Chapter 72: An Offer of Employment

GUYS I HAVE UPLODED 2 VERSION TELL ME WHICH ONE YOU GUYS LIKE ME TO CONTINUE ON

VERSION 1

Russell felt a chilling knot of dread form in his stomach. Was I mistaken?

He had a face as dark as a pot's bottom. He looked up this address on the map before coming here, but it only showed "175 Riverpearl Road," not that it was the main branch of the "Everspring Clinic." He would never have come if he had known it was this type of establishment, a posh brothel posing as a clinic. He had given up his standing with his peers in order to have the freedom to act independently! Oh, hold on, he thought grimly, it doesn't amount to sacrificing my reputation in this case. I did, after all, arrive at a brothel.

Russell inhaled deeply, braced himself, and then said his four-word motto: "Well, I'm here now."

He entered the Everspring Clinic wearing a composed, focused expression.

However, from the store's madam's point of view, this is what transpired: Outside her establishment, a young, attractive man had been engaged in a heated argument with himself over his beliefs. In the end, he had entered the store with a look of unafraid determination on his face because desire had triumphed over reason. The madam had seen many such people, to be honest. In essence, they were students who were eager to travel.

However, what was the student's problem? She dared not neglect anyone behind in this world of strong cardmakers. She smiled professionally at once. "Hello, sir. Are you by yourself?
"This is your first visit? Would you like me to find you a partner, or do you have a specific girl in mind?

Russell couldn't help but frown as he smelled the madam's strong, pungent perfume. "Misty sent me," he stated plainly.

For a moment, the lady's polished smile wavered. Her thoughts were racing as she gazed at Russell's attractive face. Is the Director pursuing a career in female escorts? Or is this boy a customer with extremely particular preferences?

Russell's face darkened when he saw the bewilderment on hers. What? Flustered, he thought, "No! Absolutely not!" However, he was too lazy to challenge her presumptions. "I don't know," he said glumly. "She instructed me to arrive here at eight o'clock." He was ready. He would reveal the actual brutality of the Spirit Begging Society to them wearing his Iron Man vest if they truly wanted him to be a gigolo! Yes, he reasoned, I, Russell, have nothing to do with what Iron Man does.

The madam came back to him after a moment. "I'm taking you upstairs per Director Misty's request." Right now, she couldn't help but mutter to herself, Is this the boy toy the Director keeps on hand?

Russell rode the elevator to the top floor and followed the madam. "Director Misty," the lady said politely, "I've brought the individual here."

Once on the top floor, Russell was certain that the hotel woman was a senior Spirit Begging Society official. What sort of company, after all, has its boss handing out business cards on the street? Russell secretly bemoaned her negligence, but he reasoned that it would be too obvious for the boss to go out in person.

A voice that was exactly the same as the hotel woman's said, "Okay, you can go down first," from behind a big leather chair that was facing away from Russell.

"Yes," the lady replied, bowing deferentially before turning away.

The room was now empty except for Russell and Misty. Russell's eyes widened as the boss's chair slowly turned. "No way... who are you?"

A lovely woman with a slim, attractive figure and large, wavy, wine-red hair appeared in front of him. He could say that she was entirely different from the woman from the hotel, but he couldn't say that they were exactly the same.

The endearing woman burst out laughing at his startled expression. "All right, handsome. Why that look? Do you not recognize me? A puff of white smoke filled the room as she spoke. The woman in the chair had changed back into the middle-aged, shabby woman Russell had seen at the hotel in the next instant. Or maybe, handsome, you like this look better? She winked and added, "And I was serious about what I said this afternoon."

There was silence for a moment before Russell said, "You ought to change back. This appearance is incredibly unflattering.

Poof.

The next instant, Misty sighed softly and was once again beautiful. "Yes, all men are the same. All that matters to them is appearance.

 Russell did not refute her . He confessed to being a face-lover. He said bluntly, "What do you want from me?" He wouldn't ask her outright if she was from the Society, of course. What did that have to do with declaring his own suspicions?

"What if I asked if you would be interested in working in our store?" With interest glimmering in her eyes, Misty inquired.

Russell's expression instantly became icy. He pivoted and readied himself to depart.

