KEI’S ASSISTANT
My first pay has come after 30 days of work. I got the pay from Kei by check. We have a weekend off so I paid my bills for the next month, and I visited the undercity market to get my executor sword maintained.
“Oh hell no.”
Paul is an independent smith I visit to help fix up my weapons. He approaches me with his hammer and stops me from taking a another step. That rugged prosthetic augment of his holding that hammer could scare anyone. I saw it bend metal like nothing once.
“You walk in here with another sword from another smith? Boy, did you not understand the rules and taboo!?”
I nod without a fuss. I took the spare sword out of my belt and placed it on the box outside of his Smithery. It's a taboo to bring another sword inside without the permission of the shop's blacksmith. I went back in and drew my executor sword and my pistol out for him to examine.
Castor and Pollux. The sword is Castor and the gun is Pollux. He takes Castor and Pollux gently like it was his precious babes and then places them on his work table.
“The cells are dead. The blade’s dull. Pollux remained unused. Are you even going to fire the explosive rounds?”
“One day.”
He takes the mag out and raises a brow.
“You did use two rounds.”
He takes two rounds out from his drawer and loads the mag with it. He picks up Castor and grins.
“But Castor here is dulled and used. How much MEAT did you cut to get this fella dulled? Look at this,” he takes the cells out. “You even used it even after the cell died.”
“Can you fix it?”
“I can. But you sure are a cheap guy. Only coming here to fix it when it’s dulled!”
He takes a new cell out and inserts it into the hilt’s unit. He puts the blade back to his furnace and starts doing his magic. After waiting for three hours, he takes the blade from the forge and spends an hour sharpening it.
“It’s done. Your Castor is back in business and the Pollux fully loaded and maintained.”
I took out the cash and retrieved my sword and gun. Paul counts the bills I paid him while annoyingly using a magnifying glass to check every part of the bill.
“Who owns you now, by the way?”
“I paid my debts. NO ONE owns me anymore. I’m now under the employment of Kei’s Office as their assistant.”
“Smelled paper and ink on you. No wonder. How’s work there?”
“Okay. It’s a small office. Comfortable enough and it’s probably the best one I joined.”
“Coming from you… that’s quite the evaluation. Did you finally get a break and got into the arms of decent people?”
“Two days ago. We snitched on a client after seeing his abnormalities. OB Agents captured the man and cleansed him. I heard they gutted him.”
“Seems decent to me.”
“Better than usual. I can work with them well.”
“Good. It’s a shame to see you waste your time on those awful Offices you work before.”
“Thanks.”
He sits on his stool.
“Question now is whether you’re going to buy new gear or what.”
I think back to what this body wanted. I think I want the clawed gauntlet that this body has been trying to acquire for a long time now.
“Ah, I almost thought you forgot about that.”
He takes the gauntlet out of storage. The gauntlet covers the forearm and the hand completely. On the back of the gauntlet is a grappling unit connected to a power cell that emits electricity.
It’s a high-maintenance device similar to the Castor and Pollux I’m carrying. I couldn't hold back my desire so I gave up and bought it from him.
Paul fitted the device on my left arm.
“Looks good if I say so myself.”
I activate the gauntlet. The claws came out, after a second the electricity crackled on it.
“It’s working.”
“It’s made by me. I ain’t going to scam you if you paid me neatly.”
Paul counts the bills I paid him again. While he was counting I took a look at the device installed in his shop.
“Your augment detector isn’t working.”
Paul walks up to the augment detector and tinkers with it for a minute. The lights on the detector lit up. There is only one augmented detected in the building. Paul tinkers with the detector to whitelist him.
“How are things here by the way?”
“So-so. But the need for weapons keeps the businesses afloat. There’s no shortage of weapons and not that anyone tries to steal business. Bigger workshops earn more, but not to the point that it leaves small businesses like mine starving for some customers. Bout you? You paid a lot for that gauntlet. Are you sure you can stay afloat?”
