Thump! Thump! Thump!
The group led by Platinum Head gasped in exhaustion as they quickly became dirt that covered the floor, waiting in silence as a large Invader made its way through the corridor.
It was beyond their expectations, for they had only prepared to face a Two Star Invader at this moment.
'Be calm and act as practiced.' Platinum Head mentally reinforced his beliefs, waiting in patience until the Invader before them entered a room. As the building they were raiding was a hotel, there were chances of some unforeseen variables arriving in the form of customers.
And the one that appeared now was a Three Star Invader. It was damn strong, and upon seeing it, Platinum Head wasn't sure if he could subdue it.
He was still strong enough to somehow win against it. But the conflict would cause too much commotion and would alert practically every Invader in the region of their existence. That would put their mission in jeopardy.
So, they had to do everything in their means to maintain their actions in stealth. As the Three Star Invader was a major figure in the region, the boss of the hotel, a Two Star Invader, came to personally receive the guest.
Only after entertaining the guest did the hotel boss leave. As seeing its figure, Platinum Head motioned towards his group, "Move, now, now."
The group exercised their stealth and made a long reroute of their path, not even having the slightest intention of sauntering within the range of the Three Star Invader's senses.
"I can only mask our presence for two more minutes before the Three Star Invader would come to learn about our existence." The dragon plushie hovering beside Platinum Head said in a hurry, "It is stronger than I had expected."
"Two minutes…" Platinum Head frowned before nodding at his group as they rushed out. He snapped his finger when suddenly, the staff of the hotel began to move to their favour, masking their movements.
"That was exhausting." The Hotel Boss sighed in exhaustion upon entering its room, flinching in surprise to see the door close suddenly. At the same time, the lights in the room went off as its senses momentarily blacked out.
"Gah!" A stream of platinum flowed into its mouth, preventing it from shouting. Embedded in its arms were chainsaws and spinning nails. But before they were activated, one of the A-Class Heroes unleashed an ability that stunned it, following which a stream of platinum covered it.
"You…" The Hotel Boss was unable to utter any cries for help as it was fully wrapped up in a bubble of platinum before which a choker made its way through the platinum sphere and seeped into its neck before transforming into its nervous system.
A minute later, Platinum Head retracted the platinum streams, gasping in exhaustion as he collapsed to the ground, "It's finally done."
The Hotel Boss was under their control now. And immediately after, it helped up Platinum Head before saying, "I understand your plan. The fastest way is to bring my siblings to our side too."
The Hotel Boss had four brothers and three sisters, and each of them owned a large hotel in this region. And combined, they ran an underground gambling den where there was even an avenue for Invaders to fight and kill each other.
The spectators would make bets and win prizes depending on the outcome of the match.
Of course, the dragon plushies had already figured out this through divination. It was a collective consciousness originating from such a Cultivation World after all. That was why they targeted this place.
As long as they took control of the underground gambling den, they would be able to kidnap Invaders for their purpose.
The family of the Hotel Boss controlled this part of the city, so gaining control over it took priority.
"You'll be discovered the moment you leave this hotel." The Hotel Boss said before announcing, "I'll call my siblings one after another. We'll help you bring everyone to your side."
"That's a sound plan." Platinum Head nodded in response as his group entered a meeting room and began their preparations, hiding as they activated their abilities to set up a trap.
The Hotel Boss, the Invader named Muuto called one of its siblings and brought them to the meeting room when immediately, Platinum Head pounced on the latter to bring it under control. Muuto too helped constrain the Invader, which made it easier to subdue it.
Following that, they called for one more sibling as the two converted siblings worked together to subdue it first before Platinum Head brought it under control.
Within a couple of hours, all eight siblings were under their control when they summoned their parent, a Three Star Invader. With eight siblings ganging upon one unsuspecting parent that was caught in a trap, they won somehow.
And with that, they eventually gained control over the entire family. With a Three Star Invader on their side, Platinum Head could finally begin their mission, and that was to target the Three Star Invader that was a guest.
It was pretty easy to do so as so many Invaders and Heroes overwhelmed the sole target, making them too part of their clout.
'A Three Star Invader is too precious to vanish mysteriously. We need to be careful.' Thinking as such, Platinum Head worked with the Invader Family to organise gambling events, gradually bringing the spectators under their control one after another.
"Is this the place?" A Three Star Invader asked, entering the gambling den, "I can bet on myself, right?"
"Of course, Lord." Muuto said with a bright expression, "You'll gain ten times the amount if you win against our resident Three Star that has won a dozen matches."
"This will be fun, Lord." Accompanying the Three Star Invader was his wife and a couple of servants, resembling demons in appearance. They had been bored recently and hence, starving for entertainment.
"Watch me win." The Three Star Invader smirked in response before jumping on the stage, hearing the raucous cheers of the crowd as he watched the opponent saunter in casually, sporting a terrifying aura, 'Heh, I'm stronger. I can win this easily…'
"Kyak!" Suddenly, his wife shouted in alarm as a group of Two Star Invaders pounced upon her.
"These bastards!" The Three Star Invader was about to jump at them when he noticed in alarm that the stage collapsed into a pool of platinum. His opponent jumped at him, clamping upon him after transforming into a terrifying marine monster to repeatedly punch him.
Upon sensing the energy signature from the platinum pool, the Three Star Invader screamed, "You…traitors!"
Clap! Clap! Clap!
His face paled in despair upon seeing the crowd continue to clap cheerfully, their expressions curling up into a smile, only then realising that he had fallen into a severe trap, "Everyone else is a traitor?"
