Nestra slammed the alarm and sat up blearily. It was still dark as a shadowbeast’s asshole outside yet she had to stand up to a new day. Accursed drive to get stronger. Accursed time limit before someone inevitably discovered her secrets, despite Sereth preventing the Americans and Allfather from spilling what they’d learned. Accursed capitalism! Never had she worked harder in her entire life. It had come to the point where she was forced to stay and sleep in human shape! Nestra made her way to the bathroom for her morning ablutions. Her Aszhii self might be more powerful overall, but it was also lazy and a bit more simple in the way it approached everything. She had experimented a bit and she was sure of it now: her brain wasn’t the same when she was transformed. In order to keep to a strict discipline, it was much easier to stay human more often. After she was done brushing her teeth came time for stretching. Nestra turned on all the lights and put on some music so she wouldn’t feel so goddamn exhausted. It was December by now, and even the temperate Threshold had turned frigid with people having to wear thick coats. Coats! While you could bake an egg on the pavement in July! At least it justified hot chocolate. As she finished stretching, Nestra focused her mind on the promise of the sweet drink with her breakfast. Training her body had become necessary because it had started to change again. While her baseline self had remained untouched after she awakened, her ability to grow had unlocked with her newly rebuilt core. Now she was forced to train so she could be the strong girl she’d always been meant to become. She took care of that next in the gym side of the den, first with muscle training for the anaerobic part of her routine, then aerobic via sword forms and cardio. Nothing like doing burpees in full plate to make one regret the life decisions that led to this point. Nevertheless, it was necessary. After a shower, she was ready to go. Nestra’s morning continued at the Palladian corporate building. Today, her mom would be teaching her but sometimes it was Dad with the fencing. When they were all raiding, she would practice with other members of the house or by herself. The plan for this afternoon was to join the Little People League for more raids, then at six she’d be back to her den and then it was Aszhii Nestra’s turn to come out and play. At least when one form was active, the other one rested. The Palladian’s corporate building was not at the manor, which was mostly used for social stuff. Situated not too far from the Beacon, the building was a modest-sized one they shared with another gleam group — those tended to rotate but for now it was the allied Century Guild. She greeted the receptionist before taking the elevator to the third floor which served as a training and practice spot. It was specifically reinforced to fill this role for D-rank members. Her mom was already waiting for her, deep in discussion with a Century Guild officer. They talked at high gleam speed so Nestra didn’t pay much attention. Her mom was done soon anyway. “Today, we will keep practicing the spikes. Again.” “And House Palladian?” “House Palladian would take 70%, and send a team of three people: two D-class and one C-class.” Nestra felt more than saw Jade’s head swivel in shock. A C-class expert for a D-class world was an overkill. “A high C-class, Dimitriy. He is a nature Find your next favorite novel on NovelHub today!” “You would dedicate an expert to such a low world?” “The portal is right next to our home. It is a matter of safety and pride,” Nestra stated, though Mo Peng knew it, of course. But sometimes one had to state the obvious to play the game. That was politics for ya, Nestra thought. “And when would this expedition take place?” “The Jade Consortium can raid tonight,” Eunhye interrupted. Mo Peng turned back to Nestra, waiting for her answer. “Tomorrow,” Nestra restated. “I already have a commitment for this afternoon and would prefer to rest and prepare adequately for a potentially dangerous raid.” Mo Peng made a show of checking some notes on a datasheet. It was a courtesy to let them know he wasn’t ignoring them. “Hmmm. Does it relate to your work as a member of… the Little People League?” “That is correct, sir.” “You appear to raid fairly weak locations.” A huff of contempt tickled Nestra’s ears. Some raiders only picked the weakest raids to get by on a day to day basis. They were looked down upon as they should be. Being mixed with those bottom feeders was a terrible insult. “We take the jobs no one wants, sir. That’s the whole purpose of the league.” “Hm, yes. Will you be raiding with members?” “Well, I will be raiding with my sister, who is also part of the league, but we will be acting as part of House Palladian and will be joined by a member of House Palladian for this specific raid.” “Hmm, I see. I agree that a dangerous raid should require an evening of preparation with the latest data we can give you…” Mo Peng’s eyes traveled sideways to Eunhye. She was looking like she knew things were not going well. Nestra didn’t know if it was the obvious lack of regard for safety, or the blatant undercut that did it, but she was pretty sure she’d just gotten the portal. “I believe House Palladian will be given the chance to clean their own backyard.” Jade was fuming by then. She excused herself, which Mo Peng allowed with a thin smile. Cheng also used the opportunity to leave. He was clearly regretting not following Lee’s earlier example. “Before you leave, Miss Palladian. A word?” the judge ‘suggested’. Nestra approached, which was clearly what he expected. She knew some really dumb young D-class liked to play it loose with judges, which proved that potent mana didn’t make someone smart. Since she wasn’t completely stupid, she displayed the appropriate amount of deference. “This room is excessively cold. Have you perhaps been circulating mana a little bit… carelessly?” His gaze was intense and Nestra felt, instinctively, that this was the same sort of tactic prosecutors used on witnesses: he knew exactly the answer to the question he was asking. She was going to get an earful if she dared lie. There was also nothing preventing the judge from changing his mind if relevant new information happened to reach him. “It might have happened that Miss Jade proved a bit abrasive in her manners, and seeing she also declined to wear winter clothes, it might also have occurred that that I might have been less cautious than I should have been to… cool down her aggression.” “It might also occur that the Beacon and its public facilities are not a battlefield for dick measuring contests, and