[126] Island: Galliant (3)
"Hey, welcome to Galliant. Here on vacation?"
Jis raised a hand in a familiar tone. No matter how noble someone was, the rule of this trade was never to use honorifics with marks.
In a way, they were risking their lives to make money, but even if things went south, you could just hide for a month and be fine.
People who came over from across the sea to visit rarely went back home only to return and cause trouble.
"Yes, I came with friends."
Shirone replied with a smile. Amy, however, scowled openly. Having run the back alleys as a kid and seen the underworld, she knew exactly why they were approaching.
"Looks like students. Which school? Must be a prestigious one, right?"
"Alpheas Mage Academy."
"Ah! I know it. It's nearby, so a lot of folks come from there."
Amy's eyes widened. They shouldn't have said they were students, and mentioning their school was practically an invitation to be picked apart.
"But these guys are pretty big for mages."
"What? We're from Kaizen Swordsmanship Academy! We're tall because we're swordsmen, idiot!"
As Jis expected, Tess snapped. She took pride in her figure and absolutely didn't want to be lumped in with Rian and dismissed as "big" as part of a package.
"Haha! Sorry. I'm not good with words. Meant that as a compliment — guess it came out wrong."
Jis thought that was the end of it. The desperate could be bold even in front of nobles because they weren't bound by society's rules.
Nobles, by contrast, were constrained. Alpheas Mage Academy and Kaizen Swordsmanship Academy were both famous for strict discipline. If they caused trouble in a tourist spot, they wouldn't escape punishment.
But this crew wasn't like the usual hustlers. Once they smelled a weakness, they clung and tried to strong-arm a hire.
"Come on, trust me. I'll show you the best way to enjoy Galliant. C'mon, man up—don't you want to flash some cash in front of pretty girls? Huh? You coming? I'll carry your bags."
"Wait a minute! Let us discuss it one last time."
"Fine, but if you came all the way here and then refused, that's just low."
Jis already had heavy packs in both hands.
Shirone glanced at his friends, uncertain. This was a new kind of pest, and Jis's tone walked such a thin line that it was hard to answer him coldly.
"What should we do? Leave it to him?"
"They know our school. They know we can't mess around, so they're being brazen," Amy explained. Tess bristled. It was a low tactic, but effective. Normally she would've thrown a punch ages ago — the fact she was still holding back said enough.
Rian paid it little mind. The only rule fixed in his head was Shirone's safety.
"I don't care either way. If Shirone wants to, I'll go along. If they force it when he says no, I'll beat them up."
For Rian, this trip wasn't just a vacation. It was his first venture out after swearing the knight's oath with Shirone. He'd face situations like this many times; it was better to get some experience now.
"My arm's killing me. Can you hurry and decide? This is money too, you know."
"That jerk!"
Tess lunged at Jis, but Shirone stopped her. With the school's honor at stake, they wanted to avoid unnecessary violence.
"Alright. We'll hire you. How much?"
"Haha! Smart choice. Since you're students, I'll give you a special rate. Five gold."
"Wha—? Five gold?"
Shirone's eyes went wide. Five gold just to hire a guide? Outrageous gouging. Even if island prices were high, it probably wouldn't top one gold.
"Aren't you being a bit much?"
"Come on, five gold and I'll take care of everything. I'll fetch a carriage, arrange lodging and meals, show you the sights. Bargain, right?"
Amy bristled. She hadn't wanted a scene, but seeing they'd found a weakness made her feel like they were trying to strip them clean.
They wouldn't even provide a decent guide. And even if they did, five gold was ten times the going rate.
'Ugh, I should've shut them down from the start,' Amy thought regretfully. This type only climbed back up if you didn't crush them.
"Still, five gold is a lot…"
"This is a tourist spot. Prices higher than usual are natural."
"Hmm, still…"
"Enough. Just hand it over and let's go somewhere else."
Amy rummaged in her pocket. Keeping these types around would only backfire. Once you backed down, they'd use it to demand more.
"Here — five gold. Take it and get lost."
Amy threw the gold coins at Jis's feet. The brilliant coins bounced.
"Wow! Gold coins! For real!"
Jis's friends scrambled to scoop them up. Jis, however, froze as if turned to stone.
If anyone else had tossed coins, he might have grabbed them with the others. But under Amy's contemptuous glare, he couldn't bring himself to crawl on the ground.
"…What do you think you're doing? Who do you think we are?"
"You said you didn't need guides, didn't you? So just vanish from in front of us."
"Is this for real? Are you finished?"
