I'm sorry it took so long. Lot's of IRL things to deal with. However, thanks to the CV-19, I am stuck at home, unable to go to work, and I just felt like writing so much to make sure people on the internet have something fun to read. While this isn't the next world, it is a series a short stories involving characters who are not part of the main cast, so they have a bit of time to shine. They are the Record Sphere Collection! This is set #1!
The team gathered around Argo as she started, "I got the finest bits of info available. I also have some Record Spheres for purchase, too. Nya-ha-ha…"
Record Sphere #1: Business-girls
Location: Maho-dou Magic Shop
It was still within the first week of when the allies of Kirito's world ended up in Resolute Oasis. During that week, the team not only got use to their new jobs, but also got to know the town a lot more. Liz decided to go and look about at the 'competition' she had to deal with.
"A magic shop, eh?" She muttered, examining the products in the shop, picking up a ring, then at the price tag on it, "I've seen some prices like this in ALO, but this feels a little over-priced to me compared to the stats and design."
"The price of that is perfectly fine!" Patina spoke up, flying down on a dustpan to meet Liz, "Not like you would understand the business I'm running."
Liz seemed startled by the sight of the new creature before her as she exclaimed, "Wha-! What are you?! Some sort of slime monster?!"
"Who are you calling a slime?!" Patina snapped angrily.
A chuckle came from above as Laralie descended down next to the insulted Patina. "She's not something like that, though it is very funny. She's just a magical frog."
"A frog?" Liz questioned, not recognizing Patina as any frog she knew.
"And just who do you think you are?" Patina growled.
"I'm Lisbeth. I'm gonna be working at the blacksmith shop in town." The blacksmith introduced herself.
"Ha! You have no business sense whatsoever to run a blacksmith if you can't understand the qualities of goods compared to the price they're worth!"
"Are you mocking my business skills?!" Liz demanded, "I'll have you know I ran a damn good business in a couple of worlds!"
"This ain't no lemonade stand like the places you worked with." Patina mocked, "We run a strict business here. We make sure every product we make is able to sell."
"Ah, so I take it you aren't the only ones running this joint?" Liz noticed, "Then allow me to meet these other people who're working for you."
"We're right here!" Liz looked up to see Mirabelle sliding down the railing of the stairs, followed by Dori and Reanne running down behind her. Ellie ended up in a different room on the 1st floor. They all gathered together around Liz, who was rather surprised.
"You girls…are you even old enough to work for a shop?" She asked, "You don't even look ten years old."
"Aah…we're just helping out a relative of Reanne's!" Dori frantically exclaimed.
"Not very convincing…" Liz easily noticed the lie.
"Dori, this world isn't like ours." Mirabelle reminded her, "We can ditch that ol' excuse while we're here."
"Oh, right…" Dori realized.
"They're helping me until they become full-fledged witches." Patina explained, "And becoming one won't be cheap."
"I see. So it's that kind of employment run you have." Liz understood, looking to the four girls, "Do you even enjoy this job, then?"
"It ain't no easy walk in the park, but we do work hard and try our best." Mirabelle explained.
"We actually handcraft some of the accessories around here." Reanne explained.
"You guys make 'em, eh?" Liz understood, "Let me see some examples of your work, then…"
They went around the shop, where Liz discovered some of the teams work. Most of what they made were mere trinkets and accessories with some added bonuses in stats. As for the designs…
"Well, I can tell you that three of you guys are pretty skilled in hand-crafting these things." Liz noticed, indicating Reanne, Mirabelle and Ellie, but shrewdly looking at Dori, who knew what was coming, "But you, on the other hand…I would hardly even sell them at half-off."
"Kinda saw that one coming…" Patina admitted.
"She got you there, Dori." Ellie bluntly stated.
"Well, excuse me for not getting this right. They're a lot harder than the stuff we made back home!" Dori defended.
"And you weren't good at those things, either." Mirabelle added. Dori puffed her cheeks as she made a noise three times.
"Is there anything you are good at, instead of craftwork?" Liz questioned her.
"Well…I can definitely eat an entire steak in one sitting if you give one to me!" Dori answered, her mouth drooling at the thought of a big, juicy steak in front of her came to her mind. Everyone else look at her with sweat-dropped expressions.
