Jay was having a hard time facing Roy and his brotherâs men. They were strong, and he knew that there was no way they could avoid a direct clash with each other.
"Jay, you should stand back. Your fighting ability canât be compared with theirs," Master Ren ordered when he saw Jayâs group of men.
"But I want to help," Jay protested.
"Thereâs no use to show your abilities here. You should stand back and wait for the reinforcements to arrive. Right now, our highest priority is getting out from this perimeter."
Roy gathered his men to surround the Souhon Clanâs Residence. He was among them and waited patiently outside the gate. His other men already fought with the others on the street and he only needed to wait for his own turn to fight in this strategic place.
Slowly but surely the number of people around him increased. His men were doing a wonderful job in gathering people to work for him. This made him rather satisfied. He only needed to wait for their numbers increased some more before making a move.
"Young Master, we need to escape from this place," Vero advised with a panicked expression. They would be dead if they waited until Roy finished gathering enough subordinates to surround them completely.
"I canât just leave Master Ren alone and run away," Jay looked towards Master Ren with red eyes.
The two men looked towards each other. Jay always respected Master Ren because the latter was someone who had taught him since young. He viewed Master Ren as his second father, which was the reason he didnât want to leave.
Master Ren smiled wryly. "You have to leave. If they come and you are still here, do you think your brother will let you go?"
There was no word âfamilyâ in Royâs dictionary. He would not hesitate to wound Jay and eliminate his younger brother if it meant he could climb to the highest position. Towards Royâs ambition and ruthlessness, his father found it hard to accept. This was the very reason he didnât want Roy to succeed him. Unless Roy managed to learn about the word âbrotherhoodâ he couldnât give the seat to him.
As for Jay, it was exactly the opposite. Master Ren patted the boyâs head. "Go out and search for help. Iâm sure you have some connections, right?"
Jayâs eyes widened in surprise. How did he know about that?"
"Nolen School C is the best option for the clansâ descendants to study in because it gives the students a lot of freedom. At the same time, itâs also the best place to build connections. Why do you think we allow you two go to that school?"
"I understand," Jay took out his phone and made a call to Mike. Because he was placed under Mike during his time in the Student Council, he was the closest with Mike.
"Hello, Jay, why are you calling us?" Mike answered almost immediately. At this time, he already started doing his work that Kevin had given to him to do.
"Mike, can you help us?"
"You mean the Souhon Clan? Sorry, Boss already says it clearly that we wonât get ourselves get involved in your battle."
"Why?" Jay was stunned.
"Thereâs no benefit for us with helping either side, donât you think so?"
Even if the Ryukalin Clan came and helped them, what could they get from the other party? Their clan was the biggest clan in this city. In terms of territory, profit, and power, they were clearly beyond the Souhon Clan. There was no way the Souhon Clan could offer them something that would interest them.
Everything that they had, the Ryukalin Clan had much more and even better. The position as the number one clan in this city was not for nothing.
At this point, Jay didnât know what to answer. He bit down on his lips as he thought hard about what they could give to the other party. To his dismay, he found out that he didnât know what he could give at all.
"I guess so..."
"Donât sound so desperate," Neo interjected. As usual, he even hacked his own friendâs phone. "Even if you canât ask help from us, do you think weâre the only outside power?"
"What?"
"Donât act stupid. Youâre not Tommy who canât even guess something thatâs already in front of his face."
At Neoâs words, Jay finally realized that there was indeed one more person he could call, Tommy!
"I see, thank you very much."
"He might not accept, though. After all, you have burned your bridges with him previously."
Jay knew about that as well, but he had to try. Ending his phone call, he made a call to Tommy. This time, it took him several seconds before Tommy answered. Those seconds felt like an eternity for him because of his nervousness.
"How are you, Jay?" Tommy asked in a nonchalant tone.
"Donât you know about my circumstances right now? Iâm calling because of that!"
"I know, thereâs no need to be so agitated," Tommy answered lightly. "However, do you think we want to help you after your clanâs treatment of us? Donât daydream, Jay."
"Tom," Jay paused for a moment. "Iâm extremely sorry for that incident. It never crossed my mind that my father would be that inconsiderate and... and...."
"You sound like a girl."
"Tom!"
Tommy laughed. He knew that their group was not considered important previously because their position was still shaky. Still, it didnât mean that they would just accept being treated as trash like that. Who in their right mind would help someone who had betrayed them before?
"Iâm still busy with my training, so you better say your terms and Iâll relay them to my teammates."
Jay didnât immediately answer. He didnât know what he could answer as he thought about it. From his position as the young master, the best gift he could give was the token that he already gave to Tommy previously. What else should he offer?
Master Ren noticed Jayâs complicated expression and took the phone from the boyâs hand.
"Tom, do you remember me?"
"Master Ren, right?" Tommy asked back. He still remembered this master because he felt that this man was very dangerous. Back then, Master Ren was present when Kanae fought in the Souhon Clan. Even though she only appeared for a short period of time, this man still took notice of her and her prowess.
"Youâre right. I want to know, does Fiore Group want to have the position as the third in command in the Souhon Clan?"
Tommy was stunned by this sudden proposal. Being the third in command meant that they could order Souhon Clan members as they wished unless the clan head or the young master said otherwise. In addition, they would be given a lot of privileges when they were in the Souhon Clanâs territory. This was an extremely important position that wasnât given out easily.
At this point, he immediately called Jason with the special phone and relayed to him about what Master Ren said.
"What do you want?" Tommy asked after several minutes.
"I want a long-lasting friendship with Fiore Group and your help to eliminate most of Royâs subordinates."
"You want to tie us to your clan?" Tommy sneered. He only said what Oro told him from the special phone as he was not used to negotiating. If he had to do it himself, he would just bring destruction to their group.
Master Ren smiled slightly. "Iâm not only talking to Tom, right? Youâre right. With this proposal, I will tie your group into our clan. You can use us for your benefit, but you canât leave us when weâre in trouble."
Jason found it to be an interesting proposal. The Souhon Clan was still a big clan, even with this internal conflict. Making some connections here and there wouldnât hurt them too much. As for the previous conflict they had with the Souhon Clan, they could settle it at a later date.
The most important thing was still the power behind the clan and the money that they could receive. After all, three members of Fiore Group needed money for their lives. Jay was also still their friend; to be exact, friend of two Fiore Groupâs core members.
"If your clan is on the verge of destruction, I still wonât come to help, though."
"If thereâs truly no hope, of course, I wonât force you to come," Master Ren answered in an unhurried tone. "Before I forget, as the third in command, you will also get some of our income from the tax."
"Itâs truly an interesting proposal."
"Whatâs your answer?"
"Iâll think about it," Tommy answered and hung up the call.