A giant poster was glued to a brick wall in the backstreets. It showed a cartoon character with a red hat and mustache, pointing at onlookers passing by. The words beneath read:
"Join The Linguini Familia at—"
It was such an arrogant way to advertise one's group.
A couple of rats stood in front of the poster, their faces filled with confusion.
"Is this some kind of new syndicate?" the one in the middle asked, eyeing the poster.
"No way. This kind of advertising looks like something from those offices, but the name sounds like a syndicate," said the one on the right, equally puzzled.
The rat on the left tapped both of their shoulders. "How about we join this foolish group? We don't have anywhere to hide when the sweepers come…"
He looked at his friends, waiting for their reactions. They stared back at him, baffled.
"Are you insane? We don't even know what this group is!" the middle one snapped.
The rat on the right's expression shifted. "Wait—he might actually be right. Either we get killed by the sweepers, or we work under someone. As long as we can survive, I'm all for it."
The middle one sighed, feeling the pressure from the two buffoons beside him. But what choice did he have? If it was for survival, he'd risk anything. Without another word, he gestured for them to follow.
They spent hours walking, taking turn after turn, until they arrived at a dark alleyway. There stood a dilapidated building that looked more like a haunted house than a base. Swallowing their fear, they approached and knocked on the front door.
The door creaked open to reveal a tall, muscular man with a giant screw sticking out of his head and a mask shaped like an angry face.
"Are you rats here to join the Familia?" the big man asked, his deep, hoarse voice echoing through the hall.
He eyed the three of them carefully. Seeing their fear, he stepped aside.
"In. Now," he said calmly—but to the three rats, it sounded like a command that could not be refused.
They entered slowly. The man guided them to a table and gestured for them to sit.
"Now, let me repeat myself: are you here to join?" he asked, sitting opposite them and staring until the middle one finally replied, "Yes, we are here to join."
The others trembled under his gaze.
"Well then, stay here. I will start the initiation."
The man stood and left for the back. A couple of minutes later, he returned holding a torch with a metal rod topped by a metal symbol.
"Accept the mark of the Familia, and you shall be one of us," he said in a cold tone.
The three trembled in fear. Seeing what the man was holding made them even more scared. They regretted coming, but if survival was the goal, they had no choice.
Hours later, the three looked exhausted, their forearms bearing the burned mustache symbol of the Familia.
"Now, go rest somewhere in this place. The boss will have something for you," the man said, leaving them puzzled. The three rats were now official members of the Familia.
The man ascended the stairs and entered a room with a giant, cracked door. Inside stood a slightly shorter man wearing a red cap.
"You have arrived, Roy. Are the new members comfortable, or did you scare them?" the man with the red cap asked.
The big man trembled under his gaze. "Yes, Don… they are comfortable," he stammered, trying to hide his fear.
The Don, head of the Familia, knew that Roy was hiding his fear but nodded regardless. "Then Roy, I wish to assign them a mission: raid a newly built office down south."
"But Don… those rats aren't trained yet. Sending them on this mission is suicide—isn't it too much?" Roy asked.
The Don said nothing. His resolute gaze left no room for negotiation. Roy sighed and left the room.
When Roy left the room, the Don's expression softened. It had been a long time, and out of 100 recruits this month, only 10 had survived. He regretted his decision, then spoke to himself, "Hmm, I should be lighter on these recruits. I'll send a capo to assist them."
He sat at his desk, nostalgia washing over him. "A lot has happened since I arrived in this world. I was once a meager rat like those guys, but I clawed my way up. I'm not from this world… back in my world, I was just a man who played online games. This world is dangerous, death lurking around every corner, but through luck and perseverance, I survived and secretly formed this syndicate."
The City had no idea such a syndicate existed. Only the syndicates and associations in District 10 knew of them, making them the most dangerous group in the district. They even had the audacity to raid a branch of the Dieci Association, one of the twelve major associations in the City. Rumors claimed that the leader of the syndicate could rival a colored fixer, but this was debunked—he was seen only once during the Dieci raid. Even though they attacked a major association, the Dieci hid the event to avoid embarrassment. Only other syndicates and associations knew what truly happened; ordinary citizens and rats remained unaware.
The Don stopped reminiscing and turned to the window, staring at the dark, empty streets where sweepers rampaged.
"This is fine."
He stared until sleep claimed him in his chair.
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Welp this is the first chapter its pretty bad since im new hehe..