The boys enter The Lavender Stone, and are taken away by how lovely it is on the inside. A musician playing piano beside a set of stairs leading to the bedrooms, an open bar set at the far end of the room with about nine tables total for all customers, wooden flooring, walls and ceiling where few small chandeliers are hanging from.

"Daaamn, they even have an open bar!" Crimson exclaims in joy. The nomad was about to enjoy his day behind a bottle until Jotaro pulls him back by the collar of his jacket.

"What do you think you're doing? We're still underage."

"And on Huntsmen duty." River adds.

"Oh come on, that never stopped me from drinking before!"

"You...you had alcohol?" Jotaro was almost too scared to ask that question because he fears he already knows the answer.

"Yeah, when I was 16, that's the legal drinking age back in Vacuo!" And with that, Crimson's given a nonchalant expression of disbelief by his teammates, excluding Fenrir.

"Well we're not in Vacuo now, so you're sticking to soft drinks!" Jotaro scolds, pulling Crimson away from the bar.

"Aw come on! Just one bottle!"

The Team approaches a table in the corner which appears less conspicuous so they can discuss their plan without anyone listening. With a few more protests from Crimson, they take their seats as a waitress approaches them.

"So, would you boys like to start with drinks?" Crimson raises up his finger, about to say his order but is cut off by Jotaro.

"He'll have a Dr. Salt soda, I'll have the Bombay Chai Tea." Crimson folds his arms and pouts. As the waitress jots down their drink orders and looks at Fenrir.

"I'll have a lime flavored sparkling water."

"Me too, but Mandarin Orange flavor, please." River adds.

"Alright, I'll get you those drinks right away, and here are your menus." The waitress sets down four menus on the table for each. "Feel free to take your time if you haven't decided yet."

When the Waitress takes her leave to fetch them drinks, Crimson's eyes were locked on the Waitress' rear as she walks away.

"Daaaaaaayum." Crimson gets a kick in the leg from Jotaro. "Ow! Dammit, Jotaro!"

"Will you stay focused? We're in the middle of a mission."

"Well excuse me, but after getting pushed out a bullhead, I think I deserve a moment of fun!"

"You can have your fun back at Beacon when we're finished here." Jotaro adds, his eyes glued to the menu.

"First, let's start with what we know." Fenrir begins, setting down his menu. "The Grimm attacks started three days ago, but before that, this village was practically untouchable."

"The mayor was absent during the first attack, so it's safe to rule him out." Jotaro adds.

"You sure about that? What if he was lying to throw us off the trail?" Crimson asks.

"I would've noticed he was lying, he gave us his alibi rather quickly. It would've taken him at least thirty seconds to come up with a false one, even the ones he could've planned ahead of time."

"So we can cross the mayor off our list of suspects, what about those gangs he mentioned?" Fenrir points out.

"You mean the Spiders and the Bullhounds? It's not out of the realm of possibility, but it almost sounds a bit too easy." Jotaro says, rubbing his chin.

"Yeah but you heard what the mayor said, they made the villagers here uneasy and scared." Crimson repeats.

"But he also said they adjusted to it as long as the gangs didn't hurt anyone." Fenrir corrects. "We'll need more info before we throw more accusations, let's see if we can have a word with their leaders here. They might know about the spike in negative activity."

"Agreed, let's eat up, rent our rooms and see where they both settle." Jotaro adds, earning a nod from his teammates.

*

After eating lunch and setting up their rooms, Team CJVR leaves the tavern to continue their investigation. They know the Grimm are attracted to negative emotion which could be the only reason as to why they keep attacking the village, since the gangs are rivals to one another, it would make sense if they're the ones causing all the negativity, both from themselves and the villagers.

"So how the hell are we gonna find their hangouts? Look for a stray cat that'll eventually lead us the way?" Crimson asks, mostly joking.

"We should ask around, the villagers will likely know where they're staying." Jotaro replies, thinking to himself

"Yeah, like it'll be that easy. It's a big town, searching for their hiding spots is like finding a needle in a hay-," Before Crimson could finish, he knocks into someone carrying their luggage and falls to the ground. "Ow! Hey, watch where you're-,"

When Crimson looks at the bystander he bumped into, his words fall short. It was a woman around late twenties to early thirties, hair and skin sparkling like her beauty was one with the sun, the maid uniform she's wearing adds to the beauty of her looks, and those fox ears...it's like Crimson's heart was stolen at a mere glance of her looks.

