Free Web NovelChapter 383: Chapter 383 Wharf Transaction_1
The next day, at Dock No. 7 in the old city district. fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm
Flandre, with a gun in her possession, came to the site alone.
When she arrived at the entrance of the abandoned warehouse, she saw a brand-new sign that read, "We already know you have come, please wait a moment."
Flandre looked up, surveying the nearby buildings for anyone watching from above.
The other party was very cautious, worried that she might come with a squad of police for a raid. They didn’t show themselves right away, preferring to hide somewhere and keep watch over the entrance. Only if she showed up alone would they be willing to reveal themselves.
There were no signs of people nearby; it seemed this "gang" was quite good at hiding.
She waited on the spot for quite a while until someone finally approached from the direction she had come from.
"I was wondering where you were hiding, but it turns out you followed me here?" Flandre furrowed her brows, "Have you been following me since I left the prison?"
This person had not been watching nearby, but had been surveilling her from the moment Flandre left the prison. After confirming she was heading alone to Dock No. 7 in the old city district, they kept a distance and followed her to the destination.
Without speaking, the person who came to meet her handed over an envelope.
Flandre pulled out the contents of the envelope, a large check, and a piece of paper.
After glancing at the paper, she saw it contained only a name, "Sara Rekhsia," and a line: The remaining amount will be paid upon completion of the deal. Since you agreed to the trade, we hope that Madame will not do anything to betray our trust.
"Is this the content of the trade?" asked Flandre.
The liaison nodded and then turned to leave.
"Stop," Flandre suddenly called out to him.
The liaison turned his head, revealing a look of surprise—Flandre was aiming a gun at his heart.
"Surprised? Did you think I was here to make a deal?" Flandre said with a smile, "I don’t accept your trade, but I still came. Because I have many questions I want to ask you."
...
Time rewinds to the morning, inside the Rose Iron Prison, in Aiden’s office.
"...They asked me to go to the warehouse at Dock No. 7 in the old city district. They said if I was willing to make a deal, I should go there; if not, it would be considered a refusal of the deal. They also gave me this gun," recounted Flandre as she stood in front of Aiden’s desk, telling him everything that happened in the evening.
"With such a large amount, it’s remarkable you could stick to your principles," Aiden nodded with admiration.
"To be honest, it’s hard not to be tempted, but you inoculated everyone in advance with that warning. Who would dare to entertain such thoughts?" Flandre said with a helpless shrug.
Just the day before yesterday, Aiden had gathered all the wardens and department heads, giving them an early heads up, vaguely informing them that a prisoner had gotten into trouble with a major organization and that soon, people from that organization might contact the prison management. Aiden bluntly stated that if anyone made a deal behind his back, they should think carefully about the consequences. He also asserted that if anything went wrong in the prison, he would involve the prosecutor’s office to investigate thoroughly.
In the end, he added with emphasis, "It’s normal to want money. I won’t preach about ethical ways of acquiring it. Let me just remind everyone, you have to be alive to spend that money."
Knowing that Sara had been targeted by the secret police, Aiden anticipated that the other side might attempt to bribe the prison managers.
"They would have specifically targeted you because they probably found out I had moved their target to the core area," Aiden analyzed, "But hearing them talk about the harsh working environment in the Rose Iron Prison, it seems their intelligence gathering is still lacking a bit."
"What should I do now, Warden?" Flandre’s face showed worry, "Should I call the police? In case they use some despicable means to threaten me in the future... Honestly, I’m very concerned about my family."
"The likelihood is not high, kidnapping military and police personnel’s family members would mobilize the entire city’s police force. However, just to be safe, let Veronica explain the situation to the mounted police; as for your trade, I will take a look for you," Aiden thought for a moment, "Grab the person coming for the meeting, pry some intelligence out of him. Strive to uproot these people as soon as possible!"
"Warden, the person they want to trade is me, not you; if you go, they probably won’t show up," Flandre reminded.
"I have my ways," Aiden replied calmly, "You do the night shift today; just don’t leave the prison tonight."
...
Now, using the "existence" authority of "Wordless Code" as a substitute, Aiden, who had transformed his appearance into Flandre’s, held a pistol and said to the contact, word by word, "Raise your hands, turn towards me." freёwebnovel.com
The man turned around, trembling with fear.
"I don’t want to shoot holes in someone for no reason, so it would be in your best interest to confess honestly. First answer me, has your chief commander come to this city?"
"Chief commander?" The other party was baffled.
"Answer quickly!" Aiden urged.
As a result of such pressure, the man began to plead loudly, "Don’t... don’t kill me, I’m just hired to deliver messages! I know nothing!"
"What did you say?" Aiden frowned.
"I really don’t know! The people at the top of the gang sent me here to deliver messages, I truly know nothing!" the man said with a quivering voice.
"Gang? What gang?" Aiden’s expression changed slightly.
"I, I’m from the Skull Gang..." the man said in a low voice.
Aiden was taken aback.
He knew the man was telling the truth because, to extract valuable information as soon as possible, he had already written the rule "No lying" in the "Wordless Code".
The Skull Gang... was a local gang in the old city district, and due to past entanglements with the tyrant Camilla, Aiden had had brief contact with this gang.
This gang had no reason to spontaneously bribe the upper echelons of jail guards to kill Princess Gistas; it was far too presumptuous for a minor city gang to meddle in such major national political disputes.
The only explanation was that they were employed by the royal secret police, this Gestapo-like organization had money to bribe prison management, and naturally, they had the funds to hire a gang—they wouldn’t mind using such means at all.
No wonder the information collected by these people always seemed lacking in crucial areas...
The person showing up for the meet was probably not the secret police, but small-time thugs and leaders from the Skull Gang, and all their methods... were controlled and directed by the secret police from the sidelines. If the trade failed, the hired local gang would be disposable pawns. Even if the investigation continued, only the Skull Gang could be completely uprooted.
This was, in fact, their real manoeuvre of disguising themselves as an "ordinary gang".
Even though more intelligence could be interrogated from the Skull Gang, since they had chosen to employ a gang as a safeguard, they must have also made preparations not to be caught.
He had been outplayed—Aiden realized that the opponent seemed to be more cunning than he had imagined.
