Something was very wrong with his system, and that discovery made Vox severely uncomfortable.
Partly due to this, he had taken the avenue to directly gather some information himself. The red carpeted hallway stretched endlessly before him, lined with carved pillars that twisted upward like frozen vines.
The architecture reminded him of a mixture of modern and gothic architecture from Earth, but this place felt different. Arched doorways led to darkened rooms, and more of those strange glowing rods sat in beautiful see through bowls along the walls, casting everything in soft white light.
He had found rows of fine robes and tunics that probably cost more than his entire previous life in the cupboards, and he had decided to choose something simple to wear. It still felt strange he was walking around wearing what looked like a lavish night gown.
'That system is clearly hiding something,' the thought gnawed at him as he walked, his bare feet silent against the carpeted floor.
That glitching, the way it had convulsed when he had asked what it was, and the restricted information warning… it all filled him with a strange sense of foreboding.
Two elven servants rounded the corner, both dressed in those same red robes the maid had worn. They carried linens, walking side by side and chatting quietly. When they noticed him, their conversation stopped.
They didn't bow. Neither did they even nod.
They showed absolutely no sign of respect to their Lord.
They just looked at him.
One of them, a male elf with silver hair tied back, met his gaze for a brief second. His expression was flat, almost bored, before he looked away and continued walking.
They passed him without a word.
Vox stopped in the middle of his walk, staring after them in shock.
'What the hell was that?'
If he wasn't wrong, they were servants, in what was apparently his house. And they had just walked past him like he was furniture.
He turned, watching them disappear around the far corner, still talking to each other like nothing had happened.
Were they treating him this way because he was half-elf?
From the way his supposed wife had even talked about him while he was entering this body, it seemed that was the case.
Vox's jaw tightened. He turned away and forced himself to keep walking.
Another servant appeared ahead, a younger elf woman carrying a tray of empty dishes. When she saw him, her eyes flickered with disdain.
It was there for just a moment before it vanished from her face. She looked away and stepped to the side, giving him space to pass.
Vox went still as she hurriedly walked past him.
He was slowly getting irritated.
'What the actual fuck is going on here?' He frowned. 'Did they hate orcs that much or something?'
Two more servants stiffened when they noticed him, but they averted their eyes to continue walking.
"Morning," Vox gritted out, hoping to at least get some kind of response.
The servants blinked, and for a second, genuine shock crossed their faces as if they couldn't believe Vox had just spoken to them.
One of their lips snarled in disgust. "How revolting."
Vox froze as they walked past him, unable to believe what he had just heard. His pulse started to pound in his ears.
He had been in rough places and had dealt with people who looked down on him. But he had never been treated with this kind of casual, open contempt.
Especially not by people who were supposed to work for him.
Vox stood dazed, asking himself if the original body had just sat still and taken such treatment.
The thought made his skin crawl. This was a powerful elf, someone of supposedly high rank no matter if he was mixed, and his servants treated him like dirt?!
He clenched his fists at his sides, then forced himself to keep moving. He needed to understand this place and figure out what kind of hell he had landed in.
He would not be able to tolerate such nonsense for long, but he first needed to understand where he stood.
As he turned another corner, voices drifted towards him. They were hushed, but not quiet enough.
"—still can't believe he's alive."
He slowed down and stopped to listen. The voices were coming from an alcove just ahead, partially hidden by one of those twisting stone pillars.
"It should have worked," a second voice added. "Her Ladyship was certain."
"All that work to have those nobles from the court stay one more day to take this news back. Gone!" someone cried out frustratingly.
"Shhhh. Lower your voice!"
"What? For whom? And my voice isn't loud."
"Her Ladyship hates noise. Stop it."
"Well, it didn't work, unfortunately. And now we are stuck with him again."
Another servant let out a bitter laugh. "At least he will be confined to his room as always. But it is irritating having to breath the same air as that orc-infested half-breed."
"I can even smell him right now."
Vox stiffened.
One of the servants playfully smacked the other. "Don't be silly."
"I was just joking. Don't hit me!"
"Having him alive is still a nuisance. Her Ladyship still intends to do something about it."
"Hmm… but why did she wait so long?"
"Forget that. Did you see his face when she walked in? He looked so confused."
"Kel was still frightened though."
"I saw him. The half-breed looked like a frightened stray. He must likely still be feeling uncomfortable. I am sure Our Ladyship's powerful works still have an effect on him."
"You wager that thing will die slowly from it?"
"It's possible, but Our Lady felt uncertain. Oh! She was furious."
"That thing…"
The words affected Vox more than it should. It had been years since he had heard such an insult, one his father had used a lot.
A slow numbing feeling took over his body and the mana coursing through his veins quivered underneath his skin.
He tried to control the anger about to lash out of him.
They started to walk as they talked. Vox could sense and hear them approaching him, but he didn't move a step.
The four servants appeared in view, nearly walking into him.
They froze.
And for a heartbeat, nobody moved.
One of their eyes went wide, his face draining of colour.
The others looked at him in cold disgust, but their expressions wavered at the look in Vox's eyes. For a brief moment, they felt fear, fear that was reserved mostly for their Lady, this man dug up that feeling from the depths of their soul.
He had a dangerous look in his eyes.