Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 424

Having returned to the training camp, Beomseok analyzed the intentions of the Three Musketeers, using all the materials Aaron had prepared, along with his own reasoning. He needed to understand their goals to determine the best course of action.

Soon after, Margaret sent over some crucial information.

– “The man in his twenties who negotiated with Allen in the video is Peter. And don’t be surprised, but he’s actually Chairman Ibrahim’s grandson.”

Beomseok, showing little surprise, replied,

“Really? So he’s leveraging his grandfather’s influence at Ancient Warriors.”

– “No. He’s not currently employed by Ancient Warriors.”

“What do you mean he’s not an employee? Why would someone who’s not an employee have the authority to negotiate? I clearly saw him negotiating.”

Margaret tilted her head on the screen and answered,

– “I’m not sure about that either. However…”

“However, what?”

– “What’s unique is that Peter is currently the team leader of the Queen Blades, a Wide League team based in Senocide.”

“Queen Blades?”

– “Yes. It’s a new team that Chairman Ibrahim has been watching with interest, a gladiatorial team with a personal company character, like Gods Knights. And besides that, several gladiatorial teams with a personal company character are being created by Chairman Ibrahim’s grandchildren.”

At those words, Beomseok looked shocked. He could now roughly grasp Ancient Warriors’ intentions.

Chairman Ibrahim had once hinted that the trend in the gladiatorial world would be teams with a personal company character, and it seemed this team was being prepared for that. Teams with a personal company character could save money in many ways, allowing them to earn a decent income compared to existing teams, and their performance was also very good due to the absolute loyalty of the Elf gladiators.

A prime example was Gods Knights, which he owned.

‘Right. Since the personal company is owned by the grandson, they can pour money into it through inheritance via sponsors. No, maybe they already have. Chairman Ibrahim is probably planning to buy Tiela through Queen Blades and then lease her to Ancient Warriors.’

If that were the case, Tiela, having gained an owner, would have her chronic weaknesses fixed, and they would pocket huge profits in the middle. Also, by leasing her to Ancient Warriors, they could earn a high salary and lease out reserve or second-tier gladiators. Then Queen Blades’ performance would rise sharply, brightening their prospects for advancing to the Central League, and the Ibrahim family could gain additional profits.

‘But will they really recruit only Tiela in that way?’

Since Queen Blades is the family’s and grandson’s team, Chairman Ibrahim couldn’t help but watch over it with affection. Then he would naturally want to make it the best team, and he would want to include other S-class gladiators besides Tiela.

Then it was obvious that they would also target Irolita. Unlike Prisika, she was young and could be active in the league for a long time, bringing immense wealth to the family.

‘Then what about Prisika?’

It was a bit difficult for Queen Blades to take Prisika. Since she was Ancient Warriors’ representative gladiator, shareholders would strongly object if she were turned to personal intentions, and decisively, her age wasn’t good for the return on investment.

Beomseok looked at Margaret again and said,

“Margaret. Have you looked into Prisika’s contract details?”

– “Yes. As expected, she will soon gain an owner.”

“Heh heh. So it was like that, huh? But in what way will she gain an owner?”

– “After secretly hacking in and examining her contract, it turns out she will retire at the end of this season and be sold at the World Walker Auction Market [a high-profile marketplace for gladiators] next summer.”

It was a move that didn’t deviate from expectations at all. Well, the behavior pattern of humans pursuing profit was obvious. To obtain the maximum profit, they had no choice but to choose the most efficient method. Then the range of choices would lead to one path of obtaining maximum profit.

‘Prisika will be handed over to the World Walker Auction Market, and then they plan to sign a contract with that owner to bring her back to Ancient Warriors. Chairman Ibrahim really used his head well.’

Beomseok focused on Chairman Ibrahim as the center of this entire situation. The reason was the debt ceiling system that the Ibrahim faction was strongly pushing for.

The debt ceiling system would benefit all World League professional gladiatorial teams in the long run. As cutthroat competition decreased, the value and salaries of gladiators would naturally fall, which would benefit the teams. Also, the financial pressure would be reduced, making it easier to manage the teams.

