3 Missing: SS-Level Hunter

"I do not know what you mean, sir. I am an F-level hunter." Neban finally broke his silence.

Mr. Fordo continued to narrow his eyes, staring Neban down. "We can get the Orb of Yon to prove your claim."

He did not want to be anywhere near the Orb of Yon; his plans would fail if he were.

Neban shook his head, sinking his fingernails into his pants. He could use [Sleep Gas], [Copy], and [Memory Rewrite] to knock Mr. Fordo out to forge his and the man's signature. Then, he could change the man's memory around so that he wouldn't remember. But, he was not that type of person.

So, he hoped luck was on his side, and Mr. Fordo would let him become a porter. "There is no reason to bring it out. I am an F-level." Neban shook his head at the thought of the orb showing his lie.

The man hummed before reaching over, opening one of his drawers to pull out something. Neban became anxious as his hands started to twitch; he would attack if the man tried anything.

But, when Mr. Fordo faced forward, he had papers in his hand and not anything wrong. "I will give you the benefit of the doubt. I will even become your sponsor, and if any secrets come out, do know I do not mind a challenge."

Then he set the papers down, turning them towards Neban to grab, "Read through this contract, and if this is agreeable with you, sign your name. Once you do, you can finally give me a proper introduction and be on your way."

Neban grabbed the papers, feeling that it was light. He flipped through, seeing a total of four articles with one dedicated to his and Mr. Fordo's signature. He moved back to the first page and started to read through the document.

The document was acceptable while not having any bad parts regarding F-levels' rights when they work as porters. Except on page three, where it says that the company would not cover grave injuries made by being caught in the crossfire during their job. Nor are they responsible if the person dies.

F-levels are waiving their lives away without benefiting from having their grave injuries covered at the hospital. Hunters also waive their lives away, but at least they have their hospital bills covered by the company they joined.

He frowned at that, not liking it because even if F-levels are making money from this, it isn't enough to cover hospital bills. And he knows how much F-levels get injured on the job; that was one reason he went alone to hunt.

Even though he did not favor page three at all, he still decided to be a porter. "I finished reading and ready to sign the contract," Neban told the man as he set the papers on the table.

Mr. Fordo did not say anything as he took out a pen and handed it to Neban. He took it, signing the contract before passing it to the man; he also gave the pen back.

After signing the contract, showing that he will be Neban's sponsor, he pulled out a folder and put the papers inside. "Now, for your introduction. And you probably have been calling me Mr. Fordo in your head, please call and think of me as Xan."

He nodded before introducing himself, "I am Neban; you can call me Neban."

Xan raised his eyebrow at Neban, only giving his first name and no last name; plus, looking back at his signature, it was hard to tell what the person's full name was. But, Xan did not question it. The boy seemed to have secrets, and he would not get in the person's business.

Xan pulled out his hand for a handshake, "Welcome to the company, Neban."

Neban awkwardly shook Xan's hand before quickly pulling his hand back. He wondered if he should get up now and leave or if he still had to wait for something.

Xan ignored Neban's awkwardness as he pulled out his notepad, picking up his pen, and giving them to Neban. "I need you to put down your contact information, and we will contact you on Monday with a job. After you finish writing that down, you may leave."

Grabbing the notepad and pen, Neban wrote his number before handing the stuff back to the man. He quickly stood up, saying, "Thank you for your time." Then he left the room without waiting for a response.

When he stepped out the door, he thought about using [Shadow Travel] to leave the building, but the people would probably wonder where he went once they didn't see him leave out the front door. So, he walked to the elevator, taking the long way out of the company.

Once he got to his car, putting the keys in the ignition, he drove home.

****

Neban spent the weekend with his son, staying at home while watching different shows on TV. He was becoming one with the couch while his son was on the same track as him.

His mother came over yesterday, telling him that he needed to take his son outside to interact with the world. She was already saying it was bad enough that he did not take him to daycare to make friends. And he knew that, but there were reasons why he didn't want to.

But he assuages his mother by agreeing to get out.

So, today on a Monday, he decided to take his son out to the park. He honestly did not want to go to the park, but his son was so excited to go that he sucked up his distaste. His son's happiness was more important than his discomfort.

