What witch? The Deadly Pharmacist!

“He wants to try new sources of goods,” Leon replied briefly, without going into details of his deal with the count.

Father Auden sat down thoughtfully, raising an eyebrow at Leon: "You've made it big, haven't you?"

"It's only just begun, and there are still many issues to address," Leon said.

“But the profits should be considerable, right? I bet you’ll have a lot of money to launder later,” Father Oden said.

“I’ve said there are many issues to deal with, and now is not the time, Father,” Leon replied.

“There are many issues to deal with, so you will probably need an advisor,” Father Oden said earnestly, staring into Leon’s eyes.

Chapter 84 Weakness will only make you a target for others to ride on.

"You want me to hire you, like Potter?" Leon quickly caught up with Father Auden's intention.

In fact, when he came to see the priest, he had anticipated that the priest, knowing that he had now established a relationship with the count, might make such a proposal.

“That’s right. If you’re going to replace Potter in managing the business here, it would be best to have someone familiar with the local business by your side. I can also offer you a lot of advice,” Father Oden replied.

"How much would it cost to hire you?" Leon asked.

“Porter doesn’t pay me a specific consulting fee. He lets me handle at least five million dollars in assets every year, and I take a 10% commission from that. For my biggest clients, I provide consulting services for free. Or, if you don’t trust me to handle your money, you can hire me for five hundred thousand dollars a year,” Father Oden said.

"In other words, I have to spend half a million to hire someone to share my situation with, and also have him boss me around?" Leon said jokingly.

“You’ll need me, or rather, you need me right now. You’ve boarded the Earl’s ship, and the Earl wants you to supply him, but he hasn’t helped you solve the problem of sourcing monsters. I guess something went wrong in that process, right? So you not only have to pay for the monsters yourself, but you also have to hire people to handle the conflicts,” Father Auden said.

“Father Auden, are you saying that if I don’t hire you, you won’t help me with introductions?” Leon countered.

“No, I will still make money,” Father Auden replied.

“I think so too,” Leon nodded.

"You may not believe me, but you need at least one person by your side who has nothing to do with the Earl. If everyone around you is someone arranged by the Earl, you will be at his mercy, and your life and death will always be in someone else's hands. Maybe you are valuable to the Earl now, but who knows what will happen in the future? You need to have your own unique connections to have a way out."

I have some intelligence to share with you. Just recently, one of the Earl's men in Riverdale disappeared—vanished without a trace! That guy fought Potter for a long time without gaining any advantage, and now the Earl has directly taken care of everything, so he's been immediately discarded. There are even rumors that he's related to the Earl and highly trusted, yet he still met this end. Working under the Earl isn't easy.”

Leon remembered that when he met the Earl, it wasn't in Southport County, but in River Valley County.

The information Father Auden provided was no small matter. If he tried to find out if it was true or false, he could easily find out the truth. The Father Auden he knew wouldn't lie in a way that would be so easily exposed.

"You're quite well-informed," Leon commented.

“That’s one of the benefits of having me as an advisor,” Father Oden replied.

“I understand what you’re saying, Father. But you worked for Potter for money, and now you’re willing to work for me for money. So, you’ll work for anyone who offers a higher price in the future, won’t you?” Leon stated his concerns directly.

“If you don’t trust someone, you have to keep them under your nose. I need money, but I’m not short-sighted. If we can have a long-term business relationship, at least a temporary offer won’t make me betray you. You need me now, so you should put some effort into reducing the risks of using me, shouldn’t you?” Father Auden advised.

“Well, to be honest, Father, I personally didn’t have a very good impression of you from the beginning. This may be related to the Hershey family, after all, you are involved in how they became like that,” Leon said.

“You sent Mrs. Hersh to prison, isn’t it inappropriate for you to criticize me now?” Father Auden retorted.

“The reason they made a deal with me is because of the debts you made them bear. You are just harming people. You have done this kind of thing many times, haven’t you, Father?” Leon asked.

