Steel, gunpowder, and spellcasters

Chapter 56 Assassin
"Wait, what did you say? The Monta people?" Winters was surprised, his breathing quickened.

“Yes,” Benway answered matter-of-factly.

"Montas working on the docks?" Winters pressed. "You mean the people who blew up the docks were members of the Monta gang?"

“Yes.” Benway shrugged. “He’s Big Scar’s newest helper. He only recently started hanging out with that group of Monta people.”

Winters took a deep breath, his tone becoming extremely serious: "Benwei, if you want me to help you deal with those Monta people, just ask and I'll do it. But absolutely do not make things up just because you have a grudge against the Monta. This assassination is not simple; the identity of the deceased is still a mystery, and it may lead to something terrible... I need you to answer me honestly: are you sure you didn't see it wrong?"

“I’m sure, I’m sure I didn’t see wrong.” Benway answered seriously, meeting Winters’ gaze. “Besides, it’s not a life-or-death situation between us and the Monta. You’re overthinking it.”

"Tell me everything you know about those people."

Where to begin?

"Start from the beginning."

Benwei drank some water to moisten his throat and began to talk about what happened six years ago.

In his final year at Army Junior School, Benway's family lost two breadwinners in a tragic accident—Benway's father and uncle. So, after graduating from Army Junior School six years ago, Benway, like his father, went to work at the docks to support his family.

At that time, the docks were not yet orderly, and as a large number of displaced farmers poured into the cities, the competition at the docks became fierce.

You want three silver coins to unload a ship's cargo?

We two are willing to do it.

Dockworkers engaged in cutthroat competition and undercutting each other on prices, leading to frequent violent clashes.

Soon, as the conflict intensified, the organizational structure evolved, and small gangs began to emerge among the dockworkers. The strength of one person was insignificant compared to the strength of a group, and dockworkers who did not join a particular group would be intimidated, beaten, and driven away.

Smaller groups are often oppressed by larger groups, forcing them to either join the larger group or band together with other smaller groups to form an even bigger one. Eventually, all the dockworkers became members of one of the larger groups.

For these people from all over the world, their place of origin was the most common form of identity, and it was inevitable that they would band together based on their place of origin. In the end, the Monta, Van, and Paratau people, these outsiders, drove the local Veneta people out of the docks and took control of all the porterage work.

These three groups controlled the number of dockworkers and did not allow outsiders to work at the docks at will, thus avoiding excessive competition. In a sense, this was similar to how commercial and handicraft guilds artificially set industry entry barriers.

However, they did not form a tight organization; essentially, they banded together to avoid being bullied. Even the leaders of the gang were just ordinary porters in normal times, but when a conflict occurred, everyone would take sides based on their hometown and place of origin.

Things were relatively peaceful at first, but gradually some people became dissatisfied. About two weeks ago, Benway noticed some new faces among the Monta people. This wouldn't normally be a problem; dockworkers have a high turnover rate, with people always leaving and new people always coming in.

But then the Monta people started a conflict with two other groups. Originally, the three sides were evenly matched, since they were all just porters, and no one dared to fight too hard. However, the new faces among the Monta people were exceptionally ruthless. It was they who severely injured Benway's uncle, who died shortly after being taken home.

After drinking, the Monta leader, Scarface, boasted to those around him that these men were all henchmen he had specially hired, and that he was going to completely crush and subdue the Van and Parat people.

On the day of the assassination at the dock, Benway witnessed the new Monta men throwing explosives onto the pier. Several other dockworkers were with the Monta men, but they were all killed on the spot. Only Benway escaped by hiding in the ship's cabin.

Winters thought to himself, "Those porters who were silenced are probably the bodies that customs officials mentioned were taken away by their families." The information corroborated each other, increasing its credibility.

What followed was a deafening explosion, and Benway rescued Winters and Moritz, who couldn't swim, from the sea. Winters and his colleagues were taken to the customs jail to "rest," and what happened outside was no longer their concern.

But for Benway, one bad thing after another happened. Customs was in complete chaos because of the explosion, and Benway couldn't find anyone willing to listen to a lowly porter.

Left with no other choice, he went home and planned to see the customs officer the next day. But before he could even have dinner, several distant relatives knocked on his door, breathless, to tell him that Big Scar was dead and the Monta were gathering men to seek revenge.

Benwei and his family left home again overnight. The women and the elderly were sent to other places, while Benwei, his uncle, and his brother have been hiding in the suburbs until today.

