Information Leak

Black Snake didn't know much about this commission, which was within Lin Yu's expectations.

After all, the mastermind was clearly trying to hide his identity, and even Saint Orchid Kui had no clue who he was...

When Black Snake received this commission, he naturally failed to find any weakness in the other party's defenses.

However, he still provided Lin Yu with valuable information.

The commission was issued three weeks ago.

Black Snake inexplicably received a large sum of money, both in whole numbers and in small amounts, from an unknown anonymous account.

Black Snake was naturally very nervous after receiving the money—middlemen at his level were not actually short of money.

However, the amount transferred was still so large that it somewhat shocked Black Snake.

As a "veteran Intermediary," Black Snake naturally realized that this transfer must have a hidden meaning. Sure enough, not long after, he received another anonymous message sent directly to his Communicator.

The message precisely provided the same amount as the transfer, which at that moment became a kind of anti-counterfeiting code—the meaning of the message itself was unclear.

Attached to that message was a time and address: the location was a secluded roadside on the Outer City, and the time was late that night.

So, following the instructions, the Black Snake arrived at that road in the dead of night.

When he arrived, he found a car parked on the road that was usually deserted, especially at night.

As he approached the car, the back door opened automatically.

After getting in the car, only the driver was in the driver's seat.

Black Snake remembered it clearly: the driver was dressed in very ordinary clothes, and wore a mask and hat, but he exuded an undeniable aura of authority.

He deduced that this person must be from at least a Ducal Family... or even possibly Royal Nobles!

The driver then told Black Snake his purpose: he planned to issue an assassination commission.

Because the target of the assassination was too important, the other party did not disclose who the target was—this is quite common, so Black Snake did not suspect anything; many employers do not want to tell the middleman the specific target of their assassination.

After all, the more people who know, the greater the risk of exposure... As a top-tier middleman, Black Snake knows very well how to accommodate and obey his employers.

Therefore, he is also very good at selecting suitable candidates for his clients even without Item details of the commission.

Moreover, the employer's requirements weren't particularly unusual.

"Preference will be given to skilled infiltration agents with strong frontal combat capabilities who are worth the pay, and who are familiar with the Inner City and the Noble."

"The final squad should have four to five people."

Based on these requirements, he quickly narrowed down a few suitable candidates to contact privately.

Furthermore, Black Snake also plans to post public commissions through the Demon Pig Bar and his old friend's place, hoping to hook up with some ruthless characters he doesn't have the means to contact.

This is the normal procedure.

However, what makes it special is...

"Today is my only public appearance. There are eight brand new Communicator here, containing my contact information. Once you find the right person, they can contact me directly using this."

This is not in accordance with the procedure.

This means that the employer had absolutely no intention of "reviewing" the candidates for this task!

This is highly illogical for the Black Snake.

Judging from the amount of money and the requirements, this should be a very crucial task.

But for such a crucial task, the other party didn't intend to personally oversee the person carrying out the commission... This puzzled Black Snake.

Because this is an almost self-contradictory act!

In other words, this employer cares about the task, but also seems indifferent to it.

"This is what I find most strange, but at the time, because of the high Intermediary fee, I didn't investigate further..."

After listening to the Black Snake's complete account, Lin Yu nodded slightly.

"I know the general reason, but— Black Snake, describe the employer's appearance to me in more detail."

Black Snake hesitated for a moment before speaking, "I really didn't see what he looked like at all. He was wearing a trench coat, and his hat and mask were almost completely closed. Even his voice was altered."

"I can only roughly tell that he is not very tall, and he drives a very common second-hand cargo truck... so he shouldn't be the type of Noble who is extremely fastidious and particularly averse to people from Outer City and the poor."

"And that person must have been driving a truck, and a very skilled one at that—because the truck was driven away as soon as I got out."

Upon hearing the Black Snake's words, Lin Yu seemed to understand something.

"Okay, I think I understand. Thank you for your valuable information."

Then, Lin Yu looked at the Black Snake: "Furthermore, the answer to why this employer is unwilling to meet his employee in person is quite simple..."

At that moment, Black Snake heard Lin Yu's words, but he didn't feel the slightest bit of curiosity about this question that had troubled him for a long time.

On the contrary...

The Black Snake only sensed a chilling danger.

"Whoosh!"

Blood spurted out, and the middleman next to the Black Snake clutched his throat and slowly collapsed.

Lin Yu wiped the knife clean again and spoke with a smile.

"This matter is of great importance. The fewer people who know about it, the better. I hope you understand."

Black Snake shuddered again, instinctively feeling that hearing this would likely bring trouble upon him and make it difficult for him to survive.

But...

Black Snake didn't have the courage to stop Lin Yu, who seemed eager to tell him the details of the commission!

He feared that if he spoiled Lin Yu's fun, he might kill the other person on the spot.

Black Snake wasn't actually that afraid of death. After all, he had long been used to death in this line of work, and Black Snake had made some mental preparations for the possibility that he might die a violent death one day.

But Lin Yu had already hinted at it to him—if he died, what kind of desperate situation would his sister face?

Indeed, I will die eventually... but I absolutely cannot die today, before my sister is independent!

The sheer terror of death itself, coupled with this incident, has rendered Black Snake utterly incapable of doing anything.

He could only listen as Lin Yu slowly recounted the details of the request that filled him with despair.

"Mr. Black Snake, the content of this commission is... to assassinate the Royal Nobles Arter at the coming-of-age ceremony of ' Nightless Sky Fire Apricot 'Mercury."

"Thump!"

Upon hearing the details of the request, the Black Snake collapsed to the ground, limp and lifeless.

"Assassinate... Royal Nobles!"

"And it was an assassination attempt on Royal Nobles in a public place!"

The Black Snake covered its face, almost wailing, "I... I don't know anything."

"No, you know," Lin Yu said calmly, "Not only do you know, but you also have to 'leak' this at the right time."