Chương 30: Sneaking Out to Meet Girls

I found myself in Wynnie's bed once more. I'd had a few drinks, but she hadn't. It meant the mood wasn't quite right for us to resume anything we'd started earlier. Not only that, but she was understandably upset about the new extortion racket she was facing.

"Oh, I knew I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up about this place! The second things start going well, someone shows up to ruin it. It's like a cosmic law or something." She pulled the covers tighter around herself. The steady glow of the bedside hurricane lamp painted the room in shadowy oranges. I could just see the soft outline of her defeated expression and the flickering reflection of the light in the water that welled in her eyes.

She wasn't crying, but it was obvious she was doing her best to hold her tears back. I nuzzled in closer next to her. Even though it was warm under the sheets, she was shivering and cold. Instinctively, I rubbed her arm and shoulder reassuringly, then stroked her hair softly.

"It just really breaks my heart, you know? My family was taken from me, and they left me this miserable wreck of a place. Then, the moment I stop hating it, a bunch of no-good scalawags threaten to take it from me as well!"

"For what it's worth, I don't think they threatened to take the place away. They just threatened to take away some money. For protection."

"Not helpful." No kidding. Not every silver lining was worth pointing out. Sometimes, it's better just to acknowledge the cloud.

"So what do you want to do?" I asked. She sniffled.

"I don't know. Pay them, I guess? What do you think I should do?" I'd been thinking about it. A lot. Too much, actually, especially for how much I'd had to drink on my shift.

"I think we have a more interesting option available."

"What's that?"

"Something their leader said. He doesn't drink for fun—he drinks to win." She scoffed and snorted at the same time, and nearly choked. After a beat to swallow and catch her breath, she returned to the topic.

"What does that even mean?"

"I'm not sure, but I think he might be a bit of a lush." It was just a suspicion, but I stood by it.

"He's the brains of their operation. I think we could foil their plans if we get him drunk."

"What makes you think he'd go for that?"

"He stopped himself at one drink, but hinted he could handle more. You know who does that?" I paused, not wanted to admit the truth out loud.

"Alcoholics. I bet if I get him started, he won't be able to quit until he messes everything up." Wynnie gripped my arm tightly.

"Don't do anything dangerous. I don't want you to get in trouble." I smirked.

"I won't be the one getting in trouble. They will. If they get too drunk to handle themselves, I'm sure Lady Talia and the other law officers in town can see to it that they all come to justice."

"I'm just glad you're not going to try to take things into your own hands. Lady Talia is more than capable of handling a pirate one-on-one."

"I wouldn't dream of it. In my world, nobody uses swords. We have much deadlier weapons. Not that I trained all that much with those, either." Was I talking about guns? Yes, a little. I'd been out to the range a few times, at least. But I was also talking about grenades, rocket launchers, and fighter jets. I'd put those up against all the Crown's mages, no question. Wynnie kissed me lovingly on the cheek.

"As long as you stay safe." A smile broke out across my face. After all these years, I'd begun to worry that something inside of me was broken. As though I could sustain interest in a person only as long as it took to sleep with them. Like I couldn't handle a relationship. Yet now that Wynnie and I had broken the seal, it just made me want her even more. I couldn't stop thinking about her, even when she was right next to me. There was no way I was going to put myself in actual danger.

Not when there was so much to lose. In fact, the only reason I was even thinking about risking my health was to protect her. And other people, too, I guess. But mostly her.

"So, when are you going to go see Lady Talia? First thing tomorrow morning?" This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. This was the part of my plan I hated the most. I was right there, in bed with a gorgeous freckled elf who cared for me more than I deserved. And I was about to leave her behind to skulk about in the cold dead of night.

"Actually, I'm going to go find her right now."

"Are you serious?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I don't want the pirates to see that I'm gone. It might tip them off that I'm getting the law involved."

"What am I supposed to do while you're out? Worry myself to death?" I chuckled.

"I seriously hope not. Maybe you could just take up knitting or read a book?"

"No way. I'm coming with." I loved her enthusiasm, and nothing would make me happier than to have her by my side. Yet I was pretty sure that was a bad idea.

"What if the pirates wake up?"

"What do you mean?"

"What if they need something? Or what if one of them has insomnia and realizes that neither of us are here? One of us should stick around to help out or provide a cover story." She blinked at me as if I were an idiot.

"And you want to leave me here alone with pirates in the middle of the night to visit a fighty, sword-wielding woman who barely trusts you?" The moon drifted into view through her bedroom window. An owl hooted nearby. I blinked.

