As soon as they stepped out of the Foxhole, Kurt's vision exploded with notifications.
[NEW SYSTEM QUEST: RESCUE OPERATION]
Primary: Rescue Mary
Reward: +15 points
[SUB-QUEST 1: Infiltrate mansion undetected]
Reward: +5 points
[SUB-QUEST 2: Eliminate captor]
Reward: +10 points
[SUB-QUEST 3: Protect Samantha Crowley]
Reward: +10 points
Kurt stopped dead in his tracks, staring at the glowing screens and scratched his head. "Who the hell's Mary?"
Sam looked at him like he'd just grown a second head. "Who are you talking to?" Before she could let him answer, she continued. "And Mary's the girl you're meant to bring back from the D-district. God, were you even paying attention?"
Kurt groaned and waved a hand. "Yeah, yeah, I heard her. Mary. Got it. Just had to check with my... mental notes."
Sam raised an eyebrow. "Mental notes?"
"Long story," Kurt muttered. "Let's just get moving."
His eyes drifted back to the last quest: Protect Samantha Crowley. He frowned. 'Protect Sam? And her last name's Crowley huh? Good to know.'
He had questions about a lot of things, like for one, how the system knew what it knew but he filed all of these away under 'stuff that made no sense' and dismissed the screens.
"So," Kurt said, whipping his gold lighter open and close in a clinking sound. "How exactly do you plan on getting to the D-district? Not exactly a fighter, are you?"
Sam crossed her arms and lifted her chin. "You don't have to be in a guild or get a certificate to move around. Sometimes you just need influence and power. And Mama's very connected."
Kurt caught the way her voice swelled with pride when she said it, and he smirked.
***
They hadn't walked more than a block when two familiar figures appeared ahead. Large, muscular, and unmistakably the same brutes who'd pretended to rob Sam in the F-rank district.
One of them spotted Sam and shouted excitedly, "Sammie!"
Sam's face lit up like a kid seeing their favorite uncle. "Dicky!"
The man... Dicky, apparently, scooped her up and spun her around, and Sam squealed with delight. When he set her down, she immediately hugged the second brute, who grinned and ruffled her hair.
"So," the second one said, "any new scores for us?"
Sam sighed dramatically. "Nah. Mama's watching me like a hawk."
Their eyes shifted to Kurt, and their expressions hardened. "This guy giving you trouble?"
Kurt kept flipping his lighter open-close and grinned. "Well, if it isn't Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum."
Upon hearing his voice, recognition flickered across their faces. "Hey, it's you!"
Sam stepped between them quickly, hands raised like a referee stopping a fight before it started. "Mama's got a job for him. I'm just helping out." She glanced between them, reading the tension. "I'll catch you guys later?"
The brutes exchanged glances, then nodded reluctantly. Sam waved goodbye, and they kept walking.
Once they were out of earshot, Kurt glanced at her. "You're a strange one."
And Sam stuck her tongue out at him like a child. "And you're an asshole."
"Is that the only insults you know?" Kurt chuckled.
"It's the only one you deserve," Sam shot back, but she sounded embarrassed. She turned and kept walking, quickening her pace while Kurt followed.
***
After days of journeying, the crumbling facades of E-rank gave way to something sturdier. The crowds thinned. The smell of rot and desperation faded, replaced by something cleaner but no less dangerous.
They had made it into the D-rank district and it felt different to Kurt now that he'd just been in E.
The cities were quieter, especially at night, the buildings taller and more polished, but still worn around the edges.
Sam led Kurt through winding alleys and backstreets, her steps quick and confident like she knew the area well.
Eventually, they reached the edge of a residential zone, and Sam stopped, pointing ahead.
"There," she said. "That's his mansion."
Kurt followed her gaze and let out a low whistle. The place was massive. Three stories, surrounded by a high stone wall, and lit up like a fortress.
Guards patrolled the perimeter, and there was one stationed at the front gate.
"Heavily guarded," Kurt muttered. "Figures."
Sam bit her lip. "So what's the plan? How do we go in without triggering an alarm?"
"Still working on it," Kurt said, scanning the area. "Let's see if I can talk our way in."
"Talk?" Sam's eyes went wide. "You're going to talk your way past an armed guard?"
"That's the idea," Kurt said, grinning. "Look at the mark on his finger?" Kurt pointed. "Means he's married, and by the bags in his eye I'm guessing with a kid."
He continued observing. "And check out the pink flower patterned bandage on the side of his neck."
Sam's eye lit up, "The kid's a daughter?"
"Now you're catching on." Kurt complimented and Sam's cheek turned rosy. "I can work with that," Kurt said.
He studied more things about the man and his body language, then strolled toward the front gate, hands in his pockets.
The guard spotted him immediately and raised his rifle. "Stop right there! Who the hell are you?"
Kurt stopped, raising his hands slowly. "Easy, mate. Just out for a walk."
The guard didn't lower his weapon. "This is private property. Turn around and leave. Now."
Kurt tilted his head, studying him. "You know, you don't look like the usual type who works for a place like this."
The guard's eye narrowed with suspicion. "I said leave."
"Wedding ring," Kurt continued, ignoring the rifle. "Nice one too. Simple. Practical. The kind a good man wears." He smiled. "How long you been married?"