"Oh, I'm so sorry sir!" The maid rubs her head in pain. "I'm clumsy at the worst times, you're not hurt are you?"

It took a while for Crimson's mind to snap back. He hastily shakes his head and stands up, offering the maid a hand.

"Oh no, I'm fine. In fact, I'm better than fine." Crimson smirks as the maid accepts his help to stand. "Name's Crimson, what's yours, beautiful?"

She was taken aback by Crimson's flirting, any answer that came to her mind falls through silent lips until she looks past Crimson to notice.

"Master Jotaro?" The maid walks past Crimson to approach Jotaro who recognizes her as she gets closer.

"Vita? What are you doing here?"

"I'm visiting an old friend, she lives in Violette, what brings you here?"

"Academy Huntsman business, I'm running security with my team."

"Really? And how's Beacon been for you, Master? Is it better than Atlas?"

"I wouldn't necessarily compare them, but it's been an easy adjustment."

"I'm glad to hear that, Lady Josephine and the girls wouldn't stop talking about what you've been up to in Beacon; Marie betted 15 Lien that you'd found a girlfriend. Have there been any girls begging to go out with you?" Vita gives Jotaro a teasing smirk after asking this question, flustering the noble.

"Well, no, it's too early for me to think about relationships." Jotaro chuckles nervously. Fenrir loudly clears his throat to get their attention. The noble looks to see his teammates looking at him with smirks on their faces, aside from River who appears impatient. "Ah, my apologies. This is Vita Lupin, she's one of our family maids. Vita, these are my teammates; Fenrir Calavera, River Strife and you've already met Crimson Vernados."

"But you can call me 'Master' if you like, beautiful. You are too good for Jotaro; wanna be my servant? I could show you a good time." Crimson's ear gets pulled by Fenrir.

"Ok, bachelor boy, how about you keep it in your pants, eh?"

"It's nice to meet you all, you have my thanks for keeping Master Jotaro company while he's away from home." Vita giggles followed by a thankful bow.

"No need for thanks, he makes a good Vytalpedia." Fenrir jokes, receiving an annoyed sigh from Jotaro.

"Anyway, I'm sorry to cut this reunion short but we must get back to our mission." Jotaro apologetically smiles at Vita.

"Is there anything I can do to help? I could be an extra pair of eyes." Vita excitedly asks.

"No civilians are allowed to collaborate in this." River coldly replies, earning an irritated glance from Crimson.

"Actually, you could help by answering one question. We're looking for two small groups of gang members, do you know where they've settled in this village?" Jotaro asks, knowing it's a long shot but finds no harm in asking anyway.

"Certainly! The Bullhounds stationed the village's supply warehouse, I think they use it as their own nightclub now. But it's less disco and more...heavy metal. As for the Spiders, they repurposed the old rundown inn as their info center. You'll find them both at opposite corners of the village. Bullhounds on the top right and Spiders on the top left, if you look at the map in the center of town, you'll know where to look." Jotaro and the others were a little surprised by how she knew where the gangs are but were glad they didn't have to look too far.

"That was...more than helpful; thank you, Vita." Jotaro says, nearly at loss.

"I was happy to be of service! If there's anything else I can do, please let me know! I'll be staying at the Lavender Stone Tavern."

"Hey, that's where we're staying too! Mind if I help with your luggage?" Crimson picks up Vita's suitcase only to quickly be snatched away from his grasp by the owner.

"Uh, n-no, thank you! I should be fine, I make a living carrying suitcases anyway. Have fun on your mission, Master!" After saying her goodbyes with a fleeting bow, Vita heads to the tavern where she can settle in.

"I hate to see her leave, but I love to watch her go..." Crimson sighs, staring at Vita's rear with a loving smile.

"You need to control yourself, Crimson." River bluntly says, glaring at Crimson

"Oh you just don't get it, River, it's a dream to see every cute girl in a maid uniform. It's like a fresh style of beauty." Crimson gleefully says, earning a chuckle from Fenrir.

"I wouldn't be surprised if she wore that outfit just to look attractive, on and off duty."

"Right?! You're such a lucky bastard, Jotaro!"

