Pride's Negotiation
Pride of the Seven Deadly Sins. An 8-star superhuman so rare that even searching the entire continent would yield only a handful. With an arrogant demeanor befitting his name, he seized control of the atmosphere and spoke while staring directly at King Raymond's face.
"First of all…"
He led the negotiation. He would not be swayed by anyone. Standing there like an unyielding stone, his entire figure stained black from head to toe without the slightest tremor, Pride drew every gaze toward him with his words.
"As you likely anticipated, our objective is permission to consolidate the underworld within the Ellemental Kingdom."
He began by tossing a small stone into the river to create ripples. His tone carried absolute certainty that they would have predicted even this much. Beneath it lay the unspoken implication that if they had failed to foresee something so obvious, he would have been disappointed in their capabilities.
"I understand the underworld already operates within this nation as a necessary evil."
Here, revealing one's competence was far better than feigning ignorance. King Raymond accepted Pride's natural statement as a matter of course and countered with a question of his own.
"Then what you mean is more active operations than at present, correct?"
"Precisely."
Pride answered honestly without denial. "However, that does not mean we intend to step into the open or commit blatant crimes. We simply felt the need to bolster our numbers due to insufficient personnel for an investigation we must conduct."
"Can you tell us what that investigation entails?"
"I apologize, but no."
Pride rejected the king's request without a moment's hesitation. When investigating the death of Kayen Nasara… no, Kayen Grant, Kain had examined every circumstance and become certain. None of the continent's current absolute rulers had been involved in his sister's death. Yet the emergence of a new suspect who might have escaped from the Underworld had overturned the very foundation of that hypothesis.
'There may be collaborators among the absolute rulers themselves.'
Just as the Death King was now seeking cooperation from Majoan's faction. Negotiations had existed since ancient times, and whenever mutual benefit and common ground arose, they could always evolve into alliances. Of course, given Majoan's character and actions, the likelihood of any connection was slim, but one could not decide everything based solely on possibility. Especially not for Pride, who had been entrusted with full authority over the underworld in the Death King's stead.
"We will maintain strict control. As before, all matters of the shadows will remain in the shadows. Should any rumor spread or any incident arise that might unsettle the citizens, the Seven Deadly Sins will personally intervene to stop it."
Pride offered preemptive assurances of what they desired. His one-sided manner of speaking left no room for the other side to interject. King Raymond's eyes trembled ever so slightly at the sensation that Pride was reading their thoughts completely.
"Of course, even so, you cannot simply ignore or overlook our presence."
No fool would allow dangerous individuals to roam freely within their borders. That was precisely why Majoan was using his intelligence agency to track the Death King's whereabouts. The underworld's sheer scale meant the manpower and funds required for surveillance would be astronomical.
"We will provide compensation more than sufficient to cover that. Should any issues or changes occur, we will report them to you in advance without fail."
"……"
"Here is the compensation plan we have prepared."
A servant waiting nearby accepted the document Pride offered. Only after Majoan confirmed there were no suspicious traces did the paper finally reach King Raymond.
"……!"
The king's eyes widened as he read the amount written there. It exceeded the sum he and his ministers had agreed to demand. Pride's expression remained utterly composed as he watched the king, as though he had anticipated this reaction all along.
"The amount is sufficient. We are showing you the maximum we can offer from the start."
Do not bother testing us. We already know we have given you more than you expected. From beginning to end, Pride had danced circles around them. This was no longer a negotiation. It was a unilateral notice delivered by Pride.
'So this is the Death King's strategist.'
He did not defy his master's will. He did not guide or instruct him along a separate path. Everything proceeded exactly as the Death King desired. Wrong paths remained wrong, right paths remained right. Pride respected only the Death King's intentions, discarding all personal thoughts and values. Yet whatever the Death King wanted, Pride would achieve by any means necessary. That was Pride, the underworld's second-in-command. He possessed more than enough—perhaps even excessive—ability to match his arrogant nature. Even Majoan found himself thinking that, had they met under different circumstances, he would have immediately offered to recruit Pride into his own service.
'This too must be the Death King's power.'
Pearls existed even in muddy waters. The underworld was a place where criminals and those who had fallen to the bottom of life gathered and were filtered. Naturally, talented individuals with outstanding ability existed even there. However, controlling them completely was another matter entirely. The bottom of life, harsher than anywhere else in the world—a demonic realm where the weak could never survive. Those who lived there fell into two categories: the powerless who lived subserviently under others, or the powerful who survived with ruthless tenacity. Pearls like Pride in the mud were almost always the latter. Their natures had grown as rough as could be, and thus they would rather be the head of a snake than the tail of a dragon. How extraordinary must the Death King be to earn the recognition and loyalty of such a man? The quality of one's subordinates reflected the leader's own caliber. Watching Pride, Majoan's assessment of the Death King rose another level. So too did his recognition of the danger he posed.
