" SkyLion, will you join my guild?" Cervantez asked as Luke fell into deep contemplation at this question.
He stared into Cervantez's blue eyes and tried to decipher his intentions, gauging what kind of a man he was and after a few seconds Luke concluded that Cervantez was either the most honest man, or the biggest con man as he had the most pure eyes that Luke had ever seen.
" I don't mean to offend you sir…. But by chance is this your first time negotiating for talent?" Luke asked as depending on Cervantez's answer he wanted to understand more about his character as a man.
" Ummm…. Yes" Cervantez replied honestly as this was his first time trying to poach talents.
In his past life he had an agency back on Earth which handled the hiring, while inside the game he was a part of a guild himself and not a leader.
" I figured. You're not very good at explaining sir. Even if I want to take you and your offer seriously, I can't, because of how you formulate your sentences and how it makes me feel like I'm talking to an astrologer rather than a reliable person" Luke said as he finally let Leo out of his grip and patted his brother on the back signalling him to stay calm.
" If you want me to join your guild, you have to tell me everything clearly.
Why do you want me to join your guild?
Why did you specifically choose me?
How do you know that with enough merit points we can bring our mother to this arc ship?
What would be your expectations from me after joining the guild?
Who else will be a part of the guild?
These are just some of the basic questions that will help me trust you and understand your motives better for a fruitful cooperation.
I understand that you may have your secrets sir and I won't press you for them, but if you wish for me to join your organisation, I'll give you one last chance to give me all the relevant information that you can to try and convince me to join.
If you don't wish to, then I'm afraid I'll have to decline your invitation.
Although it may be tough, me and my brother will definitely find a way to bring our mother to this ship even without your help.
But I won't be joining an organisation under duress or without proper information" Luke said as he made his stance on the topic crystal clear.
Cervantez's eyes widened in disbelief, he had not expected the conversation between himself and Luke to take such a turn.
Uptil now Cervantez had recruited a grand total of 0 members and he had specifically started with Luke because of two reasons.
Firstly, he started with Luke since it was a well known fact that SkyLion was a player who started from E-Class and made it all the way upto S-class in his past life making him one of the only players to reach that milestone.
Cervantez thought that because he was still an E class player as of now, he would be able to recruit him early without much hassle as it was rumoured that all E class residents were desperate for a way to move higher in society.
Secondly, he wanted to recruit SkyLion first because he viewed him as a potential co-leader for his guild.
SkyLion was a loyal, responsible and calm player who had excellent leadership qualities.
In his past life, he never left the first guild he joined which was just a rag-tag group of E and D class players no matter what sort of offers he got.
He was loyal and honourable which was more important than strength to Cervantez while choosing his co-leader.
Sighing deeply, Cervantez finally relented, as he realised that even in this conversation Luke was proving his worth by addressing him with the most appropriate words which won't offend him while also displaying his calm and rational reasoning skills.
" Fine, I'll tell you everything I can…." He said as he took a short pause and gathered his thoughts.
" First let me start by reintroducing myself….. I'm Cervantez, a.k.a DarkEmperor the number two player in the game currently" Cervantez said as both Luke and Leo's eyes widened in disbelief at this revelation.
" You're DarkEmperor?" Leo asked, pointing his finger rather rudely at Cervantez who nodded his head in pride.
"Yes and apart from that freak 'TheBoss' I can confidently say I'm the best player in the game" Cervantez said as Leo once again tried to lash out towards him forcing Luke to restrain him again.
" You level 22 bastard! Hacker…cheater…. Money botter" Leo cursed as he finally found out the identity of his most hated enemy who caused him endless anxiety.
" Huh… jealous peasant" Cervantez reprimanded Leo, thinking little of him, completely unaware that he was currently flexing before the number one player in the game.
" Wow…. You being such an impressive individual does give some credibility to your words" Luke said as Cervantez continued with his story.
" I know about merit points being able to achieve anything because I've been to the merit exchange store within the game when I inquired about forming the first guild.
Also it's not some big secret, you can easily verify this for yourself within the arc ship.
As for how I know about your situation and your motivations, that I can't share because it's my secret.
As for our guild, it's not something I can form as of now and it will take me at least a few months to formally establish it, however, I'm recruiting members early because soon there will be a frenzy to form guilds and the better players will all form one for themselves if I don't hold onto them.
I'm telling you this because, I understand that once the players know about the dungeons and how they can earn merit points, loot, fame and other important assets from clearing them, they will start to team up and band under the banner of a guild.
However, while it will seem like doing missions is the best decision in the short term, I don't want any of my guild members to do them for the next few months and I rather want them all to focus on personal development.
There are schools of learning within the game such as warrior school, blacksmith school and so on and I want my guild members to join such schools and improve before joining the frenzy to complete dungeons.
I understand that to convince people to learn without earning, I have to pay them a salary and I'm willing to do that and provide you with a stipend for your learning if you commit to my guild and the missions I pass on.
I'm not kidding when I say I understand this game better than everyone and that I understand it in a way no-one else does.
It's that same cheat which allows me to level up so fast that allows me to access hidden information.
Join me and I promise that you will not only save your mother from a dying earth but also become the best version of yourself as a player.
That is what I offer" Cervantez said as he explained as much as he could to Luke and now awaited his final decision.