For the Greater Good

While Cassie was out negotiating with other squads about the bounty on Vincent Graves' head, Alex was in the tavern drinking as he fought over an internal dilemma as to whether or not their actions were morally justified. Killing monsters was one thing; after all, they weren't human, and humans were constantly under attack by them.

However, killing a human being was something he had yet to experience, though he knew the longer he survived in this apocalyptic wasteland, the more likely it was to occur. He still had a hard time coming to terms with it. Unlike the variety of psychopaths and sociopaths that reveled in this fractured world, he was a normal kid before everything collapsed.

Sure he liked to compete in combat sports and found enjoyment in it, but that did not mean he was a natural-born killer, merely a competitor at heart. He took a sip from his beer and began to rationalize things as he tried to free himself of his emotions.

Vincent Graves was a known killer and rapist. He was a menace within the region and the right-hand man of a dictator who waged war against other human settlements despite the precarious situation the entirety of humanity found itself in.

Maybe it was the alcohol, but he found the resolve within himself at the bottom of the bottle to do what was necessary. For the greater good, he would not hesitate to eliminate this threat to humanity.

After coming to terms with the reality he found himself in, Alex regrouped with his party. Cassie was still in negotiations with others while Brandon and Derek were hovering around Emily's shop inquiring about when she would be able to forge new equipment.

Despite the variety of missions she had posted on the board seeking slayers to get the supplies she needed to build a smelter, a forge, and the other tools for crafting equipment, the progress had been rather slow.

Despite being a level 10 smith, she completely lacked the tools necessary to craft new equipment for the veteran slayers who had progressed beyond the level of her novice grade equipment she could currently manufacture. As a result, she could only wait for the supplies to be gathered before she could aid those who had obtained a basic class.

Nevertheless, business was booming as there were still plenty of classless slayers who required constant repair and upgrades to their current sets of equipment. Thus she had barely any time to spare for her friends.

When Alex came across the others, he reeked of alcohol, though he was only slightly buzzed. Brandon could estimate the moral dilemma a kid like Alex, who had grown up in a relatively stable environment, was currently dealing with.

Their job was to actively hunt and kill another human being, something most humans who had grown up during the peaceful era of the United States during the 21st century would have difficulty coming to terms with. Though for an arms dealer like Brandon, it was nothing to sweat about, he had made a living off of selling weapons to killers and had personally gotten his hands dirty at least once in his life.

Brandon walked over and patted Alex on the back

"So, do you have the balls to do it or not?"

Alex nodded his head with a fierce look of determination in his eyes

"The man's a menace and must be put down for the greater good."

Brand scratched his chin and smirked at Alex

"For the greater good, huh? Well, whatever you need to believe in getting the job done is good enough, I guess"

Emily showed a look of concern out of the edge of her eyes as she eavesdropped on their conversation while repairing a beast-hide vest. She did not know what Alex had gotten himself into, but it appeared to be dangerous once again. Still, she didn't pry; as long as he came back safely, she would have no complaints.

After such thoughts, she got back to work. He refused to bother Alex and his friends, who were busy discussing the details of the mission and the supplies they would have to gather to complete it.

...

Cassie ground her teeth and frowned as she sat across the table from a fat man who was twirling his mustache like a pompous fool. The man was the leader of a notorious slayer squad which specialized in bounty hunting. Cassie was currently engaged in negotiations with the fat man. However, he was asking for an absurd potion of the reward which had gotten on her nerves.

After listening to his nonsensical excuses about how he deserved more than the other parties who had already agreed to help, she finally got up from the seat. She walked away from the negotiations after turning the fat man down. She was not desperate enough to give away 40% of the rewards just for his help; there were plenty of other slayer parties that could aid her.

By the time she had finished negotiating with various parties, the sun had already begun to set, and she knew she would make no further progress. As such, she went to the tavern where she met up with her party. Where they immediately inquired as to her progress with the negotiations.

"How did it go," Alex asked her as he took a sip from his lager.

Cassie groaned and slammed her head on the table while screaming into her forearms.

"That bad, huh?" Alex chuckled as he espoused his concern

Cassie looked up from her forearms without adjusting the position of her head. "You have no idea."

Though they had never worked with other parties before, they had heard others tell their stories. Apparently, most slayers left out the part of the massive fees the other parties would charge for the slightest assistance. If they had known how much they would have to pay for the assistance, they would never have accepted the mission.

Now they were left with two options, give up most of the purse, or kill Vincent themselves...