What witch? The Deadly Pharmacist!

She harbored an unusually deep suspicion of Father Auden, after all, he was one of the culprits who had plunged their family into disaster.

“It’s not me who wants to rent the dock this time, but Mr. Seth. I’m just here as a representative of the Watchers Merchant Guild. If Mr. Seth helps you repair the dock, you can use it for business or as collateral, which will help our loans return to a healthy state,” Father Auden said.

"Stop trying to fool me!" Adele's expression turned stern. "Last time I met you at the mine, you led the way for him. This time, you accompanied him to visit my home. Do you really think I can't see that you're working for him? He's your client, isn't he? These ships are assets you're helping him launder money with!"

Leon glanced silently at the priest.

The priest's attempt to fool the viscount's daughter was immediately seen through, clearly demonstrating that Adele had considerable expertise in this area and even knew the concept of money laundering.

Last time, he threatened Adele with a gun, preventing her from thinking calmly, but this time Adele wasn't so naive.

Leon wasn't in a hurry. It was Father Auden's responsibility to deal with this problem, and if it wasn't handled well, he would have plenty of reasons to hold the priest accountable.

Father Auden, however, did not appear caught off guard, and calmly replied, "You must understand, accusations without evidence are slander, Miss Adele. By slandering a gentleman who has taken pity on your family and wanted to invest in you, do you really want to pay off your family's debts?"

“This isn’t a courtroom, you have no right to interfere with my personal claims,” Adele retorted firmly. “Besides, what kind of ‘benevolent gentleman’ do you serve? Don’t be ridiculous! I don’t care if you’re planning to use the dock for money laundering or some other scheme against our family, just forget about it!”

She had never had a good impression of Leon, who had threatened her with a gun, and now, because of his involvement with Father Auden, she hated Leon as well.

She didn't know what level of inquisitor Leon was, but since he could get involved with Father Auden and had money laundering assets, he must be a corrupt and lawless person!

"Don't overestimate your family, Miss Adele. You have almost no hope of paying off your debts. Who would expect to squeeze money out of a penniless person? Your family's assets don't even have the value of collateral, so they're not qualified for money laundering."

"Mr. Seth is willing to pay for the repairs of the dock, which will only benefit you and has the backing of the church. What do you have to worry about? You don't even have the foresight to weigh the pros and cons. I'm afraid it will be difficult for you to pay off your debts," Father Auden said sarcastically.

“The operating rights of the dock are still in our hands, so you don’t need to worry about it!” Adele said earnestly.

"The church needs to use the dock for its investigation. Aren't you going to cooperate?" Father Auden asked.

“If the church really needs it, I will find a way!” Adele said earnestly.

"Find a way? Ha, you're saying you'll find a way to pay off your family's debt of over 30 million? Do you really have a way?" Father Auden shook his head. "If you refuse even this method, then I think you probably only have one way to pay off the debt: marry a rich man!"

Chapter 112 The Area of ​​Adele's Psychological Trauma

Adele's eyes showed obvious displeasure upon hearing the priest's words, but she knew that the priest was deliberately provoking her to lose her temper, so she tried her best to suppress her anger and said, "Father Auden, I don't need you to come up with any solutions. If you don't like me trying to find a way to solve this debt, then the money can just remain in the debt. Anyway, the debt is still my father's problem."

Viscount Arendt had long since given up on his debts and given up on life; now only Adele was making an effort out of a sense of responsibility to preserve the family business left by her grandfather.

If Adele adopts the same attitude, it would obviously be very detrimental to the priest and the Watchers merchant group he represents. She is using this to threaten the priest not to push too far.

"That will be your problem in the future. Well, you're right, the debt is the Viscount's problem. Let's discuss the contract when the Viscount returns."

Seeing that Adele was unmoved by his persuasion, Father Auden simply resorted to his old method of bypassing Adele's interference and preparing to directly negotiate an agreement with Viscount Arend.

“Are you going to run away again, Father Auden? You should know that every time you avoid me and go to my father, it’s because you can’t do anything about me,” Adele said, staring at the priest.

“Say what you will, Miss Adele, I’m just following procedure,” Father Auden said shamelessly.

