Jason had been so engrossed in his discussion with Elder Ben that he didn't even realize that he was the only person occupying him.
It was when he looked around by chance that he realized that the gazes of the surrounding people started to become more hostile.
This caused him to smile dryly as he felt that it was a little bit ridiculous how petty the messengers of the foreign races were.
However, Jason still decided that he had asked enough questions even if he had numerous things which he wanted to figure out in his mind.
Elder Ben noticed that he was holding back from asking more questions, and it didn't take him much effort to understand what silent message had been conveyed to him through the other's body language.
This caused him to feel as if Jason was more considerate than he looked like, which was great.
As such, Elder Ben stood up, followed by everyone else who was eager to walk over to the gathering hall in order to point out their concerns.
Calling the attacks of some beasts a concern was a little bit over the top, but it was exactly this reason that brought all of them together.
The majority of messengers had been tasked with finding a way to create a temporary treaty with the beasts that reigned the surrounding lands of their settlements.
However, that was, by far, not everything, which the messengers had been told to do by their soul contracted race.
There were many more reasons for them to attend the gathering.
And, the biggest, and most important piece in everyone's plan was to gain the favor of the Yinar race!
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})This was something Elder Ben had already noticed, and even the two newcomers could comprehend that the messengers didn't like seeing someone else near Elder Ben.
As such, Elder Ben turned around to Jason and Jennifer, who were still seated.
Knowing that they wouldn't be able to join them in the gathering hall, he decided to invite them.
"How about you two come with us? It should be interesting to see how the gathering progresses!"
Elder Ben made a suggestion without even thinking twice and in a carefree voice.
But his words made Jason rapidly turn towards him before squinting his eyes.
'Does he want us to turn us into sacrificial scapegoats for the messengers to take out their anger on us?!'
Jason felt that this was the most logical explanation though it felt a little odd.
This caused him to be reluctant about answering Elder Ben who was waiting for an answer.
In the end, he could only shake his head, and ignore the commotion the messengers were already causing.
"I'm not a messenger of any kind of foreign race, and I believe that my presence will unnecessarily hinder the negotiations! In fact, I'm not really a strategic person. Fighting is something I'm much better at!"
Everything Jason said was true, and there was not really any good reason for him to waste his time at the gathering hall, to begin with.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Instead of listening to everyone's forwarded demands and a lengthy discussion he had nothing to do with, he would rather cultivate or study more about the Yinar race and the Ninad beast realm!
However, Elder Ben was oddly resilient, which caused Jason to frown lightly, questioning what was on the man's mind.
"Then how about I call some of our elite and ask them to fight you later? However, as they're still cultivating, they might take a few hours before joining us. In the meantime, you can come with us!"
At that moment, Jason thought of something, but it felt extremely unlikely to be the truth.
Yet, seeing the glint in Elder Ben's eyes, he was not sure about that anymore, making him initiate a voice transmission.
[I'm sorry to say this, but can I please not be involved in the trouble the messengers create? I have no connections to them… Even if I like fighting, I don't want to offend dozens of people at once, without actively doing anything at all…]
Hearing Jason's voice in his mind, Elder Ben just smiled, ignoring the surrounding voices just as Jason did.
He didn't say anything in response but merely moved his gaze around the room.
It made everybody who had been whispering fall silent and stare at the floor uncomfortably.
It was evident that the middle-aged man had some sort of plan in mind.
But even if Jason didn't want to be involved, it looked like he had no other choice.
Otherwise, he would end up offending Elder Ben, which was certainly worse than offending a handful of messengers from other races.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})With that in mind, he nodded his head, and got up on his feet, while Jennifer simply followed his steps.
She was not sure what kind of unique conversation Jason and the Elder had, but it was clear that Jason was asked to do something he wasn't inclined to.
It didn't take her long to understand a part of the reason the Elder invited Jason.
The soft whispers had now grown into angry murmurs and it was good that Jason was walking out of the dining hall, right next to the Elder, who had grasped his shoulder.
Unable to move away, Jason could only accept his fate.
While walking alongside Elder Ben he tried to think of, a possible second reason for him to do what he was doing.
"The 'invitation' to fight your elite was also part of your plan, right? You're trying to understand how strong I truly am, or am I wrong?"
Countless thoughts were flashing through Jason's mind, and he was unable to make sense of all of them.
However, when he felt the reassuring touch of someone he had grown extremely fond of, his racing mind seemed to calm down. Jennifer had reached him, and grasped his hand, before falling in step beside him.
This made no sense because he was stronger than Jennifer, but the calm was enough to ease his mind, which was exactly what he needed right now.
Thus, he smiled at her before he heard the Elder's short answer.
"Well…all of what you've said is correct, but I think you underestimate just how interesting you are.
Your aura, the density of your mana fluctuations, and the fact that you defeated my son and the son of Elder Miliam without breaking a sweat are exceptional.
I know that our kids have yet to start gathering proper combat experience, but they're not as weak as you might think.
They told us how you overwhelmed them easily, and I want to figure out if it was just a mere coincidence with my kids or if you are truly powerful..and how high your limit is!"
Jason didn't think that this answered all of his doubts because there was more the Elder had to say.
This was something Jason was sure of.
And by remaining quiet, he caused the Elder to reveal something he never said owing to his professionalism.
"And…the messenger gatherings are always boring. Everyone just pursues the goals of their own race, without the necessary jurisdictional power to adjust their plans to start a proper negotiation.
You could say that the gathering is just a game where nobody can win, and what everyone loses is…time!
I feel that you are quite interesting, so if you feel like it ask me questions via voice transmission. That way, the two of us will get what we want!"
In the end, Elder Ben was quite the simple man, and once Jason realized this, he couldn't help but smile oddly.
Spending several days, or possibly even weeks with the messengers was time-consuming and extremely burdensome for one's mind.
This was considering the fact that none of the messengers were able to change even the slightest thing they had been told to achieve.
Because of that, Jason couldn't help but feel that the messengers looked quite pitiful and sorry.
He got a pretty decent idea that might make everything much easier, except for him or others.
However, that was totally fine with Jason.
[How about I fight everyone one after another, and only those who defeat me are eligible to attend the gathering?]
