“Okay, I’ll explain it,” Grant said. “Contracts are separated into tiers based on difficulty. That steel rank you want? That doesn’t make you special. Everyone wants steel. It’s the highest rank. It starts at wood, then goes stone, iron, bronze, and then steel. You rank up by completing three contracts at the tier above the one you are. If you just joined, that means you’re a wood tier like us. This contract is stone, so you should want to do it.”

“Right,” I said, “but if there are easier stone tier missions, I’d rather take them. It sounds like you guys are trying to do something that pays well. I’m more concerned with speed.”

“That’s not how it works,” Grant said. “You’re not certified wood yet, are you?”

“No?” I guessed. “What does that mean?”

“You have to complete three contracts at the tier you’re at before you get certified. If you’re not certified, you can’t take missions at a higher rank. See? If you’re worried about speed, partying with us will make you go faster. As a party leader, I’m allowed to let others into my party that aren’t certified as long as I am certified. If you do this contract with us, you will be automatically certified. You can skip all those qualifying contracts and go right to completing contracts at the higher rank.”

“Huh, sounds like I have to find someone to party with,” I said. “I guess I’d be okay with it, assuming everything you just told me checks out.”

“It will,” Grant promised. He popped out of his chair. “Guys! He said yes, I’m gonna take him to do a roll now.”

I’d be lying if I said I was excited about joining another group. My primary advantage was my incredibly powerful Skill. But it was black magic, so I wouldn’t be able to use it around witnesses. That could make a party more of a hindrance than a help, but I also had to consider that I would be able to just hang back and let them get everything done while I learned the ropes. It could be worthwhile.

Some members of Grant’s party gave a little cheer at hearing I’d agreed to join, but Grant told them, “Don’t count your lizards just yet. We still have to make our roll.”

“That won’t be a problem,” I assured him. A confident statement or a cocky one. We’d find out soon enough.

“That’s what I’m hoping,” Grant said as he led me across the room to the front desk. “With how much money you have, I bet you have a bunch of Brands.” The chip-induced hysteria around Dealla seemed to have died down.

“I’ve got a few,” I admitted. I didn’t see any reason to be specific. If I was private about what kinds of Brands I had, it would be less suspicious if I acted equally cagey about my Skill.

We walked through doritos crumbs and crumpled bags to reach the front desk. It seemed nobody was interested in cleaning up a mess that would eventually take care of itself. “What can I help you gentlemen with?” Dealla asked when she saw us.

Grant hooked a thumb at me. “He’s joining our party.” He produced a yellowed piece of paper from inside his front pocket and slid it across the counter for Dealla to read. It had a large drawing of a spider on it.

Dealla frowned. “This is a stone tier contract,” she said. “He is a wood tier adventurer with no experience. Vince, you registered only last night. I don’t think you understand what you’re getting into.”

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“He says he’s fine with it,” Grant told her.

“I am.”

“He hasn’t proven himself,” Dealla insisted, talking to Grant rather than me. “We strongly encourage new adventurers to start with easier—”

“I’m the contract holder,” Grant interrupted, “and I get to choose who I want to party with. I’m adding him to the roster. We already have five. He won’t even have to do anything.”

Dealla sighed. She looked at me and offered another frown. “You sure about this, Vince?” she asked.

“I know the risks,” I told her. “I’m sure.”

She shook her head, not looking happy. “He will still get an equal share of the contract, even if he doesn’t do anything,” Dealla reminded Grant.

He winked at me. “We know. Now… how ‘bout we get those dice?”

“You only get one free throw a day,” Dealla warned me. “I’ll have to charge you if this fails and you want to make any others today. I really think you should start with goblins.”

“What does a throw of the dice cost?” I asked.

“A full Cross.”

“Yeah, go ahead then,” I insisted. “I can pay something that small if I need to.”

Dealla reached under her desk and came back up with a wooden bowl that had six yellowing dice in them. They were just the standard six-sided style of dice I’d seen hundreds of times on Earth. She pushed the bowl across to me. The dice looked hand carved out of either bone or ivory. Across the six dice randomly arranged in the bowl, I saw some sides with a skull carved into them, some with a three-pointed star, and some that were smooth and blank. “So I just take these?” I asked.

Grant interjected with an explanation. He unfolded the paper with the details of the spider contract on it. “Right here,” he said. “Get all the dice to land on top of the paper. If any fall off, just throw them back on.”

“And this will tell me how well the contract will turn out?” I asked.

“Your party needs to average two weals each to get approved,” Dealla said.

Grant scooped a die out of the bowl and held it up. He pointed to the triangular starburst symbol. “That’s weal,” he said. “That means a good outcome.” He turned to the skull. “That’s woe. We don’t want those. You’ll probably get a few, anyway. They make us roll six dice because the enchantments are crap.”

“They are not!” Dealla said. “The enchantments work fine. We use six dice, so we can be six times as confident in the results.”

Grant shook his head. “Don’t listen to that. These dice are going dun. They’ve been giving out too many woes lately.”

“What do the blank sides mean?” I asked. Looking at the dice, it seemed only one side had the skull, the opposite side had the starburst, and the other four sides were all blank.

“If any of those come up, that means the dice need a recharge,” Dealla said. “And they have not been coming up blank!”

“Okay, what’s the count for today?” Grant asked.

Dealla took a step to the side to glance at a notepad and read off the results. “Grant, you and Jay got two weals, Victoria got four, Torra got one, and Alloha got none. That brings your party’s total up to nine, which is one shy. If you add Vince, you will have a six person party, so the cut-off is twelve weals. Vince will need at least three for you to qualify.”

Grant gave me a slap on the shoulder. “You can do it!” he said. “Show us what your money is good for.”

I cupped the dice in my hands and gave them a shake before dropping them on the paper. They landed flat on the page, not bouncing or rattling in the slightest. All six dice showed the three-pointed star of Marketh. Grant pumped his fist in the air. “Woo!” he yelled. He turned back to his party and shouted across the room. “The new kid did it!”

“The chip kid?” one guy in the group asked. “Ha!”

Grant pulled the paper out from under the dice and folded it back in his pocket. “Alright,” he said, “we’ll be heading out right away. You’re good to go now, aren’t you Vince? Do you need to eat first?”

“No, I’ve got food,” I said, remembering my potatoes.

“You should still be careful,” Dealla cautioned. “Several members of your team still rolled poorly. All this roll means is Vince will be fine.”

“He’ll be our good luck charm!” Grant said. He laid an arm around my shoulder and steered me away from the desk. “Come on,” he said. “It’s time for you to meet the rest of the team.