Chapter 29 – The Pirate Queen (And her Semi-Faithful Doctor)

Guilds, especially magic guilds, cost a phenomenal amount of Jewels to function normally. Mages naturally can cause massive amounts of damage simply through completing missions, and because of this, many people can request for compensation through the Magic Council. As such, it was common practice for the Magic Council to bill the magic guilds who caused said damage. Though, this bill sometimes –well, most times– ended up being more than the compensation asked for. Locki had heard of many magic guilds that went under due to mismanagement of funds even when they had plenty of strong mages.

This was only one avenue out of many for a magic guild to hemorrhage funds.

Locki had dipped his toes in a multitude of different things that required money. From paying his slowly growing information network, managed by Daki and Berrel, to buying wood to use his [Carpentry] skill to actually make some repairs to his old guild house.

"You've only been in Hargeon for a week… Why, must I ask, do you need funds for another clean-up operation? Do you know how hard it is to scrub magic signatures from a crime scene?" Guildmaster Wonnifel's voice asked monotonously. Locki was rather surprised with how she could sound so clinical about the issue; he expected her to push back more after he asked the same thing for the fifth time.

"Well, you know how operations with Dark Guilds normally go. You can't help these things. Besides, there should only be the guy's magic signature there." Locki assured easily. He had found, rather surprisingly, that his Curse didn't leave any evidence of its use behind to mages, and his [Enchanting Speak] seemed invisible as well.

The only problem would be Wonnifel's reaction. He knew that their partnership was founded from her misconceptions about Ultear's capabilities, and the second he showed any sign of reneging on the deal, there was no doubt in his mind that she would use any and all evidence she could to destroy him. But, that was perfectly fine for him. All he needed from their deal was time; it was the same with his deal with Drumlowe.

"... You do realize how much you have taken from me, guildmaster Wyn." She said slowly, drawing out his name as if it were a curse. "I have given you much despite no sign of reciprocation. Do not abuse this privilege."

Locki held back a scoff at how pretentious she was. "When you find the whole body of your S-rank, we can talk. For now, your best option is to wait."

It was a flimsy excuse that only really worked when compounded with Locki's [Enchanting Speak] as well as a convincing play with Daki and Gyutaro's assistance. Of course, Locki knew he played a dangerous game. At any moment, he could slip up and then he'd be in deep waters, and he didn't trust Drumlowe to take him out of every situation he found himself in. The man might even let things happen to him just to prove a point.

"Very well, I will defer to your knowledge on Time Magics." Locki breathed an internal sigh of relief at her words. Wonnifel continued on. "Though, I will tell you that the Rune Knights stationed in Hargeon have been tipped off that a ship full of kidnapped girls has set off towards that Pirate Queen you have been so enamored with."

"You don't say." Locki clicked his tongue. The blonde knew exactly what she was talking about; it was him who took the ship, after all. Though, it was supposed to be a secret. He held an aggravated sigh as he already had an idea who the culprit who spilled the information was. "Thanks for the heads up."

Locki hurriedly cut off the connection to Rose Tyrant's guildmaster as he turned the white orb in his hand. It was the only Tier 3 Blue Prism he had gotten as things cooled down around his guild, and he confirmed his idea that Tier 3's definitely had something to do with the guild aspect of his [Dimensional Guild System]. Mentally, he pulled up his [Guild Stats] to check over his progress.

[Scarlet Hand]

A very small guild with an emphasis on loyalty

Guild Leader: Locki Wyn

Fame: Minor Guild (Possible Subordinate)

Mooks: 10

Members: 3

[Levels]

Ground :: LVL 2

Effects – Can see the status of any being that steps through the main doors

Bound Items – [Limitless Communications Unit]

The white orb was part of an item called a [Limitless Communications Unit] that appeared from his Tier 3 Blue Prism had caused his guild's ground floor to become level 2. He had thought there would be another upgrade in the floor's effects, but it turned out that even Tier 3's have a random aspect to them that he didn't have enough information about.

However, Locki already fell in love with the item he gained. It was simple and straightforward. So long as the main unit was unbroken, he could connect to any communications Lacrima or sub-orbs that popped off the [Limitless Communications Unit] through those very same sub-orbs without any input of Magic or Lacrima. A line of communication that cared not about the distance between the two points, and could even reach people in Natural Magical Phenomena, like the Calm Sea. A perfectly free and unlimited amount of communications.

