《These Vile Days have Splendid Nights》 Chapter 1: Prologue Prologue: Jshana. Home of magic. Continent of power. Land of dreams and desire. It holds many kingdoms, territories, and beings of power. Demons, Gods, Dragons, Man, and all sorts of creatures take residence in Jshana. The continent is filled with several dangers, too many to count. The beings under it who used to scrounge for resources have now built kingdoms, holding great power and fearsome abilities. The eastern side of Jshana is referred to as Mishnar, while the latter west coast is called Awaishara. Many countries fall under Jshana¡¯s banner. The long extinct Kingdom of Dranof, home to the mighty and magical dragons which lived in harmony with man. Faistro, the most tame out of the countries. It has a large pool of magic diversity and while having occasional disasters, Faistro lives in peace. Smaller countries exist under Mishnar such as The Land of Livlen, The Democracy of Idenbloom, The Isles of Nine, Baruuk, Icespin, The Kingdom of Belran, Suahaid, Midas, Desrit, Jovlain, and some other miniscule lands along the eastern peninsula. Awaishara on the other hand homes only two countries. The Farutian Empire and the country of Manchineel. The Farutian Empire is a militant monarchy., rumored to be ran by a king who controls an army of golems. The king led the country under a campaign to seize all countries under Awaishara and force the banner of Farutian over them. Farutian holds a large amount of hostility towards countries falling under Mishnar territory for reasons unknown. Many question why such a militant country as Farutian would not pursue the seizure of Manchineel. The answer can be found from a famous statement made by a great conqueror several centuries ago who died in Manchineel, ¡°Manchineel is not a place or kingdom, it¡¯s the mother of monsters. As soon as I reached the shores of Manchineel, 500 of mine were lost to a monster who called himself a man. As soon as I reached the first town, another 300 were snuffed by a child. The final nail that sealed me here in this hellhole is the true devil. The lands of Manchineel I thought at first had welcomed me. There were no rough waves or storms, just calm waters. But now I see that it wasn¡¯t welcoming us a conquering...it was welcoming our slaughter.¡±This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Manchineel, a land of despair and tragedy. The country was once home to the most powerful mages and fighters in all of the continents, with some arguing that it still holds this title. After centuries of living in a golden age of magic and technology, Manchineel fell victim to corruption, power imbalance, and a complete shattering of its economy. It¡¯s now known to the world as the ¡°Forgotten Utopia.¡± The lands of Manchineel are now filled with death, sickness, dictators, land disputes, and fearsome creatures. No man enters this land without the risk of death. Yet surprisingly enough, the country still holds a steady population. Why is this? The country is divided amongst four main powers scattered throughout the region, all seemingly representing different ideals once held by the united government of Manchineel. The four factions are The Holy Union, The Cult of Preta, The Claw Coalition, and The Republic of Guilds. Each hold a different set of values and hold some certain grudge towards one another. But they never dare to cross each other...openly that is. There are many smaller organizations that fall under the factions or lay just outside of their reach, none of them posing a threat to any¡¯s rule. This is the way it has been for several decades, Manchineel and it¡¯s people slowly dying due to the greed of its inhabitants. Much like a snake starved, the country is eating itself from its own hunger. But maybe there exists a group...a noble organization that could save the country from further harm¡­ HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHA WHO AM I KIDDING!!! ISHMIL!!? Do I really have to keep writing this shitty prologue. It¡¯s fucking stupid, I hate writing this kind of drabble. I don¡¯t care what he says, just do it your damn self and let me go finish my job. Why are we writing this type of stuff anyways...? What do you mean he wants to write it for the readers? What the fuck does he mean? God dammit...fine I¡¯ll finish it. ¡­ And so the group set off to...to¡­ The group set off to not save the world, but kill those who harm it. They were not men of noble nor women of charity, they were monsters fed up with life. They set out to bring the world to its knees. Chapter 2: A Stack Of Needles Chapter 2. A Stack of Needles Within The Republic of Guilds, there exists a sect of land called Elysium. It is one of the few remaining cities that held throughout the collapse. The streets are busy and its population numerous. The buildings are closely packed allowing no more room for expansion. This