Chapter 27: Signing the Contract

The two hunters sat down and faced Leon,

"You came, thank you." Leon said and then stretched his hand for a handshake.

"I am Leon Tallon, I didn’t get your names yesterday."

The dude glanced at the lady and then looked at Leon. "Robert" he said in one word.

"I am Rika." She introduced herself as well.

"Alright great, it’s nice to have that out of the way. " Leon said and then interlocked his fingers and smiled, "the offer remains the same as I said, and you will simply be under my bannner and I will be getting everything."

He pulled out yhe contracts and a pen and slid yjem over.

"Let me explain how this is going to work," Leon said. "I’ll provide everything you need to grow. Gear, weapons, resources, and training if you want it. You go into the gates and hunt, and I take twenty percent of what you earn. The other eighty percent stays with you, and no one touches it."

He leaned back in his chair.

"There are no hidden clauses, and there’s no catch. You hunt, you get stronger, and we both make money."

Robert and Rika looked at him.

It was the same look they had worn in the street the day before. They were still filled with disbelief, as if he had just told them the sky was going to turn green. Neither of them said anything.

Robert pulled the contract toward himself. Rika did the same.

They started to read.

It was only a few pages, but they did not rush. Robert ran his finger along every line, his lips moving silently, and Rika read with her chin resting on her hand and her brows pulled together. A waitress came by, and Leon quietly ordered water and waved her off.

Minutes went by.

They finished the last page, and then they flipped back to the first one and started again. Leon watched them read it a third time, and then a fourth. He did not interrupt. He knew exactly what they were looking for, and he knew they would not find it.

Finally, Robert set the contract down on the table.

He looked at Leon.

"Everything here is clean," he said slowly. "I’ve been through it four times looking for fine print, or any way you could use this to abuse us, and I can’t find anything. It feels off."

"I can see that," Leon said.

"Why would someone do this? Nobody gives away this much for twenty percent."

Leon smiled.

"I have my own reasons for doing this," he said. "I’m not going to pretend I don’t. But I promise you that it’s not going to hurt you or cause you any trouble. All you have to do is be hunters. That’s all I’m asking."

Robert and Rika exchanged a look.

Then they looked down at the contracts again.

It was true, and they both knew it. Everything in it was written to protect them. If Leon turned out to be a bad person, if he had done something terrible or was planning to, none of it would fall on them. They would not be tied to any crime he had committed or any damage he had caused. And if either of them wanted to leave, they could do it at any time.

They would only have to hand back the gear Leon had provided, and anything else he had given them that was not perishable. Everything else would stay with them.

There was nothing in it to be afraid of.

Rika bit her lip.

"Robert," she said quietly. "What do you think?"

He did not answer right away. He stared at the paper for a long time, and his shoulders were stiff. This was the kind of offer that people only got once, and he knew it. It was also the kind of offer that scared him more than any monster.

"If it goes bad, we will leave," he said finally.

"That’s what it says," Rika replied.

"Then let’s do it, we have nothing to loose ."

He picked up the pen, hesitated for a second longer, and signed. He pushed the contract across the table. Rika took the pen from him and signed hers right after, and she slid it over as well.

Leon took both of them and checked the signatures.

Then he smiled.

"Welcome aboard."

He pulled out his phone and checked the time. It was a few minutes past noon.

"I have an engagement later today, so we should get started before it gets late." He tucked the contracts into his bag and stood up. "The first thing we’re going to do is pick out your weapons. Better quality ones, so that you can survive the gates. Gear comes after that."

They stared at him.

"Right Now?" Robert asked.

"Why wait?"

"But we just signed," Rika said. "You’re already..."

"I told you I’d take care of it," Leon said. "I meant it."

He walked out of the cafe without another word, and the two of them stayed in their seats for a second, stunned. It had been less than five minutes since they signed, and he was already acting on it.

Then they grabbed their things and followed him out.

Leon waved down a cab, and the three of them climbed in. The driver pulled away from the curb, and the street slid past the windows, shops, signs, and people.

Nobody spoke.

Robert watched the buildings go by with his arms folded, still turning the whole thing over in his head. Rika kept glancing at Leon, and every time he caught her, she looked away. Leon did not mind. He leaned against the window and watched the traffic, humming under his breath.

After about twenty minutes, the cab stopped.

They stepped out in front of a big weapon store for hunters. The windows were filled with swords, spears and axes, and a tall sign hung above the door. A few men in battle suits were standing outside, talking about their last raid.

Leon stopped in front of the entrance and pushed the door.