Darius stood up, his face grim. "Come with me."
A few elites followed him out of the building. As he left, Darius called Cassian. A calm and elegant voice answered him. "What's wrong, Darius?"
"Don't act stupid." Darius got straight to the point. "You should know something about what happened in Nualis."
Cassian, resting on his high-quality chair, folded one of his legs and smiled. "Perhaps. However, why should I tell you? Darius, do you know why I have not entered into an alliance with you yet?"
Darius's mind spun, reviewing past conversations with him. Soon, he squinted, his cobalt-colored eyes glowing with a hint of threat. "Are you using me as a testing dummy, Cassian?"
Cassian chuckled. "Such a vulgar way to describe it. Darius, don't blame me. You received warnings, and since then, I have known that things were not simple. You should've known as well. Instead, you maintained your arrogance and focused on pushing forward."
Darius was furious, but he didn't blow up like a child, instead keeping his cold fury deep inside. Cassian sighed, shaking his head. "Since we have known each other for a few centuries, I will give you a touch of advice. Be careful of Aurelius."
Then, the communication cut out.
Darius frowned deeply. 'Aurelius? What can Aurelius do? Our businesses are not even similar…'
His thoughts trailed, his eyes squinting.
'Aurelius's businesses can be summarized as an extremely competent law firm that specializes in everything. My business is diametrically opposed: a world with little law and order, based only on profit. That's the essence of a Black Market; as long as there are profits to be earned, the context doesn't matter much.'
As he pondered until here, his eyes shone with realization. 'When a black market falls, the one who benefits the most is… him.'
As all the 'illegal' products fall from obscurity and are brought to light, there must be a group to handle all the complicated paperwork and deal with them proficiently in law.
'That annoying light bulb!' Darius gritted his teeth, his steps halting.
Every person around him who was following him toward the main Town Hall glanced over with confusion. They saw Darius showing a deep frown, his eyes full of thoughts.
"Come on."
He resumed the march, and soon, they arrived at the Town Hall. Once there, Darius's group was welcomed by a fairy whose body was semi-transparent. A space-attributed fairy.
"Lord Darius, Lady Flor is waiting for you on the fiftieth floor."
Darius was not surprised. Clearly, the reason for what was happening was on the locals, and among them, the only ones who dared to make a direct move on them would be those at the very top.
Darius moved with his group of 20 people, all
Inside, Flor, Ignatia, Cael, Xalis, Zerrek, Rhex, and other
Darius's eyes twitched as she smiled at Flor. "It seems that the place is a little bit crowded."
Flor smiled back. "I prefer having people around me. They help me correct my thoughts when I make mistakes."
"I understand what you mean. Suddenly losing subordinates can be something extremely frustrating and infuriating. What do you think, Lady Flor?"
Flor sighed, taking a sip of the tea. "You are right, Lord Darius. It's almost as annoying as having someone hiding in the dark with a knife, not knowing when they'll strike. It's exhausting having to guard your back every single moment."
Darius smiled, not commenting further. His eyes, though, flashed coldly.
Flor looked at Darius and smiled. "Well, I can see that you came here for some business. I wonder what you wanted from us. After all, until now, you've been quite an independent businessman."
Flor enunciated 'independent' with quite a lot of strength, making it quite clear that she knew what Darius had been doing.
Darius didn't mind her tone. Instead, he spoke without much change of expression. "You are right. Things usually go without a hitch. After all, the few times I failed were when the very empire I was in collapsed for one reason or another."
Darius leaned back, his fingers gently tapping the chair. "Still, I am quite sure of being prosperous basically anywhere I put my efforts. My venture in the Golden Sap Empire has been quite… eye-opening." He continued, not letting Flor speak. "Speaking of which, I have something I wanted to report. There seemed to have been an accident in Nualis. I think you should send people over quickly."
Flor smiled, showing no expression. "No hurry. Nualis is doing great. There have only been a few bumps lately, some people becoming a bit unstable. We investigated the cause, of course. Did you know, Lord Darius, that when we investigated the cause, we discovered that someone was blatantly trying to sell illegal drugs through hidden channels!"
Flor showed an outraged expression. "Who would dare do such a stupid thing in the territory of the Heavenly Willow? Under the security of a World Tree, and they dare to act as blatantly as some second-rate thugs. Truly infuriating."
She then smiled. "Thankfully, our healers are excellent, and all have recovered. The only casualties have been among those dastardly black market owners. It's such a blessing that nothing too damaging happened before we discovered it, right?"
Darius's face was cold as he looked at Flor's animated response. Flor, noticing his expression, also stopped acting. Her smile disappeared as she looked back with the same frosty expression.
