295 Chapter 241: Staying a Step Ahead

Everyone in the meeting room looked towards what amounted to a video that was being displayed on the wall. Joshua wasn't expecting there to be another reason for them to all gather outside of their meeting for the upcoming expedition, but among all of the people in the group he was definitely the type to stick to himself when it came to things outside of exploration. He didn't mind hanging out with his friends from time to time, but one of the few traits he picked up from his father outside of his size and love for fighting was the fact that he easily got enamored when it came to training. So he usually didn't notice when things were going on in the hub city outside of when his own personal group was up to something.

This time around the news network seemed to be broadcasting something from the world government guild and it seemed like Laura, Madalyn, Natalie, and Isabella all knew what was up. From the look of realization that Joshua saw Henry suddenly gain he was sure that his friend had figured out what was going on as well. "Any of you guys want to fill us in on what's happening?" Adrian asked as he looked over to Laura.

"Well one of the reasons we decided to have a meeting today was because it gave us a good way to compare our plan to this groups plan." Laura said with a confident smile. "The world government guild has decided to broadcast their first meeting in a show of power. It's mainly to show off how many smaller guilds they were able to gather before they try to take on a large town of their own."

"Yes and since most of their leaders are so pompous, I'm sure they'll give away a lot of info on their upcoming expedition even if they aren't planning on it. They've just got to many people around in leadership roles that don't belong there that it's almost impossible for them not to shit the bed in some way." Madalyn said with a shrug. Natalie seemed to nod in agreement as well but her focus was on the three men in the center of the meeting group that were currently staring directly at the camera. Joshua didn't know any of the people that were currently being focused in on, but from the angered look of Natalie, Laura, and Madalyn he was fairly certain that they knew at least one of the people. In fact that was the case since the man that had initially invited Laura and Madalyn's guilds to joining this exact meeting was one of the three men being focused on.

The main person the camera focused on seemed to be the leading representative of the world government guild for this hub city. He stepped forward with an annoyingly bright smile on his face. He had tidy blond hair and was clean shaven with a roguish look. He had bright blue eyes and looked like your everyday play boy from Joshua's perspective. Even though all of the elderly had been revitalized and made younger Joshua could tell that this person was rather young even before the second phase. He looked to be around the same age as Joshua by his attitude and the way he carried himself. Joshua expected such a big organization to have a proven leader with some experience, but this guy seemed like nothing more than a second generation rich kid. The only explanation Joshua could think of was the fact that he was just a face for the operation in the end. If they messed up it would all be blamed on him and the other small guilds that they had paid to come along instead of the real leaders of the American division of the world government guild. Before Joshua could think of anything else the young blond man in a suit and tie stepped forward with a bright smile and began speaking.

"Hello friends across our great nation. My name is Kyle White and I am blessed to be the representative of the world government guild for this upcoming operation. It is my pleasure to introduce to all of our viewers the leaders that will be at the head of this expedition to take the next big step in reclaiming our world." The man said with a grin and a wave.

"I can't stand his smug face." Natalie said while frowning. Joshua could tell that she knew him personally and that he was probably one of the reasons she decided to leave the world government guild in the first place, but he didn't want to bring it up at the moment. He turned his attention back to the smiling man who now looked smaller as the camera zoomed out showing the entire meeting room. There were several other people around that seemed to be divided into groups of their own.

"It is my pleasure to show off the brave guilds that have decided to align themselves with us for this endeavor. To my immediate left you can see the leading members of the Raider's guild that will be a part of this upcoming expedition. To my right you can see the leading members of the Scavenger's guild who will also play a major role." Kyle said as the camera turned to look at the two groups.

Joshua had never seen the leader of the Raider's guild, but he remembered running into a large group of its members back at the ant hill. It seemed to be a guild that prided itself in causing trouble for others and bullying smaller guilds to get what they wanted. He didn't know anything about the Scavenger's guild, but the leader looked rugged and experienced. He was a far cry from the impression he was getting from the members of the world government guild. The leader of the Raider's Guild looked like a mafia boss no matter how Joshua looked at him. The presence he gave off was much different than the other leaders. He seemed to be a person that was used to killing and conflict well before the world ever changed.

While Kyle was introducing the other smaller guilds around the room Joshua figured it was a good time to ask if anyone knew about the guilds that were getting introduced. "Laura do you know anything about these guilds? I've run into the Raider's guild before, but when it comes to the others I've got no clue."

