(Planet Bennett Prime, Mairon’s POV)
After successfully capturing his first planet, Mairon spent a significant amount of time upon Planet Bennett personally, as although conquering the world itself had been difficult, running it smoothly proved to be a pletely different challenge entirely.
"My Lord, some of the influential merchants on the planet don’t like the fact that you’re giving preferential tariff rates to Cult merchants.
They say it’s against the spirit of fair trade.
And that they’re willing to negotiate some deals, if only you give them some concessions...."
An underling reported while Mairon casually walked through the streets inspecting the quality of his rule.
"Cult merchants will always have preference.
In the end, we work for the Cult and its people, not them.
Tell them free trade is an illusion.
And remind them that they are the same bastards who have turned over Cult citizens trying to hide in neutral planets for bounty rewards in the past.
So they can’t expect any mercy from us."
Mairon replied, as he looked around satisfied as he saw his Fundamentalists followers patrol every major intersection in the city.
"Alright...."
The underling murmured, before moving on to the next report.
"My Lord, if the mining output keeps increasing at this rate, then within another six months, we’ll probably bee fully self-sufficient in Blue Crystal refinement..."
The underling said, as Mairon nodded in acknowledgement.
"Good....
Once the merchants stop relying on imports entirely, the surrounding neutral systems will bee economically dependent upon us instead."
Mairon theorized, as the subordinate smiled sharply at the economic petence displayed by his lord.
"Isnt that exactly what we wanted?"
He muttered, however, just as the conversation continued, Mairon’s footsteps suddenly slowed slightly.
Because from across the street...
A hooded figure quietly began walking toward him.
At first glance, the man appeared pletely ordinary.
Simple black robes.
Average build.
Calm walking pace.
And yet...
The moment Mairon looked directly toward him, a strange feeling instinctively crawled across his spine.....
As almost subconsciously, his eyes narrowed.
’What the hell...?’
Mairon thought internally, as something about the man immediately felt wrong to him.
Because despite standing directly within his field of vision, Mairon could not sense even the slightest trace of aura leaking from the hooded figure’s body.
And even stranger than that...
Mairon could not sense the man’s mana signature either, as it was as though the individual approaching him possessed no life force whatsoever.
"Hey," Mairon called out calmly while raising one hand slightly toward the approaching stranger.
"What’s your business here?"
He asked, while trying to grab the man’s shoulder, as the hooded man stopped but did not answer.
As instead, the moment Mairon’s hand reached him—
*GRAB*
The stranger instantly caught Mairon’s wrist tight.
’The hell???’
Mairon thought in shock, as despite all his strength, he could not pull his hand back at all, as it seemed like the hooded man was much much stronger than him.
"The fuck!"
He yelled, as almost instantly... his danger instincts exploded, as without hesitation, he immediately reached toward his waist with his free hand, attempting to draw his dagger.
Yet before he could even touch the weapon—
*GRAB*
The hooded man caught that wrist too.
And suddenly, Mairon found both his arms restrained pletely.
His pupils constricted instantly.
Because despite all his experience, despite being a Monarch, despite all the training Leo had given him while he was young.....
He had absolutely no idea when the stranger moved.
Then suddenly—
*VWOOOM*
A tiny sliver of aura leaked from the hooded figure’s body briefly.
And the moment it did—
*THUD* *THUD*
Both Fundamentalist subordinates standing behind Mairon collapsed unconscious onto the street immediately without even understanding what happened.
Meanwhile, the surrounding civilians continued moving normally through the market district pletely unaware of the terrifying interaction unfolding right beside them.
As though the hooded man somehow isolated the disturbance itself from the world around them.
At that moment, cold sweat finally formed across Mairon’s neck.
Because now...
He understood clearly.
This was an existence operating on a pletely different level from himself.
"Who the hell are you?"
Mairon questioned sharply while struggling against the grip restraining both his arms.
"And what exactly do you want from me?"
He asked, as this time...
The hooded figure finally responded to his question.
"Me? I’m Clarence, young boy. An old friend of your father.
As for what I want?
I want nothing from you, but my master does.
If you’ve heard about the Deceiver Mauriss, then that’s the man I serve.
And he, has requested to meet you."
Clarence said, as Mairon’s eyes instantly flickered in recognition.
Clarence was the Demi God warrior serving the universal government! As back on the pit, his father had fought this man in what many described as a legendary battle.
*Struggle*
Mairon struggled against the man’s grip strength, yet once again, he could not budge an inch, as Clarence began to scoff and chuckle.
"Hahaha.... You know, despite the reputation surrounding you, you’re nowhere near as strong as your father.
He could give me a hard time despite just being a monarch.
But you.... You, I can suppress without losing a breath."
Clarence taunted, as Mairon frowned.
"You’re lucky my master doesn’t want you dead, because if he did, I’d have already finished you by now.
However, what he does want is to meet you, so think about it and decide the meeting time and place in the next three days.
And... if you’re interested in taking my advice, then keep it a secret from your father..."
Clarence said, before slowly releasing Mairon’s hands.
"Three days...."
He reminded again before turning to leave, as Mairon watched his back blend in with the busy crowd, as the Demi God disappeared from his sight.
For several long moments afterward, Mairon simply stood there silently, feeling too stunned by the interaction to move at all, before eventually bending down and lifting the unconscious bodies of his subordinates over his shoulders, as he began walking back toward his office slowly with a dark expression and burning rage hidden beneath his eyes.
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