"And…"
Just as Pride seemed to have the Ellemental Kingdom firmly in his grasp and the negotiation was drawing to a close, he continued as if adding one final point.
"Separately from the negotiation, we have prepared one gift and one additional compensation plan."
Having shown what they could offer, it was now time to demonstrate their capabilities. To eliminate any possibility of the other side underestimating them even slightly.
"Are you aware that the Tugwi Guard has begun moving within the Fan Empire?"
They likely were not. While the Ellemental Kingdom's intelligence might hold the advantage domestically, no information organization on the continent surpassed the underworld when the scope expanded to the entire continent. No matter how capable they were, they could not obtain information about other nations faster than Pride.
"From what we hear, they are preparing to infiltrate the Ellemental Kingdom."
"Is that true?"
As Pride had expected, they had known nothing of this. Their surprise was obvious. It was a natural reaction, considering what the Tugwi Guard represented.
"If you know what kind of existence they are, there is no need to explain how valuable this information is as a gift."
The Tugwi Guard. Hearing the name alone made one think of Tugwi, the absolute ruler of the eastern Fan Empire. Yet upon closer examination, while they were connected to Tugwi, they were also not. To put it simply, they were fanatics who followed Tugwi to the extreme—a self-proclaimed royal guard composed of multiple individuals like Pride within the underworld. The difference was that while Pride obeyed only the Death King's commands, they acted on their own assumptions about Tugwi's will and ran rampant. Tugwi desired endless battle and conflict. Thus they committed terrorism, plunging the world into the vortex of war. That was their fundamental ideology and mindset, and they put it into practice—primarily against the Ellemental Kingdom and the nature-rich Yggdrasil. The problem was that the Fan Empire had officially declared their will differed completely from the empire's own. Even within the Fan Empire, they were designated as national-level criminals, and Tugwi himself, who enjoyed their full support, had publicly expressed irritation, stating he knew nothing of such pathetic remnants and warning them not to use his name. Whether that was true or false, only they themselves knew. Based on those words, however, the Tugwi Guard was ultimately an uncontrollable terrorist organization beholden to no one. Their crossing from the Fan Empire into the Ellemental Kingdom was information beyond any monetary value.
"We will stop them in your stead. That is the gift I have prepared."
If that information was true, how should they prepare? The ministers who had been pondering this were startled by Pride's next words and turned to stare at him.
'We were planning to deal with them anyway.'
The entrance to the Underworld that had opened somewhere in the Ellemental Kingdom. Most of the dead who had returned to the living world through it and crossed into the Fan Empire belonged to the Tugwi Guard. More precisely, they were those who had come to the Ellemental Kingdom to commit terrorism, died, and then returned to their homeland after being revived. They were now trying to return here to accomplish what they had failed to achieve in life.
'There must be some connection.'
The numbers did not add up. If the gate had been open for several years, far more villains should have appeared in the world. Countless evildoers filled the hell created at the dawn of time, as numerous as its history itself. Even if only a tiny fraction had escaped, far more problems should have surfaced socially than at present. Yet the only ones who had caused trouble so far were petty criminals like Decken Nasara and Freddy. The major figures had yet to reveal themselves. But they could not possibly be living peacefully without doing anything. The proof was the airship accident that had killed Kayen Grant—an incident that had left no trace even for the underworld to follow. In other words, they were forming their own groups. And just as the Death King had unified the underworld, someone was controlling the villains of hell. An absurd existence that had drilled a hole in the Underworld ruled by the Underworld King. That was Pride's hypothesis, and if correct, there would surely be a connection to those within the Tugwi Guard. Several among them were 6-star to 7-star level powerhouses, and one was even an 8-star superhuman. If there had been no contact, that would have been stranger. In short, what Pride was saying now was merely taking credit in front of them for something he had intended to do anyway.
"If not through normal routes, the only way to cross into another country is by seeking asylum through the underworld. We can locate them more easily and quickly than the Ellemental Kingdom's intelligence agency."
While it might be problematic for them to handle it themselves, the underworld possessed the ability to resolve it with ease. We will take care of that troublesome matter for you. So grant us what we desire.
"Using the enemy to defeat the enemy. A famous saying from the Fan Empire and the most efficient strategy across all wars."
The Ellemental Kingdom had no reason to refuse. They only needed to permit an investigation, and enormous compensation would come rolling in. A deal where only honey was visible and no poison could be seen.
"That is all I have to say. Now then, Your Majesty. What will you do? Will you accept our request, or will you refuse?"
And Pride forced King Raymond to make a choice. This was the conclusion. Like a conductor leading an orchestra, a maestro who had guided every instrument according to the score and now asked for an evaluation of his performance. With a truly arrogant smile and gaze befitting the name Pride, he looked at King Raymond.