Chapter 174

The Angel Express - 7:43 AM

My mug of hot chocolate was almost completely gone by the time I finished transcribing the last of the directions for the group. Jamie was in her room while Kayla and Jeff played with Corwin in the Depot. Across from me, with an empty cup of coffee and dark bags under her eyes, was Ashley.

“I still don’t know why I have to be up for this,” she grumbled for the fourth time. Her face was down in her arms, muffling her voice.

“Because we’re trying to be welcoming, Ash,” I answered quietly so as to not draw her ire. “And it’s not our fault that you’ve decided you work better at night.”

The Monstersmith started raising her head before putting it back down. She raised a middle finger in my direction instead. “I’ve always worked better when it’s dark out. This isn’t new, and you should have already known that with your trippy future visions, psychic boy.”

“Ah, I’m so glad that nickname stuck,” I said with a thin smile. “And of course I knew, but why would I possibly want to stop you? You do all your best work at night.”

I received a second raised middle finger in response to that, but only laughed as I finished my drink and stood up. Stretching, I walked to Rexxel’s ATM, which was blinking. Thanks to its connection with the system, I knew it was only showing something strange for me. Anyone else looking at it would see the same screen they normally did unless something was different.

Tapping the magic machine, I received a notice that the Auction House had options for me. Selecting it, I looked at the new screen. Many items from the Pharaoh’s tomb, most of which prefixed with the word Golden, were listed as having been sold. I nodded to myself as I withdrew them.

[[Rexxel’s Automated Teller Machine]]

Thank you, guildmaster [Anthony Franklin]. You have withdrawn 22,541 points from the Auction House.

Three items that you have requested are up for auction later this week. They can be purchased directly from the seller(s).

1) Vanishing Dagger (In The Palm skill) - 450 points.

2) Skill Book (Distant Slice) - 1,111 points.

3) Resource Ring (Deep Pool) - 2,200 points.

Would you like to purchase these items?

Yes

No

The skill book was a little on the steep side, but that was no problem. I hit Yes. All three items appeared on the bar beside the ATM and I put 20,000 points into my savings account before I turned my attention to the new arrivals.

I reached for the dagger first. It looked the same as Kayla’s when she received it in Etson, and was a fairly common early game item. The blade was pitch black and curved, and there was no cross guard to protect my hand.

[[Equipped]]

Vanishing Dagger

(+2 Strength, +3 Dexterity, In The Palm skill acquired)

[[Skill]]

In The Palm

You can hide the Vanishing Dagger in its own extradimensional space with a twist of your wrist. Retrieve it with the same motion. The Vanishing Dagger is considered equipped while hidden in this space.

Smiling down at it. I immediately pulled out a Blank Skill Book and turned it into a regular dagger with a misleading name. When I learned the skill after, the only thing that changed was that the hidden object had to be the size of my forearm or smaller. Instead of using the disappointing stats of the original item, I tossed it into my inventory and replaced it with the scalpel.

[[Equipped]]

Scalpel of Angelic Healing

(Angelic item; +10 Dexterity, +3 Constitution, Cut Out The Rot skill acquired, Demon Slayer skill acquired, Surgical Precision passive acquired)

Not only were the stat boosts much better, but it gave me access to the Demon Slayer skill without having to dig through my inventory. Considering what I was expecting to come my way, it was a safe bet that I would need it sooner rather than later. With that out of the way, I opened the skill book and hit Yes.

[[Skill]]

Distant Slice

Attack with a slashing weapon when you activate this skill. A beam of light following the arc of your attack will be fired in a straight line for a distance up to an amount of feet equal to half your Dexterity stat. If Distant Slice lands, deal damage as if you had hit them physically. You can use this skill once every minute, or once every five seconds if your hit points are full.

“And that makes three attack skills,” I said to myself.

“Don’t mutter,” Ashley rebuked, her head still down. “If you got something to say, say it.”

“Will do, Ash,” I replied.

The final item was a thick, black and gold class ring with nothing adorning it except for the aquamarine set on the top. Breaking up the bright blue with white, the pattern on the smooth cabochon cut gem mimicked ripples on a pond. I pulled it onto the ring finger of my right hand, opposite Esaraphelscion’s Love on my left, and brought up the description.

[[Equipped]]

Resource Ring

(Deep Pool passive acquired)

[[Passive]]

Deep Pool

Increase your Mental Points by 25%.

This one was a steal at only 2,200 points. The passive would work with any resource pool a class gave, not just Mental Points. If it had been allowed to go to auction, it would have sold for a lot more with everyone bidding on it. Being a VIP came with a lot of substantial benefits. As I was admiring the gemstone, Sara contacted me with news I had been waiting for.

[[Patron Message]]

They’re coming. By the time you get to the door, they’ll be there.

I’m excited to meet them. I’ve been watching them talk for some time now. She’s nervous, so please be gentle with her.

