First Contract

Glenn focused his energy, ready to unleash his Implosion spell. The abomination loomed before him, a grotesque mass of writhing flesh and pulsating veins.

Its monstrous form sent shivers down his spine. Glenn's heart raced as he prepared to strike. He aimed the spell at the abomination's face, trying to ignore the revolting sight before him. But as the energy gathered, something unexpected happened. The abomination's misshapen face contorted, and a human visage emerged from the mangled mass of flesh.

The Boss of the Auberge's face.

A feeble cry for help escaped the figure's lips just before Glenn released the ball of energy.

"Help..."

Suddenly, loud knocks on his door shattered the remnants of his unsettling dream. Annoyed and disoriented, Glenn reluctantly climbed out of bed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The room was dimly lit, and he could tell from the faint light outside that it was still early in the day.

With a yawn and a stretch, he quickly dressed, noting the black attire he had acquired from Howard Jefferson's chest was now stained with crimson blood from his recent battle with the abomination.

"I should try to clean that..."

Bandaging his left hand, he expected to hear some kind of complaint from Diamanes, but the latter remained silent. Perhaps he was still sleeping. An evil hand can sleep? Well, why not? 

Opening the door, Glenn was greeted by the familiar smiling faces of Sir Reginald and Sahro, who had apparently been roused from sleep just before him. Sir Reginald tipped his top hat, his mustache bouncing with the movement.

"Good morning, dear Fixers. I personally came to deliver your Silver identifications, so here they are."

From his coat, he produced two daggers, their handgrips shimmering with a silver hue. Glenn examined one closely, discovering that the blade itself was crafted from silver, etched with intricate runes. The memory of losing his Magi Brotherhood recommendation resurfaced, and he couldn't help but voice his concern.

"What if we lose them?"

For a moment, Sir Reginald appeared perplexed, but then a polite chuckle escaped his lips as he covered his mouth with a gloved hand.

"Oh, yes, of course. Well, you don't have to worry about this. Just infuse some Mana into it, I'm sure you're both capable of it."

Glenn and Sahro followed his instructions, infusing Mana into their daggers. The blades glowed with a soft, blue radiance before vanishing into thin air, dissipating into a cloud of white particles. Diamanes, Glenn's sentient hand, couldn't resist expressing his displeasure.

'Who the hell sent a knife in my place? What the hell?'

Sir Reginald cleared his throat and summoned his own dagger from thin air. It materialized in an intriguing display of magic, with white particles emerging from his right hand, gradually forming the complete dagger. This one had an ebony scabbard and a handgrip adorned with ruby, making it more elaborate than its silver counterparts.

"The daggers provided to Silver-ranked Fixers and above have a Soulbound enchantment. They will be safely stored within your soul," Reginald explained as his dagger dematerialized and returned to its ethereal state.

Glenn gazed upon his hand, as he willed for the dagger to manifest itself. The weapon appeared in a similar way, appearing from thin air through a mass of white particles.

"That's really interesting..." he commented, lost in his thoughts.

Sir Reginald let out another cough, taking out a sheet of paper.

"Hrm, of course, if it gets destroyed one way or another, you'll be entitled to pay the fee for the original cost of the dagger plus the cost of replacing it. So, I'd advise not to use it beyond its original purpose."

Glenn grabbed the sheet of paper, reading its content. Soon, his face paled, as his eyes swiftly went over the cost of the dagger.

"Holy sh– Two gold coins for one dagger!?"

Sir Reginald smiled awkwardly, rubbing his chin.

"Hmm, yes, it's indeed a little expensive. So, don't break it, alright?"

Glenn made the dagger disappear, knowing that it was safely stored inside his soul. Suddenly, a realization struck him. He took the Magi Recommendation plate out of his dimensional pouch, inviting a gasp from Sir Reginald who couldn't help but stare at it.

He then sent some Mana into it, the plate shining with a purple hue before disappearing in yet another cloud of white particles. 

'So that's why there was no warning against losing it. Because it wasn't possible to lose it in the first place,' Glenn mused, coming to this realization.

Sir Reginald clapped his hand, his previous surprised expression gone, replaced by his usual polite expression. One of his eyelids twitched, betraying that he was still a bit in shock. 

"Alright, I'll be showing you how to take your first contract and present you to your instructor. After that, you'll be free to do whatever you want."

As they followed Sir Reginald through the hallways of the Dormitories and out of the building, Glenn bumped into a robed figure in the doorway, offering a quick apology.

"Sorry."

"..."

The person he had bumped into was a robed individual, and a faint scent of mint surrounded them.

'Could it be them again?' Glenn wondered, recalling the strange fighter with bending magic they had encountered during their test and the abomination fight. However, he decided to set aside his curiosity for later.

Following Sir Reginald and Sahro, he wondered who could be weird enough to perfume themselves with mint. 

They soon arrived in the main lobby of the Cleaner's Workshop, standing before a contract board. Since it was early in the morning, there weren't many people around. Sir Reginald examined the board for a moment before plucking a contract from it.

He handed the paper to Glenn, who read it aloud for Sahro's benefit.