"You're both animals..." River sighs.

"And you said your family has eight or nine of them in your mansion, partner?" Fenrir turns to look at Jotaro only to notice an uncertain expression on his face, like something's bothering him. "Jotaro? What's wrong?"

"Hm? Oh, it's nothing...guess I'm still surprised to see Vita here." Jotaro replies, noticing he's a little distracted. "Let's check the map, we have a mission to complete."

Jotaro turns around and hastily walks away, his teammates staying to watch him go.

"He has no idea how much I wanna trade places with him right now..." Crimson pouts.

"The bigger the lie, the deeper the secret." River adds.

"Ok, that's enough." Fenrir lightly chuckles. "Let's go and catch up, we'll start by asking the Spiders."

*

Spiders was a name River isn't comfortable hearing. He's lived in the low levels of Vale long enough to know how shady they really are. And if they refurnished this old inn as their info center, you can bet the only thing they want instead of Lien...is information. The team wasn't entirely sure what to expect when they stepped inside, it looked nicer than it did on the outside, the walls were covered in new decorative paper with no sign of vines or molding, the wooden floor still creaks at their step but it appears freshly waxed; and the reception was filled with tables occupied by many of the residents. Jotaro can tell they all belong to the Spider gang because of their tattoos he spotted with his Detective Vision. Jotaro's familiar with the Spiders gang but never met them...until now. The light atmosphere gets heavier when the gang notices Team CJVR at the door, all of the Spiders stare down, ready in case a fight needed to break out

"Sheesh, with those venomous glares, it's no wonder they call themselves Spiders." Fenrir says, though he hides it, there's a faint sense of unease in his voice. It's not hard for the Spiders to know them, especially after their heroic moment when the team first landed. The best they can do now is stay calm and not do anything to provoke them.

The team approaches the reception desk, where a Spider is stationed, filing his nails. Jotaro is the first to address the reception.

"Greetings, I'm Jotaro Kurozaki, my teammates and I would like to ask you a few questions."

"This ain't a daycare, kids. So how about you run back to your mommies." The reception rudely replies, his eyes still focused on his nails

"We only have a few simple questions, if you cooperate, we'll get out of your eight legged hairs before you know it."

"We don't make deals with Huntsmen, especially naïve little shits like you!" The receptionist snaps, pointing the nail file at them

"Not even for a little information?" Fenrir pipes in. Earning the receptionist's attention. "Because it can't be easy holding a web of information between your groups. I know how to avoid the Grimm between your travels."

"You think you can just walk into our inn, demand information from us, and when we didn't wanna talk, you thought bribing us with YOUR info would work?!" The receptionist growls, the other spiders getting up and readying their weapons.

"...Yes?" Fenrir says. The others take notice of their hostile intent and ready their weapons.

"Fenrir...?" Crimson pleads, scanning the area nervously.

"That's enough boys, we're all friends here!" Everyone looks up at the set of stairs to see a slim man in purple and gray clothes, another Spider tattoo marked on his neck, walking down the steps with a smile. "If they say they're here to talk, let them. No harm in a little conversation."

"They're Huntsmen, Silk." The Spider says, glaring at Fenrir

"They're our guests...and it's our duty as hosts to welcome them in courtesy. Take it easy, Grynn." The man orders. The Spider sits back down, calming himself down. "You four, come with me, we can talk in my office."

Crimson and Jotaro sigh in relief, thankful things didn't go out of hand and climb up the stairs to the Spider Lieutenant's office. It looked about as expensively fancy as the mayor's office; a wooden desk with books and files, a coffee table between two leather sofas and a portable bar where the slim man is pouring himself a shot.

"I'd offer you kids a drink, but...well, we're not in Vacuo. Have a seat, and we'll get started." The boys sit down on the sofa to the left while the man sits on the other across from them, taking a sip from his shot glass. "First, introductions, my name is Silk Weaver, one of the Spider's lieutenants. I run this branch overseeing Sanus, what are your names?"

The Team look amongst themselves and saw no harm in giving names to Silk.

"Fenrir Calavera"

"Jotaro Kurozaki"

"Crimson Vernados"

"River Strife"

"It's nice to meet the four of you, and I apologize for the reception earlier. Some of our men here are a bit on edge." Silk says with a sigh.

"On edge? More like stab happy lunatics..." Crimson scoffs.