“I may not have a conscience, but I’m just doing what my employer tells me to do. Potter needs me to scam people, so I’m the most shameless lawyer you can imagine. If you prefer doing good deeds, I can certainly speak eloquently in court on your behalf. What I do depends on what you want me to do; not taking sides is a virtue in my line of work,” the priest replied calmly.

“I have to admit you’ve convinced me, but unfortunately I don’t have the spare cash to hire you right now, nor do I have that much money to ask you to handle,” Leon replied.

"When will we receive our first payment?" the priest asked.

"If nothing goes wrong within a year."

“Then I can give you a trial period of service first. If you want to renew the contract when you receive your payment, you can pay for the period of service,” Father Auden suggested.

"That sounds like a pretty good deal," Leon chuckled.

“As I said, I’m focused on long-term interests. I have every reason to believe in your future, given that you were able to board the Earl’s ship under those circumstances,” Father Auden said.

“Sure,” Leon agreed more readily this time. “Since you’re willing to offer such a big discount, why not give me something else as a gift?”

What else do you want?

"You must have Porter's client list, right?"

Potter controls the underground market in Southport County and has established a very stable customer base. If Leon is to take over Potter's business here, he must inherit his customers, understand their needs for potions, and adjust production accordingly.

“You’ve been planning this all along, haven’t you?” Father Auden sighed.

“The sooner I profit, the sooner you can get your money. Why not?” Leon said.

“Alright, I’ll give it to you. But before that, let’s talk about your plan to seize the goods. Tell me about the situation, and maybe I can give you some advice,” Father Auden suggested.

“Okay.” Leon nodded.

……

That evening, in a field on the outskirts of Hamel, Leon, accompanied by Bishop Beckett, met with the liaison responsible for transporting the monsters.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Fenrir, we've done our best. Sometimes things like this happen when transporting live animals; nobody wants it to happen." The person in charge of the escort apologized to Leon, but his face showed a nonchalant expression.

“These monsters haven’t been fed properly at all. They shouldn’t be like this after just a few days of travel,” Leon said.

"I'm truly sorry, I will convey your opinion to Mr. Barr in its entirety." The person in charge mentioned the name of his superior.

Mr. Bal, the cadre, is in charge of a territory in the western part of River Valley County. His territory contains a labyrinth, and he has a group of labyrinth hunters under his command. The monster that Leon is using to raise this time was one that the Count requested him to deploy.

Bishop Beckett listened silently to their conversation from behind. The monster that Baal had sent had gone wrong, and it was clearly a deliberate act of misbehavior.

The Earl considered Leon as a candidate for the position of Southport County's officer, but now Jay of Vale County has been purged by the Earl, and the territory of Vale County has not yet been allocated, with Johnny Willman, who was originally in charge of foreign trade and transportation, taking over the responsibility in his place.

Baal naturally did not want this outsider candidate to be favored and to take away the territory of River Valley. If Leon's mission was thwarted, he would have the opportunity to take over the territory of River Valley.

The Earl turned a blind eye to the infighting among his officials, as long as it wasn't too serious. The checks and balances among the officials effectively prevented any one group from becoming too powerful and developing unnecessary ambitions. If an official showed weakness or was suspected of betrayal, he would quickly be targeted by the other officials.

"Does Mr. Barr have some kind of problem with me?" Leon asked bluntly.

"That's a bit strange. You've never even met Mr. Barr, so why would he have any objections? This is the Earl's order, and we've been doing our best to carry it out. It's just that something unexpected happened," the escort manager replied dismissively.

“Please send another batch of monsters; this is very important to the Earl’s business. If necessary, I can send someone to transport them,” Leon said.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Fenrir, our goods can only be transported by us. I will convey your request and we will process it as soon as possible," the person in charge replied.

"Please give these small gifts to Mr. Barr."

Leon beckoned, and a man recruited from the priest immediately stepped forward, carried over a small box, and opened it in front of everyone. Inside the box were neatly stacked small bottles.

