Jaid walked out of Nathym’s workshop, still not entirely pleased with what had been done to her sword. She couldn’t deny that the modification could prove rather useful, but it was a family heirloom passed down from her mother. Jaid had wanted to preserve it in its best possible condition to honor her memory, but at least she still had her mother’s visor.
Regardless, her own feelings didn’t matter now, and she couldn’t let them poke through and ruin things. No matter what, she had to play friendly, but not too friendly since that could be suspicious as well. Perhaps she overcompensated just now as she gave a big and self-admittedly creepy smile to the butler who approached her.
Mallea Dulip was her name, Jaid remembered. However, she had been told specifically that it wasn’t her actual last name, and that Mallea herself didn’t remember what it was. Jaid wished she had never been told that fact, along with the name itself, when preparing to come here; one more thing that could accidentally slip out and bring attention. Though if no one else actually knew what it was, she could just say it was a slip of the tongue if needed.
“Hello, Jasmine Sparta,” the butler bowed, addressing Jaid incorrectly. “My name is Mallea Dulip. I will be escorting you to your new abode. If you’ll please follow me.” Jaid did so compliantly, taking this time to really look around the compound. She imagined this was fairly commonplace behavior to the new arrivals and doubted it would raise any eyebrows.
The sun had just finished setting before Jaid had entered Nathym’s workshop, and the world had turned dark since. The self-illuminating road, along with the numerous streetlights, kept visibility high, however. On top of that, there was an innumerable cacophony of stars painting the sky above. She had never seen such a splendorous sky, always diluted by light pollution in the heavily populated areas she used to live. Even her time on trips or missions alone in the woods never produced such a picture.
Their walk took them right past the mansion where the Drazahs and the other Generals lived, so Jaid made sure to study it thoroughly, checking if there were any possible vulnerabilities or hidden entry points. They then walked past the luxury apartments where the new residents were living. This raised Jaid’s expectations, but they were immediately dashed upon seeing the dorms where she’d be staying.
Compared to the lavishness she’d just seen, it merely looked like a warehouse with windows. It reminded Jaid of the barracks she used to stay in, but even those had a bit of flare. Perhaps the higher-ups of this group felt that the lower-ranks didn’t really need the added aesthetics. After all, they weren’t residents to keep happy. They were employees who were there to work and not loaf around at home all day. It made sense, but still depressed Jaid a bit.
Thankfully, the inside was much more welcoming. The lobby was about what one would expect to find in an upper-end apartment building barring the receptionist. Everyone had their own mailbox, and Jaid could already see that she was on the second floor since her name had already been placed. Mallea pointed out the stairs first, but they took the elevator.
Jaid’s room was at the end of the hallway. On their way to it, she noticed Mallea place a nameplate on the door next to hers with a single swipe. Tize Scound was written on it, a name she didn’t recognize. Based on how the mailboxes were labeled, the entire first floor had been filled, with hers being the only name on the second floor so far.
More than likely, the rooms were being filled in acceptance order with no concern for personal preference or gender differences. So, this Tize person must have been accepted right after her. She’d have to remember to greet her new neighbor properly soon, after she’d gotten settled.
Mallea presented the key and inquired, “Would you like me to stay and give you the tour, or help you unpack?”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“Uhh, no. Thank you.” Wanting to be alone as quickly as possible, Jaid adamantly refused.
“Very well,” Mallea seemed pleased with that answer herself. “Your belongings are already inside, and I’ve left dinner in the refrigerator that can be reheated. There is also a simple breakfast in case you decide to sleep in. From then on, meals will always be served in the cafeteria. Oh right, I’m supposed to call it a restaurant. Meals will always be in the restaurant, or you can prepare your own food if you like. There is a grocery store a short walk into town. If you need anything else, I’ve left my card. Feel free to contact me.”
Mallea’s words sounded sincere and professional. However, the vibe Jaid was getting was that she never wanted to be contacted for anything if possible. That worked for Jaid, since from the information she’d studied on Mallea, she was quite perceptive and one to watch out for. After receiving the key, the butler was gone before Jaid could turn around after her to bid her farewell.
Relieved and yet a bit more concerned, Jaid unlocked her room and entered inside. To her surprise, it was far more than she could have asked for. While structurally, it was just a studio apartment, there was a certain charm and elegance to the entire thing. She passed through the full kitchen, admiring all the appliances and intricacies that could rival anything on the market.
She entered the one large and fully-furnished room. There was a couch and an entertainment center taking up a small portion, but beyond that was basically a complete bedroom. Jaid couldn’t help but go and flump onto the bed. The comfort took her, and she almost drifted off to sleep in a matter of moments. But then her senses took hold, and she lurched upwards.
There was something she had to do first, so she couldn’t relax just yet. She pulled out the new phone she’d been given and went through the initial setup process. It took a few scans of her and had her sync her Common Card to it, but she eventually got through.
Sadly, the layout was completely different than her old phone, so it’d take some getting used to. Ultimately, she would have preferred to have kept her old phone. It felt to her like it had been confiscated, but she understood the necessity of allowing them to swap it out. It would have looked suspicious if she resisted it too much.
There were a few pre-installed apps, but the one she immediately was drawn to was the Fiends For Hire member app. After clicking it, the phone pulled up her profile that doubled as an identification card she could show clients. This included a slightly unflattering picture of herself, her name and epithet, along with her rank. It was currently at 0
Getting all she could from that screen, she started going through the tabs. The first was ‘Notifications’, and there was an announcement that a welcoming party for everyone would be at [675] at the restaurant, followed by an orientation for the members. The next tab was their salary and benefits which she barely scrolled through since it was unimportant at the moment.
There was a contact/support tab which she ignored entirely for now and tried clicking the ‘Jobs’ tab. However, she received the message 『Locked: Insufficient Rank』. Unable to do anything else, Jaid pulled herself out of bed and walked over to her bags that were sitting next to an empty dresser.
She pulled out a storage drive that had been casually placed inside her main suitcase. Thankfully, it was undisturbed. There had been a lot of debate on how to transport it here; burrowing it into her skin, making it microscopic and attaching it to a tooth, shoving it up somewhere she’d be uncomfortable mentioning.
Fortunately, all of those ideas were disregarded after common sense prevailed. It wasn’t a unique or banned device, and most newcomers probably had one with them. Trying to hide it in any way would have been more suspicious then leaving it in plain sight, especially given Phon Drazah’s Curse.
Jaid took the drive and plugged it into the phone. A Central Peace logo flashed for a millisecond before a progress bar appeared. Jaid set down the phone, knowing this would take a while, but it needed to be done as soon as possible. The longer she took to report in, the more anxious she got.
After all, Jaid was a spy working for the Central Peace.