CB-1 6:44P.M.

Young Master?

Young Master, are you asleep?

Hm, oh... Where are we?

We will soon arrive at the rendezvous point. Do clear your head, Young Master. Penguin Logistics is already there waiting for you.

Mm. Right.

You seem exhausted.

I'm fine.

Forgive my indiscretion, Sir, but you do seem to have made this decision in some haste. You know of course that you may at any time share any matters that trouble you.

...My father... he definitely has his own ideas.

But all I have to do is get Penguin Logistics on board. Then those guys won't be able to get between me and my father ever again.

You are the youngest Messenger in the history of your family, Young Master. You perform all of your duties impeccably. Surely that will be enough.

Maybe. But who knows if they'll feel the same way.

Young Master...

Looking out at the city, all I can think about is how almost all of Lungmen's Messenger firms belong to my father.

Penguin Logistics is the last. And the most independent. And the one with a ton of weird rumors swirling around it.

My father gets along pretty well with Mr. Emperor, but we have to do more to really get them. Or at least I do.

That is why I worry, Young Master. I am well aware Penguin Logistics is a most peculiar organization.

Don't look at me like that. I got this.

You might change your expression as well, Young Master. Perhaps if you smiled more, like the boys your age.

It's Sauin tonight. You could go out on the town with your friends.

...real funny. Me not having friends is a joke to you, huh?

Heavens no! Perish the thought! Haha.

Dreadfully sorry, Young Master. Do you have your shield with you?

What's up?

I'm afraid we're being watched.

Target sighted. You ready?

Gah, this fuse is still all...

Just do it already.

Nng... an explosion?!

Hold on, Young Master!

Target sighted. He's still up.

Bring him in. Quick.

(They bombed out the road...? But who...?)

(Shit... my vision's... all blurry...)

Report.

Lots of witnesses, but I don't see the other targets.

Hold up, there's somebody in the smoke there!

Another survivor? You gotta-

Nnng...

Hey? Hey!

You got whacked that easy?

Talk about a hackneyed mob movie plot,

Penguin Logistics.

Ooh, sounds like you passed Screenwriting 101.

But like, throwing up a roadblock on a suburban highway and burying a bomb on the side there. Isn't that also really cliche?

Demolition's just a hobby of mine. Take a look around and I think you'll find things ain't so simple.

Damn. How much Originium did that mook use in his bomb? The Rat King'll have our balls for breakfast if he finds out.

We found a Penguin Logistics Messenger. It's Exusiai. Looks like she bumped off the wrecking crew...

Do I look blind to you? Where's the wolf? Texas?

Dunno. Don't see her.

Fuggedaboutit. Surround 'em. Let's get this done.

An ambush, huh? They're nothing if not thorough.

Hey, can you move? Your limbs are all shaky.

Yeah, kinda... You must be... Exusiai?

That's me! And you're... uh... Whatsisname!

Bison.

We... we should get out of here.

Before you get all mopey, that old butlery guy is a-okay.

Really?!

I put him by the roadside for a minute, but he doesn't look like he needs much help... anyway!

Exusiai, Messenger of Penguin Logistics, and the little rich kid there, give it up. Come with us nice and easy-like.

All these fresh faces, must be your relatives from Siracusa? Didn't you teach them how things work in Lungmen?

None of your damned business. We're cleaning you out for good this time.

Oh come on... You've been in Lungmen so long you turned basic. Grabbing territory like a common thug.

I guess at least some of the Siracusan Mafia can do more than just bar brawls.

Grr... I'll teach you to look down on a Sicilian. *Lungmen Swearing* Get 'em!

Awright, looks like I'm right on time!

Croissant, you made it!

But they're all so ornery. What're we gonna do?

The usual. You clear a path, I'll bring up the rear, we split the completion bonus.

Now that's all ya had to say! Yeeehawww!

Th- that crazy broad charged right through!

...get after them. But not too close. Wait for backup.

Got it!

You lost 'em, cazzo.

Look, I ain't a kidnapping expert. The rest of Penguin Logistics never showed and we weren't about to go traipsing into downtown Lungmen by ourselves.

I don't wanna hear excuses. There's a car headed your way. Convertible. Old friends inside.

...already?

Gah, damn it. Another dead end?

It's a buncha old ruins nobody's touched fer ages. Lemme just make my own hole already.

H- hold up! Where are we going?

There they are! It's a dead end! We got 'em!

It's game over, isn't it?

Oh yeah!

You have an idea?!

We haven't properly introduced ourselves, have we?

Rub 'em out!

Now's not the time for this! We've got more important things to deal with!

Nah.

This is important. Real important.

We got a serious emphasis on corporate culture. And today's culture buzzword is 'courtesy.'

I just came up with it.

It's Emperor! Somebody call the boss!

There's someone else with him!

Came up empty, Exusiai.

Not every Siracusan mook's a total moron. We'll get 'em next time, don't worry.

But first, I've got to introduce you to Penguin Logistics's newest temp worker: Bison.

They blocked the only way out. We- we have to fight through!

Get down on the ground. You don't have to die.

Woah! Settle down, we just have to hold out until the boss...!

Hold out?

Hit the lights.

Agh! It's so bright! Where'd that spotlight come from?!

