"That much? You might as well keep it on display then."
Even though Putato had been busy lately, the money he earned through the Office barely covered his expenses. As for the Smiling Faces, he had to wait for them to cycle their capital: after all, defaulting on payments was a traditional art form in this city, a bitter taste one couldn't avoid.
Arnold breathed a sigh of relief as he watched Putato carefully set the massive serrated blade back onto the pedestal. His master, however, spoke up with a look of intrigue.
"May I ask how to address you, guest?"
"Grade 5 Fixer, Vanda."
Arnold's master ignored his apprentice's look of utter disbelief. He stroked his beard, recalling the way Putato had hoisted the Crusher just now. It was practically a walking advertisement.
He was confident that one strike from the Crusher could pulverize a solid metal wall. If this guy used it in a few battles, the Giant Workshop logo etched on it would leave an unparalleled impact on anyone watching.
"Actually, we can work something out."
"Giant Workshop can allow you to put a portion of it on tab. However, until the debt is cleared, should you meet with any unfortunate accidents, our Workshop holds the priority right to recover the weapon."
"Does it come with the Dimension Gloves?"
"Er, those are a separate commodity, not an accessory. That's the standard across all Workshops."
Putato was quick to agree; after all, he was the one getting the better end of the deal. Such a powerful weapon was exactly what he needed to handle the upcoming Association audit.
Once the payment was settled and Putato stored the long-standing display piece into his leather gloves, Arnold's master looked like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders as he headed to the back warehouse to grab a drink.
"Do you have any other weapons like this, Arnold?"
Feeling the snug fit of the tan leather gloves on his palms, Putato felt a surge of confidence. As a Fixer, even without using Mist, he could now output massive combat power.
"Bro, seriously? One isn't enough for you?! Even the richest Fixers who come to Giant Workshop only buy one piece. Any more is just overkill!"
Despite his grumbling, Arnold led the curious Putato over to another display wall.
Putato turned and saw a spiral lance. If that thing were thrust into a chest and yanked out, it would likely take the ribs and organs along with it.
It was a shame the Hamster Workshop buff granted load-bearing capacity rather than raw strength; otherwise, he would have lined up a dozen heavy lances. It would be more effective than an artillery fort: just throwing one would probably turn a human body into red mist.
"I'll take one of these too."
...
Hana Association Building.
Generally, the major Associations of The City established branches in the North, South, East, and West sectors. To facilitate management, these branches would set up high-rise stations within the Nests or The Backstreets.
Putato arrived once more at this bustling Backstreets commercial district. At the entrance, he could see Walter from the Zwei Association roaring inside a security post; clearly, the man had been having a run of bad luck lately.
The Hana Association building, with its white-on-gold palette, looked solemn and imposing. Its exterior appeared as if it were tightly constructed from basaltic pillars, exuding a sense of suffocating order.
"Harold, why are you the one here? Does this Fixer Vanda really have issues that require suppression?"
"It's too early to jump to conclusions."
"But I heard that all of the Eight Chefs are gathering in the District 23 Backstreets. Shouldn't your Section 3 be coordinating with Section 2? After all, that's a Star of the City threat."
"The Director is only leading a support team; Section 3 isn't the primary force. That's why I have the free time to follow orders and investigate this other matter."
Putato observed the two Fixers chatting in the waiting area to his right. One of them, Harold, had distinct teal-green hair and was quietly responding to her colleague's gossip.
Suddenly, she turned and met Putato's gaze. Her eyes lingered for a moment on the burn scars on the lower half of his face before she excused herself from her colleague and stood up to approach him.
Around them, both Association and OfficeFixers greeted her with deep respect; several fanboys and fangirls waved excitedly.
This wasn't just because of her striking androgynous looks, but because Harold was a Grade 1 Fixer belonging to the Hana Association!
"Are you Vanda from the Molar Office?"
Even though she wore a smile and showed no overt aggression, Putato could feel a sensation akin to a blade pressed against his throat.
There was a world of difference even among Grade 1 Fixers. In the Hana Association, which frequently mobilized to track and eliminate Star of the City threats, most Fixers were combat-specialized types.
"That's me. How does the Association plan to audit me?"
"The other work is mostly finished. Both Mr. Yun and Ms. Olga have given high praise for your talents as a Fixer."
"Most of the commissions you've handled previously checked out."
Putato, who had been feeling quite secure, immediately sensed something was wrong. He quickly scanned his surroundings, realizing that with so many AssociationFixers present, escaping would be harder than climbing to heaven.
"However, I hope you understand the responsibilities of a Fixer. Do not become too deeply entangled with Syndicates."
Is she talking about my connections with the Smiling Faces?
"There's no problem with a Syndicate member turning over a new leaf to become a Fixer, but you cannot play both sides. Am I being clear enough?"
Did she find out I've been hopping back and forth between the Syndicates and the Association?
"I understand."
Harold nodded, seeing how cooperative Putato was being. Her emotions remained completely flat throughout the exchange; seeing this, Putato focused on suppressing his own impulse to reach for his blade.
