Damian Crowe didn’t have a good relationship with his family. In fact, he suffered a lot at the hands of his parents, and when he turned eighteen, he decided to leave home on his own. The only reason he didn’t leave sooner was because they never allowed him to. The place he moved to was a big city called Morvane. What he was looking for wasn’t a job opportunity or a chance to build financial success — all he wanted was to get as far away from his family as possible and live life on his own terms. Damian managed to land a job as a barista. What he really wanted, though, was to awaken his mana. After all, with power, getting rich became the easy part. But life wasn’t exactly kind to him. At least the café job was peaceful... but it barely paid the bills. He worked mornings until 3 p.m., and after that, he’d go back to his small apartment in one of the poorer districts of the city. Then one random day, something unexpected happened — a rather interesting phone call. He had applied for a peculiar job a while ago and honestly thought he’d never get a callback. But he did. Damian was sitting on his couch watching TV when his phone rang. He reached over, picked it up, and answered, "Hello?" "Is this Damian Crowe? The one who applied for the job cleaning up crime scenes involving demons?" a woman’s voice asked from the other side. "Yeah, that’s me." "Can you come to our office this afternoon? If everything goes well, you could start tonight." "Yeah, sure. Sounds good. Thank you." The woman hung up. Damian let out a shout of excitement. Sure, the job sounded awful — cleaning up crime scenes, scrubbing the blood of people killed by demons. Nobody really wanted to do that. It was disgusting... and dangerous. But the pay was good. Damian needed the money since his barista job wasn’t cutting it. This could change everything. He jumped off the couch, took a hot shower, and dressed the best he could to head over to the company’s office. Standing in front of the mirror, Damian checked his appearance. A black suit gave him a more serious, elegant look. He liked what he saw. He ordered a car to take him to the office. On the way, he stared out the window, watching the city go by — people walking, cars rushing past, tall buildings blocking out the sky. Several times during the ride, he caught glimpses of fights breaking out in the streets — people who had awakened their mana, now wielding powers like something out of a comic book. It was pretty common these days. He knew that — it was always on the news, every day, whether on TV or online. "We’re here," the driver said. As soon as Damian stepped out of the car, he spotted the building. It wasn’t exactly the prettiest — three stories tall, clearly in need of a few repairs, but nothing too serious. He walked up to the front desk and spoke with the receptionist, who told him which floor to go to. "Third floor, room eight," she said. Damian nodded, thanked her, and headed for the stairs. The elevator didn’t look very trustworthy. He wasn’t about to risk it. The third floor was lined with several doors, and room eight was where the job interviews happened — not that they happened often. The place was so rarely used, it looked half-covered in dust when Damian stepped inside. A woman stood by the large window, looking out at the traffic below. "Damian, right?" she said, turning toward him. "I’m Nataly. We spoke on the phone." "Pleasure to meet you," Damian replied, reaching out and shaking her hand. Over the phone, she sounded cold — or rather, like someone who didn’t waste words — but in person, she came off much friendlier. Damian instantly felt more comfortable about the interview. "So... why do you want this job?" she asked. The reason was pretty simple. "I need the money..." Damian said. No deeper motive, no twisted desire to clean up those disgusting crime scenes. He wasn’t some freak who got off on that. All he wanted was enough cash to pay the bills and live a comfortable life. What else could he ask for? He couldn’t awaken mana anymore. The world had become a dangerous place for people like him — normal people. At the very least, money could buy him some safety. The woman simply said, "I see. You’re hired. Can you start tonight?" "Yes, I can." "Good. I’ll call you later. Someone will stop by your place and take you to the crime scene." Damian raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying I have a private driver?" Nataly chuckled. "Something like that. I’ll be there to explain things, so don’t worry." "What about the cleaning equipment?" Damian asked. "Everything will be in the car. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a demon attack to deal with." She looked like she was in a hurry. Apparently, a demon incident was happening right then, and she had to go fight. Damian didn’t take it personally. He left the building and headed back to his apartment to get some rest. His shift at the café had been exhausting, and he needed all the energy he could get for the cleaner job later that night. A nap wasn’t optional — it was survival. The staircase leading to his apartment was a total mess. Dirt and cockroaches were everywhere. To make things worse, the neighbors were arguing again. "I told you to stop making noise at night, yet you did it again yesterday. This is the last time I’m warning you. Next time, we’re gonna have a problem." The man shouting had a long beard and barely any hair left on his head. He didn’t look healthy either, and a cigarette dangled between his fingers. Damian walked past without saying a word, not even glancing in their direction. He knew better — getting involved would only bring him trouble. Unfortunately, it still found him. "What are you looking at, kid? You want a beating too?" the man growled. The smartest move was to ignore him. And that’s exactly what Damian did. He kept going upstairs, reached his apartment, and collapsed onto his bed. He slept until nightfall, waking up just in time for his new job. When he stepped outside, a sleek black sedan was waiting in front of the apartment building. People stared from their windows, eyes wide, trying to make sense of what they were seeing. Damian — the broke guy who worked in a coffee shop — was getting into a luxury car? Everyone was puzzled. Inside the car, Damian could feel a mix of excitement and fear churning in his chest. His first night as a cleaner had officially begun.