When Floid laughed, Raven tightened his fist! Did he do it!? Did Floid like the proposal? If Floid liked the proposal then Raven might have just saved the entire kingdom in this conversation! Raven felt an intense amount of joy filling him as he thought that he finally managed to convince Floid.
Floid spoke after another few seconds.
"You're truly an amusing human, aren't you? I don't think many traders would dare to confront me with a business deal in a situation like this. Do you truly believe that you can carry out your promises?"
Raven nodded sharply!
"Yes, so long as you spare the kingdom, I can give you everything I have promised!"
"Interesting. I don't believe you made a good deal for yourself, but since you are doing this to save your life, you must think that it is worth it to carry out such a one-sided deal."
Raven agreed with Floid's statement. The deal Raven made was a bad deal for himself. The kingdom of Trad would be giving up everything they have just for the hope of living. If this was a regular negotiation then this would be recorded as the worst deal ever made! But if it was for the sake of saving the life of his family then this bad deal is okay! As long as they will live Raven doesn't mind losing everything.
But what Floid said next shocked Raven!
"But none withstanding, I refuse your offer for subservience."
"W-What? But why!? It is a good deal!"
Raven was almost leaning off his seat now and Floid glared at Raven!
"Do not raise your voice at me, cattle. Know your place,"
Raven swallowed and cowed back into his seat! He shouldn't get too agitated here or else Floid would easily kill him. He was feeling very confused inside! Why would Floid still refuse the deal even after everything that Raven offered? Raven was giving Floid everything just for the sake of keeping the humans alive!
Floid looked outside the window again when he saw that they were almost at the castle. He spoke with a nonchalant voice.
"Even if you promise me the world and then the earth under it, you are not capable of giving it to me unless you are the one in charge of it. Or are you telling me that you control the king of Trad,"
Raven leaned forward again.
"I can talk to the king and convince him. I can make him agree."
"I do not rely on such paltry promises. I did not have a conversation with the king. I had a conversation with you. And the king did not make me the negotiated offers. You did. So why should I bring myself to go through another negotiation with someone new? I don't have the time for such a thing. I would rather destroy everything in this kingdom and burn it to the ground so I can start anew. What you have given me is not enough."
This was the moment of truth and Raven knew it. In every business deal, there is a moment in the negotiations where everyone places their cards on the table. The seller tells you exactly what you are buying and also what he expects you to pay for it and as the buyer, you state your own conditions for buying that product. At this moment, the seller needs to give the buyer exactly what he wants to make sure the buyer purchases that product.
In every case, what the seller gives would always be either a discount on the product or an assurance of the product. And in this negotiation, Raven realized that what Floid was looking for was assurance! Floid never spoke to the king and so Floid doesn't know the king. Raven was the one negotiating with Floid but Raven didn't own the products that he was using in the negotiation! The king was the one in charge of handling the finances for Trad and Floid wouldn't place his trust in someone whom he hasn't negotiated with! There is no way that Raven could refer Floid to the king and hope for everything to work out fine. From what Raven could see, Floid was not a patient demon. Raven was already lucky enough to have spoken to Floid this once, it would not be possible to make Floid sit through another conversation with the king.
Raven closed his eyes and thought about this for a moment and after thinking, he finally opened his eyes with confidence. He knew that there was only one way to assure Floid at this moment.
"Please, master Floid. I wish for you to trust me in this negotiation. I will ensure that no matter what happens, you receive this kingdom in exchange for our lives,"
"And how will you do that?"
"I will become the king of Trad and I will kill everyone that opposes it,"
Floid titled his head to one side. Oh? This was interesting. I never thought that the person who was talking about saving lives would also talk about taking lives. Floid felt a sinister smile forming on his lips. It seems that Raven was truly desperate to save his people. Raven was so desperate that he was even willing to kill a few humans to save the majority. Floid didn't hate people like this at all. Raven understood what it means to be a true businessman and Floid has taken a liking to him.
Floid really didn't need Raven at all, but it will be good to have a trustworthy person on the throne of Trad, won't it? Someone I can control through fear and bureaucracy.
Raven held his breath nervously and he waited for Floid to make his decision. After a few moments, Floid finally gave Raven a nod and Raven sighed in relief as he slumped forward! It worked! It actually worked! Raven couldn't believe it! This was the most intense negotiation of Raven's life and the amount of pride he felt at this moment was intense! He singlehandedly saved everyone in his kingdom!
[Bloodlust] has been activated!
Raven stiffened and sat up in shock as he felt an intense amount of Bloodlust slam into him from Floid! Floid was still looking out the window but all of Floid's bloodlust was directed straight at Raven as he spoke.
"You will only have this one chance, human. Whether your people live or die will be in your own hands. So if you want them to live, make sure you entertain me properly. Do you understand?"
