Lus stiffened alongside most others near him. Oaty was renowned for his skill at the helm, having been a professional racer before the war broke out, but he was also known for taking some rather big risks that didn't always pan out. Now seemed like a bad time to test out whatever theory he had, yet Lus didn't see how they had any other chance.
"Watch the portside," Zer-Dasht warned. "One of the Corporates is coming in close. They're trying to cut us off."
Lus watched the blimp on the sensor screen that was a much bigger ship coming straight for their marker. If it got in front of them, it was game over.
"It's too close, Oaty. Pull out," Cewi-Bano said.
"Leave him," Captain Tave commanded. It was the first time Lus had heard the Captain speak over the comms during the entire encounter, and the confidence in his voice gave Lus a little more hope.
That hope died as he watched on the holoscreen as part of the Corporate ship came into view. He winced as more shouts came from both the crew around him and the comm system. Suddenly they were all thrown backwards as the ship tipped upwards, and Lus watched as they narrowly avoided the Corporates by swinging above them.
"We're still too fast for entering the Highway," Cewi-Bano cried.
"Not much I can do about that now," Oaty replied bitterly.
In response, a strong jerk sent Lusac back several steps into a Nemarian who then fell to the ground alongside half the crew in the room.
When Lus regained his feet, he saw that they were safely in the Highway. The breach would have sealed behind them since only Runners' ships equipped with the proper key were able to use them. The only real loss was the breach itself which could never be used again, but at least they were free from the Corporates, for now.
"Unbelievable. Our bounce off their shields slowed us just enough to safely enter the Highway. The chances of that kind of timing are astronomically low," Zer-Dasht said in the comms.
Lus couldn't believe that after all that, they were alive and the ship was more or less in one piece. Before he could really process their good fortune, a cold voice sounded through the speakers once again.
"Lusac Arten to the briefing room immediately," Captain Tave ordered.
Everyone turned to stare at him as he inhaled sharply. This was not good. He slid the backpack off and handed it to Becky before turning to go without offering any kind of explanation. Maybe Captain Tave just wanted to thank him for his contributions…
He could dream at least.
As he walked through the halls, no one took notice of him. Rather they were all in discussions about the recent battle and wondering how they survived. He heard people talking about one in a million shots hitting against the Corporates and others saying that they took relatively little damage due to how poorly their enemy aimed in another incredible stroke of luck.
Luck.
Why was that word sticking with him so much?
Everywhere he went, now and even during the battle, it seemed luck was on their side. He wouldn't say the Argo was normally a cursed ship by any means, but he had to admit that this seemed abnormal in some sense.
Luck… or perhaps it was [Luck] that he should be attributing their success to. He did have [19 Luck] now thanks to leveling up, but it wasn't just him who was struck with such incredible fortune.
[Beginner's Luck Soup]! That was the name of the dish he made perfectly for himself and the crew. Now that he thought it, the first time he leveled up, his stats only increased by a total of five. His [Luck] went up by eleven this time which seemed like a little big of a jump for simply reaching [Level 3]. Could it be that the soup gave them this extra boost? How high could their [Luck] go if he kept making it?
And what of other [Recipes]? He unlocked the [Recipe Book] which meant he could find all sorts of useful dishes to cook. For the first time, Lusac found himself genuinely excited about what this cursed Demon deal might bring to his life.
His excitement was cut short as he reached the briefing room with a rather disgruntled Nippy, a tired Cewi-Bano, and the ever-impossible to read Captain Tave.
"Arten," the Captain greeted him. "Take a seat."
"Yes, sir," Lus said, doing exactly as he was told.
"You nearly got us killed, Lus!" Nippy shouted once Lus was settled. "Speaking with an old Corporate pal? What were you thinking?"
"I-I…I did what I thought was best, Nippy. It caught me off guard, and I didn't have much time to come up with a cover story."
"Clearly. That 'pal' sent word straight to the military. It's a miracle we made it out at all," the second in command replied.
"Hey, don't take this out on him. I'm the one who chose him for the mission, even knowing his background," Cewi stepped in.
"So you're going to take the fall for letting the Corporates catch us?" Nippy accused.
"I don't think this has anything to do with our mission, at least not that part of it. I'm telling you, I tracked the guy for hours. He bought Lus's cover story," Cewi-Bano replied.
"Obviously only for a time," Captain Tave cut in before the two could escalate the argument further. "My instincts say that this can't be mere coincidence, Arten being recognized and the Corporates coming after us within the week, but from what Cewi-Bano tells me, you did everything right. And based on your appearance, you did your share to get us out."
It was a shockingly merciful tone used by him, and Lus tried not to let his surprise show.
"However," the Captain said firmly, "this does cause some problems for us. I'd like to believe that the Argo itself is not in any true danger, but obviously they're watching for Arten." He looked to Lus, his face neutral. "As such, you'll be staying on the ship for the next month or so until things die down a little bit. I hate to lose you from the upcoming missions, but I can't put you or the crew at further risk. For the time being, you're going to stay ship-side, even during resupply stops. Agreed?"
"Yes, sir," Lus repeated. The idea of being stuck on the Argo for weeks without a break made him want to rip his hair out, but he would never voice that. The fact that Captain Tave was even keeping him on the crew at all was a minor miracle, and one he thought he might attribute to that increased [Luck].
"Dismissed," the Captain said, waving Lusac away.
Counting his lucky stars, Lus left the briefing room and its fuming occupants behind. As he made his way back to Yrqw to see about getting on repairs, he decided to reframe this in a better light. Sure, being stuck on a ship for a month straight was going to suck, but at least it would give him some more time to focus on his cooking. If there were more [Recipes] like [Beginner's Luck Soup] waiting for him, then Leviathan might have actually fulfilled his word about giving Lus a system more powerful than any other. A whole new world was opening up for Lus, and he liked the way it was starting to look.