It's been five days after that. Turns out, Jean had a fever and was out for three days, and Esmeralda treated him all the way until he recovered. He only got up on a Saturday morning, so I asked him about the job. He told me he feels lazy, so he moved the schedule on Sunday. Nelen and I spent our time completing a few quests on the side. She's a very good companion, but I always expect her to be tight-lipped when on a mission.
"Where are we going now?" Esmeralda asks.
"To one of the Chimera Legion's subquarters. We're going to do something for your girlfriend right here." Jean replies.
"Ack... You knew?"
"I heard."
"Well, that's embarrassing." Nelen laughs.
"It's not funny, Nelen. You know what I mean."
"I know."
Nelen smiles and pecks her on the cheek, and Esmeralda's cheeks turn bright red. Jean looks with a smug grin and the both of them simultaneously look at him with dead fish eyes. Jean laughs it off and treats us to a stand offering orange drinks. More and more men clad in gold armor passed by us, so we must be getting closer.
"Isn't this that place from before? When we were looking for you?" said Jean.
"Yeah. These are the only guys who are willing to work with me. The rest of the people here in Stassi are cold and... stingy." Nelen replies and looks at Esmeralda. "Except you, dear."
"Stop it."
"Remember, guys. Be nice to them. Otherwise, they won't give us information on what they have."
"Why don't we just ask the guys in the gold armor? Aren't they a part of the Legion, too?" I inquire.
"There's so much for you to learn, dear Sol!"
Dear?
"There are only three ranks in the Chimera Legion, and they are solely defined on what they wear. The Snakes, the ones with the gold armor, are only capable of doing security action. No questions asked. The Goat, aside from having the same privileges as the Snakes, are in charge of information gathering, so we're looking for those people. They usually wear Platinum armor. Most subquarters have at least three of those stationed to each."
"What about the third one?"
"Lions. They're the ones giving orders to the lower two. Since they have the highest position in the ladder, they get to wear whatever they want."
"How do you know if someone's a Lion, then?"
"Don't worry. You'll know. They usually show their badge."
...
"That... badge? You mean the one with the lion, the goat and the snake?"
"Exactly."
"Wait. The one I punched was wearing a Platinum armor but he showed me a badge of the one you described. What's his rank, then?"
"A Lion. Weren't you listening?"
"Oh, I was just making sure. Yep."
"What?"
"I think I just pissed one of the Lions off."
"Good job, Sol."
Jean and Nelen laugh heartily as Esmeralda looks at me with worried eyes. Why can't the two of them care about me more than Esmeralda? Jean pats me on the back mockingly as we enter the subquarters from before. The place was... almost empty. There were only two Snakes manning the station. Jean instructed us to sit somewhere while he did all the talking.
"Yoo-hoo ! Are you guys the ones in charge here?" Jean asks with a tender voice as he goes over to the counter. I swear he acts like a girl sometimes.
"I'll go get us something to eat." Esmeralda goes to a nearby stall that sells food.
"Why exactly are we looking for them? Jean told me it has something to do with you." I ask Nelen, who was sitting on the opposite side of the table.
"I'd rather not talk about it, sorry. You'll know soon enough."
"I can't really help you unless we see each other eye to eye. Besides, I'm bound to know it sooner than later."
Looking down at the table, Nelen sighs, and waits for a few more seconds before speaking.
"My mother... She was killed by poisoning. When I heard that the one responsible for the massacre back at the theatre used poison, I knew I just had to look into it. That's why I joined. Jean told me he would help me find the one who killed her."
So that's why she was so easily persuaded.
"Did he also tell you to be his bodyguard for the rest of his life?" I joke.
"He actually did. How did you know?"
"Wait. Seriously?"
"Yeah. He also gave me this Void Sphere just for listening to his offer. I sold it and got two hundred thousand Cings. It's crazy."
"How much Cings does it take for a house?"
"You can buy the cheapest one for fifty-thousand. The most expensive ones here in Stassi are probably worth over three hundred."
"Wow. What the hell. Jean's loaded."
"I'm what?"
Jean slaps my back so hard that it echoed throughout the whole room. One of the Snakes snorts as Esmeralda gets back to the table, bringing with her a plate full of large pieces of bagel.
"I said you're loaded." I groan.
"What does that mean?" Jean tilts his head.
"It means you're rich. Gods, Jean. That really hurt."
"Oh. Well, sorry about that. Heh."
"So?" Nelen asks. "What's the news?"
"They told us to wait for the Lions. Usually, two of them run this post."
"Why don't we find them, then?"
"Nah. We'll just be wasting our energy that way. Let's just wait here. I'll take a nappie on one of the couches there."
Jean points to a small couch near the entrance and stands up. He then lays into the couch like he owns the place. Nelen scoffs and takes a piece of bagel. Esmeralda is already eating, so I join them as well. Whoa. The bagels have chocolate fillings. This is... amazing. It might be even better than Jean's cooking.
...
Nah. I don't think so.
...
The plate still had three pieces left, but everyone was already full. Thirty minutes have passed since we got inside, and Nelen's patience is starting to waver. Jean's still napping on the couch, so I got up and went to the counter.
"Excuse me, but how long until they get back?"
"Can't say."
"Where exactly did they go?"
"Can't say."
"Hmm."
I went back to the table, realizing that the two of them went somewhere, so I went to where Jean was sleeping. I sat on an open space just a few inches from his feet, but this seems to startle him as he quickly raises his head.
"What are you doing?" he lazily asks.
"What exactly did the Snakes tell you?"
"Can't say."
"C'mon now."
"No, really. That's exactly what they told me."
"What? Then why are we waiting here? What's the point?"