later became so much of a problem that people began to further expand underground. They soon became much like worms, packed within the earth, only coming up for resources. Many could say they find the underground of Elysium to be lovely or with great people, but no matter what they say, those above think differently. While Elysium is home to many people and is diverse, it still holds hostilities and discrimination. People above often think in the lower districts as less. Elysium is where people go to find safety, yet can often find that Elysium is no more perfect from any other kingdom. Elysium maintains its status by being made up of several guilds. Each guild has a status as either low or high. Low status guilds have some say in decisions but usually have to make a collective vote along with low status neighbor guilds. High status guilds are guilds that hold power and have been recognized and respected by the community for its standing. There are 7 high status guilds, none being less important than the other. These powerful guilds are referred as the Sacred Seven. The requirements in order to hold the title are so grand that after several decades, only 2 guilds have risen to high status to join the original five. The seven masters of each guild join together each month to go over new laws, decisions, and observe the well-being of the Republic. In Elysium, 97% of all guilds hold a no-kill policy, meaning they refuse any sort of assassination job or kill bounties. The guilds under the 3% face many troubles without the no-kill policy. While it¡¯s true that the guilds that do take assassination jobs have a higher income, they often face harsh taxes and inspections. They cannot be seen as malicious or evil, or else all members of the guild will be stripped of titles and banned from Elysium. This is to prevent the rising of dark guilds, something feared in Elysium after the city faced several deaths from one such guild a century ago. Many low status guilds exist within the nooks and cracks of the city, some holding respect and others holding fear. But within all of these cracks lies a guild spoken of as an urban legend among locals. ¡°Hydra¡¯s Heart¡± Low status guilds in general are said to hold members of various powers, enough to contend with high status guild members. Many members are referred to as strange and insane perhaps. While low guilds with high power and odd members isn¡¯t too uncommon in Elysium, the real reason people speak of them is that they are a dark guild. The guild is classified as unofficial and all of the high status guilds regard the existence of such a guild as imaginary or ¡°just local paranoia¡±, some argue they hide amongst them. They take on all sorts of jobs, from cheap clean ups or pest control, all the way to high profile assassinations and infiltration. They are legends in the underworld and have unknowing presence in other factions. Some locals say they have even witnessed the group¡¯s actions. Some remark them as good hearted, others say they live to cause chaos and evil..
¡°God, why can¡¯t the weather always be like this.¡± said someone loudly in a busy street A young woman sat at a table with her partner. They both wore long black sleeves and slacks that hugged their bodies. The sleeve was embezzled with a yellow outline on its edges, and there was a tree pattern stitched around the back of the shirt. The collar of the shirt was tall and often choked its wearer, sometimes rising above the mouth (similar in style to that of a formal ninja). Both wore black dress shoes, tipped and clearly expensive. Taking a closer look, one notices that the partner is an older male. Both have dark glasses covering their eyes, making it almost impossible to see through them, and the woman is a brunette with a very sarcastic demeanor. Her hair is cut just at the shoulders and seems to stand against the wind. Her face shows youth and a playful attitude. The man has gray hair, cut short, and his face reveals a five o¡¯clock shadow. He has a few scars that show experience and wisdom. He seems to be more serious than the woman, judging by her lack of voice control. He wondered why he was stuck with her as a partner. Sure, she was funny and quite attractive, but with being much older he¡¯s heard all the wisecracks and dating is past his time. The table they sat at wasn¡¯t alone and rested under the roof of a local ramen shop. The small shop was packed in with many other businesses along the street. Most people passing along wouldn¡¯t pay attention to such a small shop, but the locals knew it well enough, as it was the best selling ramen shop in the district. After stepping inside, the touch of steam instantly fills the air and hits the face of customers. Plates clank as they¡¯re used and washed to be served once again, a man in the back calls out orders to the cooks, and the crinkling and shifting of money is heard as customers leave and go. ¡°Sop whus tha blatdy wore gung tah aks?