Playing For Keeps - Ch 49 (Adv) - Outfoxed (Patreon)

DM: Paladin -› Scarecrow | Sunday 16:18

‹Paladin› alive; got Lionheart

‹Scarecrow› Any trouble?

‹Paladin› Spider holding to the deal so far

‹Paladin› any sign of WF?

‹Scarecrow› Speak of the Beowolf and it growls at your door.

Scarecrow sent a photo!

‹Scarecrow› These who you thought they were?

I squinted at the photo, absently adjusting my grip on Lionheart as I stepped out of the elevator. In either the same meeting room I’d just left or a very similar backroom, Lil’ Miss Malachite sat filing her nails, with Nikolaos and Demeter flanking her as before. Across from them stood two olive-skinned men wearing white-and-black tunics, covered by red cloaks with hoods that protruded like snouts. The shorter one had large furry fox ears, while the other had a bushy grey tail.

Both were wearing Grimm masks resembling a species I hadn’t encountered, though I suspected they were the Inari mentioned in the description of my [Fox’s Cunning] buff.

Yeah, pretty sure that’s those two dickheads from Volumes 4 and 5… but I have a way to confirm.

DM: Paladin -› Nightshade | Sunday 16:20

‹Paladin› need an id

Paladin sent a photo!

There was a brief pause while I hoofed it back up several blocks, then:

‹Nightshade› That’s Fennec and Corsac Albain, they’re two of the most senior White Fang in the Menagerie chapter. They visited my father fairly often as Chieftain even after he stepped down as High Leader. But… aren’t you in Mistral?

‹Paladin› yes, hence the question: why are they in this kingdom and meeting with Spider?

‹Nightshade› I’m not sure. I don’t recall the White Fang having an alliance with Spider. Of course, I also don’t remember the Albains leaving Kuo Kuana very often, so maybe…

Switching back to Qrow, I sent a confirmation.

DM: Paladin -› Scarecrow | Sunday 16:24

‹Paladin› yeah they’re who I suspected

‹Paladin› you close enough to hear the meeting? maybe record it?

‹Scarecrow› Who do you think you’re talking to?

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Qrow did me one better — in addition to recording, he actually called me so we could both listen in.

“Brother Corsac and I are grateful that you could find time in your busy schedule to meet with us, Madam Malachite,” said the fox-eared brother. “We were beginning to grow concerned that your policy of tolerance had… waned.”

Lil’ Miss Malachite scoffed. “You were hoping you could poach some of my people, more like.”

The fox brothers exchanged a look.

“Surely we have done nothing to earn such suspicion,” said Corsac. “Our concern is what is best for our people. If they are happy here working under you, neither Brother Fennec nor I would wish to disrupt that.”

“Pretty words don’t buy much in Mistral Below,” the Mob Queen replied. “You asked for this meeting. What do you want?”

“Merely to reaffirm that we continue to stand together,” Fennec said smoothly. “Any faunus in Mistral who wish to relocate to Menagerie may of course continue to do so, and in exchange, those of our people who choose to move here have been most grateful for your support.”

“We reaffirmed our agreement last week.” Lil’ Miss Malachite’s sharp eyes narrowed. “My tolerance for faunus does not extend to a tolerance for wasting my time. Tell me why you’re still in my city before I lose my patience entirely.”

Another meaningful look between the brothers.

“We have heard that Headmaster Lionheart went missing over the weekend,” Fennec finally got to the point. “As you can imagine, this is a matter of great concern to us.”

“Headmaster Lionheart is one of the most politically-important faunus in the world; a symbol to many that our people can be just as pivotal in standing against the Grimm threat as humans,” said Corsac.

“Naturally, as our valued ally, we hoped that you might have some information on his whereabouts,” Fennec finished, and both of them bowed slightly.

Lil’ Miss Malachite rolled her eyes. “For being so concerned, you took your time deciding to ask. Not just today, but in waiting for this meeting to begin with. You two aren’t exactly the only ones looking for him.”

