Chapter 194 Meeting Rebal
A few seconds after Esme left, Rey felt the presence of two people approaching the door.
One of them was clearly Asher, but the second was an unfamiliar force.
He remained steady in his position while waiting for the doorknob to teist, and the man behind the door to reveal himself.
And then…
'Hm?'
… The both of them finally entered.
Asher was the first to come in. He had his usual smiling demeanor about him, however, it seemed he was a bit uneasy.
And it wasn't difficult to see why once the second man came in.
A buff figure who could easily be 6'10 in height walked in right behind Asher, his trimmed bearded face showing nothing but the direct contrast to Asher's smiling face.
The man had an air of authority around him, and he reeked of danger. Even Rey, in his seat, could tell that this man was something else.
Still, he hardly reacted as he watched the two men enter the room.
Asher allowed the man to sit, while he stood behind his couch.
Before the former could completely settle on his seat, however, Rey already resorted to [Absolute Appraisal].
The result—
[STATUS WINDOW]
- Name: Rebal Blanc
- Race: Human
- Class: Merchant (C-Tier)
- Level: 99 (99.99% EXP)
- Life Force: 10 (100) [200]
- Mana Level: 41/41 [200]
- Combat Ability: 60 [200]
- Stat Points: 0
- Skills (Exclusive):
- Skills (Non-Exclusive): [Bargaining]. [Combat Application]. [Weapon Mastery]. [Warrior's Aura].
- Alignment: Lawful Evil
[Additional Information]
Head of the KariBlanc Group, and one of the Councilors in the Obsidian Council.
[End Of Information]
'Ahh…'
Once Rey saw this, his entire outlook changed.
'I always suspected that this place had a wide array of connections, but even then… the Obsidian Council?'
Everything all made sense to him now.
The Obsidian Council was said to be the governing force of the Black Market. They made the Unwritten Laws, and they ensured there was order in the commercial sphere of the Criminal Underworld.
Apparently, they were also a part of some Triumvirate, but Rey didn't have too many details about the entire structure.
No one really did in this place.
'And now one of their Councilors is seated right in front of me.'
Rey pondered on the reason, and he considered many possibilities as the man made himself comfortable on his seat.
He was very buff—probably on par with the competitive bodybuilders back in Rey's original world.
His height also made him appear more intimidating.
He had rings on all his fingers, and unlike Asher, he wore a full-on suit.
It made him appear both professional and dangerous.
Rey couldn't say he disliked that.
"Sir Ralyks. I have heard so much about you. It's a pleasure to meet you."
As Rey listened to the words of the man before him, he nodded slowly and watched from their distance.
They were separated by the center table, and while they shared a considerable distance apart, the man's huge build almost made it seem like they were much closer than they actually were.
Rey glanced at Asher, who stood like a statue with a smile on his face.
'How do I go about this? Play dumb or just call them out for their Bs?'
Right now, it was clear that the two were trying some form of tactics to get some high ground when it came to bargaining.
Or perhaps this was just how things were done in the Black Market and he had no idea.
In the end, there was only one way he saw the current situation being tutored directly in his favor.
And that was—
"And I've also heard quite a bit about you, Sir Rebal Blanc."
The moment Rey said this, the man's body and face froze up.
Even Asher had an expression of shock written on his face.
'Should I go a step further…?' Rey smiled underneath the mask, enjoying how the entire atmosphere was changing.
"It's not often that a Councilor appears in the open like this. Am I right, Asher?"
Rey darted his gaze to the flustered standing man who appeared even more flustered.
He had a look of confusion on his face, even as his father looked at him from where he sat. The two exchanged quizzical looks, and Rey simply sat back and watched.
'I'm sure I've disrupted everything they had in mind until now. Let's see how they'll take things from here…'
Even though they hadn't told him anything yet, Rey was already sure of one thing.
'They want something from me!'
It was most likely a favor; and considering how much the KariBlanc Group had done for him, it would be a bit unfair for him not to come to their aid.
'I'm sure that is what they want me to think!'
That was one of the reasons why he did what he did. At the very least, he would be able to prop himself up as someone who wasn't a pushover.
That way, he wouldn't appear weak in the course of bargaining.
'I don't want to be doing these people any favors, but I can't just walk out now…'
Esme was living here for free, and he still didn't have any other way to properly take care of her.
Since he was also going to be very busy with the upcoming Raid, it was better for her if she remained with the Blancs.
Of course, he knew he'd have to be on good terms with them for that to happen. freēwēbnovel.com
'Hopefully, whatever negotiation that happens with them ends well…'
Rey swallowed his saliva and waited for the response of the older male who sat before him.
"I guess there's no use hiding the truth from someone of your caliber."
The man leaked out a smile and rose to his feet, his entire build seeming like an imposing mountain that would crash upon Rey's smaller build.
As he watched him rise, Rey kept his normal position and simply raised his head to maintain eye contact.
"You are right. My name is Rebal Blanc, and I am a Member of the Obsidian Council."
Then, the man did the unthinkable.
Rebal bowed his head to Rey, absolutely shocking him to the very core.
