Chương 59: An Uneasy Alliance

Underground Safe Spot, Main Hall. At the center of the hall, the old man, Dejan Pleasence, sat with a face devoid of any emotions. Victor and his uncle stood on both sides, while all the lackeys stood behind him. In front of them sat a giant-like middle-aged man with a face full of smiles. The smile looked almost like a victory, as if he had achieved something big and earned a lot of wealth for himself. Behind him stood a few lackeys as well, with no emotions on their faces.

To their left, another gang stood where a middle-aged woman sat with crossed legs, acting as if she was superior to everyone. The entire hall was pin-drop silent. Aside from these people, no one else was present in the main hall. The others were moved to another chamber, not allowed to hear what these people were discussing.

"Mr. Dejan, I didn't expect the Pleasence family would take part in these kinds of things. Since when did you Pleasences grow a spine on your backs?" the giant man said with the same smile on his face.

"You… watch what you are speaking." Victor's uncle gritted his teeth in rage. However, before he could make any more comments, he was stopped by Dejan. Victor's face turned red. His eyes were so red that if he were to cry, blood would flow like tears. He clenched his hands after hearing the man's insult. After killing Arthur and successfully inflicting fear into everyone's hearts, taking over control of this place, he felt like a king.

When his grandfather successfully arrived, he felt this place had become their territory. They could do whatever they wanted. However, two more families from Faith City had suddenly appeared last night, placing their authority over this place in question. The giant man was the head of the Hatfield family, an influential family, as well as the second wealthiest family. His name was Denis Hatfield.

As for the woman, she was from the Lister family, who owned three luxurious hotels and many more branches throughout the country.

"Ms. Gina, you would be the last person I would expect in a place like this. Is the Lister family so desperate for power?" Denis turned his head and asked the woman. Gina, however, did not get angry after hearing the provocative question. She simply shifted her legs and darted her eyes towards Denis.

"Why not, Mr. Denis? Is there a rule that only the Hatfields could seek power and not others?" she said with a snorting tone.

"Of course not." Denis raised his hand as if he had made a mistake.

"But the question is, what made you think that you are all strong enough to participate in the Concentric Trial? Do you know what this Trial is? I would say you all made a big mistake coming here knowingly," Denis said.

"We all know what this place is, and we are capable of getting what we want. I suggest you mind your own business," Dejan spoke for the first time since they sat to talk, his eyes moving towards Gina. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings. Dejan knew he was not strong enough to defeat the head of the Hatfield family. However, if he were to join hands with the Lister family, he would come out victorious in the end.

"Hahaha! Hahaha!" Denis laughed loudly, his laughter echoing throughout the hall and even reaching the other chambers.

"Please rest assured, Mr. Dejan and Ms. Gina. We, the Hatfield family, will not make any trouble for you of any sort. This is not a place for dominance, but cooperation. Hence, there is no enmity between humans once they arrive here. In this trial, in fact, we would not achieve what we aim for unless we work together. So, do not worry; we will not disturb anyone. You are free to do anything here." Denis declared that there would be no hostility between them.

After hearing Denis's words, both the family heads and their members were shocked. They expected there would be a war for dominance between the families to determine who could control this place. Now, however, hearing the giant man say he would not pressure them or ask them to listen to him was a truly unexpected thing for them.

"Hahaha, this must be your first Concentric Trial. again I would say you all made a big mistake coming to this place knowingly. This is not a playground. I am not sure how many rumors you all knew about this trial, but whatever the amount, it was not enough," Denis said with a small smile. After hearing him say this, both of the family heads' faces turned grim. Of course, it was their first time, and they had gathered data about these trials for generations, waiting for their turns.

However, all of that data was collected by word of mouth, not witnessed by themselves or their ancestors. Now, seeing a warning from the head of a family whose ancestors had participated in these kinds of trials, they suddenly felt some hesitation regarding their decision.

"Let's all do what we want without interfering in each other's business," Denis spoke his final words as he stood up from the chair and walked away from the main hall. Dejan and Gina exchanged a look, disbelief dancing on their faces. The behavior of this guy made them uncomfortable; it was almost unnatural for these powerful families to act like this. Even though their families did not have as much influence as some families who ruled the city in the background, they were not to be underestimated.

They had gathered a ton of data before they chose to enter this trial, and they had already expected there to be a dominance war. Now, however, that speculation had completely changed. However, even though this guy said there would be no enmity between them, they were not kids to believe him.

"Ms. Gina, I propose we should work together. I don't believe him," Dejan said.

"I suggest the same thing, Mr. Dejan. I don't believe him either." She acknowledged the proposal of a partnership.

Far from the underground Safe Spot, a fierce battle persisted. The ants endlessly attacked the three skeletons, and the fallen ants had piled up like a mountain. The three skeletons stood on top of that mountain like reapers, slaying every enemy. Suddenly, the ants charged like swells, attempting for the nth time to overwhelm their enemies once and for all.

However, before that plan could be executed, one of the skeletons, who thrust its spear and killed the incoming Leader Ant in a single attack, held its weapon above its head. Suddenly, the black iron spear dissolved into a wisp of mist and disappeared from its hand. In the next second, a hundred black spears of shadow materialized above the quarry, all pointing straight at the ground. [Hundred Spear Shadows] The spear shadows descended directly onto the ground in the blink of an eye.

In an instant, the hundred ants that were about to overwhelm them were cleared without any issue. In the next second, the original spear automatically appeared in its hand, and the battle returned to their control as the killing continued. Arthur, who was watching this battle, was thoroughly impressed. Dolph's abilities were deadly, especially the Hundred Spear Shadows, which killed a hundred enemies without a miss.

More than two hours had passed since the battle started, yet the number of ants charging in had not decreased. However, that did not matter, since the skeletons possessed unlimited stamina, and they could control any kind of situation. He quickly opened the Marketplace and clicked the Butcher tab; the materials they could harvest would be enormous once the battle ended. Since he only had one proper Butcher, or two if he were to consider Coburn, he might need to hire a few more to finish the clearing quickly.

After all, time was precious in this place.