"Yes, I suppose you have our thanks. It could've gotten ugly in there." Jotaro sighs

"Please don't take it too personally, they're much friendlier than this." Silk replies, confusing the team. "There's a good reason for their hostile attitude. It's because we've had a loss in numbers a few days ago."

That was enough to peak the team's interest, one of their own was attacked? Could it be from the Grimm invasion.

"Your men were attacked? How? When did it happen?" Jotaro asks, hoping to get as much information as he can.

"Ah ah, not so fast." Silk takes a sip from his shot glass then sets it down on the table. "Information is part of our business in this world. It's like Lien, not something that can grow on trees. So...I want to make you a deal, answer one simple question and I might answer all of yours. Sounds fair?"

"What kind of information are you asking for?" Jotaro asks, finding Silk's intent a bit suspicious.

"Nothing that would jeopardize your confidentiality as Huntsmen of course. More of a riddle, when you think about it!" Silk chuckles, finding their suspicions amusing. The team look amongst themselves and nod, as long as it's not something sensitive, there shouldn't be any harm. They should still tread carefully. "Good! Now then, what I'd like to ask you is this: How do you conquer even your WORST fear?"

"Uh, by fighting it?" Crimson guesses only for Silk to shake his head no

"You try and tell yourself there's nothing TO fear?" Jotaro replies

"That's not correct either, fear is part of our nature after all. Without fear, we're nothing but reckless buffoons."

The others try to think what the right answer in conquering fear is...except for River, who has confidence in his own answer.

"The best way to conquer your fear is to make it work for you. You turn your fear into your strength, that's how The Spiders were born. Many people fear spiders because of the unknown, they don't know if they're venomous or harmless so people attempt to avoid them...you use fear as a weapon."

The others look at River in surprise, he spoke to Silk about the Spiders so well it's...almost like he's familiar with them. Even Silk was surprised, but laughs in amusement afterwards

"Yes, exactly! Bravo, young man! That was more than I could've asked for! Ha ha..." Silk sighs, leaning back on his sofa. "Your friends may be negligent, but you have a bright future as a Huntsman if you have enough knowledge of our crime syndicates."

"Hey!" Crimson calls out in offense.

"You solved the riddle, it's only fair I give you my part of the deal. Ask me whatever you'd like to know."

"You mentioned suffering losses earlier, could you please elaborate on it?" Jotaro asks. With a nod, Silk picks up his shot glass and walks back to his bar, pouring another drink.

"One of our own was killed about four days ago, we were still renovating this old place when it happened. He was attacked in the middle of the night and my men discovered his body the following morning after we noticed he was missing." Silk walks back to his sofa and sits down, a shot glass in hand.

"Any idea what killed him?" Crimson asks. Silk takes another sip from his shot glass.

"He was beaten to death, bruises all over his body and broken bones. No signs of struggle either, so he was taken by surprise."

"Was he jumped by villagers?" Fenrir asks. Making Silk laugh at the question.

"Ha! Not possible, villagers can hardly defend against Grimm let alone handle one of our Spiders. No...this was done by the Bullhounds..." Silk's attitude changes from amusement to malice the moment he brings up the Bullhounds.

"That doesn't make sense, Bullhounds are very sensitive about their pride. To take someone by surprise would be an insult to how they operate, what makes you so sure this is their doing?" River asks

"See for yourself..." Silk reaches into his pocket and throws a bandanna on the table. Jotaro's the first to pick it up, and inspects it, seeing a drawing of a wolf with bull horns.

"That's a Bullhound's crest, alright." River mutters, then glances at Silk. "One of them must've dropped it while your man was being attacked."

"Yes, after seeing this, I tasked my men into gathering info of their gang. They wear these bandannas like we wear our tattoos, as a badge to prove they're one of us."

"And you're sure this is them? It's possible someone could be framing the Bullhounds." Jotaro adds, gesturing to the bandanna.

"That thought crossed my mind, once...until they had the audacity to assault our base three days ago." The team gasps at Silk's answer, the Grimm attack started three days ago, this could mean the Spiders and Bullhounds are the cause.

"So they started this skirmish and you were only defending yourselves." Crimson puts together, earning a nod from Silk.

"Yes, and they're relentless. They attack us, we attack back, it's been going on for three whole days, including today when we had another skirmish."