“Is that so?” Fennec tilted his head, one large ear flicking. “I admit, we were unaware that the Headmaster’s absence had become widely known.”

“Is that what you took from that?” Lil’ Miss Malachite smirked.

“…I see,” said Corsac after a moment. “His absence is known to a small number, and at least one of those number came to you before we did.”

Lil’ Miss Malachite pointedly didn’t answer his question. Instead she said, “Out of appreciation for our standing agreement, I’ll tell you for free that Leonardo Lionheart is alive and relatively healthy.”

The brothers exchanged yet another look. They’re clearly well in sync with each other; I’d be impressed if they weren’t using that coordination for terrorism.

“And if we wished to learn of his whereabouts?” Corsac prodded. “From your phrasing, it seems that he is no longer enjoying your hospitality.”

“As a matter of fact, someone beat you to him,” Lil’ Miss Malachite agreed, opening her fan and fluttering it. “They made me an offer I would be a fool to refuse.”

Lying bitch; it was entirely your idea.

“Then, we would be most appreciative if you could assist us in contacting this person, so that we might convey our gratitude,” said Fennec.

To my surprise, Lil’ Miss Malachite didn’t immediately sell me out. I knew she would, and without hesitation, but it seemed she was at least waiting for them to make it worth her while.

Instead, she eyed them both before leaning forward. “It seems you two are also a bit out of the loop on why exactly Headmaster Lionheart ‘went missing’ in the first place… but I’ve exhausted my stock of free hints. If you want to know more, you know my price.”

Yet another communicative glance. “We do not, you understand, have the authorization to wastefully spend the organization’s funds…”

The mob queen rolled her eyes. “And you should understand I’m trying to run a business, not a scam. You’ll get what you pay for.”

“In that case, what precisely would it cost us to learn of the reason behind the Headmaster’s disappearance, and the identity of the one who found him?”

“Two questions, two hundred grand,” she replied immediately. “But if it makes you feel better, answering the first will gain you an extra piece of information that I should charge you for separately. answer is a two-for-one.”

100,000 Lien; roughly 10,000 in USD per question, I translated mentally. Certain things were more or less expensive than one would expect on Remnant compared to Earth, but the 10-to-1 rule of thumb was generally good enough. Is that expensive for an info broker? I’d only worked with Tukson and Redd, neither of whom had asked me for cash, so I honestly wasn’t sure.

“We accept,” said Corsac, without waiting for his brother’s agreement this time. “What happened to Lionheart?”

“He ran afoul of a scorpion faunus by the name of Tyrian Callows,” Lil’ Miss Malachite supplied. “I don’t know what their disagreement was, but Lionheart was stung twice before somehow escaping.”

“And Callows then purchased him from you?” Fennec asked.

As fucking if.

“As fucking if,” Lil’ Miss Malachite scoffed. “As soon as I heard he was in town I gave explicit orders for my people to stay away from him. If you’re thinking of approaching Callows, you had damn well better arrange my payment before you get yourselves killed.”

“Then our second question is who retrieved Lionheart from your people.” Corsac didn’t even bother trying to justify why he was looking for me.

This time it was Niko and Demeter who exchanged a meaningful look over Lil’ Miss Malachite’s head, though neither of them spoke up.

Malachite herself fluttered her fan, seeming to consider her words. “Before I answer that, I will caution you that pursuing this person may put you at odds with the Familias,” she said finally. “It may behoove you to walk away with that final freebie.”

Fennec opened his mouth, but Corsac insisted. “Tell us.”

Lil’ Miss Malachite raised an eyebrow, but nodded. “His name is Jaune Arc,” she began, before mentioning my age, my family, my apprenticeship with Qrow, and the publicly-known information about my Semblance and the bounties I’d claimed. The amount of information Spider had on me was slightly upsetting, but overall their dossier didn’t contain anything outright alarming to me. She also pointedly didn’t mention I could unlock Aura, or that I’d done it for her bodyguards; instead, coupled with her earlier comment about the ‘offer’ I ‘made’, she managed to give the impression that I’d intimidated her into giving Lionheart up without actually saying it.

