"So cold..."
Hugging his winter coat tightly around his body, Isaac slowly walked upwards as the snow fell all around him, slowly piling up in the surrounding area.
Currently, he was walking up to a higher vantage point to see the entirety of Nasha Town.
He just spent a few hours trying to find a certain automaton, but unfortunately, lady luck hadn't been on his side. He had scoured the possible locations he could have met her, but alas, there wasn't any sign.
Unless he went out of his way to venture out of Nasha Town and travel to the Clink-Clank Krumkake Craftshop that wasn't far away, then he was quite sure he wouldn't be meeting the person he'd been wanting to meet and possibly hire.
But with the increasingly stronger snowy night that was descending, he decided to leave that matter for another time when it was much safer.
"Hah..."
At the top of Nasha Town, where he gets to see far and wide, Isaac exhaled a breath that instantly turned into cold vapor midair.
His eyes shifted and looked around him, only to see the floor covered with layers of snow, and the set of stairs he used to get here.
After which, he turned his head and looked around him. It was already bordering at night, and coupled with the snowy weather, visibility was really low as the light sources were obscured.
Given the circumstances he found himself in... There was only one thing Isaac wanted to do right now.
'Gotta maintain the agenda...'
He moved to the stairs, sat down, and slowly leaned back, watching the snow fall above him, unmoving.
How could he ever pass up the opportunity to do this, especially with the correct circumstances present? That would be a waste.
"The only thing missing is me bleeding..." He mumbled to himself, scoffing. "But that'd be too much for the sake of it, not gonna lie..."
He was fine with this.
Letting go of his thoughts, he released another strained sigh as he let his mind relax. Surprisingly, lying down as if he was bleeding on the snow was, ironically, relaxing in an odd way.
As for the cold, Isaac wasn't bothered by it too much. His winter coat was something he bought from the system and had great insulation.
As for why Isaac did any of this in the first place? Well, one was to relax, and the other was just for purely the love of the game.
And the vibes, of course.
Just then, while Isaac was lying down, he suddenly sensed something approaching him rather stealthily.
Soon, that thing went and stood right beside Isaac, watching him.
"Meow?"
He turned his head, only to see a black act with a rather peculiar set of gold and green ornaments on it.
"Meow."
Isaac replied.
He raised his hand and pet the cat, rubbing his hand under its chin. The cat didn't seem to detest his touch and instead let him do it freely.
Of course, Isaac already knew who this cat was. There was only one lady in this town who had a cat that has this peculiar aesthetic.
"You're gonna report me to your boss, aren't you?" Isaac said, still petting the cat.
"Meow~"
The cat replied, voluntarily rubbing its head on Isaac's hand that was petting it.
Isaac didn't say anything else and instead continued lying there together with that cat as they both hung around under the snowy weather.
But after a while, Isaac soon stood up.
"Come on, let's get out of here." He gently said as he picked up the cat and carried it inside his winter coat. "You're gonna get cold. Let's go eat dinner together, hm?"
"Meow~"
Inside his coat, the black cat didn't resist and instead looked rather quite comfortable, probably due to the heat insulation that was present that was keeping it warm.
Isaac would have loved to teleport back to Fontaine again and eat together with Furina, but he knew that if he did, he wouldn't be able to go back to Nod-Krai due to the limited travel ticket that was a one-time use.
"I hope that Capitano's answer will come sooner than expected..." He mumbled as he went down the stairs. "I'm getting homesick already."
"And it hasn't even been a day..."
---
The next day, The Captain returned to Nasha Town together with his usual group of loyal soldiers that always followed him around.
Soon, an officer came running to him.
"Good day, Captain." The officer saluted. "What have you come here for today?"
"I'm here to see Isak once more." The Captain said steadily. "Is he still here?"
"Yes, sir." The officer replied. "However, he seemed to have left this morning to travel to the Clink-Clank Krumkake Craftshop on the west of the island."
"Shall we drag him back here for you?"
"No need. I'll go there myself." The Captain said.
The officer didn't object and soon followed behind him, making their way to the Clink-Clank Krumkake Craftshop where their target had went to.
Along the way, The Captain asked a question to the officer. "Has Isak done anything worth knowing?"
"Not much, Captain. He has only been observed to act normally, talk to a cat he found, and occasionally roam around the town."
"I see."