From behind him, the woman's voice, now tinged with laughter, said, "Hey, hey, hey, don't be angry." "In addition, don't you already understand why I'm trying to find you?"

Without a word, Russell turned around and gave her a chilly stare. They were still at a standstill.

Misty finally laughed, her voice a tone of surrender, after a long time. "All right, I'm afraid of you. Okay, so I'm from the Spirit Begging Society.

Russell was "shocked" to hear this. Without delay, he pulled out his cell phone and got ready to dial the police.

His performance made Misty laugh uncontrollably. "Stop being dramatic. There is just the two of us. For whom are you performing? She pulled a familiar-looking contract out of her desk drawer as she was speaking. "Is this sufficient evidence?"

Russell's expression instantly calmed down when he saw the contract. He gave a small nod. "That's sufficient." The Society used the same kind of contract. He had to be this careful. Who could tell if the woman across from him was merely looking for information?

When Misty saw this, she chuckled and gave him a serious look. "Your mind is very meticulous, even though you're young."

Russell was forced to roll his eyes inward. Every setback makes you smarter, as the saying goes. He had previously been on the verge of being taken out due to his lack of caution. He needed to grow from his errors.

Once he had verified her identity, he ceased being courteous and took a seat on the reception sofa in her office. "Why do you want to see me?" Does the Spirit Begging Society have another mission for me? was the second half of the sentence that he did not ask. After all, they had arrived at his door in such a hurry, and he had only been in Northgate for a day. What else might it be? Furthermore, he was still unsure of how to use the silver-level material that they had previously advanced to him.

Misty stopped making fun of him after she heard him get down to business. "Don't hold it against me for locating you with that other appearance. After all, I must exercise caution in order to survive. Russell had to concur with her statement after taking a moment to admire her inherent beauty. After all, the Spirit Begging Society was involved in a potentially lethal enterprise.

Misty smiled and put her chin on her right hand, ignoring his eyes. "I didn't ask you to come here for anything important," she said. I wanted to know you first. After all, for the next few days, I will be your point of contact in Northgate."
"And second," she continued, "I wanted to share some information with you."
"Details about your rivals in the Riverview Province Unified Exam."

(Chapter end)

VERSION 2

A cold knot of dread formed in Russell's stomach. Did I get it wrong?

His face was as black as the bottom of a pot. Before coming here, he had searched for this address on the map, but it had only shown "175 Riverpearl Road," not that it was the "Everspring Clinic" main branch. If he had known it was this kind of place, a high-class brothel masquerading as a clinic, he never would have come. He had sacrificed his own reputation with his classmates to get the chance to act alone! Oh, wait, he thought with a grimace, in this situation, it doesn't count as sacrificing my reputation. After all, I really did come to a brothel.

After taking a deep breath and steeling himself, Russell uttered his four-word mantra: "Well, I'm here now."

With a calm, determined face, he stepped into the Everspring Clinic.

From the perspective of the store's madam, however, this is what happened: A handsome, young-looking man had been standing outside her establishment, having a fierce ideological struggle with himself. Ultimately, desire had overwhelmed reason, and he had walked into the store with a look of fearless determination on his face. To be honest, the madam had seen plenty of people like this. They were basically students who wanted to see the world.

But what was wrong with a student? In this world, with powerful cardmakers, she dared not neglect anyone. She immediately put on a professional smile. "Welcome, sir. Are you alone?"
"First time here? Is there a particular girl you know, or would you like me to arrange someone for you?"

Smelling the strong, pungent perfume on the madam, Russell couldn't help but frown. "Misty sent me," he said bluntly.

The madam's professional smile faltered for a second. She looked at Russell's pretty face, her mind racing. Is the Director branching out into female escorts? Or... is this boy a client with very specific tastes?

Russell saw the confusion on her face and his own turned dark. What!? No! Absolutely not! he thought, flustered. But he was too lazy to refute her assumptions. "I don't know," he said unhappily. "She just told me to be here at eight o'clock." He was prepared. If they really wanted him to be a gigolo, he would use his Iron Man vest to let them know the true cruelty of the Spirit Begging Society! That's right, he thought, what Iron Man does has nothing to do with me, Russell.

