Max watched from a rooftop, waiting for the moment to act. The building below, which used to be a hotel, was now occupied by the Victory Guild.

  One interesting thing about the post-apocalypse world was that lots of buildings that had previously been hotels had been converted into apartments or even guild buildings like this one. Fewer people traveled, and there were fewer people anymore at all. Hotels had largely stopped being relevant in the new world for several reasons. In fact, now that mages could manufacture housing quickly and easily, the highest demand for places like this one was its location.

  Max studied the Victory Guild headquarters. There were hints that it had been a hotel in the past, but now the entire building was branded for its new purpose. Max thought the effect was like something out of a superhero cartoon.

  He was currently standing on top of an office building that was still being used as such. Max suspected that different companies were using the place now than before he went to the Quartet, but maybe not. A surprising number of large businesses had survived the collapse. Some of them had proven to be as tenacious as cockroaches.

  Max saw the Trifecta Guild member and others arriving below. They trickled in slowly at first, then so quickly it looked like people going to an event. In no time flat, there was a line of police and members of the Patriot Guild mulling around, getting ready to form a line. Max had instructed them not to actually create a barrier until he made his appearance. By this point, if anybody inside the Victory Guild was paying attention, they had to know that something was going to happen.

  After Max gave one more glance below, making sure that all the necessary players were present, he paused for a couple more minutes. Sure enough, in that brief time frame, several small, buzzing constructs and tech-based drones joined him.

  The number of the reporters below were steadily increasing.

  Max grinned, the expression savage. Chad had definitely done his job well. As soon as everything kicked off, there would be wide media coverage. Quite a few people that Max had been keeping in the dark were going to find out that he was back on Earth. Some of them probably weren't going to be happy with him. With that cheery thought, he stepped off the roof and summoned ectoplasmic wings to glide down to the street below.

  Challengers flying wasn't exactly forbidden everywhere, but it was definitely frowned upon for safety reasons, with emergencies being an exception. But enough challengers could fly that it wasn't shocking. It still drew attention, though. A number of people pointed upwards, and a decent number of eyes were on Max before he even landed in front of the Victory Guild.

  Standing out in front of the guild were three big men wearing suits. They were obviously working as some sort of security, and Max could feel that they had decent power. He suspected that they were somewhere around a B-Rank adventurers. One of them, a guy with a fair complexion and cauliflower ears, said, "Nice wings. If you don't have business with the Victory Guild, move along."

  If the three men were nervous about the massive crowd ringing the building, they were hiding it well.

  People behind Max in the crowd tried to get a good view of what was happening. The reporters had been clued in ahead of time, so even more cameras and magical recording devices appeared. The police officers, supported by Patriot Guild members, quickly and professionally created a barrier around the building. Onlookers, including members of the Trifecta Guild, goggled as they tried to make sense of what was happening.

  Suddenly, Chad shouted, "Justice for the Trifecta Guild!" His face looked like he had just sucked on a lemon, and Max knew that his friend was incredibly embarrassed to be making a scene like this, especially in a way where he could be potentially seen as weak.

  But the shouting really helped set the stage.

  With a flourish, Max removed the documents that he'd brought, holding them aloft, and shouted, "My name is Max Cunningham. I created the Trifecta Guild! Chad, over there, has been serving as the guild leader while I was gone and doing an admirable job. I do not plan to replace him. However, I am here to address some disturbing events, and oath-breaking.” Max turned to the three guards and shouted, “I demand to speak to the guild leaders of the Victory Guild to settle this matter in a way that I find satisfactory!"

  He'd put mana into his lungs and throat, so his voice echoed like a bullhorn. The milling crowd behind him had become silent, and phones made clicking noises as people took pictures with their cameras. Even those who hadn't gotten a heads-up for what was about to take place could tell that something big was going down. In the midst of the silence, somewhere behind him, he could hear Blake call out, "Max? Max, is that really you!?"

  Max didn’t turn. He tuned out Blake as well as anybody else who might call out to get his attention. His heart was pounding, less in fear than excitement. He knew that if things went badly from this point on, he might die. But this was something he had to do, and even though putting everything on the line could be terrifying, it was exhilarating sometimes as well.

  The three hired thugs in front of the building goggled at Max. He knew that they were not prepared for this. More than likely, they'd been sent out to make sure that nobody entered the building without permission and also to communicate what was going on to those inside. Theyd probably just suspected that the reporters were going to try for some sort of aggressive line of questioning.

  Using his enhanced voice again, Max held up the documents and said, "A significant number of Victory Guild members, including the current guild leaders, came from my Trifecta Guild. What's more, they have stolen the techniques I developed! I have the right–morally, magically, and legally, to demand justice for the betrayal that has occurred!" Max held the documents up for everybody to see. Pulling out an extra copy that he had rolled up, he threw it to the nearest group of reporters, using a bit of mana to prevent it from flapping around or being damaged on the way.

