Izroth was currently inside of the conference like room located within the Mystical Realm Palace. At the moment, the conversation was still fairly casual and nothing of importance had been said. However, Izroth was a bit surprised by Ewan's self-restraint.
Ewan spoke in a calm tone of voice that carried no hint of arrogance, just a certain level of pride and confidence in one's own self was reflected from his body language and the words leaving his mouth. It was as if Ewan was waiting for something to happen before he got to the main topic.
As for Mariposa, she was strictly here to, in the crudest of terms, eavesdrop on their conversation. Sleeping Gardenia and Izroth already had a set arrangement, therefore, she was not worried about things like gaining additional benefits. At this point, she simply wanted to stay informed and ahead of the situation itself.
Wang Qiang silently observed Izroth. His goal was to find out more about the person behind Izroth so that he could have a better understanding of what kind of person they were actually dealing with. However, that carefree expression that always seemed to discover a way onto Izroth's face made him difficult to read.
After chatting for around five minutes or so Opal, one of the NPC shopkeepers Izroth hired, walked into the conference room with a message for Izroth.
Opal bowed politely and said, "Excuse me for interrupting, however, you have some guests out here who wish to meet with you, Handler Izroth."
Ewan narrowed his and glanced over towards Wang Qiang who gave him a slight nod in response.
"It would seem the others have finally decided to join us." Ewan said with a slight smile on his face. He knew that this moment was bound to occur ever since he and Mariposa both chose to visit the establishment personally. This meant that no one else could send a representative and had to come in person if they wanted to be taken seriously.
Ewan had not just been having a pointless conversation with Izroth this entire time. Although there were no important topics, Ewan took as much time as possible before the others arrived to form a better understanding and closer relationship to Izroth.
Even though it was only for a handful of minutes, Ewan believed that it would still put him well ahead of the others who showed up after him. Most people failed to realize how having even the smallest connection could go a long way in the long term.
'Guests? The others?'
"Who are they?" Izroth questioned.
"According to what I have been been told, they all claim to be guild leaders seeking an audience with Handler Izroth. There are also a few other individuals who wish to meet with you, however, it's a bit problematic..." Opal replied.
"Problematic? Explain." Izroth asked.
"Yes, you currently have a total of 56 individuals waiting outside these doors. This conference room was only meant to hold a total of 30 people, therefore, it is impossible to meet with all of them at the same time. However, they all refused to leave until they have met with Handler Izroth." Opal said.
She then continued, "Due to limited occupancy restrictions, I find that if this problem continues to develop at its current rate, our potential profits will fall by over 33.28% in the next hour alone. The recommendation is to execute the ejection order for all parties involved. Should I commence with this course of action?"
An ejection order would forcibly dismiss players from the shop and disallow them access for a certain period of time. It was a feature added so that shop owners were able to maintain proper control over their shop and keep unwanted guests out.
"Delay that action." Izroth said as he turned to look towards Mariposa and Ewan.
Mariposa gave a helpless smile and said, "It's a natural response. There are too many potential opportunities that you represent whether you like it or not, Izroth. If you want my advice, I wouldn't waste any time entertaining those who have nothing to offer."
"If I may be so bold as to advise as well, it is a problem that cannot be put off for long. To be blunt, you're too much of an anomaly to ignore at this point. Not only have your feats been kept track of, but owning this shop is the straw that broke the camels back. You can no longer afford to be ignored by anyone. I agree with what the guild leader of Sleeping Gardenia." Ewan stated.
Izroth knew what two of them were getting at. Indeed, it was best to deal with this issue in one swift moment instead of doing so a little bit at a time. However, Izroth was unfamiliar with the overall guild structure within RML. It was at moments like these Izroth realized just how often Zi Yi filled in the blanks with ease when it came to matters like this.
'Eventually, I'll have to find a way to collect my own source of reliable information without the need of going through third parties.'
"Wang Qiang, you will wait outside. Since there is a limited amount of space available, we shouldn't make things too difficult for Izroth." Ewan said as he gave a certain look to Wang Qiang.
"Three's a crowd and four's a party, is it? Hah, alright I got it. I know when I'm not welcomed." Wang Qiang said jokingly.
Mariposa narrowed her eyes as she observed Ewan and Wang Qiang's behavior. Why was Ewan giving up having someone like Wang Qiang by his side at a time like this? To her, it made little sense to do so. However, she knew that Ewan was no fool and whatever he thought about or planned was always something with long term results and benefits, not some short-term gain nonsense.
A few moments later after discussing a couple of things with Mariposa and Ewan, Izroth opened the doors to the conference room and immediately saw a large group of players crowded around the door. However, since no one amongst them had permission(s) to enter the room, they were all blocked by a transparent barrier.
As for Wang Qiang, he walked through the barrier and went back into the main shop area. He still had yet to purchase his own set of pills, especially the ones located on the second floor.
"Sir Izroth, over here! My guild Moon Shrine Temple would like to discuss some matters with you!"
"This way! My Killer Instinct is willing to work for you, just say the word!"
"Is it true that you know the Pill Emperor? I wish to study under him!"
