Chapter 422
Chapter 422
If Valeera knew how to smile, she would definitely have done it, because now she had enough money thanks to Zosimos and the dwarves! She deliberately fell into a trap set up by Edward and Isaac to use it against them. Bernard was the bait. It’s time to use the «money argument». They tried so hard to deprive her of it.
The girl took out a huge bowl from the ring, filled to the top with multi-colored spheres: «Since I was left without metal, then where did these two hundred and fifty million raised from its sale come from?» – she asked the old man and his grandson in a mocking tone.
Isaac opened his mouth slightly in surprise, which said a lot. His grandson’s eyes widened, because he knew about the agreement with the black market and he did not understand at all how the girl could sell the metal otherwise.
«Two hundred and fifty million?! It can’t be!» … «So Isaac lied to us?!» … «I have to make sure!» … «Let me check!» – the heads of clans pounced on the pile of spheres, like vultures who saw a rotten carcass, and confirmed the total amount with an unmistakable scan. The men’s eyes glittered greedily.
«Isaac, what does that mean?» – after scanning the money, Diego asked suspiciously.
The old man returned the mask of equanimity to his face and, without looking at all guilty or trapped, shrugged his shoulders: «Who knows? Maybe she borrowed money from a familiar family or someone else… Judge for yourself: she broke into the shadow world clearly not as a simple person from the street. She has a lot of experience and skills. It is hardly possible that a woman could do all this alone without someone’s support. She borrowed money from these people. Let her provide a check of the transaction to confirm that I am wrong, otherwise all this clownery is not worth a penny.»
The heads of the clans could not disagree with the words of the authoritative old man: «Mr. Isaac is right in his own way. We need to check it out.» … «Arpha, show us the check from the sale of metal.» … «Dispel our doubts. You have the necessary documents, don’t you?» – the men demanded.
Valeera frowned slightly. She expected a slightly different reaction, both from Isaac and the others, but in the end she would have to defend herself again? Why did such a powerful blow to the credibility of the head of the Black Star clan have almost no effect? The problem is that she doesn’t have any written evidence. The dwarves didn’t provide anything. And even if it were otherwise, these sharks of the shadow world would never have believed that the criminals had made a deal with the dwarves themselves, who are patronized by the Russells. It even sounds stupid.
However, the girl had an alternative argument: «I didn’t sell the metal to the black market, because someone», – she nodded at the old man. – «Put pressure on the administration of the market, and because of this they intended to buy it for a song…»
Isaac clicked his tongue with mock pity: «Oh, this is so unexpected… She has no check! Wow…»
The eyes of the other clan heads were instantly filled with distrust of the girl. It was as if the «money argument» she had previously demonstrated no longer mattered.
«Don’t interrupt me! Yes, I do not have the check, but there is another confirmation that I received the metal.» – she took out and activated the visual recording nephrite.
A bright screen with the image of neat stacks of metal formed on the ceiling. Bernard walked through the corridors of silver, gold and platinum and explained aloud their quantity, quality and approximate market value.
The clan heads exchanged puzzled glances. They hesitated again.
Isaac angrily slammed his fist on the table and handed out the check: «I’m fed up with this clowning! Look, my check says that we sold the metal for two hundred million, while the official data says that the Stalbers suffered half a billion losses! And where did the fifty million disappear?! It’s obvious…»
Edward intervened in the dialogue: «Obviously, she stole some rings from me!»
«What nonsense? When could I have had time to do this?!» – Valeera was indignant at such a blatant lie.
«When the Stalbers appeared and we had to let you go!» – the guy chuckled.
Bernard added: «The record clearly shows that the amount of precious metal is much more than fifty million! Why are you lying so brazenly?!»
«Speak to me with respect, you brainless bastard!» – Edward snapped venomously. – «Any fool could use the illusion technique, or just get a forgery in order to fake the amount of metal on the record! Judging by how well you have prepared to slander us, I would not be surprised if you do something like this again!»
All members of the Silent Horror clan had a headache because of such boundless rudeness, overcoming all limits of permissible. They wanted to break all the bones of the vile liar, especially Bernard could barely restrain himself from the impulse.
