The offer from Richard stunned Leon silly, and it showed clearly on his face.
“Bahahaha!” Richard burst into a fit of laughter upon seeing the stupid look on Leon’s face. He quickly calmed himself, though. “I know this is surprising, but not too much so. Do not worry about anything, for my guild shall take care of everything, while still paying handsomely.” He said, waving his hand in a friendly manner.
“I will have to think about it some more,” Leon said in a thoughtful voice. He did not want to jump into any turbulent waters before knowing more about the powers around him.
<gwofw> “Also, what is the name of your Guild?” He asked.
“Silver Tooth.” Richard smirked, revealing his shiny teeth, but none were silver. Leon simply raised a brow and nodded before standing up from his seat.
“Thank you. Till we meet again.” He told them and nodded to Nedra to follow him.
“Hopefully, you would have chosen to join us then.” Richard waved like a fool at the two leaving people. The moment they were gone, the playful smile on his face vanished and he turned to Kevin.
“What do you think? Did he feel like joining us?” He asked.
“I do not know. He was mostly neutral in his thoughts, so I cannot be too sure. But from what I believe, he would most likely not join us. Most Necromancers recorded through history were not social people, and mostly enjoyed the company of their summons.” Kevin replied with a shrug.
“Hmm, ah, about his summons… That girl beside him is not normal. I could feel a soul connection binding them together.” Richard noted, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
“Indeed, I felt it too. She must be a Spirit Companion.” Kevin nodded.
The reason why both of them had so easily figured this out was because their strengths were on a whole other realm compared to Leon and Nedra. Both of them were officially recognized by the Mercenary Association as A rank! This was no small matter, as any A rank individual had the strength to rule over their own corner of this very large world.
On a norm, B rank individuals, be they mages or otherwise, were seen as the backbone fighting force of any major power, while any A rank individual in these powers were seen as the commanders, or high level personnel. They were treated very well, and respected widely everywhere. But now, two very powerful and widely respected individuals had personally come to invite Leon to join their guild.
It was insane!
The Silver Tooth Mercenary Guild operated in and around Fort Bender, so it was a household name in the mouths of the masses and commoners. The guild was not founded by Richard, but was passed down to him by its actual founder, who went into seclusion over a decade ago. No one knew what he sought from secluding himself, but all waited to see what would come out of it.
Richard and Kevin soon left the tavern after the former had downed a jug of ale. He was a relaxed leader most of the time, and liked to drink when there was nothing too important to do. Also, there was still some time before Divinity’s Bout was to begin, so he could afford to take it easy for now.
As for Leon and Nedra, the two quickly returned to their rooms in Green Gate. The earlier encounter had left a bad taste in their mouths, and they quickly wanted to get out of the open.
When they arrived in their room, Leon collapsed on the bed, back first. He was tired and wanted to rest, but first, he needed to figure out some things.
Sitting up, he turned to Nedra who had taken a seat by the window. She was decades old, and had been in many situations with her now dead former master, so she was a bit less shaken than Leon.
“What rank do you think they were at to make us feel as we did?” Those were the first words that came out of his mouth, as they were at the forefront of his mind.
“High B rank at the very least. But I suspect that they may have been A rank because of the looks that they were getting from people.” Nedra replied, slowly turning to face Leon.
“How did we attract the attention of such monsters?” Leon sighed, palming his face.
“You heard what they said. They were interested in your magic. Perhaps you should have just stuck with plain fire magic.” Nedra shrugged and sighed helplessly. They both knew that what was done was done. There was nothing they could do to change the fact that Leon’s abilities had been exposed.
“What’s done is done. We can only deal with the aftermath. Honestly, I should have been smarter and thought of this as well.”
Knock knock.
As the two were thinking, a sudden knock brought them out of their thoughts. Leon stood up from the bed and went over to the door to see who it was.
“Curtis?” Leon looked surprised. He did not expect to see Curtis so soon again after what had happened earlier.
“Ah, yes. Sir Leon, can we speak for a bit. Just us two?” He asked, peeking at Nedra to see if she was listening.
“Um, sure? We can meet later. Not now. I have something to do at the moment.” Leon agreed, but pushed the time further down because he was not in the mood at the moment.
“Alright, what time should we meet, and where?” The blond boy asked.
“Hmm, let’s meet by 7pm in the tavern downstairs. We can talk then.” Leon decided. 7pm was a nice time when the tavern would not be too crowded, but be busy enough to ensure the two were not left completely alone.
Curtis did not have anything against the arrangement, and immediately agreed, before leaving Leon and Nedra to themselves.