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>>1595130
>Time for training is what's passed, gotta rest up for the big day.

>>1595130
>Aw Yuuki, just a few more minutes.

>>1595130
>Only concerned about how much booze I'll need for the fight

>>1596129
>Only concerned about how much booze I'll need for the fight

This feels right

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"The time for training has passed, Lass." You roll over in bed, "Gotta rest up for the big day."
"The big day is TOMORROW, Jack!" You hear the voice sound out from the other side of the door. "Haven't you rested enough?"

You let her words rest in your mind. Each syllable feels like a dagger poking through your well-deserved naptime.
"Aw Yuuki, just a few more minutes." You turn onto your back, "Aye'll be up in no time."
"Everyone is already out in the courtyard now, Jack. They're training right at this very moment."

A sigh leaves your breath. Something about a lass nagging you is a good way to completely ruin any kind of sleepy mood you're having.

"Aren't you concerned about this?!" Yuuki begs from behind the door.
"Only concerned about how much booze I'll need for the fight!"

With that, you can hear Yuuki huff and stomp away.
Good, maybe you can get a short nap before she decides to come back again.

..

POP
FZzzzzt
Crackle, crack- crrck

Yeah, you're starting to realize that plan has gone right out the window in a spectactular shower of sparks.
Slowly, you roll over and force yourself to your feet.

You put on your clothes and head for the door. You almost forget your shirt in a haze, but maybe you should just go shirtless for the day. After all, they want you outside. They may as well get you exactly as you feel like it.
You decide not to be vengeful, and properly dress yourself. Quickly, you grab your arms and fling the door open.

Your arms start to pop back into place, and you feel your muscles creak. You could have really gone with some more sleep.
Though, maybe Yuuki has a point. It may be important to at least get together with your generals and ask what the general plan on fighting Atlas may be.
Ah, who are you kidding. When have you had a plan before?

..
Well, maybe you should consider it just this one time.

There's that little Yuuki in your head trying to make you be responsible again. Are you really going to take that?

>Of course not! Off to the bar we go!
>Maybe a little, go downstairs and ask Fritelli what the plan is gonna be tomorrow.
>You should try at least a little training.
>Hey, you know, what does Atlas think about this? Maybe you should go talk to him.
>Find Yuuki, and show her that you're well awake.
>Other?

>>1598841
>Hey, you know, what does Atlas think about this? Maybe you should go talk to him.

Know thy enemy and all that

>>1598841
>You should try at least a little training.
just to make sure we still have it.

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You hate making more work for yourself than you desire, but you also have to admit that inner-Yuuki is right. You should at least make an attempt.

Just a little of an attempt.

You decide to head downstairs and at least make yourself known to the crew who's currently training. You don't want them to lose moral or something if they think their captain is sleeping the day away.

-But just to be sure, you stop by the bar to fill up your flask. You want to be prepared for today, damn it!

You head outside into the training yard to assess the other heroes and their progress.

Yuuki is talking to Fritelli in a rather dour mood. You're certain she's telling on you to the only person who may be able to yell at you and get a response.
You decide to deal with that when the time comes. Instead, you focus on what the other heroes are doing!

Kayda and Louise are throwing various magic spells at targets. One will throw a bolt of lightning, and then another will throw a fireball. It's cute how well they work together!

Cody is.. taking a smoke break. Of course, 'smoke break' would infer that there was ever a time that wasn't a 'smoke break' to him.

Dorje is-
Dorje?
For whatever reason; Dorje isn't around here.

"Hay, ye know whar Dorje went?" you ask Noel, one of Biscotti's knights.
"Yeah, he's over there talking with-"

You follow her gaze across the training field, and meet the white-haired boy known as 'Dorje'.
He's hard at work training, too.

Training with the enemy whom you've challenged to a fight, that is.

Dorje is hard at work lifting stones and throwing boulders many times the size of him. Critiquing Dorje's form is none other than Atlas, the mountain hero.

"Aye, thanks."
"Be careful, Jack." Noel clearly doesn't trust Atlas all that much.
Which is understandable, the guy could bench-press the castle with everyone in it.

Dorje continues holding the massive granite slab above his head. He flicks his wrist, and the stone starts to shape and carve itself under Dorje's grasp!
With some cracking and shaving; the slab moulds itself into a statue! It looks like a granite statue of you, even!

