The trio were enjoying freshly cooked steaks on their private table behind the lighthouse tower when Cedez's Voicecast bracelet chimed. She tapped it, and Shash's voice resounded from within.

  “Good day, Lady Astra," the Assassin spoke. "From my understanding Lord Dave is an adventurer, yes?”

  “Yes,” Cedez replied, a dark halo flashing over her head.

  “Very good. Our Guild requires adventurer assistance in a matter of some urgency."

  "What kind of assistance?" she asked.

  "Our Guild is offering urgent Quests that require... discretion and efficiency," Shash said. "We require couriers for package delivery across Shandria. One silver per delivery."

  "Package delivery?" Cedez repeated, her tail twitching. "What kind of packages?"

  "Smoke hexagrams and thunderclaps, Lady Astra," Shash replied smoothly. "Harmless, I assure you.”

  Dave exchanged a wary glance with Remicra. Harmless smoke hexagrams? That sounded about as trustworthy as a necromancer offering free hugs.

  “Smoke and thunder,” Cedez contemplated. “Sounds like you're trying to cause a distraction to perform some kind of crime. Is that all?”

  "There's also another Quest. We require a team of adventurers to… relocate certain individuals, by force. Ten silver per relocated individual."

  "Relocate individuals?" Cedez repeated again. "What exactly does 'relocate' entail?"

  "Merely… ensuring their safety, Lady Astra," Shash’s voice remained carefully bland. "Providing them with… temporary, alternative accommodations outside of the city. For their own protection, of course."

  Remicra growled softly beside Dave, her scales flickering with a suspicious orange.

  “Uh-huh,” Cedez said, her voice deceptively light. "A silver per delivery for smoke and thunder hexagrams, and ten silver per relocated individual? That's… awfully low for such discreet services, Shash. Lord David and his party and my maids are… high-end professionals, you see. We can’t exactly be seen delivering packages like common couriers for peasant wages."

  Remicra snorted in agreement. Dave kept his silence, letting Cedez handle the negotiation.

  "The Undertown Guild is willing to be… generous for this work, Lady Astra," Shash replied after a moment. "For your party, we can offer… three silver per package delivery. And… thirty silver per relocated individual."

  "A gold per package and two gold per relocated individual," Cedez countered without hesitation.

  Another pause.

  “Fine,” the Assassin replied.

  “When does this need to be done?”

  “Today.”

  “I’ll check with my people if they’re available and call you back," Cedez said.

  "Excellent," Shash said. "I look forward to a fruitful collaboration. Payment will be transferred upon confirmation of task completion." The Voicecast connection abruptly cut off.

  Cedez released a pent-up breath. She turned to Dave and Remicra.

  “So, that was… rather ominous,” she commented. “What do you two think? Take the jobs, or tell the Undertown Guild to shove it?”

  “We could use the money,” Dave contemplated. “But how safe would it be to get involved with the Undertown Guild?”

  “Not very,” Cedez said with a small shudder. “Something very big is going down. Shash agreed to pay gold without even bartering. This literally never happened before. The Undertown Guild, as far as I am aware, is in a lot of debt.”

  “Debt to whom?” Dave asked.

  “Other Guilds, Bankers, Highborn Lords, etc,” Cedez said. “Whatever this is, Lord Protector is likely funding it.”

  “What are the chances of us getting caught doing this?” Remicra asked.

  “Pretty high,” Cedez answered. “But we can spend a portion of the gold to bribe the Scruts into looking the other way.”

  “Bribing the Scruts?” Remicra repeated dubiously. “Is that wise?”

  Cedez shrugged, tossing a small mana crystal to Feely, who caught it mid-air with a twirl. “Everyone has a price, Rems. Especially in Shandria. The Watch are terribly underpaid. A bag of gold coins in the hands of the right Scrut Officer will make them suddenly… blind to certain criminal activities. As long as we don’t murder someone, it’s all good.”