¡± The woman said with a mouth full of food. ¡°Please finish swallow before speaking next time. Need I remind you we¡¯re supposed to act professional.¡± The man said with a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. The woman took a big swallow and stated ¡°Ehhh? Who¡¯s gonna notice? The street is full and people are busy. No one is gonna give enough time to pay attention nevertheless listen to two Steel Branch members.¡± and then continued to eat.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The man looked even more annoyed and said ¡°Alright Penelope, I¡¯m done arguing with you. Just finish your goddamn meal and ask me the question.¡± The woman now identified as Penelope happily obliged and continued to eat for the next few minutes while her partner stared at her in disdain. As each second passed, the man slowly began regretting each second of his life that led him to this moment. *SLAM* The bowl of ramen banged the table in a celebratory manner. Penelope looked oblivious to her partner¡¯s staring and began to clean herself before continuing her previous statement. ¡°Sorry about that, I thought it¡¯d make me look cooler. Anyways, as I was saying, who is the woman we¡¯re supposed to question?¡± She said as she began searching her wallet. ¡°Really? We just talked about this on the walk here. Did you not hear a goddamn word I said?¡± The man exclaimed quietly, getting rather annoyed with her, but still keeping his voice lowered. ¡°Nope, I was too busy thinking about what I¡¯m gonna cook later. Oh and by the way, what¡¯s our assignment?¡± She said with a smile. ¡°Ugh, just my luck to get you as a partner.¡± He said with disgust in his mouth, as if he ate something rotten. ¡°Oh shut up Simon, I¡¯m just kidding. I couldn¡¯t hear you with all the damn people on the street. It was rush hour you know?¡± She said, finally pulling out some money and placing it inside the little booklet with the shop¡¯s insignia on it. She laid it on the counter and continued, ¡°Now tell me again, I promise I won¡¯t ask again, okay?¡± Simon¡¯s expression calmed and he gave her a look before stating, ¡°We¡¯re assigned to look into the massacre of the Mad Guard Guild. Several days ago, the entire guild was killed in their hall. Several members were killed in gruesome ways and left unidentifiable. Any stragglers that weren¡¯t at the guild at the time of the massacre were found dead in alleyways. The woman who witnessed this claims to have seen a figure leaving the hall a bit after eight o¡¯clock, which is close to the time the massacre was thought to have taken place.¡± Penelope looked a bit shocked at first but then quickly regained her bearings. ¡°Jeez, why do they have to give us this damn case. I¡¯d rather go pluck cats from damn trees then go around the whole fucking city to look for some psychos. Headquarters should at this point should damn well know that the fuckers probably left the city already.¡± She said with a long sigh. Simon took a double take and then realized he had forgotten, while Penelope seems quite foolhardy, she is talented and was top of her class at the academy. But, she still is a pain in the ass so he¡¯d never actually tell her how he thought somewhat highly of her. The two began to get up and leave the shop and Penelope interrupted, ¡°Wait, isn¡¯t the Mad Guard suspected to be behind drug trade? Why are we looking into this? Isn¡¯t it a waste of resources to look into the death of a bunch of criminals? They were probably offed by some person they sold shit grade pixie dust to.¡± She said with a cocky smirk. ¡°I say good riddance.¡± Simon looked down at her and thought for a second before saying ¡°While they may have been criminals, they are still people and their deaths shouldn¡¯t be left unanswered. Plus, the Steel Branch wants to know the person responsible for such an act, in case they go off again in the future. We can¡¯t have people like that doing these sorts of things, especially the sick shit that was done to the Mad Guard.¡± Penelope chuckled for a few seconds before saying ¡°They want us to look into the death of a small guild like Mad Guard? It¡¯s not like they were anything great. Any C+ grade mage could take them out. Not much effort too, taking out what? 10, 20 members?¡± she laughed again out of her own pride in her power. ¡°I could do that in a minute flat. No big deal¡± she said gleefully, exhaling excitedly. Simon again took a second before saying ¡°One, don¡¯t joke like that. Two, you¡¯d be lucky to last a minute before you were distracted by some food. Three, Mad Guard has 128 members." Penelope laughed ¡° HAH, I knew you could joke Simo-...¡± Penelope suddenly stopped talking and looked at her partner¡¯s solemn face. Her face drained of color and she seemed shaken. ¡°D-did you say 128?