Except, Dorje seems to have made it naked. What the heck, kid?

"I didn't get it right." Dorje sighs. "I lost focus and just thought about the body proportions."
"Mighty impressive, still!" Atlas congratulates his new pupil. "You're a mighty fast learner. You only learned how to carve the stones you pulled yesterday, and now you can make whole statues out of them."

>Aye, that is mighty impressive, Dorje.
>-But I'm a lot bigger than that, ask Tuile.
>Heya Atlas, what's goin' on?
>Dorje, aye dun think ye should be consorting with him.
>Dorje, aye think ye should keep trainin' under him.
>Other?

>>1599999
>Aye, that is mighty impressive, Dorje.
>-But I'm a lot bigger than that, ask Tuile.
>Heya Atlas, what's goin' on?

Those repeating digits

>>1599999
>Aye, that is mighty impressive, Dorje.
>-But I'm a lot bigger than that, ask Tuile.
>Heya Atlas, what's goin' on?

>>1599999

>Aye, that is mighty impressive, Dorje.
>-But I'm a lot bigger than that, ask Tuile.
>Heya Atlas, what's goin' on?

>>1599999
>Aye, that is mighty impressive, Dorje.
>-But I'm a lot bigger than that, ask Tuile.
>Heya Atlas, what's goin' on?
>Give a thought to training, ain't going to get much stronger in a day, but maybe figure out a new trick? Maybe ask Atlas?

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You clap your hands, "Aye, that's mighty impressive, Dorje."

Dorje nearly pushes over the statue he was carving. Atlas manages to swiftly catch it and gently lower it to the ground.

"Jack?!" Dorje is startled, "I'm sorry! I was just trying to make a statue, and I couldn't think of-"

"Ah it's fine lad, Aye think it's a good look fer me!" You laugh, "But I hafta say, Aye'm a lot bigger than that. Ye can ask Tuile if ye don't believe me."

Dorje only stares at you in confusion, but Atlas gives you a look that varies between 'Haha, nice' and '..Really?'.
You'll consider that a victory in your book.

"Heya Atlas." You change subjects before Dorje starts to question it. "How're ye doin'? Preparing for the big day tomorrow?"

"I should be, Jack." Atlas is oddly candid about his training routine. "-But Dorje asked for help, and I enjoy teaching others. It's sort of a knack of mine."

So he enjoys helping his enemy more than training himself against that enemy?
You can't tell if the guy is just being cocky, or if he just wants to make a challenge for himself.

You're not going to stop your opponent when he's making a mistake. By all means, Atlas. Keep training Dorje.

"Alright, just wanna check. Ye two holdin' up okay?"

"I'm doing great!" Dorje is beaming, "Look! I can make a statue from almost nothing! Atlas says that I could eventually make an entire palace that way!"

That's nice, Lad. Just keep distracting him, and everything will work out.

..On the other hand, why should he be the only one that takes advantage of Atlas' goodwill?
He is a legendary hero, after all. It would only be fair if the captain got some training of his own.

"Hey Atlas, got any tips fer me while yer at it?" You try not to play at what you're trying to do. "My magic game has been kinda dull lately."

"Well, that depends. Your element is water, right? How do you see yourself using your magic?"

>By washing my opponents away.
>By slamming my enemies with unstoppable liquid force.
>By raining death from above.
>That's a secret.
>Other?

>>1603252
>By slamming my enemies with unstoppable liquid force.

>>1603252
>By slamming my enemies with unstoppable liquid force.
>And draining barrels of booze from across the room

>>1603252
>By slamming my enemies with unstoppable liquid force.
>And draining barrels of booze from across the room

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"By bowlin' over my enemies with unstoppable liquid force." You smile, that seems like a much more promising answer in your head than when you said it.

"Is that the only way to wanted to use magic?" Atlas asks a interesting question.

You think about it a tad bit more, and you suddenly remember something that you always thought would be neat.

"Well, and drainin' barrels of booze from across the room, of course." You give a great big smile. At the end of the day, it's just a tool for you. A tool you intend to use the most.

Dorje sighs, but Atlas gives a great big laugh!
"Perfect, Jack! Just perfect!" He's smiling too, maybe he isn't as crazy as you took him to be. "The number one rule of learning magic is to make it part of your daily routine. How often would you even think about it if you only thought of it occasionally when fighting?"