Laura nodded in understanding and decided since the meeting on the television was nothing more than introductions at this point it would be a good time to catch the others up on information. "I do know quite a bit about the Raider's Guild and the Scavenger's Guild, but when it comes to the smaller guilds I can only assume their joining the expedition to gain some clout."

"That's true. At this point most small guilds only have one or two high level explorers that have passed level sixty-five or higher. Most of the guilds on the screen that are currently being introduced fall into that category." Isabella pointed out.

"From what I can see the only guilds that are actually worth talking about are the two mid-sized guilds that they introduced at the start." Madalyn said with a smirk. "The one I know from past encounters is the Scavenger's Guild. They are a guild that focuses on clearing dungeons that other groups find are too hard to clear. It's given them a bit of a reputation and lots of people believe that in the future they could grow to the point where they could become a large scale guild. I know for a fact that the leader has already reached level seventy and he has a few other members in his guild that are rather close in level. His name is Dale Wright if I recall properly. We had an encounter a few months ago in a dungeon that my group cleared. They seemed to be standing by in case we messed up so that they could get the glory of clearing a dungeon a large guild couldn't."

"They sound like fame hunters to me." Adrian said getting a nod from Madalyn in return.

"That's exactly what they are so it makes since that they would get involved with something like this. They're already getting more fame from this meeting alone and they hope that it will help pave their way to becoming a large guild. It probably would if things were to go the way they planned, but I doubt that will be the case after we take down a large town before they can." Madalyn said with a grin as she looked over towards Isabella.

"Well since guild master has explained the Scavenger's Guild quite thoroughly I believe it falls to me to explain the Raider's Guild." Isabella said while turning to look towards Joshua and Lilly's direction. "I believe you two have had encounters with them before in a past dungeon if I'm not mistaken."

"They seemed like a bunch bullies to me. They picked on everyone near the ant hill and tried to claim the territory as their own through any means possible." Lilly said with a thoughtful look as she remembered their encounter with the group.

"They definitely weren't shy about taking advantage of others." Joshua said with a small frown as he nodded in agreement with Lilly's description.

"They are also a fairly large mid-sized guild that is comparable to the Scavenger's Guild. The main difference between the two at the moment is the fact that the Scavenger's guild has more members, but the Raider's Guild has a couple more elite level explorers. I'm certain that there are at least four members of the Raider's Guild that have passed level seventy at this point including their leader. As you can imagine from your interactions with them in the past they are a fairly underhanded guild that does anything to get ahead. From what I've learned about their leader he was active in the underworld when it came to gangs back before the world changed. He's just taken that template and made it a guild."

By the time Isabella finished her explanation of the Raider's Guild it seemed like the representative of the world government guild had finished introducing all of the small guilds that were involved. Joshua could tell from the way he held himself he looked down on the smaller guilds and only showed any actual respect to the members of the Raider's Guild and Scavenger's Guild. The other guilds were probably just there for opportunity and money from how small they were. They might have one or two high level explorers, but most members of the smaller guilds probably came in small numbers and around the high level fifties to low level sixties by the standards of what Joshua had seen from most small guilds that were recruiting. That was one of the reason his guild stood out so much since they currently had six level seventy plus explorers and five more high level sixty explorers that were close to reaching seventy.

After the introduction the meeting moved on and started to fall into what was no more than a boastful presser event that tried to show off the power of the world government guild. They prided themselves in the fact that they were going to send thousands of explorers to take on a large town that had a population of thirty thousand people. Joshua let out a small chuckle when he heard how arrogant they sounded when they said the size of the town. His group was going to take on a far bigger town with much less numbers, but Joshua believed in quality over quantity especially with this current scenario. By the time the presser had ended they all had a good idea of the tactics that their opponents would be using in their upcoming expedition. The major difference however was the timing of the two expeditions.

"So I guess we'll be getting a head start on them after all huh." Joshua said with a smile as he thought of the implications of that. The world government guild wasn't planning to start their expedition for another couple of months. In fact it wouldn't be until after Joshua would have to defend his territory against other guilds which made it feel like a long ways away.

"That's just perfect." Madalyn said with an excited look. "We're going to ruin all of their plans. After all when we clear a much more challenging town for the entire nation to see I'm willing to bet it'll send their current timing out the window."