The next morning, outside the pleasure house…

Straf waits for the rest of the group to catch up. All but Nona and Lian have weary faces, while Lily walks out onto the street with her arms crossed and bearing a rather annoyed grimace.

「…What's up, Lia? Didn't sleep much?」

With a smirk on his face and his hands in his coat's pockets, Straf asks.

「Ah!? Eh!?…」

Her sleepy emerald eyes widen in shock, and her chestnut hair whips about when she looks at the rest of the group.

「…N- No, no… It was… Noisy…」

Cycelia replies with her blushing face lowered, fidgeting with her thumbs.

「Noisy doesn't do it justice… Some people are seriously shameless…」

Will nods as he chimes in, taking his glasses off for a moment to rub his weary face with his palm.

「I felt like silencing them… But then Straf would raise issue with that.」

Lily declares, turning her scarlet gaze up to Straf.

「Yeah, I would. Don't turn into a horror movie antagonist without my permission, Lily.」

Straf replies with an amused smirk on his face. She tilts her golden head in response.

「…Horror movie antagonist?」

Lily echoes with a confused gaze.

「Yeah. If I say「Git 'em, Lily!」you can feel free to rip away the shower curtain and start stabbin' away. I'll do the violin sting.」

Snap.

Straf snaps his fingers with a grin, pointing at Lily before returning his hand to his pocket.

「…Shower curtain? What's a shower?」

Lily asks, furrowing her brows at Straf.

His own brows furrow in response, and he lowers his head, rubbing his chin in thought.

Snap!

「Lia, you're going to like the palace upgrades I just came up with… Good job, Lily.」

Grinning even wider, Straf says with his finger pointed at Cycelia, before moving his hand to Lily's golden head.

Pat.

「Of course!… But, what did I do?…」

Lily replies with her arms crossed and chin proudly raised, before narrowing her crimson eye at Straf while his hand brushes the top of her head.

「You reminded me of a simple creature comfort, which is not something I'd expect from you of all people.」

「…Huh?」

Straf replies, returning his hand to his pocket. Lily's confusion only deepens.

「So? Where are we going next? Luckily the gambling places are gone, so-」

「Oh yeah, about that…」

Stripe asks with her arms crossed, shrugging her shoulders, and Straf quickly cuts her off.

「…I went for a walk last night, and happened to beat the shit out of two guys robbing someone. The legal gambling dens are gone, but as I expected, they knew where an illegal one is.」

He explains, and points his thumb over his shoulder towards alley debris strewn across the street. A barrel appears to have been smashed into bits.

「…What?」

Stripe says with slowly widening, deeply concerned golden eyes.

「What I mean is…」

Straf rolls his eyes and pulls his hand out, extending it out towards Stripe.

「…Give me your money.」

He demands with his mouth aslant, and expectantly wiggles his fingers.

「Wh-? No! I'm not gonna-! Shit!」

Stripe recoils away from his hand, protectively hugging her arms close to her chest. Then, her eyes widen in panic as she curses out and reaches for her scarf-covered neck.

「…Ah. I forgot. I don't have to listen to you anymore!」

With a relieved and gleeful grin on her face, she looks at Straf's annoyed face.

「Give me your money.」

He rolls his eyes and reaches for Stripe's wrist. She jumps back.

「No!」

「Hand it over.」

「No! Not gonna! It's my savings!」

Straf extends his hand for her wrist again, but she dodges out of the way, almost bumping into Greaves, nearly elbowing him in his face.

「Tsk… You're supposed to share in a harem! Hand over your money!」

Pat.

Straf's hand shoots through the air, and to Stripe's horror, grabs her wrist before she can react.

「N- No! Stop! I'll call the guards!」

「No you won't.」

Stripe contorts her body to shield the access to the interior of her sleeves, but Straf casually grabs her other wrist and pulls her arms out of the way.

「H- Help! Why are you just standing there and watching!? Aren't you an ally of justice!?」

Desperately wriggling about to prevent Straf from accessing her sleeves, Stripe calls out to Greaves and Will while they stare at the two with unimpressed faces.

「Huuh? I don't remember saying that. I'm the legendary hero.」「No you're not, grow up already…」

Greaves replies with his fists on his hips, and one eye narrowed at Stripe's anguished grimace. Will quickly chimes in, adjusting his glasses with a weary sigh.

「What kind of a hero lets an innocent woman get robbed in broad daylight!?」

Stripe exclaims while Straf's hands slowly crawl up to her wrists. She tries to resist, but can't make his arms budge in the slightest, as if her hands were stuck between shifting tectonic plates.

「Aren't you a literal spy?…」

Greaves asks with his hands spread and face twisted into disbelief at the audacity.

「B- But that's my savings! They're mine!…」

Stripe replies, helplessly watching Straf's fingers wriggle into her sleeve while his other hand holds her wrists.

