I let out a long, drawn sigh upon hearing the clicking sound of the stupid pins resetting themselves, frustrated by the fact that I had failed for the seventh time in a row.

  The damn thing just doesn’t want to stay still!

  I manage to get one pin right, but as I move onto the next one, the first one just drops and fucks up the entire process!

  “You still haven’t opened that? Kitty, I’m disappointed!” The asshole comes into the scene with a mocking smile. “Even with the guidance of the best thief of Remnant, you cannot unlock the easiest and oldest lock in history. I’m reconsidering my opinion on you.”

  I drop the lock and stare at him with a ft expression. “You tossed me a rusty knife and a hairpin and told me to figure it out on my own. So much for your gracious guidance.”

  “Ah ah ah! No excuses, kitten,” he chides. “Lock picking is an essential skill that you should have developed.”

  “I didn’t bother with it because it seemed like a waste of time when I could just kick down the door or break a window,” I expin. That’s been my go-to method for entering locked pces all this time.

  “And that’s a brutish way to conduct business, especially if you need to sneak your way in or free yourself from potential cells and cuffs,” Roman counters. “Either way, keep trying because that lock won’t open by itself.” With that, he turns around and leaves me alone, his oh so very important guidance and equally useless at the same time, causing me to roll my eyes.

  Should also mention that I’m attempting to pick this lock with barely any source of light? While I’m a faunus and possess natural night vision, I still would appreciate some additional light to help with the task at hand. Unfortunately, the warehouse is only accessible to me at night, and for obvious reasons, the building has very few lights. That leaves me with only my scroll, which is not powerful enough to illuminate my surroundings, but it’s helpful to some extent.

  “Easier said than done,” I grumble as I attempt to pick the damn thing once again.

  But my pn is quickly derailed as the rusty knife and padlock seem to have a life of their own, dancing around me and out of my grasp.

  “Bring it back, Neo,” I groan, running my hand over my face in frustration. “I want to be done with this shit and go home.”

  The flying tools slowly return to my hands, and Neo materializes next to me - or more precisely, on top of a wooden crate, sipping her newest favorite drink.

  I can’t compin - she paid in full. But watching her drink is tempting me to get one for myself again, and that’s something I’m not too thrilled about. It’s three thousand lien, not hundreds.

  ‘Don’t rush it, the pins are quite sensitive to sudden movements.’

  I raise an eyebrow after reading her message. That’s actual advice, but redundant.

  “Something less obvious that you can share with the css?”I ask, gesturing to our surroundings.

  Neo simply extends her hand, motioning for me to hand her the lock. Without hesitation, I pass it over to her. She deftly inserts the rusty knife and hairpin, wiggles the hairpin a couple times, and the padlock clicks open with little effort.

  In less than five seconds, she opened the damn thing I’ve been struggling for who knows how long…

  How?

  Neo sends me her unique smug smile before tossing me the lock and walking away to do whatever she needs to do, casually tossing her now-empty drink onto the floor as she goes. She’s clearly ughing at my inability to replicate her success.

  I stare at the stupid piece of metal for a moment, taking a deep breath to calm my nerves. Then, I try again, adopting a more rexed posture and gentler movements. Honestly, I just want to break the damn thing and go home.

  The whole sophistication and sneaky stuff doesn’t sit right with me.

  *Click*

  [Picklock job unlocked!]

  [Novice Picklock has increased by 1, 01/50]?

  My scroll rings a notification as well.

  ‘Told you so~’

  This is bullshit…

  -Bke Beldonna-

  Bke’s heart pounded in her chest as she read the mission report for the umpteenth time. She just couldn’t believe what she was seeing. The Grimm had suddenly appeared in droves at the Mountain Glenn base, catching everyone off guard and forcing them to abandon everything in haste. And that meant everything: food, weapons, dust and intel.

  It was supposed to be an easy transportation mission and everything went to shit when the second a herd of goliaths smashed against the base entrance and beowolves packs poured in. At least nobody died or was injured, and they were able to leave the scene before hunters, along with specialized police teams, sprung into action to deal with the monsters of darkness and prevent them from getting any closer to Vale’s walls.

  Her heart was gripped with deep regret and shame, as it was her decision to stay behind to oversee their current base and delegate that task to her another. She was supposed to be a leader, to be in front of everyone and lead them forward. Maybe if she had been there, they would have been able to at least recover some of the lost supplies.

