ZEN - Part Two [COMPLETED] [#WATTYS2017]

Something Is Rotten In The State Of Galtaire

Chapter 75 - Something Is Rotten In The State Of Galtaire

"KARL!"

The heavy-set, balding administrator for Galtaire's Dungeon twitches so violently at the un-expected hail that he throws his stick of charcoal to the opposite side of his one-room, open-faced shack. Upon bringing his wide eyes up, however, he immediately recognizes his favourite Beastkin, and the other three faces are just as familiar. "Zen! Joanne, and, uh... Jessie Porrane and Mishone Inujin."

"Told ya he'd remember." The small Scout lively hops up into the well-heated office, thanks to her generous gift of three high-powered magic-tools, then skips over to the divider to rest an elbow on top. "Nice and toasty in here, ain't it?"

"I'd say it's rather cold out there." Karl displays a happy smile while rising up from his creaky chair. "Typically, I'd stay warm with a few belts of Scotch... though I'll admit these are probably much better for my liver."

"Yah, but not half as fun."

"More a matter of survival. So. Day-trip?"

"Yup. The four of us are gonna see if we can get down to the twentieth and back before supper."

The older male raises his brows in surprise of the claim. "In a day?"

"C'mon. Look who you're talkin' to."

Karl glances to the other women offering confident smiles, and after just a few moments of consideration of who they were being led by, he simply lets out a sigh as he nods an assent. "Alright. Just, please, stay safe."

"They don't have the formal papers, but I'd put these girls on par with a double-A, if not an S."

"I do hope that's the case."

"One day, we'll visit the capitol and make it official." Zen displays a wicked grin while peeking back over her shoulder. "'Cause it'll make the Scylla Sisterhood more of a legend to say that it's run by a quartet of S-ranks."

"Legends are supposed to be fallicies. What you're proposing is a terrifying reality." The balding administrator lets out another breath before snagging a thick file now permanently located in a bin at the side of the active Divers already inside the Dungeon. He'd foreseen these little day-trips after Zen's first return visit, so he wanted to be prepared. "We've ten groups down there. Five D-parties above the tenth, two C's above the fifteenth, four B's above the twentieth, and one A whom are merely going whever they please."

"Tch. Typical."

"Quite. Burly sorts, as well. Just the two of them. Polite, though."

"Locals?"

"Well-travelled."

"Ah. Well, we'll keep an eye out. Save their arses if need be."

"Thank you."

"Yup. Bringing your beau for dinner tonight?"

"Of course! With how much you've been praising your girls' efforts? If it's truly that good, then we'll barely cook at home from now on!"

"Perfect. Gimme a chance to re-coup some of my losses. You and your scotch."

"You are my second-favourite person, after all."