Party Coordination (Part 1)

Although Ye Ci had repeatedly talked about how little she cared about being the top brass, as things stood, even if she wanted to sit around and be a larrikin, it would all turn bottom end up. With everyone taking a squiz at her, she opened up the command system's voice chat. She cleared her gob and put it out in layman's, "This BOSS has 3 stages. But before I get onto that, let me first yabber on where everyone should be pozzied."

"During the first part, everyone remain still. Actually, most BOSSes are fought like this, so it ain't much of a problem; the tough bit lies in where to stand." Ye Ci stood by the billabong and gestured to three points, informing the melee, ranged, and healers of their respective pozzy. She then continued, "Once the fight gets to the second part, the BOSS will summon clones. The boofhead will then pull the BOSS over to this point, where the healers are pozzied, while the healers group up with the ranged classes. You c*nts then continue to go hard out without moving around. When the third part approaches, the boofheads will need to kite the BOSS around the billabong in a large circle, with everyone else standing within the circle. If you get poisoned, quickly run over to the boofhead's side and transmit the poison to the BOSS. Healers, remember to keep fixing them up. As for whether or not there is a fourth part, save that for after the fight. As long as we beat these three stages, we'll be winners."

Ye Ci's commands were kept short and sweet. She didn't have a habit of dealing with trifling things either. She believed that the drongos would be able to keep it in their heads if they did it themselves. If she needed to get into the nitty gritty, then they'd never be able to tie their laces.

Ye Ci gave everyone a 5 minute smoko to prepare. The members who camped up with Ye Ci promptly assigned all of their potions and single-target skills to a hotkey.

One of the members who was partying with them for the first time clearly had no clue when she saw someone next her getting work done. As a result, she asked him, "Happy, what are you doing?"

Happy Family was an oldie; naturally, he knew the in and out of Ye Ci's habits. However, he didn't have a Buckley's chance on how to deal with a newbie following Ye Ci for the first time, and hence put it out to Naturally Cute while he prepared, "Leader is letting us do sh*t on our own, were you deaf?"

"What? Aren't we already done?" Naturally Cute was clearly used to doing nothing herself. Usually, Mi Lu and Overflowing Ink would run a virtual kindie with the party and she was very dependent on this kind of leader.

"Already done?" Happy Family glanced at Naturally Cute. "Have you set your single-target skills to a hotkey? Have you recast your BUFFs? Did your munitions automatically get restocked? Where did you put your contingency potions?"

"This… Shouldn't the missus remind us about all of it? And wouldn't they tell us when we need to do it?" Although Naturally Cute couldn't tell the broad side of a barn if she was looking at it, she also started copying everything that Happy Family was doing.

"You haven't joined up under Leader's command before, right?"

"I haven't, this is my first time." Naturally Cute was also a huntress. Her eyes shone when he mentioned Ye Ci. "Guild Leader Gongzi is my idol. I get in line for a party every day just so I can get a perve. Seeing her makes me wetter than the underside of a dinghy, I'm just stoked..."

Naturally Cute had yet to stop yabbering on before Happy Family bluntly ended her dribble. "Clean out your ears, there's only one way to put Leader's command—simple. Were you listening to her strats just now? That's all Leader says. Once it starts, you won't hear her chirp in the command chat, nor anything else you spoke of…"

"Huh? Then… Then when should I do anything I'm readying?" Having been given the short stick by Happy Family, Naturally Cute had already gotten cranky. "Like this… Won't we cark it like this?"

"If you don't want to cark it then you better learn quick." Happy Family let out a sigh. "I was once like you, not used to doing it myself. However, after dying a couple times, I learned to progress a bit on my own. I needed to learn and just do it; only then did I become better."

"But… But…" Hearing Happy Family's statement, Naturally Cute became even more worried. "If I die, will Leader… will Leader rip on me?" Naturally Cute gave a lot of sh*t about Gongzi You's mood. "It was hard yakka to even join her group. If… if I cark it, will she kick me to the curb?" She was getting closer and closer to pissing herself thinking about it. She even started shaking like a dog.