  But dwelling on the past wouldn’t change anything, and she knew it. The reality was harsh, and the disaster that had befallen them was undeniable. As she stared at the report, Bke felt a sense of helplessness wash over her.

  And the cherry on top. Those supplies were part of Adam’s test success in raiding SDC convoys and a decent portion of them were supposed to be delivered back to Menagerie, either for the popution or to be redistributed to the other cells across Remnant.

  She was in deep debt to Sienna Khan and the White Fang.

  Although, she could take soce in the fact that they wouldn’t demand or put high interest rates in that debt, unlike some human’s shady business or banks. Maybe she could shift her pns and allocate more time to scavenging or collecting donations…

  Who was she trying to fool?

  She knew perfectly well that she would need to employ force, perhaps not lethal, but force against others just to break even.

  Sienna would definitely want those supplies and wouldn’t care how she obtained them as long as she delivered them, unless she did something stupid or radical enough to garner the wrong kind of attention.Bke's lips contorted into a faint smile. Even with Sienna’s faults and disagreements, she had clear lines which she would never ever dare to cross.

  And for herself, she was happy for her brothers and sisters, who were able to obtain some food and dust crates from an abandoned base of human supremacists. They didn’t know what drove them away, but it was a very pleasant surprise to ease the dire situation they found themselves in, at least long enough to give her time to pn their next move.

  As she pondered their next move, her hands froze and the mission report slipped from her grasp when her scroll started ringing loudly. She gulped and hesitantly pulled it out to answer the call, knowing full well who was on the other end waiting for her.

  Before pressing the answer button, she took one deep breath and steeled herself.

  And soon after, the face of the high leader of White Fang appeared in front of her, and she didn’t look pleased. “Bke, it came to my attention that Vale has been quiet, silent even. Not only that, but you haven’t carried the attack to the SDC convoy, which you were informed with a decent time to prepare. And to top it all off, I learned recently that you lost ALL our supplies from Mountain Glenn. Care to give me an expnation?”

  She frowned at the st part. Somebody was directly reporting to Sienna within her ranks. That didn’t set a good precedent. She was supposed to be the one to break the bad news to Sienna, not whoever was spying on her.

  But she couldn’t mop in front of her. “We… we were very occupied with the establishment of our new base. Mountain Glenn was no longer safe as the grimm learned how to dig and kept attacking us in waves, thankfully we had no casualties but we were forced to abandon the base and we tried to move everything to the new base I’ve preparing and grimm attacked us in even greater numbers, and hunters were dispatched because they feared a tide potentially forming so close to the city.”

  Sienna khan raised a single eyebrow. “I see, you are very lucky that we moved the war hound weeks ago. But that doesn’t expin why you didn’t attack the SDC convoy we tasked you, especially considering that you have no supplies left.”

  “The setup of our new base had most of our attention and… We-we have organized the unions from the industrial district. They will conduct a mass scale strike against the SDC owned companies.”

  “... Is that it?” Sienna asked, clearly not impressed by her response.

  “Yes.” She admitted as she lowered her gaze.

  The tiger faunus sighed exasperation as her hands rubbed her temples. “We needed those weapons and dust for our people, especially to keep reinforcing the Ats’ cell. And here you are pying pedantic politics.”

  Bke frowned and tried to speak up to defend her reasoning, but the leader just raised a single hand, anticipating her. “Conveniently for you, we obtained some intel regarding a SDC mining outpost. I will forward you everything we know ter, but try to gather more information about it and prepare a rescue operation. One thing for certain is that their faunus workers are contract sves.“

  The young lieutenant took a deep breath. “It will be done, high leader.”

  Bke couldn’t shake off the feeling of unease that had settled in her gut at the mere idea of attacking the SDC convoy, but this new mission was different. This time, they would be rescuing their people and helping others. It was a small step in the right direction, and she knew that they had to take it.

  The dark-skinned woman locked eyes with her, a hard gre trying to intimidate her. “I expect results, Bke. Don’t make me regret putting you in charge.”

  She nodded.

  Sienna was the one who ended the video call.

  She couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief, as the call went better than she expected.