“Those Monta people didn’t hire thugs, they were assassins, just disguised as thugs who infiltrated the Monta gang.” Winters’ brow furrowed. “They’ve probably vanished without a trace by now.”

Benwei sighed softly, "I also think those unfamiliar faces aren't ordinary people; they're guys who don't value other people's lives."

“I’m a little puzzled. They’ve already infiltrated the docks, so why make such a commotion? And that carriage—are they planning to lure someone away alive?” Winters stroked his stubble and sneered. “I’m getting more and more curious about the deceased’s identity. Who could be worth going to such lengths for? I suspect they also silenced the Monta’s leader.”

"No matter what, those people must have vanished without a trace." "Everything leaves a trace. Follow the footprints, and you'll find them. Do you know where the core members of the Monta people are now? The people at the docks won't tell us anything."

Benwei shook his head: "I don't know, just like they don't know where I am. They're all hiding. If I find you, I'll have someone tell you."

“Okay, but don’t let this friend deliver your messages anymore.” Winters said with a wry smile, “He’s really a terrible messenger. Also, you should find a new place to live as soon as possible; this place is too unsafe.”

Benwei smiled and nodded in agreement.

They chatted about the times they had shared and the times they hadn't, then said goodbye.

“If you move to another place, how will I find you?” Winters asked.

“Go to the docks and find George Gap. Tell him you want to see me, and I’ll contact you again.”

Winters nodded, said no more, mounted his horse and headed back to the city.

Pushing open the door to the military police station, Winters found Lieutenant Colonel Field and Major Moritz waiting for him.

"Where have you been?" Field asked, somewhat displeased.

“I met with a dockworker and got some important information,” Winters replied without batting an eye, despite missing his shift to meet with friends. “The docks shouldn’t be a monolithic entity anymore; the Varnes will support us.”

"Oh? What news?"

Winters relayed what he had heard from Ben Vina about the relationship between the assassins and the Monta gang.

"Your classmate Lu You isn't planning to use us to get rid of the Monta people, is she?" Field asked suspiciously.

“That’s possible.” Although Winters trusted Benway, he didn’t rule it out entirely.

"Let's put that aside for now." Field waved his hand dismissively. "I have an important task for you... Have you ever stolen anything?"

It turned out that Lieutenant Colonel Field and Major Moritz had spent several days searching through the list provided by the Duelists Club before discovering that the Duelists Club had provided a list that was partly true and partly false.

On one hand, it was a very detailed list, filling seven pages. But many people who had only signed the guestbook were also included. Many non-officer members also appeared on the list—the Duelist Club seemed to have developed a considerable number of non-officer members.

The military police were looking for someone familiar with both longsword and slalom. While many civilians might be skilled with slalom, few were proficient with longsword, as it was no longer in fashion, and Venetia had no schools teaching it. Only officers returning from military academies had systematically studied the art.

The true core members of the Duelists' Club did not appear on the list in large numbers. It was impossible that the entire list contained only a handful of officers of colonel rank.

While Major Moritz was also a full member of the Duelist Club, he was consistently carefree and rarely sober after 8 PM. Therefore, his occasional visits to the club were mostly for eating and drinking, and he never participated in the club's management.

Moritz went to ask for the list, but the other party was determined not to give it to him, so the major had no choice.

No, the major actually had a way, and his way was—to steal.

"No, no, no." Winters shook his head vigorously and waved his hands repeatedly: "You can ask me to rob, but I really can't steal."

“Stealing is simple; the key is to have a good mentality. Like a horse thief, as long as you act like the horse's owner, no one will suspect anything. I think you have a strong mentality and great potential.” Field was showering Warrant Officer Montagne with compliments.

"Senior, I really can't do it. I'm an officer, after all. What if I get caught stealing..."

Field rebuked him, "You're already thinking about failure before you've even started. How can you succeed with that kind of mentality? If you only think about success, you won't fail."

He added, "Besides, we have a legitimate reason to investigate. How can our work as the military police be considered stealing? This is called using alternative methods to obtain evidence."

"If we're going to do it fair and square, we'll just take a gun, kick down the door, and rob it! If it's about robbing, I'll definitely go!" Winters exclaimed anxiously.

“Alright, Warrant Officer Montagne, I order you to seize the evidence—without being discovered.”

Thank you to everyone who voted for this book before. Thank you to reader "Social Justice Old Wang" for the vote, monthly pass, and reward. Thank you also to readers "Smoke and Clouds Disperse" and "20200306210032266" for the votes. I've read *Tahiria* so many times and never get tired of it, but I'll wait until the weekend to read it again.
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(End of this chapter)