Glenn walked out of his room, humming and smiling. He saluted the puzzled people coming out from their rooms or passing in the hallways, happy as ever. The rest of the night had been uneventful and had provided more than enough rest to the young man. He had slept in, only waking up when the sun was already at its peak in the sky.
"I feel like I'm back to my Earthling's days... How nostalgic..." He couldn't help but mutter, lost in his thoughts.
'Oh, you're thinking back to your deadbeat days! Yeah, truly nostalgic!' Diamanes taunted him, making his host's cheeks flush red. Glenn shook his head, before denying the hand's words.
'I was no deadbeat! I... enjoyed life, I guess?' The young man gave up after listening against his will to the entity's mocking laugh. He quickly stopped by the Dining Hall, picking up a plate of "Mangyu-beef tartare" with suspicious eyes. He tried to try every food in this world, but why did this meat look so raw...?
"...Whatever," Glenn quickly took a spot in the immense Dining Hall, ignoring the private lounges for the Gold-Rank Fixers or above. He hadn't even known about them before, so when he discovered he had that privilege, he tried it as soon as possible. The result was...disappointing to say the least. Eating alone like a sad man in an admittedly beautifully adorned room wasn't really to his taste.
"At least there is some chance of witnessing something interesting, here..." The young man winced as he fought with the chopsticks he was given to try and pick the thin slices of meat, before giving up and simply using his fingers. 'As if someone cares.'
'I do care! Do you even remember when was the last time you washed your hands?' Diamanes exclaimed with distaste inside Glenn's mind. The latter simply shrugged, swallowing another slice of beef.
'I would have thought a modern man knowing how to use cutlery would at least be careful about these things!' The entity sighed, going back to whatever it was previously doing, either watching Glenn's memories or watching the world through his host's eyes. The young man looked at his fingers, manifesting Mana and making them cleaner than a hospital room. 'Is it me or are they shining?' He picked another slice of beef hesitantly, before swallowing it down as well. The food was pretty good, but it wasn't very filling... And somehow, it felt wrong to eat.
Someone suddenly plopped down in front of Glenn, placing their tray on the table. It was a woman with raven-black hair. She had an otherworldly beauty, and a scent of mint was lingering around her. A gold dagger was hanging on her waist, while a thinner weapon was strapped on her back. The woman sat down without looking, before raising her eyes and noticing Glenn, who was staring at her with a baffled expression. They both looked at each other for a few seconds, before pointing at each other at the same time.
"You again!"
"Why you!"
Glenn made a dispirited expression, looking at his food with tearful eyes.
"Damn it, I'm suddenly not hungry anymore..." He brusquely stood up, picking his trail up to leave the table. The woman's eyes flared up, and with the flat of her palm, pushed down in front of her. Glenn suddenly felt pressure on his shoulders, pushing him back on the seat. He sighed, hiding his face in his hands. 'And there we go again...'
The woman crossed her arms together.
"You bastard, how dare you wake me up! I was sleeping damn well that night!" She spat out, throwing daggers from within her eyes. Glenn shrugged, raising his palms toward the sky.
"And why should I care, huh? Do you think I'm your friend or something, you haughty bitch?" He counterattacked, his tongue sharper than his axe. The woman frowned, before clacking her tongue.
"Of course, I should have expected that much from you, you ignorant stalker... First, you follow me everywhere, then you steal half my bounties..." Her seat was pushed back when she stood up, as she leaned forward to plant her finger on Glenn's forehead, "...and now you even disturb my most important time of the night! Glenn, I swear the next time I'm tearing your head out!"
Glenn sneered, crossing his hands behind his head and leaning on his chair.
"Hgn, Glenn, I'm going to rip your head out, hgn, Glenn, I swear I'm going to kill you..." Glenn made a loathsome face, mimicking the woman's actions ridiculously. He suddenly went back to being serious, slamming his fist on the table, "Listen, Milena, you're the one always bothering me!" He raised his hand, counting a finger one after the other, "...I go take a bath, you're there, I go hunt some trash, you're there, I go back to my dorm...Guess what? You're there!" The young man shook his head, before eating another slice of the tasty-weird-named beef slice.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Milena leaned back in her chair, raising her head in contempt. She used her chopsticks to carefully pick up a slice of beef and put it in her mouth. She did it with exquisite movements that exuded a certain grace. The man in front of her snorted, before taking all the remaining slices in his plate and eating them whole. The woman stared at him with disdain, before muttering about how "disgusting" that was.
Glenn clapped his hands together, before standing back up. This time, no pressure stopped him from leaving.
"Well, I finished eating, so I'll be on my way. Let's not see each other again, alright ugly?" The young man smiled, using Mana again to clean his hands. The woman raised her head from her plate, looking at him with a puzzled look.
"Who are you talking to? Did you go back to being crazy?" Her eyes went down to the empty plate, and the upper corner of her lips trembled slightly.
