Chapter 96: Patrol

"Good afternoon, Captain Aster!"

"Nice day out today, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah, it sure is, I'm glad to see everyone looking so lively," Aster replied with a polite smile and wave.

He then stretched his arms up with a sigh as the civilians went on their way, feeling a bit bored as he strolled through the city.

It was the 25th of March, 1919, around midday, and Aster was currently patrolling the streets of Garnet City.

It had him feeling a bit restless, he still wasn't entirely used to walking around out in the open while things were peaceful, having been living in hiding for most of his life prior to this.

"This isn't exactly tough work, all I'm doing is just strolling around, but it is pretty tedious. Still, I suppose this boredom I'm feeling is a good thing...I mean, it certainly beats the constant cycle of life or death battles we were stuck in before. And it also serves as proof that this nation really is changing for the better. Hm, in hindsight, i suppose the Undead King's attack turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Yeah, probably shouldn't say that out loud though, considering how many people died and all...," He mused to himself thoughtfully.

At this point, the Church of Persona was all but free of corruption, thanks to the efforts of the Pope and the Inquisitors under his command, along with the support of the Knights.

Like the Knights, the Inquisition Squad had also purged a number of their members who'd acted in their own self-interests and overlooked the corruption around them.

As for the Nobility, a group of them had gathered to protest and oppose the many changes enacted by the new Queen, the church and the Knight Order, those Nobles included family members of some of the corrupt Knights that had been killed by The Irregulars.

However, many of those Nobles had gone quiet now, thanks to the fact that so many of their peers had been imprisoned or executed after the crimes they committed against Commoners were exposed to the public.

Once they realized that their protests wouldn't do anything to reverse the changes being made, a lot of them went into hiding, with no sign of them since.

"I hope that the Inquisitors manage to find those Nobles who've gone into hiding soon...it's got me concerned, I doubt they're just twiddling their thumbs, so to speak. I'd say there's a pretty good chance that they're plotting something, in a misguided effort to revert the nation back to the rotten state it was in before. Based on the reports, the Inquisitors have been combing through the nation to find them, but without any real luck so far. And with no real leads on where they might be hiding to go off on, there's really not much else we can do.

Well, I might be overthinking it, I certainly hope I am...with Commoners no longer restricted from joining the Knight Order and being treated fairly, our numbers have been growing significantly...hm, still feels weird to refer to the Knight Order as 'us', I don't think I've yet fully processed or come to terms with the fact that I'm now one of them. Let alone the fact that I'm a Captain, no less. Seriously, I went from the leader of the most wanted criminal group in the entire nation and an enemy of the Knight Order, just barely three months ago, to one of their highest ranked members.

Life sure is strange, huh...before the Commander made the offer to us, I never even so much as considered this as a possibility, and yet, here I am. If someone had told me even a few months ago that this would happen, I'd definitely have laughed at them. What a bizarre turn of events this whole thing has been..." Aster thought to himself in bemusement, before checking the time, "Oh, hey, looks like my patrol is almost over. Nice, guess I'll head back to the outpost now."

He then began making his way towards the Garnet City Knight outpost, eager to finish his shift and relax for the rest of the day.

A few people greeted him on his way back, another thing that he was still having trouble getting used to.

Having been a criminal forced to live in hiding for most of his life, the popularity and attention he was now getting from the citizens of Garnet City was a bit overwhelming.

It wasn't long before the outpost came into sight, before he checked the time again, seeing that there was a little under a minute left.

He slowed down his pace and casually strolled up to the building, before jogging over as the last minute of his shift ticked over, approaching the entrance.

"Welcome back, Captain!" One of the Knights standing guard outside the doorway greeted him.

"Good work out there, sir," Added the other guard.

"Thanks, same to you. Stay vigilant and keep up the good work," He replied with a nod, before heading into the building and looking around, narrowing his eyes as he spotted Tacitus, who'd dozed off in a seat at the back of the space.

