Brutus C. Matthews, the Director of the Vice Region's Hunters Association branch smiles while sitting back into his chair.
"Excellent, it's time to get down to business. As a member of the newly formed extraction squad, you'll be farming resources for the Association. The lot-"
Before he can continue, I rudely cut the Director off mid-sentence.
"I prefer to fight alone. That's my first request."
With a nod, he continues.
"Please, let me finish. We've recruited a large number of hunters from this exam. Your group will be chosen for you, but working as a team is not necessary. Quotas must be met for proper pay, but not mandatory. All missions required by the Association will come with rewards hard for you to refuse."
Rodrigo smirks.
"He's not lying about that, they will always have offers worth taking."
I gulp.
"So... what's the catch...?"
The Director clasps his hands together and stares at me.
"There is no catch. I believe you'll be exclusively working for us, and get exclusive rewards. I've been around four times longer than you've been alive kid, I know your type. If it's power you want, this is the place to get it. I'll be able to grant you access to rare dungeons and unlimited floors in the capital's labyrinth. The resources the Association can provide will be beyond your wildest dreams."
I clench my jaw while looking into the old man's eyes. Everything he says seems reasonable... This all just sounds too good to be true...
Was it all just a sick delusional fantasy that they'd be slave drivers here? I'm not even sure where I got that idea in the first place... Was it Rodrigo? Was he just trying to scare me for the fun of it...? No.
It's just because he doesn't see my true value. That must be it. I fooled him.
I followed the A-Class' advice, not to make myself too desirable. I stood out just enough to make it seem like I'm not hiding a thing.
Maybe joining up with the government wouldn't be such a bad idea. The only hard part is, I'll have to keep my powers even more hidden the higher up the ranks I climb...
Without them, I'd be stuck in D-Class or lower dungeons for the rest of my life. There's no possible chance of trying any use of force here, that would be beyond dumb on so many levels. Using words is my best option.
After a long sigh, I reply.
"Okay. I'm interested. Let's make a deal."
With a grin, the old man reaches under his desk and takes out a pile of paperwork. He turns to his assistant, then to the A-Class sitting next to me.
"Samantha, thank you very much. It seems your skill wasn't very necessary today, but it's always a pleasure. Better safe than sorry. Rodrigo, this was your last task for our current deal. You're free to leave or stay for the rank-up celebration if you please. I'll send over notes to the main HQ to get your reward re-processed, you know we'll take good care of you."
Rodrigo gets up, shakes the Director's hand, and turns to leave.
"It was nice meeting you, Jay. Welcome to the Association. Careful out there... As much as I hate to say it, I have a hunch we'll be seeing each other again soon."
He waves goodbye, and I muster out a "See ya!" As both him and Samantha get on the elevator and head downstairs.
I turn to the Director. He slides me a few different piles of paperwork along with my C-Class ID. I begin reading.
The low hum of the white mana shields all around fills my ears as we sit in silence. I slowly flip through the pages in front of me.
Over 40 minutes go by.
I've examined each section thoroughly and signed every page but the last one so far.
Honestly... This isn't the kind of offer I expected at all, in a good way. These papers outline a 6-month non-exclusive contract. The only downside is, without Association's approval I won't be allowed into any dungeons above D-Class rated. For anything lower, I'll be able to freely farm resources for myself or other guilds without restrictions.
The only mention of consistent pay is if I opt into weekly or monthly missions within an exclusive contract offer. This is a part of the contract I decided not to sign. It's not mandatory for my non-exclusive deal, it's just recommended for longer-term success within the organization.
My pay will be based on quotas. That's it.
Apparently, there are resource farming quotas that need to be filled by teams as well as individual offers. Performance-based reward style pay is more up my alley. I'll meet my team and get my first instructions after this meeting.
With a satisfied look on my face, I sign the final line at the bottom of the last page.
The Director smiles as I look up at him, then we shake hands.
"Welcome to the Association Jay, I can already tell we'll be doing great business together in the future."
"I think you're right. Maybe I had the wrong idea about you all when I first stepped into this office. After the fact, I couldn't have come up with a better offer myself. I look forward to working with you, Director."
With that out of the way and a few more formal goodbyes, I take my new C-Class License and get into the elevator to head downstairs. The rank-up celebration is starting within an hour.
I press the button to the bottom floor, basically holding my breath the whole way down. I made it into the Association without exposing my secret... Maybe I can just live an ordinary life as a high-ranking hunter.
I'll have to be a lot more careful from now on.
