City Gate, Meteo City

As with any other day, a sizeable amount of players are loitering within the vicinity of the city's gatehouse, easily a few hundred scattered around the perimeter and several dozen more going through the centre to and from the gate itself. It's just as if not noisier than the market, but comparatively less cramped thanks to the abundance of open space intended for carriages and troop assemblies.

Looking around, Windy whistles low, "Still a lot of folks around, and I can already feel the stares. How're we going about this, boss?"

Resisting the urge to roll my eyes I take a slow breath, "Take up a spot in the relative centre, naturally. Let the people come to us. Two people side-by-side looking for a party member while wearing a full set of Beginner's Bronze Armour with accompanying weapons will be enough to attract attention, even if the Newborn don't recognise me personally."

Getting Windy's agreement with my idea, we stride confidently out into the open space, a little off to the side of the straight path from the gate to the main road behind us leading straight to the market district. The feeling of being watched only intensifies and I swear the level of chatter drops a few decibels.

Before I start yelling a call for healer recruitment, however, a group of smug-looking thugs push their way through the crowd across the courtyard, approaching us, not at all friendly with their intentions, that much is plainly obvious to even a less-experienced person than I. Leaning my head towards Windy, I mumble under my breath, "Let me do the talking, don't respond to provocation. Fifth-rate Infamous like these bozos aren't worth the effort."

Unconcerned, Windy looks back then nods, "If you say so."

Full of unearned swagger, the leader, a swarthy, near-bald Firm male with a Copper-Tier mallet strolls up, "Well, well, if it ain't the famous and wealthy Bronzeguy. Recognise that stupid monocle anywhere."

He chuckles darkly, "And a lady-friend too, all dolled up in some real fine gear. Say, what's the going rate on gear to goes at that ass o' years?"

I can feel the tension in Windy's body radiating off of her, but to her credit, she holds her tongue and resists the urge to gut this idiot. Likewise, I don't say anything, staring blankly back at the man. I'm not easily provoked by children.

"Whaaat? Cat got your tongues? A little too close to home is it? Come on, I know what'll make you feel better...Donating some of that cash to us. We'll even take you out to the forest as an escort in exchange," The man grins widely, his true intentions more than clear. Anyone who took up his offer would find themselves taken somewhere quiet and tormented until their hp ran out or they dropped their items and got summarily executed.

I respond to his 'generous offer' evenly, "No, thank you. We don't require an escort to Ujax Forest, nor do we have any business there."

Leaning back, the man looks incredulous, "Hah? Lookit you, where do you get off on talkin' to a member of Terrible Titans like that, huh?"

Still unflinching, I blink only once, "Never heard of you. If you would please leave, I have some pressing business I'd like to conduct before the end of the day."

Gobsmacked, the man growls, his lackeys edging a little forward with murder on their minds, "I'm being real nice to you right now, whelp. You'd better wise up quick if you wanna survive leaving the city."

Seeing as he won't take the hint, and seems utterly oblivious to how little I care about his pitiful attempts at intimidation, I can't help but sigh in resignation, "Since it would appear that speaking like an ordinary person isn't getting through to you, I suppose that I will just have to simplify my words so it reaches far enough down to be on your level: Fuck. Off."

Lackey #1 screeches, "What the fuck did you just say t' us?"

"Asking for a beating, little brother!" Lackey #3 mutters through clenched teeth.

Red-faced, the lead thug leans forward, uncomfortably close to my face with his own, a look of disdain and pity mixing into an uglier expression than his own face made possible, "Leave your shit and your money, and maybe I'll forget I heard that. The girl's too. No need to show off for her, I'm sure you pay her plenty already."

Reaching out to Windy, I stop her from yanking her sword from its sheath, "No. And for the record, I'm not interested in making out with a stranger, so please step away."

Recoiling with a roar, the man brandishes his weapon, "That's fucking it, you're a dead dog! <Duel>!"

 

 

Looking at the prompt window, I scoff, "No."

Rage and confusion suffuse Deadly Smile's being, "You goddamned coward! Too afraid to face me, are you?! Huh?!"