"Anyone ELSE wanna tell me what she's good at?" Liz asked, looking away from Dori.
The remaining female cohorts thought for a moment. "Not really…" Ellie answered.
"She's a bit of an airhead…" Mirabelle started.
"…And a total Ojamajo." Patina added.
"I know there's something she is good at." Laralie muttered.
"Oh!" Reanne suddenly came to an idea, "Well, I have known Dori ever since we were in kindergarten, and I do know one thing. She's a try-hard." Everyone looked to her, wondering what she meant. "Despite her flaws, she doesn't give up when she wants to support someone, even people she doesn't like. And her easy-going nature is very infectious." The others who knew her well looked to Dori, then one another, and nodded in agreement.
"I guess that is true." Ellie agreed, "You do have that kind of way." Dori rubbed the back of her head and gave an awkward chuckle.
"Almost sounds like Kirito…" Liz muttered to herself, smiling at how despite he can be, he was a supporting and caring person. Just the thought of how he helped her many times made her blush.
"You're looking a little rosy there." Mirabelle noticed Liz's expression.
"Wha-what?! I wasn't thinking about anyone!" She hastily defended. It was rather unconvincing, and it made the young girls and Laralie look at her with mischievously curious smiles. Liz cleared her throat, and continued, "Well, after hearing all about that, I would believe she would do well in customer service instead of craftwork. If she's as helpful as you guys say, you'd best set her on helping customers. Is there anyone very good at customer service amongst you guys, too? How about a good selling point to bring in customers?"
"Well, Ellie is a child idol back home." Reanne pointed out.
"Yeah! She could do performances to draw in customers!" Patina realized, then giving a mischievous smirk, "I bet Petunia wouldn't mind if we 'borrowed' her talent for my shop. Hehehe…" Her devious chuckle was discomforting to the others, especially Ellie.
"Who's Petunia?" Liz asked Laralie.
"Patina's rival." She answered, "She's also Ellie's manager."
"I see…" Liz understood, "Well, I know my friend, Silica, loves to sing. If you want, we can support each other's businesses if we hold some entertainment for the people of the city, while promoting each other's businesses. If we do that say once a week, we can inspire hope to everyone, draw in customers like crazy, and we'll be more popular than any other business in the city!"
Patina looked inspired at this idea, and she snapped her finger in agreement as she smugly answered, "That doesn't sound like a bad idea, kid. A business collaboration, where you scratch my back and I scratch yours. But you'd better bring the talent, cause my girls ain't no slouches."
"And my partners and friends won't be a disappointment to you, either." Liz and Patina looked at each other with a glint in their eyes, their business faces set.
"Weren't they at each other's throats when they first met?" Mirabelle questioned, looking bewildered at what just changed.
"And now, they're business partners…" Laralie continued.
"I feel like things'll only get tougher on us from here on out." Dori muttered, with Reanne and Ellie nodding in agreement.
Record Sphere #2: Royal Arrival
Location: Agil's Bar
It had been a while since Kirito's friends had been in this world. At this point, Agil had just finished getting his bar up and running thanks to the support of Klein, Basch, and even the soldiers under the said man's leadership.
Basch wore a rustic-looking armor that was mixed of leather and metal, from the metal piece on his upper chest, waist and mail gauntlets, greaves, elbowguards, and right upper arm, to the leather full armor underneath, including a mahogany leather guard on his upper left arm. He also had a metal-mail hood that he had pulled back, and ripped waist cape calling down the sides of his legs.
"Thanks for all the help, guys." Agil thanked the pair.
"Just doing what Lady Ashe tasked me to do." Basch answered, "She and Mistress Gretinal were very specific on making sure you and your friends from Kirito and Asuna's world were prepared to aid those who arrive in this world."
"Yeah. Plus, I could really use a drink after all the crazy things we had to digest since we got here." Klein added, setting down the fourth wooden chair at a circular table, "Make sure you compensate me for all the hard work I'm doing, Agil."
"First, why don't you actually make this place look like a decent bar before you actually request drinks." Agil scolded him, then to Basch, he added, "Will you and these guys be staying for a drink after you're done?" The soldiers overheard this, and many of them voiced their delight at the idea of downing a drink or two.
