Chapter 2 - Setting Up the Score

Seeing that I've been offered a liquor to relief my sorrow I immediately took the drink like a champ.

"It's just a cold pain water huh…"

"Well, it maybe just a cold plain water, but it's a FREE cold plain water." Said the guy cheerfully.

"In that case buy something you stupid kid, I'm not your free watering hole." Complained the old man.

"Now, now, Master. You might not believe it but your plain water is the most delicious thing in Rayleh, no in the entire galaxy!" Complimented Johnny.

"Shaddap you stupid kid! You only getting water because you still don't have any money to pay your tab aren'tcha you freeloader hunter!" Argued the old man.

"What's that you old geezer?! You'll regret it when I become a famous hunter you ass! I'll won't let you get a piece of my pie when I became Rich I'll guarantee it!" replied Johnny.

"Then pick up your belongings and get the hell out of my Inn!" Exclaimed the old man.

"I'M SORRY! PLEASE FORGIVE ME" said Johnny bowing down to him.

"You're giving up with that?!" The people around us are starting to laugh and looked at our direction with amusement, saying things like the 'Hoo, the master and Johnny is at it again.' Or 'fight on Johnny fight against our oppressor!' this seems to be an everyday scene for them. But it kinda make me feel scary to the inn master. Especially with how the master act to freeloaders. And now that I noticed it, the people that the inn customers are pretty scary by themselves, some of them are carrying weapons, like this one guy were carrying some big broadsword, this chick are doing some kind of weapon maintenance on her guns, and this one guy were throwing knifes at the dart board. Seriously what is this place?

"And who's this gentleman, Johnny?" asked the old man, could you just… ask me instead? I'm right here.

"Oh right! Old man this…. Uh… he's… Who are you again?" I could only face palm at him after all of this time I forgot to introduce my name to him. "Kain Grimedge." I said my name to him.

"Oh yeah, this is Kain. Old man, he's kinda in a problem could you help him out?"

"Now even if you told me to do so I don't even know how the help him if you don't tell me the problem is."

"Well you know he just spent his entire salary on an item and he doesn't have any money left, and since there's an atmospheric storm he couldn't leave the planet, and since he doesn't have any money he doesn't have a place to stay, and since he doesn't have a place to stay he's feeling troubled over it, and since he's feeling troubled over it he looks really miserable so please could you help him out?" Asked Johnny in fast speed. That's pretty mouthful.

"I see. I don't get it."

"Heee…. Master.." Whined Johnny, "It's my best explanation you know." The master just laughed and scratched the back of his head.

"Umm basically I just need a place to stay until the storm calmed down sir." I told the master. The master looked at me and said "But you don't have any Money right?" I nodded "Well I can't really give you free lodging, it's bad for business if someone finds out that I gave freebies to people that Johnny picked up." Continued the master. "The story will be different if you're a hunter though." A hunter? Then my sense of dread returned to me. "A Hunter?" I asked bashfully. "Yeah, Case Hunter." Told the master. "In the first place what did you lose anyway?" asked the master.

This… is dangerous. The item that I just bought is a case. A silver case to be exact. When the civil war struck, various mega corporation were caught in the war, whether they want it or not. Rayleh itself were the center of various mega corporation and as a last-ditch effort to secure their technologies so that they do not fall in to the hands of scavenger and various other thieves they sealed their tech in cases and scattered them all across the planet with a teleporter, originally the teleporter would send those cases to a certain safety vault, but the facilities that contain the teleportation device got attacked and the cases got scattered around the star system instead.

"It's… something that's very important to me." I answered.

The master just hummed in confirmation and continued to polish some glass. "Well I don't care what'd you lose. But I'm sorry I can't just give you free accommodation." Said the master.

"How about if I work for you then?" I asked him. The master just looked at me and laughed. "Like what you wanna be a case hunter or something?" asked the master. "No, I mean just work around in the inn." I corrected him. "Well I'm sorry to say, but I've already have enough worker for now." I felt dejected at that statement. "Th-then I'll become one." I told him. "Become what?" asked the master. "A case hunter." I told him.

The master and johnny looked at me and then looked at each other trying to confirm what I've just said. Then they burst out laughing. "Hahaha, I'm sorry to say but I don't think it'll suits you kid." Told the master to me. huh? Why is that. "What's your previous job?" Asked johnny.

"An electrician at a mining company."

"I thought as much." Said the master. "Well I'm sorry to break it to you kid but I don't think you'll cut it to do some hunting. This is a dangerous business. One wrong move and you're dead." Told the master.

"W-Well an electrician is also a dangerous job! Uh, there's risk for you to get electrocuted and uhh… stuffs!"

"Well don't be like that old man." Said Johnny. "What about if he became my partner?" Asked Johnny. "Hah, last time someone became your partner he got crushed in a trash compactor." Told the master. "H-hey, it's not my fault. Sam's greed is the one at fault, I told him that he shouldn't take the job alone but he did It anyway." Countered Johnny. "So how about it?" asked Johnny to the master. "*Sigh* I guess that could work if you vouched for him, what say you newbie?" What I say about it? Well I don't have any choice in the matter. If I slept on the streets there's always a chance that I'll get mugged, dying from cold and starvation, or something and by joining with Johnny I'll probably get a horrible death crushed on a trash compactor, hmm…. Choices..

Wait both of them are bad.

I can only feel despair at it. What a bad time to live as Kain Grimedge. "C'mon Kain it'll be fun." said Johnny. you only knew me for 5 hours you dumbass. Why are you asking me to do this. I feel like I'm being tricked into some sort of shady deal or something. But either choice could lead me to a terrible death.

"*Sigh* Alright let's do it." Kain then cheered at my confirmation. The master then pulled some kind of a contract to me. "Just some Hunter registration papers, nothing shady about it, for administrative purposes." Smiled the master. Right… nothing shady about it. I then read the papers and it's just the usual stuffs like age, birthday, birth place, name and things like that so I filled all of it and gave it back to him. The master then looked at the papers and nodded. "Alright since you're Johnny's partner you'll be sharing a room with him." Said the master. "Well good luck then, you'll need it." Continued the master. Johnny then shook my hand and told me "I'm counting on you for now on Partner!" haa…

"Oh, about your starting Gear Talk to me tomorrow to get it. It should give you all of the basic for you to start in this business." Told the master.

"Alright."

And thus began my life as a Case hunter…