"You shall escort this Young Master back to his residence." A young voice called out to, cutting through Nylarthog's exhausted haze.
“Wha...?” Nylarthog asked, half asleep, the adrenaline high from earlier already leaving him.
“I demand you to escort this Young Master to his residence!” The same voice said, probably belonging to the boy standing in the alley the thugs had been crowding in, his lips at least moved, so it should be that boy.
“I’m too tired for this, find someone else to play with.”
The young master's face twisted in anger at Nylarthog's refusal, even if it looked more like a pout, kinda cute, now that Nylarthog thought about it.
“This Young Master demands your compliance!”
“And this random person you are expecting to do anything is way too tired, you aren’t even paying me.” Maybe he should just rest on the dead bodies on the ground, they looked comfortable.
“Serving this Young Master is a great honor and more remuneration than you could ever expect.” Where had this kid even learned words like remuneration anyway?
“But it won’t buy me a place to sleep now, will it?”
“This Young Master will offer you a bed to rest in at his own residence, along with a warm meal and a bath if you so desire.” The young master declared, standing tall and proud as if he had just made a grand gesture of kindness.
Nylarthog couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the offer. This kid was definitely over the top, but a bed did sound good right about now. He gave a shrug and replied, “Sure, why not? Lead the way, Young Master.”
The young master beamed with joy at Nylarthog's acceptance, and gestured for him to follow. As they made their way through the city streets, Nylarthog was sure that as soon as he stopped walking he would fall asleep, even the constant talking of the Young Master wasn’t helping any, it all became part of the background noise, lulling him even further.
Nylarthog barely noticed when they finally arrived, which was followed by some talking, he wasn’t addressed though, or at least he couldn’t remember anyone talking to him, and then finally someone leading him into an opulent room with the most comfy couch he was sure he ever sat on.
He didn’t even notice the patriarch of the house entering, having already fallen deep asleep.
The next thing Nylarthog knew, he was waking up to the smell of food. He groggily opened his eyes to see a servant bringing a tray of food over to him. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, taking a moment to remember where he was and how he had gotten there.
He vaguely recalled walking to the young master’s residence with said boy, but the details were fuzzy. Looking around the room, he realized that he was in a luxurious guest room, with silk sheets and plush pillows. The room was tastefully decorated with expensive artwork and furniture, and the windows offered a breathtaking view of the city below.
Nylarthog shook his head, trying to clear the sleep from his mind. He was in possibly hostile territory, it was bad enough that he had been that exhausted, though he didn’t know why, he hadn’t exactly done anything tiring.
That was, until he felt dried blood in his hair. While it wasn’t a definitive proof, he likely had gotten a concussion when he had been thrown against a wall by the explosion.
For a moment he considered just leaving, but he may be able to get some kind of reward for probably saving some rich man’s son, and they had served him food. He didn’t immediately eat it of course, only after testing if it was poisoned or drugged. But it didn’t seem that way, and if they had wanted to do anything they could have while he had been asleep.
Nylarthog slowly sat up and began to eat the meal that had been brought to him. It was delicious, with a variety of fruits, bread, and meats. Whoever had cooked was good, as in ‘give the guy a medal’ good.
As he ate, he noticed that the dried blood on his hair was flaking off onto the silk sheets, the bloody silk sheets, so it didn’t make much a difference.
But he didn’t want to unnecessarily annoy someone who still had to pay him, so he looked around for a cloth to clean himself up with, and spotted a small towel hanging on a nearby rack. He reached for it and started to wipe the dried blood from his hair and face. As he did, he caught a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror hanging on the wall.
He was surprised at what he saw. His hair was a mess, with clumps of dried blood sticking to it. There was also blood on his face and clothing, his head wound had to have bled more than he expected if he even got blood on his face, or it were some splatters he had been hit with in the fight against the thugs.
Nylarthog sighed, realizing that he looked like a complete mess. He should probably ask for a shower to clean himself up, and a new set of clothes, no need to buy them himself if he could mooch them off someone.
Nylarthog put down the towel and finished his meal. He was starting to feel better, and the food had given him some energy. He got up from the couch and walked towards the door, intending to find someone to ask for a shower and clothes, who knew how long he would have to wait otherwise.
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As he opened the door, he was unsurprised to see a servant already waiting there, one wouldn't let a stranger unsupervised walk around in ones house after all.
“Master has ordered for a bath to be arranged for you once you are ready, sir,” the servant said, with a polite bow.
Nylarthog nodded. “Thank you,” he said. “Is there a spare set of clothes I could borrow as well? I’m afraid I had a bit of a scuffle earlier and my clothes are a bit…damaged.”
“Of course, sir. I will have some clothes prepared while you bathe,” the servant replied, gesturing for Nylarthog to follow him.
Nylarthog followed the servant down a hallway and into a spacious room with a large pool, being rich did have his perks, he should probably try that in the future. Steam rose from the water, and the scent of lavender filled the air. The servant showed him where to find towels and soap before excusing himself to fetch the clothes.
