Chapter 753: Rewarded Loyalty

"Are you sure about this?" Kaiden asked.

Tessa leaned back in her chair, crossed one leg over the other, and gave him a look that was equal parts amused and exasperated.

"Let me get this straight. You’re sitting across from me as the guild leader of an organization run by the Shadow Monarch, backed by the most talked-about team in the country, with a founding roster that could field a small army, and you’re asking if I’m okay with joining?"

"I’m asking if you’re okay with dissolving Nova Circuit."

The amusement dimmed. Tessa looked at the table, then back at him.

"I’m going to tell you something, and I need you to hear it as the compliment it is, even though it’s going to sound like I’m insulting myself."

He waited.

"I am not a good guild leader."

Talia, seated beside Tessa with a steaming mug between her palms, made a quiet sound of agreement that she did not bother to disguise.

"Not a hint of disagreement from either of you, huh..." Tessa murmured with narrowed eyes.

"No, why would I disagree? For once you’re speaking sensibly," Talia chirped.

"..."

Tessa ignored the woman and turned back to Kaiden. "Nova Circuit is a low-tier guild with no resources, no pipeline for new talent, no infrastructure, and no future. We don’t have youngsters coming up through the ranks because there are no ranks to come up through. I couldn’t retain a single promising recruit aside from Vaelira, Sasha, Jack, and... poor Leon."

The swordsman had died, because Vaelira sacrificed him so that they could take the boss monster down.

"Aside from those four, everyone left after they became powerful enough to be recruited by a guild that could actually pay them properly."

She paused.

"Speaking of the only A-tier rookie I managed to keep... I couldn’t even control her. A rookie walked over me for months, blackmailing me with the possibility of her leaving if I didn’t let her do as she desired. It was you who had to step in and handle it."

"Oh, yeah!" Tessa perked up suddenly, and the self-deprecation fell off her face like a mask. "Vaelira has been an angel ever since."

Kaiden kept his face neutral. "Has she."

"An absolute angel. I don’t know what you said to her exactly, but ever since you visited her in the hospital, she’s been punctual, respectful, and follows orders without arguing." Tessa shook her head in wonder.

"Hm." Kaiden nodded thoughtfully. "Sometimes people just need a good talking to."

"Whatever talk that was, I need to learn it. The woman is a completely different person." Tessa’s eyes were shining. "Honestly, it was the clearest sign I could’ve gotten. I spent months trying to manage that situation with authority, with official warnings, with everything a guild leader is supposed to do, and nothing worked. You spent a few minutes with her alone and she was reformed."

Kaiden felt a mild itch at the back of his skull where his conscience lived, but it was a very small itch and he had gotten quite good at ignoring it.

’Does she really think I had a heart-to-heart with her?’ he mused. ’What I actually did was closer to a war crime. I should be behind bars, serving a life sentence.’

"Anyway." Tessa waved a hand, physically dismissing her old life. "The point is, I know what I’m good at and I know what I’m not. Leading a guild isn’t it. Fighting is. And now I get to do the fighting without worrying about payroll, paperwork, sponsor meetings..."

She trailed off, and a visible shudder ran through her shoulders.

"Vespera," she said quietly. "Have you ever been in the same room as that woman when she’s unhappy?"

"...What do you think?"

"Right. Right." Tessa rubbed her arms. "Well, if any bitchy blonde rookies get the idea to act out and throw their weight around, they can take it up with the Shadow Monarch now. Something tells me the conversation won’t last long."

Kaiden merely nodded.

"So yeah." Tessa grinned at him, wide and unburdened. "I’m okay with it. I’m more than okay with it. I’m thrilled."

"Good." Kaiden leaned forward. "Because I actually have something specific in mind for you."

Tessa’s eyebrows rose.

"Eclipse needs a Recruitment Director."

She blinked. "A what?"

"Someone who finds new talent, evaluates them, and brings them in. Scouts report to you. You review the footage, the data, and when you see someone worth pursuing, you make the pitch."

Tessa stared at him.

"You found me," Kaiden said simply. "Your scout found the footage, yes, but you’re the one who watched it and decided I was worth giving a chance. A low level, F-tier nobody that every other guild in the country would’ve walked past, and you reached out."

"That was just..." Tessa started.

Kaiden knew the circumstances, but he did not care. "That was judgment. That was an eye for potential. And you’re going to do it again, over and over, except now the recruits aren’t joining a low-tier guild with no resources."

He watched the idea land.

"You know the field. You’ve been fighting for a long time, you’ve been to Association events, you know what real potential looks like versus someone who just stats well on paper. And you’re..." He gestured at her. "You. You’re easy to talk to. Recruits are going to be scared, especially the very young ones. They need someone approachable at the front door, someone who makes them feel like they belong. It needs to be a responsible, charismatic adult who can get things done in a timely and professional manner but retain her air of approachability at the same time, and I think you’re perfect for the job."