"Pfffft, don't get your knickers in a knot, Leader won't drop you. Though she might give you special treatment if you cark it too much." Happy Family consoled her immediately. "You should know, Gongzi You is a freak character. If you're in the firing line for special treatment, it won't be pretty…"

"But… But I want her to give me special attention." When Naturally Cute heard that she wouldn't be sent packing even if she died a lot, she felt relieved. Moreover, when she heard that she might be given special treatment, she started feeling frisky. She clutched her mug, growing red. "Will she give me her special treatment as long as I keep carking it?"

"You're not planning to f*ck this up on purpose to try and get a root with Gongzi, are you?" Happy Family saw through Naturally Cute's intentions straight away.

"No way, no way."

"I give zero f*cks if you want to kick it, but have a ponder—If the whole team were to be dusted because of your feeding, even if Leader and the commanders don't tell you off, would you be able to stand tall with everyone giving the stink eye?" Happy Family immediately advised Naturally Cute to give up on her dipsh*t, poon-chasing dream.

"Eh…" Naturally Cute stared wide-eyed at him, dumbfounded.

"There's just a packet of noodles left, everyone hurry the f*ck up with your sh*t. Those who need arrows or spellcasting materials quickly go to the mercho over there and stock up." Faced with Ye Ci's silence, Mi Lu and Overflowing Ink couldn't let the kettle boil over. They were the most familiar with their group's circumstances, so they immediately spoke up and put a boot up everyone else.

Ye Ci just flicked her gaze over to the two without a word. Only after arse met floor did she apathetically say, "Was there a need to remind them?"

"There are a lot of them who don't know what to do. If we don't tell them now, wouldn't it come back to bite us in the arse?"

"An elite team should not need reminding."

"But we're not quite elites yet…"

"You guys should believe in your team, believe in each team member, and believe that they are elite." Ye Ci smirked. "We are clearing a dungeon, not leading kindie kids around. If you have to play teacher, you'll bugger yourselves."

"Leader, we're still not convinced on them." Mi Lu and Overflowing Ink couldn't be as laid back as Ye Ci.

"To clear a dungeon, you must be ready to cark it. If you're shaking thinking of failure then you won't be able to make it. This is like letting them loose in the wild. Those who are able to adapt will become brick sh*t houses, those who can't adapt will naturally kick it on their own. You need to barrack for them, then it'll be harder for them to fail."

Mi Lu and Overflowing Ink glanced at one another, seriously pondering over Ye Ci's words.

When Ye Ci had shoved the last snag in her gob, she stood up and clapped her hands together. Just as she was about to call out to everyone so they could start fighting, she received a private message.

The private message was from Unbridled Willow. His voice was mono, leaving his mood to question. "22 mil, real dollarydoos."

"What? You think the 20 mil I quoted is too little?" Ye Ci was gobsmacked when she heard the price.

"20 mil is the amount you wanted. The other 2 mil is so you don't yabber on about it, as well as make sure that the video won't fall into the lap of any other guilds." Unbridled Willow naturally was a stingy tight arse so of course there was extra.

"No worries about that." Ye Ci promptly restricted the video-recording function of all the group. This way, no one would be able to record their screen apart from her. However, she let more out. "What made you agree with my price?"

Unbridled Willow shut up like a bolted door for a while. He then said, "Someone once said to me that if I want to win at something I have to give everything for it."

Ye Ci snapped back, "Unbridled Willow, what you should be saying is: If a problem can be resolved with wads, it shouldn't be called a problem."

Unbridled Willow nearly had his jaw fall off its hinges.

Unfortunately, Ye Ci didn't continue to slow roast him, instead straightforwardly saying, "Since you've quoted me 22 mil, I'll seem like a b*tch if I keep blasting you so I'll stop. We'll settle on 22 mil, but… I want a down payment of 10 mil first."

