Help

It was dusk.

A carriage drove to a somewhat desolate outskirts of the city, where a sizable manor stood, with an old and magnificent villa.

With a creak, the carriage came to a stop, and Kenk, dressed in a suit and carrying a briefcase, stepped down. He looked around, straightened his tie, and strode into the manor.

Upon closer inspection, the guards at the manor were carrying the Garand Type II Rifle, which Kenk had recently recommended to the Marley military. And the manor's name was Louis Estate.

Walking down the street, Kenk felt uneasy because he hadn't achieved the Master's goal.

Soon, Kenk arrived at the manor owner's office.

At the office door, the burly butler Bill was leaning against the wall, puffing on his cigarette. When he saw Kenk arrive, Bill glanced at him sideways, then knocked on the office door with his cigarette butt still in his mouth.

Kenk gave Bill a fawning smile, then pulled a pack of Marley's most famous cigarettes from his bag, but Bill didn't even glance at it.

Kenk had no choice but to sheepishly put his cigarette back.

"Come in." Hearing the calm voice coming from inside the room, Ken swallowed hard and walked in somewhat nervously.

The room was large but very dark, with only a desk lamp on. Kenk could only see a figure with their back to him, hunched over a desk, seemingly writing something furiously.

"Kenk, how's it going? What's the Marley military's attitude?" the figure asked.

Kenk lowered his head and said, "Master, the Marley military only agreed to replace the equipment for the Marley Guard Corps, so the order is only one-third of what we expected."

After Kenk finished speaking, he looked at the man's retreating figure with some concern, but the expected reprimand did not come. Instead, he received a calm reply, "I expected this. The Marley high command is still too short-sighted. The long period of peace has made these high command too numb. Oh, or rather, they are afraid of the Eldians?"

Kenk nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, those high-ranking officials seem to disagree with equipping the Eldia Army with new weapons."

"Hmph..." The figure chuckled coldly a few times, then asked, "Kenk, I heard recently that you seem to have had some contact with Middle Easterners?"

Upon hearing this, Kenk broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly explained, "Master, I... no, those Middle Easterners also wanted to learn about our company's products, but... but, I didn't agree. I'm going to immediately and firmly refuse them!"

"Refuse? Why refuse?"

Kenk was startled and instinctively said, "But... but the Middle Easterners have been restless and unruly on our Marley border for years!"

"Oh? Kenk, that's really unexpected. I didn't know you were so patriotic. Heh, I'm quite surprised to find someone as patriotic as you in Arms Company."

Kenk flinched; he sensed something was amiss. "Master, you mean... the Middle East too..."

"Let's change the name. There aren't only allowed one Louis Arms Company in the world; there can be other Arms Company, you understand?"

Kenk nodded quickly, "Yes, I understand!"

After giving a few instructions, Kenk hurriedly left the Louis Estate.

As night fell, a crescent moon hung in the sky, making the already secluded Louis Estate even more tranquil.

Two figures, completely covered up, looked around warily before entering Zhuang Zhou's manor. The guards at the manor gate didn't even glance at them, showing no reaction whatsoever.

Seeing the two arrive at the office door, Bill didn't knock, but instead opened the wooden door directly.

The two nodded to Bill and then went into the office.

"Mr. Ebson, are we not late?"

"You've arrived." Unlike his cold tone with Kenk earlier, Ebson's voice was now very kind and gentle.

The office lights were on, and in the bright light, a tall, thin figure sat at the desk. A simple pair of thin black-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, and his suit was equally unassuming. Without being told, who would recognize this man as Earl Louis of Marley renowned Louis Family Nobility, the Ebson of the Louis Arms Company?

The two people in front of Louis also revealed their faces; they were a man and a woman. The woman was clearly here for the first time; she had a young and beautiful face, and her large eyes were full of curiosity about her surroundings.

The man beside him was much more mature. He spoke to Ebson, "Mr. Ebson, we are truly grateful to you. If it weren't for your help, our Eldia Restorationists would have been wiped out long ago. On behalf of my compatriots, I thank you for your assistance!"

Ebson smiled and shook his head, saying sincerely, "No, this is just what I should do. Over the years, I have only seen the Marley Empire oppress the Eldians. The Eldians have also fought and bled for Marley, but Marley's behavior has indeed been disappointing."

Before the man could speak, the Eldia woman interrupted, "Mr. Ebson, you are also Marleyan, and Marley Nobility. Why are you helping our Eldia Restorationists?"

"Selina! How rude!" the man snapped.

But Ebson just smiled and said, "It's nothing. I made mistakes when I was young. Helping Eldia is a way of atoning for my past mistakes."

The Eldia man stood up. "Mr. Ebson, we will never forget your help to the Eldians!"

Ebson stood up as well, and the two shook hands. Ebson said, "The medicines and weapons you need are all ready, but I still have to say, the assassination is too risky. Please be very careful, Jack."

Jack nodded. "We know, but we must complete this operation, or more of our compatriots will die at Landon's hands."

"Good luck, but be careful. Bill will take you to retrieve the supplies."

"Alright, we're entrusting our family and children to you as well, Selina. We should go now."

But Selina picked up a bottle of ink from Ebson's desk. The bottle's pointed shape was quite peculiar, and she asked curiously, "Mr. Ebson, this ink bottle of yours is very strange."

Ebson smiled and said, "This is a very good ink. Feel free to take it with you if you like."

Selina put down the ink after being reprimanded by Jack, and left the office with Jack.