"Silver request: [Solve the rift problem under the bakery]. Reward: [twenty-five silver, ten contribution points, the baker's gratitude]".

Glenn turned back to Sir Reginald, a puzzled expression on his face.

"What's a rift?"

Sir Reginald rubbed his mustache as he considered the question.

"Well, a rift is... an opening in King's Rise defenses. You're probably aware that zones with high concentrations of Mana have an equally high chance of summoning random monsters."

Glenn and Sahro nodded, one because he knew, the other because he couldn't afford not to.

'I can't wait to get in the Library and fill in all the blanks in my missing common knowledge.'

"King's Rise isn't supposed to allow monsters inside. However, sometimes a rift can form, gradually summoning monsters until it eventually explodes, unleashing a horde of them."

Sir Reginald maintained his friendly demeanor, explaining the concept.

"Your task is to deal with these rifts before they become a larger threat. Rifts are the main sources of contracts for the Cleaner's Workshop."

The gentleman then walked toward the counter with the attendants and gestured toward them.

He continued, "Now, if you'd be so kind as to show the contract to the ladies at the counter, they will mark it as accepted. And don't worry about wait times; as Fixers, you enjoy certain privileges."

Glenn smiled awkwardly at the attendant, the same who took care of them for their registration, Allison. She smiled naturally, not giving any of the bizarreness that Glenn had previously found in her behavior. 

"Hello, Sir Reginald, Glenn, Sahro. Can I help you?" She tilted her head inquisitively. 

Sir Reginald smiled back, pushing the contract toward her.

Sir Reginald explained their purpose, and Allison took the contract, quickly reviewing it before stamping it with approval. She noted something in a nearby document and handed the stamped contract back to Glenn.

"Here you go. You can undertake the request at your convenience, but remember, you have forty-eight hours to complete it."

Glenn nodded and stored the contract in his dimensional pouch. When Allison mentioned the reward-sharing aspect due to two people being on the contract, he simply responded, "Naturally." Sahro seemed indifferent to the reward, scoffing at the mention of it.

Sir Reginald turned toward them, a wide smile on his face.

"And there you go. I'll leave you gentleman at your business, as I'm sure that you'll be able to take care of a Silver-ranked request easily. Have a nice day."

With their task assigned and accepted, Sir Reginald excused himself, leaving them to their business. Glenn couldn't help but wonder about the enigmatic gentleman.

'This Sir Reginald is quite the elusive character,' thought Glenn, observing the fleeting gentleman.

'Indeed. I can feel some power from him, but I don't really understand it,'  commented Diamanes from inside Glenn's mind,  'It's kind of similar to those strange attendants, but I can't really say.'

Glenn dutifully noted this piece of information in his mind. If there was one thing that his guts were telling him, it was that something was going on in this Cleaner's Workshop. That will have to wait for him to get a bit stronger, and mostly, wealthier. 

Glenn and Sahro exited the lobby, heading outside of the Workshop. They started walking in the street, heading toward the address of the bakery. That's also when he noticed that streets actually had names.

As they walked along the streets, Glenn observed the names of the streets engraved on the ground at each corner. It was a unique and practical method of labeling streets that he hadn't noticed before.

The place where the names were inscribed never got dirty, somehow. Glenn knew because he pushed a bit of dirt with his feet on it, only to witness the dirt being pushed away by some invisible magic.

The Cleaner's Workshop stood on Central Street, No. 13, right in the heart of the Northern Town. The other buildings on the street housed residents or small shops.

Their destination, the bakery, was on Rampart Street, running alongside the massive wall that separated the Fringe and the Bourgeoisie. Glenn turned to Sahro, eager to formulate a plan.

"We don't know what to expect, but being proactive wouldn't hurt. Let's aim to complete this quickly."

Sahro agreed, echoing Glenn's sentiment. "It's just a rift; there might be a monster or two at most. Even you can handle a few goblins, right?"

Glenn shot his companion a deadpan look. "I'm pretty sure I can handle more than a few goblins."

Sahro nonchalantly shrugged. "If you say so."

Glenn let out an exasperated sigh, realizing there was no point in arguing further. Finally, they arrived in front of the bakery, a modest establishment with the sign "The Hearth's Bakery" displayed above the entrance. Sahro couldn't help but voice his skepticism.

"It's hard to believe they're baking bread in such a tiny place."

Glenn regarded the bakery with curiosity. "What did you expect?"

Sahro scanned the bakery from top to bottom. "I don't know, something... bigger, I guess? Isn't bread something rare and precious ?"

Glenn tapped lightly Sahro's shoulder, remaining silent. 

The door bore a "Closed" sign, and the lack of activity inside confirmed this. They knocked on the door, waiting for a response. After a brief wait, a high-pitched voice called out from behind the door.

"Give me a minute!"

The sound of jingling keys followed, and the door swung open to reveal a slightly flustered, red-faced lady. The baker was a petite woman with a round figure and a round face. Her rosy cheeks accentuated her warm smile. She had pursed lips, wore practical glasses, and sported a no-nonsense haircut.

"I already told you I can't pay until you—oh?"

Her annoyance evaporated when she laid eyes on the two strangers at her doorstep.

"Who might you handsome gentlemen be?"