The night progressed, tavern was filled with people, casting shifting shadows across the room.
The dim, amber light illuminated the barmaid's hands as she shook the cocktail shaker vigorously.
Despite the Big Fall that had occurred only a month ago, the concept of enjoying life still remained deeply rooted in the hearts of those who inhabited this land.
"You simply must provide a place for people to drink on weekends, and the same goes for Monday through Friday."
Adrian muttered as he led Zed through the bustling bar, choosing a quiet corner to sit down.
The table was situated in the upper right corner of the room, with Adrian taking the seat furthest to the right corner.
Just perfectly in that corner.
A few minutes, a hot female bartender gracefully made her way through the crowded room, her confident stride and exposed thigh drawing the attention of patrons as she carried a tray of drinks.
However, Zed does not care that much.
Much to his relief, there were no soft drinks, and he wasn't asked to show his ID.
Adrian wiped the condensation from the glass, the ice cubes clinking faintly as he swirled them.
He suddenly broke the silence.
"I never thought that the first thing people would do after settling down would be filling the ice buckets in bars."
Zed was unsure of what Adrian was trying to convey, so he refrained from responding. The air was heavy with silence for a solid minute.
With no response from Zed, Adrian suddenly raised his glass.
"Shall we have a toast?" he said, with the liquid shimmering brightly under the light.
However, the vibe at the table turned awkward as Adrian was the only one who had raised his glass.
Following suit, Zed lifted his drink, took a sip, and then set it down beside him.
"You don't have to pretend like we're having a business meeting . I think we're already teammates," Zed said with a smile.
Adrian chuckled awkwardly, placing his glass back on the table.
"Kid, actually, there's a job for you," Adrian revealed.
"A job?" Zed asked, surprised.
He had been worried about income. Even though he knew there were a lot opportunities to earn money, he was still frustrated by the lack of startup funds.
If the job didn't pose too much danger, Zed was prepared to accept it. This was the pro of collaborating with the DR —you never had to worry about getting your hands dirty.
Their motto was to save others.
"This job might require getting your hands dirty, boy..." Adrian finally admitted.
Zed almost choked on the last sip of his drink, coughing violently as Lucy patted his back with concern.
Seeing Zed's reaction, Adrian's voice softened as he began to explain:
"It's not really a big deal. We need someone who can move around the big city to help the organization with business deals. Just that."
He pointed out the window towards the silhouette of a distant city. It was called NewFord, a former wealthy neighborhood on the outskirts of Luzmell Following the disaster, the city used highways as materials to construct a wall, calling upon awakened earth magic users to build it.
That was exactly the city Zed had been longing to visit.
"So it's about source dealing, then what do you mean by 'getting your hands dirty'?"
Zed frowned.
The man with white-bearded shook his head with a hint of resignation, sighing.
"You'll have to venture into the dark market to make some deals, and obviously, you'll likely see the dark side of people. And I mean, truly dark."
He paused for a moment before continuing, "But the pays are substantial. We can provide you with a place in the city. You only need to attend a meeting in there every Friday night at 11 PM. The rest of time is completely yours."
He downed his drink, then added:
"I'll give you a list of the idea for accepting missions and information about the team members. You can simply accept any quests B-rank or lower at your discretion. You'll have to help us judge the time limits and details, and you'll get a 10% share. Of course, you can also decide whether to participate in missions to increase your share and earn more money—"
Adrian suddenly stopped, his eyes widening as he stared at the seat next to Zed.
The drink in the glass there was slowly decreasing on its own.
It's fking creepy.
"Two more shots!" Zed waved to the barmaid, receiving an affirmative gesture.
Ignoring the crazily drinking Lucy at his side, Zed thought about Adrian's words.
'Going to the big city? To the underground? Why me? Why the dark market?'
He furrowed his brow harder.
"Most importantly, why would they trust a newbie? From what Adrian said, this job requires a deep understanding of the abilities of the DR's awakens. This information is even more confidential than the missions themselves. Is it just because I knew their number from the beginning?"
He was somewhat uncertain of Adrian's intentions.