  She knew that she couldn’t linger in that feeling of relief for much longer, as the sound of the door clicking open drew her attention.

  “Ma’am.”

  “Yes, brother?”

  “We will run out of food in two days.”

  Her ears perked up at the bad news. “Did our funds run out?”

  He nodded.

  Bke felt like colpsing, feeling the pressure grow on her shoulders. Her brain struggled to come up with another solution until one little dark suggestion whispered to her a potentially lucrative solution.

  “Are… where… Are there any SDC farms?” She forced herself to utter those words. It was outrageous for her to bring that possibility.

  As much as she hated the idea, it was the SDC. They could easily replenish anything they could take, and since she was in charge, she would make sure nobody would be harmed in the operation.

  But her second in command shook his head. “Those farms are heavily protected. Attacking any of them would be… dangerous.”

  “I wasn’t asking for an attack, but a quick and quiet heist.”

  “We certainly can do it, but we would need time to prepare.”

  She and her friend Illia could infiltrate the premises and turn off the arms system to let the rest of their team to take as much food as they could carry. And any excess they would distribute it around the popution living in the slums to increase their reputation.

  “How long do you think it would take our team?” She asked for a second opinion.

  He seemed surprised at first, but then brought a hand under his chin and looked at the roof in thought. “Between learning patrol routes, scouting surroundings and countermeasures to deal with unexpected circumstances. I think it would take us at least one week.”

  The cat girl sighed in disappointment.

  It was too long. And their current food reserves wouldn’t st that long unless she dismissed a considerable number of their members. The idea was enticing as it would reduce the risk of discovery and she would be able to get rid of those with radical beliefs, but it could cause trouble as those problematic members might try to do something on their own.

  She beamed when another idea came up. Certainly it wasn’t a permanent solution, but it was a necessary band aid to dey her current issue.

  “Dust.”

  “Ma’am?”

  “The dust we recovered is more than enough to get us food if we trade it. Then we can focus on the SDC heist to secure food for months.” She id out a simple pn.

  That stupid supremacist gang was hoarding dust for some reason, but a resource always on high demand meant money, and money could turn into whatever you needed. The white fang might not be able to trade directly with legal businesses, but there are many opportunists who would gdly trade with them just to deepen their pockets.

  “It will be done.”

  With that said, her second in command left her makeshift office and gently closed the door.

  Finally alone, Bke allowed her body to slump onto her old wooden chair, feeling the weight of her responsibilities pressing down on her shoulders. She removed her mask with a sigh, grateful for the brief respite from the constant scrutiny that came with her new position as the leader of Vale’s cell.

  Bke couldn’t help but wonder why Adam had pushed Sienna to pass the mantle of leadership to her, and why she had accepted.

  Deep down, she knew the answer. She had always wanted to steer the White Fang back to its original roots and bring about the change she believed was necessary. But she had underestimated just how difficult that path would be. Nothing was going her way.

  As she held the mask in her hand, her mind whispered in her ear, tempting her to abandon her responsibilities and run away from it all. But she knew that was not an option. She had made a commitment to her people, and she couldn’t betray their trust.

  As she gazed at the mask with a mixture of disdain and resignation, she couldn’t help but wonder if accepting Adam’s offer had been a mistake after all.

  -Ma’iq Rakhan-

  I wish I could say that this morning started like any other.

  Usually, I wake up, spsh my face, and make a quick breakfast. But my short routine never got the chance to reach that st step.

  As I exit my room, my ears perk up at the sound of activity in the kitchen. The unmistakable sound of my frying pan at full capacity draws my attention. Before my head can fill with questions, my nostrils pick up a pleasant aroma, beckoning me to investigate.

  I know that I should be cautious and on guard, but when you already know the answer, is there even a point?“Good morning Neo.” I greet my home invader.

  The girl turns around slowly, giving me her usual smirk, before turning off the stove. I take a seat and calmly observe as she expertly serves up scrambled eggs and bacon, accompanied by toast, before pcing the pte in front of me.

  “I didn’t know you could cook.”

  Although, it is the easiest breakfast.

  The fashionista merely rolls her eyes in response as she takes off the gray apron and throws it towards the sink. She could have just hung it back in pce, but that’s Neo for you.

  The short girl goes to my fridge and retrieves a decent sized bowl filled with fruit and ice cream, making me give her a dry look.

