The Rise of the Black Plain

In the blink of an eye, a week had passed since Minos' promotion to Intermediate Officer had been confirmed by the Records Hall.

Today, Minos was officially taking over the reins of the Law Enforcement Hall, standing at the group's headquarters in the guild's inner area.

Minos had just been appointed as the hall's new supervisor by the guild's Chief Commander, and he greeted the man and heard a few words of support and encouragement.

The Commander was an important person, so after only two minutes in the area, he left his right-hand man there, the level 114 General whom Minos had known for a long time, to represent him.

The General greeted Minos with a firm handshake and said. "I hope you will become a Senior Officer as soon as possible. Having someone with your fighting and leadership skills outside of headquarters could make a big difference to the guild."

Minos just smiled when he heard that, as he had no plans to become a Senior Officer anytime soon.

'It's a good thing Segiel is a friend. If she hadn't opened my eyes, I would have made a serious mistake.'

What was the difference for Minos between being an Intermediate Officer and a Senior Officer? You might think it's his combat level that matters, so his rank shouldn't be that relevant. But in Armhands, it wasn't quite like that.

The guild rules were well designed to prevent certain abuses, lack of opportunity, or even self-sabotage.

In this case, an Intermediate Officer like Minos would at most be offered the opportunity to take part in more tough missions with extraordinary pay, even if his superiors thought he could contribute to the war. But as a Senior Officer, no one would even ask him for anything. He would receive mandatory missions to join the war, and he would be forced to take risks if he wanted to remain regular in the guild.

While a Senior Officer had the DUTY to get involved in hairy things, Intermediate Officers had the OPTION to do so. But no one could really force Minos to get involved in this conflict as long as he maintained his position as an Intermediate Officer.

This was good for him, but also for the guild. After all, forcing him to join the war, no matter how interesting it might be, could also be dangerous, as he was a rare gem. Since he was an Intermediate Officer, letting him grow as such until he became involved in more serious matters also had its positive side.

That's why no one would force him to take part in this confrontation!

But that didn't mean that people like the General in charge of Minos weren't eager to see him rise in rank and get involved in more serious matters.

"I will certainly contribute to the guild. For now, I want to focus on fixing up the Law Enforcement Hall and trying to reach level 106. I've just become an Intermediate Officer, so I'll try to fulfill my extra responsibilities before I think about promotion." Minos said politely to the General.

"Hmm, take your time. A confrontation like this one could take generations to resolve." The general didn't think anything of it, as he patted Minos on the shoulder and said goodbye.

Soon after, Minos greeted the head of the Law Enforcement Hall for the guild's outer region, as well as the judges for both the outer and inner regions.

These people, as well as the many Law Enforcers who obviously couldn't be here at the moment, would now be his subordinates in matters concerning the maintenance of law and order in the guild.

After each of them had sworn their loyalty and respect for the guild's rules, Minos stopped next to Maximillian and greeted the man quickly so as not to attract attention.

"It's done. I'll start tomorrow."

That was all he said, his face remaining impassive, his eyes filled with annoyance, as he should be in this frustrating situation.

Minos was aware of the observers of the Jade Chainsaws in the vicinity, so he didn't say too much to Maximillian, either. After a handshake and a nod, he continued with the greetings before the end of this special event.

From his faction, only Rhett, Otis, and Ruth were present, while many other faction members were busy with other matters, or were external members of the guild who couldn't attend to this ceremony.

As the event drew to a close, Minos headed to his office, ready to begin his term with some changes.

The Law Enforcement Hall supervisor couldn't change many things, but there were two things in particular that someone in that position could change without being hindered by others.

First, the chief of the hall could appoint the judges and the chief of the outside area as they wished. Second, someone in that position could make minor changes to the way they recruited Law Enforcers.

Normally, anyone could become a Law Enforcer, as few guild members were interested in the role because of the low pay and various downsides associated with the role's troubles.

Minos intended to exercise his rights right away!

Entering his office alongside Otis, Ruth and Rhett, Minos sat behind his desk and gave his orders.

"I will appoint you two as the new judges of the inner city hall as soon as you become Intermediate Officers, Ruth and Otis. For the time being, I will appoint only Rhett to that position.

Until you are promoted in rank, you will be the new supervisor of the outer hall, Ruth. Otis will be the new chief judge of that branch while..."

Minos gave a series of replacement orders that he wanted his group to announce to the members of the Law Enforcement Hall later today.

"... Finally, I would like to change the procedure for new entries to the hall. From now on, new members cannot have any criminal record. The mere record of a previous offense should be an obstacle for guild members to join the hall.

In addition, we will hold entrance exams for Law Enforcers. Anyone who does not meet our requirements cannot join the hall."

The three listened to Minos without questioning his decisions, having already discussed these points.

By restricting who could join the hall and repositioning the members of their faction within it, they could undermine the influence of other factions within this important guild group!

Thus began Minos' journey as the new leader of the Law Enforcement Hall!