Quoted By:
“I’ll tell you if you start cooperating.” You extend your hand towards the criminal lady, Matilda-Style! The Martial Art and Criminal world’s traditions are too mixed together in this country, so you’ll act accordingly to these made-up rules. “Deal?”
The Spy Dragon grins not out of malice, but because this dynamic fits her, she feels at home. She shakes your hand. The deal has been agreed upon.
“Spill it.” The Spy Dragon wants her answers now. How impatient.
“Keeping the answer short, it wasn’t the old man who taught me.” And you’re not a lousy student, you’re still stuck on the physical conditioning! But something tells you that next time, it’ll be all technique drills.
“Impossible. He only teaches the nuances to a select few. And you grasp them. Barely.” The Spy Dragon doesn’t want to believe it, even if the information starts clicking in her mind. “With so little training, it’s commendable you’re not a disaster. But that’s Master Spice for you.”
“What else can I say? I’m not lying.” And you aren’t a trash student either! “Now tell me why you were fired.”
The Spy Dragon flinches, her bruises aren’t the culprit for once. This memory hurts her. “...My loyalties didn’t align with the Clan’s new direction, and I was let go.”
“Could you explain further?” You continue acting like a job interviewer.
“The hotshot new head of the family has little patience for tradition and its costs. He wanted to cut all payments for our retirees to fund his biggest project. Messing with a warrior’s pension is a sign of a dishonorable man. I stood up for my masters’ rights, and I got my contract terminated.” The Spy Dragon is too loyal to the people who trained her. You assume the old man Spice was among them. “I could tell that he harbors ill will against those affiliated with the Spice Dragon Dojo.”
“You know why?” You need the details!
“Kuhuhu~, I heard it all: From being rejected at the dojo, to resenting Master for his only high-profile botched job against a businessman from overseas, it was a personal affair to the hotshot. And general minor offenses like forgetting his name or not going out of retirement to aid the family when he took over. Master Spice always touched a nerve…” The Spy Dragon is full of joy.
“Sounds petty.” You scratch the back of your head.
“Ah, ‘Pettiness’, a word used by those who don’t care about honor.” The Spy Dragon disagrees.
“By the way, why did you want to be chopped for 8 minutes straight?” You ask.
“That little?” The Slapped Dragon is disappointed in herself.