"We have some other ordeals to prepare for, but we will take you up on that offer." Basch assured him, causing the soldiers to groan in dismay from behind him. Deciding to ignore this, the captain continued, "We still have to complete the monarchy of the kingdom, which is no easy feat. Lady Ashe is working her hardest, but there is still many things to correct before it is stable. This town is not like our home of Rabanastre."
"Man, I'd hate to run a whole city like this." Klein muttered, stopping his work to ponder on the very idea of leading this place, "My job at home is already a pain in the ass, especially my boss."
Suddenly, the door opened up on them, causing the bell to ring. Everyone turned to see another of one of the guards, along with Penelo, who was muttering, "This way, please." To someone they didn't see. When the person appeared, it was revealed to be Shirayuki, along with Obi, and three other characters.
The first was a young man close to Shirayuki's age, which was about in his late teens. He had an average height and build, medium-length white hair, and crystal blue eyes. The attire he wore looked more like someone who was rich and royal in a way; a long-sleeved coat that was mixtures of blue and light blue, along with white trimmings, gold buttons, and a red gem on his chest. He also had a pale blue belt with gold fastners, white pants, blue boots with gold trimmings, and a sword attached to the left side of his waist. He wore a glove on his left hand, which covered his palm and middle finger.
The second man was taller than the first, with a slim muscular build. He had short, sea blue hair, amber eyes, and wore a brown and white tunic and gambeson, which had gold buttons and a long mahogany tie. He wore white pants underneath, black boots, and also held a sword on the left side of his white belt.
The third was a young lady, only a little older than Shirayuki. She was that of an average height, with mid-length blonde hair tied in a low ponytail, blue-grey eyes. Her attire looked like formal royal attire for guards, which was purple short-sleeved top, with gold trimmings and embellishments, and a Chinese-styled collar. She had a black and gold-trimmed waist guard, which she hung her sword, which was on her right instead of her left. She wore black pants, purple and gold-trimmed long boots, and gray arm bands on her lower arms.
"Who are they?" Agil asked.
"I dunno. But those chicks, though…" Klein stated, looking at the two girls with interest.
"Already leaving behind your interest in Lightning, I see?" Agil questioned him.
"No, no, no, no! I'm just only saying…"
Shirayuki was the first to enter and examine the store, looking amazed at it. "So is this suppose to be where I'm working at?" She asked, looking back at Penelo.
"According to Light, yes." Penelo answered.
"Not bad. It's even a bar, too." Obi noted, seeing the look of the place, along with noticing Agil at the bar stand.
"Obi, you shouldn't drink, especially since we haven't been assigned our duties, yet." The taller man pointed out.
Basch approached the guard and Penelo who escorted the new faces as he assumed, "I take it these people are new to our world?"
"Correct! They are more lost lights that we discovered." The guard answered in a salute.
"Lost lights?" Klein echoed, confused.
"That's the term we give for those who ended up losing their worlds, and end up here instead." One of the soldiers that was aiding in the bar.
"Like everyone else, they were quite shocked when we discovered them." Penelo followed up, "Lightning, Ashe and everyone else explained what is going on, but they're still a bit perplexed at their situation."
"As any normal person should." Basch understood, approaching the group, "I take it you still find it hard to believe that you are in such a situation, yes?"
"We were already told about how we ended up here." The younger man responded, folding his arms across his chest, "And based on all the things we've seen in this place, it further backs up the truth of the matter. But I still can't wrap my head around it. I mean, other worlds outside of our comprehension?" He was messing up his hair while trying to comprehend all this.
"It is rather perplexing." The young lady muttered.
"In any case, we learned about who they are." Penelo continued, looking to the young man, "As it turns out, this young man is a prince of a kingdom. The two close to him are his royal aids. The young lady over there is a court herbalist, and that other guy is a royal messenger, as well as a guard to the girl."
"So you are a prince." Basch understood, approaching the young man, looking down at him. "Forgive me for not recognizing your status. I am Basch fon Ronsenburg, captain of Lady Ashe's knights."
"You don't have to apologize. I'm not a prince in this world, so there's no need for formalities." He responded, "Just call me Zen. Zen Wisteria. My aides are Mitsuhide and Kiki. That girl over there is Shirayuki, and with her, my messenger, Obi."
