Mercenary Licence

Levi followed the woman through a series of hallways until they reached a large room that resembled an open gym. 

The space was filled with various types of equipment, some familiar and others completely alien to Levi. The walls were lined with monitors displaying different metrics, and the floor was made of a smooth, shock-absorbing material that gave underfoot just enough to prevent injury without being uncomfortable.

The woman leading Levi, who had introduced herself as Clara, turned to face him with a professional but stern expression. 

"This is where we will test your strength, agility, and endurance. Please remove any outerwear and prepare for the assessment."

Levi nodded and quickly shed his jacket, feeling a little exposed in just his plain shirt and pants, but knowing it was necessary. 

While looking at himself, Levi could feel the improvements in his physique. Although he was still thin and some of his bonesClara gestured toward the first piece of equipment: a large, metallic platform with thick cables attached to weights on either side.

"This is the Grav-Press," Clara explained. "It measures your maximum lifting capacity by increasing the gravitational force applied to the weights. Step onto the platform and grip the handles."

Levi did as instructed, gripping the handles firmly while Clara adjusted a few settings on a nearby console, and the weights began to rise. Levi felt the resistance immediately, but he steadied himself and began to lift.

From his experience of working in government factories, Levi initially estimated the weights to be around 50 pounds. As he continued, the weights steadily increased, becoming much heavier than he had anticipated as the gravity intensified.

Before long, the weights reached a staggering 200 pounds—something the old Levi, before his time in Paradise, would never have been able to lift.

But now? Now, Levi felt it was doable! He could definitely sense the improvements in his physique!

But that doesn't mean he was powerful enough to withstand the gradual increase of gravity. As time passed, Levi gritted his teeth, focusing all his strength on weights - but he couldn't hold on! 

He let go of the handles and the weights fell to the ground with a thud! 

"Not bad," Clara commented as the machine beside it beeped to indicate the test was over. 

"You've got a decent base level of strength. Let's move on."

Levi didn't know if it was really decent or if the woman was just telling that to comfort him. He neither had any scale to compare himself with - so he just followed her moving on to the next equipment.

Clara led him to the next station: a series of interconnected bars suspended from the ceiling at various heights and angles.

"This is the Agility Grid," Clara said. "Your task is to navigate through the grid as quickly as possible without touching the ground. The bars will shift and move to test your reflexes."

Levi eyed the grid with curiosity. It looked like a jungle gym on steroids, with bars moving slightly even as he watched. 

'Technology sure can do many things,' He thought as he took a deep breath and jumped onto the first bar, gripping it tightly as it shifted under his weight.

The test began, and Levi quickly realized that this was more difficult than it seemed. The bars moved unpredictably, forcing him to swing, leap, and contort his body to avoid falling. 

Levi had no experience in doing such things but thankfully his smaller frame turned out to be an advantage, allowing him to move more quickly and with greater precision than someone bulkier might have managed.

He jumped from one bar to another - taking his time to hang on the bars and move forward.

Finally, he barely managed to finish the course, dropping to the ground with a breathless grin. 

"Do you wish to increase the difficulty and try again?"

Clara asked which made the grin on Levi's face disappear.

"There is one more level?"

He asked with shock.

"There are ten more levels, what you just did was a basic requirement for F rank," Clara said which ruined Levi's mood.

'As expected, I am still too weak'

"Let's move on to the next test"

Though Levi was not satisfied with the results, he decided to move forward. He had barely even passed this level so there was no reason to try the next.

Clara just nodded not showing any emotions and walked to the next station, which was a long treadmill-like apparatus with sensors along its length.

"This is the Endurance Run," she explained. "You'll run on this track at increasing speeds until you reach your limit. The sensors will monitor your stamina and endurance levels."

Levi stepped onto the track after having a quick rest, and Clara activated it.

The belt began to move beneath his feet at a moderate pace. 

As he ran, the speed increased gradually, forcing him to push himself harder and harder. The machine's display showed his heartbeat, breathing rate, and other vital stats, all of which were being recorded.

By the time the test ended, Levi was panting heavily, sweat dripping down his face. His legs felt like they were made of lead, but he managed to keep up until the machine finally slowed to a stop.

Clara gave him an appraising look but remained silent. Only after recording the results on her device did she finally say, "There's one final test."

Levi had a guess of what it might be, but he decided to go along with her.

She led Levi to a small, dimly lit room with a single piece of equipment in the center—a spherical orb resting on a pedestal. The orb was smooth and black, with a faint glow emanating from within. 

"This is a truth orb," Clara explained. "To ensure that no demon followers enter the Mercenary Federation, we require everyone to state their allegiance. All you have to do is place your hand on the orb and say the words, 'I follow a god.'"

This was why Levi had taken the risk of joining the Mercenary Federation—if even a Follower of the Truth Seeker couldn't detect that he was a follower of a demon, there was no way this artifact, which was a level below the skills of the Truth Seeker's followers, could either.

Without hesitation, Levi approached the orb, placing his hand on its cool surface. The orb pulsed slightly under his touch, but nothing else happened. He took a deep breath and spoke clearly.

"I follow a god."

The orb remained still, its glow unchanging. 

Clara watched him closely but said nothing as Levi removed his hand. She seemed satisfied with the result.

"You're clear," she said, leading him out of the room. "Please take a seat in the waiting area while we process your registration"

Levi followed her back to the waiting room and sat down. After a moment of hesitation, he spoke up. "I'd like to request the repair of my citizenship watch. Can the cost be added to my Mercenary Federation account?"

Another advantage of joining the Mercenary Federation was access to the various services they provided, including the repair of equipment and artifacts. While the citizenship watch wasn't technically an artifact or equipment, it could still be repaired by the Federation. Since he didn't have the money to pay for it now, he planned to take it as a debt, which would be added to the joint account they'd create upon his joining.

Clara nodded. "Of course. The repair will be handled while you wait. The cost will be added as a debt with an 11.15% interest rate and will be deducted from future transactions."

Levi nodded understanding the terms and Clara spoke once again.

"Please wait here and in the meantime, help yourself to some refreshments."

She gestured to a nearby table, where a selection of pastries and juice had been laid out. Levi's stomach growled at the sight, reminding him that he hadn't eaten in over a day. 

He thanked Clara and quickly made his way to the table and began to eat, not caring that the food lacked nutrition. It was enough to fill his empty stomach, and that was all that mattered.

About ten minutes later, while Levi was still busy with his 'refreshments', a man wearing the Federation's insignia approached Levi, holding a small box. 

"Here you go," he said, handing it over. "Your watch has been repaired, and here is your Mercenary License. Congratulations and Welcome to the Mercenary Federation"

Levi nodded at the man and opened the box to find his citizenship watch, now fully functional along with a small card indicating his new status as a mercenary—albeit of F rank.

Mercenaries, despite their strength, always start at F rank, with the potential to level up based on their contributions to the Federation. So it was no surprise that Levi received an F-rank license.

He slipped the watch back onto his wrist and pocketed the license, a sense of accomplishment washing over him. He was now officially a mercenary, no longer just a slum rat.

'Here comes the Mercenary Drake! First step towards burning the gods alive!'

---***---

Hey everyone!

First off, I apologize for the delay in updates. I got caught up with some work and couldn't release any chapters for the last three days. But don't worry—updates will resume today!

Also, let's set some goals for extra chapters this week:

50 Powerstones: 1 Bonus Chapter100 Powerstones: 2 Bonus Chapters5 Reviews: 2 Bonus Chapters

(All bonus chapters that meet the criteria will be released on the first day of next week along with the scheduled two chapters.)