Negotiations with Julia

Julia had only run into Lucky by chance.

But since they had met, she might as well make the most of it.

As it happened, Julia had something she wanted to discuss with Lucky.

Ever since establishing themselves in the Heavenly Arena, Conrad had undergone considerable changes in just half a year.

Most importantly, several fighters had joined the family.

Of course, many people might look down on fighters. No matter how skilled they were, a single bullet could still put them down.

But Julia was different. She knew that "superhumans" existed in this world, people with extraordinary powers.

The Mafia in Keli City understood that better than anyone.

After all, there were no viewing restrictions on matches above the Heavenly Arena's 200th Floor. Anyone who paid could watch them.

Naturally, they would notice how different the battles above the 200th Floor were.

Mafia battles often involved blades and guns.

Some of the more powerful Mafia groups could even bring out heavier weapons.

But Julia was different. She was intelligent enough to know that even with the same weapons, the results would differ depending on who wielded them.

Not to mention that she wanted to get in touch with that mysterious power known as Nen.

She was an ambitious woman.

There were very few female leaders in the Mafia.

As a direct descendant of the Conrad Family, she was not the current leader's only daughter. She had quite a few brothers and sisters.

Unlike the Nostrade Family in the anime, Nostrade had risen entirely through Neon's Fortune Telling ability.

A large Mafia family usually had no shortage of family members.

Even as the eldest daughter, Julia had never been considered a contender for the position of family leader.

And as a woman, she found it difficult to gain the acceptance of most Mafia members.

So she had taken another path, beginning to display her "kindness" while taking over businesses with little profit, industries that most people did not want.

Through charity and generosity, she had gathered a group of people fiercely loyal to her.

And her luck had been exceptionally good, allowing her to encounter two girls with "superpowers."

Her meeting with Lucky, as well as their cooperation in the Heavenly Arena, had also earned her some recognition within the family.

The Heavenly Arena business remained under her control, but she handed over most of its profits.

Her true goal was to befriend the fighters one by one.

The reason Lucky had found it strange that Conrad had made no move was because all of this was Julia's personal undertaking.

As Lucky's status rose, Julia wanted to cooperate with him on a deeper level.

But first, she needed to know what Lucky wanted.

Money alone was probably no longer something he valued.

"So, what is it?" Lucky asked.

"I want to cooperate with you, and on a deeper level." Julia understood Lucky's temperament well enough to get straight to the point.

"Cooperate?" Lucky first looked puzzled, then turned his gaze toward Julia.

"That's right. A partnership between you and me personally."

Lucky understood. Leaning lazily against the sofa, he asked, "Then what can you offer me?"

Lucky could guess much of Julia's intentions from her actions.

What he was considering now, of course, was what a Mafia family could offer him.

Julia, meanwhile, thought highly of Lucky. At his age, he had already become a referee on the Heavenly Arena's 200th Floor, and his father was also the Heavenly Arena's chief referee.

Barring any surprises, Lucky would inevitably become the Heavenly Arena's chief referee.

As long as the Heavenly Arena's "Directors" did not interfere, the chief referee was the one who controlled the Heavenly Arena.

That control extended beyond the Heavenly Arena's violent industries. He would also command a large force and maintain ties with every Martial Arts School.

If she could gain Lucky's support...

Then not only the Conrad Family, but even the whole of Keli City would be within reach.

"Whatever Lord Lu Qi wants." With those words, Julia had already placed herself in an inferior position.

Lucky began to think.

The Mafia groups were all interconnected. With the Mafia's extensive network of connections, Lucky could indeed gain considerable convenience in certain matters.

Martial Arts Schools, the Hunter Association, the Mafia...

Those things kept flashing through Lucky's mind. If he could build a network from them, it would be of great help to him.

Lucky now understood Julia's series of actions.

She was a clever woman.

"Then what is your goal?" Lucky asked.

Lucky was weighing his options.

Julia, however, understood that Lucky was interested.

Julia loudly declared her goal, then gave a speech about how women could also become underworld leaders.

At first, she had merely refused to accept her father's choice. But now, she wanted the world to know her name.

Of course, her current goal was still to become Keli City's Mafia boss.

That was enough for Lucky.

They discussed the matter for a while.

They did not agree to cooperate immediately. Lucky wanted to see what Julia was capable of.

A properly maintained road leading to another city.

If Julia could accomplish that, Lucky would choose to cooperate with her.

That was no simple request.

First of all, the cost of building the road alone would be enormous, and the construction process would involve many dangers.

It was not something that could be accomplished through manpower and money alone.

Julia also had a small request of her own. If she succeeded,

she hoped Lucky would tell her about "superpowers."

Though her two bodyguards had mastered Nen, they did not truly understand it. At most, they knew how to use Ten.

They were the daughters of a Martial Artist. One day, someone seeking revenge had killed their father, and that person had been a Nen Ability user.

Struck by Nen, their Aura Nodes had been forcibly opened.

That Nen Ability user believed the two children would certainly die.

He paid them no further attention, never expecting that at the brink of death, they would master Nen and survive rather than die from their opened Aura Nodes leaking away.

Later, Julia took them in while they were wandering.

Lucky was not surprised.

Nen Ability was not widely known, and even those who possessed Nen Ability rarely taught others about Nen.

Even if someone knew Nen existed, without knowing the specifics, they could only fumble their way through cultivation alone.

There were fighters like that on the Heavenly Arena's 200th Floor.

And people who had mastered Nen Ability generally did not want too many others to learn Nen. Kind-hearted people believed this power could bring chaos and harm.

Evil people feared that others might master powers greater than their own, or that if too many people possessed it, they would no longer be so special.

Some people in high positions lacked the talent themselves, yet feared that too many people learning Nen would threaten their status.

So they imposed certain restrictions as well.

Just like the Ten Dons in the anime. With their influence, they could easily have built a force of Nen Ability users, but fearing they could not control them, they limited themselves to the ten Shadow Beasts.