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When Santon mentioned The Steward's Guild, I held back from striking him when he extended his hand for a handshake, but I kept my spells at the ready.
Prior to this meeting, Professor Sageira had given me a brief rundown of The Steward's Guild. On the surface, it was an association of advisors and administrators that manages the estates of the rich and powerful, but just under such an innocuous name, they "manage" more than estates.
For those in the know and who have enough coin, their services extended to people who are in need of highly skilled individuals, who, above all, could keep things private and discreet. As for how I got on this list of highly skilled individuals, it was mainly due to Professor Sageira vouching for my skill and tight lips.
Not wanting to be rude to my potential employer, I accepted the handshake and felt an almost imperceptible sliver of mana enter my body. Not knowing what it was, I obliterated the foreign mana with my own, and with just mana infusion, I put more strength into my handshake, letting me feel the creak of Santon's metacarpal bones before I felt his aura snap into place to resist my crushing grip.
"That was rather rude of you, Santon, is infiltrating other people's bodies with mana how the Steward's Guild greet others?" I said, while giving him a deadpan glare.
Santon just gave me a business smile and replied, "My apologies, Sir Ironcrest, merely a small test, that's all. A test that you passed with flying colors."
I was not buying that for a second, but I will let it pass for now. We soon released our handshake, and the moment we did, Santon put his suitcase on the table and got to business.
As it turns out, unlike other mercenaries who sign up with them, my information was well known, and most of the paperwork had already been done. All I had to do was double-check it and sign off on it.
After that was done, the only thing left to sign was my employment contract and this word's version of an NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) which reeked of soul magic. I should know, after the whole Soul Weapon thing that Professor Sageira told me about, she brought some artifacts related to soul magic, so I could get a feel for the vibes or wavelengths they gave off.
And unlike the employment contract that was mundane and made of fine and clean parchment, the soul magic NDA was made out of some kind of skin, I just hope it is not the skin of anything sentient, or even worse, human skin. And instead of signing it with ink, the NDA will need my bloody thumbprint to seal the deal.
If they took things to this extent, I knew they meant serious business. It took some time, but I went over the employment and NDA contract twice. The employment contract was nothing special. It just said I was a contract staff and would only be paid for jobs taken and successfully accomplished, I was not eligible or any leave or time off while on a job, and as for the benefits, there were a number of esteblishments that would accommodate or service me for free or a heavily discounted price. When I looked at the list of establishments, I saw that they were mid to high-end establishments with outlets in all major cities. This employment package was sweet!
As for the NDA, not so much. To summarize it, it was a whole list of "Do Not". All it boiled down to was the same as the first and second rule of fight club: you do not talk about fight club. At the end of the NDA were the consequences, which were just what I was expecting for such an organization… Death… to be more accurate, death by mana rupture, and with the amount of mana somehow packed into this sheet of skin, I did not doubt it would kill any man… I just wonder if my tempered mana pathways could withstand the contract trying to rupture my mana pathways.
Eventually, I signed the employment contract and pricked my thumb to print it on the NDA. The moment I put my bloody thumbprint to the NDA, I felt a surge of mana seep into me, and I felt like there was a layer of film coating my mana pathways. It felt disgusting, making me shiver on the spot.
Seeing my obvious and uncontrollable short shiver, Santon asked, "Are you okay, Sir Ironcrest?" with a worried look on his face.
Did others who thumbprint the magical NDA not react the same way? From Santon's expression, I think not. Interesting… maybe my tempering of my mana pathways made me sensitive to its state. I will need to ask Professor Sageira about this later.
"Nothing to worry about, Mister Santon, just a little under the weather today, it's chilly nowadays." I replied
When all my paper (and skin) work was done, Santon neatly put my paperwork back into his suitcase as he said, "Congratulations on becoming an associate of The Steward's Guild, Sir Ironcrest."
He then pulled out a small flat box from his suitcase and slid it over to me. "Inside is a mask that is only to be used on your jobs, and a membership card to identify yourself at ours or any associated establishments."
I opened the box to see a face mask without any eyeholes and a stained black metal card with the design of a fancy ornamental gate one would see in front of an expensive estate.
I reached into the box to hold the mask, wondering how I was going to use a mask I could not see out of, but Santon reached over to place his hand on top of the box. "Please inspect those in a more private setting."
After I nodded, he continued, "Now that you are an associate of The Steward's Guild, I, as the manager in charge of this region, can offer you some jobs. Would you like to take a look at what is available?"
Hell yeah, I would! "Yes, please."