"Wait, does that mean I should do the same?" Dorje picks up on those words.
"Absolutely, Lad!" Atlas' face is beaming with a great big smile. "You should always be finding ways to use magic in your normal life. It's the thing that makes us heroes, after all."

Well, you can't say you're a fan of his ideology, but you can at least appreciate the spirit of the matter.

"Alright, Atlas. Tell me how'ta drink liquor by just thinkin' about it."

"Well, it's not that easy Jack." Of course it wouldn't be that easy, "Water and liquids are indeed very strong forces, but you have to think about their surface area."

Oh no, this is going to be complicated; isn't it?
"Err, surface area?"

"That's right, water alone is heavy, but what keeps it sticking together is surface tension, and the blah blah blah blah-"

Okay, okay, you got the gist of it. Increase surface area to pull it easier. You can stop now, Atlas.

He smiles, and then extends his hand. A glob of almost crystal-like water forms at his fingertips.
"Grab this, Jack."

You take it from his hand, and are careful to use your magic to force it to maintain form. Slowly, the globe of water starts to gradually lose its shape until the lack of tension causes it to 'pop' like a balloon.

"Damn."
"Hey, pretty good for your first try doing that." Atlas seems more than willing to help, "Try that about fifty more times."

>Yar, I'll do it later.
>Quick question Atlas, why're ye helpin' us?
>Don't question it.
>Just do what he asks, it's technically 'training'.
>You don't see the alcohol-based implication involved. Take out your flask and try it that way
>Other?

>>1606351
>You don't see the alcohol-based implication involved. Take out your flask and try it that way

>>1606351
>Quick question Atlas, why're ye helpin' us?
>You don't see the alcohol-based implication involved. Take out your flask and try it that way

>>1606351
>You don't see the alcohol-based implication involved. Take out your flask and try it that way
above the mouth, of course, to catch it when it falls

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Hey, this is pretty neat.
You press against the liquid orb with your thumb. It contours and melds to your grasp, almost as if it was a sea sponge.

While it's a great parlor trick.
You don't exactly see the alcohol involved.

That gives you an idea.

You let this orb burst, and then reach into your pocket. Inside is your flask. Or, one of your flasks. You empty the contents out into your hand, and slowly a bubble starts to form.

There's a smile that slowly creeps across your lips as the liquor starts to ball up in your hands. The extra ingredients result in it folding onto itself like putty.
That's perfect.

Slowly, you start to ball it up into a slurry. Your hands pull it apart like dough as it turns to a long strand of spaghetti.

You hold the viscous mixture of alcohol above your mouth, and then let it pour in. The ichor still tastes just as good, too.

Oh yeah, you're going to be using this skill a whole lot.

"That seems like a good reason to tell people why you keep drinking." Atlas smiles, "Magic practice."
"Yar, as if aye ever needed a reason." You look in your flask. It would be perfect if you could think of a way to make alcohol like Jesus.

"Hey!" You hear a familiar voice behind you. You spin around, and are met with Cody trying to flag you down, "Could I have a word with ya, Jack?"

"Yar, fine." You pat Dorje on the head, "Keep trainin' hard son."
"Definitely!" Dorje is beaming. In a way, you feel a little jealous of how quickly Atlas fell into a fatherly role. You feel as if you may have missed the mark a bit.

You walk over to Cody, exchange greetings, and get right to business.
"What's up?"

"Fritelli gave me an interesting suggestion." Cody lights up a cigarette, "Y'know, we control the battlefield for tomorrow's event, right?"
"Yar. that was one of the conditions." You cough, it's not like Atlas has a place to call his own battlefield anymore.

"So, I was thinkin'. It would be wise of us to scout it out and maybe put a few obstacles of our own. Y'know?"

"Obstacles of yer own?" You don't seem to get where he's going with this.

"Yeah, sure. You know, maybe do a little scouting, add a few surprises. The battlefield will have it's own treacherous terrain, but if someone were to 'accidentally' put a few extra tricks into the mix. What's the harm?" Cody looks out over the festivities occurring not too far away. "Besides, we're both due for a lucky break, right?"

>Argh, I don't know.
>Cody, I insist that we cheat.
>Let's go.
>Aye'm gonna talk this over with Fritelli.
>Other?

>>1609921
>Argh, I don't know.
>Aye'm gonna talk this over with Fritelli.
>And maybe everybody else.
>Except Atlas.
>Maybe him too?

