Headed by a Snake

"Can I join your guild?" Maximus offered.

Tycon was surprised at the man's directness, "Well, yes. I don't see why not. I could certainly use your assistance in Merylsward."

"Great."

Tycon pursed his lips, "Did you... have any questions?"

"Nah. Just nice to hang out with people I know."

Tycon shrugged. It was a strange development.

Maximus adjusted the straps on his shield, "So, Leader... should I go help with the mage?"

...

Tycon walked over to the Staghorn guild, surprised that they had allowed their wizard to be beaten so thoroughly over the course of minutes. If they were terrified, they were right to be so.

The wizard was groaning in pain, surrounded by the members of Guild Invictus. Tycon had to yell over them to get them to stop beating the barely-conscious wizard. The man was strangely resilient, but that might have had to do with the fact that Invictus had not used their strongest attacks.

"You must be Sir Emilien Leserre," Tycon addressed the Heavy Armor Knight.

"Wh-why yes, and who in the seven hells are you?" the mustachioed man cried out.

Barza stepped forward, "How dare you! Don't you know whom'st you are speaking to! Thou art speaketh to the face of Baron Tycondrius!"

Pale tugged on one of Barza's weapon straps, his eyes pleading, 'Please stop.'

Dragan was stifling a laugh.

Maximus eyed Tycon, "Baron?"

Leserre pointed angrily, "Sir Maximus! What is the meaning of this?! These are the enemies of Guild Staghorn! You can't break an established contract per the adventurer guild's laws!!"

Maximus shrugged nonchalantly, "I can break a contract in the case of extraordinary circumstances. Sol Invictus is a team of honorable and just gladiators from my homeland."

Leserre's angered face had reddened to the shade of a bright red apple.

Dragan walked forward with the wizard over his shoulder, "Did you guys want your wizard back?"

A man with an axe answered Dragan, "Yes. Please return the wizard to us... if he's still alive, anyroad. He's our chief advisor."

With a smile, Dragan rolled the Wizard over towards the Staghorns.

...

Clemont was resuscitated with a potion. Too many bones had been broken and he needed intensive healing at a temple-- and a few months of bed rest. He could, however, advise Knight Leserre.

The remaining sect archers and warriors had consolidated with Guild Invictus, making a wall of enemies that none of the Staghorns wished to fight... with the exception of one man.

"What I'm saying, Clemont is... we can't just leave!" Leserre yelled so hard that he winced in pain and cradled his arm.

Clemont sighed and moved his eyes to look at Leserre. He was unable to move his stiff neck, wrapped in an impromptu cast, "Let me walk you through this, Leserre. Guild Staghorn, that is-- you and me, we cannot beat the Unbreakable woman."

"Well, yeah, but--"

"Sir Maximus. He can beat the Unbreakable."

"Yeah! That's exactly right! So we--"

"And Sir Maximus has defected to Guild Invictus."

"Y-yeah. Yeah..." Leserre's spirit was visibly crushed, his fatigue and age setting in and making him look all the more pathetic, "I mean... That bastard! Who does he think he--"

"If Maximus could beat the Unbreakable. Logically, Guild Staghorn can't defeat Maximus. Also, we're down to less than 30% of our numbers. And both you and I are incredibly handicapped."

"Yeah, but... Master Wizard..." Leserre looked like he was about to cry, "The contract was issued by a Duke... And he paid half in advance."

Clemont tried to adjust his broken glasses, but the casts on his arms didn't allow him to. He sighed, "The consequences are irrelevant, Emilien. What we need to be doing is negotiating our surrender."

"Surrender? Guild Staghorn doesn't surrender, Wizard!" Leserre was livid.

"Maybe we can get ahead of the game. Maybe we can convince them if they don't accept our conditions, they'd have to kill us down to the last of us."

A female archer captain raised her hand, "Yeah, I'm not okay with that."

Murmurs of complaints went through the remaining Staghorns.

Clemont raised his voice, "But a conditional surrender, that's still on the table."

The Staghorns, with the exception of Knight Leserre, unanimously agreed..

Thoroughly defeated, but still trying to hold onto his remaining pride, Knight Leserre swaggered over to Baron Tycondrius and Kagehisa Yumiko.

Arrogantly, he placed his good arm on his hips, "You know... Mercy is a sign of strength."

...

Tycon and Yumiko facilitated Guild Staghorn's conditional surrender, gaining a small cache of Outsider armor and weaponry.

Korr tried to avoid Tycon for the walk back until Tycon repeatedly assured her that he wasn't upset with her. (He was.) Maximus had reported how valiantly she fought single-handedly against the Staghorn forces to delay them until Guild Invictus had arrived. Yumiko was strangely defensive of the one-eyed girl, repeatedly referring to her as her daughter. Tycon found it odd but didn't question it.

A fantastic feast was being prepared back at the sect. Sect leader Kimura Daigo, the patriarch of the Kimura family, had returned from closed cultivation. Kagehisa Yumiko stole Seldin Korr away before Tycon could get a chance to talk to her. Young Master Tamaki took Guild Invictus to fit them in traditional formal clothing. Tycon trusted that Tamaki wouldn't embarrass them.

Tycon was concerned about how he'd order Korr to return to Nice. With Maximus' strength and his familiarity with Guild Invictus' tactics, Korr was unnecessary for their mission in Merylsward. It was far more efficient to have Korr train Sorina Capulet. Calculator was a synergistic class that could support any team composition and elevate their threat levels by at least an entire rank-- provided she could increase her rank to Iron.

The woman was damn stubborn, though. And he couldn't afford to gain her ire.

Korr was a terrifying woman with a terrifying class.

"Why don't you take her out, brother?"

Tycon hooked the blue-haired man's neck with the crook of his elbow and powered a knee into the man's abdomen. The Warlock had emerged from the darkness and Tycon attacked out of reflex.

Tycon pushed Wroe away, "Really, Tarquin Wroe?! You need to stop doing that!"

Wroe held his stomach, crouched over in pain, "What? Traveling by magical shadows?"

"No, stop giving me asinine suggestions--" Tycon stopped... "I suppose more the appearing out of the shadows, since your idea was actually useful, for once."

"G-glad to be of service, Boss." Wroe smiled weakly.

Tycon clenched his fist, his plan formulated. He would take Seldin Korr out to see the sect as thanks for arriving and somewhat-helping. Then at the end of the sun, he'd politely ask her to return to Nice.

Surely, nothing would go wrong.