Shrouded Seascape

Looking at the Blood Clan members behind Magnus, Anna chuckled and said, "I know you, and I know them as well. Dealing with an IMF site with this small number of people is suicide."

The meaning behind Anna's words was clear, and Magnus was delighted to hear it. He was asking, just in case; he really hadn't expected that Anna had an idea as to what was about to happen.

"Of course, we are more than just these few people. To deal with this, three of the nine great vampire families have come here. Look, here they are."

As soon as he finished speaking, amidst whistles and cheers, the tightly closed door opened again, and a large group of vampires walked in with wine bottles filled with a red liquid in hand.

"Miss Bandages, what do you think? Honestly, we're not the only ones who sensed the IMF's decline. Once we make our move, there will be attacks of a similar scale in three other sites at the same time. Their mobile task forces won't be able to keep up by then."

"All right, I'm joining, but if we succeed, I want half of the Anomalies in the site," Anna said, putting forward her demand.

"Half? Miss Bandages, don't you think your appetite is too big? We've mobilized so many people, but you're just one person. Despite that, you actually want to take half?" Magnus asked. When it came to profits, he was unprecedentedly solemn.

"Oh? Didn't you say this is all for the sake of dethroning the IMF? Since it's for the sake of such a grand ambition, then what does it matter if the reward is a bit less?" Anna retorted, using Magnus' own words against the latter.

Truth be told, Anomalies were no longer important to her. She only made such a demand to conceal her true objectives. If she were to refrain from asking anything, they'd become suspicious of her.

"Half is too much. How about this? Once we've succeeded, we can give you two Anomalies, but the right to choose those two items belongs to us," Magnus replied. He could no longer be bothered to pretend and started negotiating.

Since she was putting on an act, she had to make it look. Anna quibbled with him, replying, "That's not enough. Ten controllable Anomalies, and I get to pick first. Having more people isn't necessarily advantageous."@@novelbin@@

"Pfft!

They talked back and forth for quite a while until Anna finally revealed her bottom line—the right to choose five Anomalies. Once the plan ended in success, she had the right to select five Anomalies for her to take away.

"That's it. Take it or leave it. If you don't agree, then I'm walking away."

Gao Zhiming stood up from the sofa and turned around to leave. As soon as he stood up, the lively reception hall went silent, and everyone turned to look at him.

Anna noticed that the newcomers hadn't headed elsewhere but had spread out evenly with her at the center instead. These bloodsuckers clearly had no intention of letting her go, regardless of how the negotiations would go.

"Fine, we agree to your terms," Magnus said.

The tension in the air immediately disappeared.

Someone took out a guitar and began playing it; the crowd swayed gently to the music.

"Let's set a time. I'll leave and come back by then."

"No, no, no, you must stay here." Magnus stood in Gao Zhiming's path and placed a hand on his chest before saying, "We won't keep you long. We'll strike in five days. We need to frequently discuss the plan until then, but we don't have a lot of time, so please remain here until we make our move." ŘἈＮÖꞖÈŚ

Evidently, they had little trust in Miss Bandages, whom they had just met. They were afraid that she would expose their plans, even though she was now their ally.

"Rest assured, Miss Bandages, we're underground, but I guarantee that I can give you more than what a five-star hotel can offer," Magnus said as he stared at Gao Zhiming walking up the stairs under the lead of his blood servants.

Once Gao Zhiming was out of sight, Magnus' smile faded away. He picked up a telephone and deftly dialed a number with his sharp nails. Within seconds, a charming female voice echoed.

—How did it go?

"That mysterious fellow agreed. She's willing to join us in attacking that IMF site. Her ability to make people spontaneously combust will certainly be helpful to us, but her appetite is rather big. She demanded five controllable Anomalies, and she wants to pick first as well. Hah, she really is daring.

"Is she not afraid that we'll stab her in the back later on?"

The same alluring voice echoed from the other end of the line.

—It's fine. Once it's done, check and see whether we can devour her. If we can't, then it's fine—just five Anomalies don't matter that much.

—And remember, our true goal is what the IMF had obtained from 315. We need to know how we can fuse with Anomalies.

Magnus' face turned ugly upon hearing that. The relationship between the IMF and the anomalous organizations all over the world was akin to that of a cat and a rat at the moment, but what would happen once the IMF mastered the fusion ritual from 315?

The gap between them would widen, and the relationship between them would become akin to that of a human and an ant. They were desperate. Once the IMF mastered that fusion ritual, then there would be no way out for them.

Rats had a wretched life, but they could at least survive by living in the sewers. However, becoming an ant in the IMF's eyes was a different story, as they would surely be crushed by then.

No one wanted to be an ant—no organization did. They had to obtain knowledge of that ritual at all costs before the IMF could truly widen the gap between them.

The fusion ritual that 315 had leaked to the Shattered God was like a giant ladle, stirring the world of anomalous entities and organizations into chaos.

"I understand, and I know. It's a worthwhile trade as long as that mysterious fellow increased our chances of victory even slightly," Magnus replied.

Just then, the sudden cry of an infant came through the phone. It was the loud and sonorous cry of a healthy child.

Magnus' face softened upon hearing that. "My dear niece is awake?"

—Yes, Lilith just woke up. She's probably hungry. I'll feed her some warm blood in a bit. Anyway, that's all. I'm hanging up now.

Magnus casually tossed the beeping phone away, and it ended up hitting a vampire's face. Gazing at the ceiling, Magnus' face was full of tenderness for the youngest of his family.

"Ah, my dear little princess Lilith. I haven't seen you even once despite being your uncle. I guess you can say I'm not qualified to be your uncle. Anyway, once we're done here, I'm flying back to England to see you."