Hearing Vicente's words, the level 3 man who looked at this guy's mask could not tell whether it was a lie.
In particular, he thought that the behavior of the men around him and Vicente's sudden advances were suspicious. But he could not detect any hint of lies in the words of the leader of this group.
"Are you serious? I'm afraid my leaders won't believe you, Cesar! How do you explain that some of your members are meditating in search of breakthroughs?" This man asked, feeling the mana disturbance coming from this estate's lower level. "We know that your group can't afford to have so many resources to ensure so many breakthroughs simultaneously!"
"Is that so?" Vicente asked in a humorous tone. "You underestimate me. Just because I do business with you doesn't mean I don't have other side activities. What kind of idiot has only one source of income?"
"Oh? Do you have other businesses besides this one?" The Scarlet Syndicate emissary believed Vicente.
Everyone had their own past. Before starting this venture, Vicente probably had his businesses and methods of paying his bills. Otherwise, he would never have been able to form this group and start his activities.
"Of course," Vicente said. "But those businesses have no bearing on my agreement with the Scarlet Syndicate, so I won't talk about them. The point is, we have nothing to do with Defiant Tyranny's problem, although we are happy about what happened."
As he said that, Vicente released the two men he had restrained with his ability or one of his spells.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"But it was good of you to come." He said, taking charge of the situation as he walked through the entrance hall, his men looking carefully at the three of them.
Meanwhile, the two men got up from where they had fallen or gotten stuck and looked at Vice as he spoke.
"Defiant Tyranny will surely blame us for what happened, even though they have no evidence against my people. So, I want you to help me clear this up. If you don't protect my group, we will lose our operation under the attacks of those bastards."
"Huh? You want our help?" The man who had his foot pressed early asked, not liking 'Cesar's' behavior.
Cesar' was acting like he was their boss!
They had come to this place to teach 'Cesar' a lesson, but now this guy was acting like they were there to support him...
"We can make a new deal if you want..." Vicente's eyes glittered under his mask. "Protect me for the next two weeks. If I can't solve my problems by then, we'll do whatever you want. From handing over 100% of our operation to even the design of the weapons you see in my men's hands." He proposed, knowing that this would be tempting even for these people.
Immediately upon hearing this, everyone there became more serious, especially those three men. They felt how powerful those weapons were in the hands of mere Apprentices!
'If something like this can withstand the power of the Acolytes...' The group leader pondered silently, thinking that this might be what his group needed to grow beyond the vicinity of Millfall.
With something like this, his group could become one of the biggest underworld organizations in Scott Province in a few years!
Unlike Vicente, they had the resources to produce hundreds of such weapons using 2nd-stage blacksmiths!
Even the two most hostile and least intelligent men saw what they could bring to their criminal faction if they agreed to make this new deal with Vicente.
After a meaningful look at each other, they agreed and their leader said. "Very well. If you are willing to sign a Magical Agreement with us, we will assure the faction leader that you have nothing to do with what happened tonight, and we will protect you for two weeks. After that, you must report your projects and operations to us."
The man's words implied that Vicente's group would surely fail, and in two weeks, they would have to deliver everything he had promised.
Vicente said. "Yes, if my group cannot care for itself after these days, I will do that."
The tempers of the people there eased as these two agreed, and soon they signed the agreement.
"What do we do now?" The leader of these three men looked at Vicente, feeling very good after making this great deal.
Vicente said. "First, go back to guarding the area around this place. Call for reinforcements from your group if necessary. I will stay here with my men for the time being. I think the next 24 hours will be the most complicated."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmThe three agreed, this time feeling much better about taking orders from Vice, who had made a terrible deal with them.
In two weeks, it would be impossible for this small group to increase their strength enough to face Defiant Tyranny alone!
But Vice had something else in mind as he watched these men leave his estate.
One of the Acolytes from his group approached him and asked in a low voice. "Boss, congratulations on your progress. But can we do what you promised these people?"
Vicente did not answer this question with words. He used his ability from his first pentagram and took the weapon of this level 1 Acolyte.
Under the eyes of half a dozen of his men, Vice quickly melted the metals of this weapon and slowly reshaped it in a slightly different way.
After 3 minutes of this, and with the people there watching him in silence, Vicente finished remodeling the weapon.
Taking off his mask, seeing that his group had returned to normal after the departure of those people, Vicente smiled at his men and said. "With my advancement, my forging skills have greatly improved. I present you with version 2.0 of this pistol. With it, you will be able to use 100% of the power of an Intermediate Apprentice without damaging it!"
Everyone standing around Vice opened their mouths when they heard this. If this were true, they would reach the beginning of the 2nd stage regarding their fighting proficiency!
Seeing that his men were extremely impressed, Vicente did not hesitate to demonstrate the power of that weapon by firing it at one of the side pillars of the hall.
Bang!
The cannon of the weapon shook, and a bullet came out of it without damaging its structure. At the same time, it had much more mana in it than Vicente's men knew their non-upgraded weapons could hold when firing bullets.
Everyone there swallowed their saliva, especially the two level 1 Acolytes, because they felt that even if they used all of themselves, they would not be able to defend themselves against that bullet!