"I already told you, I don't know where the hell they are! For all I know, they probably went off to do their own thing for a while. Not like they'll get in trouble since Emperor is scared of Emerald." Crimson shouted
"Mmmm~! Your arm feels so cozy, Crimson! It's manly, full of strength and resolve..."
Cuddled up next to Crimson was Mona, the masochistic maid who loved pain.
Not just any pain, but all types of pain; Abuse, torture, mental trauma, you name it.
She's completely insane.
"Then where the hell do we look if you don't know where they went off to?" Asked Lucienne.
"Well, for starters... we can message them to make sure they're okay."
"Nah, I already tried that, Kuma," Said Crimson, "I received no response in over an hour or so."
"Damnit." He crossed his arms, continuing onwards, "Well, walking around the forest biome isn't gonna get us anywhere. Let's check the Main Lobby and see if we can get any clues there."
"Agreed. Knowing those two, they probably went to have a drink before they continued with their mission." Said Lucienne.
"Exactly." Kuma stopped in his tracks, as the others did the same, "Extend Magic, Spatial Warp."
They all used Spatial Warp, teleporting into the Main Lobby.
Appearing in the middle of the streets, thousands of players noticed them but paid no attention.
NPCs were on the streets selling goods and other items famous in Isekai World Online.
Stray cats and dogs walked along the street corner while some went into alleyways.
Dragons flew above the lobby, flapping their wings through the bright blue skies.
Everything was back to normal, it was a good sight to see.
"I wonder how everything's going, considering there's no new staff members taking care of everything." Lucienne walked along the city with her arms crossed behind her back.
"It's probably chaos. Just because everything looks okay, doesn't mean it is." Said Kuma.
"That's just negative talking, Kuma, you're better than that." Crimson thumped his friend's forehead, stumbling him back.
"Ow-! Hey, lay off."
Crimson chuckled, "Alright, enough joking around, how about we ask around and see if we can find any clues?"
"I'll take one of these... and that one too!" Lucienne was standing in front of a market stand, picking out snacks.
"She never changes..." Sighed Kuma.
"Hey, Lucienne, hurry it up will yah? We have an objective we have to complete, and you're wasting our time!"
"Just a minute!" Lucienne turned around, having her face stuffed with donut balls, "These are delicious!"
"Ooohh, I'd like to try one!" Mona detached from Crimson's arm, skipping their way toward the market stand, "May I have an order of those as well?"
"Umm... sure, that'll be three gold." Said the stallholder.
"Only three? Wow... everything's so cheap outside of Ottenmore Kingdom!" Mona was like a child, placing both of her hands on the booth, and jumping up and down in excitement.
"Wait, are you telling me you've never been outside of Ottenmore Kingdom, Mona?" Inquired Crimson.
"Huh? No... never! Me and the other Combat Maids never left the kingdom, we always stood by Lord Emperor's side and ate the food inside the castle. Sometimes when we were on vacation, we went downtown to buy sweets, but they usually cost over ten pieces of gold."
"Ten pieces of gold?! Holy..." Kuma was dismayed, slanting forward in shock, "Talk about overpricing."
"It's never been like that you know? Lord Emperor doesn't know about the overpricing... because the Minister of Finances, Thomas, always keeps Ottenmore Financial Affairs a secret."
"Is that so?" Crimson frowned, visibly exasperated, "It's no surprise that even Ottenmore kingdom has some corrupted dumbasses inside of it."
"I don't understand... isn't Emperor suppose to know about stuff like the financial affairs of Ottenmore Kingdom?" Asked Lucienne.
"Yes, he does, but they constantly lie about what happens behind the scenes. Lord Emperor doesn't investigate it because he trusts us with all of his heart."
"Then why haven't you told Light- I mean Emperor about this situation?" Kuma lifted his brow in question, "If you know so much about it, wouldn't that be wise?"
"I cannot do that... the ministers of Ottenmore kingdom hold a lot of power, and their position of authority is much greater than ours. If I told lord Emperor about it, they would come after me and my family..."
"That's just screwed up! How about we step up and say something to Emperor? Maybe that can get him to pay attention." Proclaimed Lucienne.
"Hmm... we'll worry about that later, right now we have to focus on finding Emerald and Christopher." Said Crimson.
"Umm... here you go, the donuts you wanted." The stallholder held the bag of goodies in his hand, looking at everyone in interest.
"Yayyy!!" Mona turned around, grasping the bag of sweets, and stuffing her mouth with a few, "They're so good!! Mmmm~!"