"Lord Darius, I add 'Lord' to your name because when you arrived, you swore to follow our rules. You, together with the other 27 merchant fleets, promised that you would act within our laws. However, it seems that promises are meant to be broken, and oaths are nothing but passing clouds."
Flor lifted a few signed documents, all of which showed Darius's signature. "These? All showing your willingness not to touch our bottom line?" Her hands burst with powerful flames, incinerating them. "Mean nothing to you, don't they?"
Darius, knowing that Flor was not going to keep up pretenses, also gave up on trying to discuss. Instead, he spoke coldly. "Lady Flor, I use the title 'Lady' with someone as powerless as you because we are visitors in a foreign Empire. Although calling this little backwater place an "Empire" is giving it too much face."
He sneered disdainfully. "So what if we don't abide by some of your rules? You've already dealt with those in Nualis, and now, I've sent a message to all my collaborators. As long as something happens to me, they will all revolt and cause endless damage to your pitifully small country. Are you really willing to sacrifice everything just to make me abide by some words written by your little group?"
Flor chuckled. "Darius, Darius. Do you not know the essence of merchants? Do you not know that there are no unbreakable alliances, but endless profits?" The Flower Fairy smiled at the man. "You underestimated us this time, Darius."
Darius was not nervous. He answered without any emotion, his metallic body looking as robust as ever. "Even if you somehow convinced all of them to betray me, and even if you somehow managed to isolate me, do you dare to touch me? I, who am part of the
Flor nodded, sighing. "You see, Darius, here is where you are wrong. It's not that we can't touch you. It's that we didn't want to!" Flor explained lightly. "Your merchant fleets are the first large outsider group to arrive at our place. Therefore, our Heavenly Willow decided to allow us to do things ourselves so that we could see how we would fare against all of you."
Darius's expression changed slightly, his eyes subtly looking at the massive pillar soaring to the heavens in the middle of Golden Sap City.
Flor didn't mind and continued. "As she expected, we were crushed. Just by making honest traded and holding back your usual methods, we were quickly pushed out of our industries, and you all managed to find a sturdy place. The civilians love your wares, and we do as well. They have broadened our horizons immensely. This last year has helped us grow and understand many things."
She chuckled. "Most importantly. It has helped us notice the dangerous complacency and faint arrogance that had been growing under our skin. For this, I must thank you dearly. Were it not because the Heavenly Willow grows in our Empire, we would've undoubtedly been swallowed by you lot."
Without Liu Shu's blessings, forget resisting. The Golden Sap Empire would've been silently swallowed by them, leaving not a single bone behind. The difference in technology was just too vast for them to adapt to and counterattack in a short time.
Darius was slightly lost by now. "What are you babbling about?"
Flor blinked. "Oh my, look at me. I became somewhat emotional and spoke things that were not in the script. It seems that I still need to be careful."
Darius looked around, not really understanding. After all, he couldn't imagine how comprehensive Liu Shu's buffs were. Hence, following Flor's words was a bit complicated.
"Flor, I don't know what you are trying to do. Regardless, it doesn't change the fact that you can't touch me. I understand that you've exterminated my branches in Nualis. Nevertheless, if you really want to force my hand, you won't leave unscathed from the confrontation."
He was careful about their strength. After all, to deal with his branches in Nualis, decent strength was needed. Not to mention, the insectoids standing at the side felt quite dangerous.
Flor agreed with Darius. In a direct confrontation with a Level 190+, they couldn't easily contain the shockwaves of the battle. Therefore, Flor relied on a very simple and straightforward method.
She smiled and said. "Darius, our proving time is over. We've learned, grown, and seen how things can develop. We've also counterattacked as we could and managed to form a standstill between us even when our resources are lacking with yours. So, we've passed the trial."
"Trial?" Darius asked, and as he did, an incomparably vast presence descended from the sky.
"Trial indeed."
In just an instant, it wasn't only Darius; every single creature in the entire Golden Sap Domain felt the ancient power that had been dormant for a year awaken.
Cassian, Aurelius, Selene, and Virelya's expressions changed, all of them quickly moving outside and looking up at the gargantuan World Tree.
Liu Shu's eyes slowly opened, and she spoke to Darius, her voice echoing throughout her entire domain. "Merchant Darius. You've created a black market in my domain. You've harmed countless innocents. You've challenged my authority. Insulted my close people. Put in jeopardy the stability of my Empire. Finally, and most importantly…" Liu Shu turned to look down at Darius's location with a cold expression. "You've annoyed me."