Fenrir chuckled in his mind. “Perhaps we have underestimated the humans.”

Evan mirrored the man’s grin with one of his own and nodded. He and Fenrir understood the need for violence and even appreciated the extremes that the humans were willing to go to save their world.

“Our problem is power,” the man continued. “Our new world runs on prestige, fame, and strength. The more dungeons you fight, the more experience you gain. The more experience you gain, the stronger you get. The stronger you get, the more people need you. The more they want you. The Association does all of its important work in the shadows. There is no fame or fortune to be made in our organization. We live and die for the sake of humanity,” the man paused and gave a heavy sigh.

“And so naturally the strongest join the guilds, leaving the Association unable to do what it was designed to do,” Evan finished for him.

Michael nodded. “Ordinary, simple, and average people pursue money, power, and fame. Guilds offer all three. But you — you were willing to die to save Citadel. You almost did. You are also not a part of any guild as far as we have been able to tell. This leads me to believe that you might accept what I am offering you.”

The summoner stared at the ceiling as the man finished speaking. “And what exactly are you offering me?”

“A position as a squad leader within the Hunter Association’s elite combat unit. Access to all our resources and knowledge. That includes all the money you would ever need to purchase the rights to any portal you want. The best equipment. An intelligence network that spans across the world. And the opportunity to build and train a team of five other elite Hunters,” the man replied.

“We should consider the man’s offer, my King. Our eyes and ears are limited until we can heal whatever injury is stopping us from using the full power of our shadow army. If anything, we are sure that our and this Hunter Association’s ultimate goals align,” Fenrir whispered.

Evan was silent for a long time as he and Fenrir pondered over the decision. Michael waited patiently in one of the corners of the room, looking out a window at the rising sun.

Half an hour passed before the summoner finally spoke. “I will accept your offer.”

The summoner watched as Michael released the breath he had been holding. The man’s tired face seemed to relax as he smiled at Evan. “Excellent! I must admit that I was worried that you would refuse—”

Michael paused as a small burst of static came from his ear. Several seconds paused as he listened to the static before he tapped a finger to his ear. “On our way.”

He turned to face Evan and gestured for him to follow.

Dull pain shot through his body as he got out of bed and followed the man down the stairs. “Where are we going?”

The man continued to walk towards the exit as he spoke. There was excitement in his voice as he spoke. “To destroy a dungeon core.”

Evan felt Sasha and Astrid’s stares as he followed Michael through the lobby. They were talking to a handful of other people on one of the large wooden tables. As Evan and Michael got closer, one of the larger men stood up and barred their path. “What’s going on here?! You can’t just take him without letting the rest of the guilds give him their offers!”

The man pushed past Michael and got into Evan’s face. “Listen here kid, the Hunter Association is weak! They can’t even clear orange dungeons with any consistency! Chaos is willing to give you double whatever they offered to pay you.”

Evan stepped around the man and shook his head. “I appreciate the offer, but I have already decided to join the Association.”

The summoner felt a large hand grasp his shoulder. Evan was sure that if he had been anyone else the man’s grip would have shattered his shoulder blade. “Filthy fucking Marked! The Chaos guild is too fucking good for you! You belong on the fucking streets with the rest of your trash!”

There was a soft click followed by the sharp inhale of breath. Evan turned towards the noise as the Chaos guild member relaxed their grip on his shoulder.

Michael held a small metal weapon to the man’s temple. His face betrayed no expression, but there was amusement in his eyes. “Not that Evan would have any trouble defending himself, but I can’t just let you bully around one of the Association’s newest members.”

The large man made a move towards a dagger that was sheathed at his side but stopped when Michael pushed the weapon harder against his head. “Ah ah. I don’t care how strong or fast [The System] has made you Nathan. I promise you that a bullet at this distance is far faster,” he chuckled.

With an angry grunt, the man stepped away from the duo. Michael nodded and then gave a small bow towards Sasha before walking out the door. Evan turned around and smiled at Astrid before following.

The first thing Evan noticed was the team of four Hunters that surrounded them the second they passed through the door. Instead of the plate-mail and leather that he had become accustomed to seeing on the human Hunters, they wore black vests that protected their chest, leaving their arms exposed. Instead of carrying swords, shields, or bows, they carried metal weapons that were similar to the one that Michael had used a while before except larger.

Michael noticed Evan’s interest in the Hunters and laughed. “The Association’s elite combat unit is modeled after the US military. We are one of the few groups left that have access to military-grade equipment.” He pointed at one of the Hunter’s vests. “Each Hunter in the unit is outfitted in a military-grade tactical vest with a plate carrier, as well as tactical combat pants and delta gloves for protection. All of it has been enchanted with passive [Harden] and activatable [Camouflage] spells for extra defense and stealth missions.”

He grabbed one of the metal weapons from the guard nearest him as they continued to walk. “The rifle is fairly new so it hasn’t become standard issue yet. It took six months for the nerds over at the Association to put this together. The body is based on the military-grade HK416 assault rifle. They used a mixture of high dungeon-grade iron and carbon to create a sturdier steel-like alloy. It has a 10-inch barrel to increase the exit velocity and effective range of the bullet.”

He pointed out several of the runes etched into the barrel, “they enchanted the barrel to increase the momentum of the bullet as it’s propelled through.” He then pointed towards more runes carved into the body of the rifle. “Then they enchanted the entire thing to lessen the recoil created from the increased momentum of the bullet.”

Michael handed the rifle back to the guard and grinned at Evan. “They haven’t been properly tested in the field yet. So we’re going to be killing two birds with one stone today.”