The guard hesitated, then: "Six years. Why?"
"Six years," Kurt repeated, nodding appreciatively. "That's solid. Bet you've got a kid by now, yeah?"
The guard's jaw tightened. "That's none of your business."
"Fair enough," Kurt said, holding up his hands. "But that bandage on your neck, pink flowers. That's not yours, is it?" He grinned. "Let me guess. Your daughter insisted? 'Daddy needs the princess one'?"
The guard's expression hardened again. He lifted the rifle a fraction. "That's enough. You need to leave. Now."
Kurt held his hands up, backing off half a step. "Fair. I crossed a line." He hesitated, then added quietly, "Just... don't let this place change who you are. Your kid deserves better than that."
Despite himself, the guard's expression softened for just a moment. "She's five. Stubborn as hell."
"Five," Kurt said warmly. "Good age. Full of energy, I bet." He paused, then his tone shifted, becoming gentler. "But you've got bags under your eyes. And not the 'long shift' kind. The 'hospital waiting room' kind."
The guard's grip on the rifle faltered. "How did you—"
"Because I've seen that look before," Kurt said quietly, his face took a dark turn as he thought back to the memory of his mom standing in the way of his abusive father. "On parents who'd give anything to protect their kid. Plus you reek of disinfectant," he added.
He paused for a moment. "She's sick, isn't she?"
The guard's face crumpled slightly. "Essence mutation syndrome. Rare. The treatments are—" He stopped himself, shaking his head. "Why am I telling you this?"
Kurt took a step closer, his voice soft. "Because you need to tell someone. Because you're carrying it alone. How much do the treatments cost?"
The guard swallowed hard. "Eighty-seven thousand. But I'm still forty short, and the next one's in three weeks, and—" His voice cracked. "I don't know what else to do."
Kurt pulled out a sleek data pad. "What's your transfer key?"
The guard stared at him. "What?"
"Your transfer key," Kurt repeated. "The one linked to your credit account."
"Why would I—"
"Because I'm about to transfer you fifty thousand credits," Kurt said simply. "But I need your address first."
The guard's mouth opened and closed. "You're... you're joking."
"Do I look like I'm joking?" Kurt asked, meeting his eyes. "Your daughter needs treatment. You need money. I have money. It's simple."
"Why would you do that?" the guard whispered.
"Because the man you're guarding? He kidnaps women, women who also have dads that worry just like you worry."
Kurt's expression darkened. "And then he hurts them, probably does it in his creepy mansion basement. So I'm about to make sure he never does it again. But you?" He gestured at the guard. "You're just a dad trying to save his kid. That's not a crime. That's called being human."
Kurt waved the data pad. "I can help, you've got my word," he said.
The guard almost gave in, then scoffed. "You think I'm stupid? You flash fake credits, I lower my gun, and I lose my job."
"You've got a point there." Kurt nodded. "But first off, there's only one way to find out right?" Kurt then met his eyes. "And second off, I don't lie about kids."
The guard looked at him for a long moment, then slowly lowered his rifle. "Transfer Key is 101422-839."
Kurt's fingers flew across the data pad. "One hundred thousand credits. Transferred." His cut from the dungeon dive and convoy raids were really paying off... literally.
The guard's data pad buzzed. He pulled it out, stared at the screen, and his knees nearly buckled. "It's... it's real."
"It's real," Kurt confirmed. "Now do me a favor. Walk away. Go home. Hug your daughter. And when someone asks where you were tonight, you didn't see a damn thing."
The guard looked at him, tears streaming down his face. "I... thank you."
"Don't thank me," Kurt said. "Just take care of your kid."
The guard nodded, turned, and walked away into the night.
Sam stepped out of the shadows, her mouth hanging open. "Holy shit."
Kurt pocketed the data pad, not looking at her. "What?"
"You just... he told you everything," Sam said. "How did you do that?"
Kurt shrugged. "Honestly? I've got no bloody idea. Asked the right questions I suppose. Listened to the answers. People want to talk, Sam. They just need someone to listen." He grinned. "And evidently, I'm an excellent listener."
Sam shook her head in disbelief. "You're insane."
"Yeah, yeah," Kurt said, grinning. "Now let's get inside before someone else shows up."
***
They moved through the mansion grounds, sticking to the shadows, avoiding the remaining guards.
Sam was surprisingly good at sneaking, light on her feet, quick to duck behind cover. While she moved, Kurt made sure to keep one eye on her and one on the path ahead.
Midway through, Kurt glanced at her. "Remind me why you're still here?"
Sam shot him a look, whispering. "I'm seeing the mission through. Mary's like a big sister to me." She pouted and gave him a determined stare that was equal parts stubborn and childish.
Kurt groaned and rubbed his face. "Right. Well, I'm very much attached to my balls, see? So you stay exactly where I can see you. Got it?"
Sam rolled her eyes. "Got it."
They reached the side of the mansion, and Kurt was about to suggest they find a window when he heard it.
A muffled scream coming from below.
Kurt's blood went cold and he looked at Sam, whose face had gone pale.
"Basement," she whispered.
Kurt nodded grimly. "It's always the bloody basement."