¡± She struggled to spit out. Simon grimaced and said ¡°Yes, that¡¯s the official amount of members Mad Guard has officially registered with the The Republic. ¡°But 128? That many people died without the slightest notice!? That¡¯s impossible! I can understand thirty at most if it¡¯s a skilled mage, but to kill over one hundred without making a single peep is impossible. Even high status mages would make an explosion of some sort. You sure it¡¯s not a rival guild? Penelope began to gain back her posture. ¡°That¡¯s what the big guys upstairs thought, but apparently all guilds known to have bad blood with the Mad Guard have alibis that place them elsewhere. They also lack the power to commit such an act.¡± Simon said as he calmly waited for Penelope to catch back up with him. ¡°Really? Well fuck man, how the hell are we supposed to catch people who can exterminate a 100+ guild and make no noise doing so?¡± A smile appeared on Simon¡¯s face. ¡°Are you scared Penelope? You can always resign as being an apprentice and go work in a cubicle. I¡¯m sure the staff are just dying for someone with a sense humor such as yours.¡± He looked at her face and could clearly see she was fuming and about to retort. ¡°Pipe down. Look, we¡¯re not supposed to catch anyone got it? We¡¯re just supposed to find the suspect and report back to the guild.¡± Penelope calmed down. ¡°Oh good. And I¡¯m not scared got it? I just prefer not to get my uniform dirty, okay?¡± He deadpanned and looked at her ¡°Sure.¡± She puffed up in pride ¡°Hmph.¡± ¡°Stop being a child, we have to find this woman and question her. So put on your best impression of an adult before we get there.¡± Simon said as he looked forward. Penelope felt a small pang of anger ¡°When the hell did you become such a joker? That¡¯s my job! You¡¯re the hardass and I¡¯m the wise cracking rookie.¡± Simon kept walking and stated ¡°Not everything stays the same, and not every book shows who the character really is.¡± Penelope sighed ¡°There we go, back to the philosophical hardass. Make up your mind goddamnit.¡± He looked at her quickly and shushed her. ¡°Quiet, we¡¯re approaching the house of the witness. Don¡¯t do anything stupid and be professional.¡± She looked at him in annoyance. ¡°I¡¯m not a child you know? I got it, respect your elders and whatever.¡± Before turning the corner, Simon looked at the sky. ¡°Please just let me finish this investigation without having to whip this child.¡± he sighed. As they both turned the corner, they faded into the crowd of busy people. Birds chirped, smoke covered the sky, and the whole city exhaled. Just a regular day in Elysium. Chapter 3: Eternal Smiles Chapter 3. Eternal Smiles The people have Manchineel have a custom found commonly in all households and buildings. Never wear shoes inside. Most people when asked why they do this comment ¡°Because it¡¯s respectful.¡± or ¡°It shows bad stature.¡± which could be considered true. What most people don¡¯t know is that the custom actually has more supernatural ties. If you were to ask an elder why the People of Manchineel do this, they would look at you strangely before saying ¡°So F¨©to¨©t¨¡ doesn¡¯t steal our feet of course.¡± Once you hear this you may think of them as insane but there is some truth to this. If you dig through the history of Manchineel, you¡¯ll find that during the time it was custom to remove footwear before entering a household, the use of the word F¨©to¨©t¨¡ became very popular as well. By tracing the word F¨©to¨©t¨¡ back, we can find it linked to the story of a man named Orokamono who was known around his village to be rude and often thought highly of himself. He would often get into disputes with others for simple matters and would constantly call them peasants. Each week, all the villagers woulds step into the Church and remove all articles of clothes. This was normal as it was disrespectful to step into the domain of god with anything made by man. The only thing that should be brought is the flesh and bone that God gave man. Orokamono one day had bought a wonderful new pair of shoes and decided to flaunt the town and show them their glimmering design and golden tips. When time came to go to church, Orokamono striped of everything except his shoes. The priest warned Orokamono against such an act as an insult against God but was met with, ¡°God would insult himself by not allowing such a grand creation as myself into his household while I¡¯m in such a glamorous form.