Early that morning, four carriages came into Kingsmere.

Steady they went, arriving at one of the Black Jaws buildings.

"We've arrived"

Four men alighted from the carriage, their attire distinguishing them from normal folk as their gaze pervaded the property.

"Oh, What a place"

"It seems a lot has changed"

"Does anyone know why we were called?"

"I was told to come, what about you?"

"I received a letter as well"

Their speculations came to an end when a voice rang out.

"Friends!"

Nathan's voice boomed, drawing their gazes to his wide smile.

Each took different expressions, but smiles came on their faces as they gave handshakes and hugs.

"Nathan, nice building you've got here. What've you been up to?"

"Hahaha, Mirahan, nice to see you too. Killigard, Rainer, Verner. How was the journey?"

"Mostly uneventful"

"As it should be"

He pointed to the building.

"Come inside. We have a lot to talk about"

-Elsewhere-

"How did they get a buffer zone?!"

In a room, four figures sat at a round table.

One of them was raging over unexpected news.

"We don't know who, but it seems they had a backer we hadn't known of"

"It seems?! They defeated Fire Scar-"

"A weakened Fire Scar" another corrected.

"Weakened or not, they were wiped out in less than FOUR HOURS! And you still have something to say?" the man snapped.

This time, a female spoke…

"Sir, please calm down. If we'd known they'd activate a buffer zone, I would've had them immediately wiped out!"

The man gave a lasting huff.

"Whatever. Now we can't touch them. No one can"

He held his head in frustration. The boss went to war with the others, leaving him in charge of White Kings.

He'll be furious once he learnt of the emerging of a new power.

Ending Fire Scar was amongst their plans, but someone beat them to it.

Fire Scar had backers, strong ones. White Kings was initially happy that they wouldn't have to deal with the aftermath.

Lo and behold, they went and got buffered up.

He rubbed his head.

'How annoying'

Well, he'd deal with that when it came to it.

Firstly…

"Ronald, you spoke to them. What did you find out?"

"That's the thing, there wasn't much to see. It was unimpressive, their guild master isn't even at Expert-rank, the guild members were Intermediates. I still don't understand how Fire Scar got wiped out"

The man's eyes sparkled.

"How sure are you of this?"

"As sure as I can be"

"Hmm" he frowned.

"The rumor of them being G-rank was true?"

"Apparently so"

"Then they must have some backers, powerful ones"

The rest nodded in affirmation, while Ronald spoke…

"And very rich as well"

"Rich?"

"Yes, I've been following up. Apparently, they bought more than fifty slaves yesterday. Then they bought the slums"

"The slums?" another asked, puzzled.

"It is as I said. A friend in the Missionary told me their guild master visits the Sentinel often. There might be something going on there"

"What if their backer is from another kingdom?"

The gathering plunged into silence.

"Maybe. I haven't heard anything like that"

"Hmm"

He squeezed his palms together.

"Bought the slums you say? Find out more about that. We can't just let them be. For now, keep an eye on them, there must be a reason to buy so many slaves. I'll send word to those at the top to find out more about the relationship between their guild master and the Sentinel"

"Alright,  anything else?"

"They started recruitment"

"Even better, have some of our men disturb the gathering. We need better news on who our new enemies are"

"Ok"

With that, they stood and left, each to his own task.

Within the Missionary, Cabrera and Sebastian were being attended to.

"Sir Cabrera, how can I help?"

Amy personally attended to them after they bought so many Slums. Her way of speech was also more polite.

"I want a guild established, a subsidiary to mine"

She showed no change in her expression.

"Name?"

Cabrera looked to Sebastian. Ezra hadn't given a name.

Tapping his cheek, he replied.

"Silencers"

Cabrera scrunched up.

"What kind of name is that?"

"A name" replied Sebastian.

"Seriously? Pick a better one"

"Eh…Silence?"

Cabrera stared intensely, making Sebastian sweat.

"Then…Dark Silence?"

"…"

"How about Black silence…?"

? "Wow, you are bad at this. But that's manageable"

"So…Black Silence?" asked Amy.

"Yes"

Scribbling away, she handed them the documents soon after, which they signed.

The newly created guild was G-rank. As a subsidiary, Black Silence enjoyed the protection of Buffer zones just as Black Jaws.

In the same Missionary, many were talking about the ongoing recruitment, arousing the curiosity of others.

"Huh? Destroyed Fire Scar? In one night?! When did that happen?!"

Many weren't aware of the events that transpired. They were earning a living for their families by fighting beasts.

Each person spun the tale differently, exaggerating it to unbelievable extents.

While not a good thing on its own, it had many running to read the recruitment notice.

But they were disappointed quickly, as it read…

|| Black Jaws Recruitment ||

Rank: G-C

Participants: UNS

Details: Black Jaws, a newly established guild - G rank - is recruiting members. Apply to be recruited.

Conditions: To be told on acceptance.

The 'G-rank' label was the greatest turndown for most. How can a G-rank guild defeat Fire Scar? These b#stards must've been paid to say such nonsense.

Others, the few with actual brains, chose to dig deeper, ask questions the dumb wouldn't ask, and most importantly, ask them to reliable sources.

These few found themselves shocked, as many things weren't making sense.

'Gang to guild? Mediocre until a few months ago, destroying Fire Scar, Raven Skull, Gold Moles, and Green Snake!'

The little that did make sense gave promising prospects.

'If they keep going like this…maybe?'

But wasn't it too risky to decide based on that alone? What if the opposite happened?

Many shuddered at the thought.

Also, they had a buffer zone that limited their future prospects by a lot.

The last group were those who just decided to try it.

These amounted to tens, though less than a hundred.

And then, the conditions sifted five out every ten.

A line formed in front of the guild hall as guild members stood guard, two on each side, while someone else held the contract for them to sign.

A ruckus was ongoing.

"What do you mean five Epic Gold items?! To sever a useless contract?! I'm out of here! Good luck to those joining your useless guild!"

The man's gaze was fiery, filled with haughtiness and pride as he walked away.

He was a D-rank, he ought to be accorded some preference, but it seemed all those rumors were just that.

But of course.

'Hehehe. This never gets old'

He wasn't just any adventurer, but a disguised member of White King, sent to disturb the recruitment process.

Sure enough, others walked off, discouraged by the man's act.

Kron - who was overlooking the process - didn't bat an eyelid.

It was better for the bad eggs to be thrown away from the start.

Soon enough, they'll be begging to join.

Back in the Fire Scar's former building, Nathan sat with Fredrick at his side, while the four friends sat facing them with a table in between.

These men took sips of the served drinks, taking surprised expressions thereafter.

"Such exquisite taste. Might I know what brand this is?"

"Huckleberry"

They quivered, almost puking out the drink.

Carefully, they placed the cups on the table, astonishment apparent on their faces.

Huckleberry was the most renowned creator of wine, not just in Niton, but Lexon.

For one thing, it was absurdly expensive, hence their shocked reactions.

Fredrick made himself known…

"Gentleman, I've heard of your expertise from our friend here, but good to see you all in person" he paused.

He stretched out his palm…

"I'm Fredrick"

"Mirahan"

"Killigard"

"Rainer"

"Verner"

"Now, done with that, shall we get right into business?"

The atmosphere froze. Tension began lingering as the men grew nervous, but kept calm faces.

"Tell us your specialities"

--------------------------------------

UNS: Unstated / Unspecified