The time of wasting money on Lacrimas for communication was a thing of the past! Though. He now had more money to burn on other necessary things…

"Guildmaster…" Gyutaro cut into his musing, stepping away from the wall he had been leaning against. "Should we deal with that girl now?"

Locki passed the demon a glance, humming slightly as he thought about it. They were currently within the Calm Sea; an area notorious for its ability to tamper with Communications Lacrimas. It was perhaps the best chance they had beyond getting a Wizard Saint to help them like Locki had wanted. After all, he had confirmation that Gildarts was notified he had a lead.

"We'll see how our talks with this Rebecca go." Locki shrugged. "I don't want the traitor to spill our location and possible surprise attack when the going gets tough."

Gyutaro nodded along before he gestured in the area Locki had held up the [Limitless Communications Unit]. "After that, it'll be them, right?"

"... Right." Locki agreed. He was still a little apprehensive about his decision. They had gotten strong, but they were not strong enough to completely stomp out all the guilds in Evermont. At the moment, he was too preoccupied with tying up the dangerous variable that was the Tower of Heaven.

"We're not strong enough." Gyuatro stated easily. Though, he spoke softer than normal, looking around the empty room as if he expected Daki or Kagura to be listening in.

Locki nodded solemnly. "Yeah… They have us beat in manpower, they have ties to Fiore's military, and I am not sure if Kagura and you can take on their S-rank mages. We might need to think about how we can appease Drumlowe while we cut off the relationship with Wonnifel."

Gyutaro grunted. "The two voices from my sword spoke to me again." The demon started, tapping the [Zanpakuto] at his waist. "They said I could be S-rank if I knew their name… but they won't tell me."

Locki pursed his lips. He knew Gyutaro wanted to know if he knew, but the young man knew nothing. If he wanted answers, he would need to hunt down who he thought had given him the letter in the first place, and that meant he needed Ghost. However, Ghost was presumably in Desierto with his brother.

"I'll try to find it myself." Gyutaro said, seeing Locki's conflict.

Locki hummed in agreement. "Yes, let's focus on the things in front of us first. How long till we are–"

He cut himself off as a knock came from the door to the room. The two turned to the door, and Locki looked at Gyutaro, pointing at his nose. Gyutaro nodded, approached the door, and signaled to the blonde in a way to signify that it was Ultear.

"Guildmaster, are you in there?" Her voice filtered in the next second. "I was told you were hiding out here because of seasickness, but I came up to tell you that we should be getting close."

"Right, I'll be out in a bit." Locki answered as one of the Light Lacrima on the ceiling flickered a bit. The young man narrowed his eyes slightly. "Max, stay with her. We'll need you to make a move when I give the signal."

There was no verbal confirmation that the Ghost-type accepted, but the lights dimmed once more before they returned to normal. Some might say that Locki was abusing Max's loyalty, forcing the ghost to stay hidden for his own agenda. However, Locki knew that Ghost-types like Haunter, according to his little booklet, enjoyed subterfuge missions as well as fed off negative feelings that came from enemies to their trainer. Max also slipped a few nightmares into the spy whenever he felt bored, too, so Locki knew that the Pokemon had more than enough to keep itself occupied.

Locki gave another once over of the room before he left with Gyutaro. The two walked down the hall filled with rooms, but Locki moved slowly as he braced himself against the sway of the boat.

Going below deck to stop his seasickness wasn't just an excuse to fool Ultear, the young guildmaster had wanted to avoid the sea trip in the first place. However, he anticipated that Ultear might try to use the information against him the second he thought he got a lead. In a way, it was an impromptu trip, but he supposed he could take advantage of the Calm Sea's properties if needed.

In his musings, Locki paid attention to Gyutaro. He knew he still needed to talk to the demon about… Well, he wasn't too sure. Locki was still getting used to the idea of taking care of his guild members, so he was a little out of his comfort zone when it came to settling whatever was on Gyutaro's mind. Kagura was easy since she seemed to be able to lean on Validator for support, but Gyutaro's only support was his sister who seemed much more adjusted in her own way.

