Dubious Bedfellows (2)

Young-ho finally finished the benches and weights we ordered as well as the ones from Jezabel. Secretly, I move the miniature set out to the forest, where I handed them off to Inari. With my obligations fulfilled, a sense of ease overtakes me. We still meet up in the woods to hunt and meditate with the fairies but otherwise remain in town. Much to my surprise, no one seems interested in harassing Shinobu. I thought that'd be a whole other ordeal that would need to be resolved, but it looks like the Count has much more important matters to attend to.

We continue our workout in the courtyard for another couple hours until the early afternoon.

"I'm pooped," Shinobu remarks.

"Same here. Do you want to call it a day or go to the dungeon?" I ask.

"Dungeon!" the flower girl shouts from her position on Josh's back. It seems she somehow managed to coerce him into giving her a piggyback ride.

"I'm good either way," I say as I look back and forth between Shinobu and Josh.

"I guess it's fine."

"Okay." They tacitly agree, and we begin heading back home to gear up.

"Where do you think you're going?" Jezabel's cool voice appears from behind. I whip and narrow my eyes at her suspiciously. Though annoyed, she follows suit. I lowered my eyelids further into a scowl. She shoots back with a glare. I squint my eyes so tight that I can barely see and scrunch my face, causing her to crack, and the right side of her lips rises slightly.

"Ha, I win," I declare and quickly make for the compound door.

"Hey, dumbass, get back here. I never said you could leave."

"But I won," I plead.

"What do you think this is?"

"I don't know, but I've got a bad feeling about it." I begrudgingly walk back to the guild master, tapping her foot on the ground.

"It's time to codify your contract with Count Richter."

"See, this is exactly what I was talking about." I try not to make it obvious as I check Shinobu for a reaction. She's surprisingly stoic, so I decide to agree. "Fine, but let's make it quick."

"Good boy." Jezabel smiles with a condescending attitude.

"What am I? A dog?"

"I wish, you'd be less of a pain in the ass if that were the case.

"Okay, first of all, rude. Secondly, I can't help but think it'd be more annoying if I shit on the ground all the time."

"No, it'd be worth it just to have you shut your trap."

"…You got me on that one. Let's go." The three girls all laugh as we head upstairs to her office. Sitting to one side is the notorious Count. The tension in the room is stifling. I flinch as Shinobu grabs the back of my shirt.

"I'm glad you came." A menacing smile rises on his face. I've not dealt with many nobles, but it feels dirty. It's like making a deal with the devil.

"Sure, so what are the terms?" I skip the small talk and get straight to the point. No fluff, no airs, only facts.

"In a hurry, are we?" he pries.

"…"

"Very well. I've got a contract filled out here. All you need to do is sign at the bottom."

"Are you willing to leave a paper trail?" I ask suspiciously.

"If I remain in power, then the paper trail will be meaningless, same goes in the case that I'm exiled."

"Then why the contract?"

"Breaking a contract is a bad look for any new adventurer, no matter the circumstances. Considering I'm on the brink of losing everything, I need you to have some skin in the game."

"Then I'll take a look." I read over the contract, which is written in a straightforward manner; we work under indirect orders from the Count in return for new weapons and armor. All orders go through Jezabel, who will meditate on the contract. I can't help but feel like we're getting angled, so I go over it a couple more times. "What do you think?"

Jezabel sits up in her seat as I direct my question at her.

"I think you're racking him over the coals with this one."

"That's what I like to hear; anyone else want to read it?" The kids shake their heads, and we all sign at the bottom line.

"Good. I look forward to working with you." Richter snatches up the contract and stows it in his robe. "Marshall is fully aware of the deal and the price limitations outlined in the contract. Feel free to stop by his shop and equip yourselves whenever you want."

And with that, he walks out the door without waiting for our response. The room is eerily quiet as we all digest what just happened. Jezabel is the first one to break the silence.

"Considering how sweet this deal is, I'd be remiss if I didn't work you four like a pack of mules. Of course, I won't have you do anything too extreme." She looks at Shinobu very meaningfully with that last sentence.

"Thanks; this will be a lot easier with you looking out for us."

"Whatever." Jezabel dismisses us with a wave of her hand, and we soon find ourselves at the armor shop.

"Welcome back!" Marshall cries. "It's your lucky day! I've got any type of armor you may need."

"Based on how excited you are, I'd say it's your lucky day," I smirk.

"Ha, you may be right. It's hard to make a living just selling leather armor. I've got all these nice sets that just end up collecting dust."

"Why do you have sets like that if you only sell leather armor?"

"Things didn't use to be this way, you know. This town used to be different even five years ago. Back when Ironhead was still active, they were one of several teams that braved the forest."

"What changed?"

"They all died or retired; unfortunately, the forest isn't a place to do long-term exploration."

"So, you think we're going to fail as well?" I ask.