"Papa, hurry up!" Theo shouted, waiting for his dad near the front steps. The little boy was jumping up and down in excitement since it would be his first time going to the park with Neban.

Neban made sure he had his phone; he did not know when the Porter Company would call him. "I am coming, Theo." He responded, walking out with his car keys.

Once he was outside the door, his son attached himself to his leg. "Hurry!"

"Hold on, buddy." He replied as he closed the door and locked it. Then he turned around to pick up his son. "Come on; we are taking the car."

Theo looked surprised at that, "No travel?"

Neban shook his head as he unlocked his car door, opening the backseat door. Luckily, he never took the car seat out of the car. He strapped his son inside. Once he finished, he closed the door and made his way to the front seat.

He started the car, looking in the rear-view mirror, "Are you excited for the park, buddy?"

Theo nodded, "Yes! I am excited to go with you!"

Neban chuckled as he started driving to the park. During the whole ride, his son would talk about anything and everything he could think of, which Neban did not mind. He hated talkative people because they were the opposite of his personality, but he was okay with it when his son got in a talkative mood.

Once they reached the park, Neban turned off the car before getting his son out. They walked to the playground; well, his son ran to it while Neban kept up with him (even though he was walking his same pace).

Theo made it to the playground, smiling, with all his teeth showing as he climbed the small steps to the slide. Neban chuckled at that, his heart softening at his son's antics and happiness as he was getting ready to sit on an empty bench, away from the other parents, when his son's shout stopped him.

"Papa, watch me go down the slide!" Theo shouted. Neban nodded as he walked in front of the giant red slide that his son would go down in; he was a few feet back. He also decided to pull out his phone to take pictures of his son going down.

The red slide was a bit transparent so that parents could see their children's bodies' outline.

As his son started to go down, Neban began to take a bunch of pictures. He got a few good ones when his son shot out the other end of the slide, landing on the wood mulch. Theo was giggling once he landed.

"Was that fun?" Neban asked as he walked up to his son, picking him up from the ground. He wiped Theo off.

"Yep!" His son excitedly answered.

He kissed Theo's head before saying, "Go play with the other stuff in the playground; I will be sitting down on that empty bench." He pointed to the bench he was going to sit on.

His son nodded and went back to playing. Neban walked to the bench while still keeping an eye out for his son. If anyone tried to take Theo or hurt him, he would attack in broad daylight. He may not like attention being on him, but his son's safety comes first.

Once he sat down, he noticed how the other parents looked at him, whispering as they pointed at him. He sighed, pulling down the black cap that he wore to go out in. He even had his fake glasses on, trying to get used to them.

Neban could use [Almighty Mind] to see what the people were saying and thinking as they talked about him, but he ignored it instead; he would not let it bother him.

He focused on his phone, occasionally looking up every once in a while to check on his son. Neban scrolled through different articles since he did not look at the news for two days until he stopped at the one he was waiting to see.

The article read:

{Missing: SS-Level Hunter, Obsidian

The SilverSoul Company has not been able to contact the SS-level hunter, Obsidian, for a few days now, nor has the hunter been to the building. The missing case is a surprise because the hunter usually kept daily contact, even if it was always a one-word response.

The company does not have the correct information to find the hunter, and others have even less. So, there is no one to figure out where Obsidian is.

The hunter's last known location is when he went alone in a high-level dungeon (like he usually does), but does that mean the hunter has died? Or is the hunter in hiding? The said man has always been mysterious and eluded the press since his dispute. So, did he finally disappear from society?

The latest update: SilverSoul Company has asked WonderStones and PetalGreen to help provide hunters to search the dungeon Obsidian was last in; there will be more updates if they find his body or not. Stay tuned!}

'It took them this long to check the dungeon.' Neban thought as he stared at the article. He wonders how the company and people would react to his dead body. Would the government tell the company to cover it up, or will they be truthful?

He sighed at those thoughts. 'Was this the right plan?'

His phone started to go off, and when he looked down, he saw that it was an unsaved number calling him. It had to be Xan because no one knew his number except his parents and the SilverSoul Company (and he had them blocked at the moment).

So, he quickly picked up.

"Good morning, Neban; I have a job for you." Xan greeted.