What witch? The Deadly Pharmacist!

Not long after receiving the money from the recycling shop, Leon found a way to exchange the large-denomination gold vouchers for gold coins and smaller-denomination gold vouchers through other channels. Those large-denomination gold vouchers were not safe in the hands of the underworld and should not be kept for long.

“That’s perfect, I won a lot of money gambling today, it seems God wants me to use it here!” Leon said.

Garcia frowned slightly as he carefully examined the gold voucher.

As a debt collector, he had handled many gold certificates, and this one seemed to be genuine.

Melissa's eyes widened as well.

Leon then took out two more gold shields from his person and threw them on the table, making a clinking sound.

With that gold voucher, it comes to exactly 24,000 pfennigs.

He thought for a moment, then took out another silver wolf coin and placed it on the table, saying in a slightly more conciliatory tone, "This is a quarter's worth of money, plus this, as a small compensation for everyone, is that alright?"

Garcia is re-evaluating Leon.

Leon's attitude had clearly changed, and his gaze seemed more earnest, an expression Garcia often saw—those who wanted to settle things peacefully always had this look on their faces.

He suddenly burst out laughing; it seemed that Hershey and her daughter had truly encountered a great philanthropist.

However, in the eyes of people like them, a kind person and a coward are practically synonyms.

Twenty thousand yuan isn't a huge amount for some people with stable jobs and the means to save money, but few are willing to donate it to others to settle troubles. A kind person who can afford to spend money is seen as a fat sheep in his eyes; perhaps he can visit this good man more often in the future and make good use of the mother and daughter to squeeze more money out of him.

“Sure, buddy.” Garcia raised an eyebrow, his smile knowing. “Since you’re so generous, let’s just call it even for tonight.”

He finally stood up from his seat and slowly reached across the table towards the gold vouchers and coins.

At this moment, Leon spoke up: "There's something I forgot to mention. I'm not your 'brother,' I'm the Inquisitor."

Upon hearing this, Garcia and his companion, who had just relaxed their guard, instinctively tensed up, and Garcia's hand reaching for the money paused for a moment.

At the same time, the "fat sheep" in front of him suddenly revealed its ferocious fangs!

Just as Garcia was about to look up at Leon, Leon swiftly withdrew his hand, which had been silently reaching for his waist. Suddenly, a silver dagger issued by the church appeared in his hand, and he stabbed it down, aiming at Garcia's frozen hand.

Leon used all his strength, stabbing the dagger deep into Garcia's palm and embedding it into the soft oak tabletop.

Garcia screamed in agony before he could finish, and before he could finish, Leon had already thrust his flintlock pistol at his face.

Seeing this, Garcia's men also drew their guns at Leon.

With a gunfight imminent, a panicked commotion erupted in the tavern. People screamed, some fled through the door, and others hid under the tables in fear.

"Ahhh!" Melissa screamed and crouched down, covering her head.

But another, more forceful voice immediately drowned out everyone else: "Inquisitor! Come on, if you dare, fire!"

Leon glared at the men with guns raised, his eyes bloodshot, and shouted.

Garcia's men looked at each other, but dared not put down their guns, and simply stood there in a standoff with Leon.

Someone recognized the dagger decorated with a four-pointed star that he had taken out and gasped.

They dared not act rashly. Firstly, their leader was under the enemy's gun, and secondly, killing someone in public would be a big problem for them. If they killed the Inquisitor, it would be an even bigger problem!

Garcia instinctively reached for his weapon, but Leon, gripping his dagger, swung it around and pressed the gun firmly against Garcia's face, threatening in a low voice, "Don't move! Put that hand up!"

"Gurgle!!" The sharp pain of the blade cutting deeper into the wound made Garcia shudder. He immediately gave up on the weapon and raised his hand.

Leon then released his grip on the dagger, took out the four-pointed star badge from his person, and held it up for everyone to see.

“Come on, let your men fire!” Leon glared at Garcia and said viciously, “I’ll kill you, they’ll kill me, kill an Inquisitor in front of so many people, betray the Church, come on! Come on!!”

Garcia gasped in pain, managing to squeeze out a sentence through clenched teeth: "A person... should leave a way out, there's no need... to go to this extent..."

Whether it was the inquisitors or the guards of the police station, they had all dealt with them.

They are not actually afraid of law enforcement. If their criminal transactions are discovered by law enforcement, they will not hesitate to kill the law enforcement officers to silence them.

With so many witnesses, their identities were exposed as they publicly killed an Inquisitor, which was tantamount to challenging the authority of the Church in public. This would undoubtedly lead to them being wanted and investigated. The organization behind them would be afraid of getting into trouble and would abandon them, or even worry that if they were arrested, something would be found out and they would be executed internally!