And as time passed, the fans’ enthusiasm for the teams would divide them into strong and weak teams, which would greatly contribute to the development of the gladiatorial world.

However, in the short term, professional gladiatorial teams had to spare no effort in making painful sacrifices. If they mismanaged their funds, they could face a situation where they couldn’t buy the necessary gladiators. And this immediately acted as a huge boon for Chairman Ibrahim in this transfer market.

Since the debt ceiling system made competing teams cautious, they could gain a significant advantage in competitiveness. A prime example was the Forest Elves; the fact that they, who should have jumped into this transfer market, were selling gladiators and collapsing meant there was no need to say anything else.

‘Should I screw over Chairman Ibrahim with this?’

But he soon shook his head. He only had suspicions, not evidence.

In this situation, attacking Chairman Ibrahim, a colossal figure in the gladiatorial world, would leave Gods Knights in ruins. Besides, he had received help from him a few times before, so there was an awkward aspect, and it was his subordinates Jade, Director Vincent, and Julian who had screwed him over.

What he had to do now was to destroy them and crush Chairman Ibrahim’s plans.

Beomseok looked at Margaret and said softly,

“Margaret. Thanks for your hard work. I need some time to think, so let’s hang up.”

– “Okay. Got it. Then good luck.”

As Margaret disappeared from the screen, Beomseok began to ponder. It was to devise a plan to destroy the Three Musketeers.

‘Judging from the situation, there must be a keyword somewhere.’

The moment Ancient Warriors completes the squad they are aiming for, they will complete a formidable four-corner formation of Prisika, Irolita, Levia, and Tiela. On the other hand, the remaining S-class gladiators were only Rakami, Madel, and Bormia.

If Julian and Director Vincent divided them, they could never catch up with the power gap with Ancient Warriors. Moreover, Rakami was currently 33 years old and had returned after retiring and gaining an owner.

If they were lucky, they could use him for a few more years, but there was a very high possibility that he would suffer from old age and end his gladiator life soon.

Naturally, in order for the triangular alliance to be established, they had to solve the problem of inevitably causing conflict in one area. In other words, Ancient Warriors had to put out one of their cards.

“First of all, it’s not Tiela and Irolita. If competition arises, the price will skyrocket, so they have no choice but to cooperate. Then, in the end, Prisika is the negotiating card.”

Prisika was the one who increased the team’s power the most when she was recruited as an S2-class gladiator. Depending on where she went, the direction of victory for the next 5-6 years would be determined, so no one wanted to give her up.

Moreover, she would enter the World Walker Auction Market next summer and gain an owner. Since a fair competition ground had been prepared, there was no reason to fight at the moment.

In other words, in order for Beomseok to get rid of all three of them at the same time, he had to bring Prisika himself.

‘Let’s stop thinking about Prisika for now and set another target?’

Although Prisika was the key card, Beomseok put her aside. There was no need to worry about something that would happen next summer already. As for her, he only needed to go to the World Walker Auction Market held this winter and check if she was coming out.

“Then it’s Tiela after all.”

The reason he chose Tiela as the target to acquire this winter was very simple. If he fixed her weaknesses, her efficiency compared to her value was very high. Also, although it was the same for anyone who came out in this transfer market, recruiting Tiela could create a huge crack in the triangular alliance.

Since the balance of power would be broken, Ancient Warriors might get impatient and flirt with the gladiators that other alliances were targeting. In the face of the cause of winning the World League, the name of the alliance was nothing more than a piece of paper.

Since the alliance would be broken next summer anyway, there was no problem if it was broken this year. However, the troubling point was how to recruit her. When recruiting her, he had to snatch her away like lightning in a gap where everyone was off guard.

Otherwise, Gods Knights could not stop Ancient Warriors’ barrage of quantity.

‘Okay. Then shall we slowly go pick up my girl?’

