Raiders

After evaluating all the possible options he could pick from, he could only come to one conclusion...

The system had told him to come up with a sum of 3000 cores—which was very high. He wouldn't be able to get that kind of money within three days by just finding and selling scrap in the Scrap Lands. That option would take him forever.

"I can't believe Strikx is urging me to do this," Dante scowled, looking paler than ever.

He was currently standing in front of a semi-large building. From the texture, it looked to be made of steel. Around the edges, Dante could clearly see Neva-powered cameras stationed at specific points.

On the front of the building, a bull-shaped logo was mounted, and the name "Raiders Guild" was openly carved beneath it.

Yes...

This was the only way Dante knew he'd be able to get enough money. Even if it was very risky, it paid pretty well.

The Raiders Guild was a network of branches scattered across the globe, where humans who hunted down Beasts—[Raiders]—went to get their missions. It was essentially an assignment hub where Raiders picked up the jobs they were to carry out.

His plan was to join one of the raids as a "Bag Boy." These were people whose jobs were to carry all the necessary equipment of the actual Raiders. They didn't do much and also didn't get paid much, but according to Dante's research, the pay was just enough for what he needed.

The place was a bit crowded with Raiders and some Bag Boys. It took him about ten minutes to enter the building, where he saw all kinds of things.

The inside was just as impressive as the outside. On the marbled white floor, a large logo of the Guild stretched across the surface. He could see lots of people moving in all different directions.

One thing he noticed, though, was that almost everyone within the Guild had a piece of armor or a weapon strapped to their body.

Looking ahead, he could see a large holographic board that contained an overwhelming number of missions people could take on. From what he could decipher from where he stood, missions were divided into ranks ranging from E to SSS—and so were the Raiders.

He could only assume that high-level Raiders took on high-level quests, and that also went for the low-level ones.

Eventually, the line before him thinned, and he now stood before the receptionist—a balding middle-aged man who looked almost miserable in life.

His eyes were dull, and the bags under them only made his appearance even sadder. He glanced lazily at Dante and asked sternly, without even batting an eyelid:

"Your name?"

"Dante..." Dante answered immediately. He didn't know why, but he didn't want to make the man angry.

The man paused for a few seconds, waiting for Dante to speak further, before eventually saying, "You don't have a surname?"

"No... just Dante."

The man didn't ask further. From the way he looked indifferent, Dante could only assume that the man had already witnessed many cases like his.

"Are you registering, or is it just for today?" the man asked briskly, scribbling down a few more words on a small sheet of paper.

"No, it's just for today." Of course, Dante didn't have any intentions of joining the Raiders Guild. The only reason he was here was because of Strikx.

The man went silent for a few more seconds before asking one last question: "You're applying as a Bag Boy, are you not?"

Dante only nodded, and the man made a few more notes on his sheet. Finally, he handed it over to Dante.

"Since you're only starting today, you'll only be allowed on rank E missions. In there, you'll see the teammates you've been assigned to.

Be quick, though—they'll be leaving in five minutes, with or without you. As for the payment, it'll all depend on how successful your mission turns out.

That'll be all," the man explained briskly, wasting no more of either of their time.

With that, Dante left the receptionist's stand. On the sheet he was given, he could see where his new group was. He followed the signs within the Guild until he found them.

Dante took in a deep breath as he approached the group he'd been assigned to. His eyes scanned them quickly, already noting the difference in presence...these weren't just random civilians; these were actual raiders, even if they were low-ranked.

Surprisingly, this was actually the first one in real life, back in the mansion, they never really came.

Looking at them once more, there was a sharpness in their gaze, a certain confidence in the way they stood, Dante could even sense the Neva resonating from them.

[Appraisal activated]

Name: Rykel Dane.

Ability: phase]

***

[Name: Kaela martins

Ability: Megnetize]

***

[Name: Grent woodpecker.

Ability: Titan blood]

***

[Name: Lyssa rosewood.

Ability: Telekenisis]

***

Dante decided to test out his appraisal skill on them which kind of worked as a charm, the only thing he was disappointed about was the fact that the appraisal skill still wasn't capable of explaining what the ability of the person could do.

Example, even after seeing what the guy named grent could, he still didn't understand what the ability could actually do.

As he was still thinking to himself, he felt a hand land atop his shoulders...