«Ha-ha-ha», – Isaac laughed, although there was not a drop of amusement or complacency in his eyes. – «I am impressed by your desire to make us look bad. This bitch is a real genius of deception! Such insidious women are rare… Commendable. She has planned everything so exquisitely that even I am beginning to doubt the truth! Damn, why couldn’t I see such a venomous snake earlier?»
Once again, the clan heads took his side. Indeed, the woman is too insidious and cunning. All her actions could well have been a well-planned attack against Isaac.
Valeera frowned grimly. What’s happening? Why haven’t they attacked Isaac yet?! What could be more profitable than destroying a powerful competitor and sharing his wealth among everyone?! The girl literally tore the old man’s argument to shreds, showing money and metal, but for some reason it had no effect! It can’t be that these cretins believe any nonsense rather than their eyes and common sense! And even Diego is silent, as if he can’t decide to do something…
«Maybe you will believe your eyes more than a lying old man!» – the girl said, trying with all her strength to remain calm, and used her main trump card: she activated the visual recording nephrite. A bright screen appeared on the ceiling with a picture of a warehouse, at the entrance of which Edward stood with his gang and bodyguards and said something.
«Edward?! What the hell are you doing here?!»
«Old man, if you speak to me without respect again, and I swear to the gods, I will cut off your head like those two.»
«Kids from the Silent Horror clan, take the trouble to explain to me what the fuck are you sneaking around in my clan’s territory?»
«What nonsense?! We coordinated the territories of our activity with each head of the clan! Your clan border is two blocks south!»
«Blah blah blah, that’s what I hear! I know better where my territory is.»
The recording stopped there.
There was a deathly silence. All emotions disappeared from Isaac’s face, there was shock in his eyes. Edward turned completely pale, as if he was caught having sex with a dog.
Judging by the recording, or rather, the words uttered by the guy, those two poor fellows in the information center of the warehouse belonged to the Silent Horror clan, and not vice versa, and it was not Arpha who came to the ready-made robbery, as Isaac said, but Edward!
Now it became obvious to everyone that the head of the Black Star clan had been actively trying to cheat everyone all this time.
«Ha-ha-ha, ah-ha-ha!» – Diego laughed in a bass voice, slapping his knee. – «Arpha won two-nil! Ah-ha-ha! Isaac, you’ve been pinned to the wall like a little piece of trash, you lying old bastard! What do you say in your defense?! Ah-ha-ha!»
Isaac publicly gave his grandson a slap on the head and, with an expression as if he had eaten a rotten lemon, said: «We all want to get away with it, but it doesn’t always work out. Please tell me, how does this cancel out the fact that she was operating on my territory?»
The attention of all those present abruptly switched to a new argument, perhaps the most weighty of all. Indeed, no matter what was discussed earlier, if the warehouse is located on the territory of the Black Star clan, then everything else does not matter.
Valeera tried to pull herself together. Everything was not going as she planned, but she will still win, because she still has something to say.
The girl said in an official tone: «At the last meeting, when registering the clan, I was given the right to rent the territory of other clans, which I used. I entered into the agreement with Isaac, signed by the head of each clan, in which the border of the leased territory is indicated in detail. The warehouse located on Foundry Street is subject to the jurisdiction of my clan! All of the above is described in this document. Check its authenticity for yourself. The eyes will not deceive you.» – she held out the sheet.
The document was passed from one clan head to another. When it fell into Isaac’s hands, everyone focused on his reaction. The old man suddenly burst out laughing: «Well, well, this is nuts! This bitch was so well prepared that she even forged the contract! Here is the real one! Compare them.» – he took out a piece of paper.
The heads of the clans were comparing documents one by one and were amazed: «Well, they are the same in everything. Only the border of the leased area is different.» … «Both of them definitely bear my signature. However, I couldn’t sign two different documents! One of them is clearly a fake, but it is impossible to say which one it is…»
When the document reached the part of the table belonging to the Silent Horror clan, the girl took both papers and studied them closely, but found nothing.
Suddenly Zosimos pulled the papers towards him, carefully compared them and, clearing his throat, loudly said: «To forge the document, Isaac used the method of transferring signatures through a spatial attribute. This method is good because the signatures do not lose their shape, and the ink remains the same, but there is one drawback: along with the ink, a piece of paper from the previous document moves to the new document. Therefore, with a detailed study, you can notice a barely perceptible roughness at the place of the signature…» – while he spoke, Synergy imperceptibly merged into the sheet of paper and made the roughness more obvious so that anyone could notice it even without glasses.