>>1609921
>Argh, I don't know.
>Not sure if anything that's not a hero could do something worth the effort at all

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>>1609921
>Cody, I insist that we cheat.
>Let's go.

Rolled 1 (1d3)

I'm back, and we do not have much of a consensus, so we'll roll on it!

1. Aye dun' know, talk with people about it.
2. Don't talk, but review your options
3. Damn the torpedoes, full cheat ahead

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"Argh, I don't know." You feel apprehensive about it. For one, you're not entirely sure how much good traps and the like can even do against someone like Atlas.
And for two; you don't want to get caught doing it. That might just make him mad.

"Heh, that's our fearless leader." Cody laughs, "A straight edge by-the-books leader. So, do you have plans to ransack the bar again tonight?"

"Hay, dun get me wrong." You can practically feel Cody's sarcasm hit like a brick, "Aye'd love a advantage as much as anyone. But aye think we needa ask our prime strategist before we decid'a do somethin' like that. There'll be other soldiers in the field besides us."

Cody shrugs, and starts trudging back toward the others.
"Sure thing, Jack. You're th boss."

You don't think he entirely meant that last one, but you'll let it slide for now.

You both walk over to edge of the training yard where Fritelli is talking with Bennet.
After what happened the other night with Antonin; Bennet got himself quite a promotion. He's on track to be a captain, soon. You suspect this battle will serve as a crash-course on leading a small band of warriors.

Fritelli is the first to notice you, even before you say anything to her.
"Hey Jack, what's up?" She has her usual no-nonsense demeanor on that she carries when she wishes to be taken seriously.

"Hay, we were thinkin'. What do ye feel about battlefield 'advantages'?"
"'Advantages?'"

"Yar, 'Advantages'."

"He means traps, Fritelli." Bennet immediately knows what you're talking about.

"'Advantages', OH! Advantages!" You can almost feel the little gears in Fritelli's head spinning. "Well, if you can set them up in time. They can be a very useful resource."

"Yar, what do ye feel about usin' them in this battle?"

"Using them in- Oh no, Jack. I'm okay if you want to get a shovel and dig some fortifications for yourself or some soldiers to use, but not arming live traps on the field. For one, none of my soldiers have been briefed on it, I don't want them getting tangled in those things."
"Tch." Cody bites down on his cigarette.

Ah ha, it seems the idea of using traps was more of a Cody idea than a Fritelli idea. Well, you have to give the guy some credit! He's thinking with his head for once.

>Fortifications, you say? Tell me more.
>What is the battle plan for tomorrow?
>Okay Cody, let's go set up traps anyway.
>Any suggestions about tomorrow's battle?
>Other?

>>1611320
>Any suggestions about tomorrow's battle?
>Okay Cody, let's go set up traps anyway.
Don't think fortifications are gonna do much against a guy who can level castles

>>1611320
>Fortifications, you say? Tell me more.
>Okay Cody, let's go set up traps anyway.

Cody is often the Ace up our sleeve. If he wants traps he should know how to set them up so they only go off when he wants them to.

>>1611320
>Any suggestions about tomorrow's battle?
>What kind of traps did you have in mind anyway Cody.

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"Any suggestions 'bout tomorrow's battle?" You dust your hands off, "Aye'd like to hear what yer thinkin'."

Fritelli thinks about your question for a second.
"I mean, traps and the like may help. At the same time, I think it may be better to try and search the battlefield for places you may want to use to confront Atlas."

That might be a good idea. There might be better places to drag him to which you may have an advantage. Particularly a place that has lots of water. He can use water magic, but it's your prime specialty.

"Anythin' else?"
"Just places you think an army might be better off. Remember, it's not going to be just you versus him. You'll have an entire army at your back. So don't go thinking this is some dumb barroom brawl."

You'll think about it.

In hindsight, you're starting to not feel as confident about Fritelli's plan as you thought you would be.
Maybe it's because you don't exactly think an army would be as effective on Atlas as it would be on you. That is to say, not effective at all.

"Aye, thanks Fritelli."

"Anytime, Jack."

You turn around and then walk straight toward Cody. You can tell by that smug smirk on his face that he knows exaclty what you're going to ask before you even say it.

"Alright Cody, ye win, Let's go look at some places we could place a few traps."
"That's the spirit."