However, the leader of the top guilds was not shouting senselessly like the majority of the smaller or average guilds present. They had a certain public image to uphold and would not resort to doing something so unsightly with so many eyes focused onto them. This was even more so since not all the top guilds got along with one another. Who would want to hand their enemy any ammunition?
It was complete and utter chaos! When Opal made her report just moments ago, she had said that there were only 56 individuals waiting for him behind the door. However, Izroth was confident that there was nearly twice that number before his eyes. He looked over at Opal whose eyes swept out across the crowd of players.
"It would seem the number of individuals that wish to meet with Handler Izroth has increased by 50% to 84 individuals. Potential profit loss per hour has been updated to 46.92%. Should I execute-" Opal explained.
"No need." Izroth said before she could finish speaking. Although he was prepared for a situation similar to this, he did not expect it to be on such a large scale. He held the palm of his hand up signaling that he was about to speak. The rowdy crowd died down and everyone tuned in to listen. After all, if he called their name they did not want to miss it because they were not paying attention.
"There are nearly 100 of you here at the moment. Unfortunately, this room can only hold 30 players at its maximum capacity. Since there are already three of us here, I can only allow another 27 players to enter inside. Therefore, anyone who can not provide a 50 gold coins entrance fee, I'll have to ask for you to leave." Izroth said in a nonchalant tone of voice.
50 gold coins just to enter inside?! That was more than 38,000 RMB! Immediately after that announcement, there were numerous players left dejected. Not all of them could afford to casually pull out 50 gold coins as if it were nothing. However, as far as the top guilds were concerned, 50 gold coins were nothing much.
The group of 86 players had quickly shrunk to around 51 players. There were still some average sized guilds who were willing to pool together their gold coins with those they had an alliance with in order to pay the entrance fee. It was a hefty price to pay, however, if they could receive even a single benefit or connection they felt as if the sacrifice would be worth it.
"I'll also have to restrict representatives to one person per group. If I find that anyone attempts to break this rule, then I will see to it that person, as well as, the group they represent, are no longer welcomed back in my Mystical Realm Palace." Izroth said.
After that statement, even a few top guilds furrowed their brows. They were unwilling to take that unnecessary risk. However, it was incredibly challenging for those average guilds who had allied themselves to come up with a representative. In the end, no one was willing to give full authority to the other for fear of their guild being left out.
Therefore, the group of 51 players was quickly reduced down to 26 individuals. Unexpectedly, there was still a single slot left open!
Asgard, who had arrived there with Niflheim had a gloomy expression on his face. If only one of them could enter inside, then they had not only wasted a Returning Scroll usage but now there was an important question to answer. Was it better for him, the guild leader of Blue Oasis to attend, or Niflheim who already had some form of contact with Izroth?
If Blue Oasis was the only guild not to send their guild leader to meet, they would surely be mocked regardless of the circumstances! After all, even someone like Wang Qiang had left the room. What excuse could they possibly use to say that it was unfair? It was an uncomfortable dilemma.
Niflheim, however, shook his head and said, "It should be you who goes. We can't afford to lose face in front of so many other guilds." While Niflheim was disappointed that he would be unable to sit in on such a major event, he knew what the priorities were.
"Opal, once the players present have handed you their entrance fee, allow them permission(s) to enter into the conference room." Izroth ordered.
"Understood." Opal replied with a polite bow. She then began to accept the entrance fee of the players as they entered inside the conference room.
Just when Izroth was about to head back into the conference room, he noticed Niflheim walking away.
"It would seem our paths continue to cross, 7th captain of the guild Blue Oasis, Niflheim. Did you plan on leaving without saying a word?" Izroth said which immediately grabbing not only Niflheim's attention but the attention of the other guild leaders as well.
Niflheim halted his steps and turned around to greet Izroth as he said, "You seem to already have your hands full. To distract you with idle conversation would be thoughtless of me."
"Did you not have a private matter to discuss with me after the event? I believe we have not yet had the chance to review it. Come, we'll discuss it face to face after this is over." Izroth said as he welcomed Niflheim into the conference room.
Niflheim was not the only one who was surprised by Izroth, the other guild leaders were also baffled. He just said a few moments ago that only one representative per group could enter inside and now he was going back on his own word and allowing Blue Oasis two slots! Wasn't he blatantly favoring Blue Oasis?
"You may be unaware, but the guild leader of Blue Oasis is already here to represent his guild. Allowing another member of his guild to enter would be-" One of the players already inside of the room tried to explain, however, he was quickly interrupted by Izroth.
"If I invite someone then they are invited." Izroth said in a carefree manner.
That player wanted to protest, however, he did not want to risk offending Izroth before they even started anything. How foolish would that be?
"If you insist, then I'll have to impose on your kindness." Niflheim said as he took Izroth up on his offer.
Izroth did not believe in simple coincidences. There was a reason that fate kept crossing his path with Niflheim's. Therefore, he would take some time out to explore the matter after things were done. Also, he was interested to see what the "proposition" Niflheim had mentioned before that would benefit both of them was all about.
After everything had finally settled down, Izroth took his seat at the head of the table and swept his gaze across the 29 players who were also seated. This was a sight that impossible to see under normal circumstances. The players in this room possessed a combined influence that could wash clean anyone or anything within RML.
The first major gathering of the top powers in RML had officially begun!