[I find it a bit odd.] Volcan said.
’What are you talking about now?’
Currently, Dante wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone. Or to be more accurate, he didn’t have the luxury, even if the one conversing with him was speaking directly into his head.
The visit to the Owls’ Lantern took longer than expected, and because of that, he was running late for his job at the Blue Ember. The Raven had been in his Storage so he didn’t have to go back to his building to get it. Even then, he still has to ride at maximum speed, making any distractions extremely dangerous.
[Finn Ward. Why did you choose to help him?] Volcan asked.
’Don’t ask me, man. I don’t really know.’
If he had to be honest, the reason behind his choice was a mix of several unrelated matters, none of which he wanted to discuss. He didn’t want to think about whether he made the right decision, either.
The brat still annoys him to no end, and he would have loved nothing more than not to run into him ever again. That said, Dante was starting to get the feeling that this problem was one he couldn’t avoid, making him suspect that the only way to deal with it was to solve the brat’s problem.
’I guess... you could say it’s the same as with that Eisenberg girl...’
The two cases didn’t share many similarities, besides both involving one of the gangs ruling Neo-Vatra, but when the young hero appeared in his mind, Dante started to create connections where there shouldn’t have been. The more he thought about it, the more he started to feel that the brat represented opportunity rather than a problem.
’We can make a lot of money out of this.’ He suddenly came to an epiphany.
[I see. That is indeed a very good reason.]
Dante had already made up his mind on harvesting bionics to earn some extra cash, and a violent gang such as the Daggers was bound to have some juicy game just waiting to be slaughtered. He could even take on the bounties and do some Red Markings while he was at it.
’It will have to wait till after this gig, though.’
If the heist I a success, Dante believed he would finally have enough funds for the necessary implants to ensure he survives each time he wore one of Volcan’s armors. Now that he has made up his mind about settling for lower-grade implants, a budget of twenty million would get him a good heart and respiratory system, and he would probably have enough left to enhance his skeleton or replace both of his arms.
He wanted to be a Level 2 Advanced Cyborg by the end of the year, at least. That way, he would be ready to start his new side hustle and gather more funds for his future enhancements, bringing him one step closer to the end game.
As he revised his future course of action, his thoughts gradually veered toward last night’s dream, and he began to wonder why his mind decided to conjure that experience. Though he knew very little about psychology, he concluded that his subconscious was trying to bring something to his attention. Still, the question of what that thing was remains, and why his late little sister was chosen to deliver it.
As he remembered the last words spoken to him by the white haired girl, Dante felt his heart slowly fill up with grim determination. His will hadn’t grown weak over the past four years, but that vision helped fuel it further, once again reminding him of his goals and everything he’s working to achieve.
"Late." The scrunched face of a very pale goblin barred Dante’s path just as he entered the dish pit. "You are late!"
Dante stared down at the staff supervisor and felt a spark of anger ignite in his heart. It appears that Ben had regained some courage and decided to confront him again, unable to resist his calling as the most despicable colleague to work with.
"Yeah, I have noticed," Dante said. "The app already sent me a notification."
"I don’t like your tone. Are you trying to disrespect your superior?"
"Yeah yeah, sorry for being late. Now move aside. Some of us have to earn their living."
Dante muted the miserable staff supervisor and headed to his work station. For a moment there, he couldn’t help but wonder why such a prestigious establishment bothers to hire someone whose only job is to yell at those doing actual work.
’Probably for the same reason why they hire people to wash dishes...’
When people have too much money on their hands, they tend to be creative in how they spend it. That didn’t stop them from being stingy, though. For example, even though he arrived only five minutes late, he got a message from Ember -the employee surveillance app- saying that he was getting an entire hour’s pay deducted.
Of course, since he wasn’t going to be paid for it, Dante had no obligation to work the remaining 55 minutes. He went to the break room and got himself a snack from the vending machine, then he hid in the toilet until the next hour was about to start.
Since it was only ten in the morning there shouldn’t have been a lot of work to do, but when he arrived at his sink, Dante found a pile of dirty dishes already waiting for him. Of course, he was expecting something of the sort, seeing that he was an entire hour late. Still, the pile looked a little too big to have been accumulated in that time.
He figured out the reason almost instantly after noticing the others giving him strange looks. His behavior seems to have gotten to them at long last, but instead of facing him; they simply tried to increase his workload.
’What a bunch of morons.’
Ignoring their pathetic attempt at bullying, Dante immediately went to work. He didn’t hurry up or change his pace in the slightest, appearing as calm as usual. It would have been a problem if their pay depended on whether they finished washing everything or not, but he was being paid by the hour, and once his shift was over, whatever dirty plates were left would be the next guy’s problem.
Not that he cared about the scraps he was getting paid. So long as he maintained his post till it was time to start the real job, he didn’t really care about anything else.
Today was shaping up to be just like any other, or so Dante thought for the first couple of hours. He always had a hunch that trouble would visit him soon after he started his new job at the five-star hotel. For a while, he thought that his souring relationship with the other employees was going to be its main source, but soon enough he learned that he had much bigger threats to worry about.
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For the months of May, June and July 2025, the first and only Privilege tier will cost only 1 Coin! Please read the latest Chapters as they come out!