21. Reporting for Duty

Early in the morning, Angel was awakened by the knocking sound from downstairs.

"Ugh..."

These past few days, Angel had been busy until late at night or even dawn, barely getting a full night's sleep. Last night, she finally dealt with Mrs. Sharon, the only person who knew about her relationship with Cole, and felt a huge relief. After coming home, she hurriedly took a bath and slept until now.

Cole's sister, Lily Granger's room had been cleaned and aired out, the bedding emitting a special fragrance, like gentle hands cradling Angel in bed.

Even though it was sunny outside, she didn't feel like getting up just yet.

"Sorry, I'm coming in!" came the voice of the odd-job woman Tromy from outside, followed by the sound of keys unlocking the door.

Cole trusted Tromy a great deal, even giving her a copy of the house keys for convenience when he was out, so Tromy could come in to clean at any time.

Although the house temporarily belonged to Angel, she did not take back the keys from Tromy. Her reasoning was similar to Cole's: she was often out, and the house needed a regular cleaner, a worker who had been employed for years and was more trustworthy than a stranger.

Hearing the rustling sounds downstairs, Angel decided to cover her head and sleep for another hour. She was no longer a Templar Knight who needed to attend morning prayers at the church every day in another world. What did it matter if she slept till the afternoon?

Wait, I think I agreed to join the Night Watchers, and I have to report this morning...

Angel quickly got out of bed, still in her pajamas, and went downstairs, startling Tromy, who was wrapped in an apron and a dust cloth.

"Mr. Granger?"

Upon seeing who it was, Tromy's initially excited expression immediately turned to dismay.

"Ah—so it's you, my apologies, miss... It seems the rumors are true, has he really disappeared?"

Angel guessed that Tromy might have harbored feelings beyond a simple employer-employee relationship towards her employer, but there was no further evidence.

Seeing the maid's growing sadness, Angel comforted her and said that even if Cole Granger was temporarily absent, she would continue to employ Tromy, and they could discuss a raise.

After calming Tromy down, Angel quickly washed up, changed into a set of casual clothes, and left the house.

It had been almost a week since she arrived in this world, and Angel was still not accustomed to women's clothing. She chose loose-fitting clothes for ease of movement over the skirts that were commonly worn by women of this era.

Even such simple attire took half an hour to prepare. Preparing to go out was too troublesome for women, but going to work disheveled and half-asleep was not proper. As she walked quickly to the tram station at the street corner, Angel complained in her mind.

Fortunately, the tram arrived quickly. She paid four pennies and found a corner seat to sit down on.

It was past the morning rush hour, so the tram was not crowded. A middle-aged man reading a newspaper across from her glanced up indifferently at her arrival, then looked down again, sneaking another peek afterwards.

"Wait, hold on a moment!" A shout came from outside, followed by the sound of running dress shoes, as a man in a tailcoat and silk top hat, as if headed to a dance, rushed into the tram.

"Zouteland Street, thank you." The man who caught the tram took out a coin from his pocket, handed it to the conductor at the front window, and then finally took a deep breath, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Dressing so warmly in such hot weather, prioritizing style over comfort...

Huh, this person looks familiar?

Upon closer inspection, Angel recognized the newcomer as the new member of the Night Watchers she had met at the entrance of the Blackthorn Security Company early yesterday morning, who seemed to be named Klein?

It appeared he had already rented a house on Daffodil Street and moved to this neighborhood.

Klein also noticed Angel sitting in the corner. After standing at the doorway for a while, he decided to sit down next to her.

"Hello."

Seeing Klein sit down beside her, Angel took the initiative to greet him. It was clear that he recognized her, and since they were going to be colleagues, it was necessary to establish a good relationship.

"Hello," Klein replied. He felt somewhat uneasy sitting next to Angel, "I saw you yesterday on Daffodil Street. You are called..."

"Angel Granger. You're Klein Moretti, right? Hmm... the newcomer at Blackthorn Security Company?"

Angel's attitude made Klein much more relaxed, and the two continued to talk. Although it was inconvenient to discuss matters related to the mystical realm on a public carriage, she still managed to learn quite a bit about Klein.

Klein Moretti was a graduate of the History Department at Khoy University, with one brother and one sister, presumably the two he was seen with yesterday. Last week, he was involved in an Beyonder event, being the only survivor of a "mass suicide case" and was recruited into the Night watchers as a clerical staff member.

Angel remembered Leonard mentioning "a newcomer like you" yesterday. Was he referring to him?

Could it be that all members of the Night watchers joined under such circumstances?

During the conversation, they arrived at Zouteland Street.

Klein bid farewell and got off the carriage. He adjusted his hat and took a deep breath as he stood on the sidewalk, only to find that Angel also got off.

"Miss Granger, you're getting off here too, could it be?" Klein raised an eyebrow, asking in surprise.

"Correct, I'm also headed to Blackthorn Security Company. It just happens to be on my way."

Angel answered with a smile, not intending to unravel this mystery just yet.

The two entered the reception room on the second floor of the security company, one after the other. The reception room, which resembled a battlefield the night before, had been cleaned up. The blood-stained carpet was removed, revealing the wooden floor. Only one intact sofa remained, paired with a few mismatched high-back chairs arranged in a semicircle around a low, round table that seemed to have been brought in from somewhere. The reception desk had to be left as there was no replacement, and there were two bullet holes on the exterior surface.

