Chapter 28: Taking Over

Zaos looked at the corpse and smiled. He grabbed one of its arms and dragged it out of the room.

He went through the empty hallway and arrived at the ground floor. He walked to the room he had seen those three elves discussing.

Since he wasn't invisible, the sound of his movements was unmasked so the individuals quickly noticed it.

"Who are y–" the dark elf among them questioned, however, his words were cut short when he witnessed the scene in front of him.

"Go get the rest of the gang, I will be making an announcement," Zaos spoke as he casually set down the body he was dragging.

The elves looked on in horror as they recognized the body on the floor.

"B-boss?" The bulky earth elf among the group stuttered in disbelief.

To the Red Lotus gang, their leader was an absolute figure. His power was unrivaled even among other gang leaders yet that very person was lying lifeless on the ground.

"Don't test my patience!" Zaos growled as he released his killing intent on the small group.

Instantly, the group of three was drowned in unbelievable pressure. The shock and terror from earlier was replaced with despair as they gazed at Zaos.

"Y-yes sir!" The large earth elf was the first to respond, he swiftly crawled out of the building while his companions scrambled to follow behind him.

[It seems the power of my killing intent increased… ] Zaos nodded after seeing the reaction of the group.

He grabbed a chair placed next to the wooden table and sat beside the body.

A few minutes later, a large group of elves arrived at the room. When they gazed at the body beside Zaos, their reactions varied from shock, fear, anger, and despair.

Surprisingly enough, none of them tried to attack Zaos or flee after seeing the scene, as if they had all resigned to their fates.

After a substantial crowd had gathered, Zaos stood up and addressed them.

"Listen up, from today, I will be leading the Red Lotus Gang. If you disapprove of my decision, speak now!" Zaos made his voice audible. After his declaration, he crossed his arms and studied the elves.

The room instantly became silent. The elves were too dumbstruck and fearful to voice an opinion. Majority of them even bent their heads, not daring to stare into Zaos' penetrative eyes.

"Good. As long as none of you try anything stupid, your lives will remain the same. It might even get better depending on your actions… " Zaos spoke.

Hope surfaced in the expressions of many present. They look at Zaos expectantly as if he hadn't killed their leader a few minutes ago.

[The mindset of the weak remains the same no matter the world.] Zaos snorted inwardly. As someone with experience in handling the masses, he knew how to entice a bunch of hooligans.

"I want someone to inform the ones absent of the new changes while the rest of you return to their posts." Almost immediately after Zaos' statement, multiple elves stepped forward expressing their willingness to take on the task.

Zaos randomly selected someone before sending the rest away.

[I should also get this cleaned up…] Zaos gazed at the blood trail he had made while dragging the corpse.

He searched around the lower floor and found a room with several elven maids relaxing within it.

"All of you, follow me," Zaos instructed before returning to the room he held his speech at.

The maids were confused but didn't dare object. They stood up and sheepishly followed behind Zaos.

After arriving at the room, he pointed at the blood trail and the former leader's corpse and ordered the maids.

"Clean this up." He said plainly.

"Oh my god… " The maids who were absent during Zaos' announcement gasped in shock as they gazed at their master's dead body.

"I want it done before morning," Zaos didn't bother explaining the situation to the maids. He directly walked past them and headed to the upper floor.

"W-who is he?" After Zaos left, one of the maids asked shakily.

"I don't know, but he isn't someone we can disobey. I'll go inform the guards outside and see what they say…" a maid with green hair tied to a bun proposed.

The other maids nodded and quickly began the task they were assigned while the green-haired maid went to seek confirmation from the guards.

Meanwhile, Zaos had returned to the room where he fought the former leader of the Red Lotus gang.

He searched around the room, trying to find any useful information or loot.

After a while, Zaos found a chest filled with Mana gems, some documents on the matters of the gang, a few business and personal letters, and some other miscellaneous items.

Yet, among all the items Zaos found, the wooden chest filled with mana gems was what he was most interested in.

[More than a thousand good-quality mana gems… that equates to more than 10 excellent-quality mana gems!] Zaos was dumbstruck when he counted the mana gems in the chest.

He didn't expect the former leader to be this wealthy!

[Well, to be fair, the Red Lotus Gang is one of the biggest underground organizations in the mercenary city… ] Zaos played with a mana gem in his hands.

Although the mercenary city was only a settlement, it was the largest settlement in the Dark Elven tribe. As an organization stationed in such a big place, the Red Lotus Gang who ran a black market had a substantial amount of wealth.

[Hahaha! This was a great idea after all! How long will it have taken me to gather this much funds as a mercenary?] Zaos laughed heartily.

*Knock!* *Knock!* *Knock!*

"Sir, may I enter?" A female voice from outside the room brought Zaos out of his thoughts.

"Who?" He asked. as he shifted his attention to the door.

"Pardon me, I'm a maid." The enchanting female voice responded.

Zaos gazed around the room, seeing the bloodstains on the floor and the sheets, he approved of the maid's request.

"Enter," He said.

"Excuse me," the door opened and the maid entered the room. She has a rag and a bucket of clean water in her hands.

"Clean the floors, and change the sheets," Zaos instructed. He locked the chest and grabbed the letters and documents he had found before exiting the room.

He entered another room that resembled an office and began reading through the items in his hands.

[Hmm… the situation of the gang is stable. They have no real enemies due to the dominance the old leader portrayed. The clans also seem to have nothing to do with the gang… ] Zaos breathed a sigh of relief. His main worry was that the Red Lotus gang was affiliated with a clan, but his worries were misplaced.

Zaos then focused his attention on other matters.

[The former leader's name was Marvid. According to the letters I'm seeing here… he has a family consisting of his three wives and his mother… ] Zaos eyes flashed ruthlessly.

[I can't have any loose ends, I'll have to pay them a visit… ]