Max stood on the outskirts of Kain-city, the bustling energy of the city feeling oppressive with the approach of so many powerhouses. The General, the retired A-rank adventurer, the elite students, and even the adventurer group moving its base, all of it set off warning bells in his mind.

Originally he wanted to stay a a day or two within the city, but his plans had to change.

While he was confident in his ability to handle an A-rank opponent if needed, the idea of multiple high-level threats in one place was enough to make him reconsider his position.

With his decision made, Max turned and headed toward the mountains outside the city.

...

Hours later, he arrived at his destination: a certain mountain, it wasn't the closest to the city, but if according to the Oubach's digging path, they must pass through here at one point.

Lucy did her usual work as she control the mountain and set a place for Max to stay in.

The house was a simple yet elegant structure, carved directly into the mountainside with precision and care.

The cool mountain air was refreshing, and Max was getting used to the quiet solitude of such places.

He stepped inside, taking a moment to survey the space before pulling out his phone.

"Time to handle business," he muttered, dialing Charles's number.

...

Charles sat stiffly in a dimly lit meeting room, his nerves frayed as he glanced around at the rough-looking individuals surrounding him. The atmosphere was suffocating, filled with tension and barely restrained aggression.

He might of over did it a little while recruiting.

To his left, a man with his legs propped up on the table snored lightly, seemingly indifferent to the entire situation. Across the table, another man stared daggers at Charles, his expression practically screaming, I'll kill you.

A third individual, wearing dark sunglasses indoors, leaned back in his chair, his face unreadable. Meanwhile, two others were huddled together, gambling with a deck of cards. They whispered and chuckled, occasionally glancing up to ensure they weren't being watched too closely.

Another person leaned back in his chair, taking a long, slow drag from his cigarette, exhaling a thick plume of smoke into the already tense air. He seemed utterly indifferent to the meeting, his half-lidded eyes scanning the room with lazy amusement, while flicking ash onto the floor without care.

Among the group sat Ryan and his friends but they were just as nervous as Charles if not worst.

.....

Charles swallowed hard, feeling out of place among the cutthroats and criminals. Just as he was beginning to question his life choices, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He scrambled to answer it, recognizing the number immediately.

"Yes! Yes! Of course, I'll handle it!" Charles stammered, nodding even though Max couldn't see him. "Right away!"

He ended the call, his hands trembling slightly as he stood. Without another word, he left the room, leaving the assorted rogues to their own devices.

.....

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Vera adjusted her seat, her sharp eyes scanning the room. She was a former dungeon party leader, here on behalf of her team to explore opportunities outside the dangers of dungeon crawling. Like most of the people in the room, she sought something more stable, though she found the company here… questionable.

Her gaze lingered on the various figures at the table. She recognized some of them from her adventuring days, brutal and ruthless individuals, the kind who thrived in chaos. One of them was even a B-rank, slouched lazily in his chair as though he had nothing to prove.

She was considered a ruthless person in the business but she couldn't be compared with half of the people here.

Her thoughts were interrupted as the door opened, and Charles returned, pushing a large TV on a stand into the room. He positioned it at the head of the table and stepped back, fidgeting nervously.

The screen flickered to life, displaying a blurry image of Max.

As Max recently experienced a growth in strength, so did the effect of his passive.

And The effect was immediate and startling.

The man with his legs on the table jolted upright, nearly falling out of his chair in his haste to sit properly. The man glaring daggers at Charles quickly averted his gaze, his expression shifting to uneasy respect.

The one in sunglasses removed them, tucking them into his pocket as though embarrassed to have worn them at all.

The smoker jolted upright as if electrocuted. In his panic, instead of flicking his cigarette away, he instinctively stuffed it into his mouth and swallowed it whole. His face turned red as he coughed violently, eyes watering, but he forced himself to sit still, back straight, pretending nothing had happened.

The gamblers froze, exchanging panicked looks before hastily shoving the cards into one of their shirts. The other leaned over to help, patting his friend's chest to smooth the fabric and ensure the cards were well-hidden.

The woman watched all of this in stunned silence, her sharp mind struggling to process the sudden shift in behavior. Even the B-rank, who had exuded nothing but lazy arrogance, straightened his posture and adopted an air of respect.

'What the hell is going on here?' she thought, her confusion growing.

"Let's get to the point," Max's blurry image said, his tone commanding and impatient. His gaze swept the room, and then he pointed directly at the woman and a few others who hadn't reacted as dramatically as the rest.

"You, you, you, and you," he said, his finger lingering on each person briefly. "You're free to leave. Charles will compensate you for your time."

The woman opened her mouth to protest, but she froze as she felt the weight of the room's collective gaze. The atmosphere had shifted entirely, and it was clear that most of the individuals present were already on Max's side. Her argument died in her throat, and she stood silently, following the others as they left the room.

Once they were gone, Max's image sharpened, the blurriness fading to reveal his full figure. His presence was no less imposing through the screen.

"Now, to the rest of you," he said, his tone calm but firm. "You're being recruited to work. As long as you do your best, money won't be a problem. The shops currently available to the company are also open to you for purchases."

Charles hesitated before speaking up. "Are you sure that's okay?"

"It's fine," Max replied dismissively. "If anyone tries to abuse the system, we'll make an example out of them."

His gaze swept the room again. "Have you killed anyone recently? Let them know we're not joking."

Charles coughed nervously. "Uh, other than some random guy connected to The Vault thing, no one. Boss you better for this, did you do anything intimidating recently? " said Charles in a low tone although no one in the room was normal human and everyone could hear him clearly.

Max remember the city he just broke in half. "huh? about that it's better to not tell.... It's for your own good and everyone else here."

Charles wiped the cold sweat on his forehead and didn't dare push the matter.

"as you wish boss."

Max tilted his head thoughtfully. "What about that B-rank who had a problem with us not long ago? What was his name?"

Charles scratched his head. "Oh, him? I heard he died. Couldn't survive his injuries, something about them getting worse over time. Can't remember his name, though."

Max waved a hand dismissively. "Doesn't matter. Handle the rest yourself. You know I am not good at management. "

With that, the screen flickered off, leaving the room in tense silence. Charles cleared his throat, stepping forward to address the group.

"So everyone, that's our boss, and it's better to never talk about him.

As for the work it's actually simple, we don't need to make money, we need to find markets to spend it in. By any means!."

Everyone seated looked at each other, slightly unbelieving, by the absurd situation.

Charles wasn't good at managing either so he simply gave them money, and show them the jobs needed to do and let them pick based on their expertise or their likes and dislikes.

"also one more thing! If question about our funds arises, than say it's perfectly legal but we might be selling banned drugs."

"huh? Shouldn't we be hiding the fact that we might be selling drugs." asked one of the gamblers clearly confused.

"No we shouldn't, our funds should be of a worst source.... so drugs is good." said Charles not sure he should be saying all of this.

The Gambler grinned "oh I see, I like it!"

"yah just don't go around giving clear testimonies, those things can be used as evidence you know, even if we're not actually selling drugs"...

....

Back the mountain, Max scratched his chin in contemplation.

"With my passive The company should be fine! Hopefully."

Next Max simply ignored the matter, even if the company collapsed he didn't care much, he could simply start a new one in his free time, for now he had something else on mind, and stored his phone into the space ring, opening the simulator's screen.