He said to Salvini, "I did as you asked. I didn't go after the trouble maker and I spared your brother. I also stayed here at the pyramid. I hope for your sake that you have prepared what you promised. I will not be taken for a fool."
She sighed before replying. "Don't be like that Soverick. I am helping you. Trust me."
"I find that very hard to believe." He said to her.
"Suit yourself. Don't trust me. But you can at least trust the results. You didn't chase after the troublemaker. That would have wasted your time and the divine crown might have slipped out of your grasp by then. I know for certain that she went in the opposite direction of the crown. It would have been a waste of time."
"And don't act like sparing my brother was you doing me a favor. I helped you not to waste your resources. You would have needed to activate your title to defend against his flames and if my knowledge is right, the power of the child of the plane places a heavy burden on you. It would have also been a waste for you to fight him until one of you can't respawn anymore."
She finished with a smile, "As you can see, I am helping to make things more efficient for you."
She makes a good point but Soverick refused to be swayed so easily. His eyes remained cold and calculating as he scanned her and her escort.
·ƈθm "We will see about that. Just know that I will hunt you down if you take advantage of me." He promised her. "I will hunt you to the end of the world. Nothing and no one will stop me from delivering retribution upon you."
She said to him, "Do you know that you look very handsome when you're trying to be menacing? Your good looks are making it difficult for me to take your threat seriously."
He changed the subject, "What's next?"
She rolled her eyes at him before replying, "What's next is that I will help you overcome the next obstacle on your path. You need my help to..."
He cut her off. "I don't need your help. I can do that by myself."
He might fail and be overwhelmed but he doesn't need her help. He isn't so helpless that he needs her help. If he were helpless then he would ask Legion-1 for help and use his domain to crush these people. If he were pushed to the brink he can get divine life energy and heal himself.
He also has other abilities that he is not willing to use. The truth is he is far from helpless but he won't use all his powers here unless he absolutely needs to in order to get keep the divine crown. He can't use the full repertoire of his abilities in a world fragment made by a world god in the middle of nowhere with no way for him to escape from said world god if it decides to break its Oath to protect him.
Salvini replied sarcastically, "I am sure you can do everything yourself. But a leader shouldn't do everything on their own. So stop being difficult and let me finish. As I promised. I will provide you with Lieutenants as long as you are in control of the divine crown."
She gave him the spot of the last man standing as a gift. It is a show of allegiance if she is to be believed. She left a message written in mana on the Zeroth ring in the second challenge. The message contained some information, instructions, and a plan for action for the third challenge.
What made him decide to join hands with her is that she has knowledge about the troublemaker that has been stirring enemies against him in the background.
That knowledge also made him very suspicious of her. He knows that the troublemaker is very much like Salvini so her having that knowledge might mean that she is the troublemaker itself. Soverick decided that either way, he wants to have her within his sights. It is to keep his friends close and keep his enemies closer.
"Are these your offering?" He gestured to the 100 of them and asked.
"Yes. They will serve you well." She answered.
He spared them a glance. In light of his suspicion, her escort of 100 might be an ambush team. The multitude of people that formed the barricade might be a distraction to fool him so that she can bring a group of 100 elites close enough to him.
It is a good plan too. 100 elites that will all attack at once will catch him off guard and might successfully overwhelm him. Even if they fail, there are still the 2 million people surrounding him. He has been practically cornered.
"How did you convince them? I don't think they are so devoted to me that they will be willing to subordinate themselves to me."
She shrugged. "Let's just say that I have a talent for persuasion."
He knows the answer already. He asked her to see if there was something that he is missing. He can see it in the mana stuck to their figure. The event is also very recent so it is vivid and easy to see. Salvini went around the arena convincing people to join her cause either by persuading them through words or through a beating.
It was difficult at first but it became easier as she accumulated a large group. More people joined her cause when they saw the number of people on her side. It also helped that she knew which ones could be persuaded and how to persuade them.
The leaders of the groups followed her and brought their faction along until she formed this group 100 thousand large. He also saw that some of them actually liked him. Most of them are neutral about him. They came for the benefit of following him like Litori who is just for the power that she will get as his subordinate. If not for that power, then she doesn't want to be anywhere near him.