However, Adele showed no sign of backing down this time: "It's not that I have no other options this time. Of course, you can sign the dock rental agreement directly with my father, but as the heir to Viscount Arendt and as a person with a direct interest, if I suspect that your dock rental is for illegal purposes, I have the right to exercise my supervisory power, such as taking people to inspect the cargo on the ship. I guess that would be quite troublesome for you, right? You know this, which is why you came to talk to me, don't you?"

Father Auden clicked his tongue and frowned inwardly. This was the most troublesome situation he had anticipated. He was worried that Adele would become suspicious of their actions on the island after a long-term lease of the dock, which was why he had come up with this plan. In the end, it didn't fool them at all.

The Church has issued an investigation order regarding the handling of the maze, which Adele cannot interfere with, and she probably wouldn't dare to explore the maze.

But the docks are ultimately the Viscount's property, and if Adele is determined to interfere, it will be somewhat troublesome for them.

They run a massive illegal business on Viscount Arend's island, so large that it's almost impossible to completely hide it. Therefore, they must find a way to deal with the local lords, especially the restless Adele.

Adele had a keen sense that they were planning to do something wrong with the dock, and it was only a matter of time.

Although she had no idea that the man in front of her was turning their family's territory into the largest magic energy production area in the empire.

Just as the priest was about to say something, Leon, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "Are you going to do something foolish again, Miss Adele?"

The moment he opened his mouth, the air in the room seemed to freeze.

"What...do you mean?" Adele looked at the expressionless Leon and felt a sudden pang of fear.

"You think that doing this will cause us trouble, so we'll give up renting your dock, right?" Leon asked.

“I just want to confirm whether you intend to use my family’s property for illegal activities. Is there a problem with that?” Adele asked, mustering her courage.

"Have you already forgotten the consequences of your questioning me like this last time?" Leon suddenly laughed.

But to Adele, the smile on Leon's face was as cold as ice water flowing out of cracked ice. Of course, she remembered that after her last questioning, Leon had a gun pointed at her head.

“Your bodyguards aren’t very professional. They let strangers into the house without first thoroughly searching them to see if they were carrying any weapons,” Leon continued.

Adele and Hayley tensed up simultaneously. Hayley immediately placed her hand on the gun handle and warned Leon, "Please don't do anything out of line, sir!"

Leon made no threatening move, but looked at Hayley and asked, "Miss Hayley, right? Are you simply employed by Miss Adele, or do you have a relationship with her? How much does Miss Adele usually pay you? Ah, you don't have to tell me, I just wanted to ask if I offered double the money, would you be willing to quit your job right now and accept my employment?"

Adele and Hayley both looked surprised. Then Hayley shook her head, saying that it would be unwise for a guard to betray his employer so rashly.

Before Hailey could even refuse, Leon continued, "Five times?"

Hailey's expression changed slightly, but she still did not respond.

Seeing this, Leon felt more confident and added, "Or should I just pay you a large sum of money? How about 300,000?"

Hailey stared in disbelief, while Adele was completely pale: "Wait, wait a minute!"

She hired Hayley for a price in line with the market rate. Hayley was just a new bodyguard, and her salary wasn't very high. This man in front of her could probably afford to pay this large sum of money.

If Hailey is poached and turns against him here, it means that she will be left alone in this room with no one to protect her, and she will be at the mercy of this man!

At this moment, Leon suddenly laughed: "Just kidding, I don't need to do that."

Hearing this, Adele's anxiety didn't subside; instead, it intensified.

She glanced at Hailey, who clearly showed disappointment. This terrible man had created a rift between her and her hired servant with just a few words and without spending a penny.

His final statement, "I don't need to do this," further suggests that he has other ways to deal with himself!

“Miss Adele, I’d like to ask you, assuming you discover that I’m using your family’s dock for some illegal activity, what do you plan to do? Report me to the church?” Leon looked directly into Adele’s eyes and asked bluntly, “Have you considered the possibility that doing so could get you killed? For example, what if the church suddenly finds a bunch of contraband in your house, and you’re accused of blasphemy?”

“I…I will defend myself, I have studied the law! Your threat…” Adele stammered.

"Oh? Then why don't you defend your family yourself and invalidate your father's gambling debts? Do you still think you can protect yourself with the law when facing people with more power than you?" Leon retorted. "Let me put it another way, what if one day you were suddenly put in a sack and thrown into the sea? Would you defend yourself to the fish and shrimp at the bottom of the sea? The seawater around Arend Island is still quite cold this time of year."

