Memorable Return:

"Here," Jin said as he tossed some photos on Jude's desk.

At first, Jude was confused by Jin's actions.

However, when he saw the content of the photos, tears threatened to fall from his eyes.

"Need a moment?" Jin asked sincerely.

"… No sir," Jude responded after collecting himself.

"Good. I'm leaving you in charge of the company until further notice then," Jin declared.

"Already?" Jude asked despite having been informed about the change in his role happening soon just days prior.

"I've nothing left to do here now. Are you not ready?" Jin answered before asking seriously.

"That's not it. I just thought I had a little more time to prepare," Jude explained as he began mentally shifting gears to quickly adjust to his new role.

"Told you time was short," Jin said with a shrug and a slight smirk.

"So, supplies for expansion will arrive weekly?" Jude asked, already thinking about how to best extend the "Jade Dragon" company's grasp into markets other than alcohol using the resources Jin agreed to supply him with.

"Without fail," Jin confirmed as he turned his head slightly to look at a family picture Jude had on his desk.

"I expect good things from you, Jude. Don't disappoint me," Jin added with a warm smile before disappearing.

"...I'd be surprised if I could," Jude muttered after Jin disappeared, the sound of countless products being replicated and transported to storage elsewhere below his office still ever-present.

==========

"Surprising how little things have changed since I left," Jin said to himself after appearing inside the Sabertooth hall without warning the day following the one he left Jude in charge of his company.

In response to his arrival, guild members around the hall turned to look at Jin and whispered among themselves until they felt a sudden pressure overtake the hall.

"So, you finally decided to return. What makes you think you're still welcome in this hall?!" Jiemma questioned loudly from the end of the hall.

"The fact I've done nothing to hurt our reputation as the strongest guild and still don't have a loss to my name," Jin answered, once more giving Jiemma a slight performer's bow, keeping his head down.

"Really? Because I heard a lot about a Sabertooth wizard picking a fight with the biggest guild in Magnolia," Jiemma stated as he got up from his wide chair, looking down on Jin the entire time.

When Jin heard this, he lifted his head and looked at Jiemma with a confused expression, tilting his head to the side.

"My apologies, Master. I was under the impression we were free to remind other guilds of their inferiority," Jin explained, feeling like he must have missed something.

"Of course you are. The issue is you doing it to offer aid to a lesser guild. As a Sabertooth wizard, members from lesser guilds are nothing more than bugs compared to you. Taking the initiative to befriend and help them, as you did, is disgraceful," Jiemma explained back to Jin, the pressure in the hall increasing slightly.

In response to his, Jin began thinking of the way to best diffuse the situation until he noticed Rufus seated nearby, looking at him disapprovingly and seemingly wanting to speak up, causing Jin to smile.

"Oh, I see what happened! Master, it appears you have been misinformed. I didn't help them to befriend them; rather, I used them to help with the launching of a business I started. You see, I can only increase my strength by absorbing items, so a new stream of wealth is always welcome," Jin told Jiemma with just enough know-it-all intonation to push Rufus into voicing his desire.

"..." Jiemma stayed quiet after hearing this, furrowing his brows as the pressure in the room spiked, and he deliberated on how to kill Jin.

"So he's just a weakling that needs a lot of money to grow stronger? Master, I ask you let me make this arrogant fool learn his place. Even if only for a short while before he departs this world," Rufus rhetorically asked prior to requesting Jiemma's permission to fight Jin.

"...Go ahead," Jiemma approved after some thought as he sat back down on his wide chair.

Hearing this, Rufus smiled, got up, and walked over to face Jin.

"I warn you, you stand no chance against my memory magic, so you'd best just give up and accept your fate," Rufus arrogantly said, adjusting his feathered hat.

"No thanks!" Jin exclaimed in an upbeat yet dismissive tone and a bright smile.

"Very well," Rufus replied, attempting to cast a spell only for his mind to blank at the last second, causing it to fail.

"Is something wrong?" Jin asked with an annoyingly innocent expression and tone.

'Dammit! What is happening!" Rufus shouted mentally, his once unbreakable confidence crumbling as he tried recasting the same spell, only for his mind to begin blanking earlier and earlier in the casting process.

Blinded by frustration and growing anxiety, Rufus shut his eyes and tried to think of other spells to cast, to no avail.

"Drawing a blank?" Jin asked in the same manner as before, except this time he appeared right behind Rufus before asking his question into Rufus' ear in a lower volume.

This startled Rufus, who responded by quickly dashing backward and putting some space between himself and Jin, trying to glare at him with a mixture of hatred and weariness.

"You should try to remember quickly; it seems, thanks to you, even the world's begun to forget," Jin added, glaring back at Rufus with a psychotic smirk.

Immediately after, Rufus' eyes widened as a draining feeling pulled away at him from his feet, causing him to look down only to realize he'd begun disappearing.

Rufus tried to use his magic to stop what was happening, but nothing was working, so he began frantically looking around for someone to help, locking eyes with Jiemma and trying to beg for help, only for no words to come out.

It wasn't until only Rufus' floating head remained that Jiemma spoke up.

"That's enough… you've proved your strength," Jiemma said.

"Great!" Jin exclaimed as he turned around to face Jiemma with a sincere-looking smile before snapping his fingers and returning Rufus to normal, causing him to collapse on the floor unconscious.

"You may remain in the guild, but I don't want to hear of you making the same mistake as before. And NEVER use that tone with me again," Jiemma declared.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Jin replied as he gave one more quick slight performer's bow before excusing himself to the job board.