Walking towards the main plaza, she was stopped by a few staff members.
"Miss Shiro, the organiser would like to have a short chat with you." The staff said handing her a small projection device.
Raising an eyebrow, Shiro pulled out her phone.
[Do I call the organiser or he call me?] Shiro asked.
However, before they could even reply, the device started to vibrate with a slight green light.
The staff members gestured for her to answer the call.
{Hello Miss Shiro, how goes your day.} A figure, who was shadowed out, said.
Shiro made an emotionless face as they should know she couldn't speak by now. Typing on her phone, she held it against the camera.
[You should know that I'm mute right?]
{No, but I do now.} The silhouette chuckled slightly.
{Since you're mute, you can just listen to what I have to say.
{First of all, I would like to apologise. The initial plan was to have you fight against enemies that were scaled to your level. However, we had received several requests from the factions asking for you to be pitted against the level 50 puppet. They wanted to see your potential against level 50 opponents since you had the capabilities to reach this stage.
{I would also like to apologise for my staffs conduct when controlling the puppets. I could see from your face that you weren't so pleased with the fact that she aimed for your face rather than body. We'll make sure to give her a warning.}
Shiro nodded when she heard this. While she still wasn't pleased, she knew that she shouldn't take things too far.
{Now with those two out of the way, I would now like to congratulate you on your success of reaching this round. The reason I want to congratulate you is because we, the government and the organisers of this event, would like to scout you out to join our ranks.
{With factions and different solo adventurer's out and about, we need to have a ruling authority to keep things peaceful for the weaker people who are living in the world. Because without the government, the factions are free to do whatever they want. If the wrong faction takes over a town, how do you think the civilians will live? Therefore, we need to have the manpower and the talents to keep the world safe for the weaker people.
{And that is why we want to scout you out. We want your help to keep public order in check.}
[Not interested. The only reason I'm joining this event is to help my friends out and not to join a faction.] Shiro declined bluntly. Sure she may applaud them for her efforts, however, she wasn't going to restrain her freedom for the 'greater good'. No, she wasn't that generous.
{I see. Then I hope Miss Shiro will at least try not to cause trouble. With a certain habit of yours and the fact that the videos have become rather popular on the net, a lot of warriors and mages are buying ass plates to protect themselves. A sudden shift in the market almost made a few blacksmiths bankrupt. Therefore, I do hope you keep certain habits to yourself and instead, direct them to the monsters.} The man said before closing the call.
Shiro raised an eyebrow before giving the device back to the staff members.
"Thank you for your time." They said before leaving.
"Hmm… Little Yin. Seems like I'll have to hit other weak points for a while." Shiro muttered, feeling slightly annoyed.
It was like when a smoker couldn't smoke. There was this irritating itch now that Shiro knew she should stop exposing her attacking method.
*Chirp!
Yin slapped her wing against Shiro's shoulder pulling a face that says "You should have done that from the start!".
Chuckling slightly, Shiro rubbed Yin's head before tucking her back into her hood.
Walking into the main plaza, Shiro wasn't surprised to see that she was one of the early ones to be eliminated from the round.
Looking for a ledge that fits the requirements of a good sigh line as well as being inconspicuous, she crouched down and jumped up to it without much hassle.
Swinging her legs, Shiro searched a few flute compositions to listen to.
'Hmm… Let's see… 1-hour calming flute compilation seems alright.' Shiro thought as she pressed on the video.
Glancing around to make sure that nothing was looking at her, she hid her hand behind her back.
Metal and lightning-sparked for a moment as Shiro created a pair of wireless earbuds. Connecting her phone to her earbuds, she closed her eyes and listened to the music.
The gentle melody made her rock her head and swing her legs in tune. Tapping her fingers, Shiro's brain worked to single out the notes, how it fluctuated and the length of each note.
She had an idea on how to help her play the flute better. While it may not have 'emotions' and the such, she'll be able to play it like a machine or robot.