"Sol. Relax. Someone in charge will inevitably come here if we wait long enough. All places need someone to lead them, after all. Where's the two?"
"Beats me."
"Huh."
Jean lays his head back again and covers his eyes with his forearm. I turn my gaze to the rune floating on top of a spell circle. It spun endlessly on a corner as I make my way towards it, hoping to sate my curiosity. I wonder what happens if I touch it.
"You'll freeze your fingers."
Someone calls to me as I turn my head to see who it was. A woman wearing a mix of dress and armor stood in the entrance, grinning at me as I catch her eye. She had black wavy hair, and her navy blue eyes can clearly be seen even from two meters away. She also has that same badge pinned to her chest. She walks up to me and starts.
"Hello. I haven't seen your face before. Are you new here?"
"Ah, yeah. Do you work here?"
"Yes. What do you need?"
"Oh. We're actually volunteering to help in solving the massacre that took place in the theatre."
"Oh, that's perfect! We're short on men. You just arrived on time." She smiles, and her demeanor puts me in a smile as well.
"Excuse me, but can you please hold on? I need to talk to the manager." I say jokingly, referring to Jean.
"Haha. Alright."
I turn to Jean, but it seems that he's already two steps ahead. He's awake, and he's walking towards us. Jeez. As expected of a ladies' man, I guess.
"Well, that was quick." I joke at Jean and he smiles back. "Here's the manager, uhm?"
"Arra. Arra Farhas." She extends her hand. I think I've heard that surname somewhere before.
"I'm Sol. Nice to meet you, Arra." I give her one last smile before taking control of Jean's couch. I feel tired for some reason. Was it the bagel? Never mind. I'll just take a nap.
...
"Wake up!"
"... Shut up."
"Wake up!"
"Nngh."
"Wake up!"
"Alright! Alright! Gods, Jean. How about I do the same to you?Let's see how you like it."
I rise from the soft leather with an angry expression. No one can blame me for being angry. It's only been ten minutes since the exchange happened, and I was just about to fall asleep. I worked hard counting sheep, dammit!
"Dammit, Jean!"
"Rise and shine, big boy." Arra smiles at me, and I couldn't help but calm down after seeing her.
"Where's Nelen and the oth-- Oh! They're here now."
"Hello, guys. Oh, Arra! It's been a while!" Esmeralda goofily grins.
"Your eyes are still lovely, Esmeralda. What can I do for you?"
"Wait. So this is the friend you mentioned back when we were looking for Nelen?" I turn to Esmeralda. She nods like a kid.
"Hi, Arra." Nelen gives her a casual smile and waves her hand. It's the first time I've seen her do that.
"Nelen. Nice to see you again."
"Where have you guys been?" Jean asks.
"Oh... Uh..."
"...Not again." I love how Jean said that.
"We're sorry."
Esmeralda frowns and hides behind Nelen. What the heck. That's the cutest thing I've ever seen in my entire life.
"I'm getting a bit envious about you two." I joke, but I'm crying deep inside.
"Sorry." Nelen replies.
Arra instructs us to sit on a nearby table, so we follow her while she talks to the Snakes. I sit next to Jean, while Jean seats next to Nelen and Esmeralda. Arra comes towards us with a bunch of files in hand and sits on the small table in front of us. Is sitting on the table a custom here?
"Is sitting on the table a custom here?"
"Haha. Where did you learn that?" Arra giggles. She looks dazzling when she smiles. Honestly, what's with all the beautiful girls here in Stassi? Are they considered normal here? Gods.
"Can you tell us some insider information on the case?" Jean inquires.
"Definitely. Do you guys know about Phantom Lilies?"
"Yeah. The ones with the poison?"
"Yeah. Someone poisoned the scene by gradually applying some of their toxin in the air vents. The toxin, when taken in small portions, can't be noticeable since the immune system fights them right off the bat, but the particles from the poison reduce the recovery rate of the cells needed in order to take them off, so that leads to--"
"A lowered immune system."
"Exactly. It usually takes about ten minutes for lower the immune system, but it's barely detectable. Normally, people would avoid the sweet smell emanating from the lilies because of its tranquilizing effect, approximately ten to twelve seconds after you continue smelling it. That's, of course, if you're dumb enough to keep on smelling them. Now, given the circumstances with the people's immune system having been lowered. Can you guess what the monsters did?" Arra turns to everyone with a serious look on her face, and Jean answers.
"They suddenly overwhelmed the senses with the poison."
"Good one, Jean. The perpetrators quickly filled the place with a huge dose of the substance. Since their resistance were reduced, the effect hastened to five instead of ten."
"Wait." Everything's so confusing right now. "The contestants in the middle of the stage were still standing when I smelled the poison, and it also took me a few minutes before I went down. What does that mean?"
"It means you have a high resistance. As for the bodies..."
She looked into the files in her folder. Meanwhile, Jean takes a bagel and starts chewing it. I guess I should take one... Oh. Esmeralda and Nelen took the last ones. Well, that's just sad.
"Ah! Here it is. The toxin also stiffens the muscles via a cold agent three seconds after the tranquilizing process, after which the poison then thaws the said cold agent. The thawing process can be very slow, but the victims were already asleep when it happened, so they couldn't do anything else."
Come to think of it, I did feel cold before the sudden heat... Wait. So... That means I've been... Oh, no. The sound of chewing and the spinning of the rune seemed to amplify as the grim realization dawned on me. Time passed more slowly, and the nearby chatter of the Snakes as I remember the two contestants and the announcer stood on the stage.
"Whose perfume is that? It smells good."
The words of the announcer echoed inside my head as the cheering followed soon after. Then silence. Oh, Gods... I was watching them die.