  Of course she would eat ice cream for breakfast, and judging from the amount that is in there, I will have to restock my ice cream and strawberries.

  At least she was kind enough to make me breakfast, but this is a bit too nice coming from her. “Not like I hate free breakfast, but what’s the occasion?”

  I pick up my fork and dig in, only to be pleasantly surprised by the superb taste.

  Not at my level of good, but good nonetheless.

  The colorful girl just looks at me smugly as she seats in front of me.

  ‘Why wouldn’t I reward my favorite kitten after learning the tricks of the trade?’

  I let out a frustrated groan as I swipe to dismiss that text. “Don’t call me kitten, please. Roman does it because he is an asshole.”

  He knows my name but never once said it. It is always kitty, kitten, kitty-cat and whatever words he invents just to be a fucking asshole.

  ‘Earn it then, kitten.’

  She actually used bold letters.

  “And how am I supposed to earn a new name, hmm?” I ask, not expecting a real answer from her.

  And just like I expected, she merely shrugs and takes a spoonful of her breakfast. Only for her eyes to light up and lock her mismatched eyes with me, making me roll my eyes.

  A mischievous smile creeps into her lips.

  I take another bite of my food, and she does the same, but this time she opens her mouth and reveals a half strawberry bancing on her tongue. She purposefully shows off her skillful movements, which cannot be taken from an innocent perspective, and she fucking knows the innuendo behind it.

  I maintain my bnk expression as Neo swallows the strawberry and looks at me with a smug smile filled with triumph. I scowl in response and try to eat my food in peace.

  I am more resilient than she thinks I am, something that childish won’t get me all flustered. But against my better judgment, I take another gnce at her and see her giving the most exaggerated pouting I’ve seen so far as she takes another bite.

  Honestly, whatever.

  I will finish my breakfast and go to work. And since I am thinking about my job, it was a pleasant discovery to learn I’ve been getting results. The workers seemed more energetic than usual and loved my food a lot more than before. That transtes into more money in my pocket.

  But as if the universe knows something I don’t, my scroll rings with a message notification. I sigh, expecting to see another witty remark from Neo, who is still pouting with her arms folded.‘There will be a surprise inspection today. Consider this your day off.’

  That message is actually from my boss. She has my number because it was part of the paperwork, but never once contacted me through my scroll. I frown as my hand hesitates to reply with questions, but quickly retracts it, as I don’t see the point in doing so.

  And she did say that this is a day off, an opportunity.

  But that is kinda a wrench to my schedule. I have nothing pnned for today besides my jobs. And Jeanne will only appear on weekends since I don’t have her number. What should I do then?

  I think I should develop my weaver job. It has been a bit stagnant tely.

  ‘Something interesting? You are making funny faces.’

  I pce my scroll on the table after reading her message. “Yeah, my boss gave me a free day. Since I don’t have anything to do, I will do some knitting. It’s been a while since I practiced that skill.”

  ‘Come to the base then, there is a gift waiting for you.’

  I frown as I cross my arms in thought. I didn’t expect to get a gift, but that would mean going there and that would inevitably lead to running errands for Torchwick despite not being the correct hour. Although, I get paid by job, and maybe I can finish all my deliveries before night and use that time for my weaver job to catch up.

  Sounds like a pn.

  I nod. “Sure, I will go there.”

  I quickly finish the rest of my breakfast, knowing that I need to shower and change my clothes before heading out. I can’t just go outside in my pajamas, after all.

  I wipe any crumb from my mouth with my arm. “Thank you Neo. It was very nice of you.”

  The girl in question merely grins and approaches me to give me a headpat...

  I will never tell her how good they feel. It’s a secret I will take to the fucking grave.

  [Affection with (Neo Politan) increased by 2, 13/100]?‘I cooked you clean. I will be waiting outside.’

  She vanishes from sight just as I finish reading her st message.

  I roll my eyes and stand up. Only for my eyes bulge out in shock when I realize my stove is a fucking mess. The fried oil spilled in every direction. And the worst part, the wall has been chaotically painted with used cooking oil, which cannot scrub off.

  It must be a special talent to be able to make a mess of everything except your clothes, and even more so when you’re wearing white, fucking white, and she left with spotless clothes.

  I hold back my anger and clean everything, before heading to the shower.