it might also occur that she is nineteen and you’re not. And finally, it might also occur that you will not do this again. Am I being perfectly clear?” “Yes, sir,” Nestra allowed. Yeah… She was supposed to be more grown up, and that pettiness of hers couldn’t solely be blamed on her true self whispering that jade mana was surely tasty. Nestra should try to match her outer, aloof appearance a little more. At the very least it would be badass. “Good. You are doing a great job with the Little People League initiative. I hope you can persevere in this noble endeavor, Miss Palladian.” He patted her shoulder, once. It was a friendly gesture. Probably. “You be careful tomorrow.” And with that, he left the room probably off to another auction. The entire interaction had only lasted a few minutes. Nestra used the deserted room to send a quick message. “Mother. I have acquired the PORTAL. However, it appears we have a blood feud with something called the Jade Consortium? Que? Respectfully, larger daughter.” The answer was almost instantaneous. “So they made a move? The Jade Consortium is one of the proxies used by our rivals to slow down our expansion. Our cooperation with the Century Guild is proving very profitable, so people come sniffing. Worry not your muscle brain and go raid safely alongside my smaller daughter. Both of you be safe.” Accursed politics. Now, Nestra was all important and everything so she couldn’t be sheltered from its raid-delaying tendrils. She had learned her lessons though, so she made sure to remember to check the politics later with her dad. She wouldn’t be caught unaware out of laziness. Her mom was right. The confrontation notwithstanding, Nestra had the time to grab a coffee at a local franchise before heading to the next Little People League meeting back at the Palladian estate. Helena was here alongside two of her recently recruited classmates: a Chinese girl called Miu Miu and Albert, one of possibly five black and Asian mixed bloods in the entire city. The girl was a very short air mage whose Find your next favorite novel on NovelHub today! They were both very good for their age, Nestra believed. “Hey, Helena’s sister. Nice sparkle,” Albert greeted. Nestra could only assume he was referring to her dress. “I thought it was scales?” she asked. “That’s oldspeak, damn. Are you sure you’re not secretly thirty-five?” Nestra lifted her hands to her heart, mortally wounded. “Gah. Helena! I’m being bullied!” “Cut her some slack. She was a cop,” Helena said as she munched on a ball of chips. “Isn’t that, like, way worse?” Miu Miu remarked. “Alright, enough seditious comments. I will not be harassed in my own home.” Nestra shelved the ‘sparkle’ slang knowledge to embarrass her sister at a later time before turning on the screen in the living room and uploaded two files, opening one after the other. “Right. Valerian is doing ER shifts in District Fifteen until Friday so it’s just us. First is a standard raid in the tunnels of a sulfur mine.” The three teenagers groaned. “Hey don’t be like that. The raid is actually lucrative with a basic recovery team. The final payoff should be around twenty-thousand creds split in two, deliverable in five days after final assessment.” Albert shook his head though Miu Miu gave it some consideration. “Nah, forget it. I’m not being paid enough to smell like rotten eggs for the next two weeks. What’s the other one?” “A bit special, but we got a report about disappeared pets in Seventeen. A crazy cat lady, and I quote the file here, says her darlings have been disappearing. She’s been very distressed. It could be the sign of a breached ambush monster being patient.” “That sounds important,” Miu Miu said. “Why does nobody want to handle it? Left to grow and the thing will be catching children next.” Nestra wasn’t sure how to put it diplomatically. In the end, she decided to go for blunt. “This is a picture of the request maker.” The trio of younglings stared aghast at a disheveled, wide-eyed train wreck of a woman who had made the deposition. “Due to the perceived unreliability of the witness, the local precinct has decided to direct their efforts elsewhere.” Nestra wouldn’t have trusted that lady with a plastic spoon, much less with the highly sensitive task of being a witness. As a cop, she knew people couldn’t be trusted, but at the same time she was profiling the poor sod and the Little People League didn’t exist for efficiency. It was here to help. “Look, the cats she’s feeding roam a bit but not that much and all three disappearances have occurred every five days, so far.” “She’s been keeping track?” Albert asked. “So she claims. I think it’s worth checking out. I need two of us to go see her for questioning, following which the team will select the best spots to place thirty Gidung-approved dokkaebi cameras.” “You bought stuff from Gidung?” Helena asked with disbelief. “After they tried to off you?” “Gidung isn’t a person. It’s a legal entity. It doesn’t have a will. The bastard who tried to zero me is in prison and his hierarchy gave me my precious pink Alda roadster as blood price for the offense, which I accepted. Those Gidung babies are the best in market at what they do for the cost. They cost me fifteen hundred creds so make them count.” “That’s like… three of our raids.” “They can be reused, so you’ll also be collecting them back. Who wants to go?” “I’ll go,” Albert said. “I studied site security. Might as well put it to good use.” “I’ll go as well,” Helena said, a little quickly. My, my. Helena was blushing now. “Miu? How would you like some sulfur smell in your hair?” Nestra asked. “Ugh. Well, I have a new bubble enchantment I’d like to practice. And Professor Soren said my blades could use some work. Can you cover me?” “Sure. I’ll give you some nice angles so you get proper shots in. And the pizza’s ours.” “Come on. We’ll be smelling cat piss?” Albert suggested, but Nestra wasn’t going to budge. “You’ll have vaguely unpleasant eau de chat pisse and we get dangerously high sulfur dioxide concentrations. The pizza is ours.” Miu Miu and Albert were ready to go so they retreated to the entrance, but Nestra was stopped by Helena. “Listen, while we were waiting, I got a weird mail from the government on the League’s contact address. It asked for your attention specifically.” Nestra made a detour towards her bedroom to quickly check it, even though people were waiting for her. It might have been urgent. The first thing she noticed was that the mail came from Special Affairs, but it wasn’t addressed to her as an agent. Instead, she was contacted as a founder of the guild for the purpose of… being a guarantor and moral witness?