Alex was brought to the conference hall several minutes later and made to stand in the centre with no chair. Clearly, he was to stand till the end of the summit.
A bright light was focused on him with the aim of blocking his vision of the surrounding leaders while being spread out enough to not be blinding.
Unfortunately…
The conference hall was a sleekly spacious chamber designed in a circle with the council members sitting on raised platforms in layers, and depending on their status, would sit closer to the stage or further back.
There was an almost invisible forcefield separating the leaders from the central stage. Alex thought it was strange, but it was his first time here.
The three leaders on the other hand had a reserved spot entirely for them, raised higher than all the others.
And from the looks of it, that place was more protected than the rest of the chamber.
But then Alex didn't like the next thing he noticed.
'They didn't.' Alex frowned. 'Yet these people expect me to pledge my loyalty.'
Right underneath him was a spatial anomaly very well hidden. Anyone else would have missed it, but Alex was tuned with spatial energies to a level these people couldn't imagine.
The spatial anomaly was actually a spatial blade—an ability put there to act as a weapon that would cut through anyone too slow to react.
The platform itself doubled as a teleportation device, ready to send Alex to who knows where. It was pretty messed up.
Maybe he was being paranoid and had been a part of the conference hall, but Alex begged to differ. The energy flowing into the platform beneath him was no architectural design.
'Then there are the hunters hidden among the masses, pretending to be part of the leaders.'
Alex could tell because those hunters had their senses honed on him and were strategically placed and close to him, forming a tight circle.
'Doesn't matter,' Alex closed his eyes. 'Let's just wait for the leaders.'
The time quickly passed as the time for the leaders to make their appearance and they did.
While they didn't need introductions, the summit still received one as they walked in one at a time and took their seats.
Alex saw them clear as day, despite their efforts to minimize his vision. As a light user, it was a dumb move to pull.
'Maybe they forgot?' His expression remained unreadable as he didn't want to come off as rude and arrogant.
Once the fanfare was over, the place was plunged into silence as everyone looked at Alex like a fugitive about to receive his sentencing.
"Alexander Gray…" His name was called as Alex lifted his eyes towards the three leaders. He identified the person who spoke to be Lord Basso, the most dominant of the three.
"Are you aware a newly risen S rank hunter is to report themselves to the council as soon as possible?" Basso asked, his expression unreadable.
"No." Alex's response was flat and emotionless. However, not everyone liked the tone of his voice.
"Regardless of knowing or not, you purposely told those who could have informed you to stay away." Zara continued, though her tone was less icy.
Alex didn't see the point of these questions and made it clear to them. "Sorry if I happened to go missing for five years and wanted to spend some time with family." He almost sneered.
"What's the point of these questions?" Alex raised an eyebrow, staring directly at the three leaders. "Why don't we go straight to the point?"
"Mind your tone, boy," Basso growled. "You stand in the presence of your elders. Show some respect!" His voice thundered across the chamber.
However, Alex was unfazed by it.
"Respect?" Alex scoffed. "You lost it the moment you decided to treat me like a threat instead of a guest."
All advice went out the window as Alex challenged them to his observations. And as he thought, what was beneath him was deliberate.
The leaders had slightly shocked expressions while the others exchanged confused glances, unsure of what Alex meant by that.
'Fuck.' Jaseph grumbled. 'I knew he would see through it. This was a bad idea from the start. We just shot ourselves in the foot!'
"I apologize if you feel offended, Alexander." Jaseph stepped in. "But to ease the unease of the majority, these measures were necessary."
He lied. It was a good move pushing the blame to the masses, but the confused expressions of the people didn't lie. Alex could see it.
Alex chose to remain silent, waiting for them to continue. He had better things to do.
The leaders understood his stance.
"Leave the talking to the two of us," Jaseph whispered imperceptibly to Basso who only watched Alex with constricted eyes.
Jaseph took his silence as a yes as he turned to Zara as they exchanged a nod and turned to Alex.
"All Class S hunters are obliged to pledge their loyalty once they reach that level." Jaseph explained. "As the strongest beings in our world, it is imperative we know where you stand."
There was no need for long winding words as what he uttered was more than enough to convey his message. Was he a threat they needed to worry about or an ally?
"All I can say is that I have no intention of hurting anyone or taking the reign," Alex said as his expression turned serious. "However, I will not tolerate nonsense from anyone."
The collective gasps of the leading figures echoed slightly in the chamber. They couldn't believe Alex dared to say those words.
But then, what could they do about it? The boy had gotten to a level where they could only walk on eggshells around him.
He did the impossible by defeating a Class S void creature they couldn't. The void disrupters may be working wonders right now, but those devices could only hold on for so long.
Sooner or later, they were going to need Alexander's help. How were they supposed to summon him if they ever needed his help?
Yes, they recognized his strength, despite not seeing it themselves. Even the three heads weren't sure if they could do the same.
However, they weren't easily moved as they stood as humanity's strongest defenders. They cannot be seen in a defeated state.
Luckily for them, Alex wasn't done speaking.