Chapter 322 An Audacious Proposition
One by one, nine individuals found themselves teleported into a vast underground chamber, illuminated by the soft, ambient glow of light crystals embedded in the dome-shaped ceiling.
Alex and Venedikt stood to the side in silence while the others, after recovering from the fact that they were on another continent, quickly opened their map, which was getting updated in real time.
They felt their scalp go numb seeing the sheer size of the continent, which was more than three times larger than the human continent.
Their hearts were left racing as their eyes scanned through the map, seeing the vast territories marked in the name of various clans and danger zones with basic info on various resources and creatures to be found inside them.
The system notification had informed them that this continent was not public but a hidden one with no marked location on the world map, so even their location coordinates were useless for global navigation.
While their minds were processing the newfound information, as their eyes scanned the large map and the given basic info, Alex's words echoed through the chamber, bringing them back to their senses.
"Welcome to the Malefis Domain," Alex said after waiting a few minutes to let everyone get the basic info about the domain and reel in their shock.
"I know of a fine dwarven hotel nearby that serves excellent tea, so let's continue our discussion there," Alex suggested, ignoring the dumbfounded and questioning eyes of everyone.
Alex moved toward the chamber exit with Venedikt following his lead, and after giving each other knowing looks, everyone swiftly followed his lead.
As Alex led the group through the streets, their shock only grew first by seeing the diversity of races and seeing how many strong individuals were among them and then after constantly being greeted with respect as immortal adventurers by individuals much stronger than them.
The curious gazes they received from every other individual and the whispers from the city inhabitants made the old players, the likes of Vlad and others, relive the memories of when they first entered the game.
By the time Alex rented a room in the dwarven hotel and the group got seated in the cozy room, the expressions on Vlad's and others' faces had hardened, with words exchanged among them to form a group with unity to be on the same page as everyone else.
Once everyone was comfortably seated with a steaming cup of Glasheale Tea in front of them, Alex gently rapped his finger against the table to gather everyone's attention.
"As you should have already seen, the Malefis Domain has a landmass much larger than the Human continent, with a wide array of Races, some of which are even unknown to the outside world."
"The continent is rich in resources far surpassing anything you'd find on the Human or any other continent,"
"The continent is also much much stronger than the human continent, with even the smaller clans here being led by Elemental Rulers, while the top clan has multiple of them,"
"The Malefis Domain boasts such strength not only because it has better-talented people here and a much greater amount of resources but it is majority because the continent itself is special."
"One of the best things about the continent is that it is completely isolated, with no outsiders allowed through normal means, no players, nor any ancient world inhabitants."
"You guessed it right. This continent has no player besides the members of my organization and, of course, all of you," Alex said with a broad smile, and the room fell silent as every person present stared at him, their eyes widened in astonishment.
"I wouldn't bore you with more domain information, as you can explore those details yourself. Instead, let me explain why this place is a haven for players like us," Alex said after moments of silence.
"All the domain inhabitants are struggling with a mind-corroding curse named Devourer Curse that slowly eats away their sanity, reducing them to mindless beings consumed by a destructive hunger and rage, and sadly, there is no known cure for it."
"So, when individuals approach the brink of madness, they are placed in a state of Cryonics, and with decades of this process repeated, the domain inhabitant numbers had steadily depleted."
"Now, many clans are facing significant challenges, and Races like the dwarves and elves, which rely on other beings, find themselves in dire need of manpower."
"And Guess What."
"Undying Adventurers like us, who are willing to lay down their lives in pursuit of rewards, are god-sent gifts to these struggling clans," Alex said, making everyone's eyes shine with emotions of greed.
"Now that you know what the domain is, allow me to enlighten you about what truly makes it special," Venedikt said, his cold voice shifting everyone's attention to him.
"The Malefis Domain is a unique continent that provides many benefits, and at the pinnacle of those benefits stands the unique environment it provides."
"The unique environment of the domain could help someone comprehend the mysteries of their elemental laws much faster than normal,"
"You would have the time to learn how truly beneficial and superior training in the Malefis Domain is, but before that, let's talk business," Venedikt said after a short pause.
"The entry tokens you used are the only way for the outsider to enter the domain, and they are exclusive to the players,"
"My Organization is prepared to provide each of your factions with Two Hundred Thousand entry tokens free of cost, with the potential for more in the future."
"However, in exchange for this extraordinary, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that will forever improve your factions' fortunes, guaranteeing you a road to becoming one of the strongest player factions and the price you need to pay is 30%,"
"30% of everything quantifiable your factions would earn from the Malefis Domain to the last player, whether it is money, opportunities, resources, information, and other things," Venedikt said, and after giving everyone few moments to get comfortable with his statement, he continued.
"My Organization doesn't exactly want 30% of what your factions would earn, but we would be taking what we want and leaving the remainder as credit of equivalent value that we could use to buy things we desire from you,"
"Your factions would have the choice to refuse our demands, but only if you are prepared to pay us for the credits we were going to spend with Galactic coins, and obeiously, those said credits would be cleared from the total credits that you owe us,"
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Any questions?" Venedikt said and went silent.
As Venedikt concluded his statement, the room's temperature had noticeably dropped a few degrees.
Only Alex and Venedikt appeared carefree, while the others wore stern expressions, controlling their emotions to not lash out in response to the seemingly absurd proposal they were offered.
Alex wasn't just seeking a 30% cut of their Malefis Domain earnings, but he was essentially claiming a share of nearly 30% from every source of income their factions would generate in the foreseeable future.
Because of the benefits the domain could give, it was inevitable that they would shift their entire focus to the domain where opportunities and riches were abundant, and competition was virtually non-existent due to the continent's vastness.
The condition that allowed Alex to selectively determine the compensation placed the three massive guilds and two colossal titanic families in a situation where they had no choice but to comply with his demands or else pay with the world's most coveted currency.
Alex knew his demands were steep, yet he recognized that the value of what he was presenting far outweighed what he requested in exchange.
Accepting his proposal meant embarking on a path that led to heights beyond anyone's reach, even surpassing the mightiest guild, which currently held the unrivaled top position.
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