Chapter 61: Chapter 61 – Alcohol and Familiar Faces

Astrid and all the others stood in the elevator as it descended. Gloria and Astrid were in a huff, while Maggie held a smug smile on her face. As the elevator became darker as they travelled further down the ship, Astrid reached her hand into the small pocket of her leggings and peeked at the chains of the Eternal Jailer.

She was worried that the auction house would somehow know. Although she was confident that even if she was caught, they wouldn’t dare mete out any punishment on her. Her father was a different story, however. He would absolutely take the punishment seriously as stealing was unbecoming of a Sinwen.

She didn’t care. In her eyes, it was going to get stolen, anyway. Better in her pocket than some murdering scum. Her thoughts returned to the other party members. She sighed. It just meant that she would have to pay them back... eventually..

She put the chain back into her pocket before anyone could see what it was. The elevator ground to a stop and the dual glass doors opened up in synchronisation. Unlike the Upper District, the Middle was untouched by the robed invaders.

They meandered through the streets and approached an old-looking, but still magnificent pub. Just looking from the outside, it was easily mistaken as a restaurant in Astrid’s mind. They made it from old red bricks, and vines sprawled across them as they spread their influence as far as they could before another shop next to it chopped them off.

“C’mon, I know the owner of this place.” Maggie said.

It surprised Astrid to see a hint of embarrassment, or shyness, to her. Although she wasn’t sure which one it was, emotions were a hard thing to grasp sometimes. It reminded her of Gloria. Did she dislike her with her constant prickles? Or was it just a strange way to show her friendship?

The Forscythes are exhausting. Astrid shook the thoughts as she followed behind Maggie as she opened up the door. A bell rang throughout the pub as it notified the people of their presence.

An excitement bubbled up within her as she saw a group of familiar backs. She levitated off the ground and snuck up to them, hoping Lisa wouldn’t be able to use her tremor tracking. Astrid reached just behind Rob and Brett, finally she leapt forward within the air.

“Boo!” Astrid shouted as it startled the group. She glanced at Rachelle’s smile.

“You’re acting, aren’t you?” Astrid pouted.

“Of course not!” Daniel said. “You scared the daylights out of us.”

“I may be a noble, but I understand sarcasm, you know.” Astrid said.

“So you are Astrid’s party members?” Maggie approached and Brett failed to mask his adoration. She began introducing herself to Daniel, but Astrid was curious about what Brett was thinking. Knowing him, it was most likely nothing good.

Astrid nudged against his arm. “You know who she is?”

“Ah?” Brett looked at her in confusion. “I have no idea. Who is she?”

“So it’s about her looks, then?” Astrid said with disappointment.

Rachelle pried Astrid to the side as her face brushed against her own.

“Ar–are you that surprised?” Rachelle stuttered. “Brett only looks for one thing. Why do they need to have a personality?”

Her hot breath brushed up against Astrid’s cheek. The deep stench of alcohol fumes almost made her revolt.

“What the hell do you think of me, you raging alcoholic?” Brett said, before turning it into a grin. “Besides, it’s two things I look for, not one.”

“Charlotte.” Maggie rushed forward as a woman appeared from the back room with a casket of what was presumably some sort of ale. She had long brunette hair that was tied into a tidy ponytail. She was wearing a tidy yellow blouse that was tucked into a pair of tight brown trousers. Her outfit was finished with a chunky pair of boots that added a good amount of height to her presumably short stature.

Astrid could easily guess that she was carrying ale as Rachelle’s eyes lit up like two beacons of light that looked like they were trying to signal something closer to her. Astrid watched as Maggie placed the cask of ale on the floor, picked up the woman named Charlotte and spun her around. They both smiled as their lips locked.

“Not when there are guests around.” Charlotte giggled. “Did you finish the repairs on the surface?”

Maggie placed her down.

“I did.” Maggie nudged her thumb to Astrid and the others. “Finished early, thanks to the young ones.”

“You say that as if you’re old.” Gloria said. “You’re what? Barely twenty-eight?”

“And you’re sixteen,” Maggie said. “That makes me twelve years your senior.”

“How do you know our ages?” Froderick asked.

Josh placed his hand on Froderick’s shoulder. “Froderick, you need to think more before spurting out the first thing that comes to your mind.”