The Captain didn't say anything else.
Soon, after travelling for a while, all of them reached the craftshop. Immediately, they saw the giant moving mechanical lifter that was picking up scraps.
The Captain looked around a bit, and it didn't take long for him to notice the familiar figure of the man who contacted him yesterday.
However, he didn't seem to be alone.
Standing beside him was what seemed like another person. No, it wasn't a person, per se, but rather a mechanical construct.
"Stay here."
The Captain commanded his men before making his way over to Isak and the other person.
As he approached, Isaac gradually picked up on their conversation.
"...so you see, Ms. Ineffa, not only would you get to visit Fontaine free of charge, but you'd also have a paid job waiting for you! Doesn't it sound wonderful?"
The robot, whose appearance greatly resembled a maid, blinked twice. Her voice came out flat, mechanical, and devoid of enthusiasm.
"But how would I return to Nod-Krai? What is the exact pay rate? And what are the operating hours of your business?"
Isaac clapped his hands together, smiling as though she had just complimented him. "It's always refreshing to meet someone so interested in the fine details of my proposal."
He then smoothly produced a folded paper from his pocket. "Why not take a look at this contract? Everything you need is written down right here."
Ineffa accepted the sheet. Her bright blue eyes flickered as she scanned through it in seconds, then lifted her gaze back to him.
"Your contract contains multiple, if not several dozen, hidden violations directly or indirectly linked to occupational exploitation."
Isaac reeled back with a gasp, clutching his chest. "What?! Me? Exploiting people? Oh no, oh heavens, how utterly careless of me—!"
He quickly snatched the paper back, stuffing it away as though it were incriminating evidence. "Please forgive my negligence, Ms. Ineffa. Entirely my fault, I assure you. I must have not properly checked it with my legal team."
Then, with a professional shift of tone, he placed a hand over his heart. "As compensation, allow me to treat you to a drink. Or perhaps a fine meal? My café's specialty is making problems disappear over a nice cup of tea. Free of charge, of course."
"If you want, you can even get take outs for little Ms. Aino!" He added.
At the mention of Aino, Ineffa's interest seemed to have been piqued. "Really?"
Isaac maintained his smile. "Of course."
Meanwhile, The Captain, who had been listening in since earlier, remained silent for a bit.
Everything that Isaac had did befits that of a merchant, indeed. Good with persuasion and speechcraft, it was as though he was naturally gifted for business.
It took him a couple of moments before he seemed to have snapped back to reality. Then, with Isaac in his sight, he approached.
"Isak."
Hearing his totally fake name uttered, Isaac turned his head and looked at the approaching figure of The Captain, peerless and daunting.
Ineffa, who was right beside him, also turned to look. And once she saw The Captain, her stance changed as if she were preparing to fight him.
"Fatui detected. Initiating Annihilation..."
"I'm not here to fight." The Captain cut her off before she could transform her right robotic arm. "I'm here for him."
"Th, that's right, Ms. Ineffa. Calm down." Isaac reassured as he also tried to stop her. "Let's not make a mess here, alright?"
"...affirmative." Sensing that there really wouldn't be any fight, she did stop but didn't lower her guard.
Isaac sighed.
"I'm sorry, Ms. Ineffa. But it seems like our business talks would have to be postponed. Would it be alright if I can talk to you about this another time?"
"That would be doable." She nodded. "And... I am interested in your offer."
"That's great!" He exclaimed. "Let's talk about it right away after my business with this gentleman here, okay? Okay!"
With that said, Isaac walked away while waving back at her.
Once he arrived near Capitano, he finally shifted his composure, as if what he just did was but a mere act.
"Sorry about that, Captain. Have you finally made a decision regarding my request yesterday?"
The Captain, standing upright before him, slightly nodded. "Indeed."
"After carefully taking in your offer for consideration... I've decided to accept it and teach you what you want to learn from me."
"You mentioned wanting to learn about my willpower... Then so be it. I will personally show you, and teach you about it."
Isaac felt joyous. Everything was going as planned.
Not only did he successfully convince Capitano, he had also got him as a mentor figure!
Without batting an eye, Isaac bowed in front of him.
"I'll be in your care!"
The training arc starts.
* * *
A/N:
I kid you not, I fell asleep two separate times while writing this, and waking up to random words repeating. So if you see anything weird... Just accept it as it is.