Glenn arrived at the counter, his gaze fixed on the woman behind it. She wore a pristine white dress adorned with a red cross on each shoulder. A name tag reading “Alisson” rested on her chest. That reminded him that ever since came into this world, the only individual he “met” with a last name was Jefferson Howard, who was from a noble family.

‘It still seems a little far-fetched to think that everyone with a last name is of noble blood,’ Glenn mused as he leaned on the counter. The pretty attendant tossed her long blond hair back and offered a sweet smile, her previous roughness nowhere to be seen, “Welcome to the Cleaner’s Workshop! Information, Cleaning contracts, and the finest mercenary service in the entire Fringe! How can I assist you?”

Glenn returned her smile and pointed at Sahro behind him with his thumb, “My friend and I are newcomers to King’s Rise, and we’re in search of work. Mercenary-type.”

Alisson, the attendant, maintained her smile, “I see. Please give me an instant,” She crouched and searched for something under the counter. Glenn glanced away, noticing that the two other attendants were equally as attractive to Alisson, dressed in the same white robe fashion with the red crosses. They were three to man the counter, all attending to their clients with pure, wide smiles.

He looked around the hall, discovering that a few people were wearing that same style, the pure white with red crosses, be it on their clothes or even armor. It seemed to be the Workshop’s uniform. The majority, though, were dressed disparately in all kinds of different styles, like outsiders like Sahro and him, taking on mercenary contracts or filing ones.

Glenn thought back to the contract board covered in bounties he saw earlier, and smiled, ‘Finding work is probably going to be easier than I thought. Maybe we’ll be able to advance my predictions.’

Sahro tapped lightly on Glenn’s shoulder, his expression grave as he nodded toward the clerks. He watched without a thought, wondering what the Black Heir wanted to show him, before suddenly pausing with a frown. The other two attractive female clerks tossed their hair back at the same time, mimicking Alisson's previous motion in an almost mechanical manner.

Glenn rubbed his eyes, wondering if he perhaps had seen wrong. The next second, the two clerks leaned back and stretched in the exact same manner, sending a shiver down his back. He tensed up and exchanged a concerned glance with Sahro. The latter whispered discreetly, “It didn’t happen only once. They seem…connected.”

“...What the hell…?” Glenn muttered in awe, ‘Diamanes, any idea what…what they are?’

‘Hmm…’ Diamanes groaned hesitantly, ‘I…I honestly don’t know. Maybe it’s because I woke up not that long ago, but I can’t tell. They seem to be neither alive nor dead, but not even magic can do that. Necromancy doesn’t work this way.’

Glenn exhaled heavily, his hand tightening around the hilt of the short sword Giselle gave him hanging at his waist. This “Cleaner’s Workshop” wasn’t merely a mercenary guild. He could feel the weight of ominous secrets hiding behind these strange clerks. Alisson eventually found what she was searching for, a stack of documents with the Workshop’s logo printed on each page, the red flame on a dark background. She handed them to Glenn, her previously pleasant smile appearing almost unsettling in his eyes.

"Here are the regulations for becoming a Cleaner, as well as a Fixer. Feel free to read them and make your decision. Once you're done, complete the questionnaire on the last page and bring it to the Testing Hall."

She pointed toward a hallway leading to the mentioned hall. Then, slapping her forehead in a somewhat endearing manner, she said, "I nearly forgot your companion. I hope you'll become my colleague in the future!"

Glenn would have certainly found the manner cute if he hadn't seen the two other attendants do the exact same movement in the corner of his eyes.

With a shiver running down his spine, Glenn took Sahro's copy from Alisson's hands and tipped his head slightly, “Thank you, Miss Alisson.”

He and Sahro left the building and went to sit on a nearby bench. The Black Heir followed without saying a word, keeping a wary eye on everyone they passed. Glenn sighed deeply as he perused the documents and explained the key points to Sahro.

“The Workshop is proposing two contracts. The first makes us a main main members, with a basic salary of five silver, accommodations, and equipment provided. We earn the “Junior Cleaner” title, and can also receive bonuses depending on our performances.”

“We will receive training according to our ranks, and support will be provided for our advancements. After six months, the pay increases to ten silver, along with the title 'Cleaner.' However, as an integral Workshop member, we can't leave the Fringe unless ordered to, which means no return to the Sewers or advancement to the Bourgeoisie.”

Glenn scoffed but still continued reading the document, “We’re also bound by an oath of secrecy. There are opportunities for advancement once we’ve proven our loyalty, but it means giving up our freedom, which I don't intend to do."

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Glenn looked up, seeing that Sahro agreed with that last thought.

"I'm not about to let any human be my superior. Only Giselle can give me orders!" Sahro spat, clearly irked by the idea. After a moment's thought, he added, "And you, but only in human settlements. And that’s a heavy exception already!"

Glenn raised an eyebrow and smirked, "Your trust will be repaid, my good sir. This humble and terrible human will surely live up to your expectations," he retorted sarcastically, teasing Sahro. He then went back to reading the contracts, while the Black Heir's face became redder than a tomato. Glenn cleared his throat and once again highlighted the most important points of the contract.

“The second contract makes us a Fixer, a mercenary of some sort. Depending on our abilities—which will be assessed at the inscription—we will be assigned a rank between three; Copper, Bronze, and Silver. Depending on which rank we get, we’ll get access to one-time contracts, and bounties. We’d handle specific requests with prices determined by the requester. The Workshop, in this situation, acts as an intermediary and takes a ten percent fee.”