"Uh, wait. Don't get worked up—"
Shirone wore a helpless expression and tried to mediate. He was angry at being gouged, but hadn't expected Amy to react this way.
"Shirone, it's fine. Let them have it. Who are they to bully us? They're just scammers—using sightseeing as an excuse to fleece people. No hope for them."
Jis's friends flinched. That was literally their business.
Shirone frowned and turned away.
"Amy, stop."
"Stop what? You think we're scared because they took the money? We should teach them a lesson—"
"Still, stop."
Amy finally clamped her mouth shut. Shirone wasn't a noble either; seeing that scene could have made him uncomfortable.
But if they hadn't done that, those leeches would cling on until they'd been drained dry.
Jis ground his teeth and swallowed his anger. He'd lived on pride. No matter how nobles had humiliated him, he'd never let his spirit break.
"J—Jis. Let it go. You got the money, didn't you?"
"Give them back."
"Huh? Give what back?"
"The coins. You want to live being treated like this? Don't you have any pride as a man of the island?"
Jis snatched the coins from his friends. The weight thrilled him.
But he clenched his fists, holding himself back, then turned coldly to Amy.
"Huh. Arrogant nobles. Throwing five gold like it's nothing — must feel great, huh? I can't even imagine."
He lifted his chin and, to spite her, scattered the coins again at Amy's feet. They glittered and rolled.
"So that's how it feels? Pretty nice. Come on, boys, let's go."
Jis led his crew into the alley.
Amy was speechless at their brazenness. But the targets for her anger were already gone.
"Ugh, those bastards. Shirone, why did you stop me? People like that need to be put in their place."
"I know. But if you really hated it, you could've refused or got angry. It didn't need to go this far."
"What do you mean? Are you saying I looked down on them because I have money?"
"I'm not saying that. But it came across like that."
"You knew what scum they were and you still say that? You were victimized as a kid too, weren't you?"
Shirone bit his lip. Maybe Amy was right. Still, no matter how nasty the other side was, he didn't like seeing someone humiliate another person's dignity.
"Enough. Let's go. Catch a carriage first."
With no reply, Amy turned and started walking. Tess scratched her head awkwardly as she watched.
"Well, this is awkward."
* * *
Jis and his friends bickered as they went down the alley by Dock No. 3. They should've had a cut from arriving ships, but by now the customers were gone — all they had left was argument.
"Jis! How could you give the money back? Five gold — that's enough to skip bribe payments for days."
"Do you have no pride? Someone threw that money away right in front of you — you want to pick it up like a beggar?"
"So what? Money's money."
"I can't do that. Damn woman! There are limits to how far I'll be disrespected!"
Jis clenched his fists and trembled. His friends couldn't understand what had upset him so much. What was insulting about the whole thing?
Sure, the woman's act of throwing away money had been humiliating to them too, but nobles' arrogance wasn't new.
"Jis, be honest. You liked that woman, didn't you?"
"What? Why would I like a woman like that?"
"You get proud around women you like. But she's a noble. It'll never work out, and since she tossed five gold like that she must rank high among nobles."
"So what? Just because she's a noble that means everything? I'm Jis. I'm destined to rule this port!"
At that moment, footsteps echoed in the dim alley. The clack of studs on the stones made the hairs on Jis's arms stand up.
The others felt it too. Only one kind of person walked like that at the port.
"Hey, Jis."
A stocky middle-aged man appeared. Harsh features and viper-like eyes — Falkoa, the enforcer captain of the Freeman crew Jis's gang belonged to.
Jis's shoulders sank. Falkoa was cruel. He enjoyed violence and didn't care about being beaten. If the odds were against someone, he'd set ten or a hundred people on them and beat them senseless. There was a reason they called him Galliant's madman.
"Ah, Brother Falkoa. Hello."
Falkoa cracked his jaw and slung an arm around Jis's shoulders. A vile stench hit Jis's nose. Addicted to drugs, Falkoa never let his pipe leave his mouth.
"Give it. You got money, right?"
"Well… uh, no."
"No?"
A chill flashed in Falkoa's eyes. As soon as he realized the situation could become messy, Jis's friends dropped to the ground, begging.
"P-please! Those girls wouldn't get into our carriage! We stuck with them, but they threatened us—"
"Oh really? Then what was that you threw earlier? Was that not money but shit?"
Jis's heart sank. Falkoa had watched everything from start to finish, pretending not to notice.
Did a frog feel like being bitten by a viper? Fear made it hard to breathe.
"Heh. What should we do with these little cuties?"