"At least we can agree that testicles of beef monsters have a certain taste to them. I only wished to try, but how brave of you to finish the whole plate!" She exclaimed, showing a sun-like smile that could blind anyone staring.
Glenn looked at the plate, then at Milena, then back at the plate, before clenching his teeth and nodding slightly. He quickly left the room, his hands in front of his mouth to try and hold back his retching. Diamanes exploded with laughter from within his mind, having thoroughly enjoyed this small verbal joust.
'...Hahaha...Wait, that's...wow, you're tied again! That was the fiftieth time that happened, and you each won twenty-five times!' Diamanes exclaimed, amazed. Glenn simply shook his head, going on his way. He headed for the Main Hall, ignoring the weird looks of any person he met. He had decided to leave his left hand uncovered for today, to see how people would react.
Strangely, the gazes were simply curious or wary, but no one came to ask him about why would his left arm be damned purple. At least, that meant he could leave it like that. That was a relief, because it always was a pain to cover that arm, always hiding it from anyone's gaze. That was one less thing that would weigh on his mind, at least.
"...And even if someone has a problem with me, I can just beat their ass..." Glenn talked to himself, looking at his left, purple hand in satisfaction. He finally arrived at the Main Hall and went without hesitation to the hallway situated behind the pretty receptionists. They didn't stop him nor even watch him from the corner of their eyes, uncaring. But Glenn knew that these girls, whatever they truly were, could see through his every move. Glenn summoned the equivalent of a credit card and an ID, a delicate golden knife adorned with beautiful and mysterious inscriptions. When he was of Silver-rank, he had a nice silver dagger, but when he went to Gold-rank he had to give the knife back, getting this enhanced version.
Glenn walked in the hallway, the dagger in his hands. He stopped in front of a random wall and planted the knife in a slit there. The dagger slid in without any issue, and the wall trembled, revealing a hidden door. The young man twisted the dagger, using it as the handle. He pushed open the door, entering a room decorated with golden lines on the wall. Magical lights were shining upon what essentially was a Gold-rank reserved dealership. There, Fixer could accept requests at the level of Raids like the one Glenn did in the Blessed Grove. There weren't many requests like such, and more often than not, the Cleaner's Workshop reserved them to give them to specific teams.
Still, a few would come there, and everyone would rush to accept them. The Blessed Grove Raid, instead, was part of the requests reserved by the Workshop, and Glenn had been given the choice to accept it. Raids were very dangerous, but also very rewarding. That's also why the young man came there. Due to the nature of the rewards, they had to be hidden from the common eye to avoid creating any issues for the Fixers. Jealousy and greed were a common default to the human race, and the Cleaner would rather not prompt the less...skillful Fixers to attack their precious Gold or above ranks.
Glenn walked beside the golden contract board and headed for a small booth. He sat down, waiting for a few minutes. Soon enough, the booth seemed to tremble, and the surroundings seemed to shift around the young man. 'It seems almost as intricate as the Magi Brotherhood teleportation...' His curiosity stemming from his side-occupation as a mage couldn't help but ignite, before quickly dying out in front of Sir Reginal who appeared out of nowhere. The gentleman tipped his hat, his mustache jumping around, before sitting in front of Glenn.
"Hello, Sir Glenn. It's good to see you," Reginald smiled, crossing his hands in front of him. The young man smiled back, nodding slightly.
"It's good to see you too, Sir Reginald. I take it you know why I'm here?" The gentleman gently nodded at his words, holding his hand out with an open palm. Glenn unhurriedly gave him his golden knife, holding it from the blade, handle toward Reginald. The latter took it, examining it for a split second, before taking out a small paper from his vest as well as a monocle. He rattled his throat, before reading the contents of the paper.
"So, as the main contributor for the Raid of the Blessed Forest, deemed as Gold-Rank but re-evaluated to Dark-Gold, as well as for the defense of the Cleaner's Workshop, Gold-Rank Fixer Glenn shall be awarded with two choices: a lump sum of a hundred gold coins, or a rank-up to Dark-Gold rank alongside an opportunity to receive a Recommendation from the Gold Church. These two offers are non-negotiable, and both must be received after signing a non-disclosure treaty about the Blessed Grove's events. Signed, Head Cleaner Director, Manalok Calopea Truant," Reginal gasped, before drawing in a few breaths. The text had been long, and it seemed like he was a little surprised at the text's contents. He looked at Glenn with amazed eyes, before pushing the paper toward Glenn alongside a pen.
"Well, here are your choices, young man. Which will you take?" Glenn picked the paper, and read through its contents again, thinking deeply about the two deals. On one hand, receiving a hundred gold directly would allow him to go straight to King's Rise Third Circle, the Bourgeoisie while leaving quite a sum to fund his life. On the other hand, getting to Dark-Gold rank would give him tremendous benefits within the Cleaner's Workshop, and he would also receive a chance to get a free pass with the Gold Church. Glenn took the pen and stared at the paper for a few seconds before signing.
He had chosen, and the deal was done.