the effect it’s having on her husband,’ Olivia said causing Greg to almost stumble and fall. The familiar had in one breath told him that he had nothing to fear and in the next told him that his fears were indeed taking place.

‘How long have they been married?’ Olivia asked mentally.

Greg paused to think about it for a second before mentally replying. ‘They’ve been together as long as I can remember, probably from since before I was born.’

‘While the man is physically imposing, to a nymph, the Town-head wouldn’t take longer than half a season, perhaps even less, to completely drain. To a true bloodline mage with the nymph bloodline, it would take a little under a season to finish the task. This woman has been with her husband for almost twenty cycles plus and still hasn’t drained him to any significant degree. And what little she has drained, is not a conscious act but her bloodline following its natural instinct. Unless you plan to hang around her for the next twenty to fifty cycles, I think it’s safe to say she doesn’t pose any real threat to you,’ The familiar laid out.

‘Why did she seem wary of you?’ Greg posed as they approached the table where they’d be having the dinner.

‘By nature, Nymphs are solitary beings. Their biggest flaw as far as I am concerned. If they could band together, they would be a formidable force to contend with. Alas, that is not the case. Even their young are only raised by their mothers for the first year of their lives before they are cast out to either sink or swim on their own. When two nymphs meet, if they are close to each other in power, they will fight to the death. If one is much stronger than the other, however, they’ll just avoid each other…’

A look of confusion crossed Greg’s face as he cut in. ‘Wait, shouldn’t it be the reverse? Why would they attack those close to them in power and ignore those far weaker than them?’ He asked through their link.

‘It’s only confusing if you don’t take into account how nymphs gain strength,’ The familiar patiently explained. ‘A nymph that is of comparable strength probably has ensnared men that are in the perfect range to help the attacker get stronger while at the same time not being so powerful that the nymph in question can’t control them. For example, a tier-two nymph will fight another tier-two nymph seeing as they both can ensnare men of roughly the same power and strength. A tier-two nymph, however, will not contend with a tier-three nymph seeing as the men the tier-three nymph enslaves will probably be too powerful for the tier-two nymph to manage. Likewise, the tier-three nymph will not bother with the tier-two nymph seeing as the men the tier-two nymph ensnares are too weak to be of any benefit to the tier-three nymph,’ Olivia explained.

‘But you are not a nymph,’ Greg found himself stating mentally. ‘Why would she react so adversely to you?’ he once again asked.

‘Because we are both creatures that deal in charm and enticement,’ Olivia replied mentally, a sly smile making its way onto her lips. ‘It’s the same thing that happens when two predators meet. Even if they are of two different species, both recognize the other as a threat. The woman herself probably doesn’t understand why she feels put off by me. The instincts stemming from her bloodline, however, cause her to feel threatened by me. Take for example the reaction she had when her husband called me beautiful,’ She pointed out. Greg could remember the look of betrayal that had crossed the woman’s expression when the Town-head had called Olivia beautiful. To Greg, it had been no more than a passing comment but the woman looked almost like she’d been betrayed. ‘A man caught in the thrall of a nymph would never use that word about any other woman other than the particular nymph they are attached to. As such, the fact that the Town-head did, even if in passing, means that my mere presence is already destabilizing the hold that she has on the man. At an unconscious level, she sees this as a threat,’ Olivia relayed.

There was a bit of silence as Greg digested all the information he’d just received, trying to parse it out and make sense of it all. In the end, a weak smile crossed his lips as he mentally spoke. “So, I’m guessing that it wasn’t just the title items to blame for how quickly she was turned on by me,” Greg stated in a self-deprecating tone as he remembered his first encounter with the woman.

‘I didn’t think you’d work it out so quickly,’ Olivia replied through their link, sounding amused. ‘While the title items you had on helped the process along, the nymph bloodline by nature draws her to the strongest males around her that she can seduce without compromising her safety. Like it or not, as a student to a seventh-tier mage you are a very enticing target in her eyes. Not only are you growing stronger with each day of your training, but through your connection to the healer. You command a lot of authority in the town. Her bloodline will irresistibly draw her to you whether she likes it or not. She is like a moth and you are the flame,’ The familiar declared, a wicked gleam in her eyes even as they settled down at the table with all the food laid out before them.

Once again, the Town-head was at the head of the table. His wife, however, had switched seats with Greg compared to the last time they were together. Seeing as it was their house, this time, it was the Town-head’s wife who was given the higher seat on the right-hand side of the head of the table and Greg on the left. Not that Greg cared really. The woman was right where Greg wanted her and right now that’s all that mattered. The dinner started off with light questions and topics of conversation like how each family was doing, little events that happened around town, and things of that nature. Hidden among the light topics were prodding questions both from the Town-head and his wife, trying to sass out what the true relationship was between him and Olivia, or Mika as she had introduced herself.

Greg could only thank his lucky stars that Olivia could communicate with him mentally, otherwise, it would have taken him a lot longer to figure out what was going on at the table. It now dawned on Greg why Shalia had been looking at him as if he’d killed her pet. The Town-head was trying to set him up with her daughter, and given how prideful she could be, the idea of marrying a disfigured commoner must have been an absolute nightmare for her. Not that Greg was bothered by this, one way or the other. He didn’t even like the girl to begin with. The idea of being forced to marry someone so bitchy was off-putting, to say the least. As such, whenever, questions of the nature of the relationship between her and Olivia came up, they strove to keep the answers as vague as possible. Neither outright said that they liked each other in a special way, nor said that they were purely friends.

