Leo and Astrid went up to the second floor. The interior of the building was much cleaner than downstairs, and everything was organized neatly.
There was no dust or dirt anywhere, unlike downstairs which looked like a construction site. The place had been completely cleaned up.
It seed that this place had been fully built. It was quite impressive for the workers to finish their job in less than a month.
"It's a nice room." Leo comnted, looking at the interior of the building, which consisted of wooden floors and white walls.
A glass wall sat behind a large desk, giving a futuristic atmosphere. The walls were covered with posters and advertisents for rcenary Union's services.
What left was the person sitting on the desk and beca the Branch Manager.
Leo's eyes darted at Astrid, and she looked back at him in confusion. She couldn't understand why he suddenly smiled, but she knew that whatever it ant couldn't be anything good. Especially when he was looking in a certain direction.
'Could it be...'
She didn't have any clue what Leo was planning. Cold sweat started to flow from her forehead, but she didn't dare say anything.
'P-Please don't say it.'
But Leo's gaze remained unchanged and he turned his head towards her. Then, he spoke.
"What do you think about becoming a Branch Manager here?"
***
The grand opening of the rcenary Union in Qin City was quite the spectacle. Entertainnt was prepared, and every onlookers were given free cold drink that could be enjoyed in this hot weather.
The crowd gathered outside of the building to witness this new place that would bring changes to the city. They ca to see if there would be anything interesting to see, or if it was worth their ti.
Many wandering martial artists based on Qin City waited for this mont. They had heard rumors that this rcenary Union would recruit anyone that wanted to be a rcenary. The paynt was high and there were many jobs available, so this would be a great chance for them.
So people they knew already went to Chengdu to join. However, a lot of people stayed in Qin City for various reasons. For example their contract with rchants or they had no money to go to Chengdu or family reasons.
So when they heard that the rcenary Union would also open in Qin City, everyone celebrated because now they could work without going to Chengdu. They didn't have to move and spend money to go all the way to another city, and it was a big deal.
Astrid was sitting nervously behind a table in the reception room. She glanced at piles of docunts in front of her, which she had to finish reading today before the grand opening began.
She felt nervous because she wasn't used to this job. It was the first ti she had to deal with such a large number of applicants who wanted to beco a mber of the union.
Astrid was a Branch Manager.
Although it sounded simple, she had a lot of responsibilities to handle. She would be responsible for recruiting new rcenaries, helping existing ones find jobs, and make sure everyone was satisfied.
Not to ntion the fact that she would also be responsible for handling all financial matters and other important tasks that ca along with being the branch manager.
"Aaah! Why did he make a branch manager?! I don't want this position at all!"
Astrid cried out loud as she buried her face in her hands. She didn't want this kind of job, especially when there were so many people waiting to join the rcenary Union. She didn't even know if she was capable enough to handle all those responsibilities, but Leo had given her the position nonetheless.
"Damn it! Why did he do this to ?! This isn't fair at all!"
She was really upset, but she had no choice. If Leo told her to be the branch manager, then she would do her best to perform well and et his expectations.
Still, this ant he trusted her ability.
'I have no other option, right? Sigh...' She let out a deep breath, then closed her eyes to calm down.
Astrid knew she should get used to this new role and work hard to make it successful. She was supposed to et with her old family now but couldn't due to the piling docunts.
Was this what Leo planned from the beginning when he asked her to co with him? Or it was a re coincidence?
"Let's just get this over with." She muttered under her breath. With that said, she picked up the docunts and started reading them one by one.
Because she had learned how to do docunts before, she was quite confident. But still, there were many things she had never seen before. It was quite difficult to read them and understand every detail, especially when there were so many terms that she wasn't familiar with.
"Uh... I want to ask soone... But who? Jack is busy..."
Her mind wandered to Leo and then to Yue Yue. However, they were busy with their own tasks, so she couldn't bother them. Besides, she didn't know how to contact them right now.
"Aaaah!" She scread in frustration.
She was alone here, and the only person she could rely on was herself. She had to learn everything by herself and figure out what she should do.
"Let's start working!"
One by one, she began reading the docunts and checking the details of each applicant. Then, after confirming everything was in order, she stamped the papers and put them in the completed stack.
This task wasn't easy. Her brain felt like it would explode any mont now because she was trying too much to morize every little detail of every single applicant.
There were hundreds of applicants who ca here to join the rcenary Union, and it took her almost half an hour just to read each one's file. It wasn't sothing an average person could do, but she did her best anyway.
And she suddenly stopped when she picked up a certain docunt.
"Huh?"
It wasn't an application docunt. It was a simple, folded letter. Curious, Astrid picked the paper and read it. And the mont her eyes saw the signature at the end of the letter, she froze and couldn't move.
"P-Pe...Peng..."
Her body shook violently and she almost fell off her chair.
Her eyes scanned through the paper, and her hand trembled uncontrollably.
In the letter, it was stated that Peng Clan wanted to hire rcenary Union's service for protection. She had never seen this kind of request before, but it made sense since the rcenary Union provided all kinds of protection services, including escort and guarding duties.