"Happy now?" Inquired Crimson.
"I'm very happy! Yummy!" Mona took another donut ball, munching on its soft, powdery texture.
"Hey, want some of mine?" Lucienne extended her bag, having dozens of donut balls inside of them.
"R-Really? Sharing your food is considered a sign of love where I come from..."
"Eh? That's weird... well I'm not expressing any love, just wanting to be nice." Lucienne blinked in question, scratching her cheek.
"Thank you, Madam Lucienne!" Mona didn't hesitate to take a few donut balls from her bag, placing them inside her own, "I heard these donuts are made with the dust of pixies which can heal you whenever you eat them!"
"Really? What donuts are they called?" Asked Kuma.
"They're called Chocomoes, famous in the west continent. They're made from love and care!"
"Really? So Angelica's continent created them and they spread out to the others?" Assumed Kuma.
"Precisely! Lady Angelica's continent is known for its great food and snacks! Anyone would kill to have one Chocomoe!"
"Hell... why not?" Kuma shrugged and walked towards the market stall, digging in his pocket to take out a sack of gold, "I'll take one bag of Chocomoes please."
"One bag coming right up!"
"You gonna buy one, Crimson?" Asked Kuma with a slight grin.
"...This is peer pressure, Damnit."
"No one's peer pressuring you, you're just making assumptions," Kuma said, laughing.
"Yeah, no thanks, I'm fine."
"C'mon, open wide and say 'Ahhh'!" Mona stood in front of Crimson, standing on her tippy toes with a donut roll in her mouth, "You're gonna miss ouuuuttt!"
"I said... I'm good." Crimson turned his head to the side in annoyance.
"Heee-yah!" Lucienne suddenly jumped into the air, palming her hand forward into his face.
"Guohhhh!" Crimson yelped in pain as he flew backward, crashing into a nearby wall, "Whuff tha hell ish yowa probem?"
(Translation: What the hell is your problem?")
"How does it taste? Good right?" Said the grinning Lucienne.
Crimson didn't realize it, but she force-fed him the Chocomoes, stuffing three inside his mouth.
He sat there, eating on them unknowingly.
"You're always over the top... Lucienne." Kuma walked next to her with a bag of donuts, eating one already.
"Sometimes force is always the answer, see!" She pointed at Crimson, "He's eating them like there's no tomorrow!"
"Grrrhhh..." Crimson scowled at them, swallowing the donut balls with an audible sigh leaving his mouth afterward, "I'm gonna kill you..."
"Hahahahaha!" Lucienne laughed and took off running.
"Oh no you don't!!" Crimson stood up, chasing her down the street with determination in his eyes, "You'll pay tenfold for that! They always say karma is a bitch, so I'll show your ass why!!!"
"Pfft, you'll have to catch me first!! Bwahahaha!" The demon jumped from the streets and made her way atop the buildings, doing parkour to get away.
Crimson did the same thing, catching up with her in terms of agility.
"And I thought Crimson was gonna be a leader..." Whispered Kuma as he chuckled.
"Hey, can I ask you a question?" Mona looked at Kuma as she wiped the powder from around her lips.
"Hm? Yeah, what's up?"
"I noticed that... you're relatively new to the Phantom Mutiny... and they accepted someone like you into their guild, how did you do it?"
"How did I... do it? What do you mean?"
"How did you get accepted? I've been trying for ages and... I could never become a part of them."
"That's because you're an NPC-"
"A what?"
Kuma covered his mouth, shaking his head, "Nothing... it's nothing!"
"What's an NPC?" Mona asked, crossing her arms, "And why did you cover your mouth? Is that an offensive term? What does it mean?"
"It's... something you won't understand, but I was just making a little joke."
"Well, it didn't sound like a joke to me!" Mona angrily bit into another Chocomoe, exhaling through her nose in fury, "I'm gonna find out sooner or later, and when I do... Phantom Mutiny or not, you'll feel the strength of one of Lord Emperor's Combat Maids!"
("Shit... I screwed up!")
"N-No trust me... it's nothing offensive, or anything like that. Just remember..."
"Huh?"
"Remember that... joining the Phantom Mutiny isn't as easy as you think. It takes a lot of talent and skill, and cooperation among friends. It's an entirely new world compared to the one you have now."
"...I see, well if that's the case, I have to mentally prepare myself at all angles."
"Y-Yes, of course!"
("Man I totally made the crap up... and she bought it!!!")