  If anybody present had been a Blade Sorcerer from Albion, that casual display of mana control would have been terrifying. Inside Max's soul space, Lavinia shook as she witnessed what Max had just done. However, nobody else present understood what he’d just demonstrated. The reporters caught the documents and then began pouring over them like hungry hyenas, using their cameras and other recording devices to get quick scans of every page of the contract.

  Max raised his voice again. "I demand to speak to the Lynch Brothers right now. If I am rebuffed or denied, I will take it as a declaration of war by the Victory Guild!"

  Like startled rabbits, the crowd stared at Max. There was another deep silence from the watching crowd. As far as Max knew, this was the first time they'd heard anybody announce a potential, out-in-the-open war between guilds. Plenty of headlines over the years had used the word “war,” but nobody in leadership positions of any guild had actually publicly announced anything like it for obvious reasons.

  Max knew that dozens, if not hundreds, of people behind him were probably furiously trying to fact-check who he was and whether he really was the creator of the Trifecta Guild. But a handful of people who were a bit more clever or maybe a bit smarter just glanced at the group of Trifecta Guild members led by Chad. The Trifect guild leader, clad in armor and prepared for battle, merely gave one single nod. For those paying attention, that was enough.

  The thugs at the door were not stupid and not easily cowed. Two of them glared at Max, still blocking his access, while the third whispered something into a lapel mic. While they were doing so, Max kept his momentum, shouting, "I demand justice for the Trifecta Guild! How dare these Challengers promise loyalty in exchange for my techniques, for a new Path, and then leave to create their own guild!? I have been wronged, and so has my guild. I demand an explanation. And more, I demand remuneration. Our Trifecta guild demands justice!"

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  The thug who had been whispering into his mic stopped his conversation, cleared his throat, and using an ability similar to Max's to project his voice. “One moment, please, sir," said the goon. "Someone is coming to speak to you." He paused and then added, "One of the guild leaders."

  Max nodded. The goon continued, "Max Cunningham, the guild leader is asking for some identification before he gets here."

  Max held up his Challenger ID card, knowing that with all the technology and Challengers present, there were probably plenty of people who could clearly read it. He said, "My name is Max Cunningham, rank C challenger. I am the founder of the Trifecta Guild. This is reflected not only in the registration papers of the Trifecta Guild but also in historical documents in the form of television news stories during the early days of the outbreak. The Trifecta Guild's first portal attack was documented by news crews before we were even officially a recognized guild. As the founding member and the originator of the techniques that imparted a second Path to personnel who left the Guild with Toby and Sam Lynch, it is my right to demand answers and satisfaction."

  The murmuring in the crowd outside grew louder. A handful of people from the Trifecta Guild who recognized Max were trying to push through the line of police officers and Patriot Guild members to get closer. They called his name, but Max continued to ignore them. Amongst the others who were murmuring or even just speaking out loud, he could already predict what some of them were probably saying. The fact that he was only a C-Rank was no doubt being discussed.

  Max wasn’t worried about any of the reporters losing interest because of his revealed rank.

  Some of the reporters who had shown up said they would start recording live immediately. Max had no idea what kind of audience this altercation had now, but he knew that before everything was over, it was going to grow.

  Are you ready, Anansi? Max thought-projected.

  I'm ready, boss.

  Good.

  A few minutes later, Max's acute hearing picked up approaching footsteps inside the building. The entire time he'd been standing out front, Lavinia had been quietly updating him with the number of Victory members inside. The speed at which they'd been building defensive emplacements within had slowed after Max announced his rank, but none of the alerted Guild members had left.

  It probably wasn't every day that an unknown Challenger started shouting and making public accusations on the front steps of a powerful guild, after all.

  Finally, the doors opened, and two more people stepped out. One was a man with a floating television screen behind him. He wore formal, but comfortable-looking clothing. The other was a woman in a suit whose eyes glittered as she said, "Max Cunningham, I presume? My name is Elena Smith. I am one of the Victory Guild attorneys. This is Joss Henderson. He is one of our audio-visual Challengers."

  The man inclined his head, and the TV that was floating behind him moved around so that Max and all the people watching from the street could see it. Max could feel the energies of Western Wind Style on Joss, the TV guy.

  Max projected, Anansi, I need to know about that guy.

  The Divine Spirit's mental voice came back immediately. He's been compromised, boss. This place is infected for sure.

  Shit, thought Max. This whole altercation could have gone down several different ways. In fact, he'd been hoping to reabsorb the Victory Guild members who'd learned Western Wind Style back into the Trifecta guild. However, Anansi had just verified Max's worst hunch.

  Demonic energy, huh? asked Max.

  Yup.

  Shit, he repeated.

  Suddenly, the TV screen flickered to life, and a man's face came into high-definition existence. He said, "Hello everyone, I'm Sam Lynch."

  Max narrowed his eyes as he got his first look at one of the two brothers who'd fractured his guild. Sam Lynch was of ambiguous ethnicity. He was bald with a beard and had a small tattoo at the corner of his eye that looked like a scorpion. His forehead had a number of deep lines, and Max couldn't quite put his finger on how old he was. The man could be thirty or fifty.