Her idea was for her to play all the notes of her ice flute and memorize how she played each of the notes. The changes and the lengths. Next, she would match it up to a song composition she heard.
By following the composition like a program, she'll be able to hone a basic grasp of how the flute would play out. Listening to the songs play, Shiro enjoyed the melody whilst closing her eyes.
"ANNNDD THE ROUND IS OVER!!!" The commentator shouted out at the top of his voice.
The sudden disturbance made Shiro frown. This was one of the things that just pressed her buttons the wrong way. Pulling her earbuds out of her ears, Shiro crushed them in her palms and reduced them back to mana.
Supporting her body just on her hands, Shiro pushed herself back to the main plaza.
Landing with a soft thud, she waited to listen to what the commentator had to say.
"With this round finished, those of you who have not reached the top 50 are eliminated. Similar to what happened the previous round, you are able to go to the stalls and apply to the faction you want to go to.
"For the people not inside the top 50, please follow our staff to the recruitment area. For those in the top 50, stay behind and await further instructions."
Seeing the staff gesturing everyone through the gate, Shiro pulled up her face mask and hood before following the crowd.
She wasn't going to look for a faction just yet as she was going to go look for one with Lyrica and Madison. After all, all this effort wasn't for her to join a faction. But rather to guarantee that Lyrica and Madison get enough benefits for when they join one instead.
Unfortunately for her, before she could even go look for Lyrica and Madison, several of the faction members had already spotted her and made a small circle around her.
While they weren't the more important higher-ups, it seemed like they were the ones tasked with recruiting her.
"Miss Shiro, our faction the Luna's Wake will- Gah!"
"Our faction the Opal Tri-!"
"They're just low ranked factions. The faction I'm a part of, Radiance Anvil, is much higher ranked than the other factions!"
Seeing the mass of recruiters pushing and shoving to tell her about how good their faction was, Shiro got a little annoyed since they were inching a little too close to her.
"ENOUGH!!" A voice filled with authority roared out as a sudden miniature blizzard washed over the recruiters.
With the blizzard both literally and figuratively cooling them down, they looked towards the source of the voice.
The owner was a woman who looked like she was in her mid 30's. She had long blond hair and violet pupils. Her body proportions were comparable to woman in their 20's.
However, what shocked the recruiters more was the fact that she was an executive from one of the top 5 in the factions at this event. Winter's Grace!
[Freya LVL ??? – Ice Arch-Wizard]
"Why are you behaving like immature children!" She said with a frown. The recruiters backed off slightly at her glare.
Shiro sighed in relief as she was able to get some room to breathe.
"Miss Shiro, our faction would like to invite you to become a core member of our faction." She said immediately as she saw the other recruiter's back off slightly.
'Hmm… Winter's Grace may be a good place for Lyrica and Madison. Not only can I find more ways to use my magic, but both Lyrica and Madison can also have access to more supplies.' Shiro thought.
[I'm sorry. I have a few requirements of my own. Is it ok if we discussed it?]
"Yes, that is no problem. Follow me and we'll go discuss it." Freya said with a smile.
Before she had come here, she had made sure to do her research. Therefore, seeing her type on her phone wasn't surprising.
[I'll have to bring my friends since they're needed for this discussion.]
"Hmm... Ok, shall I follow you or should we meet up somewhere?" She asked.
[How about we talk this out at a restaurant?] Shiro suggested showing Freya a restaurant that offered private rooms.
"Alright. I just hope I won't have to wait too long." Freya chuckled.
[You won't. I'll get my friends and we'll be there right away.]
"Then while you do that-"
"Hold it!" A voice cut Freya off as she frowned.
Turning around, they could see a young man In his 20's. He had black hair tied into a low ponytail, sharp features and an overall thin build.
"What do you want shattered sc.u.m? First come first serve." Freya said with a frown.
The man in question was a member of Shattered Dynasty.
[Hua Chen LVL ??? – Constellation Spearman]
"First come serve? Sure, that's right. But, don't you know that patience is a virtue? Better offers may come later." He smiled.