"So what brings you to my bar?" Agil asked, stepping out of the bar stand to approach the group, "Based on what I heard, you're gonna be working here?"
"Yes. Or at least, I am suppose to work here." Shirayuki answered.
"So…what, you're gonna be one of the barmaids here?" Klein asked.
"Not at all!" She retorted in a slightly offended tone.
"After discussing it with everyone, we understood that this place is a bit too large to just be a bar for you, Agil." Penelo started, "So we decided to make it an apothecary, as well. And since she is an herbalist, she could make concoctions that'll be useful for our fights and illnesses."
"So, wait. This place will be a bar AND an apothecary?" Agil asked.
"That's a bit of an odd combination…" Klein pointed out.
"True, but all other building big enough for her business are taken already." Penelo explained, "I'm sorry if this is an inconvenience."
"There's no need for an apology." Agil answered, looking down at Shirayuki, "I'm more concerned if she will do okay setting up her shop in a bar."
"It's fine. When I was young, my grandparents owned a bar." She explained, "I'm pretty use to that kind of business, so I'm fine."
"Well, if you're okay with it." Agil understood, "I'm Agil, by the way."
"And I'm Klein! Nice to meet you." The said swordsman added.
"Nice to meet the both of you." Shirayuki told the pair, shaking hands with them.
Basch looked to the three to the rest of the new characters as he asked, "And what assignments were the rest of you given?"
"I'm having Obi protect Shirayuki as she starts up her business." Zen explained, "I can't be too careful. As for me though…" his voice trailed off, slightly irritated at what he was given.
"Since Zen is a prince, I insisted that he and Lady Ashe might come together and assist in co-ruling this kingdom." Mitsuhide explained.
"Honestly, I was kinda hoping that since I'm not a prince here, I could take on another job or something…" Zen grimaced, "But now thanks to the two of you, I have no choice but to agree to the summons."
"But it was Lady Ashe who wished to speak with you after learning of your title." Kiki noted.
"She was interested in hearing about how you ruled a peaceful kingdom, and wishes to trade information in order to properly sustain this new kingdom." Mitsuhide noted, "It wouldn't hurt to at least meet her."
"I bet what the Master is really irritated about is not being able to spend much time with Shirayuki." Obi assumed with a smirk.
Zen gave a shrewd glare at Obi, but sighed as he responded, "Well, I guess that's one reason."
"Don't worry about it, Zen." The said red-head assured him, "I'll probably be a little busy with setting up shop around here and understanding the medicinal herbs they have me work with before I could spend some free time. If this world needs people who are good at healing, I might as well do my part."
Zen looked to her surprised at how ready she was to get started with the business, then smiled as he stated, "Whether you're in this world or in ours, you never change. Well, I guess I have no choice but to do what I can to make this place stable for you to work in." Shirayuki gave an innocent chuckle in response to this, while Mitsuhide and Kiki smirked at how she influenced the prince.
Klein nudged himself close to Obi as he asked in a bit of a whisper, "So is it just me, or are those two a thing?"
"Oh, without a doubt." Obi answered, "The Master takes great priority in Shirayuki when he can."
"Well, I'm pretty sure we can make this place thriving with both of our businesses here." Agil told Shirayuki, "I'll even help you out if you need it."
"Thanks! I hope to do the same for you." Shirayuki answered.
Record Sphere #3: Silica's Ghastly Ghosts
Location: Dr. E. Gadd's lab.
Outside the odd-looking house, Silica and Pina had just entered through the narrow path towards, discovering the building they were sent to find. Silica looked scared and concerned at the sight of the house, her arms wrapped around a package that was suppose to be for the man inside. The package was a bit on the medium, a little larger than Pina.
"Errrrr… I know he's the one who brought made the machine that brought us here, but still…" she grimaced.
Pina chirped as she landed on her head. She looked up at her, smiling as she stated, "Still, it's thanks to him that I even have you here. It's fun having you with me outside the game." Pina chirped happily in agreement.
Silica shook her head, steeling her nerves as she declared, "Okay! I'm going in!" She wandered up the path past the gate, and reached the front door.
