The Rise of the Black Plain

In a matter of moments, Minos, his five companions, Maximillian, and the other three survivors of the group that had come from the Spiritual World centuries ago were together in a commercial establishment in the inner city of the guild.

The Armhands' headquarters was a city in every sense of the word. Guild members could invest in their own businesses, speculate to their advantage, and earn merit points in a variety of ways that went far beyond the guild's optional missions.

There were restaurants, shops selling cultivation resources and artifacts, blacksmiths, rune masters, doctors, clairvoyants, in short, establishments offering a variety of professionals and services.

Wanting to speak to Minos and to have a chance to explain himself, Maximilian led the group to the main restaurant in the inner area, a place that was usually reserved for high-level individuals of the 11th stage.

Seated around a beautiful table in a private room, the group of six stood face to face with the group of four, the glances of those on Minos' side sharp, while those on Maximillian's side sweated and avoided looking their old world and faction mates in the eye.

Maximilian broke the silence when they arrived with a casual question. "How was your journey through the Spiritual World?"

"Well, we won the war when it wasn't too late." Minos kept his words short, not giving much information or room for questions.

Maximilian smiled bitterly and sighed at Minos' tone. "I understand you might be angry." Maximillian decided to get straight to the point and talk about what Minos should be upset about.

He knew what Jembei had done and how it could hurt Minos in many ways. He didn't know what the guy's situation was, but he imagined it would be impossible to find a good way out.

So Maximillian tried to remove himself from the delicate situation Jembei had tried to put Minos in.

"To have your data deleted is certainly terrible, I know that. But you have to understand, Minos, it wasn't me or any of us. Jembei forced the Records Hall men to erase your data and enforce the guild's rules on his own.

We only found out about it after his group had practically erased their records. There was nothing we could do to change the situation, so we stayed out of it.

But at no time did we take part in it, or even pave the way for Jembei. We're not important enough to do that."

Minos listened to Maximilian's words, feeling his Incorruptible Heart signal what was true and what was not.

More than half of what Maximilian said was true. But the part where he said there was nothing they could do for Minos, that was an obvious lie!

"Is that true?" Minos looked at the three of them, people who were only alive because of him, and who had only gotten this far in cultivation because of the initial help in the Armhands that he had given them.

"It is true, Your Majesty. There was nothing we could do. We could have died and achieved nothing. Maximilian decided to stay out of trouble. We were more valuable to you alive!"

"Now I'm not so sure..." Minos closed his eyes, sending shivers down the spines of the four men.

Every one of them knew Minos' history and what he was like when he decided to take revenge on someone!

Gulp!

"It's not like that, Your Majesty." One of them felt nervous and stood up, trying to avoid an emotional action by this powerful individual. "We may have made a mistake in judgment, but we have done nothing to harm you. Jembei is so strong and influential in the downtown area that it wouldn't have made any difference if we had stood up to him.

The only difference is that he might have taken us down, just like he did Officer Asafe. "Was it Jembei who plotted Officer Asafe's death?" Ruth asked, looking seriously at the man.

Maximilian clenched his fists, but since this ally had already said too much, he had no choice but to talk about it.

"Officer Asafe and Officer Rhett stood up to Jembei when they found out what he was planning to do to you decades ago. He thwarted Jembei's plans for years, preventing several actions that would have tarnished your names within the guild.

But on a mandatory mission years ago, Officer Asafe died after one of Jembei's partners left the guild to settle a personal matter..."

"What happened after that? How did Rhett escape even though he helped us?" Otis asked.

"After Officer Asafe died, Rhett received a letter from Asafe. He then signed up for a mission at The Prison and stopped interfering in matters related to you and Jembei's plans. It was only recently that Officer Rhett returned."

"So Rhett stayed away so he wouldn't be killed as well?" Ruth understood the situation.

"That must have been the case." Maximillian nodded in agreement, even though he didn't know Rhett's position very well.

Rhett had not been in contact with them since, so all they knew was what they had seen and heard.

The Minos group didn't find Rhett's behavior strange, nor did they think he had betrayed them. Of all the members of the guild, Rhett and Asafe were the only ones who were truly guaranteed to benefit as Minos grew stronger and more relevant. That was why they had tried to help in the group's absence.

But with Asafe dead, Rhett getting out of trouble by going to the prison was by no means strange or even a sign of betrayal.

'The prison is a tough place to get into. Only those allowed can enter it, and given the security protocols of the area, it is very difficult to take action against any of the guards... Rhett probably went there to hide,' Minos thought to himself.

This prison was a high-level facility maintained by Examire's allied forces to hold some complicated elements who were difficult to kill or who deserved to suffer for their crimes.

Each of Examire's major forces could send a few men to the prison each year, men who could remain in the prison for up to 20 cycles in a row.

"So you didn't get involved to avoid ending up like Asafe, huh?" Minos asked, causing the four men to smile and nod in agreement.