Is...what I said but nope.
While the duke's daughter may be important, Serena said that her sister only comes home at this time of the year because of a family situation that she won't tell me about.
Fair. It's her family not mine. I don't wanna know either.
So! We decided to use my clones instead!
And now I'm negotiating with them while Titan and the others watched as we rested for a bit.
"One month. And no calling us back for no reason." Dos said as she and the other 6 look at me.
We're negotiating about the duration of their rest day after they find the duke's daughter.
"No. We can't stay in the kingdom for a month, 5 days." I replied.
"We? No, just us. You can call us back after a month, it doesn't matter where we are anyway so long as you're alive we won't really die. We'll go back to you after that month is up." Seis added.
"What?! That's unfair!"
"What's unfair is us being ordered to go to a ruin that might clearly get us killed AND might have zombies like before!" Quatro replied.
...Yeah, fair enough. BUT!
"ONE WEEK! And I'll give you money as well." I said, gritting my teeth at the thought of my money being used by them.
I planned on using the money Leah gave me to buy food. I forgot that Leah was the adviser for Fen and the others before, so when I asked Fen for money since I gave it to her because we needed emergency funds, she told me to go to Leah instead.
After I went to Leah, I had to do chores around her house just for her to give me 20 gold coins. Leah was acting weird back then though, like she was trying to do something but then she'd turn red and then start flipping me off. Weird.
Anyway, while 20 gold coins would've been a lot, but with the clones here and Mika as well, that's gonna disappear in no more than a day!
I only planned that money for Mika and I not these guys too!
The standoff between me and my clones continued, a battle of wits and stubbornness.
"One week is too short," Dos argued, arms crossed like she was the leader of this mutiny. "We need to scout, search, and maybe... I don't know, not die? The least you could do was give us a month of break after we find this─ duke's daughter─ woman."
"You’re not going to die! You’re clones! You're me! If you think you’ll die, then I should be panicking way more than I already am!” I shot back, pacing like an irritated cat.
Who wouldn't, fighting yourself is the most annoying thing in the world!
\( >□<)/
Seis, lounging lazily against a tree (or rather, her spectral shadow version of lounging), snorted. "Just because we’re you doesn’t mean we want to suffer for you. One week minimum, and we’ll accept ten gold coins each."
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
I nearly choked. "Each?! You think I’m some kind of royal treasurer? You know how hard it was to even get twenty gold coins from Leah!"
Leah, who was sitting a few feet away and peeling an apple with unsettling precision, smirked at the mention of her name. “To be fair, you weren’t very good at chores. I almost docked you five coins for nearly breaking my vase.”
“I said I was sorry!” I hissed, glaring at her. “And besides, who keeps *priceless* vases next to a mop bucket anyway?”
Leah shrugged, clearly enjoying my suffering. Serena, meanwhile, was sitting on a log with Titan, eating a piece of bread and grinning like this was the most entertaining thing she’d seen all week.
“Look, fine,” I said, spinning back to the clones. “One week. Ten coins total, not each, and you’re all going together. No splitting up and pretending you’re on some kind of vacation.”
Dos raised an eyebrow. “Ten coins total? That’s... insulting.”
“Do you want me to make it five coins total?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.
“… Ten coins is fine,” Dos said quickly, earning her a glare from Seis.
Quatro on the otherhand, leaned in with a sly grin. “And what about supplies? Are we supposed to just forage for food like savages?”
Fuck. Why did they have to be me, couldn't they just be infinitely loyal to me like the clone of that one cookie loving protagonist from that one harem story?!
“Yes,” I said immediately. “You’re my clones. You share my survival instincts. Use them. You’re resourceful!”
“Resourceful,” Quatro repeated, deadpan. “So, you’re saying we should just… eat moss and bugs like we did before?”
“Exactly! See? You get it.” I nodded, proud of my impeccable logic.
Author: Is that really something to be proud of? （￣～￣;）
Uno, who had been silent up until now, sighed dramatically. “You’re sending us to our doom. A ruin possibly filled with monsters, no food, and no proper pay. You really are the worst boss ever."
"No wonder they left us back then.” Uno added muttering to herself.
“Worst boss? I’m literally you!"
'And don't bring those up!' I yelled inside our shared conciousness.
“Exactly.” Uno replied flatly.
I groaned, clutching my head. Negotiating with them was worse than haggling with merchants. At least merchants didn’t know all my weaknesses.
“Fine!” I finally snapped. “I’ll give you fifteen coins total. And I’ll throw in some rations. But only because I don’t want to hear you whining about moss sandwiches later.”
The clones exchanged glances, and after a moment of silent deliberation, Dos stepped forward. “Deal.”
“Finally!” I threw my hands up in triumph. “Now, get going before I change my mind!”
As the clones prepared to leave, Leah leaned toward Serena and whispered loud enough for me to hear, “You think they’ll actually do their job, or are they just going to find a nice spot to nap until finally going back to Aria and telling her they couldn't find her?”
Rea, who heard it grinned. “My money’s on the napping.”
“I HEARD THAT!” I shouted, pointing an accusing finger at them. “You guys are supposed to be my allies!”
“We are your allies,” Leah said with a sweet smile. “We’re just also realists.”
Traitors! (´･□･`)/
Before I could respond, Quatro chimed in, "By the way, don’t forget to summon us back if something actually urgent happens. Otherwise, we’re going to stick with looking for her. "
I waved her off. “Yeah, yeah, I get it. Just don’t purposely die or something.”
With that, the clones set off, leaving me to deal with the aftermath of the negotiation. Serena, who had been silent the entire time, finally spoke up.
“You do realize they’re probably going to spend half that week arguing among themselves, right?” she said in a playful voice.
I sighed, collapsing onto the nearest log. “I don’t even care anymore. As long as they don’t come back asking for more money, I’ll consider it a win.”
Leah chuckled, handing me a piece of jerky. “You’re surprisingly bad at dealing with yourself.”
“Gee, thanks,” I muttered, taking the jerky and chewing on it begrudgingly.
Levy leaned over, her grin as wide as ever. “So, what’s the plan if they actually find her or something important?”
“Simple,” I said, shrugging. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. For now, I just want to sit here and pretend I don’t have seven versions of me running around causing chaos.”
The group burst into laughter, and despite my irritation, I found myself smiling. Maybe sending the clones was a good idea after all. At the very least, it gave me a break from their constant sarcasm. Well, mostly.