novelraw Chapter 47 : Introducing the Supplier
Chapter 47 : Introducing the Supplier
Chapter 47: Introducing the Supplier
Leon had no intention of letting the old shopkeeper go.
If the old man had sold him out once, there could easily be a second time.
No matter what, this risk had to be dealt with.
The man definitely had to be killed—but before killing him, Leon felt there was no reason not to squeeze him for another round.
If he could seize a sufficiently large sum, he could even consider temporarily withdrawing from this business to lie low and avoid the limelight.
The old shopkeeper looked like he had been in this line of work for quite some time.
He should have some money on hand, and money belonging to the dead was naturally something to be extracted as much as possible.
It took the old shopkeeper quite a while to recover from the shock of Caron Eso’s death.
Then he clearly realized that he was next.
He had completely misjudged this young man.
Someone who dared to kill Caron—and could kill him—how could he possibly spare someone like himself?
Upon realizing this, the old shopkeeper instead calmed down.
“Even if I give you the money, you’ll still kill me, won’t you? Just do it!”
Leon had long expected to be seen through.
He asked, “You don’t want a quicker death?”
Indeed, whether the shopkeeper gave him money or not, Leon would still kill him.
But how he killed him was still open to negotiation.
“I sold you out. If you want to kill me, I accept it. But I can’t take out that large a sum. Today isn’t a transaction day—there’s only about two hundred thousand in my cabinet. The key’s hanging around my neck.
“That’s all I can give you. Take it and give me a clean death. Torturing me is just a waste of your time anyway,” the old shopkeeper said in a coaxing tone.
“Then I still have to try,” Leon replied.
Leon was not naïve enough to give up just because the man said so.
He grabbed the old shopkeeper and dragged him toward a chair at the side.
……
More than two hours later, Leon splashed a bucket of cold water over the old shopkeeper, waking him up.
“Ah!”
Bound to the chair, the old shopkeeper jolted awake and began gasping for breath.
Blood stuck to his chin mixed with the water running down his face and dripped to the floor.
Leon casually tossed aside the pliers in his hand.
Several teeth and fingernails were scattered on the ground.
The old shopkeeper’s hands and feet were bound to the armrests and legs of the chair, and his fingers and toes were all studded with needles.
“Caron broke three of your fingers and you talked. I ask you for money and suddenly your mouth gets tight? Looks like I still have to learn more from others,” Leon said with a self-mocking smile as he lifted his foot and stepped down on the needle-pierced toes.
The old shopkeeper trembled violently in pain and forced out words from his throat.
“If—if Caron had been like you, asking for money, then no matter how he tortured me, I wouldn’t have said a word either. It was because… because he planned to let me keep doing this business that I talked.”
“So you really want money more than your life? You won’t live to spend it anyway—what’s the point?” Leon stared at him.
“You think I risked my life at my age just for myself? Hah… If I really cherished my life, who would do this line of work?” The old shopkeeper bared a miserable grin, his gums full of blood.
“You’re definitely crazier than me on this point—after all, you even killed Caron…”
“I’m not insisting on taking all your money. Three million—for a comfortable death.
That’s not expensive,” Leon said, grabbing the man’s hair.
“You know how this business works. Cash is hard to keep. The money I made that wasn’t spent has already been laundered into properties and collections, or transferred elsewhere. I can’t give it, and you can’t take it. Only the money loaned from above can be withdrawn, and that’s just another three hundred thousand or so.
“Even if you take that money, it’ll just be a hot potato and get you noticed very quickly. Believe it or not, that’s the truth.”
The old shopkeeper’s gaze grew unfocused.
“It doesn’t matter anymore… At this rate, I won’t last much longer anyway…”
Leon turned around and looked at the items he had gathered after searching the cellar.
As the old shopkeeper had said, the gold vouchers and coins locked in the iron cabinet in the cellar added up to just over two hundred thousand.
There were also some antiques and old goods that still seemed to have some value.
Leon knew that without proper channels, these items would be difficult to dispose of and carried the risk of being investigated.
He searched the other areas, including the shop above, but found nothing of value.
There were no hidden compartments or secret doors either.
He tried working the old shopkeeper some more, but in the end, he failed to make him hand over any additional money.
Moreover, the shopkeeper clearly could not withstand much more abuse.
