My shirt ripped itself apart and reformed around my fun-sized attacker, she tried to step back, but by then, it was too late. Legs first, the threads climbed and ensnared her until her entire body lay covered with only her head exposed. Kicking against her cloth confinement, Gemma resembled a swaddled baby unready for rest.

"I'll fucking kill you!"

"Gemma, that's enough," Bert called out.

He approached me with a kerchief in hand and passed it over. I hesitantly accepted and used it to stop any more blood from gushing out of my face.

"I'm sorry for what I did, Mercy," Berthold said, stepping away from us. "Just so you know, I'm going to save Nev. With or without your help."

"Boss?" Gemma called out.

"I'm not your boss anymore. You made that deal." Berthold looked me in the eye. "Good luck."

He patted Gemma on the head and took a couple steps away from us.

"Bert, stop."

He turned back, with tears welling in his eyes.

"Tell me what you know," I demanded.

Rings of smoke rolled across the room, colliding with the table I stood at the head of. A table of half strangers stood around me, arguing amongst themselves and ignoring me in the process. Berthold sat by my side as a mischievous grin spread across his face. He probably remembered our conversation where he introduced his crew members and their unique traits. I should've guessed why he had no issue relinquishing control to me. Organizing his crew would be like herding cats that also happened to be on fire.

"Alright, everyone, if we could just settle down," I said, with my voice drowned out by the screams of others.

Each person at the table had their own grand plan. Schemes they claimed were so original and well thought out that even considering another's plan would be a complete waste of their time.

"People, please!" I shouted, still warranting no reaction.

Bert and Gemma sat by either side of me in silence. However, the other half of the table engaged in a heated debate.

"Idiots! Just let me spell it out for you." The brute at the end shouted above the rest.

Daburu had one of the most unique feats I had seen yet. Exotic Feat: Split Decision is what Broke informed me it was called. It allowed the user to divide themselves but at a severe cost, being only able to split up the parts they already possessed. Apparently, the conservation of mass works also worked in this world. The result of this was, at max, three scrawny dwarves with the combined intellectual ability of one man. Unfortunately, even fully intact, his plan lacked merit.

"Every week or so, Dulcrois lets someone new into the city. What we do is take turns waiting at the north and south gate. When someone passes through we explain the city's toll system to them. Then when they can't pay... BOOM, they owe us."

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

"But what happens if someone who 'owes' us finds out we tricked them. Then tells the city watch, or god forbid, sends a Ray after us." The spectacled woman beside Daburu spoke out.

"Then, the plan adapts!" Daburu countered.

"There's no adapting a plan that bad, dude." A long-haired man beside Bert said through a plume of smoke, leading back to the three in a heated debate.

I sat down in frustration. Gemma shot me a look, sighed in disappointment, then stood.

"The next person that speaks gets my foot shoved so far up their ass I could cut my toenails with their teeth," Gemma shouted.

After her ultimatum was met with a resounding silence, she nodded in my direction.

"Berthold has gathered you here because we have a plan, but we need your help."

"Yeah?! And who the hell are you?" Daburu stood from his chair.

Gemma shot him a death glare, and he sheepishly sat back down.

"That's a fair question, Daburu. Berthold has been kind enough to inform me about your respective histories, strengths, and weaknesses. So it only seems fair that I should do the same." I took a breath as the crew looked on in silent curiosity. "My name is Mersault Hood, and up until two days ago, I was an indentured servant to the Crafters. Also, I'm responsible for burning down half the city of Salinel."

"That was you?"

"I think I heard of that."

"You burned who down?"

"With introductions out of the way," I continued, ignoring their questions. "You were brought here to work and earn more than you have in your entire life. This will be dangerous, and the consequences for failure range from expulsion from the city to death. With this in mind, are you all still willing?"

"I'm in."

"No way I'm quitting now, dude!"

"You're just making it sound even sweeter, new guy."

Berthold had told me offering the newest members a chance to leave would be pointless, but given his questionable character, I thought it ethically best to offer.

"Great. Then as for the job," I threw down an assortment of blueprints and personnel files onto our work table. "We'll be robbing the DeBrazier family's vault while they're hosting the collection celebration."

The mousy girl gasped as the long-haired man coughed up puffs of smoke. Daburu maintained his scowl, unphased.

"This isn't a job. It's suicide!"

"Woah, that is, like, a big one."

"I have no idea who that is."

"There will be three teams of two with three separate objectives.

The primary objective is locating and retrieving an individual from this event that will be working security.

The secondary objective will be to raid the DeBrazier family's vault.

Finally, the tertiary aim will be to secure the cess being collected tonight by the city officials."

"Pretty lofty goals." Berthold's tall spectacled friend observed. "What are we talking about as far as cuts?"

"As far as items from the vault, Berthold will have the first pick, then Gemma. The rest of you can draw straws for order past that point, or however you want to decide, I couldn't really care." I replied.

"And the cess?" Daburu asked.

"Split five ways."

The burnout counted on his fingers, then pointed around the table. "But, like, there's six of us, dude?"

"Seven, if you count the security we'll be smuggling out," their spectacled companion corrected. "What's in it for you?"

"Everything is in it for me." I paused, considering how much to reveal in front of a group of strangers and those proven untrustworthy. "I was greedy before. Didn't think about what freedom I could lose or what could be taken from me."

I stood up and began organizing the blueprints and ledgers across the table.

"It won't happen again," I said, eyes locked onto Berthold.

He met my gaze, unblinking.

I gathered wood shavings and an assortment of dyes into the palm of my hand. Then focused on creating a familiar shape in front of my newly formed team. As I raised my palm from the table's surface, wood chunks reformed themselves while colors bound to their appointed areas. I based the likeness on when I saw them fighting in the Hippodrome. They had cut their long blonde locks into a tight buzzcut with twisted wooden armor wrapping the left side of Nev's body and their legs.

"Woah, did you just pull that out of the table?" Leif asked as smoke poured from his mouth.

"No, he made it." Durella corrected.

She just used her Unique Feat: Perspicacious Vision.

She pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose, revealing disproportionate eyes compared to the rest of her face.

"Squad A's primary objective will be locating and extracting Nev. This team will consist of myself and Daburu." Daburu nodded in my direction in acknowledgment.