If I really felt like it, I could crush this idiot in a duel with my bare hands. Cowardice has nothing to do with it.

"Why should I? You're not worth acknowledging as an opponent," I laugh drily, openly mocking them at this point, "Go bother someone else. Maybe you'll find someone who's actually impressed by your bluster and bravado."

Roaring, Deadly Smile starts to take a swing before Lackey #1 bravely puts their hand on his arm, "Boss, not in the city, remember?"

Deadly Smile pauses mid-wind-up, glaring daggers at his shrinking subordinate before exhaling, "Fine. You hear that, whelp? When you leave the city, you're fucking dead. You'll regret having disrespected a member of Terrible Titans!"

With that cliche line, he turns around and stomps off, no doubt feeling as though he looked really awesome and powerful, even though he basically ran away to avoid triggering the wrath of the system and calling a City Guard down on his head to put him in a cell.

The whole incident has the people around us talking up a frenzy, but I pay it no mind, instead looking to Windy, "That's how it's done. I realise you may have wanted to defend your honour physically, but remember that honour is not something easily damaged by the insults of others. It's something you accumulate through your own deeds and behaviour."

Still seething, Windy grits her teeth, "Yes, boss."

Taking a deep breath to settle her anger she looks questioningly at me, "Why didn't you accept the duel?"

Shrugging, I merely repeat what I said before, smirking, "Not worth the effort. Moreover, humiliating him further in front of all these people would just make an idiot like that angrier. If he wants to start trouble with me out of the city, I don't mind dealing with him then - and the lesson will be more likely to stick if I don't have to worry about the public watching."

Windy relaxes a little, "Just so long as I get to kick him in the balls hard enough he's coughing out 'cherries'. 'k?"

I can't help but wince a little at the mental image of that, "I'll leave some for you, don't worry."

From behind, I hear a new person's odd-sounding footsteps approaching hurriedly, "Err, excuse me? Mr..Nosster isn't it?"

Looking back over my shoulder I see a Panoplast gentleman, an avian demihuman wearing the starter equipment's Hedge Mage torso piece with bird-esque legs slightly taller than I am and long brown hair tied into a high-ponytail that I want to say looks ridiculous but actually sort of works for him for some reason.

"Yes, feel free to call me Silver, sir," I turn around to face him properly, "What can I help you with?"

"I'm here to warn you that your provoking of the Terrible Titans' Captain, Deadly Smile, may have...unintended consequences," He explains, a little aloof in his manner of speaking.

I quirk an eyebrow, "Oh? Do tell."

He coughs, speaking low, "Rumour has it that the Terrible Titans are part of the Darkest Dreamers Alliance."

Windy, ever curious pops in with a question, "Who's that?"

I shrug, "Those yakuza wannabes? They're a loose alliance of Infamous player teams and hitmen. Most of them are of about the same quality as those bottom feeders just now. Which is to say, weak, arrogant, and lacking any ability to distinguish a patsy from an actual threat."

The Panoplast winces, "I feel like I should point out that acting arrogant yourself after kicking a hornet's nest won't protect you from the many stingers coming for you."

I shrug, "You're overestimating their camaraderie. If it doesn't affect the interests of the Alliance they're part of, it's something Deadly Smile and his cohort have to deal with on their own to maintain their reputation. If they fail, the rest of the Alliance will lose respect for them and potentially remove them altogether."

He frowns, "You seem acquainted with them already."

"Mhm. I've been visited by some of their proxies during business hours at Stone Arsenal, alternately trying to intimidate and recruit me to the fold. I'll admit, some of them might team up with Terrible Titans for a shot at my wealth, but with this being a personal matter for Deadly Smile, he won't stand the indignity of asking for help or allowing interference in his vendetta unless he has no choice," I explain, "Short of blasting me from an extreme distance using a dozen spells with tracking simultaneously - which don't really exist pre-Level 10 - I'm not too worried about being ambushed."

Quieted, the man sighs, "Well, if you insist on arraying yourself against them, I can only wish you luck."

Windy gives him an evaluating look, "How come you're warning us about this in the first place?"