"From now on, I ask that you exercise restraint. This is merely a warning. If the Hana Association discovers that you are utilizing Syndicates to manufacture commissions only to solve them yourself, appropriate disciplinary action will be taken."
"Sanctions include, but are not limited to, demotion, temporary bans from accepting commissions, being struck from the Fixer registry, or violent suppression."
What you won't let me do here, I'll find a place to do elsewhere!
Putato wondered if he could climb to Grade 1, get demoted, and then farm the promotions all over again. However, the Association likely wouldn't let him exploit the system like that. At worst, he'd just defect to one of the Wings of the World. Outwardly, though, he put on a look of utter trepidation.
"Thank you for the warning. Syndicate affairs will not interfere with my work as a Fixer from now on."
"It seems I have made the stakes clear. Please follow me."
Harold led Putato to a reinforced training room on the fourth floor, which appeared to be reserved for Hana Association Fixers.
"While I have a general idea of your capabilities, the combat proficiency test is a mandatory procedure. Please, do not hold back. My name is Harold, Grade 1 Fixer of South Section 3."
"There are training weapons provided by the manufacturing Workshop on the racks. Feel free to choose one."
As she turned, Harold was already gripping a black crystal etched with clean white patterns. With a flick of her wrist, it instantly transformed into an obsidian-black polearm.
"You're sure? No holding back?"
"During the audit, I found records suggesting you were previously a member of the Stray Dogs. Based on that, you shouldn't pose a threat to me."
"However, I lack definitive proof. Perhaps you and that individual are twins; who can say? As long as you remain restrained in the future, such past trifles are inconsequential."
"As I mentioned, many Fixers have a history with Syndicates."
So that's as far as they traced it.
Putato breathed a sigh of relief and began adjusting his clothes. This odd behavior left Harold confused.
"What are you doing?"
"I carry quite a few Workshop weapons. I need to organize them first so I don't accidentally injure myself."
"You hide your weapons in your clothes?"
"Not quite. I just picked up a new piece called Crusher. I hope no one gets hurt during this evaluation."
Before Harold could press him further, she saw Putato reach out with his right hand, clad in a leather glove, and make a sudden grasping motion. An impossibly large, terrifying, long-handled serrated blade materialized instantly.
Putato hoisted the hideous beast of a weapon onto his shoulder with ease. Seeing such a massive armament held effortlessly with one hand gave Harold a momentary illusion of losing her own center of gravity just by looking at it.
"Is that... Giant Workshop?!"
"I thought that was a non-sale item?"
Harold's calm, practiced smile finally wavered. There were only about twenty high-end Workshops in the Southern district; it sounded like a lot, but any high-grade Fixer who had been in the game long enough had browsed them all at least a few times.
Giant Workshop's gear didn't have the flashy, unpredictable features of other houses, but it won people over with sheer durability. Harold had seen the Crusher herself, of course, but she never imagined someone would actually buy the thing, let alone be able to swing it.
"Maybe it's because I can handle it effortlessly. The owner made me promise not to cover up or remove the Giant Workshop logo."
"Using you as a walking billboard? I see. I stand corrected; I was poorly informed."
Harold shed her knee-length, custom Hana Association coat, revealing a well-toned physique under her white shirt. She no longer dared to treat this test as a mere formality.
Now, her main concern was that if Putato slipped up while using the Crusher, one of them was likely going to end up with shattered bones.
This wasn't just a matter of skill; no one walks away unscathed after getting t-boned by a semi-truck, and Harold wasn't a full-body Prosthetic user who could just swap out parts.
"Wait!"
Seeing Putato's arm muscles tense as he stepped forward, Harold quickly interjected.
"This training room has specialized shielding and shock absorption, so don't worry about the floor. However, there is a one-way mirror on the right. There are clerks inside recording the results, make sure you don't smash into it."
Putato glanced toward the wall and spotted the rectangular mirror reflecting only his and Harold's silhouettes.
...
Behind the observation window, aside from the three clerks at the desk, were the three Fixers of the Gaze Office.
Alloc, whose head was adorned with three cameras, red, yellow, and green, was busy scanning Putato from head to toe before speaking with absolute certainty.
"See? I told you Putato and Vanda were twins. How could one person undergo Mist-compatibility surgery and then augment their physical body to this level? Those two surgeries are completely incompatible."
"True. And Putato's body can emit Mist; I suspect he's got a furnace crammed inside him. But with a hollowed-out internal structure like that, there's no way he could even lift the Crusher."
"I did some digging earlier. Putato even looks after an orphanage. It seems the two of them are pretty strapped for cash. We'll likely have more chances to cooperate in the future."
...
Inside the training room.
Putato withdrew his gaze and began walking toward Harold, step by step. His approach lacked any semblance of speed or tactics, which sparked a flicker of irritation in Harold, feeling slighted.
"Combat isn't decided by who has the biggest weapon."
The black spear in Harold's hand rapidly shifted, transforming into a sleek blade that encased her entire right forearm. In the blink of an eye, she closed the distance to Putato's flank.
Even as she felt the violent pressure of the air displaced by the Crusher, her expression didn't flicker.
SCREECH!
She dug her boots into the reinforced floor of the training room, leaving a black scuff mark as she abruptly changed direction, skillfully weaving past the Crusher's serrated edge.