"Patience is indeed a virtue. But our young master wants her. Are you willing to fight against him for her?" A husky voice called out.
Looking over, they saw a cloaked man with only his eyes visible.
[Kaldar LVL ??? – Ash Blade]
"Tsk, you Shadow Temple members are always arrogant." Hua Chen retorted.
The three glared at each other as each of them wanted to recruit Shiro to their faction.
The girl in question was almost expressionless.
'Annoying… Kaldar is probably part of that stalker's faction. Shattered Dynasty isn't what I want so probably Freya is the best pick.' Shiro thought. While she wasn't going to join the faction, she still wanted to make sure she got benefits as well.
Flicking her wrist, she pulled out a small piece of paper.
Writing [Meet me at the restaurant in 20 minutes.] on the paper, Shiro folded it up.
While the three were arguing at who was better for her to join, she used 1st Phantom and snuck the paper into Freya's hand.
Freya paused for a moment as she felt contact, then smiled slightly as she realised Shiro chose her.
"What are you smiling at?!"
"At the fact that your Shattered Dynasty lost to our Winter's Grace a few days back!" She retorted.
While the three were baring their teeth at each other, no one realised a certain girl missing.
Shiro was already on her way to look for Lyrica and Madison.
"Little Yin, you think I should mess Shadow Temple up to get some revenge and call it even with the stalker?" Shiro asked.
Yin made a shrugging motion since it wasn't her problem.
"Ai… so unhelpful. What do I even keep you around for?" Shiro asked with a slight chuckle.
*Chirp!
Yin protested by slapping Shiro's chest.
"Hahaha. Only joking." Shiro replied whilst rubbing Yin's head.
Feeling the touch, Yin closed her eyes and enjoyed the sensation.
[Shiro: Where are you two?]
[Lyrica: We're at the entrance area.]
[Shiro: Coming right now.]
Turning the corner, Shiro made her way to the entrance area.
"Shiro~" Lyrica waved the moment she saw Shiro.
[Heya. Get ready since in 15 to 20 mins, we'll be discussing important matters with the recruiter of Winter's Grace.] Shiro smiled.
"Pft!! Winter's Grace!?!" Madison replied shocked.
She never expected that Shiro would be able to draw the attention of the big five. Well… perhaps she did but seeing it was another matter in itself.
[Were going to be negotiating for benefits. Mainly for you two with me as the bargaining chip.]
"Wouldn't a smaller faction be better then?" Lyrica asked.
[Yes and no. A smaller faction would have no guarantee and less resources to give you. Bigger factions, while having less resources per person, has better quality.]
"But wouldn't the competition be fiercer?" Madison asked.
[Which is why we're negotiating.]
"So I'm guessing that we are negotiating for stable resources." Lyrica guessed.
[We're both negotiating for stable resources and more freedom in the faction. If we don't get freedom, we can easily ignore the negotiations and leave. Since they want me to join, we have the upper hand in the discussion.] Shiro smiled slyly.
She was going to make sure she wrung Freya dry of her benefits before accepting. Only more no less.
[I'll do the texting and you guys watch ok?] Shiro smiled.
"Alright."
Walking to the restaurant, Shiro saw Freya waiting by the side.
Giving Shiro a light wave, she lead them inside the private room she had asked the restaurant to set up earlier.
Sitting down, Freya made a mental note of both Lyrica and Madison.
'Their classes are definitely out of the ordinary. If I can get these two as well...' She thought.
[As I have stated before, my friends are needed for this discussion.]
"Yes, you have. And why are they important for this?" She asked. Acting as if their class wasn't anything special.
Since Shiro was the one she needed to recruit, she knew she had the upper hand. Therefore, she needed to try to pull the terms in her favour.
Understanding what Freya wanted, Shiro only smiled since her initial impression worked.
Now she just needed to make sure the rest of this negotiation goes smoothly.
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