I Became the Demon King of Lust

Seeing that I had no choice, I told her about what happened with Sasha in the first dungeon I went to.

And by that…I meant that I told her the fake story that we had already come up with.

By the end of it, she looked at me with narrowed eyes even though I had finished my story, making me feel awkward. But I didn't say anything else and just waited for her to say something.

After a long silence, Bing Lan said with a soft snort, "So it's a hero saving the beauty kind of situation. You really are something else."

Though that should have seemed like a compliment, the tone of her voice made it clear that it wasn't.

I just revealed an awkward smile without saying anything else.

Bing Lan then said with a sigh, "So you're saying that there isn't that kind of relationship between the two of you?"

I was a bit surprised and confused to hear this question, but I shook my head in response.

Bing Lan gave another sigh before saying with a serious look, "Don't tell any of this to Xin'er."

When this gaze of hers was on me, it felt like there was another chill running down my spine. It was almost as if she was threatening me here, but it wasn't as if I would do that in the first place, so it was unnecessary.

I just gave a slow nod in response to this strong reaction from her.

Seeing this, Bing Lan gave a sigh before muttering something to herself.

I didn't hear it clearly, but I did hear a few fragments…

"I'm still single…Why do I have to care about my little sister's love life…This is unfair…"

I just turned away and pretended that I didn't hear anything.

After taking some time to adjust, Bing Lan turned back to me and said, "For now, I'll let this incident slide since it's just a small matter." But then after a pause, she said, "Of course, you should know what you need to do, right?"

As she said this, her eyes once again narrowed as she looked at me.

This time, she was looking at me as the guild master of Elementia.

The pressure that she put on me wasn't small…

But the gist of what she was implying was…if I wanted Elementia's protection, naturally I would need to offer them something that would make it worth it for them.

So I had already discussed this last night with Sasha.

She and I had come up with a number that we could accept to give up to Elementia, but that was of course the worst case scenario. If we could get away with giving less, then we would try to give less.

I just calmly looked back at her as she looked at me.

This was not the time to show any fear since this was a proper negotiation.

If I were to show any cracks, it would mean losing the upper hand.

After taking a moment to calm myself, I said, "How much do you want?"

Bing Lan's eyes revealed a trace of surprise hearing this, making it clear that she didn't expect me to respond with this.

In the end, she said, "20%."

I couldn't help revealing a surprised look when I heard this.

Seeing this look on my face, Bing Lan revealed a faint smile.

It took me a minute to come back to my senses before slowly asking, "20%, are you sure?"

Bing Lan said with a teasing smile, "Are you offering more?"

I didn't say anything, but the look in my eyes made it clear that I thought that this was very little.

After all, the number that Sasha and I had come up with in the end was at 50%.

This was one of the top guilds in the world, so we were certain that their protection wasn't cheap. 50% might seem like a lot, but with the support that came from being under Elementia, it would definitely be worth it.

But 20%...this seemed like it was a trap.

Like there was another catch to it.

After a long silence, I asked again, "Are you sure that it's only 20%?"

This time, I even made sure to stress that 20% part.

The teasing smile on Bing Lan's face disappeared as she said with a faint smile, "Don't think too much about it. It's because you're a member of our guild that we're offering that price, or else it would be much higher. The standard rate for outsiders is usually at least 50% and it's gone up as high as 80%. That is just how much value and prestige we have as one of the top guilds."

Hearing this, I couldn't help slowly giving a nod.

That was right, this seemed more like it…

If Elementia were to actually support a business, they would deserve far more than just 50% because of all the things that they could offer.

So 50% was only a best case scenario amount that would only be given to the best businesses that earned them the most money. It was a form of reward for their good business sense and their hard work.

For other businesses…they would most likely have to give up 80% of their business for Elementia's help.

20% really was a good…no, great friends and family discount.

Since that was the case, there was no need to hesitate any further on this.

I said with a simple nod, "Alright, let's do 20%."

Bing Lan gave a nod with a faint smile before saying, "I'll go and call the rest of them in, then we'll sign the contract for this."

She was about to stand up when I suddenly remembered something, so I said, "Wait, I have something to discuss with you first."

Bing Lan had been halfway up from her seat when she heard this, so she sat back down and looked at me, waiting to hear what I had to say.

I calmly said, "How much do you know about Hayato's handler?"