24 Work

A knock on the door woke Curt up. He had always been a light sleeper — it paid to be one when seedy inns were his usual lodgings. His first reaction was to grab the guns off his nightstand, and his second was to make himself presentable. He wasn't staying at a seedy inn. This was Mid Town.

He glanced out the window. It was still dark, and he couldn't see the faint light of dawn in the horizon. Judging by how he felt, it must've been around midnight. He wondered who would be knocking at this hour. Maybe Otto went out for a midnight stroll and forgot the keys?

As he headed downstairs, he bumped into Otto doing the same. There went that hypothesis. No one else was up. The fights yesterday must have really taken their toll. Otto gestured at Curt to open the door. Keeping a hand over one of his guns, Curt swung it open.

Rosa stood outside. She didn't bring her scythe with her, so Curt crossed off the possibility that she was here to finish off Bauph. That meant she was probably here to dispel the curse on Oleander. Curt didn't anticipate that happening so soon — or in the middle of the night.

"Where is the victim?"

It took a moment for Curt to realize she was referring to Oleander. So she was here to cure him.

"Victim?" Otto appeared to still be waking up.

"Didn't you need me to dispel a curse?"

"Oh! Wait, right now? I mean, I ain't gonna complain 'cause there's a literal deadline," Otto said. "I'll take ya to him right away. Curt, come with us."

Otto led the way, with Rosa and Curt in tow. They eventually made their way back to the narrow alleyway where Curt and Otto had met the bleeding Oleander. At the dead end, Otto and Curt just stared at each other.

"So…" Otto looked at the wall. "Curt?"

Curt shrugged. "Don't ask me."

Otto looked sheepishly back at Rosa. "Well, I don't suppose you know how to get through some kinda magic wall?"

Rosa's eyes narrowed at Otto. She looked like she was considering the benefits of offing them in the alleyway right now, and save herself the trouble of the whole affair. Thankfully, it didn't come to that.

"What do you know, you actually came back," the Shroud's voice echoed in the alleyway.

Curt looked up. The Shroud was perched atop the wall. Her eyes were focused on Rosa. The two stared — their attentions were entirely focused on each other. Curt wouldn't have been surprised if they had forgotten he and Otto existed.

"'Course we did," Otto replied, breaking their focus on each other. "We're not the types to just let an old man die. We met up with Blood Moon and they said they'll get rid of any bounties on your heads. Rosa's here to get rid of the curse." Otto gestured toward Rosa as if the Shroud hadn't noticed her yet. "So, gonna let us in?"

"... Sure," the Shroud said finally. She leapt off the wall and began walking out of the alleyway.

Otto glanced at the wall at the dead end. "I'm guessin' you guys moved?"

"Of course. There's no way we'd be staying at an already compromised location."

The Shroud walked them across the street into another, similar alleyway that was just as narrow. This one too was a dead end. She tapped a few bricks, tracing some sort of symbol on each, and passed through the wall just like Curt remembered seeing Oleander do a few days ago.

"They sure didn't move far," Otto remarked as he headed inside.

"Given Oleander's condition, I'm guessing they didn't have a choice," Curt said. Though he was beginning to wonder how many hideouts behind illusionary walls existed.

The Shroud was standing next to the Viper. The room they were in contained a single bed, which was occupied by what looked like Oleander. The old man didn't look good: his forehead was drenched in sweat, his breathing was irregular and shaky, and he was deathly pale.

Rosa entered right behind him, and Curt watched as both the Shroud and the Viper tensed up. Rosa wasn't looking at either of them; instead, she made a beeline for Oleander's bed.

"I assume this is who you want me to cure," Rosa said to no one in particular.

The Shroud and the Viper watched her warily as she approached Oleander's bedside. Rosa raised her hand over Oleander and began to whisper a stream of unintelligible words. Curt watched as dark trails of magic seeped out of Oleander's body, collecting into the palm of Rosa's hand.

Within minutes, Rosa had a ball of dark magic about the size of an apple in her hand. She closed her hand, crushing the orb and causing the magic to dissipate. Already Oleander was looking better. His cheeks had some color in them, and his breathing was steady.

Rosa turned away and began to walk to the exit.

"Wait." The Shroud stepped in front of Rosa's way. "Were you the one who cast that curse on Oleander?"

Rosa looked up at the taller woman. She tilted her head to one side, giving the Shroud a judgmental stare. "If I wanted to kill him with a curse," Rosa said. "then no potion would be able to prolong his life."

"Why you—"

"Lysse, stop," the Viper called out. The Shroud glared at Rosa, but backed off, letting Rosa continue on her way. Rosa drifted right past her, and left the room without another word. Rosa clearly didn't like their company.

The Viper faced Otto and Curt. She looked weary, and Curt guessed she had been busy making sure Oleander wasn't going to kick the bucket anytime soon. But now relief in her expression too.

"Thank you," she said, addressing both Curt and Otto. "for saving Oleander. I honestly didn't think you guys would even return from meeting with Blood Moon. I was about ready to go to their headquarters myself."

"What kind of deal did you cut with them?" The Shroud asked bluntly.

"Deal? Point Blank's an honorable guild. The only deal we cut was with you two. And now that we kept our end of the deal, I'm expecting you two to keep your's," Otto said.

"Of course," the Viper answered.