Sincerely,

Sara

I patted Ashley on the shoulder as I walked by. “They’re here. Can you please grab Jamie from her room?” I requested. She grumbled, but slowly shifted to peer into her empty coffee cup before getting up.

Confident that she could handle this, I started walking towards the door to the Subspace Depot. Corwin came bounding towards me the moment I stepped foot outside of the train, ignoring a flying frisbee to greet me. Leaning down, I started petting him with both hands.

“Are they here?” Kayla asked as she caught the frisbee.

“They are,” I confirmed while she and her husband approached me. Kayla was in her adventuring outfit, which was well put together, but I was happy to see that Jeff was wearing normal clothes. All the different stuff he put on for battle was a bit much, honestly.

With a nod to the both of them, I walked to the door. Jeff ordered Corwin to sit beside him once we were in position, and the dog complied. He wiggled a lot, but was well behaved enough that I gave him the benefit of the doubt.

Opening the door, I took in a deep breath of clean, chilly air. The weather outside was clear, something I didn’t want with a sniper out in the wild, though I couldn’t help but notice that it was very nice out. Patches of blue sky could be seen through the clouds that seemed ever present since we arrived, and the white snow on the ground was dazzling.

I could see Mercury and his little sister heading our way across the street. He was in his full ninja garb with only his eyes uncovered, and I could see the Princess at his hip. The ghost’s reaction to Kayla was still something I was looking forward to. Snapping open my menu, I added the girl to the list of people allowed in.

Bethany, or the one Mercury would introduce as Belladonna Nightshade, was around ten years old. She was bundled in a heavy, oversized jacket to combat the cold. Thick earmuffs covered her ears, and it appeared as though there were pieces of cloth sticking out from underneath. The girl stopped when she saw us. Her brown eyes went wide, and she grabbed her brother’s sleeve. He immediately turned and started moving his hands and fingers at her.

“She’s deaf?” Kayla whispered, recognizing the signs as ASL.

“Since shortly after she was born,” I replied just as quietly. “Not anymore, though. The system restored everything, so she can hear again. That’s… kind of the issue, though.”

Kayla’s brow furrowed. “Overstimulation?” she asked. I nodded. “That poor girl. And their parents?”

I gave her a look, and she sighed before composing herself again. Jeff had a little more trouble, but put on a big, welcoming grin.

Once Mercury was done, he led her into the Subspace Depot and I closed the door behind them. “Good morning and salutations, treasured companions!” he greeted boisterously, signing as he spoke so his sister could keep up with the conversation. “I would like to introduce my sister, Belladonna Nightsha-“

The ninja winced as he was kicked in the shin by his sister. She looked up at him sternly, and he rolled his eyes. “Fine, this little brat is Bethany Langston,” he said. “Bethany, this here is Anthony, the guildmaster, Kayla, second in comma-“

Mercury trailed off as his eyes tracked something invisible between us. Kayla and Jeff both gave me a confused look, and I offered them a smile in return. The teenager lowered his head for a moment, seeming to compose himself, and sighed. “I’m being told that it’s only right for me to bow in front of royalty,” he stated, still signing even though he was not bowing. “Queen Kayla, the Princess is ecstatic to spend time in your court, if you will have her.”

I tried not to make it obvious, but I watched the Double Agent’s lips purse at the request. It seemed as though she was ready to say something, but disregarded it. 

“The Princess is his sword,” Jeff offered to his wife. “She’s an intelligent item. We talked about her yesterday, but I forgot to bring it up. My bad.”

Kayla nodded at this new information, giving me a glance that told me I just might be in trouble later. I grinned and gave her a thumbs up.

Like Mercury, the Double Agent also translated her words into ASL when she spoke. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Bethany, Princess. You’re both always welcome here,” she greeted. “This is my husband, Jeff. I am Kayla, and you can call me by my name sign. It’s…”

Reaching up to one of her eyes, Kayla made the sign for K by placing her thumb between her index and middle fingers and held it sideways. She pulled it away from her eyes and closed her fist in an approximation of the word “glasses.”

When Bethany’s eyes lit up, she smacked Mercury on his side a few times. “You have a name sign?” he asked, clearly as surprised as his sister was excited.

“Yes. Back home, I was a librarian, and we had a group come in every first Thursday for a book club,” she explained. Her skills weren’t perfect, but she was fluent enough that she was easy to understand. “I learned what I could in order to make them more comfortable, and they bestowed a name sign upon me.”

“For the record,” I started, also signing. “I am also fluent in ASL. Hello! It’s nice to meet you, Bethany.”

There was more that I could say, but I left it at that. Bethany had given me many namesigns over my various attempts, and I enjoyed getting new ones. This run was already different enough in many ways, so I was excited to see what she would eventually come up with.