  “But if it’s so dangerous that even the Scruts need bribing,” Dave trailed off, chewing thoughtfully on his steak. “Maybe we should just stay out of it. We could take on more Mimic Hunter quests, or something safer. Or Haunted Housekeeper? That one sounds pretty easy and it pays like fifty silver. Plus… we’ll get lots of money once we get the tree out of the Whispering Depths?”

  Stolen story; please report.

  “Dave, darling,” Cedez said. “We need a lot of money, ASAP. Tree excavation is going to take time and money since it’s so deep underground. We need to buy mana crystals for our Kitlix trio, renovate the lighthouse further, promote the cafe, get more mana crystals for me. Mimic hunting and haunted houses are a good start for a beginner adventurer, but aren’t going to cut it. Besides that,” she leaned closer. “Our timeline is accelerating.”

  “Accelerating?” Dave asked. “How and why?”

  “The expansion of Abystall dungeon into Undertown forced every Huntsmaw and princess into the open,” Cedez sighed. “Existing upstairs isn’t cheap. They will likely be coming for us. Plus… I suspect that if we don’t take this job, Shash will just call up my competitors and offer them the gold.”

  “Fine,” Dave conceded. “Let's do it. But we do it my way.”

  “Oh? And what is your way, O wise and mighty Lord Walter?” Cedez asked, tilting her dark head to the side.

  "We will accept the Undertown Guild's offer. But we renegotiate the terms,” Dave said. “Call Shash back. Let me talk to him.”

  Cedez nodded and tapped the Voicecast bracelet.

  “Yes?” The Assassin asked. “Have you reached a decision about…”

  “Good day, Shash,” Dave said, sliding all of his points into Wisdom. “If I understand it correctly, this job has a tight time limit, yes?”

  “Yes,” Shash replied. “The package delivery and people relocation Quest MUST be performed exactly before the noon bell today.”

  “Right. That’s only a few hours away. One Celesteel card,” Dave said. “And our group will do absolutely everything.”

  “Everything?”

  “Yes,” Dave said. “I don’t want anyone else involved in this, especially not Lady Astra’s Shadowmancer competitors from Undertown.”

  “Let me check with my Master,” the voice on the other end of the line fell silent for a minute. “Yes. One Celesteel card. However, since this is a much increased price… The amount of Quests increases accordingly: Your group must demolish abandoned houses between 12 and 1pm, kidnap Infix Guildnet Tower personnel and steal all non-bound Frostix Kitlix from Shandria. Deal?”

  “Deal,” Dave said. “Come to the back of the lighthouse with a map of what needs to be delivered where. I will also require a downpayment of a thousand gold for mission expenses.”

  “Very well,” Shash said.

  Dave hung up on the Assassin.

  “One Celesteel card?” Remicra breathed out. “That’s… that’s…”

  “Enough to buy this lighthouse and your rainbow-bod,” Cedez grinned, clapping. “Enough to hire Earth-mages to unbury the Void tree! Enough to solve all of our problems!”

  “Are you two insane?!” Remicra growled. “How are you going to demolish buildings, deliver Abyss knows how many packages and steal all the Frostix Kitlix in just one morning?!”

  “Cedez can accelerate me with a handshake,” Dave said. “Amplified agility will put me into a timeless state for twenty four hours. I can buy mana-refuelling potions to keep going longer.”

  “You’re not doing everything yourself then,” Remicra said. “I want a handshake too.”

  “You’ll fall into a coma after twenty four hours,” Cedez said.

  “Like I give a shit!” Remicra growled. “I’m not letting Dave do this alone. We’re all going to do this!”

  “But the other princesses…” Cedez began.

  “Aren’t going to do shit,” Dave said. “As long as we move ninety clicks out of Shandria they won’t be able to reach us.”

  Cedez opened and closed her mouth. “They won’t be able to go out by themselves that far, but they can send minions and assassins.”

  “Let them come after us,” Dave said. “We’ll lead them straight into a place where they won’t escape from.”

  “Another dungeon?” Cedez asked.

  “Yes,” Dave nodded.

  They saw a muscular, armored man approaching their table. Cedez vanished the Shadow halo over her head and waved him over.

