Chapter 645: Renewed Hope
CH645 Renewed Hope
***
Later that evening, Raven Horn slipped quietly into the Fortuna mansion, where he sought out Alex for a private meeting.
"You’re planning to move against the , aren’t you?" Raven Horn asked without preamble.
"You already know the answer to that, so why ask?" Alex replied with a casual shrug. "If someone declares war on you, would you simply stand still and do nothing?"
"Certainly not," Raven Horn admitted.
Alex’s gaze suddenly sharpened as he fixed the man with an intense look.
"What?" Raven Horn raised an eyebrow.
"How much help can you give me?" Alex asked directly.
"The Black Scar Syndicate is the largest—"
"I’m not talking about the Black Scars," Alex interrupted. "I’m talking about you. With your own authority and influence, how much support can you provide?"
Raven Horn studied him for a moment before responding.
"How confident are you in facing Brock Peyton and his band?"
"About sixty percent," Alex replied without hesitation. "But with your backing, I could raise that to ninety-five."
"You think that highly of me?" Raven Horn asked, mildly amused.
"I don’t," Alex said, shaking his head with a faint, teasing smile. "But others do. With your support, I can leverage that perception to draw more allies to my side."
"Ah... I see," Raven Horn nodded slowly. "You intend to borrow the influence of the Black Scar Syndicate without paying the full price for it."
"Essentially," Alex confirmed.
Raven Horn regarded the young man before him, noting how openly he laid out his intentions without pretence.
’Interesting...’
A quiet chuckle escaped him.
’He schemes like those old foxes, yet his approach is far more... straightforward. And strangely refreshing.’
"It just so happens that I’ve been granted full authority over our assets within BloodIron," Raven Horn revealed.
"So?" Raven Horn leaned forward slightly. "What do you need?"
Though momentarily surprised, Alex quickly adapted, ready to negotiate.
He proceeded to outline his request in clear terms.
Raven Horn listened, then tilted his head slightly.
"That’s all? You don’t need to hold back. This could be a good opportunity to make those old men bleed a little," he said with a faint smirk.
Alex gave him an odd look.
He couldn’t help but wonder what exactly those ’old men’ had done to Raven Horn for him to so casually encourage an outsider to exploit his own organisation.
The offer was undeniably tempting.
Even so, Alex shook his head.
"Now is not the time to take advantage of the situation," he said calmly.
’When the time comes... they will be the ones begging to give me everything they have,’ he added inwardly.
"Very well," Raven Horn nodded in understanding.
"Here," Alex said, sliding a boxed device across the table. "This is a communication tool—a Rune Phone. I will contact you when the time comes.
"The manual is included in the case, though it’s fairly intuitive. You shouldn’t have much trouble using it."
Raven Horn examined the box with clear interest before giving a small nod.
Not long after, he took his leave.
The moment Raven Horn departed, the mansion was placed under complete lockdown... as though it were bracing for an imminent assault.
In reality, it was nothing more than a carefully constructed illusion—designed to convince outside observers, particularly the , that Fortuna was preparing defensively rather than offensively.
Meanwhile, Alex gathered the uninjured members of the Fortuna Company—most of whom were Pangeans who had accompanied him on the interplanar expedition—and led them into the concealed escape tunnels beneath the mansion.
The injured and recovering members of the raid party were left behind to maintain the façade of weakness and guard the estate.
Moving swiftly through the underground passageways, the group eventually emerged within a warehouse located in a distant district of the city.
They did not leave the building.
Instead, Alex guided them towards the rear section, where an intricate formation had already been inscribed across the ground.
He stepped forward and turned to face the group.
"When we first arrived on this plane, and we discovered that our only means of returning—the Interplanar Orb—had been damaged, I made you all a promise. I said that once I restored the functionality of my Rune-Tech platform, I would find a way to take us back."
He gestured towards the formation behind him.
"This... is the first proof of that promise."
A brief pause followed before he continued.
"This is a Spatial Gate Formation. Think of it as a simplified version of the Interplanar Gate’s grand formation. With it, we can traverse to any location within this plane—provided that the destination has been marked in advance."
At first, the group reacted with visible excitement.
But as the implications settled in, several of them grew contemplative.
Some had already begun to notice the flaw inherent within the formation.
Seeing their reactions, Alex remained unperturbed. Instead, he smiled.
"Let us not forget—the Interplanar Gate is classified as a Tier V formation. Setting that aside, even this is an incomplete version of a proper spatial gate. Yet, despite being only a Tier III artisan, I was able to design this formation using runes alone, without relying on supplementary materials of the kind required for a true Interplanar Gate.
"And more importantly... this is something I deduced in my spare time, in between research sessions on my primary project," he explained.
Framed in that light, the disappointment that had begun to form within the group quickly faded.
In its place, a new realisation took root—one that Alex confirmed in the very next moment.
"Thanks to the insights gained from designing this formation, I can now say with confidence that, given access to the necessary supplementary materials—and approximately half a year of uninterrupted work—I will be able to construct a fully functional Interplanar Gate."
Excitement surged through the group.
Smiles spread across their faces as hope reignited within them.
Alex allowed the moment to settle... before dropping his final point.
"However, for that to happen, I must not be disturbed during those six months. If interruptions like the continue, then our return to Pangea will only be delayed further.
"So—let’s deal with these bandits quickly. Agreed?"
At once, the atmosphere shifted.
The eyes of the group sharpened, burning with intent.
"Don’t worry, boss. We’ll wipe them out and hang their skulls at the gates of the mansion as a warning to any other fools," Kavakan said with a cruel grin.
"Ah—let’s not do that. It would be bad for business," Alex replied calmly.
Kavakan froze for a moment before letting out an awkward laugh.
The others quickly followed, breaking into amused chuckles at his expense.
Turning back to the formation, Alex raised his hand and activated it.
A spatial fissure tore open before them—unstable at first, before rapidly stabilising into a doorway-like construct of shimmering energy.
"Let’s move," Alex said.
Without hesitation, he stepped through the gate.
One by one, the others followed.
As the final member crossed over, the gate collapsed in on itself, the formation beneath it disintegrating shortly after.
The path of retreat was gone.
What lay ahead was...
War.
***