"And then if they cause problems?" Tessa asked, the grin creeping back.

"You’re only responsible for recruiting people and ensuring they feel welcome in this place. Miss Guild Regent will deal with the dissidents."

Tessa laughed.

"Okay," she said. "I’m in. Obviously."

Talia had been quiet through most of the exchange, both hands around her mug, content to listen.

"And you?" Kaiden asked.

"I’m happy, Kaiden."

The words were simple and carried no drama. Talia lifted her mug, took a slow sip, and set it down.

"Runewoven was my father’s life. He built it from nothing, poured every Chronos he ever earned into better equipment and better techniques. He wanted to be the best artificer in the country, and he wanted his guild to be known for that."

"Independence was never the goal. Quality was. My father didn’t care whether Runewoven was a standalone guild or a subsidiary or a division of something larger. He cared about the work."

Talia looked at Kaiden, and her eyes were clear.

"Eclipse’s combat teams will be wearing Runewoven armor. The future of American guilds, walking into dungeons and competitions and Association events, equipped by my father’s forge. That is a better legacy than anything I could have achieved on my own."

She paused, and the faintest smile crossed her face.

"So yes. I’m happy."

Kaiden nodded.

For a moment, the three of them sat in quiet.

Tessa broke it first, because Tessa always broke silences first.

"So." She clasped her hands together and leaned forward. "When do I start? Because I have a list. I just never had the budget to do anything about it."

"Or the name," Talia added.

Tessa opened her mouth, closed it, and sat with that for a moment.

"...Yeah. No money, no name." She exhaled. "Hard to recruit when the pitch is ’join my struggling guild that nobody’s heard of and I’ll pay you in experience and good vibes.’"

Then she paused. Her eyes found Kaiden.

"Wait. Do I have money now?"

Kaiden chuckled. "The Guild Regent has already secured sponsors. We have stable funding, though the early period is going to be tight. You shouldn’t spend freely."

Tessa nodded, her expression careful, measured, the face of a woman preparing herself for a modest but respectable improvement over the pocket change she’d been working with.

"Give me the numbers."

"I can’t give you anything specific, but you can hundredfold your old Nova Circuit recruitment budget for now."

The careful expression died.

Tessa stood up.

"Hundredfold?!"

"Give or take."

"Give or - Kaiden, now is no time for jokes!"

"The Shadow Monarch and the quickly rising anomaly, revealed to be a mother-son duo, teamed up to form a new guild. Do you really think it’s that hard to find sponsors?"

"Someone’s rather boastful..." Talia murmured from the side, smiling. Then she eyed Tessa. "But it is true. I imagine you won’t have to beg potential recruits to give you five minutes of their time. In fact, your phone will be busy with people begging you for five minutes of your time. You’ll need to weed them out very carefully."

"Indeed," Kaiden agreed. "Tessa, I proposed you for the role, but that does not mean you’re invincible. You need to be responsible for your choices and deliver results."

Hearing those words, Tessa’s bewilderment receded, replaced by confidence. "Naturally. I’m no nepo baby but the woman who recognized your talents before anyone else. My results will speak for themselves, or I’ll step down voluntarily."

Kaiden merely nodded at that, liking the attitude. Tessa was the exact kind of person he wanted for the job. Charismatic yet dutiful, eager to be viewed as a useful member. He knew first hand how easy it was talking to her, and believed her personality would be perfect for attracting new people while she could be trusted to behave like a proper adult, knowing she had to own up to her decisions.

"Okay. I’m fully greenlit with loads of cash at my disposal. Can I bring my team?"

Kaiden knew she meant her scouts. The handful of people who’d been doing the groundwork at Nova Circuit, sifting through footage and attending tournaments on shoestring expenses.

"Bring them. Mother will probably assign you more people too, but we didn’t have a good candidate to run the recruitment department specifically. The position was open."

He leaned back.

"You’ll be working alongside other department heads that Mother brought with her. Intelligence, operations, logistics... they all have their own leaders already. But recruitment is yours, if you want it."

"If I want it," Tessa repeated, as if the question was absurd. She was still standing, still pacing, and her phone was already in her hand.

Kaiden stood and left the two women who were excited to begin work in their new stations.

...

Kira was waiting outside the door.

She stood with her back against the corridor wall, tablet in hand, one ankle crossed over the other, looking like a magazine cover that had gotten lost on the way to the printer and ended up in a guild hall. Her split-dye hair caught the overhead light and her mismatched eyes found Kaiden the moment he stepped out.

"Boss." She fell into step beside him. "The Association ruling came in just now."