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Adenia, along with the other bodyguards of Lady Glasc, followed her quieter than water, lower than the grass. They walked quickly down one of the wealthiest streets in Zaun, heading to one of their boss's warehouses for another inspection. The woman was quietly muttering curses, but her mask made them difficult to make out.
This day had been… terrible. For everyone. Not only for Renata Glasc, but also for her bodyguards.
First of all, the meeting with the supplier had been a complete failure. She and her boss arrived at the meeting place, and it turned out the man had simply lost the goods. And this was a very important shipment for the new perfume fragrances! Of course, Renata Glasc was furious and managed to wrangle a discount and compensation for this misunderstanding, but her mood was already somewhat spoiled.
Then, an assassination attempt occurred. Nothing too sophisticated — just ordinary poison in her food when they arrived at one of the restaurants. Adenia, also serving as a taster thanks to the implant in her stomach, tried her boss's food and immediately tasted the bitter tang of cyanide. The cooks who prepared it were found, and fortunately, the culprit didn't get too far, so these two were quickly dragged to the lady's basement for further questioning, but the mood soured even more.
And then, while passing by one of the shop windows in Piltover, Renata Glasc noticed a product very similar to her recently released "Light Wind" line. The woman, of course, bought a couple of bottles, and imagine her surprise when the scents were exactly identical to hers. Naturally, she became even angrier, as this meant future lawsuits and expenses for lawyers and expert examinations. And no, the expenses weren't the problem; the problem was how much time it would devour!
So it was no surprise that the boss looked as if she wanted to kill someone. She most likely would, but she needed to wait for at least one of her employees to make a mistake to have a reason, which was why the bodyguards were now behaving quieter than water, lower than the grass.
Suddenly, a small object ran quickly past the employees, crashing into Renata Glasc's leg.
"Sorry…"
A quiet squeak was heard, after which the temporary obstacle quickly disappeared into the crowd. Adenia slowly closed her eyes, beginning to scream internally. A child. In one of the districts of Zaun. Runs into a WEALTHY person, then quickly runs away. This day had decided to become the most disgusting day of the bodyguard's career.
Renata Glasc, raising one eyebrow, slowly looked down at her trousers. After that, she slowly lifted her head back and snapped her fingers. The girl groaned quietly, tapped one leg against the other, activating the running mode on her prosthetics, then turned around and ran after the thief to catch her.
Of course, as expected, Adenia caught her quite quickly — or, more precisely, her. As it turned out, the thief was a girl. Apparently, she hadn't been in this business long or had decided to rob a bigger fish, not knowing that wealthy individuals rarely carry wallets — only bank cheques without the owner's signature, which were precisely what she had in her hand.
It was surprising what the little thief had been hoping for by robbing a wealthy person surrounded by bodyguards. And she was so thin that even a light breeze would have blown her away. No wonder Adenia managed to catch her in a few leaps and carry her back to her boss.
The lady, narrowing her eyes, looked at the girl, who was trying to break free from the bodyguard's strong grip, kicking her actively.
"How interesting. Who do we have here?"
Renata Glasc said slowly, crossing her arms over her chest. The thief pressed the stolen item to herself, looking at her resentfully. The woman abruptly took her cheque book back from the child, returning it to her trouser pocket.
"Where is the nearest quiet alley?"
"About a hundred meters from here, Lady Glasc."
One of the other bodyguards replied. Realizing what her boss intended to do, Adenia's eyes widened, and she lowered her head slightly.
"Lady Glasc… She's a child."
She muttered quietly. The lady clicked her tongue in displeasure at this.
"I don't recall that ever excusing theft. Especially from me."
The woman answered clearly, waving to one of her employees. He immediately headed toward what was apparently an alley where no one would see them. The girl swore quietly but followed her boss, dragging the thief, who was still trying to break free. Upon reaching the place, Renata Glasc waved her hand, ordering the girl released to the ground, which Adenia did almost immediately, but still held her by the scruff of the neck so she wouldn't run.
"Make sure no one approaches the alley and can see what's happening here."
She said, snapping her fingers, then looked ominously at her employees.
"And don't you dare eavesdrop or watch."
The bodyguards quickly nodded and, exiting the alley on opposite sides, began to wait for further orders. The thief, realizing she couldn't escape this time, clutched her trousers with her hands and looked fearfully at the lady, who, arms crossed, was examining the girl.