  I exit my apartment building and check my sides and find Neo pying with her pink scroll until she notices my presence and gestures for me to follow her as she enters the alley.

  I honestly don’t know why she wants to go inside an alley, but whatever, I follow her lead.

  The pce is as one could expect of an alley but is cleaner and it has three big dumpsters. Wait three?

  The fashionable girl is quick to notice my confusion and calmly touches one container, causing it to glow for a moment before shattering into millions of pieces, leaving behind a blue sport motorcycle.

  That’s actually a neat trick.

  No parking fee.

  The engine roars, shift my attention back to Neo, who is ready to drive and waiting for me to take the backseat.

  I take her up on her offer and carefully position myself and get a firm grip on the seat to prevent myself from falling off. Everything to not bother her as she drives to the warehouse. Except that goes out the fucking window when she purposefully leans back on my chest and looks up at me with a triumphant grin.

  Did I forget to mention that she was also pushing her ass against me?

  ‘Go ahead, I promise I won’t bite… much.’

  Does she know our size difference?

  She does, she clearly does, and that’s why she wants me to hug her and struggle to not touch her breasts.

  “Have it your way, then.” I scoff and wrap my arms tightly around her stomach, leaning closer to her and discovering that she smells quite nice. Although she cooked recently, she smells like flowers instead of fried food.

  And that is the signal for the sadistic girl to release the brakes and make a run for it.

  And as much as I hate to admit it, by instinct I hugged her tighter because she was going absolutely crazy with her bike!

  My stomach even agrees with me as I feel goosebumps and nauseas when we entered a highway.

  I barely take notice of the cars we pass since Neo does sharp turns for every single one, her entire vehicle leaning to one side making a drop in cold sweat when I see the moving road closer than it should.

  And are those sirens?

  She actually got the attention of the VPD?

  With great effort, I turn to look over my shoulder and indeed; we are being chased by two police cars with their sirens going wild.

  “Holy fuck!”

  She is actually doing a wheelie!

  I hold on to her body for my dear life and shut my eyes close.

  Fuck everything. I just want this to end.

  If I don’t see the world, then the world doesn’t exist and cannot harm me.

  Sound logic.

  I just don’t know what happens around me and I don’t want to know.

  Or that was supposed to be my mentality when I felt a hand petting my head, only then I dared to crack open an eye, carefully analyze my surroundings, and much to my relief, we were at the warehouse.

  I immediately jump off the bike and drop on the ground, just to feel solid earth and get that reassurance that I am no longer in mortal danger thanks to that speed freak. She is just giggling at my suffering.

  Better ugh because there is no chance in hell I will ever be a passenger of hers ever again.

  Neo, on her part, skips towards me and shows me her scroll with a picture on the screen. And I can hear my stomach drop when I see that evidence in its full glory. It was me holding Neo’s waist for my dear life as she had the perfect selfie on her grinning self while the background had the police cars upside down.

  I am so fucked.

  Or at least I was until I checked my scroll.

  ‘Rex, nothing will happen. The VPD doesn’t care about speeding.’

  I open my mouth to argue back, to bring some sense to the situation, but her grin stops me as I understand how pointless it is. And whenever she said it would be fine, it would be fine. She clearly had some experience, and this wasn’t the first time she broke the w so btantly in front of me.

  So yeah, it is fine. Everything is fine.

  Still, I will not let her drive again. She will have to drag me kicking and screaming.

  Which she will definitely do… because she would find it amusing.

  Whatever, enough thinking and worrying. I will just head inside and see what is Roman’s gift, hopefully it is something cool to lift my sour mood. Pushing myself off the pavement, I dust off any dirt from my clothes and head inside.

  And Neo is moving her bike somewhere around the warehouse, witnessing that trick with her sembnce. I believe she will do the same thing.

  The very first thing I notice inside the building is that it is rather empty compared to nighttime. I don’t see any henchmen moving stuff, instead I only find the fmboyant thief puffing his cigar as he reads a newspaper.

  I admit, it is strange to see him doing something so normal, so mundane. I was more like expecting him to be doing more busy work or something along the lines of a famous thief activity.

  The older man throws the newspaper away when he notices my presence and takes off the cigar to gently tap it on his ashtray. “You are quite early. But I can work with that.” He calmly opens the table drawer and retrieves a wrapped package. “Consider this a promotion gift.”

