A Man Like None Other (Jared Chance) novel Chapter 6600

Florian stayed silent for a long time.

He held Cedric's gaze. There was no flicker of evasion in those eyes, no guilty hesitation—only sincerity so complete it looked like naked honesty.

"Fine," Florian said at last. "I believe you."

A flash of satisfaction crossed Cedric's eyes, then vanished just as quickly.

"Then it's settled. When Jared comes out, we move together, kill him, and take the resources in his hands.

After that, we split everything in the tomb evenly."

Florian nodded. "Deal."

Both sides pulled back and stopped fighting. They retreated to opposite sides, each group watching the other with open caution, but no one made another move.

The smell of blood still hung in the air.

More than a dozen bodies lay scattered across the ground, golden blood and dark-crimson blood twisting together into narrow dark streams over the gray-white sand.

Cedric leaned against a massive boulder and took a healing pill from his Storage Ring. After he swallowed it, the wound along his left ribs began to close, slow and stubborn.

His face was still pale, but his red-gold eyes gleamed with calculation.

He was waiting.

Waiting for Jared to come out.

Waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

He didn't know what Jared had gotten inside the tomb.

He only knew it had to be worth a fortune.

If he could kill Jared and seize the resources in his possession, then add the tomb's resources on top of that, the Abyssal Exchange's power in the Eighteenth Firmament would become untouchable.

As for this alliance with the celestials, it was only ever temporary.

Once Jared was dead, Cedric would have plenty of ways to deal with the celestials.

Not far away, Florian stood waiting too.

Blood still seeped from the wound in his left arm, but he hadn't bothered to treat it.

He only stared at the entrance to the stone tomb, his red-gold eyes thick with killing intent.

Jared had slaughtered his subordinates, killed agents of the Hall of Radiance, destroyed the Hall of Radiance itself, and dealt a heavy blow to the celestials' power in the Eighteenth Firmament.

He was going to repay that debt in blood.

As for this alliance with the Abyssal Exchange, it was only temporary.

Once Jared was dead and the resources were his, Cedric would learn exactly what it meant to provoke the celestials.

Each side nursed its own agenda as they waited in silence.

Inside the stone tomb, Jared sat cross-legged in the center of the burial chamber while chaotic force tore through his body in a wild rush.

After the man in white vanished, he hadn't left right away.

He had known exactly what was happening outside.

Everything beyond the tomb had been projected straight into Jared's mind.

Cedric waiting outside the tomb. The arrival of the celestials. The clash between both sides. The negotiation between Cedric and Florian. Cedric swearing in the name of the Abyssal Exchange. Their agreement to wait for him to come out so they could kill him together.

Jared had seen it, heard it, and understood all of it.

Cedric had never once regarded him as a friend.

In Cedric's eyes, he had always been nothing more than a pawn.

A useful pawn.

If the pawn's value outweighed the risk, Cedric would protect him.

If the risk outweighed the pawn's value, Cedric would cast him aside without a second thought.

And if killing him promised even greater profit, Cedric would strike just as easily.

Jared wasn't surprised.

He had known from the very beginning that Cedric couldn't be trusted.

And he'd come anyway.

He had needed Cedric to bring him here.

Needed Cedric to help him find what he came for.

Now he had what he wanted.

It was time to settle accounts.

Jared opened his eyes, and a cold glint flashed through those violet eyes.

He rose, hung the Dragonslayer Sword at his waist, straightened his arcane robes, and walked toward the outside of the burial chamber.

His pace never quickened and never slowed.

Every step landed steady, as if he were measuring out the distance to death.

Outside the burial chamber, Cedric saw the stone door open and shot up from the boulder.

A smile spread across his face as he hurried toward Jared.

"Mr. Chance! You finally made it out!"

Excitement bled through his voice despite himself. "How did it go in there? What did the man in white say to you? What did you get?"

Jared looked at Cedric.

There was nothing at all in his violet eyes.

"I got the Storage Ring. And a lot of resources."

His voice stayed perfectly calm.

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