"I didn't notice either of you fighting..." Fenrir adds.

"That's because your arrival forced us to withdraw...can't fight a possibly losing battle now, could we?" Silk says with a small smirk on his face. Fenrir and the others give this some thought until Jotaro stands up, bandanna still in his hand.

"Thank you for the information. If it's alright with you, I'd like to keep this as confiscated evidence for our mission." Jotaro politely asks, nodding the bandanna for emphasis.

"Oh, by all means, keep it! It's of no use to me now. And good luck with your investigation, green children like you will need it." Silk says, his smirk growing. The team exits the room with an uncomfortable feeling.

*

This confirms the gangs are the cause of this Grimm activity, and it could get worse if the team leaves this alone.

"So what's our next step?" Crimson asks as he and the others make it outside. "We going to the Bullhounds and arrest them?"

"We don't have all the facts yet. And even if they're responsible for these disasters, they wouldn't go down without a fight." River argues.

"River's right, we only have one side of the story, I say we hear it again from the Bullhound's perspective." Fenrir says, hands on his hips.

"You're kidding me, are they even willing to talk?" Crimson asks

"If not, we can always get their story the hard way." Fenrir says with a smirk. Only for Jotaro to butt in

"Let's not cause anymore grief for this village, they have enough problems without us tearing this place apart."

"I dunno Jotaro, fighting may be the only thing those Bullhounds understand. I mean, just look at their crest, how is this not threatening?" Crimson chuckles nervously. "Besides, it's pretty obvious who started this fire in the first place. There's no point in hearing their side."

"Then consider this process of elimination. We won't complete our mission by being lazy." Jotaro lectures, glaring at Crimson who sighs

"Ugh, fine, let's just get this over with."

It was quite obvious this supply warehouse is the Bullhound's hideout. The ridiculously loud music playing inside is enough to draw attention, making the team worry if the villagers got any sleep. All they have to do now is go through the large metal doors covered by one guard outside.

"So how do we deal with the bouncer? Talk him to death?" Crimson asks.

"We should convince him we don't mean harm, approach him peacefully." Jotaro advises.

"Yeah, our weapons totally don't scream violence." Fenrir sighs.

"Well, let's just hope he doesn't mind them." The team approach the bouncer, hoping they're lucky enough with words.

"Hold it! This place is occupied by the Bullhounds. No Spiders or Huntsmen allowed! That includes naïve Huntsmen like yourselves!!" The bouncer steps forward, reaching his hand out to stop them.

"We mean you no harm, we only wish to ask you some questions." Jotaro raises his hands in peace.

"We don't like nosy teenagers either, now beat it before I beat YOU!"

"Surely it couldn't hurt to at least allow-,"

"No!! Now beat it!! This is your last warning!"

"Nice to see the reception is as generous as the Spiders'..." Fenrir sighs. The team quickly backs away from the bouncer in a safe distance.

"So what now? I can just punch him and be done with it." Crimson offers.

"No, that'll only make things worse!" Jotaro argues.

"Not if he's quick enough, just one punch and he's out, nobody has to know." Fenrir replies.

"And you're not helping! Maybe we could draw him away with a distraction..."

As the team discuss their plan of entry, River had an idea of his own. He approaches the bouncer who notices him.

"What are ya, deaf?! Or just plain stupid?!" The bouncer cracks his knuckles, ready for a fight.

"What's your name?" River simply asks.

"Huh?"

"Your name...I wish to know what it is."

"Uh...it's Geno. Wait, what's it to ya?!" The others take notice of River talking to the bouncer, worried his actions are gonna cause trouble.

"River, what are you doing?!" Crimson flails his arms in a panic.

"You must take your position as a guard very seriously, I almost find it commendable."

"Hey, compliments ain't gonna get you through."

"I know, that wasn't my intention. The only reason you won't let us in is because you think we're a threat."

"Damn right I do..."

"Then, perhaps this will help you." River pulls out his weapons, scaring the others, thinking he's about to attack; instead, he hands the bouncer his weapon. "This is my weapon, I call it the Quickdraw. It has two chambers, one for bullets and one for Dust, the blade is merged with it's barrel so I can use the Dust for both ranged and melee attacks, making it more unique than any typical Huntsman's weapon. And I'll let you hold on to it...if you let us inside."