"Sir Ralyks, the entire KariBlanc Group needs your help. Please hear me out!"
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*Chapter 195 The Current Imbalance [Pt 1]
An uncomfortable silence hung in the air.
The unnatural sight of a grown, massive man bowing to the much smaller man in darkness made the entire scenario all the more tense.
No one could afford to speak in this heavy atmosphere, and for a few seconds, they could only watch each other.
Then—
"What's the use of a bow? I hope you do not intend on convincing me with cheap emotional appeals."
As Rey said this, he felt the man's big build tremble a little.
"O-of course not!" Rebal Blanc responded, a big smile on his face.
He looked nothing like Asher, but it seemed like they both liked to smile in situations like this.
Rey took a sip out of the tea that had been placed on the table since he arrived.
The tea never got cold thanks to the Enchanted Cup that it was poured into; as such, Rey didn't need to gulp down the whole thing.
Instead, he preferred to systematically take his time.
This situation was no different.
"Hmm." After taking a small sip of the sweet liquid, he cast his gaze on the two men before him.
It seemed they were completely at his mercy.
"Sit down and get straight to the point. I prefer things being done that way."
In response to his words, the KariBlanc Boss actually obeyed very seamlessly.
'Wow! They must be really desperate…'
He decided not to comment on anything until they were done telling him whatever favor they desired of him.
'If it's something doable, then there's nothing stopping me from assisting them. From the looks on their faces, it seems like they'd be grateful for the help.'
Of course, Rey remembered his decision to stay away from the Black Market and Criminal Underworld as a whole.
However, Esme was here, and he still had his uses for these people.
Their relationship was a necessary evil.
"Very well, Sir Ralyks. I'll get straight to the point with you."
'Okay. Here it comes…' Rey prepared himself for whatever big news would come.
"As you already know, the Royal Council has been the necessary aiding force in the Black Market and other facets of the Criminal Underworld."
As Rebal started with this, Rey nodded… though his thoughts played things differently.
'I still can't believe this actually happened. It seems like everyone knew about this except me!'
If the Royal Council hadn't said anything about their corrupt members, he would still be in the dark about the whole thing.
Rey wondered how he would have reacted to the news if he heard it from Rebal's mouth first.
"Well, ever since their confirmed demise following the Dragon Invasion, the Black Market—no, the Criminal Underworld—has been in an imbalance."
Rey's ears perked up the moment he heard this.
He leaned closer, his shoulders arced as he legs were spread apart while maintaining eye contact with Rebal.
The words that came out of his mouth were simple.
"Tell me more."
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'U-unbelievable!'
Rey couldn't believe all he had just heard. He never thought that so much lore could be behind the entire situation.
Apparently, there was a body called the Underworld Triumvirate; and it consisted of—
The Black Market
The Slave Union
The Mercenary Gang.
These three bodies were under the direct supervision of their benefactors, who also served as their overlords.
These benefactors were the three deceased Royal Council.
With them gone, a lot of changes quickly began to occur within the entire sphere hidden in darkness.
Apparently, Scylla, one of the two remaining leaders of the Slave Trade killed the second one and took over his entire territory.
With so much power and influence; practically running a monopoly on slave trade, her influence skyrocketed.
Rebal didn't know all of the details, but the woman managed to convince half of the Obsidian Council to support her uprising.
"She's practically taken over everything beyond the southern area of the Underworld." Rebal had said.
He also retorted that while the Mercenary Gang was a neutral party who merely provided muscle for the other factions, the lady in question now had a lot of their forces on her side. freeweɓnovel.cѳm
In essence, she was a force to be reckoned with.
During the course of Rebal's exposition, he mentioned how the Mercenary Gang engaged in pillaging and providing security services to gain wealth.
In a way, they were merely leeches who sold their strength to the highest bidder.
Just glorified bandits—at least according to Rey.
In any case, Scylla was making a grand uprising in the Criminal Underworld, and that proved detrimental to their business.
Rey had multiple thoughts on the issue.
'To think I set this all off by accidentally causing the Dragon to crush them.'
In a way, it was his responsibility.
No… that wasn't right.
'It's their fault for meeting in secret anyway. Besides… good riddance."
He really couldn't see any reason to help the KariBlanc Group on such matters.
Wasn't this the way of the underworld?
Was he missing something here?
"Sir Ralyks… I will reveal something to you that I have yet to tell any other person who isn't directly involved in the trade, but…"
Rebal appeared hesitant to share the information, but after a few seconds, his face tightened with hardened resolve.
"All those Monster Cores we got for you were used to make a lot of weapons and Enchanted Items. However, it was never for the use of humans…"
Once Rey heard this, his eyes twitched a little.
Truly, he had given very little thought about what the KariBlanc Group was up to with the Items he made from what he sold to them.
Now he was getting close to it,
The only question was: if they weren't being sold to humans… who was their buyer?
"The Elves to the East. They're our biggest buyers at the moment; and they're the ones we made so many Items for."
'E-ehh—?!'
Before Rey could complete his thoughts, Rebal revealed even more.
"Unfortunately, with the territories being under Scylla's control, we can't reach them at all."
In essence, they were experiencing a crisis.
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