“Might have to eat artificial meals for the month.”
Paul shakes his head.
“Look at this fool. Complaining about having a meal for a day!”
“Don’t mistake me. I’d eat any food as long as I can live another day, but if you have the cash, don’t you want to eat a real meal? Not those artificial stuff.”
Paul nods his head and stores his cash in a safe box.
“Hard not to agree. But it's been expensive lately and I had to save up. Well, not anymore with the cash I have right now.”
I shrug my shoulders.
“You're probably going to find some materials and buy it out of whim.”
Paul is one of those who can’t keep doing what they like. He is a person who keeps on making things until he can’t afford to do so.
I look at my phone.
“I’ll be going now. Thanks for the upgrade, Paul.”
Paul crosses his arm.
“Stay alive. Hard to find a loyal customer these days.”
“Thanks Paul.”
I pick up my spare sword from the box and inserts it back on my belt's holder. The Undercity market is always selling a wide variety of goods, and weapons. The butcher’s place is one of the places that the Hunters visit. These Freelancers are usually employed by the Anomaly Hunter Center. It is under the OB, but is more flexible when it comes to hiring and payment. You aren’t obligated to any contracts, but the downside is you don’t get the benefits of any affiliated offices.
Regeneration is available to the affiliates of the Otherside Bureau. They get a massive discount and those who want to get their limbs back are given the privilege of it.
I stand in front of the boards. I notice that they are paying quite an amount to hunt down a Draugr hiding around the Outer Districts.
“Can you move?”
A person said. I got out of the way. I palmed the pommel of my executor for a while before shaking my head.
***
Asobe street is different from Undercity Market. I can actually smell the air here. It’s acrid and there’s a lot of exhaust smoke and the mix smell of the people passing me by is irritating, but is still better than the air in the Undercity.
I took a look at the 3-story office building before leaving the street to find the noodle shop I’ve been hoping to eat at.
I ordered a beef noodle and spent an hour loitering around the seat before getting out of the shop before I give them a reason to kick me out.
Changye isn’t exactly a place where you can relax. It’s crowded. There is no place of leisure other than the red light streets that don't seem to rest.
The Neon Quarters are famous for their lights. It is the biggest place in Lower Changye that serves everyone their favorite vice. It is a money stealing place full of traps and games that will make you penniless if you dip your toes into it.
My previous company, before the company that fell into a flesh pit, was fond of sending their employees into an affiliated company in the Quarter to recycle their money back to them.
They will take their employees into the brothel and persuade them into paying for the most expensive alcohol and girls. The employees are always willing to spend despite finding out the next morning they spent most of their salary on alcohol and sex. The women are mostly focused on the alcohol and was equally robbed.
I was in debt to the company so I have no cash to pull out. They can’t force me either since my status did not grant me the rights to get a loan or get a debt to spend. Not to mention it is far more troublesome to convince me when the process of any loan or debt can take days. So no one bothers to include me in their debauchery.
Not to mention that the higher executives running the place are snorting product after product and getting their heads dulled and I need to watch their backs. Still, the pay is good in that company, so the cycle continued until they just gave up and offered their innards to the company.
I look around me and sigh.
There isn’t a place you can just relax other than your home in this city. With a mutter to the wind, I take a another glance around me before making my way to the service train heading to Lotus Lane.
It is so full because of the weekend that I couldn’t breathe properly until I reached my stop.
Weekends are somewhat troubling in this city.
It is a work day. 1 PM in the afternoon I’m heading to the Central Linkway connecting the Upper and Lower Changye. It is a place where most of the Upper Changye employees always meet up.
Midway Nexus is the central hub full of transportation facilities, such as trains and escalators. Climbing the Nexus using the elevator lift with five thousand people on is usually worrying to the first-timers. I can see the Elemental Arc, the grand architectural masterpiece that marks the division between Upper and Lower Changye, a symbol of unity and balance. It is scarred, beaten, and worn out. It is made of puddle iron and has become rusted after encountering the weather of Changye.
