Chapter 3

Rosa and Sirius kept walking toward the back of the tavern. The place was back to it's normal, loud self. That's what Rosa assumed to be normal.

The men were accepting her, just for stabbing a man's hand into a table. A weird thing to accept somebody for. Sirius led her to a board in the back. "This," he said, "is the job board. Pretty self explanatory. You choose a job. The amount paid for the job, the danger, and employer are all on here. Wanna choose one to do. Together?"

Rosa said nothing, but she walked around the board. Which job pays the most?

She found a job. 12 million gold aureus. She took it off the board and showed it to Sirius. "Are you serious! This one? Did you just look at the job that paid the most and not what the job entailed!? People have literally been avoiding this job because of how dangerous it is!"

Rosa took the paper out of Sirus' hand and looked it over. Kill Roman Senator Curio Julios. Heavily guarded by Roman soldiers. Job: dangerous. Death may occur. Employer: Aebutia Brocooli.

"Looks easy enough," Rosa said after reading it. Sirius closed his eyes and sighed. He rolled the paper up and put it in his pocket. "Fine," he said, "but you're protecting me, and if I die, I'm going to personally kill you."

"Fair enough," Rosa replied.

They arrived at the patrician's domus (city mansion) a few hours later. Rosa knocked on the door, Sirius holding the paper in his hand. "Gods, I can't believe we are doing this," Sirius complained.

"Well, start believing," Rosa said back. Sirius rolled his eyes.

Soon, the sound of a latch being used and the door opening alerted them to get themselves together. "Hello? How may I help you?" asked a male voice on the other side of the door.

"We are here to talk with Senator Brocooli," Rosa told the man. Sirius held up the piece of paper. The man saw it and opened up the door. "Right this way," he said.

The man led them to the tabinculum (office) in the back of the atrium. There, a man sat looking over some papers. At a quick glance, Rosa thought that they were bills or topics that the senators would be or have gone over. "Sir, two people have accepted your job request," the man who led them in told the man at the desk. Rosa guessed that the man who had let them in was a slave.

The senator looked up from his papers at the two mercenaries then at the slave, "You are dismissed." The slave left. Then he looked up at Rosa and Sirius. "You two seem young," He was talking to Sirius. Rosa thought it was because he was a man.

"Yes," Sirius said, "My friend Rosa here thinks that your job is going to be easy. Though I did tell her that literally every other person who saw the job passed it up."

The man looked at Rosa, "A woman thinks that she could pull off a job like this? Stop living in your delusional world and quit trying to do a man's job." Rosa pursed her lips and squinted her eyes. She bit back a rude retort.

"Stop being so sexist and just tell us the details on this job. Or else we're going back and you'll have nobody to do this job for you."

"Tell me, girl. Where are you from?"

"Japan"

"And what kind of armor is that?"

"The armor of a samurai."

"Which is?"

"The class that fights for the country and the emperor."

"Do women usually become samurai?"

"No."

"Then why should I hire you?"

"Because my father gave me an opportunity and I took that opportunity to show why I should stay."

The man laughed. Rosa wasn't amused and kept a neutral look on her face. "Fine," the man said, "Don't disappoint me." He told them the details of the job and sent them on their way.