  I furrow my brows. “Promotion gift?”

  Roman merely shrugs and throws the package, which I promptly catch. “Well, I’ve said before you’ve proved quite reliable, and Neo has been bugging me to reward you somehow. So I thought to myself, why not? Besides, you will need it for your next job.”

  My ears perk up at the st part, causing my attention to shift to the wrapped pack. My hand quickly tears off the paper and removes the shoebox lid, revealing a strange metallic mask on top of a red book. A half-mask as it only covers the eyes and nose and it has a rge green visor. Is kind of simir to the helmet from Vale’s police but is only a mask instead of a full on helmet.

  “What is this?” I ask, taking out the mask for a better look.

  It also looks in pristine condition.

  “Ats speciality.” Torchwick calmly stands up from his chair and stretches his back. “It’s the new standard visor for Ats’ military helmets. They are supposed to premiere next week, just another proof of how amazing I am. No need to thank me.”

  He fshes his arrogant smirk, making me roll my eyes.

  “From what I understood, it can connect with your scroll, has a thermal vision function, and can take pictures with good resolution. Maybe there are more features, but I didn’t bother to read the manual. You do it if you want to learn everything, or don’t. And don’t worry about being traced back to you, we made sure to wipe it clean from Ats network.”

  “We?”

  “Trade secret.”

  Yeah, that will remain a mystery. I calmly approach the table and pce the box on top of it and take out only to pce it next to the shoe box and take out the manual for quick reading.

  I have to skip a lot of chapters since it mostly expins how to connect to the helmet, which I don’t have.

  Thankfully, it has a small section in case I don’t possess a helmet for whatever reason.

  Following the instructions, I finally put on the mask and adjusted the strap to be as comfortable around my head.

  Unsurprisingly, the whole world becomes a darker shade of green, thanks to the gss color, but I can compare it to normal sungsses, so it isn’t a big issue.

  But that is a little detail, since I need to synchronize my scroll with whatever function was mentioned in the manual. It said I needed to press a small button on my right temple, and hold it for a few seconds.

  Following the instructions, an alert prompt appears on my scroll and I hit the accept all.

  Just like my gamer system, a small window pops into existence, saying ‘Device recognized’ for a few seconds before minimizing.

  ‘Pretty cool, huh?’

  Neo’s message stays on screen a few seconds before it automatically minimizes, clearing my view.

  That’s actually a cool feature.

  And that was one of the features, so I test the next one and push the small button that is around my right temple. The effect is immediate, as my field of vision has a drastic change. I catch sight of every person in the building. Which I only count two, Roman standing in front of me and Neo’s small frame approaching from the backdoor.

  “Thermal vision, a very useful trick.” Romans comments as I turn off this thermal vision. “I know your kind can see in the dark, but this is far better. I’m sure you will squeeze all it’s worth.”

  He isn’t wrong. Enhanced night vision, I will take it.

  “I can already see some uses for this. But mostly I am gd I don’t need to walk around with my face glued to the scroll.” I comment on the main benefit as I take off the mask and watch it dematerialize in my hands.

  [Proto Late Algan mask has been added to your inventory]?Late Algan?

  Didn’t Roman say that it comes from Ats? So why did my system give it a different name?

  He cps his hands once to get back my attention. “Exactly kitty, now to your next job.” His cane point at a couple of unmarked cardboard boxes piled together. “Do you remember the White Fang?”

  My body freezes at the mention of that name and slowly turns to stare at Roman, my test doubt becoming a secondary thought. “I do. You mentioned them in your conversation with Junior, didn’t you?”

  “Yup, it came to the surprise of no one that they didn’t disappear. They just opted to hide in a hole and stay quiet for all these weeks. At least until they got hungry, since they contacted one of my brokers to get them food. Normally I wouldn’t give it a second gnce and finish our business, but they are paying with dust.”

  “Why does that matter?” I ask in confusion.

  He opens another drawer from his table and pulls out a document. “I’m just commenting. Don’t bother with the details. Although, I have a strong feeling that they will do more trades with dust as payment. So be a dear and hand them this catalog as well.” He slides the framed document across the table. “If they want to pay with dust, then I will happily oblige. One simply cannot have too much dust.”