Raven nodded quickly and Floid smiled again as he shut off his bloodlust. The carriage stopped in front of an elaborate mansion and Alucard opened the door and came down from the carriage while dragging Raven out as well. Alucard then held the door open and bowed as he allowed Floid to come down and the three men looked toward the giant mansion in front of them. Flood immediately started to move forward.
The gate of the mansion was guarded by more than fifty guards who were all in B-class or higher. They all wore swords on their hips and they carried heavy shields. One of the guards there saw the three men coming towards them and he tapped the guard beside him on the shoulder as he pointed to them.
"Hey, isn't that Raven? The hotel owner? Who the fuck are those other guys?"
The second guard looked closely at Floid and Alucard but he couldn't tell who they were at all. They must not be that popular. Maybe they are just members of some small family?
"I have no idea who they are, but the king said no one is to see him today so let's just send them away."
The first guard nodded and then turned to the three men.
"Hey! You, over there! You can't be here! The king isn't receiving visitors today so come back tomorrow!"
The guard shouted this out to all three men and he then turned around again while ignoring them. He was sure they got the message so there was no need to pay them any attention anymore. He wasn't bothered since he thought there was no way they could get through the gates. Ever since the king came back from his trip yesterday, he has locked himself in his mansion and he refuses to see anyone at all. The guard could only wonder what happened to the king that made him so damn paranoid.
[Gale Winds - SS] has been activated!
A sudden wind blew across the courtyard and the guards all turned around in shock to see a large tornado rising from the ground and coming straight for them!
"What the hell is that!?"
One of the guards shouted this as he tried to brace himself against the mansion gate! The winds picked up speed and before long the tornado was moving at a speed fast enough to pick people up from the ground and throw them around like ragdolls!!
Floid just stood calmly as he watched Alucard cast the spell. Floid got the notification that the spell Alucard was using has entered his system and Floid saw that the spell was an SS-class spell strong enough to tear human skin away from bone! Raven was hiding behind them and trying his best not to be blown away as the Gale Wind tore the gate of the mansion off its hinges and made a path for them to pass through.
Raven just shook his head as he realized that he made the right decision by negotiating with Floid. This sort of power isn't something that Trad could fight against. Everyone in Trad would have been killed like animals if we decided to fight these men.
Inside the mansion was chaos! The king of Trad was an aristocratic-looking man. He had his hair gelled backward and there were a few streaks of white hair mixed in with his dark black hair. His eyes were also black and his stature was tall and strong. He had a handsome face and a strong jaw and anyone that looked at him would know that he was a part of the upper class!
He always wore a three-piece suit because he was always going out to different meetings and events and he could only meet with his family once a week when he is not busy.
Right now, the king was pacing inside his large office as he waited for his head guard to come and give him the news of what the hell was happening outside! the king could hear the Gale Winds that Alucard was using to tear through his guards and the screaming and shouting were not helping him to stay calm at all! It sounds like the apocalypse is happening outside there! Did someone really come here to attack the mansion?
The king didn't believe it when Raven sent him a letter telling him that there was someone after his life. The king thought that Raven was just being paranoid. It was common knowledge that the king was one of the most protected men in the world. Who in their right mind would try to attack him!? They don't have the balls!
But after thinking about it for some time, the king finally decided that he would take Raven's advice and increase his guard detail. The king trusted Raven as a fellow businessman and he has never known Raven to be the sort of person who would lie or joke about something so important. If Raven says there is someone dangerous after me then it would be best to believe him for now.
That was the reason why the king increased his guard duty and called back all his guards for the day. He told the guards at the gates not to let anyone through and he called his family and told them to come to the mansion as well. He thought it was the safest place to be right now since there were so many guards around so he was sure that his family would be safe!
But now, he was regretting calling his family here. It doesn't sound good outside there!
Ka-cha!
"Your majesty!"
The head guard of the mansion suddenly barged into the safe room that the king was standing in and he shouted out frantically as he saw the king! The king looked at the head guard in shock! What could have made him so spooked that he didn't even knock!?
The head guard quickly came into the room and saluted in front of the king.
"Your majesty, you need to get out of here right now! There are three dangerous men on their way and they are not the sort of people we can stop with our capacity!"
The king was shocked!
"W-What! But you're the best knights in the kingdom! How can anyone in this kingdom fight their way through all of you? And there are only three of them!? What the hell am I paying you for!?"
The head guard squeezed his hands into fists and grit his teeth because there was nothing he could say back to the king! What the hell was he supposed to say!? No matter how you look at it, something like this isn't meant to be possible! There are more than three hundred guards around the large mansion but the head guard hasn't gotten any reports back that they have caught the intruders. The head guard has only been getting warnings from his troops that the men were still advancing. Everybody is being killed!