「Mine now…」

He declares with a bored grimace and his mouth aslant. Stripe hears a faint clatter, and feels the loops around her forearm slide upward.

「…Nyooooooooo! My saaaaaviiiiingsss!… Gnnnnghhhhhh!」

Clinklink…

Stripe cries out in anguish as two coin loops slip off her hands into Straf's grasp. She collapses to her knees, clawing at the snow.

Clinkclink… Clinkclink… Clinkclink…

Straf twirls the loops of coins on his finger while Stripe gnashes her teeth in dismay. Will adjusts his glasses with a somewhat pitying look on his face. Lily lets out an amused scoff.

「Right… How much is this again?…」

He asks nonchalantly while looking at the gold and silver coins with his brow raised.

「Khkkk… It's years of my life…」

Stripe replies through her teeth while clawing out channels in the snow on the ground. Cycelia looks at Straf with a troubled, and somewhat disapproving gaze.

「Precious metals can swing too. Unpredictable events can steal your savings easily. Never trust anyone who says something is a safe trade.」

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Clankclack…

Straf shrugs his shoulders and grabs the loops into his hand with a noisy clatter. Will furrows his brows.

「Wait… You said that Strafsteelworks bills are safe.」

Will says with his brows furrowed and visibly concerned eyes.

「Really? Did I? I don't remember… Let's go.」

Straf shrugs his hands with an amused smirk on his face, and places his hands in his pockets. Stripe reluctantly gets up and trails behind the group as Straf casually leaves down the street. A small group of men in all black with conical hats pass by behind them, without noticing Straf or his group…

…

An hour later, in a shady part of the city…

Though the buildings were already in disrepair before, the ones directly on the street Straf and his group are traversing are simply falling apart. Either the owners have died, left, or stopped caring at all and let time and the elements claim the rotting wrecks, collapsing some of them. The roofs are mostly thatch, along with random clumps of vegetation. Straf approaches a rather unassuming, unmarked building lacking any signs.

「Okay, I think this is the place?- Wait, what the fuck?」

He says while looking at the building's relatively well-kept facade, before stopping in his tracks as he gets distracted by a poster hanging on a wall.

「What is it?」

Cycelia asks when Straf nearly runs up to the building. The group exchange a few confused glances amongst each other, and follow him to the wall.

「…That's not even close. What the fuck?」

Straf declares as he reads a poster stating Straf Katastrof Vindict underneath a sketch of a handsome man, albeit with extremely exaggerated features. His face is more rectangular than sharp, almost block-like, and his chin is nearly split into two. His nose is gigantic, and his eyes appear sunken deep beneath his pronounced brows, glaring at the viewer like an angered eagle, or a hawk.

「Is that supposed to be you?… I see a resemblance.」

Lily says as she stares at the poster with an unimpressed face.

「That's… Well, it gives people an idea of who to look for, at least.」

Will remarks, adjusting his glasses with a lightly amused smirk. Straf spreads his hands in an almost outraged disbelief with his mouth ajar.

「What is it, Straf? A wanted poster?」

Cycelia asks, furrowing her brows at Straf's real face as it stares with a focused, somewhat annoyed gaze at his sketched one.

「…Doesn't say I'm wanted, strangely enough. Offers a reward for accurate information of whereabouts, though…」

Straf replies, and begins rubbing his chin with his brows furrowing.

「…Should I tell 'em where I am and collect the reward?」

He asks, shrugging his hand with an amused smirk on his face. Lily lets out an amused huff, grinning with her golden head lowered and her arms crossed.

「Why would they honor that?…」

Will asks with his shoulders slumped, shaking his head with his mouth aslant.

「…I don't think that's a good idea, Straf.」

Cycelia replies with a troubled grimace on her face.

「No? What if we got the cat to do it? That'd technically work, right? More gambling money for me.」

「They want to kill you, dumbass.」

Straf asks, spreading his hands. Crossing his arms, Greaves chimes in with his mouth scrunched to the side in frustration.

「Pft. They already tried…」

Rrrrip!

Straf replies with a disdainful scoff, and rips the poster off the nail sticking it to the wall while shaking his head in ridicule.

「…Hey, cat… Tell 'em where I am and bring the money.」

He adds as he shoves the ripped poster into Stripe's arms.

「Wh-? Wha…?」

She stammers, staring at Straf's sketched face with severe confusion on hers as Straf casually heads for the building's entry door.

「…I- I'm not gonna! Is this a test!? Are you testing my loyalty!?」

Krkkrkrkkk!… Fwap.

Stripe asks with her voice angrily raised as she crumples the poster up and throws it away to the side, following Straf and the rest in.

「Huh? I'm telling you to rip them off for their money, idiot… Whatever, I should be fine with what I have.」

With an eye narrowed and brow raised, Straf looks over his shoulder at Stripe. He returns his gaze forward, and takes in the scene.