  I agree with the sentiment, dust prices aren’t stable. One day they’re up and others they’re down.

  And Roman also deals with dust, but he is such an asshole that doesn’t sell it to me at market price.

  I pick it up and send it straight to my inventory before looking at the thief. “And I am supposed to go alone?”

  He waves his hand dismissively. “You are faunus. You will be fine, just scream how much you hate humanity or the Schnee if they ask too many questions. Besides, I need my dear Neo for another job.”

  After he finishes, a smile forms on his lips as he gently pats Neo on the head, who just happens to arrive on time. She uses her umbrel to poke Roman in the stomach, making him chuckle.

  “So deliver food and hand in the new catalog. Sounds easy enough.” Ignoring the fact that they might be waiting for me or have other orders from that bitch of Sienna, who I will punch in the throat when I find her.Or I might kick their teeth in if any of them try to do anything against me.

  “Yup. Time is money, one two one two, kitten.”

  I opt to ignore his remark and grab all the crates and the sticky note with the address.

  [Food box added to your inventory] x4?The sticky note has the written address and a quick gnce made me let out an exasperated sigh when I learned that the filthy ghetto is the drop point. In hindsight, it makes sense since that is an area which w enforcement doesn’t bother with, but still.

  Fuck that pce.

  Regrettably, a job is a job, and I must complete it.

  A taxi is my choice of transportation to drop me off somewhere near the walls and finish the rest by foot. And like always, the cops assigned to the entrance didn’t bother to gnce my direction as I entered the crime infested slums.

  They only care if you exit that shithole.

  From that point I follow the given directions, ignoring the crowds of people loitering around. Only one or two bothered to look at me as I passed them.

  As I walk through the alley, I have some time to myself to think about what to expect from the White Fang. But soon, my thoughts turn to anger at those bastards for kidnapping me. The idea of going there and beating up a few of them to let off some steam is tempting, but I know that would be foolish. After all, my current job is to deliver food to them, and they’re armed with guns, unlike the typical gangsters in the slums. I’ll have to hold back my feelings for now.

  Moving on another train of thought. Bke has only been talking to me about how much they have done and the past feats, but never the present. And whenever that came up, she did her best to avoid the topic altogether or give vague answers. So when you get more… questionable information from an outside source, one cannot help but wonder or question.

  I kinda knew?

  It is still a mess in my head to juggle the pieces back together with the tidbits of information. Yet I don’t feel like burden myself with the issue, since it is the easier approach in my biased opinion. Even if that’s objectively the worst approach to that particur problem.

  But for whatever reasons now that I am so close to the pce, I might get some answers. Like it or not.

  A quick check of my surroundings tells me enough that I’m close to the building. It is the perfect time to summon my new gadget and hide my identity. At least to some degree, since my tail and ears still are a big give away if they bother to investigate further than superficial gnces.

  By mere curiosity, I turn on the thermal vision and individuality pick up multiple heat signatures from my surroundings. I catch sight of heads poking from the windows. Some signatures are brighter than others, though.

  Compared to the guys near the walls, these people are weirdly curious, and I stand out too much. My clothes are clean, for instance. And my high-tech mask also is attractive to the ignorant masses. Knowing I won’t get anything else from the area, I turn it off and keep walking until I reach the entrance of the rundown building. Matching the aesthetic of the neighborhood.

  A pair of tall faunus stood at the entrance keeping watch and their gaze turned to me the second I stepped closer and their posture had a slight change, but not enough to consider them an immediate threat or intentions to try anything against me.

  If I wasn’t aware that I’m doing a delivery to the fang, I would have passed them as another pair of crooks from those mediocre gangs fighting for city scraps.

  “What are you doing here?” One of them finally speaks up in a gruff tone.

  I merely bring forth the sticky note. “Delivery.”

  Both exchange looks in confusion and then try to look behind me for anything and fail, obviously. “But you brought nothing.”

  I shrug nonchantly. “Trade secret.”

  As if I would expin my inventory to a random nobody on the streets

  I can see their faces go through a myriad of emotions, probably struggling to understand what they should do. In my case, I patiently wait for them to come to a decision. I have nowhere else to go or responsibilities to worry about, except sleep.