Aster let out a sigh before walking over, grabbing Tacitus's shoulder and shaking him.

"Hm...? Five more minutes...," He muttered drowsily, as he groggily smacked Aster's hand away.

"Wake up, it's your turn to patrol," Sighed Aster, before reaching out and pinching Tacitus's nose, blocking his nostrils shut.

"Wha-...!?" He sat up with a startled look on his face, before frowning as Aster let go of his nose, "What was that for? Not cool, man..."

"It's your shift, so get out there and start your patrol," Replied Aster dryly.

"Huh? It's that time already? Ugh, I really don't wanna...can't someone else go in my place, I'll patrol in the evening, when it's cooler," Grumbled Tacitus as he slumped back in his seat.

"Why, you lazy son of a-..."

"I wouldn't mind covering his shift, Captain. I'm feeling a bit bored, so I'm good to go," Chimed in Nile Voner, previously the only Commoner in the Third Squad, as he walked over with a wry smile.

"I'd really appreciate that, thanks. I owe you o-...," Began Tacitus with a sigh of relief.

"No, absolutely not. While I appreciate your proactive attitude and all, Nile, please don't spoil this idiot...do not let him get used to getting out of his duties. He'll just get even lazier than he already is, if that's even possible, and if that happens, it'll become impossible to get him to do any work at all," Stated Aster firmly.

"Tch, you damned slave driver...fine, I'm going," Relented Tacitus, as he reluctantly got up and headed out.

"Maybe I should've had one of the others assigned to Garnet City with me...no, I'm the only one who can keep him in check, he'd be able to get away with a lot more slacking off if I wasn't around," Sighed Aster, before adding thoughtfully, "Hm, speaking of the others, I wonder how everyone's doing? We've had phone calls every so often to check up on each other, but we haven't actually seen each other in person in about a couple of months now. I hope they're all doing okay..."

Meanwhile, in Amber Village...

"D-damn it, get off me!"

"Sorry, no can do...you brought this on yourself. I mean, really...purse snatching in broad daylight, it's like you wanted to get caught," Replied Colt with a smirk, seated on the back of the culprit.

"So...what should we do with this guy?" Inquired Lexia with a sadistic gleam in her eyes, as she formed bone crescents and jammed them into the ground around the purse snatcher's wrists and ankles, pinning him in place.

"Good question...I can think of a few options," Responded Colt with a chuckle.

The two of them had been out on patrol together, when they came across a commotion, to see a woman having her purse snatched. They then gave chase and didn't have any particular trouble catching up to the culprit, before cornering him in an alley and apprehending him.

Unfortunately for the purse snatcher, simply capturing him was far from enough to satisfy them...a fact that he was slowly starting to realize, a creeping sense of horror and dread welling up inside him.

"We shouldn't go too overboard, though...last time, we got an official warning from headquarters," Recalled Lexia with a wistful sigh.

"Yeah, I still think they overreacted...I don't think we went that far. All we did was rip off a few fingernails and toenails, and peel off a few patches of skin...oh, and you ended up rupturing one of his balls too," Remarked Colt in amusement, as the purse snatcher's face went pale.

"Mhm, that guy did try to assault a woman, so I think that was fair...no, if anything, it was lenient, it's not like I ripped off his dick or something, which was something I definitely considered. Now, since this guy's crime was thievery-...or rather, attempted thievery...-I think the most fitting punishment would be breaking his wrists and fingers," Suggested Lexia after mulling it over, a whimper echoing out from the purse snatcher as panic began to set in.

"Hey, good call...yeah, if we just stick to his hands, I think we can get away with it. Might as well rip off his fingernails while we're at it too," Nodded Colt, before the pair turned their gazes towards the purse snatcher, who was now trembling in terror, flinching as he got a look at the sadistic gleams in their eyes.

"N-no, wait...p-please, just arrest me, I-I won't resist or try to run away, I-I swear! J-just...just throw me in prison, p-please! No, s-stop...NOOO!!!"