And now I’m officially on the White Fang’s radar, not just Adam’s. Goody goody gumdrops.

“Very well,” said Fennec, sounding a little annoyed. “We will apprise High Leader Khan of what you have told us and requisition your payment. Thank you for your time.”

The fox brothers stood up and bowed, before walking out with their hands steepled.

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The call ended as Qrow no doubt pocketed his Scroll before transforming and following the brothers. I sent him a text anyway.

DM: Paladin -› Scarecrow | Sunday 16:37

‹Paladin› I’m sure you realized this faster than I did but no part of that explained why the fuck they were here in the first place

‹Paladin› I’m gonna have a chat with Lionheart once I get him healed up, if he knows anything I’ll follow up

Meanwhile, I had made my way back into Mistral Above and was getting closer to our temporary base of operations. Surprisingly, I was still being left alone despite carrying an unconscious man on my back through the entire city. Shrugging, I used my Semblance to compose a new message.

DM: Paladin -› Nightshade | Sunday 16:39

‹Paladin› gut check: how bad is it that those two know who I am? I have a bad feeling about them being here, especially in ‘uniform’, when there’s already a serial killer running around who happens to be faunus

As before, there was a pause during which Nightshade is typing… appeared and vanished several times.

‹Nightshade› I… couldn’t say. They aren’t as aggressive as Adam, but they definitely don’t have a problem with the way Sienna runs the group. I don’t think they’d pick a fight out of nowhere, but that doesn’t mean it’s a good thing to be on their radar. They’re both crafty, and while they aren’t as strong as Adam they’re definitely fighters. You need to be careful, Jaune. If Sienna decides you’re a threat to the cause, she won’t hesitate to have you killed.

She might try, at least, I thought, before catching myself. No, bad Jaune, don’t get cocky. You don’t know how strong she is; worst case she could be higher level than Adam. Not that I knew Adam’s level either, but I knew he was a beast.

‹Paladin› I’ll be careful, thanks Blake

Khamira -› ‘A Brilliant R Name’ | Sunday 16:42

‹Khamira› Not so fast, Jaune. You don’t get to leave the rest of the team out of the loop on senior White Fang being active in Mistral. And what was that about a serial killer? What exactly have you gotten yourself into over there?

‹The Warrior In The Woods› WHAT!?!?!?

‹Shining Knight› rude

‹Shining Knight› this is because I forced you to tell the team you used to be in a cult, isn’t it?

‹Khamira› Turnabout is fair play, O Fearless Leader.

‹Captain Mistral› You did promise not to cut us out of the loop, Jaune.

‹Shining Knight› I know, I know

‹Shining Knight› I guess going over everything that’s happened in the last few days gives me a chance to wrap my head around it

And I do have a few minutes while I get Lionheart healed up the rest of the way, I mused, unlocking the safehouse door and laying him on the couch.

‹Shining Knight› I still can’t tell you everything while the mission is active, and I might have to cut and run in a bit, but here’s what’s been going on

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Name: Jaune ArcLevel: 61 (Next: 63.35%)Title: Academy StudentRace: HumanAge: 18Job: Journeyman HuntsmanClass: PaladinSemblance: The GamerHP: 8202/8202MP: 4456/4456STR: 223 (100)CON: 279 (102)DEX: 162 (54)INT: 136 (51)WIS: 110 (52)CHA: 151 (52)Points: 112Money: 1,008,990LStatus: Cursed – Yellow Death [High]

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A/N: If you’re enjoying this story, feel free to check out my discord server at https://discord.gg/H6V854Fvbg

This chapter fought me every damn step of the way and I still kinda hate it. Maybe it'll get reviewed before it goes live, or maybe I'll put it behind me so I don't have to wrestle with it anymore.