She reached out to the handle, about to open the door, when something phased right through the door, spooking Silica. She squealed, tossing the package high into the air, as she stumbled backwards, and fell onto her rear, with Pina flying off of her. The being that spooked her, one of the green ghosts, watched her fall, cackling at the sight of her. It then flew out of the door, grabbing the handle, swinging the door open for Silica, before diving back into the house.
Silica was paralyzed on the cobblestone path to the house, shocked to see what scared her. Pina flew to catch the package before it hit the ground, and was carrying it in her claws, looking concerned for her owner. Finally, after a few seconds, E. Gadd ended up walking out of his house, his cheeky grin on his face.
"Goodness! My ghostly companions can be such pranksters." He stated, wandering up to Silica, "I hope you weren't too terrified by them. Though, by the looks of it, I'd say you took it just as bad as my ghost-snatching assistant."
"S-S-So…that was a real ghost?" Silica asked fearfully, trying to get back up, but having difficulty using her legs, since they shook so much from shock.
"Indeedy!" E. Gadd answered, as a pair of green ghosts appeared, flying out of the house, "They're actually assistants of mine, as well as beings I research. You see, my primary research is in poltergeists."
"O-oh…" Silica responded, looking at the ghosts behind the door, who were eyeballing her out of curiosity.
"Come on in! I've just brewed some tea." E. Gadd stated, ushering her into the house, "Please, come in! Come in!"
Silica looked scared at entering the haunted house. Pina, on the other hand, sniffed something, and flew right in, dropping the package as she flew over Silica, who caught it instead. "Pina, wait!" Silica cried out, afraid at first, but choosing to chase after her feathery dragon into the house.
When she entered in, she saw Pina flew to the right, entering into the small dining room of the house, which had a small circular table with a pot of tea, already brewed, a cup and saucer on the table right by it, as well as small bowls containing sugar cubes and milk. Pina had flown onto the table, particularly to a bowl of fruit that was there, and began munching on a large apple that was within the pile of fruit.
"No! Bad Pina!" Silica called to her partner, "You shouldn't eat other people's food without permission!"
E. Gadd, on the other hand, chortled as he assured her, "Not to worry! Your little friend must've been hungry, after all. There's no need to worry. Besides, it's usually for Yoshi when he comes around my house in my world. But never mind that. Sit down. My ghostly assistants will get you an extra cup for tea."
Silica sat down as one of the green ghosts flew away towards the kitchen, coming back with an extra cup and saucer. She placed the package down next to her as she tried to put on a brave face around the ghost, as well as the one that followed it, pouring tea into her cup.
"How would you like your tea?" E. Gadd asked her, dropping a little bit of milk into his cup.
"A couple sugar cubes, please." Silica answered, taking the sugar cube bowl, using the small tongs to drop sugar cubes into her tea. Pina flew off the table with the apple in her claws, landing on one of the cabinets, continuing to munch on the fruit. A pair of the ghosts floated towards Pina, very curiously, while the feathery dragon growled back at them, not wanting them coming near her fruit.
E. Gadd saw the worried expression on Silica's face as she witnessed the ghosts pestering her partner, and stated, "Do not worry. They are harmless, all things considered. They're simply curious about anything that is foreign to them. This entire environment has peaked their curiosity to great levels, and it is worth studying how they interact."
At this moment, one of the green ghosts was raising one of Pina's wings, looking at the underside of it. Pina looked uncomfortable at this, especially when the other ghost decided to pluck a feather off, then used it to tickle the first ghost. Pina got angry at the two, and unleashed streams of stunning bubbles at the ghosts, who thought they wouldn't get hit by them, only for one of them to get struck by a few, and become stunned on the floor, startling his companion.
"Pina!" "Zounds!" Silica and E. Gadd exclaimed, standing up at the results of what Pina did. The other green ghost looked to his stunned friend on the floor, then got angry at Pina, who flew off the cabinet, shrieking at it.
"That's enough, Pina!" Silica cried out, racing to her dragon companion, and grabbing her out of the air, not wanting any further damage.