Adenia stood in her place, nervously clenching her hands behind her back. On the one hand, an order was an order, and she didn't want to lose such a well-paying job by Zaun standards. On the other hand… Who knew what Renata Glasc wanted to do with a child! The girl wasn't born yesterday and knew what possible fates awaited children for such offenses. She did not intend to let her boss do anything to the child, even if she lost her job. After all, despite her hard life, she still had some conscience.
Quickly tapping the metal plate in her head, enhancing her hearing, Adenia listened to the conversation between the woman and the thief, which was happening behind her back.
"Do you know who I am?"
The boss's stern voice sounded. The girl was silent for a while, apparently thinking about what to say.
"No."
"Really? So you decided to rob a wealthy person surrounded by bodyguards without knowing who she was?"
Renata Glasc said, and judging by her voice, she certainly didn't believe the girl's story. The latter said nothing, apparently not thinking of an answer. Then the click of the lady's mask was heard, and she slowly exhaled.
"Do you know what will happen to you for this theft?"
"No…"
The thief replied even more quietly. The woman fell silent, and heavy breathing could be heard — apparently, she was thinking something over. The silence stretched on for quite a while, after which she said slowly:
"How well do you know this part of Zaun?"
"What?"
The girl was surprised, and Adenia as well. The boss clicked her tongue in displeasure.
"I'll repeat: how well do you know this part of Zaun? Answer honestly and quickly."
"I… Um… I know it very well…"
The thief replied uncertainly, and the lady clicked her tongue in displeasure at the slowness.
"Are you fast?"
"The fastest in this district! If it weren't for your bodyguard with the prosthetics, you definitely wouldn't have caught me!"
The girl answered proudly, and the bodyguard rolled her eyes, smiling. Renata Glasc fell silent again, thinking about something.
"Any serious illnesses?"
"Um… Uh… No, nothing serious so far."
Then shuffling could be heard from the boss's side as she began writing something on a piece of paper with her personal pen, which she always kept in one of her pockets.
"Tomorrow, be at this address with these documents if you have them. You will deliver certain packages to the required recipients."
"What?"
The thief asked in surprise, and Adenia was also shocked by these words. What packages? What addresses? Give all this to a thief??? The bodyguard barely restrained herself from turning around and looking at Renata Glasc's face, who clicked her tongue in displeasure.
"Was I not clear? You will work off your transgression. If you prove yourself worthy, you might get something better."
She clicked her pen shut and, apparently, handed the paper to the girl.
"And if you dare steal even one item, I promise you, dear, that my people will find you very quickly and hand you over to the Sheriff, or maybe do something worse. Understood?"
"Understood, understood!"
The thief shouted joyfully, judging by the sound, taking the paper.
"And remember: if you want to work for me, address me as 'Lady Glasc.'"
"Yes, ma'am, Lady Glasc!"
The girl replied quickly. The woman snapped her fingers and raised her voice so the bodyguards could hear her, causing Adenia to grimace at the sharp sound.
"Dismissed!"
The thief squeaked and quickly ran out of the passage that the girl was guarding. Briefly, she noticed that the new employee was hiding one of Renata Glasc's business cards with something written on it in her pockets. The girl glanced briefly into the alley, apparently expecting something else, but, not receiving it, ran off into the crowd.
The lady herself slowly exited the passage, sighing tiredly.
"Before checking the goods at the warehouse, we'll stop by HR. An urgent matter has come up."
"Yes, Lady Glasc."
The bodyguards nodded quickly, taking their positions. Adenia, meanwhile, involuntarily smiled contentedly and slyly, looking at her boss. The latter, noticing this, rolled her eyes.
"Also, your salary will be halved this month."
"What?"
The girl asked in surprise, her eyes widening and her smile quickly disappearing. Renata Glasc raised one eyebrow.
"Do you expect me to overlook your mistake? Let someone get near me, allowed them to touch me, and also didn't react immediately. You're very lucky it was just a pickpocket and not an assassin."
The bodyguard barely restrained herself from giving a sarcastic retort that it was unlikely anyone would order a midget or dwarf assassin. Adenia only sighed heavily, following her boss, who seemed to be humming a song contentedly under her breath.
After all, she had managed to take it out on someone… Probably…