INFINITE MONEY - I Will Buy Everything

Chapter 226: Chapter 226 - Vying For Top 10

"Alright, will this place suffice?" William asked as he revealed the underground training area beneath the villa where they were currently residing.

"Yeah, it will suffice for now. So tell me, do you truly not know any weapon arts?" Adam inquired, his brow furrowing in disbelief.

William shook his head, replying, "Yeah… I don't know any. I realize it's rather peculiar for someone like me, coming from a privileged background, to have had no formal training in this domain."

"But let's just say my parents weren't particularly inclined to invest in me. When I was a child, they didn't do anything special for me."

"And add that to me being a privileged minded kid who was also lazy back then and you get the current me with no experience."

Adam nodded, "Yeah, it struck me as odd when you told me I was supposed to train you. For a moment, I even thought you had hired me just for appearances."

"Haha… ha, how could I even do that? You're one of the most formidable individuals I've ever known. How could I possibly deceive someone of your caliber?" William said with a laugh, though inwardly, he was grappling with a dilemma, aware that Adam had nearly uncovered his true intentions.

Adam, noticing William's words, smiled initially but then grew serious. "Boss… there's something you ought to know about me."

Sensing Adam's shift in demeanor, William put aside his internal thoughts and focused on him intently. "Yeah?"

"I think I may have misled you about something."

"About…?"

"When I claimed to be the strongest… the truth is, I'm not. I don't think I even rank among the top 10 in the criminal underworld, even if we exclude members of the great houses and royalty."

William regarded him silently for a moment before responding, "I was aware of that."

"Hmm?"

"Did you really think I would believe you were the strongest out there? No, I can't. Not by a long shot." William was quick to shoot his pride down as he continued.

"There are far too many individuals out there who keep themselves concealed, biding their time for the right moment. Those are the ones who are truly formidable. They remain hidden, not out of fear, but because they're waiting for the right opportunity."

"Those are the people who are the real deal, at least that's what I believe."

Adam felt a twinge of hurt hearing those words, but he knew they were entirely accurate.

"But I'm not saying you're not strong. In fact, you are strong—exceptionally strong. But you probably fall somewhere in the middle of the spectrum, perhaps even a bit higher. I believe that if you had trained with greater intensity, you might have surpassed your current strength.

Who knows, you might have even been qualified to claim one of the top 10 spots." William said, and both men shared a smile at the thought, which felt surprisingly genuine.

'Yeah… yeah, I might have. Not the top 10, but close.' Adam thought about the future possibilities that fate had taken from him.

"The primary reasons I couldn't achieve that were because of the 'most wanted' label—I was severely restricted in many ways, particularly in terms of the places I could go." Adam said as the 'Most Wanted' label had their advantages.

"The other reason was the prohibitive cost of the items I needed. Without them, it was nearly impossible for someone to advance naturally."

"Back then, I didn't have a name for myself, so the work I got didn't pay enough to buy even one of the items I needed. And in later years, I just lost interest in training and focused mostly on jobs."

"And just like that, I who once adhered to great training and principals… went to such a state." Adam stated as he gave a dreadful sigh.

William nodded thoughtfully, "Well, that's unfortunate. But something fortuitous has happened to you now."

Adam asked, "Such as?"

"You're working for me, so now you don't need to 'work' anymore… aside from training me and handling some other non-essential tasks, you'll mostly be free to do as you please. You can dedicate that time to training." William said as Adam nodded internally thinking about his words.

"Yeah, that's a good plan. But the issue of securing training materials still remains. I may need to resort to… less ethical means of training to reach the next level." Adam said, contemplating some of the dark methods employed by notorious criminals and shuddering inwardly at the thought.

"What are you talking about? I'm going to cover all your expenses, including training items and advancement materials." William said suddenly to Adam's surprise.

Adam stared at him in disbelief, "Seriously? Do you even comprehend how exorbitant those training items are?"

This time, William looked at him as if he were naïve, and Adam quickly grasped why. If William could casually purchase a sword worth nearly a trillion dollars and gift it to him, then it wasn't far-fetched for him to also finance his training.

"But for me to do that, you'd need to promise me something." William suddenly said.

Adam looked at him inquisitively as William continued, "I want you to train with utmost dedication and not skip even a single day." He said and listed more.

"I don't just want you to become stronger than you are now—I want you to become the absolute strongest you can be."

"I realize this may sound like a lofty ambition, but if you commit with all your conviction, and with my resources, I can provide you with the very best of everything you need. And I'm confident that one day, you'll be able to contend for that top 10 spot."

Initially, Adam regarded it as a nice dream, something not easily attainable. But as he continued to listen to William's words, the idea began to seem increasingly plausible.

He unconsciously smiled as he envisioned standing before the most powerful individuals, holding his ground against such formidable adversaries.

'To actually vie for the top 10 spot… it doesn't seem so implausible now.' Adam felt the future had brighter possibilities now.

William observed Adam deep in thought, wondering if he would truly accept the offer. But his doubts vanished when he saw Adam's genuine smile, realizing that it was indeed possible.

Adam deliberated for a while longer, weighing the dangers and other critical factors, before making his decision. He opened his eyes and told William with unwavering conviction, "I accept your condition."

"If you're willing to invest so much in me, then I can promise you that no matter what happens, I won't just strive to become the strongest—I'll also remain loyal to you until death."

William smiled at that and replied, "I appreciate that, but be careful not to say something you might regret later."

But Adam was resolute now as he said, "No! I'm certain about this."

"Alright, that's good."

"But there's something else I'd like to mention about myself."

"Hmm?"

"When I said I wasn't the strongest, that remains true. But there's a reason why I'm so highly valued."

"And that reason is that I've mastered every weapon fighting style a person can learn by hand."