"How the hell will this help me?"

"Because I know you'd want to get your hands on it. Show it to your boss and he'll allow us in." River spins his weapon and offers it's handle end to the bouncer. "Do we have a deal?"

"Grr, fine damn it! I'll clear it with the boss but what happens next is outta my hands! Just give me a minute." The guard takes River's weapon and walks inside to show his boss. River's team approaches him in surprise.

"How the hell'd you do that?" Crimson asks, a bit in awe.

"If there's one thing these barbarians respect besides their strength, it's their status of weapons no matter who's carrying it. Since my Quickdraw was rare in its own right, it would make sense to convince him by showing my weapon as a sign of peace."

"And what would happen if they decided to keep it?" Jotaro asks, hoping River wasn't too reckless in giving Quickdraw to the Bullhounds.

"They won't, the Bullhounds care about respect, it would be an insult to their pride of they decided to keep what clearly isn't theirs." The door opens up to see the bouncer walking out, River's weapon still in his hand.

"It's your lucky day, kids. The boss agreed to let you in, but try anything and we'll kick your asses, no matter how good you are!" The bouncer warns, pointing Quickdraw at the team in a threatening manner.

"Your threat could sound a little more menacing if you were discreet about it." Fenrir says, getting pulled away by Jotaro.

"Don't give them ideas!" The team quickly hurry inside to have a talk with their lieutenant.

Inside, the warehouse was even louder inside than they thought. It was enough to overwhelm River's ears, making him wear his headphones to muffle them out. Aside from the loud heavy metal, the warehouse looks more like a gym than a storage building, there are a few wooden crates scattered but they're mostly being used as furniture like a table or chair. Some of the Bullhounds were minding their own business, talking, having a little brawl at the center of the building and even playing card games.

"This feels more like a nightclub than a warehouse." Jotaro comments, cringing at the loud music.

"So loud..." River adds in a pained voice, squeezing his headphones on his ears.

"Alright, what do you little punks want?" The team looks up the second floor to see a bigger man in a mullet and big red coat, a giant scar shaped like an x on his face. He must be their lieutenant...or their chief, whichever. The big man jumps over the railing and lands in front of the team, kicking up dust from the ground on impact. Standing tall, he's able to tower the four of them by 10 inches, his entire presence nearly scares the team. "Well? You wanted to talk, so talk while I still have my patience!"

Looking around, Jotaro can see his teammates backing away, making him the de facto interrogator. He sighs, disappointment for his team and turns back to the man, clearing his throat.

"Sir, I'm Jotaro Kurozaki from Beacon, we're looking into the unusual activity of Grimm."

"What makes them so unusual? They attack, destroy, and kill anyone they wish, nothing unusual about that."

"What makes it unusual is they keep attacking this village for three days and we're looking into the cause. So far, we believe your conflict with the Spiders is the source of negative emotion."

"It is, and I'm telling you to stay out of our business. Nobody messes with Griefer's crew and gets away with it."

"So, your name is Griefer?" Jotaro gets a nod, confirming his question. "Well Griefer, I'd only like to ask you a few questions, if you help us we can help you."

"We don't need your help, especially from green naive Huntsman who think they can solve every problem by talking. So I'll give you the courtesy to leave while you still have your spines." With that, Griefer turns his back to Jotaro and walks away. "We'll deal with those pesky Spiders our way, and we won't stop until they're squashed."

"We won't let you destroy this village!" Jotaro calls out, making Griefer stop in surprise and his men to turn their attention to the conversation.

"What the hell did you just say?" Griefer glances past his shoulder, ventilating his rage through the sight of his eyes.

"If you engage in one more conflict with the Spiders, my team and I will stop both of you before it gets worse. It's our job as Huntsmen to protect people when they're put in danger, and your little skirmishes are enough to get innocent people hurt...we won't just stand by. So either you answer my questions...or we'll put an end to this now." Griefer didn't like how much authority Jotaro was putting in his voice. He turns around, walks back and grabs Jotaro's coat collar by one hand, lifting the noble off his feet, alarming his teammates.

"You know, it's little shits like you that really piss me off, you think you can just walk in here and demand things from me like you own it? Maybe I should save us all the trouble and squash you and your little friends here and now." Griefer raises Jotaro higher, choking him to death.