The unintended result of this approach, however, was that the Town-head’s wife didn’t make any moves to seduce him as he had hoped she would. Clearly, Greg had underestimated just how much Olivia’s presence seemed to intimidate the woman. Despite smiling and trying to act natural, every once in a while, the Town-head’s wife would cast a nervous glance in the familiar’s direction. It’s almost as if she’d been locked inside a cage with a predator and she was doing all she could to keep from being noticed. Despite the desire Greg could see in the woman’s eyes every time their eyes met, she remained reserved and unwilling to provoke Olivia. Not willing to see things stay as they are, Greg decided to take a risk.

The conversation had been flowing smoothly thus far and for the first time, the Town-head tried to turn the conversation towards his daughter, trying to figure out Greg’s opinion of her. “You’ve been working with my daughter for a month now. What do you think of her?” He asked.

“Insufferable,” Greg bluntly stated.

There was a sudden quiet at the table as everyone turned to look at him. For most of those present, it was his words that drew their gazes toward him. For the Town-head’s wife, however, it was the fact that she could feel Greg’s foot slowly running up and down the calf of her left leg. Greg knew that the SENSUAL TOUCH title was probably sending tendrils of pleasure throughout her body as a result of his touch. Greg, however, gave no indication that he’d noticed anything, either of the attention directed at him or the woman across the table who was looking at him with unhidden arousal.

Greg’s answer hadn’t been a spur-of-the-moment thing. He knew that Olivia was right, people usually got caught doing things they’d already gotten away with before because they got complacent. They assumed because they had gotten away with it once it was a given that they would do so again. Greg himself had made that very mistake in his first dungeon dive. He wasn’t about to do so again. Especially because this was real life. If he got caught here, the consequences wouldn’t just reset themselves like they did in the dungeon. As such, he had said what he had because he knew it would draw all attention to him and away from the woman whose cheeks were flushing pink as she willingly parted her legs to allow Greg’s foot to push her dress up over her knees and glide forward onto her soft thighs.

“What did you just say?” The waspish tone full of venom came out of Shalia as she turned to glare at him.

“I said that you are insufferable,” Greg repeated calmly, even as he felt the Town-head’s wife's foot land on his knee. It would seem Greg making the first move had given her the green light she needed to make her move. The woman began to reciprocate Greg’s clandestine ministrations, completely disregarding whatever was being talked about. “You look down your nose at everyone that isn’t either your kin or from the three families. You never have anything kind or constructive to say. Every word out of your mouth is either a complaint or put down of someone. And while I’m not looking to be complimented on my looks, I’m just as, if not even less, interested in all the snide remarks you make every time you catch sight of my injuries,” Greg laid out.

There was a gasp from across the table as the Town-head’s wife pressed her foot against the head of Greg’s cock, unhindered by any clothing. Turning to her with a calm stare, even as his big toe traced the length of her plump pussy lips, Greg spoke. “I know it may be shocking, but it is what it is,” He said cryptically. That was the closest that Greg could come to telling her that there was no reason to panic before turning to look at Shalia once more. “That you do not like me doesn’t bother me all that much,” He said with a shrug. “What I can’t stand is the fact that you feel the need to be needlessly mean about it,” He stated, fighting the urge to moan as the Town-head’s wife got over her initial surprise and began to softly run her foot up and down the length of Greg’s cock.

“How dare you!” the girl was shaking with barely suppressed rage even as she stood up from her seat and slammed her palms on the table.

“Sit down!” The Town-head’s words were uttered with such force that Greg suspected that the girl was seated before she even knew what she was doing. “Your words are harsh, Roka,” The man spoke in a clearly displeased tone, his hard gaze fixed on Greg. On his part, Greg had to do his best to keep a poker face even as he drew closer to orgasm from the heavenly feeling of the foot gently massaging and caressing the head of his cock. “Nevertheless, I cannot entirely refute them,” He said turning an even harder stare at his daughter. “Several times, I have cautioned you against your sharp tongue and poor attitude towards the townspeople. And yet, you continue to disregard my words!” He ground out.

“Father! You can’t seriously be taking his side against your own dau…”

“Silence!” The Town-head shot back, slamming his fist on the table. The sound of which, covered the sharp intake of air from Greg as his dick twitched and the first rope of cum was shot across the gap between the two of them and landed on the inner thighs of the Town-head’s wife. Greg couldn’t see through the table. Instead, his foot which had been teasing the woman by alternating between playing with her pussy and caressing her inner thighs suddenly felt a thick warm wetness on her thighs and not on her pussy. Suddenly, Greg felt something that caused him to cum even harder. The woman’s hand had surreptitiously gone under the table. Greg could feel it as she scooped some of the cum from her thighs before bringing her fingers, slick with his cum to her pussy, and shoving them deep inside!

“It would seem that I have failed in teaching you the proper demeanor of a woman. You even deign to shout to me!” He declared, his displeasure in no way hidden.

“For… forgive me, father,” Shalia apologized her gaze dropping to her plate. It was clear that the girl was not used to this side of her father. Despite the unwillingness Greg could see on her face, she didn’t raise any further commotion.

“Sorry is not enough. A harsher lesson is needed to show you the error of your ways,” The man declared even as his wife kept scooping and shoving any of the cum that landed on her deep into her pussy. “Until the end of this present season, you shall be Roka's servant! From morning to evening, you shall do whatever he asks of you without complaint! Do you understand?” The Town-head growled…

***