  With a patronizing voice, Sam said, "Max. Can I call you Max? Normally, I wouldn't take the time to meet with some random C-rank person who shows up on my steps demanding to talk. Not only am I a busy man, but there's also my safety to worry about."

  "Safety? Aren't you an S-rank Challenger?" interrupted Max. "What are you worried about?"

  There were more murmurs in the crowd behind him. Sam Lunch forced a smile. "Perhaps. However, I don't believe you've fought on the front line yet, but maybe after you do, you might understand. There are dangers in this world far more challenging than anything we might have seen in the Quartet."

  Nice, thought Max. Good, subtle threat there. This guy is good. I’m kind of impressed.

  Lavinia didn't agree, though. She mentally said, I hate this guy already. Everything he's doing right now is calculated to be as disrespectful as possible, isn't it?

  Pretty much. If he didn't reply to any of my accusations or show up at all, it would be a bigger news story, so this whole thing is just damage control."

  I thought so, sent Lavinia. Anyway, I don't see any more defenders arriving. I haven't seen or heard of any new people moving into the lobby in front of you. There's about ten right now, though.

  Got it. Thank you.

  Sam continued, "I'm sure it must be very confusing and frustrating to come back to Earth and find out that the guild you started is falling on hard times. But although the world is in danger, we still have law. We still have emails. None of this was necessary."

  Suddenly, the woman who had come out, the lawyer, Elena, cocked her head and said, "Excuse me, sir, can I ask Max a question?"

  "Of course, go ahead, Elena. We are totally transparent here. That's why we're having this meeting in front of all these good people."

  The lawyer fixed Max with a sharp eye and asked, "If you just returned from the Quartet, how is it possible that you started the Trifecta Guild after everyone had already been transported to the Quartet? Wouldn’t you have been in the Quartet at that time? You only just returned to Earth a short time ago, right?"

  Sam Lunch’s expression changed. He obviously believed that Elena had just caught Max in a lie. "That is a good question, Elena. Max, care to explain to all these people how all that happened?"

  Max nodded and slightly turned to address everybody. He said, "It's actually pretty simple. I just came back to Earth for a few days before I went back to the Quartet."

  "Oh, I see," said Sam, nodding indulgently. Then he narrowed his eyes. "What?"

  "You heard me," said Max. "I took a brief trip back from the Quartet, met up with my friends, killed some monsters, taught my friends some things, and then I went back to the Quartet."

  Being intentionally vague to imply that he taught Western Wind Style to his friends during this time, he knew that none of the original Trifecta members had ever disclosed how they knew Western Wind Style. All the reporters in the crowd behind him were taking furious notes as Sam scowled and said, "That's impossible."

  Max smirked. "Supposedly impossible or not, I would bet money that I've got more than a dozen truth seekers or Paths that can detect lies focused on me right now. Probably more. I am sure that some of them even use divinations, so whether I believe something is truth or not is irrelevant. And I can also predict that none of them have found a single lie in my words so far."

  The Victory guild leader stared at him, and before he could say anything more, Max said, "Look, Sam, I don't like you. I think you're a piece of shit. You broke the contract that you signed in multiple ways with the Trifecta Guild. You've stolen my techniques and profited immensely from it. On top of that, you suppressed the Trifecta Guild in a vindictive and somewhat cowardly way. I demand that you and your equally piece of shit brother disband your guild and that every member of the Victory Guild who is on the Mana Swordsman Path join the American military and help full-time with the front line against the monsters, or... or there will be consequences."

  "What kind of consequences?" asked Sam with amusement in his voice.

  "Whichever kind I decide," said Max. He enunciated clearly, raising the volume of his voice with mana. "If you do not adhere to my demands or return with a compromise that I find acceptable, then we will be at an impasse, and I will have no choice but to declare war on the Victory Guild."

  "Is that so?" said Sam. Then he laughed. He looked beyond Max and said, "For all the people watching today, including people at home, I hope you have seen this and understand that we are dealing with a crazy person. I think I have shown great patience already in dealing with this individual, but I am a busy man, and I don't have time for any more theatrics."

  Max held up a finger. "If you leave, I am going to take that as your answer. That will mean you will accept any and all consequences for your refusal to make this right."

  Sam laughed again. He said, "This has been an interesting break from the monotony of my normal work, Max." He said Max's name with a mocking tone. "Thank you. However, I truly don't have time for you today. Please get help. But before you do, get off of my property.” Then he turned slightly, presumably looking at a different camera. “Guards, get this troubled man off of our doorstep. Chad, I know you’re out there in the crowd. You need to control your disturbed guild members better."

  Then, the TV screen cut out. Noise erupted from the crowd behind him, and the three thugs began moving towards Max even as the lawyer and the TV guy quickly moved through the double doors back into the lobby, away from what they no doubt assumed would be Max's beatdown.

  Instead of retreating, Max sent one simple message to all of his spirits: It’s go time.