"Here you go, Sir" An old man opened the door to a room.

The old man was a wizened figure, his skin leathery and etched with wrinkles. His head was devoid of any hair and his eyes were a deep black. He was dressed in a fairly new robe of a deep, rich purple. He carried a long wooden staff, which he leaned on heavily as he walked. He moved slowly and deliberately, minding each step.

The door opened, revealing a small room. It was cramped with a single bed pushed up against one wall. The bed was just a bed frame with no mattress or pillows. A small tea table was placed beside the bed frame. The tea table had both of the empty drawers open.

A small window let the sunlight in revealing a simple wooden dresser on the opposite wall. The room, despite being small and lacking luxury, had a cosy and welcoming feel.

"As discussed, the rent is 1500 Rais per month. The communal bathroom is outside but you can enter it through a small corridor from downstairs. That is free of charge, but a monthly 500 Rais is charged for its maintenance" the old man informed.

"And it's a road facing window right?" Hemon asked.

"See for yourself. You have to buy your own mattress, pillows, night lamps and other things you might need. I don't provide those things. Only thing I will provide is regular cleaning.

A servant will come every day to clean your room and knock on your door in the morning. If you let her in then you'll have to keep the door open until cleaning is finished. While she is cleaning your room you must stand outside along with me as I will also accompany her.

A monthly charge of 500 Rais for cleaning will be charged in addition to the room rent" the old man finished.

"Can I use my own lock?" Hemon asked.

"Yes you can just don't lose this key" he handed over a key to Hemon.

"Alright, I'll take it" Hemon said.

"Then let's go downstairs and finish the paperwork" the old man turned around and slowly walked downstairs.

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Early in the morning Roza was handed a decree to be read in the market district. While he was used to reading decrees, on this day, this particular decree was a very important one. The decree contained the approval seal of both the Order as well as the Governor's.

He diligently made his way to the centre of the market. Hawkers and merchants had just set up their shops while people were trickling in to shop. Roza was escorted by two guards whose task was to keep him safe and to help him keep up with the schedule.

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One of the guards placed a small stool on the ground. Roza did a final check of his well pressed robes before standing on the stool. He unfurled a piece of paper which he was holding and began to read it aloud in a clear voice while hoping he doesn't make a mistake.

"To all citizens of Raison, I, Anita Srivats, Governor of Raison, is delighted to announce a grand two day celebration, slotted to occur at the end of this week.

Raison will be hosting a very high level delegates from other cities at the end of this week and to welcome and honour them in true Raisonian fashion have directed the Order to plan and host a grand two day celebration in our own Srivats Arena.

The Order has once again risen up to the challenge and has decided to host two battle royales for each Orphan Class fighters as well as for the Professional Class fighters.

The Order has also decided to host the first ever championship defence of the current champion of Raison, Jann 'O' Bollo as the main event of the celebration.

I hope to see all of you there and help me welcome our esteemed guests!

This order is read by the decree of her Ladyship, Anita Srivats, Governor of Raison!!"

Roza's voice was ringing out across the market district as he read the order. People listened silently at first, but by the end of the announcement a cheer went up in the crowd as the people became excited.

Roza stepped down from the stool, rolled the decree and made his way out of that place and onto his next destination, the port.

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The main hallway in the headquarters of the Order was buzzing and packed with people.

Hemon was confused at first, but upon reading the big notice which hung on the notice board cleared up his confusion.

An announcement of a new tournament has got the entire armed combat scene excited. Thankfully, he had gone to write his new residential address in the record book of the Order.

The list of the participants was hanging beside the announcement notice. It was surprising that Orphan Class fighters were going to take part in this two day celebration alongside the professionals.

His name was on top of the list of the invitees from the Orphan Class fighters along with Charlot and Sasa's names. They were placed in second and third place respectively.

After standing in line for nearly an hour, he finally accomplished his work as well as confirmed his participation in the newly announced tournament. He was about to walk out of the Order hallway when a beautiful lady approached him.

"Excuse me, Mr Hemon I presume?" She inquired.

"Yes" he replied.

She looked around before asking him, "Could we talk some place else?"

"Sure" he shrugged.

"Excellent! I know just the right place" she led Hemon out of the Order hallway with a sly grin on her face.

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The third floor of the Order headquarter housed an in-house bar for members.

The walls of the bar are adorned with paintings of different scenes of legendary matches and small busts of different fighters.

The bar had a section where it was dimly lit by the warm glow of lanterns and candles, casting a welcoming atmosphere within the otherwise windowless areas of the bar. There were other sections where it was illuminated by the rays of the sunlight coming from numerous windows on the wall during the day.

The dimly lit section acted as the private section of the bar, reserved typically for VIP guests and patrons. This section had handcrafted furnitures and personal wait staff.

The woman led Hemon to this section and they were promptly seated at a private table.

Hemon felt the more he gazed at her, the more he found himself getting lost in her brown eyes. Under the lights of the lanterns and candles, she glowed like a golden beauty because of her brown complexion.

She had bound her black hair in a nice bun. Her lips were the colour of light brown that was equally mesmerising as her sharp eyes. They were full and plump which was both alluring and inviting.

She was dressed in a red gown, the deep neckline cut low to reveal a hint of her ample cleavage. The gown hugged her curves in all the right places, showcasing her toned figure and highlighting her natural beauty.

"Is this place to your liking, Mr Hemon?" She asked, finally attempting to start a conversation after waiting a few minutes. Hemon felt as if she was giving his eyes time to gaze at her. Her smirk seemed to hint that feeling.

"Yes… honestly this is my first time visiting this bar" he confessed.

"Is that so… then I'm sure you'll like it. The Order maintains a high standard and this place serves the best fried prawns I have ever tasted. It is to die for" she informed him.

"I'll take your word for it, Miss…" he asked her in an attempt to find out her name.

"Oh! How rude of me to not introduce myself" she smiled which Hemon found himself liking.

"My name is Neja of the Broads family" she introduced herself.

Hemon asked "What can I do for you, Miss Neja?"

Neja smiled once more before continuing, "My family owns a shipping business. We have been in that business for four generations.

However, in recent times we have decided to branch ourselves onto other area of opportunities also and one of which is starting a newly created stable in the Order.

So, I was just asking if you would consider the idea of joining our family?"