"No, Greenie! There is no need to get violent!" E. Gadd pleaded to his assistant. However, the green ghost charged at Pina and Silica. The dragon squirmed out out of Silica's arms, flying behind her. The green ghost pursued Pina by going right through Silica's chest, causing her to yelp, blush, and cripple to the floor, clinging onto her chest.
"Fascinating…" E. Gadd stated, calming down despite the chase happening in his house, kneeling down to the paralyzed green ghost, "Those bubbles have a paralysis effect that seems to even effect ghosts. Is this due to to the dragon not being of this world, or is there something more to this? Either way, it is far more effective at stunning ghosts than the strobulb. He should still recover quite quickly from this adverse effect."
True to his analysis, the stunned ghost blinked, then flew off the ground, spinning about to loosen its' transparent body. It examined itself, before sighing in relief from having no damage taken.
"Sir, we should really stop that other ghost from chasing Pina!" Silica pleaded to the professor. She turned to see Pina and the green ghost flying back towards her. Pina tried to pull a trick off by, instead of flying over Silica, flew right between her legs. Silica watched her partner dive underneath her, then saw the ghost come at her, or more specifically, her waist. Fearing the worst, she shouted, "STOOOOOP!" The cry was enough to stun the chasing ghost in its' tracks, and scaring everyone else behind her.
Silica placed her hands down, covering her shorts as she blushed horribly. "Please, don't go through me again. I'll never get married if you go through there…" The ghost looked confused at this, wondering what the problem was. E. Gadd only chortled, wise enough to understand why she wanted the ghost to stop.
A short moment later, the recovered ghost came to his companion, assuring him he was okay, while . "I apologize for Pina attacking you guys." Silica apologized.
"Do not be the one to apologize. After all, my ghostly companions were the ones who started it." E. Gadd assured her, looking to the two ghosts, "I must say, keeping these ones under control is very difficult in this world. After all, there are so many new people, powers and things that even I am curious about."
"I…kinda understand the feeling." Silica understood, looking from Pina, who was on the cabinet again, to the ghosts, "This place is much different from the gaming worlds my friends and I are use to. There are so many kinds of people gathered here in one place, not to mention that it is all real, makes it so much more crazier for me and my friends. To get use to such a place is very hard, and I have made a couple mistakes that I had to apologize for."
"I, on the other hand, have to apologize profusely for my rather 'free-spirited' ghosts." E. Gadd chortled at this, with Silica realizing he was making a pun from calling his ghosts 'free-spirited', "Lightning has made it rather clear that I need to keep these poltergeists on a tight leash. That is why I ordered this handy device." He wandered over to the table where he grabbed the package Silica ordered. "With this, I should be able to entrap my ghostly companions within the area around my house. That way, they won't cause more trouble than they already have."
"That's good." Silica sighed in relief, "I can't imagine how much more difficult they could be."
"Indeedy! We must all adapt to the new environment, and learn to make rules to get along with one another." E. Gadd stated, bringing the package to his lab, "I'm sure you and your cohorts are doing the same, yes?" Silica and Pina both nodded in agreement to this statement.
After all was said and done, E. Gadd and his ghostly companions waved Silica and Pina goodbye as they left, going down the alleyway. "We have to adapt to our new environment…" Silica repeated, looking to Pina, "I guess that is true. Even so, I am very glad for one thing…" She looked down at her shorts, and finished, "If I had worn my usual skirt instead of these shorts, and you pulled off flying underneath my legs like that, it would've revealed myself to E. Gadd, and I REALLY wouldn't get married if that happened!" She flushed in embarrassment at the thought of that actually coming true. She covered her face, wishing she hadn't seen that, and raced out of the alleyway, wanting to distract herself with the next task.
Record Sphere #4: Reunion of Old Partners
Location: Main Street
In an area along Main Street, Argo was just finishing up an info exchange to three certain individuals; Sinon, Serah, Lightning's sister, and Mog.
Serah was now wearing an attire that was called by the shop as 'Style and Steel'. She wore a black sleeveless, high-collared top that reached her waist, curving around to form small coattails in the back, and revealed a bit of her cleavage. It had silver trimmings, gold trimming around the top part, silver buttons, gold epaulettes, and gold leather waist guards. She denim short-shorts with a studded belt and leggings, high brown leather boots that had black armor pieces, the right boot having an additional armor piece that wrapped up around the leg like a thorny vine, and a maroon-red satchel strapped to her right thigh with belts of the same color. She wore denim fingerless gloves with gray bands and studs on the backhand. On her left hand, she had a dark sleeve going up to her upper arm. On her right hand, she had a shorter dark sleeve, and a small round shield that was blue with gold and red trimming. She still wore her special necklace around her necklace.
