Apocalypse: Fairy System by Macronomicon (fox in socks read aloud txt) 📕

“Hold up, who the hell are you?” a brawny melas asked as Jeb entered the building. He had a flat nose and his nostrils flared as he crossed his arms. The very picture of businesslike intimidation.

“I’ve got news Mr. Grenore is going to want to hear. It’s about his daughter,” Jeb said.

The melas eyed him for a moment, then nodded, motioning for Jeb to follow him.

“Right this way,” he said, glancing over his shoulder. “I hope you know that if this is a waste of his time, I’m going to have to beat you within an inch of your life.”

“Understood. I fully expect that Mr. Grenore will get what he needs out of our meeting.”

A goddamn wake-up call. You don’t use your daughter as collateral on a debt and expect a happy ending. You just don’t do it. Jeb’s fingers brushed the two letters in his vest pocket, absentmindedly making sure they were still there.

There was the one Smartass had found in the man’s own safe, and the one Jeb had looted out of Svek’s personal chest.

Together, they painted a pretty damning picture.

“Here,” the melas said, opening the door for Jeb to enter.

Jeb strode through, back straight, and the hulking melas followed a moment later, cutting off any chance Jeb had of running away should things sour too badly.

Directly in front of Jeb was the man who’d stolen his silver coin, shuffling through papers with a pair of bifocals hanging on his nose.

“What’s this, then?” Mr. Grenore said, scowling at the interruption. His eyes flickered over Jeb dismissively, not showing a hint of recognition.

The homeless bum in the street might as well be an entirely separate person.

“Says he’s got news about Ms. Seraine,” the bruiser said.

“What are you? Another messenger, come to raise the ransom again? I thought I already told you if you did, I’d pay for an imperial enforcer to be dispatched.”

“I’m a bounty hunter,” Jeb said with a shrug.

Mr. Grenore’s eyebrow cocked. “A human bounty hunter? Lees, please escort this man from the premises.”

Jeb felt a heavy hand clamp down on his shoulder.

“I went through the Impossible Tutorial!” Jeb said before he could be dragged out.

“Oh, one of those?” Jeb saw cold calculus flash across the man’s gaze. “Wait there a second, Lees.” Garland opened his desk and winced a moment as he clipped a familiar golden earring onto his ear-hole.

“Say that again.”

“My name’s Jebediah Trapper,” Jeb said. “I’m one of the survivors of the Impossible Tutorial.”

Garland’s brows rose. “Interesting. What level are you?”

“Thirty-nine. Plus, I’ve consumed at least half a dozen Attribute potions and earned a similar number of Accolades.”

Jeb met the man’s gaze. “I am absolutely confident I can return your daughter to you.”

“And the kidnappers?” the greedy keegan asked, eyes glittering with barely constrained joy at the sudden solution to his problems.

“I’m more than capable of killing the likes of them. They won’t leave that mountain alive.”

“What do you want for it?” Grenore asked.

“I don’t know what the final total they would have tried to extort out of you would be,” Jeb said. He’d seen the first note, but criminals tended to move goalposts. “But I will return your daughter to you for two hundred and fifty bulbs.

“And afterward,” Jeb said with a business smile, “Svek and his pirates won’t be drawing breath.”

“I could’ve hired a team of mercenaries to exterminate those pirates for that much,” Garland said, scowling at Jeb.

“Really? I doubt it.”

“…I’m not paying you in advance.”

“I wouldn’t ask you to pay me before I’ve delivered your daughter,” Jeb said.

“Alright then,” Mr. Grenore said. “It’s a deal.”

“Return your daughter, no more pirates,” Jeb said, extending his hand.

“For two hundred and fifty bulbs,” Mr. Grenore said, clasping his boney fingers around Jeb’s own.

A little spark seemed to travel up through Jeb’s arm and settle in his heart, and he knew the Deal had been struck.

Excellent.

Jeb smiled at the asshole and the asshole smiled back. At least, Jeb thought he was smiling. It was hard to tell with a keegan. Either way, there were bared teeth all around.

Jeb turned and left the office, casually clomping down the street back towards his room at the inn.

******

Seraine was sitting in bed, stabbing the post with Jeb’s shaving knife. Jeb was just happy she hadn’t disappeared. If he didn’t deliver the girl, his Deal would fall through and he’d get no Impact whatsoever.

“Alright, we’re good to go,” he said as he entered. “Do you wanna get supper or something before we go to your dad’s place?”

Seraine gave him a blank stare.

“No supper?”

She shook her head.

“Alright, it’ll look a little unnatural getting you home this fast, but I am pretty amazing. Get’cher coat.”

Seraine got her coat and the two of them left the room.

******

“A-already!?” Mr. Grenore asked, his slack jaw nearly bumping Seraine’s head.

Jeb was standing in the same office where he’d been roughly half an hour ago, this time with the addition of Seraine Grenore, who had glomped her father in the picture of an innocent hug of pure relief.

It made Jeb’s stomach churn, but he couldn’t play his hand right out of the gate. The rules of a Deal, according to Smartass, were that he had to allow the other party a chance to repay the debt in good faith.

“My payment?” Jeb asked.

“I don’t have that kind of cash on hand. I’ll have to liquidate some stock. Give me a week.”

Jeb’s eyes narrowed, calculating. The businessman was obviously wary of Jeb’s strength now. His posture was less confident, more guarded. His security guard stood an extra step farther away from Jeb. Closer to the door.

If Jeb pushed for his payment right now, Garland might actually cave and give Jeb something