Chapter 439: What is a Duel?
The presence of the duel prevented smaller companies from interacting with larger companies. But at the same time, it was what also saved them from being steamrolled into extinction.
"What can you bet in a duel?" Michael asked.
"It is not technically a bet," Dicky explained. "For example, when two companies discover a land for themselves at the same time and there is no clear winner between the two, then they commence a duel between them to settle who will obtain this land.
For fairness, they enlist the help of a diplomat from the Montgomery family. They will ensure that the duel will be fair, and that the conditions of the battle will be fulfilled.
The deed/ownership of the land will be transferred over to the diplomat for safekeeping. And once the duel is over, the diplomat will hand over the deed to the winner."
Since Xere Montgomery was the person who started this whole dueling thing, it made sense why she and the rest of her family were called upon to arbitrate the battle.
"You do not have a duel to gain something from someone. It’s to decide which one had the right ownership to whatever they were fighting about.
At least, that’s the original intention of the duel. However, there are some instances where people use the duel in order to obtain or to conquer something that was already possessed by someone else.
It can be a territory, it can be resources, it can be a single piece of treasure.
However, a duel must have consent from both parties. One cannot simply force another company to have a duel. Both must agree upon the terms of the duel before it starts."
Dicky’s explanation for the duel made it sound very professional and well regulated. But of course, he knew that there would be inevitable instances where the rules were not abided.
"What happens if someone breaks the rules of a duel? What if they don’t accept their defeat after it?"
Dicky knew where Michael was going with this. He wanted to ask who was responsible for enforcing the rules of a duel.
"Like I said, the Montgomerys arbitrate duels and make sure that they are legal. Those that fail to observe the rules are no longer protected by it. They will be fair game, just like what happened with Flarecorp.
They broke the rules, so it made it possible for us and the other Legacies to form a temporary alliance to defeat him and divide the loot to ourselves."
In short, those that failed to observe the rules of a duel would suffer the same fate they inflicted upon others. If they didn’t make the fight fair, others won’t make it fair for them.
It was a pretty good system where everyone held themselves accountable.
Knowing about duels also made him respect the Montgomery name even more than before. He never knew that their Matriarch and Yuna’s grandmother, Xere Montgomery, basically took charge of the whole world and forced them to live under the rule of dueling. It was kind of badass.
"You said earlier that Montgomerys preserve the rules of the duel. What if they break it?"
Dicky chuckled as he poured another drink for himself. "They can’t. Xere Montgomery forced her entire bloodline to abide by her rules. They physically or magically can’t break it. That bond is so secure that they’re entire lineage was trusted by everyone around the world to manage duels fairly."
There was just one thing that Michael still didn’t understand. According to Claudia, some Montgomerys choose a company to side with, just like how Yuna chose to be with Reborn. But if they were going to be arbiters, then siding with a company completely broke the rule of neutrality.
"Can a Montgomery help companies, or are they not allowed?"
Dicky was surprised that Michael knew about another side of the Montgomerys.
"See, there are two kinds of Montgomerys. One side are the ones who keep themselves completely neutral. They make sure not to mingle with the outside world in order to keep themselves without bias.
But there is another kind of Montgomery. These are the ones that actively side with a company that they deem worthy to support. Why? The answer to that is complicated. Some just want to support a company because they believe in it, some do it for the money, and some do it for the power and influence that came with it.
However, they are still bound by the rules of a Montgomery. They have to follow the rules."
Michael nodded his head, slowly starting to understand the world. "What’s the benefit of employing a Montgomery?"
"Many people hire Montgomerys because they are masters of negotiation," Dicky answered. "During the preparation stages of a duel, both parties have to agree on what they will win or what they will lose.
Of course, some of these prizes are valued subjectively. One party might deem it as a treasure, while the other party deems it as trash. If you have a Montgomery by your side, then they can negotiate the terms of the deal much better than normal people. They can make it so that their client only loses a small amount when they lose the duel, or they can ask for more than what they should receive."
Michael finally realized that the Montgomerys were like the lawyers of this world! It’s up to them whether you win big, or you lose little.
"But of course, those Montgomerys are very hard to hire. They’re very picky.
We were only able to hire them temporarily. Many companies though hope to get one on retainer, meaning they’d have a Montgomery represent them in all legal duel proceedings, which is a dream for all companies."
All of this made him think of Yuna, and how he’d been taking her expertise as a diplomat and as a Montgomery for granted. He was truly lucky that he met her in the Kings region and had her still following him to this day.
It also contextualized why Claudia was so pressed about Michael when they first met. As it turned out, he accidentally hired Yuna on retainer. She wasn’t just a Montgomery, but the rumored heiress of Xere herself! She could have been hired by a conglomerate or be Xere’s replacement as a world leader.
Yet now, her fate was intertwined with a small company from the Kings region called Reborn. He understood why Claudia went so hard on him when they first met.
"Now do you understand why you can’t conduct business with us?" Dicky asked.
Michael understood clearly. However, he wasn’t about to give up.
"I can’t conduct business with the Quench company...but I can conduct business with an individual in the Quench company."
Dicky stopped sipping on his wine. He looked at Michael, who had a cheeky smile on his face.
"Haha, that’s correct. Where are you going with this?"
According to what he knew, all descendants of the Hepheasteus family inherited the formula for coating a Mithril Relic with Soo.
That meant that even the weakest among them knew how to do so—at least, someone that was on the same level as him.
"Can I challenge a Hepheasteus from your company?