"Hey! Get your hands off of him!" Crimson rushes forward before the others could and throws a right hook at Griefer's face with enough pressure to break his nose. Griefer drop Jotaro who coughs and gasps for air, rubbing his neck in pain.

Seeing their lieutenant beaten by Crimson's punch, the rest of the gang stands up and ready their weapons for a brawl, Fenrir readies his weapon and Crimson readies his fist with River and Jotaro behind them.

"Well...shit." Crimson sighs, cursing at himself.

The gang fighters get closer and closer, taunting their weapons with a menacing scowl, ready to lay down the hurt...until they all start hearing laughter.

"hahahaha...hahahaha...HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!" They look at Griefer to see he's the one who's laughing, caressing his broken nose. "Now that's what I'm talking about! A brat with bark AND bite!! What's your name?"

"Me?" Crimson looks around confused, and sees Griefer IS addressing him. "I'm Crimson Vernados..."

"Crimson...I like it, and I like you." Griefer grins, approaching Crimson. "It takes REAL cojones to not only strike me, but to do some real damage. Nobody's ever broken my nose before...I respect that."

"Uh...thanks?" Crimson was at a loss, so were his teammates. The gang looked like they were ready to fight back but instead, Crimson's actions earned him praise?

"How about this? I'll answer all of your questions, if you fight me in a one on one, hand to hand duel. Make it fun for me, and I'll take the time to answer your question."

"That's all? You sure I didn't hit your head too hard?"

"Until now, I never had anyone as close to my level, and beating the little guys just ain't so fun for me anymore, but YOU could finally cure my boredom. I can already feel my blood boiling, it demands more!"

By Griefer's words, the other members spoke amongst themselves and started smiling, they'd love to see a good show. Smiling, the gang starts chanting at Crimson and Griefer for a fight, they're chants growing louder and faster. Crimson gives a glance to Fenrir and the others who give an ok nod to go for it. Sighing, Crimson faces Griefer with a smile.

"Alright...bring it on!" Crimson's words make the crowd roar in excitement, ready to watch a good fight.

Griefer steps into the arena first, taking off his coat and throwing it into the crowd of his subordinates. Crimson steps in next, taking off his jacket and handing it to Jotaro who takes it.

"Break a leg, Crimson!" Fenrir cheers, partly joking as noticed by River's displeasurable glance.

Crimson and Griefer raise their fists at the ready, waiting for who'll strike first. Griefer takes the charge swinging a right hook, Crimson ducks and returns with a jab at Griefer's stomach. Crimson jumps to his left as Griefer slams his left fist. Crimson charges back and suppresses Griefer with a series of punches. Griefer takes a couple hits to the face but raises his arms to block the rest. Griefer dodges Crimson's next punch and retaliates with a slugger to his face.

Disoriented, Crimson steps away from Griefer for quick recovery, but gives Griefer a chance for more damage. Griefer throws right and left hooks, Crimson quickly dodges three incoming hits and blocks a hook with his left arm. Crimson raises his right arm for what he thought was another hook but Griefer fakes the hit and smacks Crimson's arm away, leaving him open to deliver an uppercut. Crimson was nearly over the arena's edge, losing his balance and consciousness; but he's not one to lose and he's not gonna let some criminal win. That was enough motivation to put his head back in the game.

Crimson ducks Griefer's straight punch and returns with an uppercut. Griefer steps back, surprised by Crimson's quick recovery and throws a right hook, Crimson defensively dodges to the left and punches Griefer's arm down, followed by slamming his elbow on Griefer's face. While Griefer recovers from the surprise attack, Crimson throws a right hook, then left, then right, and left again until he goes for a full straight only for Griefer to catch his fist before it connects.

Griefer twists Crimson's arm, the intense pain making him scream. Griefer throws a right uppercut into Crimson's chest, lifting him off his feet from impact. Crimson's down to his knees after receiving the hit, his right arm freed from Griefer's grasp. Griefer turns to address the cheers he's receiving from his subordinates, Crimson spots his opening. He stands and jumps with his fist high, throwing a hard swing on Griefer's head who only flinches on impact. Griefer turns around to glare at Crimson, ready to finish him off. Griefer throws a right straight but Crimson drops to his knees and punches Griefer's nuts earning a surprised reaction from the crowd and a squeal from his opponent. Griefer drops to his knees, painfully holding his family jewels, giving Crimson a moment to catch his breath. Still hurting, Griefer attempts to stand up but is knocked to his back by a powerful headbutt from Crimson.

