Chapter 151: With A Bunch Of Kids
Cillian only revealed the information Arthur had given him, not the information Troy had revealed back when he was trying to make a deal with him.
White Shepherds.
They were the leaders stationed in each family. From Troy’s words alone back then, they were the leaders who led each operation that happened in these cities and pretty much handled every affair that took place throughout the area.
This wasn’t fully confirmed yet, but it was pretty much coming to that point. Every lead he had gotten up to this point pointed to the fact that they operated that way. One good example was how they could smuggle Pieces in and out, even on the Academy grounds, which was something he had heard from one of their helpers.
It’s probably just one of the many things they had done during the time they had been operating behind the scenes. They were probably involved in far more than Cillian had initially thought.
"So, these two will help us?"
After talking with Scott a few days ago regarding his plan, which he eventually agreed with, Cillian arranged a meeting with the two people who would make things go smoothly once they started taking over the Underworld.
"The General Strategist?"
Dena Fritz, the future leader of the Hound Cartel of the Underworld, couldn’t believe her eyes when she discovered that the person Cillian had mentioned during their meeting was someone who had previously worked for Khalish Viola.
’So, she recognized him. As expected of this lady boss. As for me, I had no idea who Scott was when I met him for the first time.’
Glancing towards Dennis, who was carefully looking at Scott, it seemed that he was also aware of his existence, though not as much as Dena. Still, there was a look on his face that spoke of his wariness toward Scott.
"My goodness, we’re going to take the Underworld with a bunch of kids?"
Scott couldn’t help but find this situation ridiculous, seeing that Cillian’s plan, which was solid enough to execute, would be put into motion by two bigshots of the Underworld... well, by the families behind them, that is.
However, he knew that these two were influential enough to command some authority among their gangs.
"Technically, kids."
Dennis indicated as he continued.
"We’re all at the ages of twenty here... except you."
Scott somehow found that insulting as he retorted.
"Hey, little kiddo. I would’ve destroyed your family if it weren’t for the Lord’s orders. If you wanted to start a fight, you should’ve said so before. Besides, I’m at my peak at thirty-five years old. I’m not that old."
"Too old."
Both Dena and Dennis commented with sly smirks, as if wanting to tease Scott further. At that moment, Cillian, who had been watching the scene, couldn’t help but smile.
’This is a better first meeting than I thought.’
With that in mind, Cillian called out to them at the table.
"Let’s get this thing started."
...
During the two weeks before the awarding ceremony commenced, Cillian had done a lot of things. By ’a lot,’ he meant training and scheming for things that would benefit him in the future if he succeeded.
So far, it has been going smoothly.
Arranging a meeting with Dena and Dennis was the first one. After pulling it off, Cillian made some arrangements with the Guilds from the above world, especially the Star Breaker Guild, which he still slightly hated. Still, there was a mutual interest between them, so they were more than willing to cooperate.
Cillian even used the time when he had been tricked by them just to pull it off.
Eventually, after doing a few other things, the last person he needed to convince was Scott. He used the existence of the Shepherds to persuade the two of them to team up.
Every side gains something from this development.
"What do you think held the balance of powerhouses in the Underworld before?"
When Cillian gave this explanation to the three other people in the room, he continued and revealed.
"The Viola Family."
This was the reason why the other gangs operated so smoothly in the Underworld. It was why members of these particular gangs could walk around the surface without any worry. It was because there was a pinnacle of power that controlled the gangs while also not controlling them entirely.
It was because of a great family.
But now that everything had come crashing down with only one Viola Family member remaining, the balance of power would soon collapse. Without a proper governor who would watch over these people, there was bound to be chaos, especially when the structure that had been in place for decades was soon going to crumble.
Obviously, everyone wanted to be the ’Viola’ that governed the Underworld. Unfortunately for them, it would be Cillian and his group who would take on this role among the other contenders.
The Underworld needed to be reorganized since Cillian would be using this place more frequently for his operations. At least, operations within the Viola.
Still, controlling a whole city was bound to bring him plenty of benefits, much like being a mafia boss.
When that thought came to his mind, Cillian couldn’t help but smile.
As long as no unexpected variable came up that could flip the board entirely, Cillian knew he was confident he could achieve it.
It should be.
"This is how things will turn out. We’re going to be stabbing people in the back. A lot of them. We’ll also do a lot of bad things until we’re the only ones left standing. And we’re going to do it without suffering many casualties. Who will suffer from this? Obviously, the people who are greedy enough to take the power for themselves."
Cillian then explained to them the deeper meaning behind his words. Dena and Fritz had already been given an idea of it when they met him a week ago, while Scott, who had already heard it before, was now hearing it in much greater detail and couldn’t help but be impressed by Cillian.
Seeing Cillian say all of it with a straight face and a smile as he motioned his head as if he was demonstrating a play was quite a sight for Scott.
Once the meeting ended after just an hour, the serious discussion was over, and the four of them shifted into a more casual conversation.
A free exchange.