After a moment, the madam returned to him. "Director Misty asked me to take you upstairs." At this moment, she couldn't help but murmur in her heart, Could this be the boy toy that the Director keeps on the side?

Following the madam, Russell took the elevator to the top floor. "Director Misty," the madam said respectfully, "I've brought the person here."

After arriving on the top floor, Russell was convinced that the woman from the hotel was a high-ranking member of the Spirit Begging Society. After all, what kind of business has its boss personally hand out business cards on the street? It's just that it would be too conspicuous for the boss to go out in person, Russell thought, secretly lamenting her carelessness.

"Okay, you can go down first," a voice identical to the woman's from the hotel came from behind a large leather chair, which had its back to Russell.

"Yes," the madam said, bowing respectfully before retreating.

Now, only Russell and Misty were left in the room. As the boss's chair slowly turned, Russell couldn't help but widen his eyes. "No way... who are you?"

Appearing before him was a charming woman with big, wavy, wine-red hair and a slender, alluring figure. He couldn't say she was just the same as the woman from the hotel; he could say they were completely different people.

Seeing his surprised look, the charming woman couldn't help but giggle. "Well now, handsome. What's with that look? Don't you recognize me?" As she spoke, a puff of white smoke appeared in the room. In the next moment, the woman in the chair had transformed back into the frumpy, middle-aged woman Russell had seen at the hotel. "Or perhaps you prefer this look, handsome? And I was serious about what I said this afternoon," she added with a wink.

After a moment of silence, Russell said, "You should change back. This look is really unflattering."

Poof.

The next moment, Misty returned to her original, beautiful state and sighed faintly. "Ah, men are all the same. They only care about appearance."

Russell did not refute her. He admitted he was a face-lover. "What do you want from me?" he asked directly. Of course, he wouldn't directly ask if she was from the Society. What was the difference between that and announcing his own suspicions?

"What if I said I wanted to know if you're interested in working in our store?" Misty asked, her eyes glittering with interest.

Russell's face immediately turned cold. He turned around and prepared to leave.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't be angry," the woman's voice, now with a hint of laughter, came from behind him. "And besides, don't you already know why I'm looking for you?"

Russell turned around and looked at her coldly without saying anything. The two of them remained in a stalemate.

After a long while, Misty burst out laughing, her tone one of surrender. "Okay, okay, you're scaring me. I'm from the Spirit Begging Society, alright?"

Hearing this, Russell was "shocked." He immediately took out his cell phone and prepared to call the police.

Misty couldn't help but laugh at his performance. "Stop acting. There are only two of us here. Who are you putting on a show for?" As she spoke, she took out a familiar-looking contract from her desk drawer. "Is this enough proof?"

Seeing the contract, Russell's expression instantly returned to calm. He nodded slightly. "That's enough." It was the same type of contract the Society used. He had to be this cautious. Who knew if the woman opposite him was just fishing for information?

Seeing this, Misty laughed and looked at him deeply. "You're young, but your mind is very meticulous."

Russell couldn't help but roll his eyes inwardly. As the saying goes, every failure makes you wiser. He had almost been taken out because he wasn't careful enough before. He had to learn from his mistakes.

After confirming her identity, he stopped being polite and sat down on the reception sofa in her office. "What do you want to see me for?" There was another half of the sentence that he didn't ask: Does the Spirit Begging Society have another mission for me? After all, he had been in Northgate for less than a day, and they had already come to his door in such a hurry. What else could it be? And as for the silver-level material they had previously advanced him, he still hadn't figured out how to use it.

Hearing him get down to serious business, Misty stopped teasing him. "Don't blame me for using that other appearance to find you. After all, like you, I also have to be cautious enough to survive." After a quick glance at her natural beauty, Russell had to agree with her statement. The Spirit Begging Society was engaged in a business that could get you killed, after all.

Ignoring his gaze, Misty propped her chin on her right hand and said with a smile, "I didn't ask you to come here for anything important. First, I wanted to get to know you. After all, I will be your contact person in Northgate for the next few days."
"And second," she added, "I wanted to give you some information."
"Information about your opponents in the Riverview Province Unified Examination."

(End of this chapter)