Chapter 127 - Dressing Down

The warmth of that head pat was something he could feel even now. He was pretty glad that Xi Long was the first person he had come out to since it gave him the strength to do the others. The positive reaction from him and feeling secure that his friend would not leave him was all the encouragement a teenager needed. Though not everyone else took it as easily...a bitter chuckle left his mouth. It really did him no good to reminisce over the darker parts of his life but with the good came the bad. 

Snapping out of his day dream he looked at the grandfather clock nearby. It was an antique piece his mother had purchased years ago and was close enough for him to read the time. He could check his phone or watch but moving eyes was less work than moving his arms. Judging by what the clock said ten minutes had passed since Xi Long had left and for him to leave memory land. Getting up from his space on the couch he made his way back to his room and changed his clothes. His current outfit was branded pants and a casual home wear shirt, both of which did not suit his purpose. Pulling out some black clothing he switched into roughed up black jeans and a no name hoodie. 

The part of town their intelligence base was in was a rougher part of the city and was how they preferred it. They had created a small business of sorts where people would be able to buy information from them but not everyone could reach them. The exclusivity and mystery behind their service is what kept it running. If they were to cater to every joe on the street then they would have been destroyed very early on by anyone who wanted them silenced. When Xi Long and him had created this business it was just a small means of gathering their own intel. Only after a couple of months did they realize there was money potential involved. Not to mention, that gathering information became even easier with this "guild" of sorts. Since they had become a location to gather information, people who wanted information against both of them or had ill intent in the area were easily found out. After that they would either quickly eliminate the enemy or provide false information on purpose. Now, they were at a state where they can hire more people to manage the front and backend of the business while they oversaw it from a distance. Compared to their other businesses this was the one he was the most involved in and kept a tight leash on them. 

The reason he had to change was so that he could blend in with the crowd when he visited. No one knew that he was the owner of the guild and he had no intention of letting anyone find out. There were many people who tried to buy that information through their staff but none of them had folded yet. It wasn't as if they did this out of loyalty but knew that their families would be destroyed if they did. Some of them were orphans and in those cases whatever they held dearest to them would be held in their possession. Those were the terms of employment to ensure the highest loyalty and people who usually agreed needed the money. Or had lived their lives too long in the dark to qualify for anything else. 

Therefore he had to make sure he was dressed down and looked like a rouge before going anywhere. Anything branded or colourful would catch unwanted eyes that he could do without, especially today. Checking himself out in the mirror he confirmed his clothing choice before messing up his hair in a flattening motion. 'Ah it truly is a sin to be this good looking.' He did not consider himself arrogant but he was no blind to the gazes of others, aesthetically he had an above average face. Not the most handsome man in the world but had strong features he was proud of. Which was the hardest part for him to cover when he went to their base, at some point he had just taken to using a mask. It started off as a convenience factor but became part of his reputation with time. There were rumours circulating that the head of the information guild always wore a mask because he was gruesome beneath it and it would reveal his violent nature. It added to the elusive vibe reading the business and helped to deter some people from connecting this persona back to him. 

Grabbing the facial mask and his keys he finally set out to leave his house. It was his preference to drive closer to other side of town then make the remaining part of the trip on foot. That was also the moment where he would slip on a normal black facial mask that slowly became the signature guild master's one. It was a mask that covered 3/4's of his face leaving only his left eye visible. Personally he liked to call it his "Phantom of the Opera" mask to the way it fit on him. It was a black coloured mask with rough markings and splashes of dried blood on it. The blood wasn't real of course but served its purpose by looking real. There were even rumours that amount of blood on the mask differed on his emotions and how blood thirsty he was at the moment. He had been working on creating a mechanical one that he could trigger to changes masks by button but hadn't been able to make a successful version. Due to that he was stuck between switching physical versions. 

Checking the time again he confirmed that it was still early before getting into a civilian car and driving out of his driveway. The trip thankfully only took thirty minutes in total so it was the perfect distance for him to make. It was close enough for him to be there quickly for emergencies and far enough that no one expected him to be there. While Xi Long had given him the day off he was not sure how long his search would go and he was anxious to get the information as soon as possible. 

"Valentina..." was the only name repeating in his mind as his eyes turned cold.