"Hello! You're back, assassin! Welcome back home!" says Sean to me, full of manly joy, "Where have you been all this time? How many moons and winters have passed since your disappearance?
I know what you did to the Emperor. It caused a lot of chaos all over Arcadia, huh? You better not show yourself wearing that armour at Shaitan city by the south."
"I've been better. And how can you see through my cape?"
"I am wearing an enchanted ring, don't you remember? I use it during infiltration, while you have potions to help you with such dirty jobs.
Come and drink with us by the guild bar in the city's underground. You still remember the password, don't you?"
"Silence is Bliss?"
"No, that's for the Darkened Path! It's Cupcakes."
"Cupcakes? Why on Inferno would you give your guild password that name?"
"By the Celestials! There was a raid that happened recently, you see. Some of the guards hate being pushed around by us nowadays, so they stopped being corrupt and wanted the city to be a safer place for everyone.
They made us look like fools and used the password we created for the guild, so anyone with it could enter. So, we know who our people are. But one of the members here was a rat. Snitched on us and took a lot of gold for such a reward.
I suspect it's Banewulf, he's been suspiciously too happy recently, and I asked him where he got the gold from.
He persists in telling us that he became a better thief when he was our worst member that could not even pickpocket a homeless person. He must have felt angry, but if he were to flee from the city to another place, we could have easily tracked him down by paying The Darkened Path a contract to kill him with the gold we got.
But sadly, we don't have much gold anymore. So, what brings you here to your old home? I hope your home isn't that terrible assassin brotherhood you have.
You were our best thief and infiltrator, our money was never enough for you, but we understand."
"That's why I am here actually. I have way too much gold here in this very luggage. Nothing but gold. And I need your help stealing all devices from every city you could ever find, and bring it to me."
"Well! This is quite the miracle, then! Everyone! We are back on the game!"
Everyone cheered happily.
"So, how much are you giving us?"
"Ten million gold, just to find every single device on the surface of Arcadia. From every scholar, from every sorcerer college, from every library, and everywhere you could ever find. You could also use this gold to keep the operation going and recruit more members. Donate to the members as soon as they first join, use the gold to invest into training them into better thieves, and so on."
"By the Celestials! You are extremely smart! Back then, I remember you were only smart by making potions. Hey, do you know a potion that could make me super smart?"
"Sadly, no. But you can have coffee, helps you focus."
"What is… 'coffee'?"
I brought up the only ingredients I needed, which all came from under the surface of the world called the Underworld, where many plants can be seen. Still, it is pretty dangerous because of the so-called 'mutated animals that used to be expected until they mutated into monstrous and foul beasts.
"Can I use your alchemy lab?"
"Of course, you can!"
Then, I mixed everything, boiled the needed things, brewed it into completion, and handed it to Sean.
"Gah! This tastes so terrible!"
"Let me put a bit of sugar and milk into it."
"Milk?! I am no milk drinker! Those are for children!"
"Trust me, it will be worth your while. You can even have a side business by opening a shop and legally sell this stuff."
I added what I needed, and then he drank it.
"It tastes amazing! O-Oh! My mind! What is happening? Oh… oh…! Amazing!"
"See? It doesn't only taste good, also feels good. I have a couple more ingredients here that could suit your taste."
I got a bit off track and started brewing more coffee until he began to acting extremely hyperactive. So, the only way to calm him down was the wine. And it did work.
"If you ever think of quitting this illegal job, consider making a new life with these ingredients and open up a shop. Everyone will love it, I assure you." I told Sean, "But I am not endorsing you to quit your passion. I'm telling you just in case. I have the beans here that could be enough to grow your own farm with them."
"Wait, about the job you wanted. You wanted all of us to scatter all across Arcadia and steal those devices, but what did you have in mind to do with them? I beg the question on why would you want them to begin with?"
"It's hard to explain, but I am trying to save the world from causing an apocalypse. If they manage to revive those devices, it could be chaotic to the rest of the world. Not just Arcadia."
"I suppose I wouldn't know anything about that stuff since I am not intelligent me-self to learn about these sorts anyway. I heard they were created by an ancient race and randomly disappeared. But some say a few live in the Underworld, trying to find a way to survive. They say that they created these inventions too. But you wouldn't believe me this, but I did encounter one myself, and they were crazy!
I could not understand a thing they were saying, and they just attacked me! I don't know if they were trying to attack me or ask for help. Poor sods… they look like one of us, but they look as if they're no longer human by how they act."
"Just do the job, I'll leave the gold here." I dropped the bag of gold from my back onto the ground, "It's all yours, do what you want with it, but be smart about it."
"Don't you fret, assassin! We are thieves, we know what to do with our money, unlike you gambled them away and thought of joining the Darkened Path for more of it though. Heh, heh…!"
"Alright. Also, more importantly, I need information such as journals, notes, documents, manuscripts, and books. Anything you could find regarding their study if you could steal one."
"Heh, heh, no problem. You are our loyal client. You don't need to do anything else here. Just leave, we will all take care of it, unless you want to stay to talk with your old friends here."
"No, thanks. I have to get back home."
"To your shady brotherhood… pfft!"
"No, I retired. And it's not just a brotherhood, women can join in too. What makes you think there are also female assassins that dominate than the rest of the entire clan?"
"Yeah, you're right. Now, go. We're just happy to see you again, old friend."