You follow him over to where the supposed battlefield is supposed to be. He takes a look around and points out some great places to maybe add water, remove water, or just flat-out remove and put something over it to create a makeshift pit.
You don't know how well a pit can go toward saving you, but it's something to at least consider.

"So, Jack, how crazy you want to get with this?"

>Very crazy
>Traps everywhere
>Maybe not that crazy
>Just enough to where you might have an out in a tough situation.
>Place them around randomly.
>Other?

>>1614865
>Something that can't be used against us?

>>1614865
>Very crazy
just turn the battlefield into a sea (or a mangrove maybe)

>>1614865
>Very crazy
Lets go all magical Vietnam on Atlas

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"Ye got somethin' in mind that can't be used against us?"
"I think I have a few ideas, at least." Cody bites on his cigarette, "At least somethin' I wouldn't fall for, at least."

Hey, that's more than good enough for you.

"In that case, Cody." You smile, "Let's go crazy with it. Very crazy."
"Aye, Captain." Cody smiles, too. You can tell he's been thinking of something like this for quite some time.

You set to work trying to arm some pits and some other annoying traps. Cody, using his newly mastered air magic, is able to move entire false-forests into place with the strength of a tornado. It's really quite frightening how strong that kind of magic can be.

"Everything in place?" Cody approaches you after he finishes the last snare. This one being so huge that there's only one person who could ever get caught in it.

"Aye think so." You give your handiwork a brief once-over. "Aye got eight traps set. How 'bout yerself?"

"I got.. Thirty set. Only eight, Jack? What the heck were you doing?"

"Aw, well. Aye think aye may have spent a little too much time on that last trap. It's a doozy." You wink.

"..Really? What'cha have in mind, Jack?"
"Ah ha, It's a bit ofa secret. Of course, aye'll give one hint."

You give him a wide, toothy grin, "Ye can swim, right?"
"Huh? Of course I can. What is it? A waterfall? A Geyser? Did ya dredge up a lake, somewhere?"

"Secret, Cody. That's all aye'm givin' out."

You feel proud of that last trap. Of course, you feel that it's going to be a bit overkill. You hope Tuile forgives you when it's over.

"Ah, anyway. I think we've done what we can, right now. I'll come back to it and maybe plant a few more, later."
"Sounds good, Cody. Aye'm gonna-"

"Oh right, I already forgot somethin'; I think Atsuko wants to have a chat with you."
"With me?" You feel surprised.

"Ya. She seemed none too happy, either."

Atsuko not being happy and wanting to talk? What else is new?

"Whar is she?"
"Probably the bar, she said she hadta do a checkup on Camille."

>Argh fine, aye'll go find her.
>Maybe later.
>Right now, you have important battle things to discuss.
>Go meet with some heroes about planning.
>The bar? You didn't need to say anything past that.
>Other?

>>1615510
>Argh fine, aye'll go find her.

Obligatory pro-fox tidepissing.

>>1615510
>The bar? You didn't need to say anything past that.
Yarcoholism!

>>1615510
>The bar? You didn't need to say anything past that.

>>1615515
I'm pro-fox, too. I know that feel.

>writing!

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"Argh, fine." You cough, "Aye'll go find 'er. Whar'd ye say she was at?"

"Probably lookin' at swee-"
You can hear Cody adjust his voice.

"-Probably lookin' at Camille at the bar. She was gonna give a spirit reading for her."

You don't know what that is, but you'll trust that Camille is in good hands with Atsuko when it comes to spirit readings.

Wait.
"Did ye say she's at the bar?"
"Yeah, probably. Camille lives in the penthouse above the bar."

"Well, why didn't ye say so! Aye'm gonna go meet 'er right away, then. Let me know if anythin' comes up."
"Yeah, sure you are." Cody takes out another cigarette. You think he may have a suspicion of what you're really looking for.

--

"The usual?"
"THE USUAL!" You happily exclaim to the bartender. He nods and then quickly takes to the bottles to get your gin-rum-scotch-milk-burbon-whatever drink. You don't know what it is, but it tastes damn fine when you drink it!

Oh right, you're also here to look for Atsuko. Maybe you should at least give a cursory glance around the bar to see if she's here.

You look over your shoulder to the left. The bustling activity of the bar shows neither hide nor hair of the cunning ice-lass you were expecting.