"Pleasure doing business with you!" Argo told the trio, "I hope you got all the info you needed."
"Your info is as resourceful as usual, Argo." Sinon told the info breaker.
"I'm completely surprised you are able to adapt so easily to your new environment." Serah complimented Argo, "You don't seem to have that any issues."
"Well, I'm still trying to learn how to do this business smoother and easier for my clients." Argo admitted, "I hate to tell people this, but this job ain't easy. Still…" She pulled out a device, booted it up to reveal itself as the holo-pad, and scrolled lists of information she had added onto it, "Having this handy little device makes all the difference in the world. Just as easy to work with as a holo-menu."
"A what?" Serah questioned.
"Something of our world." Sinon answered simply, "In any case, thanks for letting us know about a good hunting spot for weak opponents."
"Now I'M the one that's surprised, kupo." Mog stated, looking to Serah, "I didn't think you would ask for practice using a bow, kupo."
"Well, I do try to practice whenever I can." Serah stated, "The problem is my sister. She doesn't want me to fight and become a fighter like her. But…with this whole new environment, and all the Heartless in the outskirts of the city, I would very much like to learn to at least defend myself."
"And you picked Sinon, why?" Argo asked, "I mean, she is very skilled as a marksman, no doubt. I got info on her maximum distance and accuracy, so I know."
"I just heard such good things from her friends, plus the fact she can use a bow like I can with Mog, I just had to ask her."
"I don't know if I'm the BEST here, but I am more than willing to try and help." Sinon stated, looking to Serah, "I hope you can bear with me."
"I'll try not to embarrass you, Sinon." Serah responded, bowing to her, "Let's get started." Sinon nodded in agreement, before wandering off with Serah and Mog at her side, going to the spot Argo suggested.
Argo pulled out the munny she got from the exchange of info. "Pleasure doin' business. Now if I can just find a way to store my coinage better… I forget how useful that function is in the game."
She pocketed the munny, then looked about the place. To her, this place and feeling was completely brand new to her. The others were fully aware of things like magic and powers that Kirito, Asuna, Yui and the others use, not to mention monsters like the beings called Heartless, were all real things. But she was the only one among the group of ALO Players who had no idea something like this was real. She had to process all of this in a much shorter amount of time than the others did.
She looked through her holo-pad, deciding to start sorting out the info she gathered so far, though it was also information for herself, just as a refresher for all the essentials she needed to know. She ended up deciding to go on a little stroll as she did her sorting.
After a few minutes, as she was finishing up her organization, her ear was catching some voices approaching her. "This world's definitely changed beyond that of what it once was before." A soft-spoken female voice stated.
"True. Though the last time we were here, it was consumed in the sand." Another female voice pointed out, "And considering the circumstances we had to deal with before, we couldn't explore the place thoroughly."
"Yeah. Who knows what treasures we ended up missing while we were here before." A third, and vaguely familiar female voice to Argo stated, "We have to look about and get some intel on any hidden treasures."
'Someone's singin' my tune.' Argo stated, looking over her holo-pad to see the potential clients for her business. She took a good look at the three girls ahead of her, and stopped in shock. One of them was very familiar to her. The central girl among the trio, known as the Heart Sisters, felt the gaze, and looked back. She, too, stopped in her tracks. Why? Because Argo and Philia both recognized one another.
There was a moment's pause between the two, before Argo spoke up first. "Hold on…Phi-chan, is that you?" She asked.
"A-Argo?" Philia responded, "Wait…you're here?"
"Philia, is this someone you know?" Hinata asked, looking between the two.
"It really is you!" Argo exclaimed, "Well, I'll be darn! You ended up joinin' along with the rest of Kirito's entourage!"
"Hold on, what're you talking about?" Philia asked, confused, "Did you come here in a Gummi Ship or some other kind of aircraft?"
