Author's Note:
The last chapter was super long, and this one is super short. Coincidence? Absolutely! I just wanted to write some chapters from Wigglytuff's point of view, and this seemed like a good place to start. Besides, we needed an explanation for why this is the only time in the game that Magnezone meets you at the dungeon to catch an outlaw. With that out of the way, on with the mini chapter!
"Honestly, Guildmaster, those two are not prepared for an outlaw mission. Why, when I informed them of today's assignment, Crest openly rejected the idea," Chatot reported to me.
I only smiled in return. "Just as I expected. What about Brandon?"
"He was quiet, suspiciously so in fact," Chatot answered. "I'd bet three perfect apples he disliked the assignment though."
Quiet, huh? Chatot wasn't very good at reading other pokemon. If he was, he'd understand my reason for sending Crest to catch an outlaw. I had hoped that the mission would get some response out of Brandon though. That Chikorita was a total mystery, even to me, and I wanted to see how he would react under pressure. If he can hide his thoughts from Chatot, he might be clever enough to see through my façade.
Speaking of my façade, I couldn't let Chatot know my true personality either. Sure, he knew I wasn't the incompetent puffball I was known for being, but I at least had him convinced that perfect apples were my weakness. "Perfect apples? Where? Can I have some?"
That seemed to fluster Chatot. "That's not what I meant! I was just saying that Team Strength is unfit for an outlaw mission." Just as Chatot finished we heard a sound outside my chamber.
"Chatot, could you check that?" I asked, already knowing his reply.
"Of course, Guildmaster. I'll report back immediately." Chatot briefly left the room to check what had happened. He returned with an exasperated expression on his face. "Brandon just fell down the ladder. He doesn't seem to be hurt, though I must again call into question his ability to complete today's assignment."
There was Brandon being strange again. First he introduced himself in Knownun, and now he lacked the coordination to use a ladder? There was definitely something off about him, but I couldn't seem to figure out what it was. "I think he'll be fine. Everyone makes mistakes, and even if he does fail his mission, that's something to learn from." Actually, I was a bit disappointed. Crest really needed a confidence boost, and I was hoping Brandon would be strong enough to guarantee a successful outlaw capture.
Chatot wasn't happy with my response. "Surely it would be better to fail a mission that wasn't so dangerous. What do you plan to accomplish by sending them on such a difficult job?"
"Honestly Chatot, it's quite simple," I responded, "either they fail and learn that it's okay to make mistakes, or they succeed and become more confident explorers. Now, come here for a moment. We have some mail I need you to see." Returning to the back of my room, I retrieved a letter that a friend of mine on the Water Continent had sent me.
"What is it that you want me to see, exactly?" Chatot asked as I handed him the letter.
"The Expedition Society has started work on a detailed map of the world. Ampharos requested that we lend our assistance," I answered. "For that reason, I would like to have the guild mount an expedition to one of the less explored areas of the Grass Continent. Your job is to organize the expedition. Decide where we will go and make any necessary preparations, and I will choose which of the guild members will partake in the exploration."
"Certainly, Guildmaster," he said calmly, though I knew he was secretly excited to lead an exploration. "I'll keep everything in order. Preparations should be complete within, let's see, ten days I think. After that we can depart on your command. Now, you must excuse me. I have to begin planning right away." With that he left the room, leaving me to my own work.
Now, who should go on the expedition? I'd have ten days to decide, but it didn't hurt to start thinking about it now. Chatot and I would both go, of course, and it would be great experience for Crest and Bidoof. If we brought two rookies, then we needed at least three or four more experienced members to help out, but I wasn't sure who those members should be. I decided it would be whoever performed the best leading up to the expedition.
That's enough teambuilding for now anyway. I couldn't finalize anything until Chatot decided where we would go, but that didn't mean my preparations were done. I needed to write back to Ampharos to let him know we would contribute to his project. I was almost done with my letter when Bidoof came running into my room.
"Guildmaster!" Bidoof exclaimed, clearly worried about something.
"Oh, Bidoof! It's always great to see my friendly friends, but why are you in such a rush?" I asked in my cheerful persona.
"It's about Crest and Brandon, yup yup. Chatot had me help them choose an outlaw mission, but the outlaw they chose is way too powerful for them! They ran off before I could warn them about it," he answered.
That's strange. I thought Crest would be too scared to do anything that rash. Maybe Brandon talked him into taking that job. Regardless, I wasn't worried, at least not yet. "Now, don't worry Bidoof! I believe in our new friendly friends. I'm sure they can handle it. Don't worry, don't worry!" That didn't seem to calm Bidoof as much as I thought it would, so I added, "Just have Dugtrio send me a copy of the mission they took, and I'll make sure everything is all alright."
He seemed to accept that. "Well, if you're so sure about it, then okay. I'll go find Dugtrio, yup yup."
Bidoof left the room, and it wasn't long before Dugtrio appeared from the floor. "Hello Guildmaster. Bidoof said you were looking for this?" he said, placing a wanted poster in front of me.
"Ah, yes. Thank you, thank you! That is all I needed, Dugtrio," I answered, dismissing Dugtrio so I could look over the poster.
Dugtrio tunneled away, probably back to the job boards, and I took a look at the outlaw Team Strength was chasing. It was a Drowzee, wanted for kidnapping and some petty theft, and his predicted level was twelve. I didn't see what Bidoof was so worried about. This mission wasn't very difficult. Psychic types were tricky, but nothing too dangerous for a Chikorita or a Piplup. The only possible problem was that his location was currently unknown. There had to be something I was missing.
Out of ideas, I decided to check my guild badge. Since I was the Guildmaster, I could use my badge to monitor all of my recruits. When I checked on Team Strength, it became clear what was wrong. Crest was level five, and Brandon was only level four. I had overestimated them, and now they were challenging an outlaw that was far stronger than they could handle.
Still, something wasn't adding up. Why would Team Strength attempt this mission? Surely they knew they weren't strong enough, and Drowzee's location was still unknown, yet they rushed out of the guild before Bidoof could stop them. The only reason someone would do something like that is if they knew where Drowzee was. Once again checking my badge, I saw that the team was in Mt. Bristle.
That was enough for me. They had to have located Drowzee, maybe they were in a rush because he was kidnapping someone right now. Using my badge, I contacted Officer Magnezone to help Crest and Brandon at Mt. Bristle. Even if they couldn't defeat Drowzee, at least they tracked him down to be captured.