When Anton descended to the basement of this building, he walked towards his office to finish some pending paperwork so that everything would be completed. What surprised him was that Rafael was here, along with Thomas, who had been transferred to undergo rigorous training.
At noon, there were around two hundred people seated in an auditorium within the Association of Light base located in this art museum. Each of them held a thick contract in their hands, along with a pen.
These people wore clothes of the same color—a black T-shirt with the sharp words "Association of Light," black pants, and black boots. However, they all had a common trait: each of them belonged to different branches of the military and had been selected for this new job after fulfilling their duty.
Looking at their faces, it seemed like they didn't understand what the new special operations group that would serve the Association of Light was going to do.
Click! The sudden opening of the door drew everyone's attention to the front. Rafael, dressed in an all-black suit like many security workers on the upper floor, walked to the podium under the gaze of everyone in the room. The symbols on his suit's brooch were the initials TAOL, which basically stood for The Association of Light.
Rafael, who had a slightly muscular appearance with a cold expression on his face, looked at everyone in the conference room and said, "As I mentioned before, once you read the contract and are satisfied with its content, you will receive all the benefits stipulated in the numerous pages you received. Once someone violates the contract, the punishment will be worse than a quiet death."
Upon hearing the man's matter-of-fact words, everyone fell silent. In reality, everyone had issues at home, and the contract in their hands would ensure them a good future even if they died—a possibility that could very well happen. In this era, owning a house without taking a loan from a bank is very difficult. The requirements for getting a job and the difficulty of being selected nowadays are impossible for many.
For this reason, all or the majority of them had been soldiers, and after reaching a desperate point, they received this new job opportunity, something they wanted to accept without thinking too much. No one was forced or deceived to come to this place; each of them was rigorously selected not only for their financial situation but also for their excellent skills and previous experiences in the military.
So, just a few seconds after Rafael stepped down from the podium and opened his mouth, they began to sign the contract one after another. After someone started, the remaining people began to sign the contract.
"Good." After everyone signed, Rafael applauded with a proud smile. "You should all be proud; you will be the future of humanity!"
"Excuse me." At that moment, someone raised their hand and asked, "Why were we gathered here? Is the Association of Light teams part of the government?"
"You're not entirely wrong, young man." The man on the podium looked at the young man and said, "My name is Rafael, but from now on, you will call me sir. Let the Guardian help you with your doubts."
When Rafael said these words, he pointed his hand towards the door on the right.
Tap-tap! Tap-tap! Upon hearing that series of footsteps, the eyes of the people also looked in the direction pointed by Rafael.
At that moment, they saw Anton, dressed in a black suit, and the most noticeable thing was the purple cross on his chest. He entered the room slowly and walked towards Rafael with a slight smile. "Nice to meet you all; my name is Anton ShadowBane."
As Anton approached the microphone, Rafael took a step back and gave a salute with a slight bow before standing silently by his side.
Seeing that the so-called Guardian had entered and was greeted with much respect by Rafael, everyone looked at each other in confusion. However, Anton didn't mind and began his speech.
"I know most of you are confused. Why were you suddenly selected for a new, unique group of special operations that operate in the darkness? Seeing that you have all signed your contracts, I can tell you that there are creatures, weather events, and even the simplest things like an illness in this world caused by certain dark entities."
Under the gaze of everyone, Anton showed a completely new expression. "Elimination Command against dark entities, or, better said, light agents. This is the job for which you were selected, and from now on, you will belong to the Association of Light."
"The Association of Light is not just a simple group of forces fighting against evil; we are the guardians of life and guard the portal to hell. You will be field agents who will assist exorcist priests who need support, and your only job is to kill. You will be the agents who eliminate threats not allowed for the human eye and the first line of defense long before the whole world fights against dark entities."
"Of course, I know that many of you are not here to save humans but for the money and all the benefits that come with signing the contract. But there is something I can assure you; every word written in the contract will never change, and once there is a task to control a dark entity, each and every one of you will receive a special bonus as a reward based on your achievements in the incursion." Anton looked at everyone, men and women, and closed his eyes slightly.
"This is the special unit of the Association of Light in this city, and I am the Guardian Bishop who will be the leader of all of you. You will be stationed at this secret base for a long time, and our base will mostly eliminate dark entities in this city."
"So, those who don't have family in the city can move their relatives, and the association will provide assistance to find a suitable place to live or if you want to buy real estate in the city. Also, any medical expenses for both you and your family will be fully covered by the association."
After saying these words, Anton continued, "As for the other benefits written in the contract, there is no need to mention them."
"Incredible..." Upon hearing Anton's words, regardless of their gender, they looked at each other with surprised eyes and inevitably believed that this was some kind of joke. Now, many of them didn't care what it was or what they had to eliminate; the extra benefits mentioned by Anton left them without doubt. Many of them urgently needed money, and others needed a good hospital for personal reasons.
As for Anton, he remained silent and reorganized his words. He found that all the new recruits for the newly created association were very talented. Even if their eyes were set on money, he was sure they would be good soldiers for the Association of Light.
Indeed, the contract made by the association made many choose to accept it without thinking much. To have soldiers willing to fight in hell, the best way to do it is to offer them enough money and good insurance for their families. Anton thought as he sighed bitterly.
"Well, we need men, and you need money." Anton wasn't hurt by bringing all these people into the darkness; he had a job to do, and he would do everything to do it perfectly.
As for the combat effectiveness of this group of people, Anton had a sheet with assigned teams based on their skills and combat effectiveness. However, there were very few who could lead a team correctly.
Thinking about this, Anton looked at Rafael, who was his right-hand man, and because he had a revenge goal, he would use him to his advantage. The benefit for him would be that he would receive help from the association to get his revenge.
Without Rafael, he wouldn't be so sure that this group would thrive.