"Uh, no?" Argo answered, perplexed, "You mean you didn't end up coming here from ALO?"
"ALO? What's that?" Philia asked.
"Hey, what the hell is goin' on here?!" Samson demanded, spreading his tentacles up in aggravation, startling the girls.
"Whoa! What is that?!" Argo demanded, pointing at the parasite.
"Guys, let's calm down." Hinata called out to everyone, "Maybe we should start with introductions before everyone loses it."
The other girls looked to one another before Philia responded, "You're right. Sorry about that. She's just…someone from my past. Someone I do remember."
"She's from your past?" Flair asked.
"Yeah. This is Argo. She was an info broker I went to way back when. I ended up doing a lot of dungeon crawling and treasure hunting thanks to the info she gave me. We ended up becoming good friends because of that."
Flair, Samson and Hinata looked to Argo, who put her hands on her hips, feeling proud of the introduction she was given. "Nice to see you haven't forgotten your best informant in SAO."
"Well, it is one of the few things I do remember." Philia responded, causing Argo to look confused, "You see…"
She explained a bit of what she had told Kirito and Asuna before, about how she ended up meeting a man named DiZ, and how she nearly escaped being turned into a member of the Organization by being sent into a digital wormhole to Traverse Town, with her memories fragmented as a result of the hastened rescue.
"I see…" Argo understood, deciding midway through the explanation to type in all the info she had about Philia so far, including what she knew about her before the start of her story, "So you pretty much lost all your memories, and since the day SAO ended, you ended up going on a crazy adventure trying to find your memories again, as well as find your way back home?"
"That, amongst other things." Philia answered, "I've been currently working for a woman by the name of Mistress Gretinal to stop a group of villains, including monsters called Heartless. And I've been also doing a bit of treasure-hunting on the side, with my friends, Flair, Samson, Hinata, and Tink." The said pixie had flown out of her pocket during Philia's story, and was sitting on her shoulder.
"That's a pretty crazy story." Argo stated, "But I can believe it, after all the things that have happened to my cohorts. After all, it was Greti-nyal who ended up bringing us to this world to help it out."
"Really? Gretinal sent you guys here?!" Philia asked.
"Why would she do that?" Tinker Bell asked her best friend.
"I dunno. Frankly, I tend to get confused on why she does these things. Still after all the help she has done for me, I can't complain."
"I'm currently making a list of things she has done, and trying to hypothesize the end goal she want from all of this." Argo stated, flicking through her holo-pad to look at the folder containing the said information.
"So you're doing info broking here in this world, too?" Philia asked, "Do you have a lot of info about this world?"
"This world, worlds that folks of this world are from, the folks in this world. You name it, I have been makin' it." Argo stated, winking at her client.
"In that case, maybe you can help us with something." Philia stated, "We're looking for some places to get treasure. Maybe places that people haven't reached or are unable to access. Think you have something for me, for old time's sake?"
"Hmm…" Argo flipped through all the info she had, and found something, "Well, I do have this one bit of information I got just yesterday. A couple of sky pirates named Fran and Balthier spoke about these ruins with a sealed entrance. I bet my info on how I got my whiskers that there is some rare goods down there."
"Now THAT sounds like something worth the trip to this world!" Samson stated.
"I'll take that info." Philia told Argo, "So, how much will it be?"
"This info isn't worth payment for, since no one knows what's beyond the door into the ruins." Argo stated, "I know you're good, but I doubt even you can unlock that door."
Philia chuckled at this, before producing her Lockbreaker Key-dagger, holding it in front of her face. "Well, thanks to this weapon, there's no door I can't unlock." She told her, "Just leave it to the Heart Sisters! We'll get that info you need, and get a treasure in the ruins."
Argo snickered at this declaration, and answered, "I almost forgotten how fun it was workin' with you, Phi-chan."
"Same here. I almost forgotten how rewarding these hunts I get from you are." Philia replied. The two old friend bumped fists with one another, chuckling at their reforged partnership.
"I feel my friendship with Philia is being rivaled right now…" Tink muttered, glaring at Argo.
"Those two look as thick as thieves." Hinata noted.
"There's no doubt those two are old friends." Flair stated, "I just hope that this info will lead to something good…"