Nylarthog undressed and got into the tub, letting out a contented sigh as the warm water enveloped him. He scrubbed himself clean, taking care to wash the dried blood out of his hair. After a while, he got out and dried himself off with a fluffy towel before putting on the clothes the servant had left for him.
The clothes were a bit large for him, but they were clean and comfortable. He looked at himself in the mirror and was relieved to see that he no longer looked like a complete mess.
Outside he was once again greeted by a servant. “Master Nevaeh expects you in his study,” the servant said.
Assuming that it was the father of the ‘Young Master’ the servant was referring to, he followed the servant to the study.
When they arrived at the study, the servant knocked on the door and announced Nylarthog’s presence before opening the door for him. Nevaeh was seated at his desk, looking at some papers. He glanced up as Nylarthog entered, then gestured for him to take a seat in one of the chairs in front of the desk.
“Mr. Nylarthog, I trust you had a good meal and a refreshing bath?” Nevaeh asked, in a polite tone.
One that didn’t help calm him down, while he had missed it when entering, he had now noticed a butler staying next to a curtain, one whose cultivation was probably above the Elemental Attunement Realm.
“Yes, thank you,” Nylarthog replied, not about to offend someone who had such a dangerous butler.
Nevaeh nodded. “Good to hear. Now, let’s get down to business,” he said, leaning forward on his desk. “It seems that you have a talent that could be useful to me.”
That was not surprising for Nylarthog, teleportation boons weren’t exactly common, and he had been seen using it in the fight.
“And I would like to hire you to escort my son wherever he goes. If you were to accept you would of course have to sign a binding contract, but I am sure that that won’t be a problem.”
“What would the payment look like, and what exactly would I be expected to do?”
Nevaeh smiled. “I’m glad you asked. The payment would be generous, I assure you. And as for your duties, you would be responsible for ensuring the safety of my son as he travels. You would accompany him on his journeys and use your teleportation to quickly move him out of danger if necessary. It’s a simple job, really. And as I said, the compensation would be quite substantial.”
“Just to make sure, I won’t be expected to fight. Only, to take him somewhere else if he is in serious danger.”
“Yes, that, and to always keep your anti-scrying boon active.”
That made him freeze, he didn’t know of any such boon, did the Level Up grant him any boons?
Name: Nylarthog, the Lord of Unholy Entropy and Languor
Level: 1 EXP: 91.4/10,000
Abilities: None
Boons: Fast Travel, Personalized Soundtrack, Multilingualism
Traits: Slothful, Amoral, Socially Retarded, Strange Mind, Lover of Quotes, Fiction Lover
Shop: Null
Inventory: Null
Bio: A homeless system host.
No, no changes so far, other than the Level Up, and he also didn’t think that the system was shielding him.
“I am not aware that I have any such thing.”
Nevaeh raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Really? None of my associates have been able to gather any information about you using such means. No matter, I will just change the contract so that it will automatically terminate should you become scryable again.”
That sounded too good to be true, there had to be a catch, “And why exactly me, I’m sure a man of your abilities would find it easy to find someone who you know you can trust. And why is my cloaking from scrying relevant if people could simply target your son?”
After Nylarthog asked that, he realized how stupid that question was, the son may be unscryable as well. An object that protected against scrying was unlikely, as if such a thing existed there would be no need to hire an outsider.
“Because if you can’t scry someone, then you also can’t scry on people who are close to that person, as they would be influenced by something that is hidden from the heavens, and therefore act differently from what the heavens expect. As for your other question, I need someone who is not known to my enemies, someone who can move swiftly and without attracting attention. And from what I have seen, you possess those qualities.”
Nylarthog considered this for a moment before nodding. “Then I’m sure we can come to an agreement.”
“Then please read through the following contract and sign below if you are ok with these terms. Just know that you won’t be able to break any of the clauses of the contract as it is binding.”
That came as a surprise to Nylarthog, not the fact that it was a binding contract, even if he hadn’t seen one of them, this was a cultivation world, contracts had to be enforceable somehow, but the fact that he was reminded of that fact.
But after a moment of consideration, it wasn’t too strange, if he were to be forced against his will, he would probably try to somehow get around the contract, which could pose a risk to Nevaeh’s son.
What then followed were, what felt like, a few hours going over the exact terms of the contract concerning what he would be provided as part of his job, what would be payment, how long the contract would last, what exactly he had to do, compensation for failing to fulfill the contract, compensation for injuries while fulfilling his job, and whatever else came up.
“The information you required will be compiled and given to you together with the phone within the day.”
To Nylarthog’s surprise phones did exist, but they were rare, just as any other somewhat advanced technological device as they had to be protected from various types of energy and radiation.
“Then I will go to your son, I would just need to know where he is at the moment.”
“Of course, a servant will guide you to him,” then he turned towards a servant standing at the side, “He should be in his gaming room. Tell him to stop, his time is over anyway.”