Her sharp arm-blade cut a streak of black through the air, aimed straight for Putato's chest.
Her wealth of combat experience was her strength; she knew exactly how to counter-attack. A heavy weapon's fatal flaw was its inability to change trajectory once swung, capture that window, and the fight was over.
Hematic Pump!
Putato turned his head and locked eyes with a startled Harold. Suddenly, his arms bulged with veins as he exerted massive force. That terrifying, oversized saw reversed its path mid-swing, kicking up another gale of wind.
"What?!"
Harold saw the jagged teeth of the saw smashing toward her and felt a lethal warning scream through her mind. Her arm-blade quickly expanded to cover both limbs as she frantically crossed them in a defensive block in front of her head.
BOOM!
Putato, having forcibly redirected the Crusher, barely felt any resistance from Harold's block. It wasn't until the saw had swept through that he heard the thunderous impact and saw Harold pinned against the wall to his left.
"Does this even count as a weapon anymore?"
The group behind the observation window fell into a stunned silence. They couldn't fathom what kind of expectations the Giant Workshop had when they forged this monster in the first place.
Dalloc, his head covered in cameras, silently reviewed the replay.
Harold was a Hana Association Grade 1 Fixer, a powerhouse even by the standards of a Wing of the World, yet she had just been swatted away like a ping-pong ball.
"You okay? This thing is brand new to me; I'm still figuring out how to pull my punches."
"Cough... cough, cough."
Harold sat half-kneeling on the ground. She waited until her armaments shifted back into the black crystal before finally standing up.
Although she looked a bit disheveled, she was only bleeding slightly from her nose and mouth. Putato couldn't help but wonder if he had actually hit her just now.
"As a Grade 5 Fixer, you're fully qualified. I'll speak with the Association's evaluation staff; you won't need to undergo this kind of testing again in the future."
Harold took a moment to swallow the metallic tang of blood rising in her throat, considering the crowd watching. She'd just head to the medical bay later; the Hana Association's reputation had to be upheld at all costs.
Relieved that the matter was finally settled, Putato retracted the Crusher. He offered a quick nod, ready to go hunt down Obana.
The target was likely hunkered down in K Nest, which was a headache for a Backstreets resident like Putato. The first hurdle was figuring out how to infiltrate a Nest.
Nests were the core territories of the Wings of the World, and they even had dedicated immigration checkpoints for entry and exit. Without the right connections, getting in was nearly impossible.
"Fixer Vanda, please wait. While I'm here testing you, there was actually one other thing I wanted to ask."
"What is it?"
"Are you familiar with the Grey Haze?"
Putato's heart skipped a beat, nearly giving him away, but his face remained a mask of confusion.
"It's like this: Hana Association Section 3 is preparing to track down the Grey Haze. I'm conducting a preliminary investigation. If you provide any useful information, the Association will reward you."
"Isn't that the new Star of the City that emerged in District 23? Shouldn't you be investigating over there?"
Harold spread her hands.
"That place is currently a chaotic mess of 'cooking.' It's not a great spot for an investigation right now. So, I'm leaning toward interviewing people from the Backstreet23 to get a lead."
"After all, a Star of the City doesn't just rise without leaving a single trace behind. Someone must have seen a similar figure. I plan to hire an Office to gather more clues soon."
"Makes sense. But maybe you should ask the Smiling Faces. I recall they collaborate with the chefs of the Backstreet 23 quite often."
"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."
"I initially thought about asking the Syndicates, too. The problem is, there are just too many Syndicates originating from the District 23 Backstreets. If I go in with preconceived notions, I'm afraid I'll start seeing a connection to the Grey Haze in every gang I look at."
"And as you probably know, not a single witness of the Grey Haze survived that day. Since it's a Syndicate-heavy area, there are almost no cameras. It's proving quite difficult to find a starting point."
Putato quickly regained his composure. He was currently the Fixer Vanda, and at the time of the incident, Vanda himself was still 'alive', so there wasn't even a shred of suspicion on him.
No matter how wild a leap in logic someone took, it was impossible to jump from Vanda to Putato, then meticulously trace Putato's movements to confirm he drove to the Backstreet 23 that day, and finally lock him in as the Grey Haze.
That would require working backward from the answer itself.
"By the way, I wanted to ask: are there any types of commissions that grant entry into a Nest? I'm a Grade 5 Fixer now, but I've never actually stepped foot inside a Nest."
Harold clutched her chest, about to hurry away. She fought to suppress the urge to spit out a couple of mouthfuls of fresh blood, maintaining a calm smile as she turned back.
"There are plenty of Offices inside the Nests, so they usually don't need to come to The Backstreets to look for help. However, since you asked, certain commissions issued by the Wings of the World do grant Fixers temporary transit passes."
"In reality, compared to obtaining residency, simply entering a Nest is relatively lax. Of course, if you try to stay past your welcome, the Nest's specialists will 'handle' you."
"Such commissions are usually only issued to major Offices. For a lone individual, the chances are slim."
Though Harold spoke diplomatically, Putato automatically translated it in his head that he was not qualified.