¡± Orokamono went into the church with nothing but his golden shoes. He prayed, was blessed, and thanked God for his gifts. He went home that night feeling more happy than ever. So happy at himself and so full of pride, Orokamono went to sleep with his shoes on. When Orokamono awoke, the sun shined brightly in his face. When he got out of bed, Orokamono found his feet to be burned once he touched the floor. Once he looked around Orokamono realized he was not in his house. Fire surrounded him, there was no moisture in the air, and the sun was gone. As Orokamono looked around, he found a creature at the foot of his bed. It said ¡°I am F¨©to¨©t¨¡, a demon born from your insolence. My skin was made and burned from the steps you took on god¡¯s floor. My ears formed from the clicking of marble made by your heels. The eyes were stabbed by the golden point of your shoes. And my mind was created by the sheer height of your ego. I serve to punish those who step with disrespect. Orokamono looks at the demon in fear and pleads for him to spare him. The demon¡¯s tongue licks the man¡¯s face as he begs with few accounts of his good deeds. F¨©to¨©t¨¡ looks at the man with pleasure before laughing loudly, so loud that the area shakes, matching the howling coming from the creature¡¯s stomach. F¨©to¨©t¨¡ states, ¡°Orokamono, king of fools. I F¨©to¨©t¨¡ have not come to kill or bring you to hell for eternity. I have come for punishment.¡± and with those words, F¨©to¨©t¨¡ takes the golden shoes from Orokamono with swift movement. Before Orokamono can protest, his eyes begin to slowly fall. With one last glance, he sees the smiling creature known thereafter as F¨©to¨©t¨¡ holding a pair of red beautiful shoes. When Orokamono wakes from his slumber, he checks the room. There is no fire, no demon, and the sun shines beautifully through the curtain. He smiles and snickers as the demon, his punishment leaving him shoeless. He is happy and smiles, for he has his life and learned his lesson. The man known as Orokamono jumps from his bed in joy only to fall hardly onto the floor. Once Orokamono looks around as to how he tripped, he gains a gruesome and pained face. Where his feet once stood, there now lies two bloody stumps of red flesh and white bone. The blood glistens in the sun and the bone shines like pearl as Orokamono screams in pain. As he screams, a paper lies in the distance at the foot of his bed with one sentence written in blood on it. ¡°Hope you like your new shoes.¡± *Knocking* ¡°Hold on¡± a elderly voice says. Light footsteps are heard coming from behind the door. The door opens slowly to reveal an older woman. Her hair is frayed and white like snow. She has a short stature and somewhat slouches. Her face is covered in powder, most likely from cooking given the aged red apron she has on. Under her apron is a yellow blouse complimented by a pearl necklace.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. The woman looks forward from the door to find a dark silhouette¡¯s bottom half. She slowly looks up to find a being completely covered in the shadow of a nearby tree. When opening the door, she¡¯d been hit with the smell of apples oddly enough. She always finds it strange that each day the odd being comes with a new fruit related sense. As she looks up, she finds that the only thing visible and familiar is it¡¯s manly form and white gleeful smile. The same smile always showing up in the same black shadows. At first the woman looks a bit disturbed before showing a smile of familiarity. ¡°Oh it¡¯s you honey. Dear heavens, you almost had me. You should really start wearing bright clothes; you know it¡¯s hard for me to see these days. The dark being chuckles softly before muttering some words very quietly. The woman hears these words and chuckles back with another smile. The woman speaks ¡°I understand hun, I remember my days working. Always had those damn uncomfortable uniforms. God knows what they made them from!¡± The woman says in a slightly angry voice, remembering days long ago. The woman pauses and then goes back to smiling, ¡°Anyways hun, why don¡¯t you stop by and come in? I just made some pumpkin pie. The mister says it¡¯s good for me but I think he¡¯s just a pig who likes my cooking.¡± She laughs for a good minute before coughing a bit. The man pulls something from his form, a cloth. He hands it to the woman, which she shakingly takes. He gives a few more soft spoken words after so. *Cough* ¡°Ahh thank y- *Cough* -ou dearie. Such a gentlemen. And are you sure you can¡¯t come in? I won¡¯t take too much of your time.¡± The woman looks a bit heavy hearted at the man. She always see young folk rushing, never stopping to take a break. She looks at the dark man to only find him give a few more words. She gives a dull look of understanding before muttering something about how she¡¯s glad she retired early. The man before giving his farewell gives the woman a brown paper bag, with contents unknown. She smiles once seeing this. ¡°Ahh thank you hun, so sweet bringing me these at this hour.¡± she states while setting the bag on the side. The man gives a courtesy nod before turning away with a white smile. The woman says somewhat loudly now that he begins to walk away ¡°Okay hun, have a goodnight and be safe.¡± the elderly woman now begins to close the door with a long creak accompanying it. Not too long after the elderly woman hears another knock at the door in the distance just after she had set down the pumpkin pie. ¡°Hold on a second, I¡¯m coming!¡± she says with surprise in her voice. It¡¯s strange she gets a visit from someone, let alone two. The elderly woman quickly washes her hands and pats them to dry on her apron, sending some powder in the air with each pat. She walks towards the door and before turning the corner and opening she suddenly smells something. Maybe ramen or curry. ¡°...Is it just me or does everyone smell like food before coming to my house¡­¡± she says under her breath with a sigh.
