Shadow Contract

Chandler... that Brown-Haired Boy was one of his men... A realization dawned on Lorry, and the corners of his mouth curled up almost imperceptibly.

He nodded slightly, boarded the carriage, and casually asked with a smile:

"He arranged for you to wait for me here?"

"If I don't leave tonight, are you just going to wait outside all night?"

"No, that won't happen." The coachman chuckled.

"Even if not me, there are others. As long as you step out that door, someone will surely extend the invitation on behalf of Chandler. Chandler."

When he mentioned this name, his tone was filled with an indescribable reverence.

The driver seemed unwilling to say more, and coughed:

"Honorable sir, please be seated. We are about to depart."

Lorry hummed in agreement, then didn't ask any further questions. He placed his hands on his knees and, amidst the creaking of the wheels, pulled back the curtains.

The Red Moon hangs high, silently overlooking the earth.

About half an hour later, the driver brought Lorry to a small casino, where the person waiting outside was none other than the Brown-Haired Boy from before.

"Your payment."

The Brown-Haired Boy pulled a small bag of jingling coins from his pocket and tossed it over, which the rickshaw driver, unable to hide his elation, caught with a wide grin.

The coachman needed to go back to earn more money, so he quickly turned the carriage around and left.

The Brown-Haired Boy turned to look at Lorry and bowed slightly:

Follow me.

"The boss is already waiting for you in his office."

He clearly knew Lorry's true identity; his expression was somewhat complicated, showing both awe and envy for the strong, as well as a deeply hidden mockery.

Mocking... His Spirituality is about the same as an ordinary person's. If he were Beyonder, he would at most be Sequence 9 who leans towards melee combat. What right does he have to feel this way about me...? A thought flashed through Lorry's mind. He quietly turned off "Truth Insight" and subtly scanned the Brown-Haired Boy's back with his eyes.

Soon, they arrived at Chandler's office.

The Brown-Haired Boy knocked gently on the door, and immediately heard someone get up inside.

Then footsteps sounded, the door was turned, and Chandler, with his beautiful shoulder-length blond hair, appeared in the doorway.

He extended his right hand forward, smiling broadly.

"Mr. Jodson, I didn't expect to see you again so soon."

He deliberately emphasized the word "again," as if speaking casually:

"Tonight I sent Toga to ' Flower of the Plateau ' to do something, but when the kid came back, he reported that he saw you."

"Please come in and try the Queen Black Tea I got from Loen —it's a rare treat, and money alone isn't enough, so I usually only use it to entertain friends."

Wow, impressive... No wonder he's a local bigwig, his eloquence is amazing... Those three seemingly simple sentences each convey different meanings...

The first sentence responds to my previous statement that I have no interest in doing business with people I've just met; the second sentence defines the invitation as a coincidence; and the third sentence is an expression of goodwill...

To be honest, if the "Parasite" ring hadn't failed to produce any feedback, I would have suspected he was Swindler... What a pity...

Thinking this, Lorry extended his right hand and shook hands with the Shadow Merchant.

Chandler's smile grew even brighter as he glanced at the Brown-Haired Boy.

"Go make some tea."

"Yes." The Brown-Haired Boy clearly respected his boss, responding respectfully before turning and walking towards the long table where the tea set was placed.

Chandler led Lorry to the private meeting room.

"Cigar or local specialty Cigarette?" Chandler opened the drawer in front of him and took out a black, gilded square wooden box.

No need... Lorry instinctively wanted to reply, but then remembered that the real Jodson had a habit of smoking Cigarette, and calmly said:

"Cigarette will do."

Upon hearing this, Chandler nodded slightly, skillfully picked up two plump tobacco leaves, cut them into even thin strips, rolled them up in paper, and handed them to his guest.

Laugh!

The Match was lit, and white steam quickly filled the reception room.

"How does it taste?" Chandler rolled himself a cigarette, his shrewd eyes narrowing slightly, his expression shifting between light and shadow through the smoke.

"Very good," Lorry objectively commented.

"This is the best batch of tobacco leaves. I heard it used to be a tribute item. Of course, it's not easy to get this good quality now."

"I've only been fortunate enough to get my hands on some in the last two years."

After introducing his collection, Chandler chuckled magnanimously, "When I leave later, I can give you a box of them."

Lorry lowered his head and smiled:

"You didn't really invite me here today just for a smoke and tea, did you? We people who make a living at sea don't like beating around the bush."

Chandler gave him a deep look, then nodded with his smile still bright.

Okay, then I'll get straight to the point.

"Mr. Jodson, did you go to ' Flower of the Plateau ' because you heard that rumor and wanted to find ' Wax Sculptor ' Damian?"

"That's right." Lorry readily admitted, then asked in return:

"How?

"He's scared, so he's come to you to act as a mediator?"

Chandler didn't answer but asked a question in return:

"Do you know who spread the rumor?"

The words were so obvious that neither Lorry nor the real Jodson would fail to understand, so he deliberately paused slightly:

"Damian had someone release him?"

Chandler exhaled a large cloud of thick smoke and nodded slightly.

He stubbed out his cigarette and explained in a low voice:

"The rumors did indeed originate from Damian."

"However, he's not targeting you, he's targeting someone else."

"Bloodblade" Savi? Recalling the information he had gathered at Breeze Bar, it was hard for Lorry not to come up with this answer.

Chandler lit another cigarette and continued:

Damian was surrounded by many people, Savi was not confident that he could crush the enemy's trap, so he came to me hoping to get some help.

He was one of my earliest clients, and I couldn't refuse him.

"Just when I was looking for a suitable partner, I suddenly received a message from you in Dilinus Island, so I decided to meet with you and have a chat."

"You want to act as a middleman, facilitating my cooperation with ' Bloodblade ' to hunt down ' Wax Sculptor ' Damian?" Lorry asked after a two-second silence.

"Yes," Chandler replied succinctly.

As he opened the drawer in front of him again, he explained the reason:

As Emperor Roselle once said, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

"If I remember correctly," the "Twilight Pirate Group" have never had any conflict with you, but you have the "Blood Pirates" as a common enemy.

In my opinion, the two of you are the best partners for cooperation.

As he spoke, Chandler took out a contract; the paper was dark black, and the words on it were white, a stark contrast to the usual style.

He held the contract down and gently pushed it toward Lorry:

"This is an Beyonder Ability I acquired by chance, similar to the ' Notary ' in ' Notarization.' If you don't believe me, you can have someone do a divination to confirm it."

"Once both parties sign, they must strictly abide by the agreement, or they will be subject to very terrible punishments, even for Beyonder."

"You can take a look at the specific terms first."