Anathea sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, musing for a second about how that clownish mannequin reminded her of some less likeable figures of the Judgement, then expended a miniscule fraction of mental effort and shrugged, spreading her arms in a genial gesture and smiling warmly:
[color=f26522]"Well, I offer you my sincere gratitude for what little knowledge you saw fit to provide me, Empty Face. However, if that is the extent of the help offered, I must bid you farewell and depart."[/color] - she made a short, formal bow towards the clown and began turning to go, but then paused, back to her serious demeanor - [color=f26522]"Presently, I have no desire for company save that of my brother; [u][b]Do not pursue Anathea Rhishand[/b][/u]."[/color] - those last words dropped on those listening like a heavy block of stone, making it very clear that a company would be very much unwelcome.
During her short stay with the clown, Anathea learned several things - more than enough, she felt, to embark on her own journey of discovery. Her musings went roughly as such:
- this indeed is a world of people;
- apparently, said people were acclimated to the lack of dharma, and learned to make do without, though there were apparently some side-effects to that. Therefore, answers could be sought out amongst the people themselves.
- unless that mock-up of a clown lied to her, her brother should be placed somewhere within the same country; searching for him would be troublesome, but not exceedingly so, unless the idiot would decide to leave the country.
- judging by the state of the castle at the northmost border of the country, and the state of the road leading to it, this is a prosperous realm; therefore, it must have a strong capital, with some or other sort of information exchange network in place - perfect place to start her search from.
- logically, her brother would do the same, unless diverted to some other destination; nevertheless, signs left in the capital would attract his attention at a much faster pace than those left at the border of the realm.
- the same information network would be a useful tool in ferreting out location of their father dearest, if he has any sort of publicity here; he would probably have much to explain about lack of purpose of present world.
- thus, her main task for the moment would be acquiring transportation towards the capital.
Deciding on the course of action, Anathea thought for a moment on a specific approach and decided that she'd be best suited with a quiet, circumspect approach - perhaps, starting with observing the locals from the distance, learning their language and mannerisms, observing their way of life, as to not stand out too much along the way. Alas, both the jester and the mock-up of an angel would attract too much of an attention, so she would not be able to afford such company at the moment; perhaps, later, when she's more ingrained in this world...
Deciding on the specific manner of action, the woman went to leave alongside the road away from the castle - presumably, that road would lead her to the nearby settlement, for castles were rarely built without one nearby, and regardless of the function that castle serves today, there must be the legacy of said settlement left, which she could study.