Laud curiously took the parchment and glanced at it, his face showing a surprised expression.
It wasn't that the items Lin En wanted were particularly precious. Quite the opposite, the parchment listed some very easy-to-collect ingredients, even trash that could hardly be sold...
"Can you tell me what these things are for?" Laud asked, very puzzled.
Lin En did not answer directly but suddenly asked, "Have you ever seen fireworks, Mr. Laud?"
"What is that?" Laud was stunned for a moment and shook his head in confusion.
"Something that can send the entire city guard up to the sky. I guarantee it will be the most spectacular sight you've ever seen!" Lin En said with a smile.
Laud's expression froze, filled with disbelief.
The harbor town originally had an eight hundred-man guard, and later, Bishop Anluoke transferred three thousand elite soldiers from the Nordland Territory. He couldn't imagine what kind of power could destroy such a large army in a short time.
Could it be materials needed to set up some powerful alchemy array?
Laud immediately thought of this possibility. He had heard from Kro that some wizards proficient in alchemy could amplify certain magical powers exponentially through arrays.
If that were the case, they weren't without a chance of victory.
Thinking of this, Laud stopped his in-depth questioning because, for wizards, the secrets of magic were usually not disclosed.
"Besides these ingredients, I also need a map of the harbor town, the city guard's patrol routes, and most importantly..." Lin En paused, then said solemnly, "I need to know the appearance, personality, and habits of every clergy member within the harbor town, the more detailed, the better!"
Laud pondered for a while without replying. The map and patrol routes were easy to obtain, but figuring out the details of those priests wasn't an easy task.
"Sometimes, to stay alive, you have to pay a price, right?" Lin En reminded him.
"Alright! I can get you what you asked for, but I need to know how you plan to rescue that wizard apprentice." Laud gritted his teeth. The port was already blockaded by the church, so creating enough chaos was necessary to escape successfully, and the rescue would be a part of it.
Lin En no longer kept him guessing and roughly explained the whole plan. The part that the [Boat Gang] was responsible for was the most detailed.
After listening to Lin En's explanation, Laud couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.
But to his relief, the riskiest part of the rescue operation was to be performed by Lin En himself. The [Boat Gang] only needed to assist. Most importantly, from start to finish, Laud himself wouldn't have to get personally involved, which meant that in most cases, he would be in a safe zone.
"Well then, to a successful cooperation!"
Lin En relaxedly extended his hand, and Laud followed suit, their palms quickly clasped tightly together.
A slight stinging sensation suddenly surged up, and Laud instinctively withdrew his hand. Looking down, he saw a flame-like mark on the back of his hand.
"What do you mean by this?" Laud clutched the back of his hand, his voice fierce.
Lin En calmly retracted his hand, smiling as he spoke.
"I heard from Rabour that you never trust anyone around you..."
"That's a very good habit!"
"Coincidentally, I am the same way!" Lin En looked as though he had met a kindred spirit.
Laud's face darkened, and he mentally flayed the skin off Rabour, that bastard.
This flame mark reminded him of the horrific scene outside Wuer Town. An informant he had sent was sentenced to death just for being too close and accidentally catching a tiny flame. Even jumping into the river couldn't save him from the hellfire's devouring fate!
"By the way, I left Rabour in a side room within the port. This is an internal matter of the [Boat Gang], and I won't interfere," Lin En said casually as he stood up and made a farewell gesture.
After Lin En left, Laud's suppressed emotions finally erupted. In a fit of rage, he swept all the valuable vases and utensils on the table to the ground.
The guards outside rushed in upon hearing the commotion but stood bewildered, watching their leader raging inside.
After several minutes of venting, Laud sat back down, gasping, and looked at the few guards in front of him.
"You, go bring Rabour back to me immediately!"
"I'll skin him alive myself!" Crippled Laud said through gritted teeth.
...
When Lin En walked out of the dilapidated house, the midday sun was already high in the sky.
Successfully persuading Crippled Laud and securing the cooperation of the entire [Boat Gang], Lin En silently breathed a sigh of relief. At least now he didn't have to go at it alone, and the chances of rescuing Bai Ge and Johnny were now seventy to eighty percent.
As for the magic mark left on Laud's hand, it was actually a ruse and had no real effect.
But Lin En knew that the previous battle outside Wuer Town had already demonstrated some of his power, which served as a deterrent!
For someone like Laud, even if he told the truth, the other would never believe it, instead thinking that his life was in Lin En's hands.
This was precisely the outcome Lin En wanted. After all, during the actual operation, the most crucial part needed to be handled by him personally. In contrast, Laud could stay safely behind the scenes. This imbalance in risk was dangerous for cooperation!
So, some balancing measures were naturally necessary!
Over the next two days, the news that the Judgement Court would publicly execute the devil's followers on Monday spread throughout the entire harbor town, and almost everyone was talking about it.
Lin En further confirmed his previous judgment. Usually, besides practicing swordsmanship with Ivina, he spent the rest of his time processing the delivered ingredients.
In seventy-two hours, he released thousands of [Initial Material Decompilation Skills], nearly exhausting himself.
Every time he returned to the mansion, Pedro's butler looked at him strangely. Once, he couldn't help but advise him against draining his health while still young.
Lin En brushed it off casually. He couldn't find another good reason to explain why he often stayed out all night.
In the end, it wasn't him who'd be socially embarrassed, but Loth, so what did it matter to him?
Things went smoothly, thanks to Baron Pedro often being absent, busy attending various noble parties to make an appearance in front of those big shots.
In this orderly busyness, the harbor town welcomed the last night before Monday...