Bethany waved before hiding behind Mercury again, and his body went stiff as he looked beyond us. Turning, I saw Jamie and Ashley heading our way. It was unclear if the reaction was because of what the Monstersmith had done yesterday or the appearance of the Weapon Master. I chalked it up to both.

“Bethany, the lady who looks ready to fall asleep is Ashley,” I said while signing. The woman looked ready to say something, but ended up yawning and waving instead. “She makes things to protect us. The one in armor is named Jamie. They’re the other members of our guild. Both of you, this is Bethany. Jamie, this is-”

“I am the gentleman thief Mercury Moonslayer,” he loudly announced, forgetting to sign. I did it for him, and Bethany seemed to shrink back as if not wanting to see me translate that part. “It is an honor to-“

“Yeah, simmer down there, Baby Hanzo,” Jamie interrupted, crossing her arms. Her eyes glazed over him once before she came to a stop next to me. Mercury seemed to deflate. “Hello, and whatever. Anthony, I grabbed one of the directions off the table. Are we good to go?”

“You sure are,” I said. “One thing though. First couple of dungeons, please let Kayla do all the work, okay? I’ll pass you some points later if you want me to compensate you for the lack of kills, but I want you to see how she’d do on her own and report back to me.”

“That’s fine,” she agreed, shrugging.

“For the record, that means only jumping in if she’s at the brink of death,” I said, ignoring Jeff in my peripheral vision. He looked unhappy, but didn’t say anything, which meant Kayla had already talked to him. “We’ll have potions and stuff by the time you get back, assuming Bethany is ready?”

Mercury hesitated for a moment, glancing at Jamie, before nodding. “Yes, she’s been excited about it all night. The more she can help, the better,” he answered before he stopped signing. “Just between us, Bethany feels better when distracted, so this is good for her, probably.”

“Well, it’s nice to have you here, Bethany,” I said out loud before turning to Jamie. “You’re good to go. You two be safe out there.”

“Same,” she answered before heading out. Kayla said a quick goodbye before chasing after her.

“I’m going to bed,” Ashley said after another yawn. With a slow wave, she turned around and trundled back to the train.

Jamie acts like she doesn’t care, but she’s a good person deep down, I signed to Bethany. Ashley’s the mean one, but she only pretends to be that way. Your workshop is in the same car as hers, but she’s a real night owl. Jeff is basically a big golden retriever in human form. Speaking of, do you want to pet the dog? His name is Corwin.

Bethany nodded, and I looked at Jeff. “She’d like to pet Corwin.”

The knight’s smile had become stressed, but he bounced back when I snapped him out of his thoughts. “Sure thing. Corwin, go say hello. Gently,” he said.

The yellow labradoodle cautiously padded up to the siblings. Mercury was quick to start petting him, but Bethany was more gentle and hesitant. It didn’t take long before she was petting him with both hands.

“You good, bro?” I asked Jeff after I closed the distance between us.

“Yeah, I’m okay,” he replied, though it was strained. Then, he sighed. “It feels… wrong letting her go out there when there’s a sniper waiting for us. In broad daylight, even.”

“That last part will make things a lot easier, trust me,” I said honestly. “We’re way more likely to survive an attack from Jeremiah now than we are later. That’s one of the reasons I survived getting shot back in the cemetery without my bowling ball activating to stop a life-ending hit. Guy knew he was weaker in the sun, just didn’t realize how much, thank Sara.”

“I don’t think that’s as reassuring as you think it is,” Jeff said before shaking his head. “Sorry, I just can’t help but worry. I’m trying to get better, I promise. It’s just a lot.”

“You’ll get there. We’ll make a real boy out of you yet, Pinocchio” I joked. “Stay the course, man. You’ve got this.”

He nodded. “Yeah, probably.”

Offering Jeff a small smile, I patted him on the back. There was no question of whether he would or not, just when.

Pulling away from the taller man, I clapped my hands, getting the dog’s attention. “Alright. Jeff and Corwin will be your guides to the Angel Express.”

“We will?” the man asked, bemused. “I don’t know enough to speak with her, Ant.”

“Mercury will translate, and I doubt the girls will take long since the first assignments aren’t deep. You have a good rapport with him, too, so please play along. Stay and play host for a bit,” I whispered. He thought it over for a few moments before nodding. “Excellent! Jeff here will show you our board and trophy case, your rooms, the vault, the greenhouse, and where Bethany will be working. Oh! And, before I forget, here is the invitation to join the guild.”

Snapping open my menu again, I sent off a message to the Tea Witch. She read it quickly before looking up at her brother. Mercury nodded down at her, and she punched the air.

[[Guild Notice]]

Player [Bethany Langston] has accepted your invitation and is now a member of Sol Ligatus.

“Welcome to the team, Bethany,” I said and signed with a smile. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must be off. We’re not the #1 rated guild for no reason. Plenty of work to be done!”