I let out a sigh, then a light grin forms on my face. Things are looking up, today will be the start of my new life at the Association.
*Ding*
The elevator hits the bottom floor. My stomach drops, and the thin smile completely leaves my face as I see who is waiting to greet me.
It's a tall and slim young man with slightly blond hair. I remember him very well, and it seems he remembers me....
"Hey, hey! Could it be? Jay? It's me, Tripp! I knew I recognized the name, but never thought it'd be the same hunter. Who would have thought so many Dagger wielders would join the Association today, welcome aboard."
I blink a few times, staring at the excited man dressed in an Association get-up. He continues.
"Come on, follow me, the celebration is about to begin! I have to get you and your team situated before the event starts."
He turns and starts walking. I let out an audible gulp and follow close behind.
Does he not remember...? That we fought together while the exams were going on.... No... he said he recognized my name. Is he just that dense? Does he not see any red flags here?
A million questions race through my head as Tripp leads me through the crowd of hunters and businessmen. Sweat begins to form on my forehead and my stomach still feels like it's about to come out of my mouth.
The last few hours have been one crazy emotional rollercoaster. I can't seem to catch a break....
The moment I've been dreading for the last 15 seconds finally comes.
The blond-haired C-Class turns his head giving me a sly grin, while speaking in a low tone.
"It seems I know something the higher-ups don't. How exactly did you manage to meet me in the Dungeon Hub this weekend while simultaneously taking the exam?"
I swallow a mouthful of non-existent saliva, then begin to answer.
"I- I- have a good reason for this. It's just best we don't go into detail... Here of all places."
I shift my eyes back and forth, making sure no one is paying any particularly close attention to us.
Tripp rolls his eyes and smiles.
"Fine, fine. Keep your secrets for now, but I will find out eventually. I'm no snitch, but I always get what I want. Anyways, I'll be your team's guide for the first few days to make sure you're all headed in the right direction. Double overtime pay baby!"
He makes quick eye contact with me, clearly excited about his extra pay, then turns to keep walking through the crowd.
I let out an exhale, feeling a little bit better. Tripp is not hostile... but definitely a bit annoying...
He leads me over to a door at the back of the lobby and opens it after scanning his ID on a pad above the handle. As I follow him inside, he starts giving me a lecture.
"So, first things first, this is the entrance to the hunter's trade center. There are 5 doors at the back of the lobby, they all lead to the same place, so don't overthink that part too much."
I look around as we walk through a narrow hallway with a black-tiled floor and white walls humming with mana. Another door appears about 10m inside. Tripp scans his ID again, and we walk through.
"Here we are. This is where you'll be getting your quota assignments, registering farmed materials, and buying or renting gear."
As we walk in my eyes open wide to see a large open room with tall ceilings. The floor is still covered in black tiles, and the walls still remain white, but there are neon signs and lights filling my vision from all directions.
To my left, right, and center I see multiple rooms remodeled to look like open storefronts. They have signs with pink, blue, and green moving text that give general prices for buying and selling loot.
There are clear walls and floating shelves that hold shiny swords and various potions. Crystals and trinkets fill my vision along with thousands of questions filling my head.
There's a credit exchange system that isn't gold based, and it's a bit hard to understand. I open my mouth while turning to Tripp, but he cuts me off before I can even get a word out.
"I know, I know. It's a lot to take in. We'll go through everything with your team very soon. It'll make much more sense. Trust me."
I just nod, wide-eyed taking in the view as I continue to follow Tripp through the mini shopping center. We make it to the other side and he scans his ID on yet another door. We walk through.
"This here, is our final stop of the tour. We call it the lounge."
The two of us enter the last room, and I quietly take in the view. The name definitely suits it well.
The black tile floor is a common trend now, it stays the same. Surprisingly, the walls in this room are not mana reinforced, or at least they don't seem to be.
There are two small-looking merchant stands built into both sides of the room. The one to my right seems to be a cafe selling drinks and small food items. The larger setup to my left is a medium-scale restaurant, it looks like they sell a variety of foods.
The center of the room is filled with tables, couches, odd-looking beanbag-shaped chairs, and about 3 dozen hunters to go with it.
Everyone here is reading, sharing casual conversation, and well... for a lack of better words... lounging around.
Tripp grins as I scan over the private resting area for Association workers, then speaks up as a group of 3 starts walking toward us.
"Looks like the rest of your team has come to greet you."
I turn my head to see who he's talking about, then let out a light gasp. Arie, Maria, and Abby come walking toward me in full Hunter's Association Uniforms.
This day just keeps getting weirder.