Sahro snorted, “Silver rank is the minimum that we have to get.”

Glenn moistened his lips, “Talking about that, they mention that Fixers are ranked from Copper to Diamond, with higher ranks receiving better treatments and benefits. Copper Fixers, for example, receive no support from the Workshop, except for general combat classes. They are responsible for their equipment and do not have access to the Workshop’s facilities.”

Glenn exhaled and leaned back on the bench, the choice evident in his eyes. As far as he could tell with his meager legal skills, there didn’t seem to be any loopholes, not even a non-compete clause.

Sahro crossed his arms, “Let’s become Fixers. We can just complete bounties one after the other and quickly gather some moo…moo…” He frowned and tried hesitantly, “...moolah?”

Glenn laughed, “Yeah, you got it. From what I’ve seen of the contract board, there are more than enough jobs to keep us busy. It shouldn’t be too hard to earn a lot of money rapidly.”

The two exchanged a grin and concentrated on the forms they had been asked to fill. Glenn paused as he thought back to the strange female clerks.

“...What do you think about what we’ve seen? The attendants, I mean?” He asked as he turned to the Black Heir.

Sahro paused and rubbed his chin. “Hmm…All I can say is that the motions were very natural. They weren’t forced movements as if they were being controlled by someone. The three move as if they are the same entity. It’s very…”

“Disturbing?” Glenn finished Sahro’s sentence for him, nodding in agreement, “Let’s stay careful of this “Workshop”, alright?”

Sahro snickered and focused back on the form. Glenn looked down at his own and quickly filled in the information required. The form was quite traditional; it asked for names, ages, professions, and places of residence. Glenn was relieved to discover that Sahro knew how to read and write, and also learned that the main language in King's Rise, as well as the rest of the country, Munirp, was called the Common Tongue.

‘The Common Tongue, huh… They couldn’t make it even more simple?’ Glenn thought with a hint of sarcasm. Since they didn't have a home right now, they decided to simply write 'The Auberge' as their place of residence, since they'll probably live there for a while. In the section for professions, there were several options to choose from, with multiple answers allowed.

Glenn ticked “Mage” and hesitated to tick “Hand-to-hand combatant” too, but he had to admit that he hadn't mastered hand-to-hand combat, especially when he remembered how badly Sahro had beaten him. Actually, he sucked ass at melee fighting. He could guess what Sahro's choice would be, and after a few minutes, he completed the form. Sahro was also done, and they nodded to each other before heading back inside the Workshop.

They made their way to the Testing Hall that attendant Alisson had indicated earlier, walking through the corridor while listening to the sounds of weapons clashing and explosions resounding through the hallway. Glenn’s lips curved upward as he felt a tinge of excitement in his heart. They arrived in an arena-like room with a high red and white glass ceiling and empty stands. Most of the space was occupied by a large sandy field, where mercenaries appeared to be facing off against Cleaners. The distinct white and red attire of the Cleaners shimmered in the sunlight as they engaged in combat, clearly dominating their opponents. After forcing their adversaries to admit defeat, the Cleaners handed them a piece of paper and sent them off.

A Cleaner approached Glenn and Sahro, his face devoid of emotion. His bald head was striking, and there wasn't a single hair on his face, not even eyebrows or eyelashes, giving him an eerie appearance.

"Paper, please," he stated tersely, his words sounding as though they were spoken by a robot. A name tag inscribed with "Tak Delora" was pinned to his red-crossed white uniform, right on his chest. He extended a rigid hand toward them, waiting for their documents. Glenn and Sahro exchanged glances and handed their forms over simultaneously.

'Tak Delora? Is he a noble, then? Why does he look so unsettling, though?' wondered Glenn silently.

Tak Delora swiftly examined the documents and indicated separate areas of the sandy field to each of them. Sahro nodded at Glenn and proceeded to his designated spot. Glenn moved toward his testing area and took a deep breath, his heart beating with expectation.

After waiting for a few minutes in the designated spot, Glenn noticed a slender figure approaching him. Wearing a simple knife at her belt, a woman stood in front of Glenn. Her round face exuded an air of gentleness, while her blue eyes seemed to scrutinize Glenn's posture for any weaknesses. A cascade of red hair flowed messily on either side of her face. She was dressed in the Cleaner's attire and appeared ready for action, playing with another sharp knife.

She then executed a swift and exaggerated bow, a grin spreading across her face.

"Nice to meet you, Glenn. I'm Mary, and I'll be overseeing this test. Since you're a Mage, your task is to attempt to hit me with one of your spells. Of course, try not to injure me, as this is merely an assessment of your casting speed and accuracy," she explained quickly. "And if you're a power-oriented Mage, don't worry; there's another test right after this one."

Glenn grinned and took a step back as Mana swirled around his right hand, “It’s my pleasure, Miss Mary.”

Mary smiled with a wolf-like grin as she stopped playing with her knife. Glenn prepared himself as he considered his options. Since there was another test right after this one, he should try to go at this one with restraint to conserve stamina and Mana. This way, he’d be able to later demonstrate Implosion if needed, as it's his most powerful spell which even Redan acknowledged.

A Magic Bullet hovering above his right hand, particles of deep blue light floating around Glenn.

It was time to spar with Mary.