The elevator arrives in the Nexus Heights. I stroll the large lanes of Nexus Heights. It is clean here. The smell of cold air. The sterilized environment shows that it is near Upper Changye. Up there it even smells even worse.
The café I am looking for is small. The one I am meeting on behalf of my office is sitting outside of a café, next to the black iron arrowhead fencing. I stand in front of the person and introduce myself.
“I am the Assistant working on behalf of Kei’s office. Here is my ID.”
I showed him my ID. He takes a cursory glance and nods. He takes a sip of his coffee and orders the waiter for one. It is a black coffee with cream. The smell is definitely a single-origin coffee bean.
“You recognize it.”
“It’s Ethiopian. I was able to roast one from my previous employment.”
“I see.”
I prepare the documents and he reads them thoroughly while I enjoy my own coffee.
“I see that Miss Kei is earning enough to employ another person. This is acceptable for an office of her size.”
The Shichinin no Ken representative is pleased by it.
“This amount of information regarding the anomalies will reach a hefty price itself."
I also show them the finances of the office and the request that Kei has put up. She usually does this with Eta, but since they were busy, someone has to show up and deliver this.
“Then I must presume that Miss Kei and Eta are currently dealing with an Anomaly?”
“That is correct.”
He nods and writes down a note with his right hand. He begins talking about the policies of the Shichinin no Ken. The Seven Swords is a company that mostly focuses on battling monsters, cryptids, and the anomalies that are spawned in this city. Their products are usually from the creatures defeated by the Agents and they are one of the few Associations that provide information about their hunts for a hefty price.
After a long conversation. The representative agreed to change nothing about the contract with the Shichinin no Ken and Kei’s office. We shook hands and prepared to leave.
As I was about to go back to Lower Changye. The Representative from Shichinin no Ken stops me on my tracks.
“It was a pleasure speaking with you.”
I nod my head and begin walking. As I do, I heard the Representative's muttering.
“Hmm, what was his name again?”
KEI’S ASSISTANT
My first pay has come after 30 days of work. I got the pay from Kei by check. We have a weekend off so I paid my bills for the next month, and I visited the undercity market to get my executor sword maintained.
“Oh hell no.”
Paul is an independent smith I visit to help fix up my weapons. He approaches me with his hammer and stops me from taking a another step. That rugged prosthetic augment of his holding that hammer could scare anyone. I saw it bend metal like nothing once.
“You walk in here with another sword from another smith? Boy, did you not understand the rules and taboo!?”
I nod without a fuss. I took the spare sword out of my belt and placed it on the box outside of his Smithery. It's a taboo to bring another sword inside without the permission of the shop's blacksmith. I went back in and drew my executor sword and my pistol out for him to examine.
Castor and Pollux. The sword is Castor and the gun is Pollux. He takes Castor and Pollux gently like it was his precious babes and then places them on his work table.
“The cells are dead. The blade’s dull. Pollux remained unused. Are you even going to fire the explosive rounds?”
“One day.”
He takes the mag out and raises a brow.
“You did use two rounds.”
He takes two rounds out from his drawer and loads the mag with it. He picks up Castor and grins.
“But Castor here is dulled and used. How much MEAT did you cut to get this fella dulled? Look at this,” he takes the cells out. “You even used it even after the cell died.”
“Can you fix it?”
“I can. But you sure are a cheap guy. Only coming here to fix it when it’s dulled!”
He takes a new cell out and inserts it into the hilt’s unit. He puts the blade back to his furnace and starts doing his magic. After waiting for three hours, he takes the blade from the forge and spends an hour sharpening it.
“It’s done. Your Castor is back in business and the Pollux fully loaded and maintained.”
I took out the cash and retrieved my sword and gun. Paul counts the bills I paid him while annoyingly using a magnifying glass to check every part of the bill.
“Who owns you now, by the way?”
“I paid my debts. NO ONE owns me anymore. I’m now under the employment of Kei’s Office as their assistant.”
