Cerci and the others were seated around a long conference table while waiting for Jason, and it only took a few seconds for Jason to appear from the shadows. They all stood up respectfully, and Jason raised a hand and told them to relax.
"You can sit. What’s going on? You made it sound important."
Jason walked towards the chair at the head of the table, and he took his seat with a calm sigh. Stragga spoke up with a small frown as he sniffed the air.
"I smell smoke. Is something burning?"
Everyone in the room turned towards Jason curiously, and Jason cleared his throat and told them to ignore that and just tell him what was wrong! Cerci just nodded, and he began to speak as Juliet brought some documents and put them in front of Jason.
"We received news from Katya, the leader of the Elder Worlds called Tabigam. One of the worlds in her sector of the domain called L’horm had been going through a civil war that left the leader of the world stranded, and he’s been travelling across the domain recently and demanding aid from the Elder Worlds to regain his sovereignty."
Jason took the papers from Juliet, and he looked through them with a frown. The reports showed all the demands made by the ruler of this Sovereign world, and Jason actually raised a brow at how outlandish some of them were! The ruler was asking for an army, money, and even for Jason himself to get involved in the battles so they could drive the enemies out of his land! But Jason couldn’t help but notice how strange this was. Even though the ruler sounded egotistical, there were laws that dictated what Elder Worlds could do to help the worlds under them if they ever went through a mutiny. Why was this particular situation so important that they had to call him here?
"I’m sure there’s something more to all this. Why exactly are they asking me to get involved?"
"You’ll see the reason on the next page. The group that took over L’horm isn’t a normal army. They are a band of outlaws who have been going around the Sixth Domain for a long time and causing problems for many of the worlds around here."
Cerci spoke up as Jason turned to the next page and saw the report on the group that had taken over L’horm. Jason’s frown deepened as Cerci continued.
"From what I heard, they entered this domain after news of Rubik’s passing went around, and they’ve been selling their services to anyone who needs a fighting force. They call themselves the Jamani mercenaries, and they are some of the most dangerous fighters in this domain. Nearly all of them are in the TITAN Ranks."
Jason hummed as he looked through the report again. Yeah, that definitely sounded like something serious. If they were this strong, then none of the Elder Worlds would be able to handle it themselves.
"I’m sure the mercenaries don’t work for free. Did they say who hired the mercenaries?"
Jason asked this while still looking at the paper, and Stragga spoke up with a grunt.
"Some man named Makin L’horm. Apparently, he’s the younger brother of the ruler who was chased out. Turns out this whole thing is just a massive family drama that they’re trying to drag us into."
Stragga’s voice showed just how irritated he was by this entire situation. As one of the strongest superhumans on Earth, Jason had given Stragga the freedom to form a group with Francis and other powerful superhumans so that they could begin exploring the Primordial Expanse. It was one of the most exciting missions that Stragga had ever received, and even though Stragga still had some resentment in his heart for Jason since Jason killed his brother, there was no way Stragga was going to turn down the opportunity to travel out of Earth and explore the world out there! This group was known as the Domain Exploration Team, and they were a branch of the Earth Defence Forces (EDF) that was only made up of the strongest TITAN Ranks on Earth!
As of now, there are only ten people in the Exploration Team. Stragga, Francis, and Katarina were the only ones from the Monarch Guild, and all the other seven were from the country guilds. Stragga and Francis were made the leaders of the team, but since Francis was also busy with the Alpha Squad, Stragga was the one who took charge of the team more often.
Jason huffed at Stragga’s statement, and Jason turned to Juliet as she spoke.
"There was actually another battle recently that also involved the Jamani group. They were fighting against a rival mercenary group known as the Drakan, and they caused a significant amount of damage to one of the worlds in our domain during that fight. Reports from the residents of parallel worlds close to the battlefield said that the Drakan retreated due to their injuries. I think it was a territorial battle, and since the Jamani won, they’re now trying to take as many jobs as possible to make more money."
Jason nodded along as he finally put down the folder in his hand and hummed while staring at the ceiling. The Jamani dared to come into his domain and cause problems like this? Did they really think that Jason wouldn’t do anything, or did they think Jason was some sort of pushover? Jason couldn’t let something like that stand. If Jason ignored the Jamani now, then it would only signal to other mercenary groups that he didn’t involve himself with mercenaries, and it wouldn’t be long before this domain was filled with those bastards.
Even though Jason hated most mercenaries, Jason knew that it was impossible to get rid of all of them. Mercenaries would always exist, so it was better to control the mercenary world from the shadows rather than trying to get rid of them. That was why Jason struck a deal with the leader of the Drakan, Vahala, after he reached out to Jason when he was on Radagan. Jason already decided that he would use the Drakan as his personal spies in the world of mercenaries, so that meant Jason didn’t have any use for the Jamani.
"Alright, Stragga, gather some members of the exploration team and tell them to get ready. We’ll be leaving for L’horm immediately."
Stragga grinned as he quickly stood to leave! Just like any man out there, Stragga couldn’t hide his excitement at the thought of going to another world! Jason stood to leave as well, but Cerci spoke up.
"What about the Drakan group? Are you going to handle them as well?"
"No, leave the Drakan alone for now. They’re useful to me."
Cerci raised a brow in surprise when he heard this, and even Juliet was confused by what Jason meant, but it didn’t take long for Cerci to understand what Jason was talking about! Jason had already spoken to the Drakan leader, and he had struck a deal that would allow him to use the Drakan to his advantage!
Cerci couldn’t help but feel a swell of pride rising from somewhere deep inside him! For a very long time now, Cerci had been worried that Jason was too soft to lead this domain properly! Jason was a good man, but being a good man was not enough when it came to leading! To lead properly, you need to mix in with the shadows and the evil parts of the world as well!
By striking a deal with the Drakan mercenaries, Jason ensured that he would have complete insight into the world of mercenaries, and this meant Jason would also be aware of all the minor and major battles going on in this domain!
Cerci smiled at Jason proudly, and Jason raised a brow when he saw the stupid smile on Cerci’s face. Jason asked Cerci if he had finally gone mad, and Cerci just shook his head.
"Not at all, Lord Jason. I just feel very proud. You’ve truly come a long way from the young man who didn’t know anything about the world around him, and I am glad I was here to witness your journey."