Ch33.On the right track.

Two weeks have passed and the time of testing will be over in two days. During this time, the plans I have been implementing for my gang have started to take shape. I am not very good at thinking of names so I just decided to call us the 'Shadow Clan'. I have used this name for multiple reasons, firstly I don't want to be called a gang anymore, as those tend to be short lived. I want to create a large clan that will last the tests of time and I hope to eventually start my own mafia family who will control this clan. I hope that it will become large enough that it will then be able to help me in later reincarnations as well.

The word 'shadow' represents that we work in the shadows and that none of our actual business shall be exposed to the light. It may also just be my inner nerd talking, 'but I fucking love that name!'

During the first week we have just been organizing our territory and slowly getting the residents and business owners in our territory to come under our 'Protection'. We haven't openly forced anyone to join us yet, but we make an active note not to look after those who don't pay us. I believe that, in time, everyone will accept their fate and come under my protection.

During the last week we have been searching for desperate people who are in dire need of money, as well as some local thugs. There are two kinds of thugs we have 'scouted', those who are either interested in joining us as the rumor that our members are well paid has been deliberately leaked. Then the others we have forced to join since they have caused trouble for people under my protection, they will now have to pay for their actions as I believe that making an example of these people as early as possible can only benefit my operation.

We approached the first group of people, enticing them with the possible rewards of large sums of monetary gains as well as offers to help them solve their problems, should they perform well enough. Most of them were skeptical of our offer and were not too sure if we could be trusted, the ones that accepted were out of options and our offer was their last chance. We don't force those who refuse our offer, as I believe that they will definitely accept in time. I believe that after our name becomes known on the street, they will no longer have any reason to refuse. I have also made sure to not over do it, and we have only invited people that we can be easily controlled.

We have decided that we will launch our cage fighting event every Friday from now on. I don't want to rush things, but I do need a stable source of income in case learning Magic requires any extra resources.

Today is the first time we will be launching our cage fighting event and we have kept our audience relatively small, just 10 participants as well as a small crowd of approximately 30 spectators. After everyone has arrived and has been led to the arena through a few discrete secret entrances that I have set up at different locations. I don't want people walking through my house, so I created tunnel entrances that lead to my basement from a few other abandoned houses within my territory.

Before the everyone arrives I have entered my exclusive viewers box, attached to the center of the celling so that I could get a nice view of everything that was happening. I sat back and got comfortable on a nice big couch, right next to a bar stocked up with my favorite alcohol.

Birdhead will be managing these events from now on, as I will be spending most of my time at the Academy and I will, therefore have no time to deal with these things. I will just act as the big boss behind the scenes, and only make a move when necessary.

---------(Birdhead POV)---------

I walked out towards the crowd, wearing the suit Boss has ordered us to wear. Apparently it makes us look all nice and smart, I have however added some white gloves to my outfit as I think that I need a unique look of my own, since I am higher ranking than the other clan members.

I then looked around at everyone before gathering their attention and saying "Hello everyone, I am pleased that you could all make it today. My name is Geroud, and I will be the host of today's event." After saying that, I signaled towards two clan members who then walked up to either side of me. I then continued, "To my right is Evenit, he is in charge of all money and bets. Before each match starts, you may bet money on who you think will win the fight. If you are lucky or have good observation skills, there is a chance you end up doubling your money tonight!!"

After that I proceeded by saying, "To the fighters, you will each fight up to 3 times depending on whether you are capable of fighting or not. Each time you win, we will be giving you 1 silver coin, the losers won't go home empty handed though, you will each get 10 copper to thank you for your efforts."

I paused a bit as the fighters all got a bit excited at the prospects at making that much money. Although we previously told them that they would be paid, I don't think they even considered that it would be this much. You need to remember that these people are desperate and would fight to the death over a single copper coin. I then continued while gesturing to my left, "To my left is Trenada, he will be our judge, referee and announcer. He will comment on the fights during the match, and he decides when a match is over as well as who wins."

After some more explaining, I took a step back and motioned for Evenit and Trenada to take over. Evenit was a short skinny guy who has short spiky hair, slanted eyes and an unnaturally small nose. Although he is quite the funny looking fella, there is no doubt about his skills with numbers, he is so obsessed with money that I will triple check every time he counts money, regardless of the amount 'I am not joking I have once seen him recount 5 coins for a minute...'. So there is absolutely no way he will make a mistake when money is involved.

Trenada is the guy who apparently hit boss over the head during our first encounter, he is a chubby guy of above average height, he wears an eye patch over his right eye and he has recently started shaving his head bald, trying to imitate Boss . His only real quality, is that he loves to talk, I mean seriously, he never shuts up. Therefore I believe this is the place where he will shine. As long as he can draw the audience in and provide them with an enjoyable experience, all the while explaining why each match was either a win or loss, will be one of the main factors that decides whether this cage fighting event will succeed or fail.

Trenada enthusiastically explained the rules to the fighters, which were pretty simple: don't kill your opponent and try to avoid causing any permanent harm. Everything else was permitted. The fighters were then matched up with opponents of similar stature and escorted into the cage before a bell was rung, signaling the start of the match.

That was when, something we didn't expect happened, all hell broke loose in the cage. Just imagine a picture of putting two desperate people in a ring with the promise of great returns assuming they win. . . Yes it was a brutal and bloody scene with fighters using every means they can think of to win, including biting and low blows. The crowd, however, loved it and along with Trenadas' overly excited commentary, the crowd really got into the mood, cheering on the fighters they liked and booing at their opponents.

---------(Rob POV)---------

As the night went on, the betting grew more intense, along with Evenit manipulating people to add more and more money, the spectators were basically throwing their money at their favorite fighters. Even though some of them made quite some money, all I can think of is a famous saying in my past life, 'The House always wins.' I believe that this is universally true, as even though I may make a loss in the first few events, as this becomes more popular, I believe that number of participants and spectators will increase and so will our profits. That is when we will slowly start match fixing, and making people lose on purpose. There is still a long road ahead of us, I can't wait till there is a steady stream of gambling addicts coming here. That is when I will start making real money, I may even consider opening an underground casino somewhere. 'I am not sure if they have casinos here, but even if they do I will simply make an illegal underground one where people can indulge in more of their secret desire.'

Anyway Birdhead will be in charge of most of my initial ideas, I have more important things to think about at the moment, my Academy life starts in two days!