"I don't care if he saved your life twice," Llewellyn said, getting some dry clothes out of his inventory and putting them on. Oh, right. I had some new ones still there too. "I'm going to murder Gilded myself. And then I'm going to mess up the System algorithms too."
He had a point. Our date had been interrupted for this? And we'd almost made it to the end for once!
"I don't have any crystals," I said. "Does the System expect us to go to Gléonwon first? Couldn't it just get the crystals to Gilded some other way?"
The System pinged.
[System Notification: User Ryo and Partner Llewellyn are advised to reach User Gilded immediately.]
Llewellyn and I looked at each other.
"Let's get this over with," Llewellyn said. "Where is he?"
━━━✦❘༻༺❘✦━━━
We were teleported to a beach south of Innishae—thankfully hidden from any roads or paths, by the look of it. Because the first thing we saw when we got there was Gilded suspended in mid-air in a sphere of light, with rays of Magic extending from three small mountains of crystals on the ground, two of them in the water.
"I can't believe you went and got them!" he yelled at the air when he saw us. "I'm still not signing!"
"Tell me what the hell is going on before I knock you down myself," Llewellyn said.
"Nothing that concerns you," Gilded said.
"You're stuck up there, aren't you?" I asked. The whole thing made him look a bit comical.
"I was trying a new method," Gilded said. "Again, nothing that concerns you."
"Then we'll just leave," Llewellyn said, turning around to go.
"Okay, fine!" Gilded said. "This isn't working and I can't get down!"
"You could literally manipulate the gravity of a room mid-fight last time," I said. "How is it that you can't get down?"
"The crystals won't let me go and I don't want to hurt them."
Llewellyn pinched the bridge of his nose.
A second later, he dispersed the crystals with a gust of wind, piling them on the shore.
"I said not to hurt them!" Gilded yelped.
The sphere of light had vanished once the crystals had been dispersed. Llewellyn leapt up to grab Gilded before he could crash to the ground, but Gilded sidestepped him mid-air, landing elegantly on his own.
Definitely more elegantly than I'd managed in the Mondwyn Harbor dungeon anyway. I wondered if Llewellyn would have thrown him to the ground too, given the chance.
"Anyway, thank you," Gilded added, dusting his coat. "But I would have managed."
"Then we'll leave now," Llewellyn said.
[System Notification: User Gilded requires more crystals!]
Llewellyn and I both cursed.
"What?" Gilded said.
"The System keeps telling us you need more crystals."
"That is… technically correct," Gilded said, frowning. "But I'm still not signing a contract. So why does the System care?"
"System?" I asked.
There was a pause. Then:
[System Notification: The System is not authorized to disclose that information.]
"Why not?" Gilded said.
[System Notification: The System is not authorized to disclose that information.]
Gilded looked baffled.
"Does it do this a lot?"
"Unfortunately," I said.
"Just to be clear," Llewellyn asked the System. "Are you asking us to get him… there?"
"Where?" Gilded asked.
[System Notification: It would be highly beneficial for User Gilded to see St. Caerwyn's domain.]
But what about Gléonwon?!
Looked like Gilded hadn't received that notification because he complained about no one telling him anything and went to collect his crystals, vanishing them into his inventory.
"And this couldn't have waited until tomorrow?" Llewellyn asked.
[System Notification: User Gilded was in a precarious position.]
…I suppose that was true, but still! I was feeling pissed off. Besides...
"If anything happens to Gléonwon," I told the System, "I swear I will dismantle you myself."
[System Notification: User Gilded is not deemed a threat.]
I sighed and rubbed my eyes.
"Is Penguin asleep?" I asked the System. We'd sent him to Llewellyn's Core Partition so we could go on our date.
[System Notification: Elemental Entity 'Penguin' is awake.]
"Bring him back," I said. If Gilded tried anything weird, at least Penguin was powerful enough to help stop him.
[Request acknowledged. Elemental will be returned to User Ryo.]
There was a tiny pop and then Penguin appeared in mid-air, flopping down right into my arms.
"Hey, Penguin," I said.
Penguin looked up at me and chirped happily.
Then he looked around and chirped again, this time in surprise.
"I know," I said. "We had a bit of an accident."
"Can someone tell me what's going on?" Gilded said. "If that's all, thanks and all that, I'm going to go."
"Don't move," Llewellyn said. "We're debating what to do with you."
"Should I remind you again that I can fight, if I have to?" Gilded said, eyes narrowing.
"Against me?" Llewellyn scoffed. "You wish."
"I'll go ahead and warn Gléonwon," I told Llewellyn, patting his arm. Better not show up with him unannounced. "You two can follow in ten minutes."
"Alright," Llewellyn said—just as Gilded said, "Gleonwhat?"
Great. Well, anyway.
I teleported off before they started arguing again.
***
"Gléonwon?" I called as soon as I landed outside the temple.
Where would Gléonwon even be at this time? Did he sleep inside the temple?
It seemed like I was right.
Gléonwon came out a few moments later, looking excited.
"Hello," he said, bounding over and lowering his head to look at me and Penguin. "You came!"
"Hello," I said, stroking his head. Penguin also chirped in greeting. "Are you okay?"
"I'm very okay!" Gléonwon said happily. "I got a lot more crystals!"
I grinned. Ah, this was good. I didn't even need to introduce the topic.
"You did?" I said. "Would you like to sell some?"
"Sell?" Gléonwon said. "For Coins?"
"Yes. You can ask for a lot of money. I think this guy is rich."
"Oh!" Gléonwon said. "Then, yes!"
"You don't have to sell anything you don't want to," I said. "And if he tries anything weird you can knock him out. But… don't kill him."
"Got it," Gléonwon said. "I won't kill him. I'll sell him crystals for a lot of Coins."
I grinned again.
"I think you can come," I told Llewellyn through the bond. "He seems excited about it."
A few moments later, Llewellyn and Gilded landed somewhere behind us outside the temple.
"What the—" Gilded said, startled, staring up at the dragon statues. "Is that a Caerwyn temple?!"
His gaze traveled and landed on Gléonwon, who was currently standing next to me.
"...And an actual dragon?! Wait, that was a real video then?!"
Looked like he saw that too.
"Hello," Gléonwon said politely. "Are you the one who wants to buy my crystals?"