"Since you’re short on ti, I’ll cut to the chase," Michaela said, crossing her fingers. "Do you want sothing? It can be money, equipnt, status, you just na it, and you’ll have it."
Michaela wondered what his response would be. After all, she was willing to give him the world if he wanted. But what could a billionaire want from them that he didn’t have already?
"I’m not like your usual rankers," Adrian replied with a smile. "While my team would love it, I’m different. I have more than enough money to know what to do with it."
Michaela sighed inwardly. She knew negotiating with Adrian would be difficult, but not this difficult. They had been talking for a while before they got to her office, and all that ti, she couldn’t get anything out of him that could prove beneficial for her.
That was why she bluntly told him to ask for whatever he wanted. Most male rankers were more or less on board as long as she gave them enough money, fa, or won.
However, Adrian wasn’t interested in either of those things, which made it difficult for her to learn anything about him or his desires.
"Since you wanted to be straightforward, that’s what I’ll be," Adrian smirked, leaning back on his chair. "I desire freedom. Freedom to do whatever I want, whenever I want, to whover I want. I gave DRA the sa terms, and it’s only fair I ask you the sa."
"What are you? So serial killer in disguise?" Michaela replied, shaking her head. "We have a lot of people in our pocket, from humble roadside vendors to influential congressn. But that doesn’t an we can give you so much power without collateral."
Adrian smiled inwardly. The fish had taken the bait. Now was the ti to slowly pull it out of the water. Being hasty could ruin his plan to take over the Misty Swords and turn them into his private army against Nexaria.
"A collateral? Like what?" Adrian asked, acting clueless.
"Information that only you and your team seem to have," Michaela replied, carefully eyeing Adrian for any subtle movents hinting at discomfort.
However, Adrian remained calm and confident, unlike her expectations.
"You want information about...?"
"The place your team arrived from... everything you know about the mystery surrounding the dungeons."
"What makes you think I know about anything?" Adrian shrugged. "Besides, what’s stopping you from kicking out if I tell you everything?"
Michaela’s lips curved into a smile as she got off the seat, closing the distance between herself and Adrian. Staring straight into his eyes, she spoke confidently without any hint of hesitation.
"Do you truly believe I’d risk crossing soone who took down the White Tigers while suffering from Drain? I know that any misstep on my part would result in my demise. Therefore, what motive would I have to entertain such reckless behaviour?"
Adrian hid his smile. He knew why John Black had soone like her as his right hand. Michaela was as cunning as they ca. She knew what she wanted and wouldn’t hesitate to do whatever was necessary to achieve her goals.
Moreover, it was just as she had said. The guild had its people everywhere. Otherwise, she couldn’t have known about the Drain and the white tigers, which he only told the DRA about and not even the dia knew about.
’I’ll benefit greatly by having soone like her by my side... maybe I’d even make the faux guild master after taking over the guild.’
However, it would take ti to achieve that—at least a few months—so there was no point in thinking about it so early on.
"Fine, information in exchange of power," Adrian agreed. "What else?"
Michaela smiled. However, if soone had noted their negotiation, they might have thought things were going in Adrian’s favour, which was far from the truth.
The information Adrian had about the dungeons was priceless. If she only had to let him run amock for a while, then it was a little price to pay. Adrian’s intel would still be more valuable to them, and they could repurpose it and sell it off to soone else for a massive profit.
’Besides, I have no intention of letting him do as he pleases without a leash binding him.’
Michaela had agreed to give Adrian what he wanted, but she had no intention of letting him have what he desired without making him do so work first.
"I know I agreed to give you what you want," Michaela said. "But you might need to do so work for it."
Adrian raised his eyebrow, wondering what was going on inside the vixen’s head, he but didn’t interrupt her, letting her say her piece first.
"You may possess a rank beyond S-grade, but allocating excessive authority within the organization could breed discontent among our other mbers," she continued.
"And I can’t justify dozens upon dozens of hunters leaving the org, only to have a handful replace them. I hope you get what I’m trying to say here."
"What do you want?" Adrian asked, hoping to get a straight answer out of her.
"Climb the ladder like everyone else," Michaela replied matter-of-factly. "Prove your worth to silence anyone who would dare to question our preference for you. Naturally, I’ll provide you with ample support that the others won’t be aware of."
"If I had to climb the ranks, I would’ve joined any other guild," Adrian sighed, getting off the chair. "And here I thought we were getting along-"
"Please, Mr. Fenrir, allow a mont to clarify," Michaela panicked, thinking the golden goose was slipping out of her hands. "It appears I couldn’t convey my words properly to you."
Adrian turned around but didn’t sit back. He stared at Michaela as if saying he would end their negotiations if she spoke any further words that irked him.
"What if you were to assemble a team directly accountable to alone? Naturally, you needn’t concern yourself with answering to anyone, including myself. It would rely serve as a guise to deceive the others."
She continued, "In this manner, you’ll be free to pursue your desires, provided you clear a dungeon each week. It’s a fair exchange: I’ll have results from your team to show others, and you’ll enjoy the remainder of the week at your leisure. So how about it?"
Adrian thought about it for a mont before smiling and offering her his hand, "Looks like you got yourself a deal, Vice Guildmaster. Before you ask, yes, I knew about your actual designation all this while."
Michaela smiled, wondering how to put soone like Adrian on a leash. After all, he wasn’t a dog but a sabretooth tiger.
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