( The Paratus Capital )
Sam made an unannounced visit to the Paratus capital after discovering the leak within his administration as Asiva was shocked to receive the patriarch of the Saint Maximus Clan on such short notice.
Sam was a bit puzzled as to why Ravan was not present on the planet as he and Asiva delved into a deep discussion regarding the recent events on both sides and the precarious position they were in.
Asiva was shocked to learn about the leak in the Saint Maximus administration and asked Sam why was everyone not bound with system contracts, and eventually received a complicated answer which basically meant that sometimes one needed to do some wrongs to aim for the greater good.
What it translated to was that corruption was necessary for the politician's to survive in a comfortable life and while the bottom rung of administration had to be bound by system contracts, after a certain level it all ran on trust.
Asiva was borderline disgusted by such a form of ruling but when Sam confessed that it was the same way under her father and every other clan, she could not believe her ears.
Apparently, the meagre salary of a minister with no flexibility to wield power as they wished did not motivate truly talented people to work for the government and nobles to actively participate in politics.
To maintain peace, freedom to do as they pleased within limits and trust was important to keep an administration flowing.
Asiva had to swallow the hard pill as she realised that once she had her own administration she would probably face the same difficulties as she tried to gain Sam's insights into these problems and how to solve them.
Being a long time Patriarch, Sam had seen all sorts of things and was a veteran in the vampire world, there was little that could phase him and he honestly imparted his experience to the willing Asiva.
But aside from this topic, the pressing question was Max's whereabouts and whether or not he was safe.
Just as Asiva was going to consult Sam on whether or not she should launch a search operation, an attendant announced the arrival of Captain Ravan in the palace as Asiva rushed to meet him, forgetting etiquette and leaving Sam all by himself.
" Are you okay? "
" Where have you been, are you okay? "
" Are you hurt? "
Max was bombarded by 3 similar questions from Asiva, Sebastian and Anna who seemed to have rushed from whatever they were doing to meet him.
Anna was holding an uncapped pen in her hands, clearly showing that she was signing some documents before running to meet Max.
Sebastian was only half dressed, his hairy chest on full display as Max did not even want to think what he was doing before running to meet him, while Asiva seemed to be panting as if she had run a long distance.
" Jeez guys, relax, let me breathe some air, I'm fine " Max said as he gestured towards his shadow which looked to be abnormally dark compared to the others in the room.
" Come out, greet them " Max said as a black haired man with bronze skin and deep black eyes came out of Max's shadow, studying everyone present in the room carefully.
" Meet Zippo, A member of the black dragon clan and a peak tier5 shadow assassin, Aunt Rhea assigned him to me for my safety, I'm safer than ever now " Max said as Zippo silently slid back into Max's shadow without interacting with anyone.
The atmosphere turned awkward because of his actions as Max coughed and said " Zippo is a man of action, he doesn't waste his breath on pointless words "
Max knew he was going to be flooded with a million questions as he felt an incoming headache, but before the others could voice their questions Max noticed Sam Saint Maximus standing across the room as Max immediately bowed and said " Greetings Patriarch ".
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( Max's POV, A while ago )
After his tier promotion, the pilot looked at Max with newfound respect and before dropping him at his requested location took a detour for Max to meet Rhea on a black dragon clan battleship.
After Rhea had received news of Max's promotion, she had requested to arrange a meeting with Max as she wanted to assign a guard to watch him.
News about his presence in the dragon territory was sure to spread, and with the ongoing turmoil Rhea wanted to make sure that someone who Mira loved so dearly was well protected.
While it was the main reason, the side reason was that she wanted to make sure Max did not betray her daughter as for now she chose not to trust anyone completely, including her husband.
There were too many betrayals recently, and a war was inevitable, under such circumstances she wanted to have a suitable spy on Max's side at all times.
Zippo was a special boy, he was the first born son of her cousin sister and an extremely powerful warrior.
Not only was he loyal to the black dragon clan to the bone, having received countless treasures from Rhea during his upbringing he was very grateful to her as well.
With him by Max's side she was not afraid of his safety even if he encountered a tier6 god, as while Zippo could not defeat a tier6 god directly, he could ensure Max's safe retreat under such circumstances.
While Max was reluctant to sign the contract and accept a spy on his side 24/7, Rhea strong armed him into signing while only giving him permission to alter a few details.
According to the contract, the only times Zippo was to leave his side was when he was having intimate contact with women or when he needed to have important private conversations that nobody could overhear.
Except those times, regardless of what Max was doing, he was to be with him at all times.
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/// A/N - Chapter 2/40, on a roll! ///