All goes quiet after Crimson's headbutt, Crimson was nearly out of it; panting, his clothes and hair covered in sweat with a giant red mark on his forehead. Griefer coughs out whatever air he has left in his lungs and carefully sits up. The lieutenant gives an amused chuckle, wiping the blood off his forehead with his hand.

"First my nose...now my forehead...you're clearly no pushover, kid." Panting, Griefer rises to his feet, staggering towards Crimson who raises his fists, expecting another fight. "You...are a real fighter."

Griefer grabs Crimson's right arm and raises it high, facing the crowd of gang members.

"LET'S HEAR IT FOR CRIMSON VERNADOS!!!!"

The Bullhounds go wild in cheers, praising Crimson for his victory. His teammates enter the ring as Griefer releases his arm, giving the team their space and to clean his own wounds.

"Crimson! Are you going to be alright?" Jotaro asks in concern.

"Yeah, I will be...don't worry, I take beatings for a living." Crimson chuckles, stumbling back a bit before Fenrir and Jotaro catch him. "If it's alright with you guys...I'm gonna lie down..."

Crimson passes out from his bruises and exhaustion, luckily Fenrir and Jotaro were holding his arms before passing out.

"Agh, great...Jotaro, River, why don't you two carry him back to the inn? If his aura hasn't shattered yet, it should heal most of the damages he took." Fenrir hands Crimson's arm over to River who takes it by his order.

"You're not coming with us?" River asks, wrapping Crimson's arm over his shoulders.

"Griefer still has his part of the deal." Fenrir turns around, facing Griefer who's sitting on his throne; his forehead getting bandaged by one of the Bullhounds. Fenrir walks up to Griefer, crossing his arms. "Alright, Mullet Head, you got your entertainment. Now tell us, what's your beef with the Spiders?"

"Easy, kid." Griefer raises his hand tiredly, slowly catching his breath as the Bullhound finishes bandaging his head. "Right...it's not that we had beef with the Spiders...they had beef with us."

"I'm not surprised, considering you killed one of their subordinates." Fenrir scoffs, pacing left and right.

"We didn't kill their own. They attacked us first!" Fenrir stops his pacing and looks at Griefer after hearing his words.

"What do you mean?" Griefer sits back, letting out a long sigh.

"Five days ago, my boys and I were just settling in when the big boss sent us here. We noticed the Spiders moving in with us but they didn't seem much of a threat until now, they don't bother us, we don't bother them."

"So they're the ones who attacked first?" Griefer nods. "And how can a brick brain like yours be so sure? We talked to the Spiders earlier and they said you attacked them."

"Ha! And you believe those tongue twisting backstabbers?! Alright...how's this for proof?" Griefer throws a small throwing dagger to Fenrir who catches it with ease. Upon inspection, the team leader notices dried blood on the blade. "Wanted to keep that thing as a souvenir, it was found in the neck of my best boy, Jonny. Hit him at midnight when he wasn't looking, now are you gonna keep asking questions or are you gonna act like real Huntsmen and arrest The Spiders?!"

Fenrir inspects the dagger further, it certainly has The Spiders' mark on its handle, but everything Griefer explained felt...off. There's one more piece of this puzzle missing and he can't figure it out.

"Just one more question." Fenrir looks up from the dagger. "If your group did attack the Spiders first, how would you've done it?"

"Simple, We'd demand a match against one of their strongest men. Once we had our fun, we'd leave them alone; just like your friend with the punches, if he'd lost that round, I would've finished y'all off for wasting my time."

"And you'd never attack someone from behind?"

"Hell no!!" Griefer shoots up from his chair in anger. "To attack someone from behind is dishonorable and cowardly! We're criminals, I admit that...but we're criminals with a code. So I suggest you get that through your head before making accusing questions like that...get out of my sight!"

Deciding he's had enough, Fenrir turns around and takes his leave as Griefer sits back on his throne. Something here feels fishy, and it's not this conflict between the Spiders and the Bullhounds...it almost feels like they've taken a big role in a ridiculous play.

End of Chapter 13