Looking up, he could see a tall, lean boy with messy silver-blue hair and sharp amber eyes. A long staff that shimmered with faint blue Neva energy was strapped to his back. He wore fingerless gloves and a light armor set, probably built more for mobility than defense.

"You the bag boy?" the boy asked, a hint of amusement in his tone.

"Yeah, name's Dante," he replied calmly.

"I'm Rykel, team leader," the boy said with an amusing chuckle, extending a hand that Dante hesitated a moment before shaking. "Don't worry, we won't toss you into anything too crazy—as long as you don't mess up."

'well, at least the appraisal works...' Dante smiled inwardly after hearing the first person's name.

Beside Rykel stood a shorter girl, maybe just an inch or two below Dante's height. Her short black hair was streaked with purple colouration and tied in a side ponytail. A pair of throwing knives sat snug in twin sheaths at her hips, and her armor had more padding—probably the stealth type.

"I'm Kaela," she said with a nod. "Just keep up, and don't drop anything, and we'll be good."

[A/N: it's pronounced as Kye-la]

Next was a bulky guy with tan skin, cropped blond hair, and heavy gauntlets covering both arms. His armor was noticeably thicker, especially around the chest and legs, and a large shield was strapped to his back.

"Name's Grent," he said in a deep, calm voice. "If anything tries to eat you, stay behind me." He added with a little chuckle that followed right after.

Dante gave a small nod, unsure how to respond. He hadn't expected this level of formality—or kindness, for that matter, it all seemed strange to him.

The last of the group was a red-haired girl with freckles and piercing green eyes. She had a long bow slung over her shoulder, and a sleek quiver full of high-tech arrows. Her armor was the lightest of the bunch, built for range.

"I'm Lyssa. Don't touch the arrows. They're mine," she said simply, narrowing her eyes a bit before turning back to inspect her gear.

Her sentence seemed out of place, almost like a maniacal even villain who wanted to destroy the world with himself in it, but Dante didn't bother to much about it.

Rykel clapped his hands together. "Alright, now that intros are out of the way—here." He handed Dante a large black duffel bag, heavier than it looked. "Everything we don't immediately need is in there. Spare energy cells, emergency packs, flares, traps... the works."

Grent walked over and handed Dante a small dagger in a reinforced sheath. "Just in case," he said. "Don't worry, you probably won't need it. Just don't poke yourself."

[Metal dagger.

Type: E.

Skill: None]

Dante scanned once again before speaking.

"Right..." Dante muttered, strapping it to his side. The weight of the bag already tugged at his shoulder, but he didn't complain.

Kaela approached with a tab on her hands and showed him the route. "Our mission's simple. We're supposed to collect the cores of thirty Chiropteerlings. Annoying little hybrid freaks—bat ears, rabbit legs, and teeth like razors. They swarm, so we'll try to lure them out in waves."

"Rank E missions don't usually get more exciting than this," Rykel added. "But hey, the pay is decent if we clear the quota."

Lyssa snorted. "Decent if none of us gets bitten. Those things are fast."

Dante nodded slowly, trying to remember all the names and instructions. His heartbeat had picked up without him realizing. He wasn't afraid… not exactly. But this was it. No turning back.

"Alright team," Rykel said, turning toward the exit as a soft chime rang through the guild hall, signaling outgoing groups. "Let's move."

And with that, they headed out.

They all moved into a small chamber, where a spiraling blue light hummed softly from a glowing ring embedded in the floor. Dante froze, eyes wide with disbelief.

"A… teleporter?" he whispered, as if saying it too loudly might shatter the illusion.

Rykel glanced over his shoulder, smirking. "First time?"

Dante gave a stiff nod, trying to hide the awesome in his eyes but failing woefully.

The device sounded even louder. Powered by a rare class of ability users...Portalsmiths...and stabilized by pure human engineering, these teleporters created temporary tunnels through folded space. It was one of the few marvels that proved just how far humanity had come since the Fall.

"Brace yourself," Kaela muttered or more like advised. "Some people puke the first time."

Before Dante could ask why?, the light flared—and his whole world tore itself apart in a blink.

Dante couldn't help but feel a bit of unease, he knew something big was about to happen, he just didn't know what it was...

[A/N: finally got my first review, I'm so happy. Thank you silverx_nocturnal]