"Down payment? What? Gongzi You, you reckon you'll cream it so much that you want half the moolah now?" Unbridled Willow took a deep breath. "What happens if you f*ck it up? What if you can't get First Blood?"

"These aren't your problems." Ye Ci groaned in discontentment. She was mad as a cut snake over these blokes who wouldn't stop b*tching when doing business. It was simpler than putting two together, why be so f*cking difficult? "You should only care about handing over the moolah and getting what you want, I'll care about getting the moolah and giving the goods. This is some simple sh*t. If you can't build a bridge, we can cancel. Not like I'm losing anything."

Needless to say, Unbridled Willow knew he was up sh*t creek. He really couldn't afford to p*ss off this woman. How did he have to rely on her to not go cactus? Although he didn't want to, he could only be taken by the ear in the end. "Give me your bank details."

"Just change it for tokens and send it directly to me." Bank details? Ye Ci wasn't foolish enough to hand her privo to these people from the net. "Just take the fee directly from the pay, I'll accept all the moolah in tokens."

Although this way would take a large commission, the service charge really wasn't much compared to her life. She only had ankle deep ties to Unbridled Willow. Even if he was a mate, with the net separating them, who knew what he really was like? Having gone through the sh*t with Thousand Sunsets, Ye Ci could be considered an oldie at this. When facing a tall poppy with some backing like him, she might be able to avoid him as an ordinary sheilah. However, if she revealed her privo to him, wouldn't that be the same as showing Unbridled Willow herself nuddy? If he was true blue then it was fine, but if he was dim in the headlights like Thousand Sunsets, would she have a shred of peace in the future?

As for Thousand Sunsets… Ye Ci thought that he probably wouldn't let his privo leak out to Unbridled Willow, even if he were to be dragged by a bull bar. They were enemies, bloody full on enemies in it for the same thing. There would be no chance to stop Unbridled Willow from sniffing him out and stirring the pot were he to ever to get his privo from him. It's all a game, but it was bound to be a fist up if they ever met.

Unless Thousand Sunset was a drongo, he would keep a tight leash on all of his privo.

"Alright, I'll exchange 50 mil tokens for you in a bit." Unbridled Willow didn't seem to think as much as Ye Ci had just now, agreeing to Ye Ci's request before giving the flick. "Oh, that's right, I had something to quiz."

"What is it?"

"What's with you and Gleaming Sunshine and Leftie?" Unbridled Willow had investigated the sh*t between Ye Ci and Thousand Sunsets, so he was well aware of both Dong Yin and Yi Cang. However, he still didn't have the clout to get it done in the real world with his current load, so he was still unsure about Ye Ci's relationship with them.

"Why, are you a sticky beak?"

"Just curious."

Would Unbridled Willow be asking for no reason? Like f*ck. Ye Ci knew this, but she wasn't sure why Unbridled Willow would ask about them out of the blue. Ye Ci muttered to herself faintly, 'this ain't the truth, but it ain't a lie': "Former acquaintances."

These words, Unbridled Willow naturally would not believe it to be fair dinkum. However, he also wouldn't think it was an outright yarn. He was a bright bloke, so when he heard Gongzi You say this, he could more or less guess that Ye Ci's relationship with them wasn't ankle deep. At least, that's how it had been yonder ago.

As a result, he couldn't sit still on it. He said, giving a flag, "Those two seem to have put a lot of money into Steel Blooded Battle Spear. I always think that throwing full dollarydoos into the game ain't in the spirit…"

Ye Ci stopped the bludger before he finished, casually throwing out a line, "If they get stuck in a hole it's on them."

Unbridled Willow liked Ye Ci's answer like vegemite on toast. Gongzi You's words kicked the nagging in his head. With Gongzi You as a magnet on a board, he could cease his cr*p with Thousand Sunsets. All in one move.

