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Ookay? That just happened, I guess?

I blinked as the invisible barrier around us fell apart, Lewis holstering his weapon as if nothing even bad had just happened. Beside me, Shizu and Guidance were clearly just as surprised, their guards still up even as our opponent had clearly disarmed himself.

Not that I\'d even trust him even after that. There was no way this guy was defenseless even without that [Manifest] of his. And we haven\'t even seen what he was truly capable of yet.

"Are you guys okay!?"

Shade\'s voice echoed back into reality as I heard him yell from behind our backs. I could only assume that he tried joining the fight before the instance came to be, only for him to get barred from entry once the barrier went up.

"We\'re fine," Guidance replied, her focus still on our opponent. "Never mind us. Drag Maruki to safety. I\'ll heal him once I\'m able."

"Got it."

I watched carefully as Shade made his way to Maruki\'s unconscious form. Cutting between us and the Academic, he had his rose out even as he dragged our tank to safety, the latter\'s armor scraping against the hard surface as the former did his best to minimize the damage.

"Bravo, kids," Lewis clapped, letting out a hearty laugh as he threw his head up in supposed cheer. "If I was looking to hire some muscle, I would certainly look to your direction!"

"Uh... Thanks?" I hesitantly blinked, my pistols still firmly aimed at him as I waited for Shade to get out of the way. "What was that all about then?"

"As I said earlier, I\'m in charge of seeing that everything that happens in this port is up to standard," Lewis firmly nodded. "While it\'s true that Miss Alset still broke the law, it would seem that you all are truly bonafide sellswords."

"I see..."

Taking out... yet another sandwich from god knows where, the Academic simply smiled at us before having a bite from his unending supply of picnic confectionaries. Did he ever run out of those things? Where were they even stored?

"That still doesn\'t explain why you rendered our companion unconscious," Shizu pointed out with a glower. "His armor had practically melted off!"

As if suddenly remembering what she was supposed to do, Guidance quickly turned her head and cast a heal on our downed tank, the familiar glow of a [Medica] diffusing through Maruki\'s wounds before he was promptly carried by Shade up onto the [Rig]. Meanwhile, I was still holding strong, waiting for Lewis to explain himself.

"Oh, that? Unlike you lot, he was actually acting suspiciously in the middle of a crowded market," the man explained with a shrug. "When prompted, he refused to reply, to which I pressed the issue until we came to an inevitable clash of strength and wits."

"What about us then?" Guidance asked aloud, her keyboard still glowing with energy. "If you knew we were legitimate sellswords, why bother fighting us?"

"Ah, but what is the best way to know if sellswords are legitimate other than to see their capabilities firsthand?" Lewis sagely explained, raising his sandwich like it was a glass of wine as he nodded. "Why, Marquee had seen more than its fair share of impostors trying to scam the City-State of its hard-earned Chips. As for the paperwork, the local Portmaster has seen fit to let you in, so it\'s all up to standard."

A terse silence settled between the four of us, the shadow of the [Rig] reminding us that safety was just behind us as the three of us finally stood down. Although, we still had our guard up as Lewis approached us in a more casual manner. While it seemed as if everything was over and done with, there was still one more thing unaccounted for in this exchange, and it was the fact that he kept addressing Nicole like she was a valuable member of society. But then...

Why in the world was she constantly whining about being unrecognized?

"As an Academic, I\'d like to verify that you all are more than eligible to fight for Marquee\'s war against the other Great Nations," Lewis hummed in approval. "Of course, if such a task is far from your capabilities, the Board of Intellects also has a few domestic problems that need solving."

"Thanks for the offer, but we\'re not looking for work at the moment," Shizu quickly denied, the sheer urgency and thinly-veiled apprehension in her tone making her sound like she was actively avoiding jobs. "We\'re just here to- err... resupply, and-"

"What she means is that we\'ll take a few jobs that might be to our fancy," Guidance swiftly butted in, flashing me a look that immediately made me grab Shizu by the hand and cover her mouth. "So long as we are compensated well within our rights, we won\'t be averse to going deeper into the Marquee itself."