This inquisitor saw this opportunity and dared to draw his sword and gun against five people all by himself. Would an ordinary person be able to do that?

If even one of them had acted impulsively, the situation would have been uncontrollable, and he would have been shot dead on the spot. Even these people who live on the edge wouldn't have been so decisive in gambling their lives on such a risky gamble!

He's insane! This guy is completely insane!!

Chapter 36 The Prince Who Saved the Princess

Hearing Garcia's words, Leon chuckled softly: "Now you know to leave a way out for others?"

Then he glanced at Garcia's men and suddenly asked, "You really aren't going to fire?"

Garcia's men were stunned, not yet fully understanding the meaning of his words.

“Then I won’t hold back.” Leon nodded, then suddenly clenched his fist holding the badge and slammed it down on Garcia’s face.

"She's only thirteen! You son of a bitch, you pervert!!" Leon roared, enunciating each word clearly, as he unleashed a series of vicious hooks at Garcia, each punch louder than the last.

With one hand pinned to the ground by a dagger and a gun pointed at his head, Garcia was unable to fight back. His men threatened him to stop, but Leon seemed to hear nothing and punched him five times, leaving his face covered in blood.

"Cough!" The fist stopped, and Garcia finally got a chance to catch his breath. He slumped onto the table, spat a mouthful of bloody saliva into his wine glass, and glared at Leon, saying, "You don't consider the consequences at all, do you?"

"I'll show you what consequences are!"

Leon, expressionless, reached out and grabbed Garcia's hair. "I'll soon find out who you are, and the entire Inquisition will soon know about you and me. After that, if anything happens to Melissa, her mother, or their house, I'll make sure you're in big trouble!"

"And if I cause any trouble, the Inquisition will come after you. Before you try to scare me, check if your own hands are clean!"

He knew very well that no gang in the entire town of Hamel could openly challenge the Sheriff's Office or the Inquisition, let alone these people in front of him who didn't seem to be of high rank.

When they chose to remain silent here, Leon had already figured out their bottom line.

Garcia re-examined the crazed inquisitor before him, shook his head slightly, and said in a voice only the two of them could hear:

"Is it really necessary to pretend like this? You're not exactly a decent person to be able to come up with that much money, are you? You're after that mother and daughter too, aren't you?"

This money wasn't necessarily gambling money. The amount wasn't huge for a heretical inquisitor, as long as he was willing to embezzle! He was certain that Leon was the kind of corrupt and lawless person who had exploited countless people and amassed a fortune, yet still acted so ruthlessly. Although their identities differed, they were essentially the same kind of people! He didn't believe that someone like him would have such a kind heart!

Leon was silent for a moment, then replied in a voice only they could hear, "If you know that, stay away from my prey!"

In any case, no matter what explanation you give, the other party won't believe you, and it's meaningless. Making the other party believe that you are not a kind person is more intimidating.

After saying that, Leon grabbed the dagger and pulled it out. Garcia groaned in pain and covered his hand. His men quickly tore off his clothes to bandage him.

"Now take the money, including the medical expenses for that silver wolf, get a receipt, and get out of here. I don't want to see your stupid faces until next quarter!"

Leon grabbed the large jug of beer and used it to wash the blood off his hands and the dagger. "Did you understand?"

Garcia stared at him for a while, then simply nodded silently.

This time, he dared not reach for the money himself, and instead signaled his men to check the gold certificates before putting the money away.

Another henchman produced a receipt from Potter Pawnshop that they were carrying with them.

Garcia's hand was still bleeding, but he still took the pen his subordinate brought him, signed the receipt with a heavy heart, and finally pressed his fingerprint on it with his blood-stained finger.

He was a registered debt collector under Potter, and only receipts signed and sealed by him were valid.

Leon took the receipt and examined it repeatedly. After confirming that there were no problems, he glanced at Garcia and the others.

Garcia avoided his gaze, got up without a word, and left with his men. Leon said, "Don't forget to pay for your own drinks!"

The silver wolf he gave Garcia was originally intended for medical expenses, not for buying them drinks.

Garcia, feeling helpless, took out a silver wolf coin from his pocket, slammed it on the table, and left the tavern with his men without looking back.

The tavern remained silent after the conflict ended, with the remaining people looking at Leon with lingering fear and mostly awe.

Melissa, who had been crouching on the ground with her head in her hands, finally dared to raise her head and stared blankly at Leon's back.

She had never seen Leon so fierce and wild.

This was on a completely different level from the previous lesson with those two children; it was like an enraged lion, ready to bite off anyone's throat at any moment.

At that moment, Leon put away his gun, turned around, and extended his hand to her: "It's alright, Melissa, let's go home?"