Having finished thinking, Beomseok got up from his seat. Now that the situation had calmed down, it was time to bring Yoshiya. He had to eat the free meal first.

“Oh, welcome. Beomseok, Esther. Everyone came well.”

When Beomseok and Esther visited, Director Vincent personally came out to greet them in front of his house. Of course, Yoshiya and Herbert were also there for the deal. Beomseok winked slightly at Yoshiya, who was very excited, and walked towards the director.

“Director. It’s been a while.”

“Hahaha. Yes. But you. You’ve been quite busy lately.”

“Ah. Are you talking about the Prisika thing?”

“That’s right. Anyway, you have a good talent. To try to swallow the most valuable player.”

Beomseok slightly pursed one lip. He could see all the dark intentions, but he looked annoyed as he was being playful. But it wasn’t time to reveal his true colors yet. He scratched his head and replied with a bright expression.

“Well. Because I’m the only team that can recruit Prisika.”

Vincent, who opened the door of the house, patted his shoulder and said,

“Anyway, I’m jealous. To recruit that Prisika.”

“Well. But they’re calling such a high price that it will take some time. It turns out that Ancient Warriors’ internal affairs are a bit complicated.”

He, who entered the house with Beomseok, said in a light tone.

“Well. Still, the negotiations will be completed near the amount you want. Gods Knights is the only place Ancient Warriors can rely on right now.”

“Of course, it will be.”

Vincent pointed to Esther, Herbert, and Yoshiya, who were following behind, and said.

“Beomseok. Since Yoshiya’s deal is already set, let’s leave the contract to them and have a chat for a while.”

“Well, let’s do that.”

“Okay. Then let’s go up to the second floor.”

“Yes. I understand.”

Beomseok signaled to Esther with his eyes and followed Vincent to the second floor. And he sat on the sofa in the living room and reception room, where he could see the outside clearly, and looked at Vincent.

“But Director Vincent. Is Chaplin Whisper doing well with gladiator recruitment?”

Director Vincent, who took out whiskey and dried snacks from the living room cabinet and put them on the table, smiled faintly.

“Well? What do you think?”

“Ah. Isn’t this too much? I told you everything honestly.”

“Isn’t that what’s all exposed in the media?”

At that moment, Beomseok’s eyes sparkled. The media didn’t know the details about Prisika’s recruitment yet, but Director Vincent was talking as if he knew everything. He might have mistaken what he had just said when he came in, but there was a very high possibility that he had heard it from someone in advance.

But rather, that old fox might be trying to probe his movements, pretending to make a mistake. If he knew the details, the meaning of this alliance would disappear, so he might be sending a watchful eye.

In the end, Beomseok had no choice but to strike right in.

“No, what media? I told the media that it’s difficult to buy Prisika.”

“Is that so? Oh, it seems like I mistook it for what you just said. I’m old, so I’m sometimes forgetful.”

Vincent was parrying without any embarrassment. At this, Beomseok inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. He realized that he was trying to figure out his intentions. If he had vaguely passed over it here, he would have looked at him with suspicion.

‘Anyway, I have to be really careful with that old man. There’s no good in mixing words for a long time.’

Beomseok decided not to see Director Vincent again this winter if he only recruited Yoshiya. It’s not because he didn’t want to see him, but because seeing him wouldn’t help him at all. Since he was laying mines in every conversation, it was difficult to open his mouth because his spine was chilling.

He composed his expression and continued the conversation.

“Hey. Don’t try to get out of it like that, and please tell me because I’m curious. Anyway, I’m so focused on Prisika that I don’t have much energy to pay attention to other gladiators.”

“Heh heh. The guy who told me is a fool. Besides, isn’t Prisika a player who is destined to be in your hands anyway? The quality of information itself is different.”

Beomseok pouted and said.

“Aren’t you being too mean between us?”

“Where is there anything mean in the pros? It’s enough to win.”

He had a lot to say, but he kept his mouth shut. It was enough to complain after breaking the Three Musketeers’ scheme. Now he had to focus on reassuring Director Vincent for now.