In an office, a man seemed to be drowning himself in a pile of papers on the desk. He was not young anymore. It could be seen from the wrinkles on his skin. He stared at each line of text written on the sheet of documents. When he finished reading all of it, he signed it and threw it in the pile of other paper.
On the table, there was a plaque made of crystal, written 'Hunter Association Chairman Xiong Li'.
Just as he was busy with the other documents, there was a knock on the door at the far end of the room.
"Get in!"
The door opened. The figure of a graceful woman in formal clothes entered the room. Then, the woman saluted at Xiong Li. The old man glanced at her, and he quickly stopped his work after recognizing who his guest was.
"Miss Wang Mei, please have a seat."
The woman sat in the guest chair. Xiong Li got up from his desk and sat down in front of Wang Mei right away.
"I'm sorry, Miss Wang, I can't prepare tea or snacks. I really wanted to, but as you can see." Xiong Li pointed at his desk. "There's a lot of paperwork I have to check."
"It's fine. I'm sure you didn't invite me here for tea."
After that, the two of them started to talk a little, like asking how each other was doing, including their families. The conversation was light and pleasant, and it turned serious when Xiong Li asked Wang Mei's condition after carrying out the Clearance in the dungeon at the border.
"I'm fine after resting for a week. There's a lot going on in the Dungeon," Wang Mei said bitterly.
"It must be hard on you." The old man looked into Wang Mei's eyes with sorrow.
From the start, Park Jisung and Wang Mei's meeting was known by the Hunter Association. The association allowed Nine Sky to establish a cooperative relationship with North Korea with the aim of making Wang Mei their eyes and ears. Of course, Wang Mei was rewarded. Nine Sky would have an exclusive right to manage the Dungeon located in Beijing.
However, their plan changed after the tragedy happened in the Dungeon. The two major guilds involved were disbanded after failing to complete the Clearance operation.
Thus, the Hunter Association's attention was on the cause of the destruction of two major guilds. That was a dungeon on the tripoint border.
"Can you tell me in detail, Miss Wang?"
Wang Mei nodded, then the woman began to tell her bitter experience. Her face darkened when she recalled the traumatic parts of her story. Meanwhile, Xiong Li listened attentively. He didn't ask any questions.
"Hm, so that's how it is."
When Wang Mei finished telling her story, Xiong Li was silent and in deep thought. He still couldn't believe what he had just heard.
About the dwarves forging the weapons, the monsters fighting strategically, and even the appearance of a masked figure whose hair was smouldering black flames. It all seemed unreasonable to him.
Xiong Li covered his mouth and stared at the empty air. He needed some time to grasp Wang Mei's story.
"There's a lot we don't know about the Dungeon… the more we know, the more terrifying and strange it feels."
The two of them fell silent. Not long after, Xiong Li spoke again.
"I'm sorry for what happened to you." The old man's face darkened. "Eh, according to the agreement, the Hunter Association will give the dungeon in Beijing to you."
Hearing that, Wang Mei brightened up again. "Thank you, Mister Xiong."
After all the sacrifices she had put in, she finally got her reward. At least that was what she thought.
"But, I can't give it to you now."
Instantly, Wang Mei's eyes opened wide. Disappointment and confusion appeared on her face. "W-why? I've done what we have agreed on. I even lost 800 of my best hunters because of this."
"Right. I know that and I'm sorry. But, looking at the current condition of Nine Sky guild, it's almost impossible to leave the dungeon to you. Like you have said, you've lost a lot of your best people. Nine Sky is not what it used to be."
Bang!
Wang Mei hit the table hard. Her face burned with anger. She looked at Xiong Li with hatred.
"After everything I have sacrificed, this is what I got?"
On the other hand, Xiong Li looked calm and composed. The old man looked completely unprovoked.
"I'm sorry, but we can't give the dungeon exclusive rights to a guild that is on the verge of collapse. With the current conditions, Nine Sky is no longer among the 10 strongest guilds in China."
Wang Mei clicked her tongue, then sat back on the sofa with a bitter expression on her face. She had expected this to happen. Not only was the strength of the guild destroyed, the reputation of her guild also fell into the pit. The news of Nine Sky's failure was already widely circulated on the internet. Everyone already knew about it. The damage had spread like a plague. It would be difficult to recover soon.
However, her hope had not been lost completely.
Xiong Li spoke again. "But, you still have a chance."
Instantly, the woman's attention returned to the Chairman of Hunter Association. "What's that?"
"I want Nine Sky to 'voluntarily' participate in the raid on the dungeon in Tianjin."
"Raid? Not the Clearance?"
Xiong Li shook his head.. The man then told the details about the raid.
In Tianjin, there were the top three of the 10 Strongest Guilds in China. The three competed to conquer the dungeon, competing for the exclusive right. However, they all never managed to beat the Alpha on the 1st Floor.
Xiong Li saw this as an opportunity. He asked each of the guild masters to carry out a raid together with the other guilds.
If they managed to conquer the Dungeon until the 3rd Floor, the first Guild that managed to finish off the Alpha on that floor would get the exclusive right.
After hearing that, Wang Mei was slightly astonished. She thought the plan seemed childish, but somehow Xiong Li was able to persuade the three major guild masters to accept the terms.
"Those three big guilds…?" Wang Mei asked, making sure she didn't hear it wrong. She still couldn't believe it.
"Yes, it's true. Phoenix Armada, Crimson Dawn, and Fight Club."
Wang Mei was silent for a moment. She knew Xiong Li's goal. The sly old man wanted to take advantage of her once again. This time, her guild would not gain any material benefits at all. However, at the same time, if the raid was successful, Nine Sky's name could be restored.
In other words, she had no choice. Wang Mei took a deep breath.
"When does the raid start?" the woman asked with a gloomy expression on her face.
Xiong Li smiled in satisfaction. "Don't worry, the raid will be held in seven months. The Phoenix Fleet Guild Master, Chan Fei, was seriously injured. He needs time to recover first. Besides, Fight Club is busy helping to deal with the dungeon break in Guangzhou. So, you still have time to recover your guild's power."
Wang Mei nodded. "Very well, Mister Xiong. Please tell them Nine Sky is voluntarily helping them."
Xiong Li's smile grew wider. "With pleasure."
The two of them quickly stood up. They shook hands after getting what they wanted. Wang Mei paid her respects to the elder, then she left the Hunter Association chairman's office.
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