Story Reader / Floating Record / ER05 Sands of Wrath / Story
Hey, Commandant, give me the usual thing! A glass of ice water!
This guy comes here every day and orders nothing but a glass of ice water...
You whip out a sign and put it on the bar counter—that reads, "No free ice water during the Harvest Festival."
Wait, seriously...?!
Right when the man's head droops with disappointment, you put a glass of alcohol-flavor electrolyte in front of him.
Wait... I didn't order this, did I?
Aw, I knew you were a cool person right from the start!
(Oh? Not a ************ from Babylonia anymore?)
The man finishes the drink with a few swigs, opening his mouth only after he is done wiping the foam off his mouth.
Our mayor kicked a bunch of hooligans out of town a while back because they were being less than submissive... and they all hang around this brewery nearby town.
Geez, cut me some slack here already... See, I respect our mayor with all my heart. Me and my men would have died years back had it not been for him...
You decide to stop the man before he goes on.
Oh, right, the hooligans. Well, they've been quite active since y'all came to town... and I don't know if that has to do with the person you're looking into.
I heard they bought a bunch of food before the Harvest Festival. God only knows why they did that, not to mention it's anyone's guess how they even got the money to do that in the first place...
And the Harvest Festival is today... Those guys are all out on the streets now, and I bet they're up to something.
You wipe a wine glass as you ponder the value of the intel.
If Daemon and his people are really trying to pull off something in this town... then a time as chaotic as the Harvest Festival would be their best bet.
And that, too, makes for the best opportunity for you to catch him right in the act...
Yup, heard every word. So there is a good chance they might show up today and cause a scene, right?
Noctis isn't always a deep thinker, but he can be sharp-witted when he has to be.
Alright. Just watch and learn, partner!
Yup, how do you like that? Thought I'd call you that for now instead since you aren't playing your commandant role and I'm not a Task Force member anymore.
I know, right?
"Partner"... It is indeed better than anything you can think of right now, and you like how there is a ring of equality and mutuality to it.
Oh, you mean this? This is a coating I bought from one of the stalls just now at the Harvest Festival market. This guy here picked it for me.
**** yeah! You are the ****ing bomb!
And the two of them don't seem out of place at all walking right next to the rest of the festivalgoers wearing all sorts of crazier outfits.
Hey, Noctis, what are you doin' there?!
Says someone on the other side of the line.
Argh, not gonna stop yapping now, huh... I gotta go now.
Look, you know where the door is if you want to show yourself out now...
Huh? Look, smartass. You ain't my boss, and I'm just here to get my "job" done.
Ever since that time when Noctis protected the townspeople from the Hetero-Creatures that had shown up out of nowhere, Noctis has been working with Fann, the town's sheriff, to keep the town safe.
Because you take orders from no one but that commandant, huh...? That's how things work back at Babylonia, I presume?
I take "orders" from no one. I do, however, take "requests" from partners, though.
Noctis greets an old lady enthusiastically as he passes her by. He takes a bite out of the fruit that she insists on giving him.
But look who's talking now? How do you like all the orders you need to take from your old man?
At the mention of his father, Fann grows upset and shoots the fruit in Noctis' hand a disgusted look.
I have nothing to do with that man. We butt heads whenever we see each other... and the only reason I decided to become this town's sheriff is...
Fann bites his tongue, having realized that he's spoken a little too much.
Well, having someone to butt heads with... sounds great, doesn't it?
Noctis takes another bite of the fruit as he looks at a kid who is throwing a tantrum on the street because his dad refused to buy him the candy he wanted.
I used to have something of a fatherly figure in my life and a brother I would always fight with, but they both died... right in front of me.
So you probably want to talk to your old man when he's still around. You never know what you might get out of talking to him.
Noctis pats Fann on the head, but Fann shakes him off with a disgusted face.
I'm off to patrol, then. Will catch you in a bit...
It's not until Noctis has walked a good distance away that Fann pulls out a service pistol that had come from Babylonia.
...
Fann puts the pistol away into a pocket and turns around to leave the rowdy crowd.
