At Daniel's words, Michael simply responded, "I am a person who does not like being ordered around. I like freedom the most, and I'm not willing to give my freedom away, at any cost."
During the time that his parents were alive, he had a lot of freedom, even though he was somehow restricted.
But at least, the restrictions that his parents put on him were necessary, as parents would do that to their children.
But, it was a completely different matter when it came to working for Dante. He had to be careful with each and everything that he did or said.
Additionally, he would be on tenterhooks all the time, as he was afraid of the clashes between gangs or raids by the police.
During the entire 2 years that he had worked for Dante, he had ended up being arrested during the latest raid, which was the only raid on the main base of the shadow assembly gang.
And the result was that, having just acquired the system, he ended up spending an entire half a day and night within the police cell.
That was an experience that Michael did not want to go through ever again.
He was someone who did not like breaking the law. And, he was not willing to break the law for someone else.
From the words that Daniel had said, it was clear, they wanted him as a fighter.
But, what fights between the gangs did not break the law? At least, previously, he had only been caught with the other gangsters, because he was working for them as an accountant.
It would be a completely different matter if he was actively involved in brawls between the gangsters.
In case he was arrested, and evidence against him was provided, if he was not bailed out through the connections that the gangs had, he would end up in jail.
Daniel on the other hand had not anticipated that Michael would actually refuse the offer that he had given.
He thought, within this city, how many youngsters were willing to join gangs? There were numerous.
But, it was difficult for them to be able to get a chance of joining a gang, considering that there were some limitations in the big gangs within the city.
In the end, they could only join some nameless gangs within the city, which did not give them any benefits.
And when arrested, they usually ended up in court, before being judged and sentenced to prison.
But now, Daniel was offering Michael a chance to join one of the biggest gangs within the city. And, Daniel had also made promises, implying that Michael would receive enormous resources as compared to normal gang members.
"Kid, I know, you are different from those brats in the streets who wish to join my Phantom gang. But, apart from the little fighting skills that you have, do you have anything else that you can use?
If I decide to deal with you, apart from fighting, do you have any other method that you can use to resist me?
I can use my connections to have you arrested, what will you do then? Will you be able to get out?
While there might not be evidence of any crime that you have committed, they could detain you inside the police cell for quite a while.
And after being released, you can be arrested within the next few hours, then detained for several days again. This can go on until you give up." Daniel spoke with a dangerous glint in his eyes.
Facing Daniel who was obviously threatening him, Michael did not really bother with him.
With his current resources, it was actually true, he did not have any influence.
If he decided to convert the current SP that he had into money, there was nothing that the money could do.
Even though he could also buy a few businesses within this city, he felt, it was a waste. After all, this city was heavily influenced by the underworld, definitely not going to easily grow.
It was for this exact reason that he wanted to accumulate enough SP, before heading to another city, buy some shares of a company, and gain some influence.
Now, being threatened by Daniel, Michael did not panic at all. In any case, he did not believe that this guy would try getting him arrested at this moment.
And, all that Michael needed was a few days, and he would be able to improve the combat skills to the advanced level.
With 1,000 SP, it was equivalent to $100 million. With such an amount of money, he could be considered to be the richest person within this city, according to the information that he possessed.
When Michael did not respond, Daniel simply smiled and continued, "I'm giving you a chance. It is better for you to join me willingly, rather than having me force you to do it. If I force you, believe me, you will not be able to get the benefits that I am offering you right now."
Dante, standing on the side, was already gritting his teeth in anger. He wanted to deal with Michael for the humiliation that he had put him through, but he could not, at least for the time being.
Right now, he was hoping that Michael would continue refusing Daniel's offer, so that he could get a chance of dealing with him.
After all, if Michael decided to join Daniel, it would be impossible for Dante to be able to deal with him at all.
As for why Daniel was actively trying to recruit Michael, Dante understood. After all, even within a gang, it was inevitable that there would be several factions.
Currently, Daniel was competing against the current second in command of the gang, hoping to take over. As long as he got the power of the second in command, he would have more influence than he currently had.
This was why he had been going around, trying to recruit people to join his faction. And, finding a talent like Michael was quite rare, and if this guy was trained, within just 2 or 3 years at most, he would be a very valuable asset.
"I have no intention of clashing with you guys, or getting involved in whatever you do. I would like to live my life in peace. But if you force a clash against me, then, I will definitely not take it lying down." Michael spoke at this time, his voice extremely cold.
When those words fell into the ears of Daniel and the people around, they could not help but be slightly surprised.
In the next moment, Daniel began laughing like a maniac. It was as if he had heard the greatest joke ever.
As he tried to calm down, he said, "Kid, do you know who you are talking to? While it might be true that Phantom gang does not have the capability of influencing everything within the city, it is still not something that you can deal with.
So, you better think about it. This is a chance that I am giving you, but it is clear, you don't want to take it. So, you better not blame me if I use other methods instead."
As he said those words, Daniel squinted his eyes as he looked at Michael.
Facing Daniel's gaze, Michael did not avoid it. But, he felt, this guy was definitely not as simple as he looked.
For some reason, Michael felt that this guy, despite his thin frame, he was quite formidable. Michael felt that if the two of them fought, it would be difficult to be able to tell who would come out on top.
This feeling that he was getting, it was due to the experience that he had gotten from the intermediate unarmed combat skills.
Due to the ability of the system, it was as though Michael had been fighting for 5 years. That implied, he had gotten himself involved in several battles, possessing great combat experience.
It was due to this that he was capable of judging the danger that came from the thin man in front of him.
Daniel did not continue staring at Michael for a long time, but instead, he simply smiled and shifted his gaze to Mark.
"Hey Mark, let's get going. Today, I want to relax, I don't want to think much about anything else or stretch my muscles. I need them to relax for a bit." Daniel said to Mark.
After that, he glanced at Michael and said, "Kid, I'm giving you some time to think about it. Better think carefully and make a wise choice. Otherwise, you will end up suffering some consequences."
Immediately after he said those words, he walked back into the hotel, followed by the few minions that he had brought along.
Mark also followed after throwing Michael a glance. As for Dante, he glared at Michael, but did not make any move. Instead, he also followed Daniel.
Michael on the other hand looked at the group as they entered into the hotel. He did not bother that much to think about what Daniel had said.
Instead, he was wondering, was he supposed to go to the other hotel present within the city, or should he go back to Moonstar hotel?