"So," Locki held out the word, feeling abnormally awkward as Gyutaro regarded him seriously. "H- how are things? Training and whatnot."

"They're passable." Gyutaro shrugged.

Locki pursed his lips. He knew neither of them were ones for small talk, and he should have expected such a response. The blonde knew he needed to be direct to actually get an answer. "Right, right, sorry. I should have just been direct about it."

Gyutaro raised an eyebrow, curious.

"You haven't seemed to fit in like your sister. I don't think you've done anything but train, follow my orders, and sleep. Honestly, I can say I appreciate your work, but seriously Gyutaro… do you actually have anything you want to do?"

Locki frowned as Gyutaro's steps slowed. The demon regarded Locki oddly, and the blonde could see confusion in their eyes. Locki sighed in defeat as he saw this. Even Gyutaro had no idea about his actions; they probably were done routinely.

"I want to protect my sister…"

Locki looked at his guild member. They both knew he was serious about that, but Locki felt like it was an excuse to shift all his responsibility to that singular objective.

The blonde shook his head. "I mean, did you have anything you liked to do when you were a human or demon? Hobbies or something?"

Gyutaro's silence spoke more than any answer. Carefully, the demon opened his mouth. "I… had retreated into a deep sleep when we were demons. Sometimes I slept for months or years, and I only woke to protect her when were attacked. I don't think I ever wanted anything else, but now this world is –as you have said before– abnormally dangerous, so I cannot sleep like before. I have to train and protect her properly this time."

Slowly, Locki came to a conclusion about demons. They were beings of obsession. Like Daki's obsession with excess, being above others, and vanity, Gyutaro's obsession was on his sister. It was an oddly pure outlook for someone who supposedly ate humans, but it seemed to have consumed the demon.

Gyutaro's standoffish nature only evolved the more he spent time in their world. He never wanted anything more than to protect his sister, and now Locki pushed the idea that in protecting the Scarlet Hand guild he could protect his sister.

The problem came when Locki understood what the demon meant by "protecting." Gyutaro didn't protect his sister like a knight in shining armor, he killed all their enemies till nothing was around to threaten them. Locki felt that the demon constantly held himself back from the habits he formed in his original world with the reason that it was too dangerous here, so Gyutaro might have been feeling stifled from his previous modus operandi.

However, Locki couldn't fix that. In fact, he preferred Gyutaro's current personality over a wild dog who bit everything that came near. As such, the young guildmaster kept silent as he didn't want to ruin his current situation even if it meant Gyutaro was uncomfortable.

In the awkward silence, Locki experienced relief as they came above deck. Gyutaro had changed into his long, black cloak, following a couple paces behind him. The demon curled into his cloak as the sun blazed in the sky above and reflected off the abnormally still water around them.

It was one of the facets of the Calm Sea's Magical Phenomena. Luckily, they weren't too far from the supposed island that the Pirate Queen stayed at, so all they needed to do was row the rest of the way.

Locki found most of the rescued women milling about the deck, excitedly looking towards the approaching shore. In the middle of them was an animated Ultear as she narrated her exploits in one of the C-rank missions she took with Daki. Said female demon had taken to the abused girls easily, and Locki could see the sheer respect in their eyes as they gazed at a silent Daki who caught sight of him the second he left the innards of the ship.

He gave a nod to her, making a point to look for Kagura. Daki didn't move but a strip of cloth snaked out of her thick cloak and pointed upwards. Locki followed her motions, finding Kagura as she waved down at him from the very top of the mast of the ship with a wide smile on her face.

For a second, he didn't really know how to respond, feeling both amused and worried about the girl. His feelings went straight to terror as he saw the girl leap from the top of the mast and drop straight to the floor without a second of hesitation.

Locki moved to catch her, but he quickly cooled his panic as Validator hovered in the air, giving Kagura something to hold onto right before she hit the deck. He could only blink as the girl chuckled along with a couple of the rescued girls in Daki's group.

"Don't do that again." Locki said, knowing he invested too much emotion in her antics. An almost S-rank girl took a different sort of maintenance to make sure she didn't get into any crazy situations.

Kagura smiled, nodding happily. "Sure, guildmaster! I was the one to see the island first, though, so wouldn't it be better for me to be on lookout?"