Adele was so frightened she couldn't speak.

"Don't be so tense, just kidding, I don't need to do that," Leon said with a smile.

Adele now feels like she's on the verge of a breakdown when she sees Leon smiling like that; she might even wake up from nightmares from this man's smile.

“I just want to know, have you really seriously considered the consequences of going against me, Miss Adele?” Leon said, staring at Miss Adele.

"I just... I just don't want my family to get involved in illegal things..." Adele stammered in her defense.

"Your family is almost finished, and you're still thinking of preserving your dignity without taking any risks?" Leon raised an eyebrow. "Miss Adele, do you really want to save your family? How much are you willing to pay for it?"

Adele stared blankly at Leon, not reacting for a moment.

"Would you be willing to marry a rich man in exchange for your family getting rid of debt? Or would you be willing to risk committing a crime to make a fortune? Oh, by the way, your father is a heavy gambler, isn't he? Gamblers can't control themselves, so no matter how much money you make, it won't matter. So would you be willing to kill your father to protect your family?" Leon said this casually.

“What…” Adele was completely shocked.

“Of course, there’s a gentler approach: confine him so he can never gamble again. Starve him for a few days, then force him to sign an agreement to let you manage the family business,” Leon continued.

Father Auden, who was overhearing this, initially wanted to remind Leon that it would not benefit them to advise Adele to replace the Viscount. However, he then thought that even if Adele were in power, she would not pose any threat to Leon. Just like now, Leon was already suppressing her to the point that she dared not even breathe.

Fenrir is truly the bane of this viscount's daughter!

Seeing that Adele was still just staring at him in shock, Leon knew what was going on: "It seems you can't do any of these things. Then I can say with certainty that you will never have a chance to save your family. Do you really expect to find some sucker who will invest in your family's business without expecting anything in return?"

You lack awareness. You've reached a dead end, yet you still crave dignity. You're standing on a collapsing ice floe, but you're still worried about getting your pretty dress wet if you swim. How many people in this world struggle to survive, even sacrificing limbs? What kind of effort is this?

Selene was willing to sacrifice her life to pay off her debts and give her daughter a future; Melissa toiled day and night to save her mother from huge debts; Lena risked being arrested by the church to become a witch in order to save her grandmother's life... Compared to them, Leon found it hard to respect the viscount's daughter in front of him.

The Viscount Arendt family had once been wealthy, and Adele, having lived a life of luxury, probably never truly experienced despair. She didn't know how to struggle in the face of dire circumstances.

"I will have Viscount Arend sign an agreement for the docks. I will have the docks used, and in three years I will give you a fully functional dock. With the church involved, you don't need to worry about legal issues. If you don't give them to me, I can also use the church to requisition them, and you have no right to supervise that. If you still want to stop me, you can try, but be prepared."

Leon stared directly into Adele's eyes, making Adele shiver.

Then Leon suddenly stood up and patted Father Auden on the shoulder.

“Old friend, you wait here for the Viscount to come back and sign the agreement. I’m going back now. After all, no one here is qualified to talk to me…” Leon finished speaking and glanced at the silent Adele.

After saying that, he left the study without saying goodbye to anyone, leaving only Adele and Father Auden in silence.

Father Auden watched Leon's retreating figure as he opened the door, then glanced at Adele, who still seemed shaken. He sighed inwardly. He had originally hoped that after their meeting, Adele and Leon would develop a stronger connection, laying the groundwork for Leon's future purchase of the title.

Well, it was pretty much like a blind date... The impression was deepened, but it wasn't a good one. It just meant that Adele's psychological trauma towards Leon Seth continued to grow.

Chapter 113 Promotion and Salary Increase: Becoming the Director

Two months later, at the Inquisition.

Leon was summoned to the director's office by Bishop Beckett. When he entered the office and locked the door, he saw Bishop Beckett take out an exquisite little wooden box and place it on the table.

"Sir, what is this?" Leon asked.

“This is a gift that Baron Turner asked me to give you. Open it and take a look,” Bishop Beckett said, gesturing towards the box.

“Baron Turner?” Leon was a little surprised.

Baron Turner was a wealthy and influential old nobleman in Castel, who was very powerful throughout Southportshire.