Penelope and Simon continued walking along the street. The street is now obviously less compact and very few people seem to out in the open. ¡°So I was thinking you play the good cop and try to sweeten the old broad up, and then I¡¯ll come in smashing through the window and assume the role of evil cop.¡± Penelope stated with a slight glimmer in the eye. She looked towards Simon with a hopeful stare. ¡°You mean bad cop right?¡± Penelope cackled, ¡°No, that¡¯s so overplayed you dope! Evil cop is the new thing. Give em a zap and kill some her cats perhaps. I think that would work well. Only evil people would kill cats.¡± Simon is now currently struggling to not throw her into the street but seems to keep his calm. ¡°First of all, we¡¯re guild members, not some petty guards in a skit. Second of all, need I remind you this is an older woman. With just your shrieks, you¡¯ll probably give the poor lady a heart attack.¡± Penelope looks offended ¡°Hey! I¡¯m great with old people! How can they not love me! This broad will probably give me candy at first glance of me.¡± She states proudly. Simon exhales, ¡°Well by all means, then you should be the lead on this since your so confident. I¡¯ll just stand by for support. Just signal me if you need me to take over.¡± ¡°Wa-ait, you mean you want me to take charge?....A rookie? Bu-but you¡¯re supposed to handle the talking!¡± Penelope is now quite thrown off. She¡¯s not known back at HQ for being very...well mannered. It was a miracle she passed the social exams. Being able to handle and talk to citizens is important in her line of work; a skill she lacks severely. Simon gains a slight grin. ¡°Heh. So the great and mighty Penelope is shy? Alright kid. I¡¯ll just take over right away then. I thought the number one pup of the academy would be a bit more formidable, but I guess old dogs like me have more backbone.¡± He says with a laugh. Penelope grinds her teeth. ¡°WHAT! I am not a pup! I¡¯ll show you, you old geezer! Watch me then. This will be a piece of cake!¡± Simon stops walking. ¡°Well I¡¯m glad then, cause we¡¯ve arrived at the house. Go ahead.¡± Penelope gulps. The house is old but in a nice way. The outside is painted in a nice royal blue with white outlines. The grass is trimmed even and there¡¯s even a garden that flourishes in green on the side. Now that Penelope looks around, this is the only house on the block. Everything else is either a crappy apartment or a shitty vendor. It just stood out. How on earth does it keep such vibrant energy in a downtown block like this. Penelope gains the nerve to begin walking and slowly approaches the door. Simons slowly in tow. He¡¯s enjoying the current situation quite well. ¡°Ehh...where¡¯s the doorbell?¡± Penelope states in a confused tone. Simon almost chokes. ¡°WHAT!¡± Penelope looks back at him, he almost fell. Simon covers his mouth and coughs. ¡°What do you mean kid? Do you not know what knocking is? Dear Gods, what sort of education are the rookies getting these days.¡± He states shaking his head. Penelope blushes and angrily whispers. ¡°Shut up! I¡¯ve lived in the Sumcad district my entire life! The whole place has noise blockers everywhere. No one¡¯s going to hear a knock!¡± ¡°Ugh¡­whatever kid. Just knock three times. It¡¯s not difficult.¡± Simon states, now even more disappointed in his new partner. Something he didn¡¯t think was possible. Penelope now slightly less angry fixes herself and begins to knock. She shuffles nervously as she hears footsteps from the other side. She quickly puts on her best smile just like the books said to before interacting with citizens. *CLICK* The door opens to reveal an older woman. Penelope looks her over and feels nostalgia. She somewhat reminds her of her own grandma. She feels a lot more confident now. The old woman with close eyes and smile happily states ¡°Why hello dearies. How ca-...¡± The old woman stops as she opens her eyes to see her current visitors. Her face immediately scrunches up. Almost as if she ate sour candy. ¡°...What the hell are you guild dogs doing on my property!? Does your owner not know dogs need to be on leashes in this area! Do I need to go get the whistle?¡± She says with an cocky grin. The confidence within Penelope dramatically fell to zero in those few seconds.