The lion seemed to have suddenly shed its animal skin and transformed back into the gentle Leon she knew.

“Hmm…” Melissa responded, took Leon’s hand and stood up.

"Where's the boss?" Leon suddenly turned and shouted.

For a moment no one answered, so Leon repeated loudly, "Where's the boss?!"

The tavern owner, Frank, then approached cautiously and bowed respectfully to Leon, asking, "Sir, what are your orders?"

"Settle all of Melissa's wages. She won't be working for you anymore," Leon said in a calm tone.

"Yes, yes, yes!" the shopkeeper hurriedly replied, taking a Taylor silver coin from his pocket and presenting it to Leon.

"Is this the number?" Leon asked Melissa to confirm.

“Actually, there should only be fifty pfennigs…” Melissa whispered.

"After all, it's so late, and I even had you drink with the guests, so it's only right!" the boss said with a forced smile.

“Alright.” Leon took the silver coin and sized up the shopkeeper. “Although I know you probably can’t do much, but…”

He suddenly raised his hand and clenched his fist, as if he was about to punch the boss.

"Eek!" The boss covered his face in horror and backed away, waving his hands frantically, "No, no, no! Let's talk this out! Let's talk this out!!"

But Leon ultimately didn't throw a punch at him. Instead, he lowered his hand and coldly said, "Be glad Melissa isn't hurt!"

After saying that, he stuffed the silver coin into Melissa's hand and led her to the shop door.

Before going out, he carefully looked around to make sure no one was lying in ambush on the street before taking Melissa into a taxi.

The carriage started moving, and the carriage swayed slightly. It was only at this moment that Leon calmed down completely and realized that his previous actions had been somewhat impulsive.

Although everything ended peacefully in the end, there was a moment when he wasn't sure what to do. If any of the other people were young and hot-blooded and couldn't stand his provocation, they might have fired their guns, and he really would have died there.

A gunfight broke out there, and Melissa was unlikely to escape unscathed.

But at that moment, a voice inside him kept screaming that he should not bow down to those people, and that he should not be afraid of them!

He had long since explored far more taboo subjects and tasted the thrill of high risk and high reward. Although he had reflected on his impulsive actions, the exhilarating feeling of victory lingered in his mind.

At this moment, Melissa, who had been hesitant to speak, finally spoke up: "Brother Leon, that money of yours is..."

Leon suddenly realized that he really needed to give an explanation for taking out such a large sum of money.

Fortunately, he was quick-witted: "Ah, that was actually placed here by Bishop Leona. It totaled 50,000 pfennigs. She saw how hard you all worked and asked me to use this money to help you out more."

Let's have Lena give him a statement later.

"The bishop's money?" Melissa awkwardly clutched the hem of her skirt. "We've already received so much kindness from her, how can we possibly use her money? This money..."

Even if they wanted to repay the money, their family simply couldn't afford it.

“She knew you definitely wouldn’t agree, which is why she left it with me. She asked me to tell you that for her, doing good deeds is also part of spiritual practice. This is her intention, and refusing her would only make her sad,” Leon said.

The carriage soon arrived at the entrance of their alley. Leon helped Melissa out of the carriage and paid the fare.

He led Melissa home quickly, while carefully keeping an eye on their surroundings. The chances of those people daring to come back for revenge were slim, but not impossible.

“I’m sorry I took the liberty of helping you quit your part-time job, but it was really too dangerous there. You have no idea how worried your mother is about you, and so am I…” Leon said to Melissa in a low voice as he walked ahead.

“Mmm…” Melissa responded choked with emotion, sniffling.

"Melissa?" Hearing Melissa's sobbing voice, Leon subconsciously stopped and turned around.

Melissa's shoulders trembled, and she began to sob uncontrollably.

She had kept all the fear and grievances she felt in the tavern to herself, but now that she felt truly safe and relaxed, they finally burst forth like a dam breaking.

"Waaaaaah!!"

Melissa burst into tears. Just as Leon was about to offer some words of comfort, Melissa suddenly threw herself into his arms, hugged him tightly, buried her face in his chest, and continued to cry.

Leon was caught off guard. Melissa was not only emotionally distraught but also drunk. She hugged him so tightly that he could hardly breathe.

How can this little girl have such a strong grip?

"Okay, okay, it's alright now, it's all over!" He could only pat Melissa's back gently to comfort her, waiting for her to calm down.

As Melissa cried, countless memories churned in her mind:

When Leon first came to their house to look at it, he helped her carry her mother to the doctor, he helped her teach the two boys who bullied her a lesson, and when she was feeling utterly hopeless in the tavern, Leon grabbed her hand in time...

For some reason, among all her memories of Leon, she suddenly recalled a scene from her childhood when she was lying in bed listening to her mother tell stories.