At the same time, he was also one of Mr. Griffin Potter's old clients and protectors. However, when the Earl sent Bishop Beckett to infiltrate Southport County, he chose to accept the Earl's conditions and abandon Potter. Potter's manor was taken over by the Inquisition because of the information he provided.

Now, through Bishop Beckett's introduction, he has become Leon's client, and Leon has met him once before.

Baron Turner's only son died in battle, and he had always wanted to have another heir but was hampered by old age and declining health. Therefore, he had been hoping for a fertility potion made from labyrinth mandrake.

“Lady Turner has confirmed her pregnancy. Baron Turner visited me yesterday to share this joy. He originally intended to visit you directly, but you were still on the island yesterday, so he asked me to deliver the gift,” Bishop Beckett explained.

Leon carefully opened the box, inside which lay a gleaming gold-plated pocket watch, exquisitely crafted. He picked it up and examined it, noticing the inscription on the back and the maker's engraved signature.

This is a pocket watch made by a master craftsman. It has a high collectible value in aristocratic circles and is a very respectable gift.

“Congratulations to him then.” Leon put away his pocket watch.

Besides the fertility potion, Baron Turner has also been buying longevity potions from them, and he will remain a regular customer.

"From what I've heard, the quality of the potions you supply seems to have improved significantly. All of our powerful clients say that the potions you provide are far superior in quality and effect to those supplied by Mr. Griffin. Your products have greatly enhanced the reputation of the Earl's forces."

"Taking over territory is one thing, but establishing a foothold there is quite another. I was worried at first, but now it seems you've handled it much better than I expected," Bishop Beckett said with a smile.

"As long as the customer is satisfied, I'm grateful that they're willing to give me this favor," Leon replied.

"No need to be modest. I actually obtained your potions through some channels and examined them. The purity of the magic essence used in your potions should be around 80%. Among the Earl's subordinates, very few can supply such a large quantity and stably."

Bishop Beckett suddenly changed the subject, "But I have a question. You haven't forgotten the targets the Earl gave you, have you?"

“Of course, two hundred grams of magic essence,” Leon said.

“It must contain at least 50 grams of pure magic essence,” Bishop Beckett added. “Aren’t you sure that using such a large amount of such high-purity magic essence in your potions will affect delivery?”

Leon understood. Bishop Beckett was questioning him mainly because he was worried that Leon had used up too much magic energy in the local potion market, which would result in him not being able to deliver all the goods next year.

"Production is going smoothly, and we expect to deliver on time. However, we have exhausted all the low-purity magic essence, and we currently have no magic essence with a purity of less than 80%," Leon replied.

"What did you say?" Bishop Beckett looked somewhat surprised. "How many have you produced so far?"

“The amount in stock is about 120 grams, with a purity of 80% to 87%,” Leon replied after thinking for a moment.

He actually underreported a small portion of the purest part, the part that was given to Lena to mix the medicine for treating Selene.

“Only three months have passed, and you’re already close to completion?” Bishop Beckett was increasingly surprised.

“No, more than forty grams were extracted from that earthworm,” Leon replied.

"So that means you also produced about eighty grams, all over the winter?" Bishop Beckett's eyes were filled with doubt.

He knew that monsters would slow down their life activities and stop reproducing in winter. Normally, these three months should be the period when Leon's supply was most strained, and he could only rely on the magic essence extracted from the monsters in the Arend Island labyrinth to get through the winter.

But 120 grams of magic essence—this is clearly not an amount that can be achieved by the monsters currently existing in that labyrinth, even if there is a level four monster, the Earth Dragon, inside.

"This labyrinth is deep inside the mountain. The environment inside is relatively warm, and there is also a temple ruin dedicated to Moirai. The level of magic is very high, and monsters thrive there even in winter," Leon replied casually.

These monsters, which would normally cease reproduction and enter hibernation in winter, are now growing and reproducing normally in the labyrinth of Arend Island, just like in other seasons. However, the main reason is not the magic level of the Arend Island labyrinth, but rather that Rena's abilities have been enhanced.

They have now discovered that Lena's Blood Pact ability has also gained the ability to enhance the life activities and reproductive capacity of monsters, so much so that these monsters are reproducing normally during the winter when they should be resting.

This means they can harvest one more season than the originally estimated maximum yield, increasing production by another quarter to one-third.

"The purity is all above 80%? Have you improved the process? Or did you kill the blessed people again?" Bishop Beckett asked suspiciously.