"Well, aye looked."
You then immediately sip from the glass laid out in front of you.

"Ahem." You hear from your right.
"Bless ye." You state rather quickly before taking another drink. You wonder what kind of mixture the bartender also added to this one. YOu can tell that it's not just straight-

"AHEM."
"Bless ye." You state once more. It's something about the texture of the drink. You can almost taste a bit of citrus. Is there a hint of orange juice, or perhaps-

"JACK!" You hear a rather annoyed voice try to grab your attention.

Slowly, you turn your head to the right and are met with the annoyed look of a certain yellow-haired fox.

"Oh, Hay Atsuko. How long have ye been sittin' there?"
"You sat next to me! I thought you were going to start talking, but then you just ordered a drink."

"Aye have my priorities straight, Lass. Anyway, what's goin' on? How ye doin'?"

"I'm doing fine, how are YOU doing? You haven't been back to the shrine to recharge in a week, and you're fighting Atlas tomorrow. Aren't you the least bit worried? Keiko and I have missed you, I might add."

>Aw, that's sweet.
>..Maybe you have a point.
>Aye've been busy with this bear-person nonsense.
>Aye'll be fine.
>Okay? What should I do about it, then?
>Other?

>>1618038
>Aw, that's sweet.
>Aye've been busy with this bear-person nonsense.
>..Maybe you have a point.

>>1618038
>..Maybe you have a point.
>Aye've been busy with this bear-person nonsense.

>>1618038
>Aw, that's sweet.
>Aye've been busy with this bear-person nonsense.
>Aye feel fine, but i wouldn't mind crashing in the shrine tonight.

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"Aw, that's sweet." You take another sip of this wondrous liquor. "Aye din' know ye both missed me. 'pecially you, Lass. I'm touched."

"Believe it or not, Jack. I really do care about your well-being." Her tail seems to involuntarily waft behind her. "Which is why it hurts to see you act so uncaring toward it."

"Yargh, that's not true. Aye care about my health! Oh, oh, Bartender. Another round, please."

Atsuko's tail flops over in a blonde mass of fur.
"Jack, aren't you the least bit concerned?"

"Of course I am, Lass!" You take another swig of the fine alcohol, "Aye've just been busy with this bear stuff for the past couple'a weeks, y'know how it is. No rest for the wicked."
Is that how that goes? Yeah, that's how that goes.

"I understand you've been busy, but you of all people should know how to tell someone 'no'. Why has cleaning up after this mess become your problem, anyway?"
"'Cause aye'm the only one who can do it. If ye want a job done right, ye gotta do it yerself."

"Then what about this training business. You should know that you're not going to be training up to snuff while you're tired."
"Aye felt it necessary to attend. Aye've been slackin' and not really takin' this thing really seriously."

"Including rest."
"Ye may have a point there, but this has been important work, aye tell ye." You take another sip.

"Okay, Jack. This is going to sound absolutely mad coming out of my mouth, but I'm just going to say it."

Atsuko turns her barstool toward you, and her ears roll back slightly.
"I think you're a bit of a doormat."

Oh, that last drop of liquor kind of hung in your throat a bit. At least, that's what you hope it was and not shock from the dumbest thing you may have ever heard.

"What, Lass?"
"I said 'I think you're a bit of a doormat'." Atsuko continues her assault, "You're letting people take advantage of your willingness to help, and I think it's time to tell them to stop."

"Aye'm NOT a doormat, Lass."
"Then why haven't you been back to sleep in over a week?"

"I've been busy." You down the rest of your drink.

"You need to learn to tell your 'crew' that you've been busy, too. Tell Tuile you need a rest, tell Cody to take over for you. You can't keep up trying to balance the kingdom on your shoulders."

>Maybe you're right.
>No! I'm just fine.
>I'll come sleep later, right now I have work to do.
>..Fine I'll come sleep right now.
>Other?

>>1619767
>Maybe you're right.
>I'll come sleep later, right now I have work to do.

>>1619767
>>Maybe you're right.

>>1619767
>No! I'm just fine.
>I'll come sleep later, right now I have work to do.

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You gently set the glass down with but a tap. You feel a sigh leave your breath.

You hate to admit it. You hate even entertaining the idea.
"Yar, maybe yer right."

Ugh, that leaves an even worse aftertaste in your mouth than the swill you just drank. The idea of a five-drink mix seems less appealing when you got it than when you're thinking about it.

