[center] [img]https://78.media.tumblr.com/a3b148938837c8380c1eb6e43f0d31fc/tumblr_pcvta2YxeN1w6599so1_1280.png[/img] The Docks [/center] [color=lavender]"Hmmmm."[/color] Mistress Vertti turned a coin in her hand. [color=lavender]"She certainly has charisma. Grisaia, let me know if you think I’m over rewarding her performance, haha!"[/color] Flame would not notice any suspicious faces or movements in the crowd. Nor would he see anyone familiar to him, not Gris or Chiyo. [i]Around[/i] the crowd however was another story. It looked like the city’s guards were starting to assemble for something. They were giving each other hand signals and moving about quickly. Something was afoot. [hr] [center] Golden quarter, Mie Pie’s Crib. [/center] The giant’s grin only widened as Mie went on about how she despised love. He even let out a chuckle when she mocked his appearance. If Mie didn’t entirely lose her mind to her tantrum, she might have noticed that the coin she was playing with earlier was now being flicked back and forth between Talus’s hands. [color=baddab]”Well, you should take your employer seriously. They are the ones paying you, and the ones you have to answer to if you fail. You were contracted for Mistress Vertti, and you have failed to fulfill the contract. In your line of work, a contract is the most precious type of promise you can make.”[/color] He flicked the coin towards her. The man never frowned, but he wasn’t smiling right now. [color=baddab]”You’re inadequate, sloppy, and weak. You’ve failed to kill a noble who has no combat training and [i]nothing[/i] in terms of bodyguards. I can understand the difficulty in tracking her down, which is why the reward on the contract was so high, but she has been in her mansion for an entire week now, breathing and whatever else living people do. And you’re still looking for some security breach in your system?”[/color] The smile returned to his face. [color=baddab]”We’re both professionals, so I’ll just skip to the interesting part. You’ve got one more chance, and you’re going to get one doozy of an opportunity along with it. A distraction of grand proportions! There’s going to be a siege from the cultists!”[/color] He pulled a set of cultist’s clothes and set it in front of Mie. [color=baddab]”If you wear these, they’ll hardly pay you any mind. But I’m sure the siege is going to send Vertti scurrying back to her home. You know the layout of the place, I’m sure it’ll be easy for you. If there’s one draw back to all this, it’s that you don’t have much time to prepare.”[/color] Mie could hear the sound of steel meeting steel just outside her wagon. [center][img]https://78.media.tumblr.com/e04c861ab5dfb4bc101caf4204ccbe5f/tumblr_pc3bzhVBhl1w6599so8_1280.png[/img][/center] [hr] [center] [s]Thot Trot[/s] On the way to Vertti’s house. [/center] [color=BF81DC]"Alistairrrrrrrrrrr."[/color] Odessa had to walk backwards in front of the haughty young man in order to look into his eyes, as per the ridiculous rules of the contract they formed. [color=BF81DC]"Your blue is getting cloudy just by hanging around her!"[/color] She had surprisingly good agility, as her dopey demeanor was more befitting of someone clumsy. [color=BF81DC]"I’m sure she’s nice but you can’t walk so close to her! [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT2GRpwwS8M]Uguu~[/url]"[/color] Eiko would come flying down the road towards the group, [s]filling out the rest of Chadster’s harem[/s]. But all of them would stop as soon as they noticed yet another girl, this one tall, muscular, and dressed like a soldier. Captain crunch came running down the road towards Alistair. [b][color=00ddaa]”Thank goodness you’re all right.”[/color][/b] She sighed, but the fact that she had her sword drawn didn’t make everyone else feel at ease. [b][color=00ddaa]”Alistair, I’m not sure who you’re travaling with right now. But all of you… teleported… people… we need to hide you all immediately. The guards saw some cultists outside the gates and they’re equipped with-”[/color][/b] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/FYh93cL.png[/img][/center] A loud crash could be heard as cultists ran up and down every backstreet nearby. [b][color=00ddaa]”It’s getting worse with every passing second. We’re evacuating everyone to the noble district for a last stand. Get there as soon as you can! This is no place for civilians!”[/color][/b]