The problem was, it ca from the Peng Clan.
And it was addressed to this branch.
'What should I do with this?'
Frown marred Astrid's beautiful face and she was about to reject the letter, but then she thought better.
'It will be rude of to reject the letter. Peng Clan was a big client, and the paynt for this job was also very big... If I just think about myself, I will definitely reject it. But I also need to consider Leader's and the union's benefits too...'
She wanted to decline, but the amount of gold was just too much to refuse. If the clan hired their service, they could earn quite a bit from them.
Not only that, having one of the five great clans as a regular client would be a good boost for the reputation of the union. If Peng Clan was satisfied with their services, they could spread the word and recomnd them to others, bringing more business opportunities to the union.
But she couldn't bring herself to accept the offer. After all, Peng Clan was her family and they were the ones that declared her dead and tried to force her to marry that scumbag from Tang Clan.
Gritting her teeth, Astrid tried to keep calm. Her face was pale as her body continued shaking.
She didn't know why they would co to ask for a service. It wasn't like they were short of powerful mbers that could protect them.
At that mont, the door was opened with a creaking sound and a voice was heard from the entrance.
"What's up, Astrid?"
Leo, who just returned from a tour to observe the condition of Qin City, entered the room. He noticed Astrid's pale expression imdiately, so he approached her and placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Astrid, what's wrong?"
Leo's question brought Astrid back from her thoughts, and she turned to him in surprise. Seeing the worry on Leo's face, she smiled weakly.
"Nothing." She answered. "Just thinking about sothing."
Even when she said that, it was clear that she wasn't alright.
"Are you sure? Your face looks really pale. Did you get sick?"
His eyes wandered to the docunts she held in her hands.
"What's that?" Astrid's hand trembled and she quickly hid the letter behind her back.
"Nothing! Don't look!"
However, it was too late because he already grabbed it. He read the contents, his expression turned grim.
"I see. It's a job request from the Peng Clan." He said slowly.
Astrid nodded quietly. "I was thinking of accepting it."
"Hmm..." He humd and thought about it.
Then, he ripped the letter in pieces, surprising Astrid. Her eyes widened and she stared at him.
"Wh-what are you doing?" She stamred out the words, but he only smiled and patted her head.
"Don't accept it if you don't want to." He spoke in a calm voice. "It's not important. Besides, it's not like they can't hire other people for protection."
"But...it will benefit the Union. The money is big and the job is simple."
Leo raised his eyebrow.
"And you're okay with this?" He asked, "Let ask you, Astrid. Why do you think I created the Hallowed Insect and rcenary Union?"
"To have control and make profit."
"Right. To have control. But I also make these things because it is convenient and I want it to benefit the people around ." He smiled softly and continued. "If it makes one of my mbers unhappy, there is no point in accepting this request. You are my mber. And you're a family now. If your happiness is disturbed, it is the sa as losing."
He sighed, and his eyes t with Astrid's.
"Having control doesn't an just controlling people. If I control you, that is not control. It's being an asshole. Instead, it is better to control the situation and the surroundings so I can benefit you all. Do you understand?"
Hearing his words, Astrid felt her heart fluttering.
She knew he was right, but still... She wanted to accept the request. After all, this was the best chance for her to make a good impression on Leo.
When she looked down, she felt warmth on her head. His hand was stroking her hair, making her blush.
"I know that you're worried. However, you shouldn't think about others' benefits when your own happiness is disturbed." He said, smiling, "You're the branch manager of this rcenary Union. Every decision you make indeed affects many people, including yourself. But you also should rember that you have the highest authority here."
She didn't answer, but she listened carefully.
Leo continued. "I know you're not the selfish type, at least not since you joined, so I won't say you to think only about yourself. However, it's best for you to do what you think is best for the union and your own self. Be more like your past self, a selfish princess who thinks only about her own benefit."
"But I can't..." She shook her head. "If I reject it, the Union..."
"It will be fine." Leo cut her off, "Even if you accept it, I'll just reject the request anyway. They offer too little to hire our group who managed to destroy the Murim Alliance. Which ans they are looking down on us. They are not worthy to be our client. Do you understand?"
His words resonate deeply within her heart, and she finally nodded slowly. "Alright."
Leo then grinned and continued to ruffle her hair.
"Good! You should learn to be selfish from now on." He said cheerfully, "Think more about yourself and not others! Also, it's not like the world revolves around you. Even if you think it is, it doesn't matter. Now continue your hard work and be a good branch manager!"
"Yes!"
Astrid nodded enthusiastically and stood up. She followed Leo from behind and stopped when he did.
Looking back at Astrid, he asked her again. "Why are you following ?"
"You said that I should be selfish!" She replied, "So I did. I don't want to work today and want to sleep in the office. I'll leave everything to you!"
Listening to her excuses, Leo sighed and patted her shoulder.
"That is that, and this is this." He said, "There is no way I am letting you skip work on the first day."
Astrid's expression imdiately dropped.
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