Unbridled Willow killed the convo window. Ye Ci was gobsmacked. Dong Yin and Yi Cang was actually throwing a truck of moolah at Thousand Sunsets. Just how much were they going to get bitten in the arse for this? But when she thought about it again, they were up sh*t creek and she had no reason to get bogged down with them. She reckoned that her info was somewhat on the tail end. She had been completely blindside to the fact that they had been making such large movements. As a result, she let all the group members prepare for another smoko, while she herself hurried over to Liu Chang to ask her quietly, "I caught that Dong Yin and Yi Cang have been sending dollarydoos to Thousand Sunsets?"

Liu Chang spun her head to look at Ye Ci, having a ponder before saying, "It seems like it. My mum encountered that c*nt Yi Cang the other day and he show pony'd off to her. When my mum got back, she spent the evening raving on about how their family was living with silver, putting dosh into the game to earn even more, and we're bloody bogans, blah blah…" Liu Chang rolled her eyes. "Listening to her got me so cranky I stopped giving her the time of day, but it sounds like what you've got."

Ye Ci had a cackle. "You're a bogan? You've been making mint every day for the past few months now, you saying you blew it all?"

Once her fat purse was mentioned, Liu Chang became full of face and she chuckled. "What's up? Did that c*nt sniff you guys out too?"

"Don't think so, at least my oldies haven't said anything about it. Oh right, do you know how much moolah they threw down?"

Liu Chang clutched her head, mentally confirming it for a bit before yabbering. "It should be at least half of the two families' combined estates. You also know that although Dong Yin and Yi Cang's rellies aren't super loaded, they still have f*cking millions worth, so… it should be a f*ckload."

"They really are having a go at this…" Ye Ci also couldn't help but sigh.

"Throwing dosh into a game really isn't a dog pouring a drink. Fate's currently a massive share in the market. Dong Yin and Yi Cang's fathers are both blokes in suits, and would naturally be pretty crystal over this. Moreover, it seems like Dong Yin and Yi Cang are still getting some returns from the game, so…" Liu Chang ended her drone early, but believed that Ye Ci would understand what she was getting on about.

"Bloody oath." Ye Ci grinned like a dead fox. Originally, she had only wanted to help teach Dong Yin and Yi Cang a lesson, but now she was going full ball. She definitely had to beat this dungeon before dark. After she got First Blood for the dungeon, future events might not need her to rearrange the magnets.

Unbridled Willow wanted to f*ck up Thousand Sunsets completely, so he obviously wouldn't let Dong Yin and Yi Cang off scot free. They were likely jump off the wagon in the end. She had merely been thinking of just giving them a smack, however, now things were up sh*t creek without a paddle in sight…

Let alone moving the magnets, now she felt like she didn't have the board either.

Ye Ci gulped down some air. She hadn't wanted to mangle them but they had ultimately jumped in the deep end. C*nts f*cking themselves like this was quite ironic.

"Siren's gonna blow, you should finish up." Ye Ci lowered her eyes and gave it to Liu Chang, then went and f*cked off towards the rest of the group. As Liu Chang stood there watching her boot dust, it was crystal clear in her mind that although Ye Ci seemed to no longer want hair or hide with Dong Yin and Yi Cang, deep in the guts, she still didn't want them to end up cactus.

Unfortunately, the world is a coin toss.

Although Liu Chang didn't understand what problems Thousand Sunsets was facing at the moment, from the many times Dong Yin had tried to buy strat books from her in private, it was dog's balls to see that Thousand Sunsets had gotten bogged down in trouble. If this continued to turn things tail up… it would probably end up bringing in Dong Yin and Yi Cang's sheds.

Liu Chang once again conjured up Yi Cang's sharp words that day, and her heart ached like a knife was business end through it. She took a deep gulp, 'Fine, let's just leave it like that.' After all was said and done, they weren't catching a lift down the same road. This was bloody enough.