“Smelled paper and ink on you. No wonder. How’s work there?”
“Okay. It’s a small office. Comfortable enough and it’s probably the best one I joined.”
“Coming from you… that’s quite the evaluation. Did you finally get a break and got into the arms of decent people?”
“Two days ago. We snitched on a client after seeing his abnormalities. OB Agents captured the man and cleansed him. I heard they gutted him.”
“Seems decent to me.”
“Better than usual. I can work with them well.”
“Good. It’s a shame to see you waste your time on those awful Offices you work before.”
“Thanks.”
He sits on his stool.
“Question now is whether you’re going to buy new gear or what.”
I think back to what this body wanted. I think I want the clawed gauntlet that this body has been trying to acquire for a long time now.
“Ah, I almost thought you forgot about that.”
He takes the gauntlet out of storage. The gauntlet covers the forearm and the hand completely. On the back of the gauntlet is a grappling unit connected to a power cell that emits electricity.
It’s a high-maintenance device similar to the Castor and Pollux I’m carrying. I couldn't hold back my desire so I gave up and bought it from him.
Paul fitted the device on my left arm.
“Looks good if I say so myself.”
I activate the gauntlet. The claws came out, after a second the electricity crackled on it.
“It’s working.”
“It’s made by me. I ain’t going to scam you if you paid me neatly.”
Paul counts the bills I paid him again. While he was counting I took a look at the device installed in his shop.
“Your augment detector isn’t working.”
Paul walks up to the augment detector and tinkers with it for a minute. The lights on the detector lit up. There is only one augmented detected in the building. Paul tinkers with the detector to whitelist him.
“How are things here by the way?”
“So-so. But the need for weapons keeps the businesses afloat. There’s no shortage of weapons and not that anyone tries to steal business. Bigger workshops earn more, but not to the point that it leaves small businesses like mine starving for some customers. Bout you? You paid a lot for that gauntlet. Are you sure you can stay afloat?”
“Might have to eat artificial meals for the month.”
Paul shakes his head.
“Look at this fool. Complaining about having a meal for a day!”
“Don’t mistake me. I’d eat any food as long as I can live another day, but if you have the cash, don’t you want to eat a real meal? Not those artificial stuff.”
Paul nods his head and stores his cash in a safe box.
“Hard not to agree. But it's been expensive lately and I had to save up. Well, not anymore with the cash I have right now.”
I shrug my shoulders.
“You're probably going to find some materials and buy it out of whim.”
Paul is one of those who can’t keep doing what they like. He is a person who keeps on making things until he can’t afford to do so.
I look at my phone.
“I’ll be going now. Thanks for the upgrade, Paul.”
Paul crosses his arm.
“Stay alive. Hard to find a loyal customer these days.”
“Thanks Paul.”
I pick up my spare sword from the box and inserts it back on my belt's holder. The Undercity market is always selling a wide variety of goods, and weapons. The butcher’s place is one of the places that the Hunters visit. These Freelancers are usually employed by the Anomaly Hunter Center. It is under the OB, but is more flexible when it comes to hiring and payment. You aren’t obligated to any contracts, but the downside is you don’t get the benefits of any affiliated offices.
Regeneration is available to the affiliates of the Otherside Bureau. They get a massive discount and those who want to get their limbs back are given the privilege of it.
I stand in front of the boards. I notice that they are paying quite an amount to hunt down a Draugr hiding around the Outer Districts.
“Can you move?”
A person said. I got out of the way. I palmed the pommel of my executor for a while before shaking my head.
***
Asobe street is different from Undercity Market. I can actually smell the air here. It’s acrid and there’s a lot of exhaust smoke and the mix smell of the people passing me by is irritating, but is still better than the air in the Undercity.
I took a look at the 3-story office building before leaving the street to find the noodle shop I’ve been hoping to eat at.
I ordered a beef noodle and spent an hour loitering around the seat before getting out of the shop before I give them a reason to kick me out.
