Chapter 638: eting (1)
Chapter 638
"Oh?" Grey muttered with a smile on his face hidden beneath his mask as usual while he stared at Da standing in front of him. "How many minutes will we use on the road before we get there?"
"Twenty minutes at best," Da replied as he began walking towards the door, and Grey followed suit without saying anything else.
The previous day, the Supre Magus had requested a eting with the Crimson Lotus Clan, and after Da spoke with Alba, she agreed and selected the next day, which happened to be today, for the eting just as Grey wanted.
Now, the duo could be seen exiting the inn room and heading to the location Alba had picked. The morning air outside was a bit chilly, carrying faint scents of dust and cooked als from nearby stalls, and Grey instinctively adjusted his robe as they walked.
Taking a carriage, it took them a few minutes of riding in silence before they reached the eting place. Neither spoke during the ride, and the quietness added a small weight to the mont. When they finally stepped down, they found themselves standing in front of a certain bar.
"A bar?" Grey thought as he eyed the building up and down, a bit unimpressed. He also looked around the area, watching how people moved from one place to another, so imrsed in chatter while others hurried along the street.
"Co on, let’s head in," Da said and, without hesitation, pushed the door open before walking inside. Grey adjusted his mask and robe one more ti before following behind him.
Once inside, the warrior mage noticed how unexpectedly empty the place was. He expected to see a lot of people drinking, chatting or causing so noise, yet all he saw was a round table and nine chairs with seven of them occupied. The atmosphere felt oddly focused, as if everyone was waiting for sothing specific.
At the far back, a waiter stood at the counter, preparing so drinks with shaky hands while glancing around nervously, clearly aware of the unusual gathering.
"Huh? Is that the Supre Magus?" Lilly whispered as every head turned toward the door upon hearing it open. They saw Da walk in and then behind him, a man draped in a purple robe with a mask covering his face.
"I think he is the one. The only person I heard of who usually dresses in purple robes," Brook replied with a small frown tightening his features.
"He feels a bit normal. I can’t sense any threat or ki from him," Killian muttered as he watched Grey and Da slowly approaching the table.
"For soone to create those pills, he should be an alchemist, which ans he isn’t much of a fighter then," Ash replied, his sickly pale eyes fixated on the masked figure.
"Then he is not much of a threat," a sowhat lean man with flowing black hair added as he crossed his arms, though his tone held a hint of doubt.
"Whether he is a threat or not, he is still vital. We need him in our clan to create those amazing pills," Alba said sternly just as Grey and Da reached the table.
"Welco, Da," she greeted calmly with a warm smile as the waiter finally brought the drinks. Several bottles filled the table along with cups before the waiter hurried away.
"Guys, et the one and only Supre Magus. And Supre Magus," Da began introducing as Grey stared at the table. "et the Crimson Lotus Clan."
"That is Alba, their leader. Then Killian, the second strongest in the clan. Bro..."
"Save the introductions," Grey said coldly. His voice, altered by the mask, echoed slightly in the quiet bar as he calmly walked toward an empty seat and sat down.
The entire table stared at him in surprise.
’The audacity!’ Brook exclaid inwardly with a deep frown on his face.
’Damn you, Supre Magus. I told you to keep your arrogance aside yesterday,’ Da cursed inwardly, his hands clenched tightly as he glared at the masked figure while trying to hide his frustration from the others.
’Even though he is a weakling, he still has arrogance, hmm... interesting.’ Alba thought with a small smile on her face as she peered deeper at the mask as if trying to stare straight into his soul. For a mont, she even leaned forward a little, studying every tiny shift of his body language.
"He is right," Alba chuckled aloud, snapping everybody out of their thoughts. Her laughter echoed lightly in the bar. "There is no use for introductions, so let us just get straight down to business. Ti is of the essence."
"I am glad to see that not just anybody was chosen as the leader but a sensible and beautiful woman." Grey complinted with a smirk hidden beneath his mask.
’I need to soften the mood caused by my earlier attitude. I need them on my side, so I have to be calm and gentle in my approach.’ he thought, keeping his hands still on the table.
"Oh, the sweet tongued one, huh?" Alba replied with a teasing smirk. "Too bad your face is hidden behind that mask. I would have loved to see the face behind that sweet tongue."
"Maybe it is hidden because he is ugly." The lean man known as Lance said with a smirk, tilting his head to the side as if proudly stating a fact.
"Let us be nice, Lance." The last female at the table, Judy, muttered with a slight frown as she shyly tucked her loose hair behind her ear. Her cheeks flushed a bit, clearly embarrassed by Lance’s remark.
"Alright, down to business." Alba cut through the idle talk as she grabbed a bottle and kept her eyes fixed on Grey. "You wanted to et with , so is there any problem?"
"There is nothing major, just needed to see the people behind the sales of my pills." Grey replied, letting his gaze drift around the table while taking in their expressions. His hands remained clamped on the table, steady and controlled.
’Luckily, my aura and Ki energy are hidden because of this mask, so they will be relaxed around
thinking I am not a threat. Now, how do I get their help?’
"Sothing tells
that is not all. You have a hidden motive, a hidden plan." Alba comnted as she chugged down half of the bottle in a single go. "Look," she said, wiping her mouth clean before staring directly at Grey again.
"We have been business partners for so ti now even though we are eting for the first ti. Honestly, I would not want anything bad happening to our golden goose, so if sothing is bothering you, let us hear it."
’I need to appear nice, offer him a helping hand and then request him to join us in return.’ she thought with an inward smirk that never reached her lips.
’Both of them have a hidden motive, and they are carefully playing around one another.’ Da thought inwardly as he watched Grey and Alba. ’It is like watching two masterminds at work, both calculating but pretending to be casual.’
’Now, how do I phrase my next words to not sound reckless or stupid?’ Grey wondered as he watched the woman sip her drink again.
"So, you can tell us. What do you want from us? Why did you call this eting? Not going to lie, I have been asking that bozo beside you," Alba said while pointing toward Da. "For a eting with you for so long, so I am happy you called one yourself. So what is it?" she asked again before proceeding to down the bottle entirely.
’Alright, screw sensibility!’ Grey snapped inwardly.
"I need your help. I want to take down a faction." Grey calmly and casually revealed.
"PFFFFFFT!" Alba abruptly spat out the drink and burst into a coughing fit. The others at the table followed suit, even Da, who nearly choked on his own breath.
Reviews
All reviews (0)