"Glad to hear it," Lewis beamed. If he had any suspicions as to Shizu\'s behavior, he didn\'t show any of it. "Now, while I\'d like for all of you to start right away, I\'m afraid there\'s still one thing I\'d like for you all to do."

"MPPH!! MPHH!!AHH! What was that for?!"

I couldn\'t help but shake my head at Shizu\'s protests as I finally let go of her mouth. She was practically gnashing through my palms, licking and screaming as if it would help her get free and let her run her mouth.

"You were being loud," I vaguely intoned. "We can spare a few days or weeks here, right? Might as well make some money."

"But I- Oh..." Shizu blinked, understanding finally dawning in her eyes. "Y-Yeah.. I guess we can do that."

"Glad we\'re all in agreement, but as I was saying..."

Somehow, the air around the Academic become colder and thicker, a layer of seriousness blanketing around him before he spoke.

"Miss Nicole Alset, while being a brilliant mind in her own right, has unfortunately breached City Laws by offering her services to you all without the necessary paperwork," Lewis began. "As such, if you would all be so kind as to hand her over, I\'ll see to it that you all will be swiftly hired and become valuable members of the Marquean economy."

And just like that, I felt as if something had changed. Besides me, Shizu and Guidance were obviously not very keen on letting some random guy that just fought us get his hands on a fellow woman that clearly hadn\'t done anything wrong. But then...

"One last thing," I called out, clearing my throat to grab everybody\'s attention. "How can we know for sure that you\'re this so-called Academic?"

For the first time during our exchange, Lewis\'s eyes seemed to twinkle before he let out a genuine bout of laughter. He looked genuinely impressed as he then whipped out what- wait... Was that an actual wristwatch?

"Let\'s see here... [Double Check]"

As what was obviously a name of a [Move] rang out, Shizu and I quickly went in front of Guidance, while the dev swiftly whipped out her keyboard in retaliation.

"Woah there! This isn\'t some kind of attack, kids," Lewis quickly waved his other hand out in denial. "This is my [Double Check]. It allows me to see any kind of paperwork and validate their authenticity within a certain radius."

As the wristwatch spat out an obvious hologram that almost looked like a futuristic computer, my mind was already abuzz at the prospects of what I was seeing. First off, was it his [Manifest]? The fact that he addressed it like one was pretty much a confirmation, but what about his dagger then? Was I supposed to believe that it was made in a way to heat up and melt metal with a single swipe?

"Aaandd here it is."

I was taken out of my musings as Lewis promptly showed us what looked to be his credentials. It almost looked like a diploma of some sort, all with a few signatures from the Board of Intellects along with the Head Intellect himself.

"Head intellect Vesper Mica, huh," I whispered out, letting the guy\'s name roll off my tongue. Weird name, but I\'ll take it.

"That it is," Lewis proudly smiled. "The Head Intellect signs all of the important credentials needed to work or live in Marquee. Appointed by the Board of Intellects, Head Intellect Mica has been one of the best things that ever happened to this nation."

I could only nod in understanding. Based on what I just heard, this Board of Intellects sounds more powerful than the Head Intellect themselves. Well, if a local says that it was working fine, then who was I to judge?

"A leader being appointed by a chosen few," Shizu frowned. "Sounds like heresy..."

"Ah, but it\'s much better than a familial bloodline being ordained by a so-called God," Lewis laughed for a split-second before he managed to stop himself, what with Shizu\'s glare only furrowing deeper by the second. "N-No offense, lass. The Great Nations have differing philosophies in terms of running their country, so it\'s only understandable that there will be differences, right?"

"Right..."

Oof... I could only watch as Shizu almost stomped away from the man, electing to simply stay behind me as she crossed her arms in wait. Well, at least Maruki wasn\'t there to hear the supposed blasphemy. I could only imagine the rage he\'d get into if it ever happened.

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