Welcome to Penguin Logistics, little doggies.

Now I can see you. And that means you're on land that belongs to the Penguin Empire.

Now I hate to bother you, but I'm gonna have to see your landing visa. You got it on you?

No?

Then I think we gotta send you crying home to your mamas.

So this is where Penguin Logistics holes up...

(It's like a disaster area. And so dark.)

It's one of our bases. We haven't cleaned up in a while. Just sit wherever.

Oh, thanks... I realize I didn't properly thank you, any of you.

We did our jobs. You should introduce yourself first.

I'm a Messenger, codenamed Bison. I'm from Lungmen, and I work for Mountain Dash Logistics. My father sent me to learn what I can from your company. And I appreciate the opportunity.

Now about the contract between me and Mr. Emperor, I know we've already been over it, but...

Hold up, little man, I got a question. How'd your bigass daddy raise his boy to be so...

...Boss.

Yeah yeah, go ahead.

Anyway, about that ambush, it was definitely meant to provoke a reaction from MDL and Penguin Logistics.

We can't take this sitting down. I can contact my father and the LGD. This is a case of aggravated assault...

Hey, Texas.

Hm?

What's for dinner?

We're throwing a welcome party, of course! But where's Sora? Didn't she stay home to hold down the fort?

Ya know she'll come a-runnin' soon as Texas gets on the horn.

Oh, sorry. You were sayin'?

(Sora?)

...Um, the first order of business is to figure out who attacked us. Does Penguin Logistics have any leads?

Leads? It's a pretty basic business dispute.

What do you mean, business dispute...?

Texas! Shouldn't I have a cigar in my hand by now?!

Boss, it's been a while since we shacked up here. I think all your smokes went bad.

Sora came here to clean before. She might have thrown them away.

Y'all for real? You tryin' to kill me? This is wack...

Yeah, you keep talkin.' Don't worry.

Our first step should be to figure out exactly what these attackers were targeting...

Hold up, we need some tunes! Get some vinyl spinnin'! We got a whole box of them here, don't we?

Purdy sure I hauled one over. A box worth a couple months' salary.

Found it. What do you want to hear?

Just throw on any one of 'em. Anything I picked out's gonna be fire.

It ain't life without music. Bless. Nice tunes, nice me.

Bison, what else you got?

...Oh. Where was I?

Their target.

Right! Well, their target was me, I guess, to try to provoke our two companies.

That's it? I figured it'd be some revenge thing...

So you have a lead?

Sigh. Texas! Go scout 'em out!

Triple overtime.

Um, we get into scuffles like that maybe twenty times a month. Doesn't every Messenger deal with this all the time?

...Why?

Messengers should be quieter, quicker... you shouldn't be settling everything with violence all the time.

Huh.

We're a logistics company. Why are we always getting involved in gang wars?

cause they got no taste. They don't value their own lives.

And the baws signs our checks. We still get the goods where they need to go, all nice an' legal-like.

It's just we usually end up doin' some armed transport.

Yeah. Like, what's the big deal?

Umm...? You're really okay with that?

Ugh...

Wait a minute.

Here, it's the passcode Sora left.

C- cookies?

Aww, why'd she open them and leave them here. They're no good when they get all soggy.

The chocolate side is long, and the tail is short. That's the passcode.

(That's some weird cryptography...)

Really? She wasn't kiddin' with that?

...All I did was memorize what Sora said.

'Suspect.' Hm. Maybe she chased them out.

Let her go. It's quittin' time.

And we got Sauin, so no overtime. Forget about capitalist oppression. We gotta pour one out for the homies.

Who's drinkin' with me?

Ooh, you buyin', baws? I heard some new top shelf booze just came in stock~

S'all good. You ladies got a lotta pay to dock, after all.

No thanks!

Wait! We... we never came up with a plan.

Don't need one.

We just let the mob get away with this?

Play it by ear.

...The LGD won't butt in?

Probably not. They're used to this stuff.

Ugh...

It is what it is. Just go with the flow.

But last month's property damage invoice was a little longer than usual. You all need to be more careful.

So what's your typical work like?

We deliver the cargo in accordance with the contract, and then we fight. But if we have to fight, that kinda takes precedence.

Oh and jobs go to the boss first. Then it's first come first serve, whoever can handle them.

......

Hey, little man. Your daddy trusted you to me. So you're part of the Penguin Logistics family now, even if it's just for a bit.

Er, yeah... I get it.

And you gotta remember the first rule of Penguin Logistics: 'Don't sweat the small stuff.'

Wasn't the first rule 'live for the party' yesterday?

The one I heard was 'carpe diem.'

...pretty much.

Those ain't gonna be the last soldiers who wanna scoop you up and haul you off, but we're gonna take 'em one at a time. Simple as that.

Hold up, why's my ass feel funny? Somebody leave something in my perfect, ergonomic recliner?

Um, I'll take a look.

Oh, what an adorable little candy box! Boss, you were hiding snacks under your chair!

That's cap. Why would I stuff snacks in my... did you say candy box?

It's a box of candies. See, it says 'Victorian Gumdrops' right here...

Get back, Exusiai, don't open the——

Huh?

Gah! Get down.