D-day came swiftly.
I had been woken up at the crack of dawn by a frantic Jesper, who forced me out of bed to help him get his things packed. I don't know why the idiot procrastinated until thirty minutes before he had to leave, but the two of us somehow managed to get everything together in time.
Rushing around till the last minute didn't give much time for goodbyes and Jesper had to run as soon as the bag zipped. When I watched him leave, I was struck with the thought that he might not come back from this.
It was still hard to accept that the profession of being a hunter was extremely dangerous. As much as I've been through, there was still a lot that I'd been sheltered from. Dungeons left a mark on people, mentally and physically. Some don't even make it out alive.
I've been too far removed from the horrors of this world. It was probably why it was so easy to forget that this world was so unlike the one I came from. If you don't ever see the evidence, you start to believe it never happened.
Maybe that was why it took me so long to realize that my guildmates might not come back from this. That I might have missed my chance to say goodbye to my friend.
Of course, his brother would be there to watch his back, as well as the rest of the guild, but there was always the chance of something unexpected happening. I'm a living example of that. I also didn't have much faith in the guild's protection anymore. Not after the last dungeon.
And I didn't even get to see Angel Boy today, the only other person I cared about. If not for Jesper waking me up, I would have missed their departure completely.
With such thoughts in mind, I texted both my friends to be careful and come back safe. Even if they were too busy to read my message, it brought me a little peace to do so.
Not even a minute later, Jesper replied back with a thumbs up. I smiled and put my phone away. Since I was already up and awake, I might as well start on the tasks Ash gave me. If I managed to finish early, I could enjoy the rest of my free time to myself.
I made my way to the office, figuring I could get started on the financial documents first. The package drop-off was scheduled for one in the afternoon, so I would pick up the mail while I was already out.
I took a seat at Ash's desk, feeling satisfaction in taking over the boss's chair. What was he going to do about it? I blasted music from my phone as I worked, singing along at the top of my lungs in the normally quiet office. If they were going to leave me here alone, I was going to take advantage of it.
I finished up around noon and sat up to stretch out my back. Yawning, I moved to turn off my music. True to his word, it wasn't hard to sort out the papers, but it was very boring. I tried reading a few of them at first, but gave up when I realized none of the numbers made much sense.
I had taken an introductory course in college on accounting, so I had expected that I would be able to understand at least some of it. Yeah, no. Granted it's been awhile since college, but trying to read those documents was like looking at a foreign language. All the more reason to be glad I didn't end up as Victor's assistant, since he was the one to compile most of this.
Ash had left the things I would need on the corner of his desk: car keys and the mysterious package. I grabbed both and started to go to the garage. The plan was to get lunch while I was out, deal with the package after, then grab the mail on the way back. Efficient.
When I got to the garage, I had to press the car alarm just to figure out which vehicle it was. I really wanted to know how this guild was being financed, because twelve large SUVs was not in the budget for most small guilds.
I had to shake an imaginary finger in response to my own thoughts. It's not any of my business, I told myself. I mean, did I need the lesson beaten into me? I needed to keep a lid on the curiosity.
When I got in the car, I was taken aback by how high tech it was. The engine started with the push of a button, no key needed, and most of the controls were built into the car's touchscreen. The gear shift was also a turn dial, not the regular stick I was used to.
In fact, all of it was stuff I was unused to. Before I transmigrated, I drove an old Honda around. This was too much.
I wasn't given a choice on what I could drive, though, so I'd have to figure it out. I went slow until I felt more confident in the feel of the car. I had to navigate using GPS, being unfamiliar with the roads. I had gone out many times with Angel Boy, but it was different when you weren't the one navigating.
I pulled into the parking lot of the first fast food place I saw. This world didn't have any of the big companies I knew from my world, though there were a lot of familiar products. The place I had chosen was reminiscent of McDonald's.
I got the classic burger and fries and sat down at a booth to eat. I watched videos on my phone with some earbuds as I ate my meal, keeping track of the time. It was the middle of a weekday, so it was pretty quiet. Just a few older folk dining in and some people working on laptops.
I didn't stay for long, leaving the restaurant earlier than needed. I wanted to get there with plenty of time to spare. It was a good thing I did, as I got stuck at a train crossing for a few minutes.
The GPS had me drive out to the poorer side of town, the location being a crumbling brick barbershop with faded signs declaring the business closed. I double checked the address Ash sent me, not feeling very safe.
I waited there nervously until two black cars pulled into the parking lot. 1:00, on the dot. The first car pulled into the spot beside me while the other stopped behind my car, blocking me in.
My eyes widened as I took in the situation. Crap, crap, crap! Is this actually a drug deal? Why'd they block me in?
Two men got out of the car beside me, one of them holding a briefcase. I took that as my cue and took a deep breath before I got out. I could handle this, I told myself. Besides, I'd take these guys over Ash any day.
As soon as my feet hit the pavement, I was met with an open hand, clearly waiting for me to hand over the package. I hesitated for a second, not sure if I should really be doing this, but I did. Holding it out to him, I looked up at the guy's face and was shocked with the sight I was met with.
Glowing yellow eyes with vertical pupils stared down at me. The sight was so arresting that I was stunned with shock for a moment before my gaze ventured down to see the rest of him. His mouth had been sewed shut with thick, sloppily done loops. I grimaced seeing the red puckered skin.
I stepped back in fear once the package was in his hands. I almost forgot the other part of the exchange until the briefcase was forced into my hands by the other man. He had the same look, glowing cat eyes and a sewn shut mouth.
They didn't stick around after the exchange was made. No, they were gone so fast I almost thought I had imagined it. The cool feel of the briefcase in my hands centered me, though. A physical reminder of what just happened.
I opened it back in the car. Stacks of crisp, neat cash, exactly as Ash said. I wondered if he expected me to count it, but dismissed the idea soon after. He never said so and the guys had already left, so it's not like I could do anything if it came up short.
I needed to take a moment. Who were those guys and why did they look so strange? Were they even human?
I would need to talk to Ash about this. I needed answers and I was willing to take the risk in asking. How many more crazy situations is he going to put me in? Surely, if I handled this deal to his satisfaction, Ash'll be more open to using me for his bidding in the future.
I needed to know exactly how much danger I was in, and if I needed to speed up my plans to get out of the guild. If doing drug deals with aliens was going to be the norm, I would have to start looking for a new employer.