The barmaid arrived with the drinks. Zed pushed a glass towards Adrian and asked straight:
"Shall we toast?"
Adrian's eyes remained fixated on the now-empty glass beside the table, unconsciously nodding in agreement.
"Sure."
*clink*
They clinked glasses.
As Zed tilted his head back to drink, his eyes narrowed, peering through the glass at the white-bearded man across the table.
Zed was gradually shedding his excitement over being reborn. Knowing more information ahead of time was indeed a good omen. He could build his own power after obtaining resources, stock up on soon-to-be-hyped Spores like playing Bitcoin before and sell them at a high price. He could become a prophet-like figure, predicting and avoiding risks to gain a following of devoted believers...
He could even find a secluded place to establish a harem, which was not an big deal in the barbaric, chaotic world.
However, that's all 'He could'.
The truth is, he was still weak. Incredibly weak, just like the poker card Adrian handed him—insignificant.
If he continued with the attitude that knowing information ahead of time would make him invincible, he would likely end up being exploited, discarded, and got killed.
After all, in his second life, he chose a completely different path—a path that, although not as difficult as his previous life as a nobody, was in some ways even more dangerous.
He was destined to face more intelligent foes.
After this drink, Zed silently adjusted his view of the DR.
He felt he should alter the image he had of them from his past life, influenced by public opinion that the DR only did good deeds. No organization could reach the top by only doing good deeds, at least not in the early stages.
As for what happens after achieving success, history is written by the victors.
At that time, the line between angels and demons would blur.
Zed finished his drink, then opened his mouth and answered:
,
"I agree."
He paused for a moment before adding: "But since it's dark market dealings, I want a 40% share."
Adrian's gaze returned to the young man before him, cleared his throat, then said:
"That's impossible. You're merely going to the market for a transaction, and while we trust your judgment, we don't think just talking is worth that much money."
Surprisingly, Zed grinned, nodding in agreement.
"You're right, talking alone isn't worth that much. But you'll find out soon enough..."
The air around them grew heavier, as Zed's statement hinted at a deeper meaning. Adrian's eyes narrowed, observing the young man with renewed curiosity.
"You seem quite confident, Zed. Very well, I'll present your request for a higher share to team. But I can't guarantee that they'll accept it. In the meantime, you'll need to prove your worth."
"You got to agree it now. Let's see who does most of the talking, shall we?"
Zed said, a sly grin revealing a hint of his fangs. He crossed his arms and leaned back.
Adrian locked eyes with Zed for a few seconds before finally raising his hands in surrender.
"Alright, 20%. That's the most I can do."
"35%."
"30%."
"Deal."
Zed nodded in satisfaction, extending his hand towards Adrian.
"Pleasure doing business with you."
As Adrian shook Zed's hand, his expression was a strange mix of emotions.
But Zed couldn't shake the feeling that he was the one being played.
Joining the ranks of DR might have given him a sense of security, but being sent to the Big City meant he was far away from DR's central operations, making it easier to abandon him when push came to shove.
No matter how he looked at it, DR's actions seemed more like a test, and Zed needed the platform they offered to reach greater heights.
They both had something to gain.
Adrian gave him a nod, glacned at Zed's skeptical expression and realized that he wasn't dealing with an easily duped newbie.
In fact, Zed had more secrets than one could imagine, from his inexplicable connection with DR to the mysteriously empty cup he held.
These secrets were enough to make anyone think twice before prying further.
Adrian couldn't help but feel like the kid before him was a real psycho, yet his behavior was just strangely normal.
In the end, with a shake of his head and a wry smile, Adrian handed Zed a sealed envelope containing a classified report. He trusted Witch's judgment unconditionally, just like every other Awakened in the camp.
"What's this?" Zed's eyes sparkled with curiosity.
Adrian unfolded the report with his gray-gloved hands, making sure not to crease a single corner of the pristine pages.
"This contains all the information and evaluations we've gathered on every Awakened we could find, including ourselves."
He smiled warmly.
"Consider it a token of our trust in you."