The consequences of Mike's defeat was not just limited to his small gang. It sent a ripple through out the entire underground world. For men of the underworld, their number one weapon was not weapons or numbers or anything else, it was fear. Without it, they were nothing. So, when Bill, (the head huncho of the Trissis underground mob in the capital town) heard about Mike's unfortunate 'accident,' he was not in the least happy.
It gave gangsters all over the city a bad name. They were supposed to be untouchable. They were supposed to be at the top of the foodchain, the bad guys who did bad things to people, not the other way around. Never one for rumors, Bill went straight to investigate and confirm the murmurs. A shadow of death always seemed to follow him, for as he and his entourage moved through the city, an ominous cloud appeared to hang over him as the crowds parted for him. They knew him. His reputation was loud enough to clear the way.
Getting to the hospital, he walked straight to the charge nurse's desk and uttered one single word; "Mike."
Driven by fear of the strange man before her, she immediately flipped through her records.
"Hurry the fuck up lady, I don't have all day."
That was all the motivation she needed to find his name . Shaking like a leaf, she answered him; "R-r-r-oom three zero four sir-r-r!"
Bill looked at her with a questioning look that said 'Is that supposed to mean something?' The poor nurse promptly got the message and immediately moved to direct them.
A few moments later, Bill and his gang were standing over Mike's bed, looking at him with a disgusted look on his face as he dozed off. Without speaking to anyone in particular, he barked; "Wake him up."
The nurse's face paled. "Sir, I strongly advise against---" A massive hand grabbed her roughly and shoved her out of the room before she could finish her 'advice.' Meanwhile, Mike was about to experience the rudest awakening ever. A huge fellow stepped towards his bed and his massive hand landed on Mike's unconscious face with a loud clap; "Wake up my friend!!"
Poor Mike was shocked back into consciousness. Confusion rolled across his face as he awakened to the unflattering sight of being surrounded by angry looking men. Bill addressed him in an impatient tone; "TALK. WHO DID THIS???"
Mike went on to narrate his ordeal with the yoghurt man with all eagerness. He heavily leaned into the narrative that he had merely tried to get Lucas to pay protection money, and the yoghurt man proceeded to use some kind of sorcery to attack him and his guys.
But Bill wasn't exactly interested in the details of a low level squabble between thug and merchant. What he was interested in was the person responsible for this. There was only a handful of people who had the temerity and grit to pull something like this, so he was surprised that he had never heard of a yoghurt man before.
"You," he pointed to a short stocky thug with a crooked nose, "Go and find out everything there is to know about this guy. I want a comprehensive report by sundown! I want to know where he sleeps, eats and takes a shit! I want to know who his mother is! GO!"
He then turned to Mike and whispered coldly; "You have brought shame upon us, don't even think for a second that you will be spared." Mike wanted to open his mouth to say it was not his fault, but Bill turned his back on him and left him swaddling in his shame and fear.
That night, Bill got his feedback. Paradoxically, the more his spy told him, the less Bill seemed to understand about this stranger. One fact stood out though, and it was the only decent lead he had.
"So, this bloke has ties with Jack huh? Figures. That would explain why he had the guts to assault Mike without caring about the consequences."
"It appears so sir, but that's not all, he's also been seen with---"
"The Grand Prince Leoneol."
"How did yo---"
Bill shrugged. "It's the only missing link. You can't talk about Jack without talking about the Grand Prince. But what I can't figure out is how an ordinary merchant has powerful friends in high places. Leoneol doesn't just frolic with anyone..."
Bill's reasoning was logical. It was not out of the norm for him to know so much about Leoneol. He himself was a henchman of the third prince Wilson. The postion Bill had attained as head of the gang, along with his success in the underworld, it was all because of Wilson's support and influence. In the capital city, there was no power that did not come from the royal family. So, it actually made sense that this daring young merchant was connected to Leoneol.
A part of Bill wanted to make a big deal about it, but he decided to wave it off. There was no point in poking the bear. This was merely a struggle between two forces that did not directly involve him. Also, murder was a heinous crime in the capital city. The governing body was heavily against it, as they were trying to make the capital a center of civilization, to separate the city from all other cities.
So, even if Bill wanted to take care of Lucas, he simply would not be able to come out of the hole of legal trouble. He decided to pass it up to the only person that was worth telling.
"You're going to deliver a message to the Third Prince Wilson. DISCREETLY."
......
It appeared both sides were playing chess.
Jack, who had been mandated to keep tabs on Lucas, twitched with excitement as he hurriedly narrated the events to the Grand Prince. Jack did not come empty handed. He had covertly purchased several cups of Lucas' new product and personally sampled them himself. He gingerly handed over one cup of the wonderful yoghurt to his patron and Leoneol received it eagerly.
Leoneol did not anticipate the kickback. One scoop in his mouth, and the exotic dairy product arrested all the sensory nerves on his tongue. He could not hide his delight.
"I knew he would not disappoint. Our friend has found a really clever solution to his problems. This might actually be his ticket to building his riches." He took one more scoop and asked Jack; "You still haven't figured out what the explosion was all about huh?"
He shook his head. "No. My spies confirmed that Lucas and his girls were safe at home when the explosion occured."
"They weren't watching the shop?"
"They had no reason to. Their orders were strictly confined to surveillance of the villa and it occupants."
"Fair enough." He looked down at his cup and realized that he had consumed all its contents. "Jack, I hope you did not just bring one sample of this delicious drink to your Grand Prince?"
The other man smiled. "Of course not, that would be a crime that's could be considered high treason!"
"Good. Leave them with the chief servant on your way out. Instruct him to have them delivered to my baby sister Laura. I know she's going to go crazy over this."