The heavy warehouse door groaned on its hinges, letting in a sliver of twilight and a very frantic-looking girl. Bell scrambled inside, clutching a bulging leather pouch to her chest like it was her firstborn child. She didn't even have her boots fully on—she'd clearly been booking it.
"Boss! You won't believe the—"
Bell froze. Her eyes darted from Julian, who was currently draped over a crate of monster gallbladders looking like a half-dead Victorian poet, to Lyra, who was standing over him with a steaming ladle and a gaze that could flash-freeze a volcano.
"Oh," Bell whispered, her face going pale. "I walked into a private execution, didn't I? I'll just... I'll go. I'll leave the gold. Just don't make it painful."
"Bell, sit down before you vibrate through the floor," Julian rasped, waving a weak hand toward a stool. "And put that gold on the table. We're officially starting the fiscal year."
Bell stepped closer, her nose twitching. "Is that... beef bone broth? With star anise? Boss, are you having a gourmet meal while the Royal Guard is literally tearing up the cobblestones outside looking for the 'Void Devil'?"
"I'm 'Investing in Human Capital,' Bell," Julian said, taking another sip of the broth. He felt his spine finally stop sounding like a bag of gravel. "Specifically, mine. But we have a bigger problem. My current management team is understaffed, and you're currently a freelance agent with a very high 'Unemployed and Likely to be Arrested' rating."
Lyra set the bowl down with a sharp clack. "She's a coward, Julian. She was shaking before she even saw the soup."
"I am not a coward!" Bell snapped, though she immediately hid behind a stack of crates when a stray cat knocked over a bin outside. "I'm... risk-averse! There's a difference! And besides, who are you? You look like that Saintess the Hero Association has been posting 'Wanted' posters for, except your dress costs more than my life."
Julian leaned forward, his eyes taking on that manic, lit glow that always made Bell want to check her pockets.
"Bell, let's talk numbers," Julian said, his voice dropping into the smooth, predatory tone of a man closing a deal. "You're a mercenary. You like gold. But you hate dying. Right now, the Hero Association is the biggest employer in the city, but their 'Employee Retention' is zero. They treat people like you as fodder for the meat grinder."
He gestured to Lyra. "Under my label, you get protection from a woman who can freeze an ocean. You get meals that actually provide permanent stat buffs. And most importantly, you get me—the only man who can 'Deconstruct' a Hero's contract until they're nothing but a guy in a shiny suit."
[System Notification: Bell's Greed Meter: 40% -> 85%]
[System Notification: Bell's Fear Meter: 90% -> 65%]
"What's the catch?" Bell asked, eyeing the gold pouch she'd brought in.
"The catch is that you don't work for gold anymore," Julian smirked. "You work for equity. You're going to be my eyes in the Grey Market. You find me the 'Final Bosses' the world has discarded, and I'll make sure you're the richest coward in history."
Julian pulled a piece of shimmering, semi-transparent parchment from the air. It wasn't paper; it was a conceptual binding.
"Sign it, Bell. Or go back outside and explain to the Royal Guard why you have a bag of the Marquis's stolen gold."
Bell looked at the contract, then at the terrifying Lyra, and finally at the broth. She grabbed a quill from Julian's pocket and scribbled her name so fast the parchment nearly smoked.
[System Notification: Quest 'The Coward's Contract' - SUCCESS!]
[Reward: +10 Days Lifespan] [Current Lifetime: 170 Days]
[New Asset Acquired: Bell (The Grey Market Guide)]
"Great," Bell exhaled, collapsing onto a crate. "I'm officially employed by a dying man and a war criminal. My mom would be so proud."
"Welcome to the team," Julian smiled, though his face immediately went white as a fresh jolt of pain hit his ribs. "Now... Lyra, is there any more of that soup? I think I just felt my kidney try to relocate."