Chapter 1357: Michael’s grand plan

Michael didn’t actually want to let others take control of the Chasm. He was simply dangling it as bait for those bigger fishes in the world. The Guilds of Arcana. The Heavenly Knights. The Conglomerates.

There was no way that they weren’t going to bite on this. After all, they all knew just how important the Chasm was to the general flow of commerce in the Royal Continent. It was basically a funnel. A funnel that allowed business from the lower part of the continent to flow to the upper part and vice versa.

Therefore, whoever controlled the Chasm controlled the continent.

And they would do anything to control that.

Michael hoped that they would. And he hoped that they would bet their own assets in order to try and acquire it from him.

There were multiple reasons why Michael chose this kind of tactic.

First of all, he knew that the Conglomerates and the Organizations wouldn’t want to fight him in terms of business. Everyone knew Reborn had strange technologies no one could keep up with. If they tried to compete using that, Reborn had a good chance of winning.

On the other hand, Reborn wasn’t that famed for their military strength. At least, not publicly. People still considered them weak. That they weren’t an army that had the help of the Lionhearts and Mystic Masters and a Heavenly Knight.

So, those big fishes would be more willing to fight him on those terms.

Why?

Because Michael wanted something that they had. For the Guild of Arcana, his aim was simple. Get permission to visit their secret library. And even if they didn’t, then he at least wanted to meet more of the Mystic Masters in that organization.

As for the Order of the Heavenly Knights, he was aiming for their masteries. He was hoping that he would somehow be able to recruit some of them to help him train the rest of his army. Yes, the Swordsman division of their troops was already powerful and well-trained.

But their army had expanded beyond that. They now had multiple divisions who were proficient in multiple weapons. They needed teachers. So, who better to teach them than the Heavenly Knights themselves? Of course, that was very ambitious of him, but a man can dream.

As for the other Conglomerates, that one was more of a standing thing. He wanted Reborn to finally be treated as the proper company that they were. No more being perceived as a Lower Echelon company. He wanted people to see them as they are—the only company that could stand a chance against the Conglomerates.

And last and foremost, there was one other reason as to why Michael wanted more duels.

That was because of the upcoming All-Tournament.

It had been a few months since the start of New Sparta. And now, they were nearing the end. They were nearing the point where all the companies were going to compete against each other to finally settle who was the more superior out of all of them.

The winner? They would get to decide the flow of Beastfolks migrating from the other continents.

If the Chasm allowed a company to control the flow of business in the Royal Continent, then the Beastfolk control would control the flow of business in the whole world!

It would be the perfect point for Michael to start expanding their business outside the borders of this continent and finally step onto the real world. At that point, he’d truly be competing with the Conglomerates.

But, that was still far away. He still had to prepare himself for the All-Tournament first.

And the best way to do that was none other than practice. Duels sharpened skills like no other. Yes, their roller coasters allowed their Maugnetics to increase their affinity to their Aubility Powers. But it didn’t allow them to become a better fighter. Practice and real-world application did that.

And as of now, he was the only Nascent Spirit cultivator in their company. If they were going to compete with the Conglomerates, then he’d need a lot more allies who he could depend on other than himself in terms of Maugnetic Aubility.

That was his grand plan.

And it seemed that people were starting to bite the bait that he had laid out.

"Young Master. We have just been contacted by the Western Pole company. They want a duel with us."

Castelle came into his office with a composed look on her face. Behind her was Theresa, who didn’t look all that pleased.

"The Western Pole company... an Upper Echelon," she muttered. "I knew this would happen. Our first opponent is going to be 7th place in the Golden Ranking!"

Michael looked at her. "Are they that powerful?"

"Well, if I were to consider your strengths, then Reborn definitely triumphs over them. But the fact that they’re the first to announce a duel is a very, very ominous thing.

After all, everyone knows that the Western Pole company is a known ally of the Oscorpe Conglomerate. They’re probably conspiring with each other now and giving them all sorts of help in order to tip the scales of balance."

This was basically the opening attack. Oscorpe was trying to scope out Reborn’s power by sending someone weaker than them.

It was at this point that Trilla entered the room. She was, of course, an Oscorpe herself.

"I concur with Theresa. They’re posturing to try and wrestle the Chasm away from your hands," she said. "My siblings have found it appropriate to try and bring you down. It’ll bring honor and respect in their company, allowing them to go up in the succession."

Out of every Conglomerate, Oscorpe was the one who Michael had antagonized the most.

After all, not only did he steal the Lionhearts from them, he also stole Trilla from them, a direct heir!

If this was not enough reason to wage war against Reborn, then nothing was.

So now, Trilla’s brothers and sisters were trying to take him down to try and regain that honor that they lost.