"I know I'm right." Atsuko says with an almost positive demeanor. "Which is why you need to come rest."

You tap the bartender to bring you another round.

"-We'll compromise." You regain your footing; you're not going to let ice lass tell you how to finish your day. "Aye'll come back after the shift and sleep later. Aye got work to do right now."

This is met with the indignant stare of the fox-lass sitting right next to you.
"Jack."
"Aye?"

"You're not just blowing me off so you can go work yourself to death, are you?"
"Aye told ye Lass, aye got things to do."

"Are those 'things to do' more important than getting a good night's recharge?"
"It's preparation for facing Atlas. The war is tomorrow, ye know."

"All the more reason to come back and recharge."
"Ye really wanna get with me into the sack, don't ye?"

"If it means you not dying then yes, I really want to get into bed with you."

You never knew that a woman saying that to you would evoke such irritation.

"Three hours." You take one last hit of the hard stuff, "Gimme three hours, and aye'll be back at the shrine."

Atsuko's fluffy blonde tail perks up.
"..I somehow think you're just trying to make me go away, but that's good enough for me. Three hours, right?"
"Three hours."

"Okay, see you then."

Atsuko then immediately hops up, and heads for the exit.

God damn.

>Keep drinking.
>You have three hours, go back to training and catch up with your team
>You're not actually going to listen to her.
>You might actually listen to her.
>Do something else to pass the time
>Other?

>>1622251
>You have three hours, go back to training and catch up with your team
>You might actually listen to her.
>>But you might also be a little late.

>You have three hours, go back to training and catch up with your team

>>1622251
>>You have three hours, go back to training and catch up with your team
>>You might actually listen to her.
>But you might also be a little late.

Wouldn't be Jack if he showed up on time

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Well, you do have three hours. That's three hours you have to go back and go over things with your team.
Maybe this won't be so bad, after all.

You throw a coin on the table and stand up to walk out. It's not enough to pay your tab, but it's the sentiment that counts.
Atsuko may be right about something. You have been sleeping more and more. You're sure it's because of how much time you've been spending at the castle instead of going back to the shrine at night.
Of course, it's not like you did it because you hate Atsuko or Keiko. Definitely not because you hate Keiko.

Damn it, why did all of this stuff have to become complicated?

You just wanted to kick some bad guys asses, throw them in jail, and then finish the week up with a huge scrap with a big guy that looks like he hits like a ship. Is that so hard?

Things just aren't as easy as they used to be.
Maybe Atsuko was right about you being a bit of a doormat. You are going back to help train people who are probably perfectly capable of training themselves just for peace of mind, after all.

Okay, it's not entirely that. They are your crew, and it's the job of a captain to care for his crew. You're going to stand by that until the end of time, and no accusation of being a doormat will make you think twice about it.

You arrive back at the castle just in time to see everyone taking a break. Which is good, because this is a good time to pull everyone away from Atlas and address them about what has happened over the last few hours.

"Aye, Yuuki. Have everyone come 'ere real quick." She dabs sweat off of her brow with a towel as she gives you her attention.

"Yes sir." She seems more than happy to comply. Maybe it's because she feels like you're actually doing something now?

The heroes who will be at the battle tomorrow quietly listen in as you explain a few things.

"First." You adjust your voice, "Cody and aye have placed a few 'helpful tricks' around the battlefield. By the way, anyone here can't swim?"

No one says anything, good.

"Alright, Cody, show 'im the ones ye set up, Dorje, go distract Atlas so he doesn't get any ideas."

Onto the next matter of business-

>We're gonna have dinner, a feast, even! To celebrate tomorrow's victory.
>We should keep trainin' fer a few hours before hitting the sack.
>EVERYONE TO THE BAR
>EVEN ATLAS
>Ye've been a good crew, never change.
>Other?

>>1625151
>EVERYONE TO THE BAR
>EVEN ATLAS
>And Atsuko to carry me home

>We're gonna have dinner, a feast, even! To celebrate tomorrow's victory.

You know what you never find on a ship that's been out at sea for any amount of time?

Good food! And where there is good food there is alcohol!

>>1625151
>We're gonna have dinner, a feast, even! To celebrate tomorrow's victory.
>EVEN ATLAS

As much as i would like to go drinking I don't want the others to be any amount of hung over for the fight