"Fine," Rui sighed. "I accept the deal."
He didn't have much leverage beyond that. Regardless, he knew that six billion Shionel gold coins were not trivial, even for the Martial Union. The resulting protection wouldn't be trivial, either. He did not think that anybody would be willing to go as far as to surpass the limits of the protection that he had bought for his family.
After all, one would need to go as far as deploying Martial Masters to overcome the protection that Rui had purchased for ten years. He knew for a fact that nobody was going to do that.
Even a larger country with a population of more than a hundred million people like the Kandrian Empire had less than a hundred Martial Masters. They were nothing short of strategic national war assets and would not be deployed unless the circumstances truly demanded them with genuinely important stakes.
In fact, in truth, even Senior-level protection was generally overkill. Each Martial Senior was a precious tactical weapon and would not be deployed so easily. If anybody did want to harm his family, Martial Apprentices, and Martial Squires would be the limit that any force would be willing to dedicate to the matter. It was absolutely insane to send mighty Martial Seniors who had limited time on missions as trivial as kidnapping a bunch of commoners living in the middle of nowhere outside a town. It was a horrible allocation of Martial Artist resources.
The only reason Rui had purchased Senior level protection was that he did not trust Chairman Deacon to be in a rational state of mind to realize that deploying Martial Seniors was insane. His hatred for Rui prior to recent events had already been quite high, but still within rational limits. However, he assumed that Deacon had learned that he had killed his son, and thus could imagine the sheer venomous intensity with which he hated Rui.
Perhaps he would be willing to go as far as deploying Martial Seniors to capture or at least kill his family. It was purely due to that that he was willing to go as far as to purchase Senior-level protection for his family.
With the protection of a Martial Senior, not even a meteorite heading straight down toward them had any chance of harming them! This was an extraordinarily extravagant measure that most people could not dream of having.
And Rui was fine with the Quarrier Orphanage never knowing about it. The worst thing he could do on top of subjecting them to risk of harm due to his incompetence was letting them know the extent of it. Not only would it thoroughly disrupt their lives, it would needlessly cause them immense emotional distress when there truly was nothing he could do about it.
"I've just deployed a team of high-grade defensive sensory Martial Squires led by a defensive Martial Senior," Senior Reze explained once Rui had handed over the statement. "They have already arrived at the Quarrier Orphanage and have set up a covert defensive perimeter. All targets of protection are confirmed to be safe and unharmed."
Rui heaved a deep sigh of relief as he felt a burden lift off his shoulders, before turning back to Commissioner Reze. "And this contract will remain active even if I die, correct?"
"Correct, you have purchased the highest level of assurance that the Martial Union can offer in that regard," Commissioner Reze nodded. "Now then, are you willing to inform me what this is all about."
"I'm sure you've already guessed, commissioner," Rui sighed. "Chairman Deacon has learned of my identity."
Commissioner Reze's demeanor grew more serious. "And how did you come about to learn that?"
"That's not important," Rui shook his head.
Commissioner Reze considered his words before falling into deep thought. "Squire Quarrier, I strongly urge you to accept our offer."
Rui immediately shook his head. He was more certain of his decision to refuse the offer of protection in exchange for subordination, than ever. He truly did not want to live that way and was willing to go through great deals and make great personal sacrifices rather than be willing to live in that manner.
Commissioner Reze heaved a sigh at Rui's stubbornness, although he wasn't entirely surprised. Rui had already expressed refusal before, and as a Martial Artist, he could be expected to be stubborn.
"What do you intend to do, then?" Commissioner Reze asked. "At the very least, you must return to the Kandrian Empire at once. Once you are within the Kandrian Empire, it becomes considerably more difficult for Chairman Deacon to do anything to you not just because of the physical separation but also because he is far from his domain of power. Just the presence of the Martial Union within the Kandrian Empire where we are at our most powerful will make him considerably more reserved and passive. We can arrange for accommodations to smuggle you out of the country and take you to the Kandrian Empire."
"That won't work," Rui shook his head. "Now that Chairman Deacon has figured out my identity, he'll know the Martial Union was in on it considering that the Martial Union and the Kandrian Empire withdrew its Martial Squires from the battle of the Root floor. He'll be watching the Martial Union like a hawk. You won't be able to sneak me out from within the Shionel Confederation where he possesses considerable power."
Commissioner Reze considered his words, nodding. "That's quite keen of you, then what do you intend on doing?"
"The Martial Union does not need to intervene," Rui shook his head. "I have made my own arrangements, all I need from the Martial Union is a guarantee that it will abide by the commission even in the event that I die. I need that in writing."
"As I have assured your previously, the Martial Union is not in the habit of failing to deliver in commissions. We cannot afford to be. Every commission ever undertaken in history has been fulfilled by us, and I can assure you with the highest level of guarantee that the Martial Union will abide by the contract regardless of your status. I bid you good luck. Do not hesitate to rely on the Martial Union for any matter, for we are an organization that exists for Martial Artists like yourselves."
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