89 Acquiescence

After departing the Guild, this time without having to carry Eliza on his back, Linnaeus led his Party until they reached the edge of a high traffic area. Though it wouldn't afford them much privacy, it was a lot harder to stage an attack amidst a large population, as, depending on the circumstances, your actions could quickly draw the ire of various hidden figures.

Without beating around the bush, Linnaeus explained, "There is someone within the Guild who has their eye on the Receptionist, Renka. Her previous outburst has brought unwarranted attention to our Party. I want to gather information so I need the three of you to return to the Inn, find a way to sneak out, and then secure a second place to stay. I'll use the Party System to track you down after learning more about whoever is targeting me..."

Hearing Linnaeus' words, Eliza had a dour expression on her face while Emilia outright stated, "I'm not going to let you run off on your own when there are enemies targeting you. Our Party is like my pack. No matter how dangerous things get, the pack always sticks together...!"

Though he could appreciate Emilia's sentiment, Linnaeus didn't hesitate to shake his head, saying, "I have no intention to fight. I'm only going to gather information, something I can't accomplish easily with others present. I'm not good at measuring my words and actions around others so I need to be alone if I want to avoid detection. I need you to trust me, Emilia, Eliza, Krone..."

Emilia's frown only deepened in response to Linnaeus' words, but, before she could say anything, Eliza beat her to the punch, saying, "You ask us to trust you, but when will you start trusting us? It might be better for you to gain information on your own, but what happens when you overestimate yourself and end up falling into an enemy's trap!? There are several strong people on this Floor, Lin. You couldn't even sneak around undetected at the Southern Settlement so how can you expect us to just leave you alone when someone might be targeting your life!?"

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Due to how Eliza's voice had risen towards the end of her outburst, several people from among the surroundings had started to pay attention to them. One, a tall man with large horns on the side of his head and a ring through his nose, even commented, "Oi, get a room you brats. Everyone is still tense after the fire yesterday so you're bound to get arrested if you make a scene."

Hearing the man's warning, Linnaeus just gave a curt nod, saying, "Thanks..." before pulling Eliza's hand. This was enough to get her to momentarily calm down, but, despite the minimal skin contact, Linnaeus could feel her pulse beating rapidly...

Though he would never say it aloud, moments like this were what Linnaeus hated most about the idea of forming a Party. He felt like his judgment was being clouded by sentiment, as, while he was able to understand Eliza's concerns, it was unbelievably frustrating to have his movements constantly limited by the wants and needs of his Party members...

After moving far enough that they would be able to discern whether or not anyone in the previous locations was following them, Linnaeus turned to Eliza, his usual calm nowhere to be seen as he said, "You..." before finding himself at a loss for words...

Seeing Eliza glaring at him with tears streaming down her face, Linnaeus' brain completely stalled, like a wrench between through into a series of gears. It was a sudden and violent cessation, leaving him without the ability to form even a single syllable.

Truthfully, Eliza wanted nothing more than to slap Linnaeus across the face, but, seeing his face contort into a stupefied expression, she felt slightly contented. She didn't want to risk sending him off in a fit of rage, so, instead of escalating things further, she stated in a sobbing tone, "I want to go with you...we can collect information together...we can protect each other...aren't these the reasons we formed a Party in the first place...are we nothing more than pawns to fight the battles you choose for us...?"

Hearing Eliza's question, Linnaeus' mouth flapped open a few times as he stated, "I just...that isn't..." while looking between her, Emilia, and Krone. The latter had his usual expression, but, while not to the same extent of Eliza, Emilia was staring at him with a look full of blame...

Seeing the looks on their faces, Linnaeus was momentarily reminded of a past incident with Saht. It was when they had first started working together, and, due to having been alone for a long time, he was still used to acting on his own. This earned him a rather severe beating, and, if not for the fact all wounds would generally heal after returning to full health, several parts of his body would still have bite marks...

As this memory resurfaced in his mind, Linnaeus realized he hadn't exactly been treating his current Party as a 'permanant' fixture in his life. Though he would never outright abandon him, he was fully prepared to move on if they ended up deciding on a different path than the one he had set himself upon.

No matter what happened, Linnaeus was determined to leave the Crucible of Souls, reunite with Saht, and track down his sister. This was something he had decided for his own selfish reasons, so, from the start, he had always expected that, at some point in time, their paths would diverge...

Though this belief hadn't changed, the look of blame visible in the eyes of Eliza and Emilia made it apparent that, at least for the time being, they had no intention of separating from him. This would undoubtedly bring him trouble in the future, but, much like the decision he had previously made regarding Saht, Linnaeus resolved himself to deal with them as they came...