Valeera looked at Zosimos in surprise: is he really a specialist in this area?
At first, the heads of clans were skeptical about this statement: «I did not notice anything like that…» … «Let me see.» … «Does anyone have a lensing technique in the arsenal?» … «I have it, give it to me!»
Lovr handed the documents to Diego, when suddenly a throwing needle flying from Isaac at an incredible speed pierced both documents, turning them into dust, and, flying near Zosimos’ neck, broke through the wall and flew somewhere further away.
The old man slammed his palms on the table and barked impatiently: «If you dare to slander me so audaciously again, the next needle will be in your forehead!»
Everyone was speechless.
{What a bastard!} – Kyon was almost as angry with Isaac as he was with Juno in his first days in this cruel world.
«You… You were just scared that we would reveal your fake!» – Valeera also raised her voice.
«No, it’s much simpler: I was fed up with this circus!» – Isaac snapped in an icy tone.
«What circus are you talking about?! We are finding out who violated the charter of the clans, but for you this is a circus?! And who are you to speak for everyone?! A lying, vile old man! So that’s how the head of the first clan acts!? Are you afraid to take responsibility?!»
Not every lord phaser at the finishing stage will have the courage to argue with a royal phaser at the 9th stage, however Valeera has handled it successfully without showing fear or insecurity.
«Your stories are annoying. I am not the kind of person who will violate the charter of the clans, and everyone knows about it. Confirm my words.» – he nodded at the head of the clan of the 7th rank, previously obligingly sucking up to him.
«It’s true… Once, at an urgent meeting, Mr. Isaac killed his son to atone for violating the charter of the clans! This act speaks for itself! It is unlikely that the respected Isaac would do such contradictory things. There is no proper motivation!»
«He may not have it, but his grandson does!» – Valeera objected and took out her last trump card: the nephrite with a recording of a conversation on the black market between her and Edward.
«Everything will be decided at the meeting. Just wait.»
«Speaking of that… Because of your trick, I had to arrange an urgent meeting. It wasn’t easy to do, you know! In short, in twelve days I recommend you not to be late.»
«Twelve days? Wonderful. So, in just twelve days, you will realize that you have been dealing with the wrong one. And now get out of my eyes, you nonentity!»
«You ungrateful bitch, you’re alive only because of my speech at the meeting! Only because of me you were allowed to found a clan, most of whose territory, by the way, you rent from my clan! And instead of at least saying «thank you», you ignored my offer of a date!»
«So that’s how it all started? Did you decide to take revenge because I didn’t hear your inarticulate babble, and you took it personally?»
«You heard everything!»
The recording stopped there.
Edward’s face twisted, as if he had found out that he had drunkenly married the aforementioned dog. He wanted to sink into the ground, just not to feel this unbearable shame. How could he have known that the girl was recording everything that happened!
Isaac, standing next to him, could barely restrain himself from wringing his useless grandson’s neck.
Based on the record, it is easy to understand what motives the guy was guided by when he broke into the warehouse: the desire to take revenge on the girl for not appreciating his help in registering the clan and ignoring the offer of a date. How pathetic and low. He so simply violated the charter of the clans, because of his disadvantaged «dignity»…
«Now you know the truth. That’s what Isaac really is.» – Valeera said triumphantly. – «Judges, I hope for a fair verdict. I would like to receive decent compensation from the Black Star clan for the murder of my clan members, for trying to appropriate the hard-won metal, for an attempt on my freedom and life, and for repeatedly trying to slander me by deceiving you all.»
Diego burst out laughing: «Ah-ha-ha! Arpha won three-nil! Ah-ha-ha! Who would have thought that she would be able to beat the head of the first shadow clan! Ah-ha-ha!»
The other clan leaders couldn’t help laughing this time either. But these were not the malevolent grins of hyenas inexorably approaching a dying lion. Not at all, there were almost welcoming smiles on their faces.
Valeera tensed. A very ominous premonition began to cover every cell of her body.