  The guy from the right finally brings out a walkie talkie and speaks through it in a poorly hush tone. Why didn’t they do that from the beginning?

  In a matter of seconds, the reply comes through.

  “Let him in. He isn’t a human.”

  The two guards step aside and invite inside the building. It doesn’t come as a surprise when I find it empty and poorly maintained; broken chairs scattered all over the floor, paint peeling off the wall and so on and on.

  It isn’t the first building I find in such a state and it won’t be the st. On the bright side, it doesn’t burn my nose, meaning they kept it somewhat clean and devoid of hobo invasions.

  Although, I haven’t come to appreciate mediocrity. And a sole member of the fang share my thoughts as he gets my attention as with a loud grunt. I can say that is rather nostalgic to see that bck-and-white uniform again. Yet that nostalgic sentiment doesn’t st, because the idiot believes it is a good idea to get a little too close to my comfort and lean closer with his grimm-like mask.

  A very poor and pathetic attempt of intimidation. Even more pathetic when you take into consideration that I’m a head taller than him.

  I would ugh if it wasn’t for the desire for him to get ballsy, retarded, and try to do something and give me the perfect excuse to vent my repressed anger on him and whoever came to help.

  I merely shake my head with a smirk before handing him the note. “I need to hand some stuff and documents to your leader.”

  The grunt quietly takes the note and beckons me to follow him inside a room. The pce is exactly like the first room, except he pushes a sofa and kneels in front of a newly revealed wooden hatch, which he opens.

  I take his invitation.

  The change of scenario is drastic as I discover a rge base of operations and a lot more members of the White Fang, either training or zing off. And my arrival doesn’t go unnoticed as a considerable number of soldiers turn to look at me with curiosity for seconds before returning to their respective activities.

  I have no compints. It makes my job easier.

  Their disinterest in my persona makes things smoother as I walk across the rge room. Occasionally taking sidelong gnces, I focus on the door with a rge insignia of the White Fang and a single guy standing guard. But compared to the rest, he is massive and has an equally massive weapon strapped to his back.

  I don’t need a big poster to tell me that he has aura, totally killing any temptation to cause trouble.

  “You are our delivery, I presume?” Unlike the first guy, he doesn’t even try to py games with me, straight to the point.

  I nod before bringing out Roman’s catalog. “But first, I need to give your leader a document from my boss.”

  The big guy sighs and knocks on the door without breaking eye contact. “I am surprised that the bastard has a faunus on his payroll.”

  “Despite being a petty bastard, he pays well. You know how things are, and money is a way to mitigate it.” I admit, getting a nod from him.

  The door opens, and the leader dressed in a white a bck vest steps out. “Is there a problem… Oh.”

  Even with the white mask, I would recognize that long ebony hair and a pair of cat ears anywhere.

  “Bke?”

  My mentor.

  My words have an immediate effect on every single person in the room. Especially from Bke, who has her weapon on hand, ready to attack me. And the many faceless stares sending murderous intent, and the masked big guy has his chainsaw ready.

  I click my tongue in annoyance and carefully analyse the room, but fail to find a way to get out unscathed.

  “How do you know that name?” She hisses.

  With a heavy sigh, I raise both hands in surrender. “Can… can we talk in private, please? I will answer everything.”

  Bke looks at the agitated crowd and sighs. “Fine.”

  A mere wave of her hand defuses the entire situation as all the fang members return to their activities, except for one person who kept staring at me.

  I let out another sigh of relief and lowered my hands. However, I need to be cautious and avoid saying anything foolish without thinking. Bke is somewhat a rational person, as far as I know, and I don’t know how things would have turned out if someone else was in charge.

  I follow her inside her office and close the door.

  Almost immediately, I have a bde on my throat, making me flinch.

  “Start talking.” She growls.

  I slowly raise my hands again. “Nobody will hear us, right?”

  “If we keep our voice down.”

  I let out another long sigh and make an announcement to avoid potential problems. “I will remove this mask, nothing else.”

  Her nod is all the confirmation I need to remove the strap of my mask and take it off. Even underground, I feel a faint breeze rush across my face and eyes, a needy breath of fresh air.

  The effect is almost instant as the cold steel falls to the floor.

  “Ma’iq?!”

  “A little disappointed you didn’t recognize me.”

  It’s not like I was trying to hide my tail or ears.