Red Hawk

Chapter Two: Zesbel

Three days had passed since Kai joined Red Hawk, and he was still getting accustomed to the guild life. He had yet to go on any missions, due to still waiting on his registration to finish being validated. But today was the day, his guild license had finalized in the guild network.

Since joining the guild, Kai had acquired a new wardrobe for his days as a guild mercenary. A gray vest adorned with a black hood sat overtop a short sleeved white shirt, paired with gray jeans. Custom black boots with an outer steel toe had been ordered for him, as well as metal plated arm guards.

That morning Kai found himself in the dining hall at the crack of dawn, enjoying a warm bowl of oatmeal paired with healthy slabs of pork. The lobby was adjacent to the dining hall, and he could hear the front door creaking open. A familiar voice tiredly called out, "Good to be home!" He had only heard it once before, but Kai knew who it was. It was Hide, who had been gone the entire time Kai had been lounging around.

Not meaning to eavesdrop, Kai couldn't help but overhear them going on about the mission they had been on. The entire time they had been gone, they had apparently been taking down an entire bandit village in a nearby mountain range.

While his companions filed a report, Hide made his way towards the dining hall. From the threshold, he happened to notice Kai and went over to join him, "I see Odin let you join, congrats on that."

"Thanks," Kai spoke before enjoying a juicy chunk of pork. He washed it down with a refreshing sip of ice cold milk, "At first he refused me, but I managed to win him over."

"Have you gone on any missions yet?" a curious Hide asked as he took a seat at the table.

From the pocket of his vest, Kai pulled out a folded piece of paper. Opening it up, it was revealed to be his guild certification, "This just arrived today, so I can officially start doing missions. Headmaster Odin says I should get the official license in about a week."

"You mean like this?" Hide smugly asked as he pulled back the right half of his overcoat. Pinned to the inside was a silver badge shaped like a kite shield, engraved with an ouroboros surrounded by four diamonds. Hide called over a server, ordering a hefty breakfast of his own while the two of them mingled. They found out the two of them had a lot in common, having both come from a small town. Hide revealed that he was actually the son of a blacksmith, only choosing to join a guild in spite of his father's wishes.

As they continued their conversation, Odin walked over to them with a smile on his face, "Very good to see the members of my guild getting along, it brings a smile to my face to see you enjoying this life."

Hide stood up to bow to Odin, "Headmaster, I apologize my team couldn't finish our job sooner!" Odin only gave a polite chuckle, placing his hand upon Hide's shoulder.

Finished with his meal, Kai stood to his feet, "I should get to work now. We'll have to catch up another time Hide." From the kitchen, Kai wandered through the lobby in order to reach the reception area. Standing behind the desk as always was the young Sabrina. Kai hadn't had much time to get to know her yet, having never had a reason to come into the reception area much. Sabrina was a fairly young woman, probably no more than three years older than Kai.

She could always be found wearing gorgeous ballroom gowns, today's gown was a vibrant red that matched her luxurious hair. As soon as she spotted Kai, she pulled out a binder from behind her desk, "I figured you'd be making your way to me soon. Finally got your certification?"

"Yeah ," Kai said as he wandered over towards the desk. He started to nervously run his fingers through his hair, "I know this is going to be lame, but how exactly does this work?" Sabrina began to explain the way missions worked for the guilds, letting him know that clients would leave a form within a guild hall alongside the reward money based upon the difficulty of the request they gave. Most missions were free for any member to take, but there were a few that could only be accepted by members with enough experience.