A brown-haired girl was sitting behind the reception desk, fiddling with a coffee pot, the thick aroma of coffee filling the room. The sound of the door opening made her look up at them.

"Good morning, Klein, and who might this be?" She greeted Klein first, then looked puzzledly at Angel.

"Angel Granger. Captain Dunn should have mentioned me."

The girl's eyes widened: "It's you... yes, the captain mentioned that you would come today. He's waiting for you in his office."

She put down the coffee pot, came out from behind the reception desk, and led them around the partition into a hallway, stopping in front of one of the three office doors.

"Knock, knock—" She knocked on the office door and said, "Captain, I've brought the two people you mentioned."

A deep voice from inside, Dunn Smith's voice, said, "Come in."

The girl did not enter herself but made a "please" gesture. Angel glanced at Klein and saw that he voluntarily stepped back half a step, politely clearing the way to enter the office, so she went in first.

"Daly left Tingen early this morning," Dunn Smith said, sitting behind a solid wood desk. After Angel closed the door, he abruptly started with this, not mentioning work-related matters first.

Angel was taken aback; she hadn't expected Dunn to first talk about something unrelated to work.

"I thought she would rest for a few more days."

"She came to Tingen this time under another pretext, and because of Mrs. Sharon's case, she stayed two more days. That's already the limit. For this, I have to write a report to explain."

Dunn's grey eyes twinkled with amusement, clearly not upset by these tedious matters: "She thinks very highly of you, saying that if I hadn't already recruited you into Tingen's team, she would have whisked you away."

"Maybe I should have gone back to Enmat Harbor with her; she might have offered me a full salary."

"Cough... It's all regulated, not something I can change. Ask the other newcomer, Mr. Klein Moretti standing outside. He joined before you and is still not an official member," Dunn said as he took out a contract in duplicate from a drawer.

Angel took the contract and sat down across from Dunn to read it carefully. The contract was not lengthy, covering things like signing date, salary, benefits, and obligations—most of which Dunn had informed her about the night before when he invited her to join, with the addition that "official membership is subject to the approval of the cathedral."

At first glance, there were no unreasonable terms, except the confidentiality clause was very strict, even stipulating that in case of violation, there would be no need for a lawsuit; the church would directly conduct the trial and punishment.

However, considering the special nature of the Night Watchers, Angel could understand this caution.

She signed her name at the end of the contract, pressed her fingerprint, and Dunn stamped both copies of the contract, handing one back to Angel. With that, the contract was established.

"Then, welcome to the Night Watchers, Miss Angel Granger." After securing the contract, Dunn stood up, reached out his right hand across the desk.

Angel smiled slightly, stood up as well, and shook his hand.

"Thank you, Captain Dunn Smith."

After the handshake, both sat down again, but Dunn's next words made Angel freeze again.

"Your first task is to hand over a batch of the bullets you used in yesterday's fight. What were they called again?"

Dunn shifted his position in the armchair to make himself more comfortable and then began to speak.

Although Angel was puzzled, she quickly responded, "They're called 'Storm Convergence' and 'Phantasmal Phosphor Eruption.' I used up all of them yesterday and need to remake them. Are they to be delivered to the higher-ups?"

"That's right. I need to submit the battle report next week. How many bullets can you produce this week?"

Neither of them specified who the "higher-ups" were.

Angel roughly estimated that she could produce about 5 bullets per hour, but based on her last experience, she could at most make 20 before her spiritual essence was depleted. If she focused on making them once a day, she could produce about 100 'Storm Convergence' bullets in a week.

Due to the more complex process, 'Phantasmal Phosphor Eruption' had a bottleneck not in spiritual essence but in the inability to maintain concentration for long periods. She estimated she could only produce 10 a day.

"If the materials are sufficient, I should be able to produce 100 'Storm Convergence' bullets with enhanced attack power, and at most 10 of the other types," she honestly answered, assessing her own combat capabilities and value. As a newcomer, Angel did not lie.

Dunn nodded in satisfaction, pulled a stack of papers from a drawer, and quickly signed a note with a steel pen on the desk. He tore it off and handed it to Angel.

"Later, hand this note to Miss Rosanne, who is on duty today. She will take you to Old Neil to collect the necessary materials. You only need to give me 80 bullets by next Monday. You decide the ratio, but both types must be included."

Just the finished products, not the recipes and methods of production?

Angel suppressed her doubts and took the note signed by Dunn with his flamboyant handwriting.

"There is an alchemy room in the basement, usually used by Old Neil. You can use it as needed. If there's any equipment missing, report to him, and we'll equip it as soon as possible," Dunn instructed carefully. "Of course, you can also make them in your own home's alchemy room. I just need to see the results next week."

It seems they had searched her house the night before... Well, she had entered the dream in the basement, so it would have been impossible to hide from Dunn, who possesses the "Nightmare" ability.

"I'll go back and make them. I'm used to my own equipment."

After careful consideration, Angel decided to make the needed bullets in her home rather than in the alchemy room at the headquarters of the night watch.

"Then go and do it. Ask Mr. Klein Moretti to come in," Dunn nodded, showing his approval.

~~~

2.1k words. Today's Chapter! Hope you guys like it!