Although Leon had been using methods with relatively low lethality, the old man was advanced in age.
Even intense pain carried the risk of death by shock.
It couldn’t be said that the old shopkeeper’s resolve was weak.
He was simply the typical type who valued money over life.
The reason Caron had managed to make him talk was precisely because it hadn’t interfered with his ability to make money.
When Caron had people help him dispose of stolen goods, he likely wouldn’t have chosen someone who would spill everything after just a little torture.
Leon could torture him, but in the end, he still hadn’t grasped the true weakness the man was hiding.
It seemed that continuing like this really would be a waste of time.
There was only one next step left.
Leon made up his mind.
“If you can’t give me money, I can still give you an opportunity,” Leon said slowly, staring at the old shopkeeper.
“Introduce your supplier to me.”
“What?” The shopkeeper, whose consciousness had already begun to drift, lifted his face again.
“Introduce your supplier to me. Let me replace you and supply them directly. You retire from this point on and disappear without a trace,” Leon explained his demand.
“After killing Caron, you still want to continue this kind of business?” The old shopkeeper looked at Leon in disbelief.
With a director of the Inquisition dead, the Church would soon turn this small town upside down.
This business chain would undoubtedly be shaken violently.
And yet the real culprit not only had no intention of leaving to avoid the storm, but even wanted to expand the business further?
“Since I’ve already killed him, I need to get something out of it. That’s thanks to you, too!” Leon said as he released the man’s hair and pressed his head down hard.
By replacing the old shopkeeper and supplying his supplier directly, the profit margin could be increased even further, making money more efficiently.
There were risks, of course—but no greater than when he killed Caron.
Besides, he had already prepared his bargaining chips.
“If I help you introduce them, you still won’t let me go, will you?” the shopkeeper asked warily.
“At the very least, I’ll let you live until the introduction. If this works out, there won’t be any need for me to care whether you live or die. Believe it or not, that’s up to you. At least it’s an opportunity. Are you going to fight for it, or not?” Leon asked expressionlessly.
“Let me think… let me think…” The old shopkeeper raised his head, leaned back against the chair, and gasped for breath, struggling to clear the chaos in his mind.
“You’re planning to tell my supplier that I sold you out, aren’t you? That’s how you’d really torture me!”
“Don’t make it sound like you matter that much. Who do you think you are? I need a buyer, and you’re no longer fit for the job. Introduce a new buyer for me and fulfill your responsibility!” Leon said slowly.
The old shopkeeper fell silent for a very, very long time—so long that Leon wondered if he had lost consciousness again.
Finally, he spoke.
“When do you want it done?”
“Right now,” Leon said directly.
“You’ll take me to meet them immediately.”
“That’s not appropriate…” the old shopkeeper shook his head at once.
“Not appropriate doesn’t mean impossible,” Leon rejected the objection.
“Your supplier is Mr. Griffin, isn’t it? I want you to introduce me right now.”
He had no intention of giving the old shopkeeper time to prepare any tricks.
Hearing this, the old shopkeeper sighed.
“Then you’ll have to untie me first and let me recover a bit. In my current state, I can’t even walk.”
Leon didn’t reply, but he did pull out the needles one by one and then loosen the bindings.
The severely tortured old shopkeeper still slumped in the chair, panting heavily.
Leon took out a test tube filled with a purplish-red liquid and handed it to him.
“Drink this.”
At the sight of the liquid in the tube, the old shopkeeper shuddered, his eyes filled with indescribable fear.
“What is this?!”
“A witch’s magical potion. The kind that can poison people—but not immediately. If things work out, you’ll get the antidote. If not, you’ll die a long and painful death,” Leon explained.
“Will you drink it yourself, or do you want me to pour it down your throat?”
The shopkeeper was terrified.
When Leon prepared to reach out and force his jaw open, he realized he had no chance to resist.
In the end, he helplessly took the tube and downed the poison in one gulp.
The stench of blood mixed with a cold numbing sensation spread down his throat, making him feel suffocated.
But at that moment, Leon promptly suppressed the curse in the blood.
The old shopkeeper, who had just been holding his breath, clutched his throat and gasped for air.
After repeated practice, Leon was now able to control the cursed blood with greater precision.
The opportunity was rare—it was just right to formally test it on a human subject.