Froderick pinched his chin in thought. “Oh, because we’re fresh recruits?”

Astrid and Gloria began clapping as his face turned red.

“It’s not my fault!” Froderick continued. “My brother took the exam years after his awakening.”

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Astrid ignored him as she sat closer to Daniel. “Any news on another mission?”

“Actually, I do,” Daniel said.

“Oh?” Astrid raised her shoulders.

“But it’s not with us, I’m afraid.” Daniel took a swig out of his mug. “Command have given me a mission for you with another group to go down into a marked Town for a resource clearing mission.”

“Wait,” Astrid said, “since you’re the one giving me the mission, does that mean you’re my mentor?”

“That’s right." Daniel laughed, "From now on I’ll be giving you your missions and you can’t always be with us, I’m afraid.”

Astrid hesitantly nodded. She understood what he meant. They were currently too strong, and the weaker wayfarers like Astrid, Gloria and the others were required to take on the lower level missions. After all, manpower was scarce. Especially now that they had to have more of the stronger Wayfarers on HMS Rebirth for defence. They weren’t only facing the Spawn anymore, and the robed criminals could easily walk around in casual clothes if they wanted.

“When is it, and who will it be with?” Astrid asked.

Gloria and the others also perked their ears up as they listened for information. Daniel motioned towards the Wayfarer recruits.

“Really?!” Froderick smiled. “It’ll just be like our first mission!”

“You think you can handle it?” Gloria said.

Froderick turned serious as he nodded. “I’ve given it a lot of thought and Astrid was right all along. We need to become stronger.”

“I agree. If it’s alright with all of you, I’d like to take the lead.” Josh glanced at the others.

“I have no complaints.” Gloria nodded. “You held your own and remained level-headed. There are worse choices.”

“Thanks, I guess?” Josh forced a smile.

“Of course we agree,” Mina said and looked at Nick. “Even since you were little, you wanted to be a commander. You always begged your parents for a new strategy book.”

Josh nodded. “Thanks guys.”

“You'll also be going with a bunch of second years,” Daniel said. “It’s good to make sure you have a team leader, but for this mission, you’ll be under their command.”

“When is it?” Gloria said.

“Three days' time,” Daniel said, “so make sure you have everything ready for them. Potions, a warm set of clothes, rope–”

“Never forget the rope,” Brett interrupted. “Not everyone is agile enough to scale down a building. Especially huge hulking behemoths.”

“Mmm.” Rob growled as he placed his enormous hand on Brett's shoulder.

Brett nervously chuckled. “C’mon Rob, it was a joke.”

“He’s right, and it’s not only that you might need.” Daniel said. “For this mission, you will do your own research. Go to the Wayfarer’s headquarters and give them your name. Then–”

“Daniel, let them figure out the rest for themselves.” Losef said and turned to Astrid and the others. “Go there and figure it all out.” Losef held his usual gentle smile on his face, but Astrid recalled his savage expression behind his helmet as his spear reaped the lives of those robbers.

Astrid nodded.

“But for now you drink!” Rachelle shouted. “Charlotte, we'll have some of your finest ale to prepare for their mission!”

“I’m not sure getting drunk is the best preparation…” Froderick mumbled, but there was no stopping Rachelle once she had decided on something, especially when drinking.

Just a few moments later, Astrid and the others sat on their stools at the bar. Charlotte placed mugs of freshly filled ale on the countertop.

Astrid gazed at the class mug. Unlike The Wayfarer’s pub down in the Lower District, the ale here was obviously of higher quality. A neat foam top that was a perfect inch thick lay atop a golden brew, unlike the dingy brown of the previous ale she had tried before. Charlotte must have stored the keg in ice, as the liquid was frigid. Condensation dripped down the class.

Astrid licked her lips and could wait no longer. She grabbed hold of the chilly, smooth glass and took a sip. The foam hugged her lip, then the liquid continued and the bitterness of the ale met her mouth. Unlike the other, the taste was pleasant and, holding it in her mouth, surprisingly, wasn’t vile. Instead, she could appreciate the care and craft that had been used to create such a drink. She could clearly make out the sweet taste of the grains she had used alongside the wood of the barrel.

Her feet tapped against the wooden stool's step. Her sip turned into multiple gulps. The alcohol wasn’t overbearing, but provided a minute buzz that one would appreciate for a casual drink.

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