Changye isn’t exactly a place where you can relax. It’s crowded. There is no place of leisure other than the red light streets that don't seem to rest.
The Neon Quarters are famous for their lights. It is the biggest place in Lower Changye that serves everyone their favorite vice. It is a money stealing place full of traps and games that will make you penniless if you dip your toes into it.
My previous company, before the company that fell into a flesh pit, was fond of sending their employees into an affiliated company in the Quarter to recycle their money back to them.
They will take their employees into the brothel and persuade them into paying for the most expensive alcohol and girls. The employees are always willing to spend despite finding out the next morning they spent most of their salary on alcohol and sex. The women are mostly focused on the alcohol and was equally robbed.
I was in debt to the company so I have no cash to pull out. They can’t force me either since my status did not grant me the rights to get a loan or get a debt to spend. Not to mention it is far more troublesome to convince me when the process of any loan or debt can take days. So no one bothers to include me in their debauchery.
Not to mention that the higher executives running the place are snorting product after product and getting their heads dulled and I need to watch their backs. Still, the pay is good in that company, so the cycle continued until they just gave up and offered their innards to the company.
I look around me and sigh.
There isn’t a place you can just relax other than your home in this city. With a mutter to the wind, I take a another glance around me before making my way to the service train heading to Lotus Lane.
It is so full because of the weekend that I couldn’t breathe properly until I reached my stop.
Weekends are somewhat troubling in this city.
It is a work day. 1 PM in the afternoon I’m heading to the Central Linkway connecting the Upper and Lower Changye. It is a place where most of the Upper Changye employees always meet up.
Midway Nexus is the central hub full of transportation facilities, such as trains and escalators. Climbing the Nexus using the elevator lift with five thousand people on is usually worrying to the first-timers. I can see the Elemental Arc, the grand architectural masterpiece that marks the division between Upper and Lower Changye, a symbol of unity and balance. It is scarred, beaten, and worn out. It is made of puddle iron and has become rusted after encountering the weather of Changye.
The elevator arrives in the Nexus Heights. I stroll the large lanes of Nexus Heights. It is clean here. The smell of cold air. The sterilized environment shows that it is near Upper Changye. Up there it even smells even worse.
The café I am looking for is small. The one I am meeting on behalf of my office is sitting outside of a café, next to the black iron arrowhead fencing. I stand in front of the person and introduce myself.
“I am the Assistant working on behalf of Kei’s office. Here is my ID.”
I showed him my ID. He takes a cursory glance and nods. He takes a sip of his coffee and orders the waiter for one. It is a black coffee with cream. The smell is definitely a single-origin coffee bean.
“You recognize it.”
“It’s Ethiopian. I was able to roast one from my previous employment.”
“I see.”
I prepare the documents and he reads them thoroughly while I enjoy my own coffee.
“I see that Miss Kei is earning enough to employ another person. This is acceptable for an office of her size.”
The Shichinin no Ken representative is pleased by it.
“This amount of information regarding the anomalies will reach a hefty price itself."
I also show them the finances of the office and the request that Kei has put up. She usually does this with Eta, but since they were busy, someone has to show up and deliver this.
“Then I must presume that Miss Kei and Eta are currently dealing with an Anomaly?”
“That is correct.”
He nods and writes down a note with his right hand. He begins talking about the policies of the Shichinin no Ken. The Seven Swords is a company that mostly focuses on battling monsters, cryptids, and the anomalies that are spawned in this city. Their products are usually from the creatures defeated by the Agents and they are one of the few Associations that provide information about their hunts for a hefty price.
After a long conversation. The representative agreed to change nothing about the contract with the Shichinin no Ken and Kei’s office. We shook hands and prepared to leave.
As I was about to go back to Lower Changye. The Representative from Shichinin no Ken stops me on my tracks.
“It was a pleasure speaking with you.”
I nod my head and begin walking. As I do, I heard the Representative's muttering.
“Hmm, what was his name again?”