"As if," the Shroud replied at the same time.

The Viper frowned at her companion. "They deserve it. They just saved Oleander's life and if it's true, we also don't have to hide as thieves anymore."

"If it's true," the Shroud pointed out. "What makes you guys think Blood Moon's going to waive our bounties? How do we know that Rosa chick isn't going to be back any minute now with others to bag us?"

"They are a seedy bunch," Otto agreed, not helping their case.

"But I don't think that's going to happen," Curt interjected. "We weren't even able to confirm that Blood Moon attacked Oleander in the first place."

"Who else could it be?" The Shroud glanced at Oleander's slumbering form. "There aren't many out there that can cast a curse that strong on someone. Rosa the Sinner is one of them. Oleander even said it was Blood Moon who did it."

That was true. Curt remembered Oleander accusing Blood Moon of attacking him, and needing to warn the Viper and the Shroud. Thinking back, Blood Moon never directly denied the accusation either. Still, Rosa came over and dispelled and curse like Layil had promised, so maybe there was still hope the second part of that bargain was going to come true. All he knew was that it was pointless to speculate in the cramped room.

"Even if they're the ones that attacked Oleander, it looks like Blood Moon's keeping true to their word. Rosa came over to cure Oleander, so I'm guessing they'll also clear your names," Curt said.

"I trust you, even if I don't trust Blood Moon," the Viper said. She was looking directly at Curt to his surprise. It seemed like that statement was directed to him, and Otto wasn't included.

"Well I think it's best we get you two signed up as soon as we can," Otto said. "Wouldn't want that Layil kid in Blood Moon to change his mind in the meanwhile."

"Of course. But first, I want to wait for Oleander to wake up. You two can head back. Don't worry, we'll be at your guild's doorstep tomorrow morning," the Viper said. The Shroud was scowling, but said nothing. It seemed like the Viper was the one who called the shots.

Otto yawned. "Sounds great to me. I ain't gettin' enough beauty sleep these days."

"Then good night," the Viper said. The Shroud blatantly ignored them.

"Y'know," Otto said as he was leaving. "You're a lot nicer than I thought for someone called 'the Viper'."

The Viper's lips curled into a smile, but Curt could tell her eyes weren't smiling. "Being 'the Viper' has its uses," she said.

----

Layil drummed his fingers on the armrest of his chair as he waited for Rosa to return. He gazed outside the window, where the curtains had been drawn back to allow a nice view of the Guild District at night.

Staying awake earlier that day had been worth it. To think that there wasn't just one, but several humans from above the barrier. Not only that, but one of them bore an uncanny resemblance…

A rap on the door took Layil out of his thoughts. Rosa entered.

"It's done," she said. She began to close the door and take her leave — Rosa never was the talkative type. But then she paused.

Not bothering to turn around, she asked, "Are you sure this was alright?"

"No, but the situation's changed. We'll deal with the Order when the time comes. In any case, I think the Grand Guild Tournament might actually turn out to be quite interesting. In fact, I think Blood Moon will actually be participating — for fun, of course."

"Of course." Rosa didn't exactly smile, but Layil could tell the sentiment was there. He knew she'd be happy with anything that'd upset the Order. Rosa excused herself and closed the door, leaving Layil alone once more.

He'd get Blood Moon's name in the tournament registry later. There was no rush; after all, things like laws and deadlines didn't exactly apply to their guild. The most concerning thing right now was to see if that one fallen human was really who Layil thought he was.

----

"I'd like y'all to give a warm welcome to our new members, Vanessa — previously known as 'the Viper' — and Lysse — previously known as 'the Shroud', Otto declared as he entered the room with both women in tow.

Vanessa smiled at the small crowd of guild members before her, but Lysse gazed around the room with a look of disinterest. Curt wondered where there tenth member was going to stay. With the newest additions to the guild, assuming both were rooming together, the next member would have to stay with either Curt or Tera.

"To think I'd be joining a guild," Vanessa said. From the way she spoke, she sounded almost happy.

"Feh." Lysse clearly didn't share the same feelings. "From what I'm told you only need us to fight in that tournament. Once that's over, I'm out."

"Great," Otto said, acting like Lysse didn't say anything. "You guys can take that free room over there. Once you get settled and everything, this guild could use some funds, so I hope you lot are ready to work right away." He glanced over at everyone else. "That goes for all of you as well."

"Work? Don't we still need a tenth member?" Curt asked.

Otto shrugged. "Haven't gotten a lead on a tenth yet, so 'til then, might as well earn some cash. Guild funds been hurtin' lately."

"The kitchen has been empty since yesterday," Bauph pointed out.

Lysse groaned. "What kind of broke-ass guild did I just join?"

"We gave them out word, Lysse," Vanessa chided. "Besides, it's not like we're strangers to working for food."

"Honest work is an excellent way to keep ourselves humble," Xujen said. "A man should earn his meals."

"Well, so long as it means I don't have to shell out my personal funds," Tera said.

"So, what's guild work like anyways?" Jesse asked.

Curt reflected on the time when it was just him and Bauph, chasing an old woman's rabbit through the streets of Endyre for a few measly coins. Since they were still technically a D-rank guild despite surviving an encounter with Blood Moon and winning a duel against Ancient World, he figured the jobs available to them were of the same caliber.

"Let's just say it's work," Curt said.