Fairy Tail: Swallow the Fire

43. Lyubov of the Unremitting Mist

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"Heeey, Giles! Got word of any unique jobs I can take?"

The moustachioed bartender smiled as I hopped up to the counter, drumming my hands on the oak wood as I did so. "You've been taking a job every day for the past couple of weeks, and now you're asking for a job on the first day of the year? You should take it slow. Get some rest."

"Nope. Not gonna happen. Gotta do something productive or I'll do something stupid instead." His words were sincere, but he knew the answer before I gave it.

"Ever the overachiever," he said as he put a cup on the table and started to fill it with bread. I watched in confusion as he started to pour lemon juice and 151 proof rum over the bread peels.

"What are you doing?"

"Well, I figured this would work better for you than your usual coffee. Consider it a gift, to my favourite wizard." He reached into his apron and pulled out a lighter, igniting the contents of the glass. The flames stood easily over half a foot out of the glass, and the height seemed to be more noticeable as he sprinkled cinnamon into the column. "Enjoy, slayer."

He left me alone with the flaming glass as he entered a room behind the counter.

It was a routine I found myself familiar with ever since I started taking jobs independent of Totomaru. I'd come in at six in the morning, just as Giles had started his shift and the coffee was hot, even more so today than usual it seemed, with Giles usually having reserved a high-paying job he thought I'd be willing to take in exchange for five to ten percent of the earnings.

I'd be gone for a day or two, a week at most,

It was a deal I was more than willing to take, and one I haven't regretted. Giles, as a hiree from a separate guild, gets paid to work both the bar and manage the incoming job requests using his Archive magic. And it is this Archive magic that gives Giles and the Curly Caterers guild their prestige. Sorting out information is simple, efficient, and if the rumours of them all being trained in some level of assassination and self-defense are true, lethal. After all, having even one of these caterers working in your service is considered a sign of prestige, and gathering information on those they work with is as simple as a press of a button. That same information can easily be sold, and then, used against the client.

It's risky, but the quality of service is unparalleled. Giles, by himself, is capable of running the entirety of the Phantom Lord serving staff in and around Oak Town. It is no wonder that the guild rocketed into popularity after their newest guild master invented the magic.

What makes them so favoured, too, is the exclusivity of the magic. By patent law, the guild master is not obligated to sell the magic to anyone they don't want to, with only the Magic Council being the exception as someone in the council's service had to be taught the spell so it can be preserved and as proof of patent.

And yes, I asked him if he could teach me Archive and he refused without further elaboration.

Still, Giles is someone I've grown to respect. His ability to efficiently deal out jobs to those who are best suited for them is unparalleled amongst the staff, with most jobs being put onto the request board since anyone could do them in his eyes.

It was Giles' ability to know exactly what type of job I wanted, jobs with notoriety and publicity, jobs with lives on the line that needed my full attention to prevent myself from going directly to the capitol and trying to find him. And if I gain the attention of the Council myself, all the better.

Consuming the flames, my gaze wandered across the nearly empty guild hall, observing wizards scattered across dimly lit tables and benches in various states – some dishevelled and tired, others brimming with energy. Given the early hour of six in the morning, it wasn't surprising to find individuals still recovering from the previous night's revelry, some just waking up, and a few, including myself, fully prepared for the day ahead. Interestingly, the fiery sustenance had proven to be more energizing than anticipated, even leaving me pleasantly satiated.