A few very wary, and at the same time shady-looking people turn their eyes to Straf and the group. Some of them reach for their weapons, but keep themselves from drawing them. Two large, bulky men with curving swords tucked into their waist sashes approach Straf in a hasty wide steps.

「You. Who are you? Who are you people? If you just wandered in here, get out. This is a private place.」

One of them asks and the two reach for their swords, but likewise hold off with drawing them. They eye everyone behind Straf warily, appearing to be the most concerned with Lian.

「I'm here to gamble.」

Straf casually replies with his mouth lightly tilted.

The two shaved-bald, rough-faced men glance at each other, relaxing ever so slightly. They return their eyes to Straf.

「Yeah? Who referred you?」

One of the swordsmen asks with an almost testing tone.

「A mountain hag, accompanied by a thief on a broom. Can I gamble yet?」

Straf scoffs and replies, spreading his hands. The coin loops hang off his wrist conspicuously.

「…Who? Stop fucking around. Tell me who referred you, or fuck off.」

The swordsman narrows his eyes, then replies in a harsher, threatening tone. The sliding door behind the group opens again, and a woman enters.

Straf, the rough guards, and the rest of the group briefly glance at her before returning their concerned gazes to Straf and the irate swordsmen.

「A fuckin' ice fairy. Seriously, do you just turn people away at the door? Is that your business model?」

Throwing his arms up in exasperation, Straf asks with his mouth scrunched to the side in frustration.

「Listen here, buddy. This is a private establishment. I don't know you, and nobody else does, so fuck off-」

The guard takes a step closer to Straf, gripping onto his sword and getting his face into Straf's.

「I know him, let him in.」

The newly-arrived woman says as she nonchalantly walks past the guards, stopping just behind them and turning to look at Straf.

「…You do?」

The guard asks with a somewhat confused and surprised voice as he looks at her over his shoulder, dropping his rough tone.

Likewise confused, Straf exchanges an accepting grimace with Cycelia and the rest, then shrugs his shoulders as his hands return to his coat's pockets.

「…Alright. But you say a peep to the guards about this place, and we'll well fuckin' know who did it. Watch yourself.」

The guard warns, or perhaps threatens, as the two return back to their previous spot by the walls, watching the men kneeling in the center of the room, facing one another. Straf follows the stranger woman into the small room. She takes a seat, kneeling on the woven mat and invitingly points her hand to an empty spot across from her with a smile on her face. Straf obliges and lazily sits down while the rest of the men beside them stare at them, waiting. The gamblers turn their eyes to Greaves, Will, and the rest.

「What about you? Are you playing?」

The man holding a wooden cup in his hand asks. His eyes jump at random between Cycelia, Lian, Stripe, Lily, and the rest.

「…No, we're just watching. We're with him.」

Stripe replies with a shake of her head, crossing her arms. The man with the cup glances at the two guards, then shrugs his shoulders.

「…Do we actually know each other?」

Straf asks the stranger woman in a hushed voice, leaning in slightly. She replies with a cheeky smile, holding her index finger in front of her lips, sending a wink Straf's way. He shrugs.

「Alright. Place your bets, place your bets!…」

The man with the cup calls out as he holds two dice between his fingers in his ring-adorned hand, and the inside of the wooden cup in the other.

Clakk.

He throws the dice in, shakes the cup, then slams its bottom down onto the mat.

「Odds…」「…Evens.」「…Evens.」

The men kneeling beside Straf and the woman say as they drop singular, or a small amount of silver coins in front of themselves.

「…Odds.」

The woman says, placing two silver coins down. She turns her smiling face to Straf.

「…Haven't seen you in a while. What were you up to?… You there, master. What's your bet?」

The man with the cup remarks to the woman, then nods up at Straf as he asks.

「Odd or even?」

Straf asks with his arms crossed while untying a loop of gold coins.

「Yeah. Is this your first time playing or somethin'?」

Holding his ring hand on his knee, the man nods in reply.

「…Let's go with odds.」

Fwup.

Straf says as he casually drops a gold coin onto the woven mat. The fellow gamblers exchange nervous grimaces, while the woman smirks at Straf.

「Looks like we've got a slight skew towards evens, with master tipping the rates back single-handedly. Let's see…」

The man remarks as he looks at the bet coins, then abruptly lifts the cup. Stripe grits her teeth while staring at the coin.

「…Odds! You're lucky, master!」

The dealer calls out, pointing his ringed hand at the odd sum of three and four.

Fwump.

The gamblers who picked the wrong choice wince, and most throw their coins to the dealer before he can even crawl up to collect them. Then all of the silver coins are collected from the losers, he distributes the winnings to Straf, the woman, and the other sole gambler who made a contrarian bet. Straf takes the lion's share of the winnings with a rather unimpressed grimace.

「…Yeah, I'd ask for a refund otherwise.」

Straf replies with a shrug, scooping the winning coins a little closer as the woman does the same with a light smile…