  “Greetings,” Shash stepped close to the trio and Cedez reignited her anti-scrying halo.

  “Just to check, who exactly are we working for?” Dave asked. “Who is funding these Quests?”

  “Dragoness Emerald Stratos,” Shash replied with a smirk.

  “Stratos…” Cedez blinked. “The crazy adventurer that attacked me at the Adventurers Guild?”

  “The very same,” Shash nodded with a grin. “She’s getting executed at noon today at central square.”

  “Executed?” Remicra blinked. “Shouldn’t she simply be collared for life?”

  “It was discovered that Miss Stratos and her friends were working for centuries in collaboration with the Arx Bank and Necromancer Zalimar,” Shash explained. “They were finally caught by the City Watch Scrutimancers after they attacked you at the Guild, Miss Astra. Their execution will be a public spectacle, to demonstrate the justice and efficiency of Shandria.”

  “So you want us to work for servants of the necromancer?” Cedez hissed. “Are you serious?!”

  “You’re getting paid an exceptionally high rate for this work,” Shash shrugged. “If you don’t want the job, I will offer this Quest to someone who has less concerns. Perhaps Lady Thalass will…”

  Cedez growled.

  “Me and my team are taking the job,” Dave said. “Cedez, don’t argue.”

  Shash unfurled a detailed map of Shandria on the table, weighing down the corners with small, obsidian shards. “Now, to business. Package deliveries are marked in red. There are… forty locations across the city total.”

  “What exactly are these ‘smoke hexagrams’ and ‘thunderclaps’ supposed to do?” Dave asked, leaning closer to the map.

  Shash offered a thin smile. “Merely… theatrical devices, Lord Dave. For dramatic effect. Think of them as… loud announcements. Not dangerous in themselves, but… attention-grabbing.”

  Remicra snorted again. “Sounds perfectly harmless.”

  “Relocation targets are marked in blue,” Shash continued, ignoring Remicra’s sarcasm. “All Guildnet Tower personnel.” He tapped a green circle on a specific Guildnet Mage Tower. “You are to ensure their temporary absence from their posts.”

  “Kidnapping,” Remicra stated flatly.

  Shash blinked, feigning innocence. “Relocation. For their own safety. You must also knock out and relocate everyone from these buildings marked in green. The abandoned homes for demolition are marked in violet. These will be taken down with actual explosives. The demolition could be legal or illegal, but ultimately it doesn't matter to us.”

  “Legal how?” Dave asked.

  “You could rent the land and then tear them down,” the Assassin offered.

  “Demolish buildings?” Dave frowned. “Between noon and one pm? Why?”

  “Again, for dramatic effect, Lord Dave,” Shash repeated. “Think of it as… a symbolic cleansing. A fresh start.”

  Cedez snorted this time. “A fresh start with explosions, kidnappings, and demolished buildings? Sounds less like a fresh start and more like a prelude to a gang war.”

  “Lady Astra has a vivid imagination,” Shash chuckled, though the sound lacked genuine amusement. “There will be no war of any kind. As for the Frostix Kitlix… you are to retrieve them from all across the city. They will appear on this artifact map marked in blue. Their absence will be… temporarily inconvenient, but ultimately beneficial.”

  “Beneficial to whom?” Remicra asked.

  “To those who wish to see Shandria thrive, of course,” Shash replied smoothly. “Lord Dave, Lady Astra, Dragoness Remicra, your Celesteel card awaits you upon task completion. And here is your advance.” He produced a heavy pouch, clinking with the unmistakable sound of mana crystals. “One thousand gold, as agreed.”

  Dave took the pouch, feeling its considerable weight. He glanced at Cedez and Remicra, a silent question in his eyes.

  They were in. Deep in.

  “Alright, Shash,” Dave nodded. “I accept the job. But I could use some more resources…”

  “Which we do not currently possess,” Shash shook his head. “As they are tied up elsewhere at the moment. You must procure your own resources with the gold I have provided. I will be monitoring your progress, making sure that every Quest is completed.”

  “Fine,” Dave said.

  The Assassin stepped away from their table and vanished.