Locki was almost speechless about how cheeky she got. Who did she even learn this from? He narrowed his eyes on Ultear and Daki. Ultear gave him a sly grin while Daki created an arrow of cloth and pointed it at the black-haired time mage.

"To think I was sold out by my own friend." Ultear swooned dramatically, earning an unamused stare from Locki.

"We're here." Daki said, ignoring Ultear's actions.

Right at that moment, they arrived at the shores of the island. A dock of stone had been raised away from the shores, allowing them to tie down their ship and put down a walkway. Locki hurried his guild off the ship behind the excited women, and the first thing that caught his eye were two individuals who stood on the docks, waiting for him.

The first was a fairly tall man who seemed like he had an unhealthy obsession with stitches. He was pale as a corpse, and he somehow pulled off silver-gray hair without looking old. A pair of thick glasses covered his face, looking like shining disks or white in the light of the sun. Gyutaro and Daki immediately covered their noses as they neared him, whispering something about "heavy smoker."

Adding to his odd look was his black turtleneck that looked like it had been stitched together from multiple different clothes. Still, Locki would say that, beyond the patchwork lab coat he wore over his shoulders, his most prominent feature was the abnormally large screw that seemed to go straight through his skull at the temples.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, the short girl who stood next to him with a large grin on her face. Her skin was somehow paler than the corpse-like man, seemingly glowing in the sun. Though, it made the series of pink tattoos on her skin stand out even more.

A large jacket hung over her shoulders with what looked like a stylized "ER" painted on its chest in a green that matched her hair. Looking a little closer, Locki felt like her skin seemed a little off. It looked almost artificial, and from how her eyes were a vibrant red and green, he bet that it had something to do with where she came from.

The green-haired girl stepped forwards, ignoring everyone around her as she pulled out a hand from her thick jacket and promptly floored him as he stared at the hand. It wasn't as odd as things came when he dealt with mages; a longer-than-normal hand with gold plating wasn't that abnormal when you got down to it. However, it was the fact that the hand triggered his [Dimensional Guild System] that drew cause for concern.

[Dextrous Militech Hands – "Pilar's Shit"]

A well-maintained piece of cyberware that has been transplanted by an above-average doctor.

Effects: Beyond sentimental value, they are pretty useful.

"Something wrong, Choom?" The girl asked, forcefully grabbing his hand and shaking it. "There, we met. I guess you can call me the Pirate Queen if it tickles you in all the right places, but the name's Rebecca, Becca, too. I heard you had been lookin' for me."

Locki was caught flat footed as he tried to process everything going on, smiling automatically before things became awkward. "Yeah. I guess you can say that. Is there somewhere we can…" he looked around, trying not to look at Ultear. "Talk without anyone listening in?"

"Sure, lemme get the detes of the mission."

Locki looked between her and the man with the screw in his head. He already had a feeling that it would be an interesting conversation as the [Dimensional Guild System] gave him their basic information.

"I'll also be part of the talks, if you don't mind, of course." The stitched man said.

[Franken Stein]

A genius doctor who has a disturbing habit. He is a deranged man who toes the fine line between order and madness. He desires for more interesting experiments from his guildmaster.

Best Abilities: [Soul Control], [Close Combat], [Dissection]

Mood: [Confused], [Intrigued]

Bond: 10%

Locki's lips twitched as he read Stein's information. Why did he sound like a horrible villain? Actually, why did most of the people he saw through the system seem like morally reprehensible people as well? He had two ghosts that liked chaos and bloodshed, twin demons who ate people, a tyrant who seemed into brainwashing. Now, there was a mad doctor and…

[Rebecca "Becca"]

An Edgerunner who primarily worked in Maine's crew in Night City. She reeled in most of her tendencies when she had a run-in with Adam Smasher, but now she wants to cash in on a promise of a hot date.

Best Abilities: [Marksmanship], [Cyberware]

Mood: [Confused], [Excited]

Bond: 43%

Beyond the completely confusing backstory, Locki didn't really have words for the rest. Why was her bond higher than even Max's? Well, Locki felt these talks would be interesting at least as he followed the two people who he suspected to be from different worlds with an annoyed Ultear who waited with Daki and Gyutaro.

"Kagura, come along." Locki said as the arguably strongest member of his group hurried behind him. If things ground to a halt, he needed to have his strongest force behind him.