After releasing an exasperated sigh, Linnaeus lightly complained, "What is it about the tears of a girl that makes them so unbearable...?" Then, before either of them could respond, he made eye contact with Eliza, saying, "Fine. We'll go together, then. You'll have to follow my lead and avoid causing any trouble. Don't let your emotions dictate your behavior so easily. There may be times when I have to use words I don't mean in order to obtain information. It will be troublesome if you get jealous over meaningless dialogue..."

Eliza took exception to Linnaeus' words, but, knowing it was his inexperienced way of compromising with her, she ultimately chose to nod in affirmation before saying, "Just try to avoid anything overtly sexual and flirtatious. If you end up cheating...I'll tell Saht all of the details..."

Though he knew she only tacked on the final few words as an afterthought, Linnaeus felt a shiver pass through his body. Saht might not actually care if he got involved with other women, but, if he did so without her knowledge, there was no way she would let him off easily.

While he wasn't afraid of her, as she was actually pretty easy to manage, Saht could quickly get out of hand when she was in her [Demonification] state. He also cared about her quite a bit, so, unless someone took him by force, he would adamantly refuse any meaningful relationships before their reunion. This was something he wouldn't compromise on, as, after growing up in an environment where trust was a rare commodity, he and Saht had become a family...

After returning an affirmative nod, Linnaeus said, "You don't have to worry about that." while turning his gaze toward Emilia for a brief moment. She noticed his gaze, rolling her eyes in spite of the fact she was the principal offender when it came to testing his abstinence.

Truthfully, Emilia didn't really understand the sensibilities of tribes beyond her own, as, among the Vanargandr, it wasn't rare to have multiple partners. They would even, at times, exchange partners between each other when an especially virile male existed, spreading the strongest genes to ensure the survival of the next generation.

While Linnaeus was far from the 'strongest', he had a few commendable qualities that, with a bit of polish, would make him a competent leader. She had already come to recognize him, but, much like how other women of her tribe would help to shape their men into suitable partners, she intended to continue pushing up forward to see how far he could take her...

Unaware of Emilia's 'scheming', Linnaeus addressed his entire Party, saying, "I'm certain we are being followed. If we return to our Inn right now, there is a chance we will be attacked in the middle of the night. If we want to rest properly, we need to learn the identity of our would-be attacker, confirming the reason we are being targetted and the extent they are willing to go to..."

After reaching this point in his explanation, Linnaeus paused for a brief moment, looking between Eliza and Emilia as he explained, "Don't jump to conclusions, but we're going to temporarily split up in order to try and discover who is targeting me. You'll follow close by with the Party system, taking the main roads while I stick to side paths and alleyways. I don't know this area as well as I'd like so if we want to lure them out in the shortest amount of time, this is one of the faster methods."

Eliza didn't like Linnaeus' plan, as it still required them to split up, but, as it was better than letting him go off completely on his own, she said, "Okay, but if you move too far away from us, I'll come running to your position. If anyone attacks you, send a ping and rush towards us as fast as possible. It doesn't matter how strong the enemy is, we can take them down if we work together. They won't be able to resist my [Crush] magic, and, if they can be suppressed, Emilia can easily drown them until they lose consciousness."

As her words coincided with his own thoughts on the matter, Linnaeus nodded his head, adopting his practiced smile as he said, "I agree with your plan. The moment I feel like I'm being followed, I'll try and cut a path towards the three of you. If I can get ahead of you on the same path, you should be able to see if someone is following me. Once we lure them out, incapacitating them and finding out the reason why I'm being targetted is our main objective."

Though he had already made the association with Renka, Linnaeus still didn't know the intentions of his enemy. If it was just to cause a bit of physical harm or threaten him, it wouldn't really be that big of a deal. He wouldn't even mind taking a beating if it meant he had some leverage to use against Renka in the future, so, hopefully, things could be settled without him having to resort to his unique skillset...

After organizing his thoughts, Linnaeus gave a brief overview of his plan before walking around with his Party, loudly discussing a false itinerary. He had no doubt they were already being watched, and, though their earlier actions had undoubtedly risen some suspicion, it would require someone with a Blessing related to hearing or sound to ascertain what they had been discussing privately.

The vast majority of Blessings had little effect on a person's six senses, the main exception being any kind of transformative ability. This made those that possessed them outliers as, more often than not, Blessings that modified one of the six senses were exceptionally weak. Though they had the benefit of being perpetually active, making them easy to train, only those who put in an exorbitant amount of effort could bring out the full potential of such Blessings. Thus, while he was alert for anyone with rabbit-like ears or horns framing their jaw, Linnaeus wasn't particularly worried about their original plan being overheard...