"My teammates ran afoul of another member of the Alliance while I was logged out for lunch yesterday, and they got robbed of all their items before being killed," He answers, obviously angered, "Now they've quit the game. It was already hard enough on them with the game being what it is, running into PKers was just the last straw."

The man looks at the both of us in turn, "I just didn't want the same thing to happen to someone else, essentially. Especially when you've both got more to lose than they did."

Windy smiles, "Nice of you."

The Avian spreads his arms helplessly, "I'm a nice guy at heart."

Folding my arms and tapping my finger on my bicep, I nod at him, "You, by any chance, looking for a party right now then?"

He frowns, "...Yes?"

"What's your speciality, healing, damage or support? Level?"

Looking at his demeanour and actions so far then comparing it to people I've interacted with in raids and dungeons in the past, I'd peg him as a veteran healer. He just has that same feeling of 'done with your shit' combined with 'ugh fine I'll fix your mistakes'. Never met a good healer who could resist meddling in the apparent failures of other people.

A little suspicious, he takes half-a-step away from us, "Healer. Level 4. Why?"

I grin wide. Even Winfrey smiles.

"How would you feel about joining us on an adventure?" Windy snickers.

You can practically see the fear rising through his body, "Err..."

"If you're worried we're leading you into a suicidal attack on those Infamous idiots, you can relax. We're recruiting for an expedition to an as-yet-undiscovered dungeon tomorrow," I explain, "We have a tank here."

I point to Windy, who waves, "Hi. A tank right here."

Ignoring the dad joke, I point to myself, "I'm a melee damage dealer and skirmish-tank, while we have an Archer-type Scout who is currently doing her day job right now. All we need is a healer to get going."

Calming down a bit, his experience takes over, "What's the dungeon like, and what's the pay?"

"Level 7, Bronze-Tier Difficulty with a bunch of Level 7 Elites guarding the entrance. Underground, a standard progression of mob packs and boss encounters at intervals. Pay is whatever gear suitable drops for you and the experience farm. If nothing drops for you, 70 Stone Silver, no questions asked," I list off, "We'll be attempting to go for the first A rating as well - don't know what the reward is but we'll deal with it when we get it. Either way, we want to get to Level 8 in there."

The Avian thinks it through, "Make it a Stone Gold for no drops and you've got a deal."

I snort, "85 Stone Silver, no higher. I'm not made of money."

He laughs, "Not from what I hear. Alright, 85 Stone Silver it is. When are we meeting and where?"

"Tomorrow at around 11 am, GMT+1. Wait outside The Golem, a bar near the Market District and behind Stone Arsenal," I instruct, having worked out the time with Jade previously.

"Can do," He holds his arm out to shake my hand, "Angelus Reach, nice to meet you."

I take it, "Silver Nosster, likewise."

Windy shakes his hand next, smiling sardonically, "Windy Fields, please don't let me die, thanks."

Angelus barks a laugh, "Don't stand in fire, and we'll be just peachy. Agreed?"

She grins back, "No promises."

Introductions taken care of, Angelus pins me with a look, "Still, even if you're not going looking for them, the moment we leave the city word will spread. The odds of us being attacked outside the walls anyway are still quite high, and I don't plan on feeding my progress into a woodchipper for a stranger. If we die to an ambush, I'm not following you back out there."

"That's fine," I respond unhurried, "Their assumption is that there is only one way to leave the city will prove to be quite useful to us."

"There's another exit?" Angelus looks surprised, Windy as well.

"Of course, there are several ways besides the obvious. The one I have in mind will only take us out of the city, though so if we run into trouble on the way back, so be it," I explain, trying to alleviate their anxiety, "Trying to get back into the city through unofficial means is, conversely, far, far more difficult, and completely beyond our means. This is, after all, still a City even if it's barely 1-Star rated."

"Ok then, I'll take your word for it," Angelus accepts it, looking off to the side, "I'll go get some preparations done before I log off. Anything special you recommend?"

"Don't worry about it, I'll get anything we might need myself and pass it over when we get to the dungeon and through the explanation," I deny, "Just make sure you have enough food and drink for the trip."