Chapter 206: The Dark Angel Mercenary Group.
Kael remained silent for a while, his fingers tapping lightly against the side of his phone as he thought about what Joy had just told him. He had already anticipated something like this happening.
In fact, he would have been more surprised if the Mothlight Guild had launched without attracting any unwanted attention.
"It’s okay. Leave the issue to me. I’ll deal with it."
His voice was serious.
From the moment Mothlight Guild was announced to the public, it had been destined to attract an enormous amount of attention. The problem was that not all attention was good attention.
The guild wasn’t entering the market with ordinary resources.
They had Dun’s Mana Potion.
A groundbreaking potion capable of treating Mana Sickness, something that could potentially change an important part of the medical industry.
A potion like that was bound to attract the attention of countless people, especially when the Mothlight Guild was going to become the only organization authorized to distribute it.
That alone was enough to create enemies.
There were guilds, organizations, and corporations that had spent years building monopolies across different areas of the medical industry. To them, the sudden appearance of Mothlight Guild wasn’t simply the arrival of another competitor.
It was an eyesore.
If they couldn’t force the Mothlight Guild out of the market, then they would naturally look for another way to benefit from the Mana Potion. They could attempt to acquire a share of its distribution, pressure the guild into cooperation, or simply find a way to weaken its position before it became too powerful.
So these attacks weren’t particularly surprising.
If anything, Kael suspected they were still only probing the guild.
The Mothlight Guild had launched with far too much momentum, and anyone with sufficient influence would naturally want to know what was standing behind it. Who was funding them? Who had provided their resources? Why did a newly established guild possess such an absurd amount of capital and Rift access?
That was probably what their enemies were trying to find out.
They were testing the waters.
And because the Mothlight Guild had yet to respond, those probing attacks would likely become increasingly bold with time.
Kael’s gaze hardened
That was precisely why he didn’t intend to waste time on an investigation.
Investigating the people behind the attacks could take weeks, perhaps months. Even if they managed to capture some of the thugs, the people controlling them would likely remain hidden behind several layers of intermediaries. The effort might produce information, but it wouldn’t necessarily stop the attacks.
Instead, Kael would target the attacks themselves.
If they sent thugs, he would cut them down.
If they used another method, he would deal with it accordingly.
Whatever they threw at the Mothlight Guild, he would return it several times over until they either backed off or became impatient enough to reveal their hand.
And once the people behind everything finally showed themselves, Kael would eliminate the problem at its source.
He wasn’t afraid of any of them.
Joy remained silent on the other end of the call for a while.
"Okay."
Her voice finally came through.
"I’ll pause the investigation."
Kael nodded slightly.
"Good."
There was another brief silence.
Then Joy spoke again.
"Guild Master, there’s one more thing I want to report."
Her tone had changed.
"I’m not sure if this is the right time, considering you just got discharged."
Kael’s brows furrowed.
"What is it?"
"It involves the Dark Angel Mercenary Group."
Kael’s expression immediately changed.
Apart from guilds, there were other factions where Hunters gathered together.
Mercenary groups.
In terms of reputation, guilds were naturally far more well-known and respected, but that wasn’t necessarily because guilds were stronger than mercenary groups. The difference came from their structure and obligations.
Guilds operated strictly under the laws established by the Hunter’s Association. They weren’t simply organizations that gathered powerful Hunters together. They were expected to participate in monster subjugation, Rift exploration, disaster response, and various other activities that made them a symbol of protection and hope to ordinary people.
Mercenary groups were different.
They functioned more like private militias.
As long as the job remained within the bounds of legality, the highest bidder could hire them to accomplish practically anything.
Escort missions.
Private Security.
Rift exploration.
Recovery operations.
There were countless things a mercenary group could be hired to do.
Of course, many mercenary groups operated legitimately, but the reputation surrounding them had never been particularly clean. Rumors of illegal activities, underground contracts, and morally questionable missions followed some of the more notorious groups wherever they went.
That was why ordinary people tended to view mercenary groups as little more than a step above criminals and villains.
But reputation didn’t change reality.
Mercenary groups could be extremely powerful.
Some of the larger one’s possessed enough high-ranking Hunters to compete with established high-tier guilds.
The Dark Angel Mercenary Group wasn’t among the absolute strongest, but they were still one of the more powerful factions among the mid-tier powers.
They had considerable resources.
They had powerful Hunters.
And most importantly, they had enough influence to make a newly established guild pay attention.
Kael frowned.
So what did a group like that want with Mothlight Guild?
Considering the way mercenary groups operated, he already had a fairly good idea.
"It isn’t anything good, is it?"
Joy hesitated.
"Not exactly."
Kael leaned back against the headboard.
"So, what about them?"
There was another pause.
Then Joy finally spoke.
"They want us to make a partnership deal."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"What kind of partnership?"
"They’re offering the Mothlight Guild a ten percent discount on any service provided by the Dark Angel Mercenary Group for the next ten years."
Kael’s expression remained unchanged.
That didn’t sound terrible.
Then Joy continued.
"In exchange, every member of the Dark Angel Mercenary Group would receive unlimited access to every Rift currently under the control of the Mothlight Guild."
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