The person in charge picked up a bottle, opened it, and smelled it: "An elixir of immortality?"

This is the most common item on the potion market.

"This potion is made using magic essence refined here. I hope you can tell Mr. Baal that if I can produce magic essence stably, he can also obtain a stable supply of raw materials, and everyone can benefit," Leon said with a smile.

The person in charge's smile became subtle upon hearing this: "Okay, I will pass it on properly."

Leon watched as the other party loaded the goods into the car and drove away. At this moment, Bishop Beckett spoke up behind him: "I hope you haven't done anything stupid like poisoning the medicine or trying to report them."

If Leon were to tamper with Baal in these areas, it would be too easy for the Count to find fault with him, and neither destroying the market nor betraying the organization would be tolerated by the Count.

“How could I do such a thing?” Leon shrugged.

“Your actions just now, besides telling them that you have no way to deal with them except to submit, and that they can ride roughshod over you at will, were meaningless,” Bishop Beckett reminded him.

Even without Leon's supply, the business in Baal's territory could still operate stably. In comparison, the territory in River Valley County was the greatest benefit for him.

Leon's attempt to negotiate based on so-called common interests only reveals his weakness, and Barr will inevitably escalate his actions. In this world, weakness leads to being bullied.

“It’s alright, sir. I’ll handle this myself.” Leon smiled slightly at Bishop Beckett.

……

Three days later, as Baal's escort wagons were about to cross a mountain road through River Valley County, two men hid on the hillside, concealing themselves with vegetation. One of them, after observing for a while with binoculars, said to his companion, "We've determined their route. Let's set up as Mr. Fenrir instructed!"

Chapter 85 An Unexpected Visitor

A few days later, two wagons from the cadre Baal crossed the canyon, preparing to travel through River Valley County towards Southport County, carrying monsters and goods for disguise.

Each of the two carriages was accompanied by a bodyguard on horseback, along with the two carriage drivers, making a total of six people.

In the woods on the canyon slope, Simon observed the situation through binoculars, then turned to Leon behind him and said, "Excuse my bluntness, Mr. Fenrir, but this is not the best ambush location. I still suggest we make our move after crossing the canyon."

"Why? This place is such a good hiding spot, why go to an open area instead?" Leon asked.

"Sir," Simon suggested to Leon, "it's precisely because everyone can see that people can hide on this hillside that they'll be extra vigilant. You see those men constantly looking around. Secondly, we're launching a surprise attack from a wooded hillside, so we can't ride horses. If they suddenly accelerate and flee when attacked, it will be difficult for us to stop them. It's more appropriate to pursue them on the plains."

Seeing that Leon didn't speak, the man added, "You have to trust our experience."

They were elite henchmen who had served Potter, introduced by the priest. The underworld war launched by the Earl was not large in scale. Although many people died with Potter on the day he was killed, quite a few survived. However, they lost their jobs after Potter's death.

Take Simon, for example. He's thirty-two years old and is considered one of Potter's more experienced henchmen. The priest also has a good opinion of him, so when Leon approached the priest, the priest introduced him and his men first.

Their first mission was to rob two carts of goods belonging to Barr, an officer under the Earl. They weren't too worried about it, since they had robbed goods belonging to Gerald, an officer in Riverdale, under Potter before.

“No, we’ll ambush them here. Once we cross the canyon, it’s River Valley County’s territory. Getting involved with other people’s territory will cause a lot of trouble. Let them have their accident on their own turf,” Leon objected.

“How about we flank them from both sides along the canyon?” Simon suggested again.

“Splitting our forces into two groups will only make it easier for them to break through, and our casualties will be greater.” Leon shook his head. “Just do as I say. Have you all completed the tasks I just assigned?”

“It’s done, but that setup… it can hardly be called a trap,” Simon said, puzzled.