"Yeah, maybe I didn't think that through all the way. Fuck it. You can come. Let's go do something stupid." As quietly as we could, the two of us dressed in layers to protect against the midnight chill of the coast. A light rain was pattering outside. It was more of a sideways drizzle than a downpour, but something to prepare for anyway, unless I wanted to get soaked by the time we arrived back home. I studied Wynnie as she almost tripped getting into a pair of loose flowing trousers. She caught me staring.

"What are you looking at?"

"I've never seen you wear pants."

"You know, a girl needs to wear more than just dresses."

"Of course. I've just never seen you not wearing a dress." A flash of teeth came with her coy smile.

"You've definitely seen me when I wasn't wearing a dress. In fact, you've seen me while I was wearing barely anything at all." Images of her bare breasts flashed in my mind. It had been a couple of days since I'd seen them, but my memory was sharp. I could practically taste the soft bud of her nipple in my mouth still. She looked down.

"Looks like you're still thinking about me now." I grumbled a vague affirmative and tried to stop the rushing of blood below my waistband. Now wasn't the time for sexy thoughts. Now was the time for doing clandestine spy stuff. I just hoped my actual stealth skill was higher than my wizard's. He'd put everything left over into constitution, giving him a lousy agility modifier. But he was a made-up hero. I was an isekai bartender.

I'd been shaping up a bit since arriving here—Wynnie's early attempts at cooking hadn't encouraged me to overindulge. Also, I'd be wearing linens, it would be dark, my enemies were asleep, and lives were on the line. That had to give some kind of situational bonus or advantage, right? We finished dressing and tiptoed our way out of Wynnie's bedroom. The hallway was pitch black and silent. My eyes tried and failed to adjust.

I had to move ahead mostly by memory, guiding myself down the hall while trailing my hand along the wall. A feeling of giddy excitement welled up in my chest. We were sneaking out. It reminded me of when I lived with my parents back in high school, and I used to slip out at night to go to parties or visit girls. I'd always been so worried that my parents would catch me. The stakes were so low back then. Now, the threat of getting caught was much higher, but no less thrilling.

After all, it wasn't as if the pirates would just ground me if they found me. We carefully closed the front door, letting the soft click of the latch echo for several tense seconds before we exhaled. The freedom of the cold and dark night lay ahead of us. The steady drizzle of rain was so light that it could be mistaken for a heavy fog. I pulled my coat around me tighter against a heavy breeze.

"So, which way to Lady Talia's house?"

"See? This is why you needed me to come with you. It's this direction. Come on." I followed Wynnie farther up the hill into one of the residential sections. Small houses climbed their way up the hillside, peppered alongside the winding dirt road. Sad, unimpressive gardens grew out front, struggling in the coastal climate.

"It's this one." Wynnie nodded toward a little, rustic red cottage. There was no garden in front—just a few decorative plants. A short pathway led to her front door. It felt like walking a gangplank. I wasn't sure why I had such a feeling of doom, but my nerves were crying out in alarm. The lights in her house were all off. Still, like a creeper, I tried to peer in through a window just to see what I could see. I could just make out a few details inside.

Her living room was a little spare but still well-appointed with handmade wooden furniture. A fireplace coughed out smoke from embers against a far wall. A small area rug filled the center of the room, and a coffee table supported a houseplant and a few books. But that's not what scared me. That all seemed pretty normal. What got me was the large easy chair that dominated one corner of the room. Well, not the chair, but the figure in it. Even in the dark, I could make out the form of a toned woman reading a book.

Her hand reached out to the page and turned it before settling back under her chin. Two golden, almost lizard-like eyes blinked reflectively in the dark. They shot suddenly in my direction. My heart leapt into my throat. It was time to either freeze or fly, but either way, panic was on the menu. Fortunately, my instincts weren't absolute dogshit yet. She'd seen me. So what? I wanted to wake her up anyway and have a chat.

At least now I wouldn't be disturbing her slumber, even if it was weird for me to be outside her door at this hour of the night. So, why not? I knocked. She was already up, crossing the room toward the door.

"She's already awake," I murmured to Wynnie.

"What? Why?" she hissed back.

"I don't know! Maybe she's an insomniac. Or maybe she's just crazy." Whatever it was, we were about to find out. Lady Talia reached the door. The clacking sound of a latch being undone preceded the creaking open of the door. She opened it only partway, peering out suspiciously.

"It's you. To what do I owe this disturbance?" Charming as always. At least she was still holding her book, and not a sword.

"I've got good news and I have bad news. Which one do you want first?"

"Always lead with the bad."

"The bad news is that we've got pirates. Four of them. And they're staying at the Breakwater Inn. Oh, and I'm pretty sure they're running a protection racket. Oh yeah, and also they're going to try to rob the bank." Her eyebrow rose higher with each item I listed off. I could see skepticism and concern battling for supremacy on her face.

"That's a lot of bad news. What's the good?" I grinned.

"The good news is that I have a plan."