Not long ago, Leon instructed them to pour a bottle of dark red liquid in the middle of the road somewhere along the carriage's route, creating a pool of dark red blood. This way, if the other party saw it, they might stop, but they would also become alert.

After Leon had them pour the liquid, he then instructed them to cover the pool of blood with dry grass as a disguise, trying to make it as inconspicuous as possible, which left them completely baffled.

“Listen carefully, we’ll ambush them at the agreed spot. When the caravan passes by, the horses will be startled. Once they’re in disarray, you can make your move. Don’t let a single one escape, understand?” Leon commanded.

“Well, sir.” Simon sighed helplessly, glanced at his brothers discreetly, and then shrugged.

While it's fortunate to find work again after being unemployed, this employer is more troublesome than expected. At least Mr. Griffin didn't interfere with how they robbed the company.

After a while, the carriage finally passed the place Leon had mentioned. The first guard rode his horse across the withered grass, and at that moment, the driver of the first carriage noticed that red was seeping out from the pile of withered grass, and the guard's horse had left wet footprints.

"Wait a minute, what's that?" the driver called out.

The guard at the front stopped and looked back, and was taken aback. At this moment, the guards on both sides also stepped forward and saw that there seemed to be blood under the pile of dry grass on the road. They immediately became alert.

"Oh no, they're starting to look around!"

Simon and his men, who were lying in ambush, tensed up. Simon was already cursing Mr. Fenrir for coming up with such a terrible idea.

Leon, who was hiding in the bushes not far away, watched as the people in the convoy noticed his blood lying on the road and seized the opportunity to activate his ability.

In an instant, the pool of blood covered by withered grass turned purple, transforming into wisps of purple smoke that rose up, including the hooves of the horse that had stepped into the blood.

As the cursed blood manifested, the people in the convoy saw the purple smoke and immediately felt a biological, instinctive sense of dread.

Before they could even gasp in shock, the horses in the convoy suddenly neighed in terror and began stamping their feet and fleeing, trying to get away from the billowing smoke.

The smoke produced by Leon's blood had a small range, making it difficult to poison people or large animals, but it was enough to frighten these horses.

"Stop! Stop!"

Both the guards and the coachmen began to frantically pull on the reins to try and calm the horses, plunging the caravan into chaos, which quickly spread to the next carriage.

"Hurry up!" Leon glared at the bewildered Simon and the others, urging them on.

Simon suddenly realized what was happening and grabbed the musket from the ground: "Attack!!"

The thugs lying in ambush on the hillside rushed out of their hiding places, grabbed muskets, crossbows, and bows and arrows, and charged down the hillside, then launched a volley of fire from their high vantage point.

The chaotic convoy was unable to react in time and began to suffer casualties immediately.

Leon didn't move; he just watched from behind a tree. He had done what he was supposed to do.

The scene was completely one-sided. After two volleys of gunfire, the convoy was almost entirely wiped out. One horse was shot by an arrow, causing the carriage to overturn. The driver of another carriage was shot off, and the frightened horse led the carriage in a wild gallop. Simon ordered one of his men to grab an uninjured horse and chase after the carriages, while he led his men to check if anyone was still alive. If they saw anyone still moving, they would finish them off with a knife.

After a while, Leon finally came down the hillside and came out. By then, Simon's men had caught up with the escaped carriage and were driving back here.

“Mr. Fenrir!” Simon called to Leon, “The men are all taken care of.”

"Very good, gather the bodies together and clean up the scene," Leon ordered.

"Sir, what exactly were those things you poured out?" Simon asked cautiously, his eyes filled with admiration and awe as he looked at Leon.

"The potions my men concocted are quite amazing, aren't they?" Leon smiled at him, then strolled over to the overturned carriage and began to inspect the cargo.

After the carriage overturned, the disguised partitions also fell apart, and the cage containing the monster and the disguised cargo rolled out together.

Leon checked the monsters and found that most of them were still alive. However, after searching the carriage, he did not find any food to feed the monsters.