What Witch? This Alchemist is Breaking Bad!

Hamel Town, East District Church.

Father Auden finished handling matters outside and returned to the church.

Just as he was about to walk straight along the side corridor of the main hall toward the monastery in the back, he was suddenly stopped by a church attendant.

“Father, someone has come to the church looking for you.”

Father Auden thought for a moment.

He clearly remembered that he did not seem to have any appointments today, so he asked, “Who?”

“It’s… the same person you waited for in the church last time. He’s here again.” The attendant pointed toward the main hall.

Father Auden’s expression grew slightly serious.

He nodded and replied, “Alright, thank you for telling me.”

He then quickened his pace and entered the main hall of the church.

It was dusk, and the main hall was close to closing time; normally, there would be no visitors at this hour.

Yet this time, there was a single visitor seated on a pew, quietly admiring the towering idol of the Prophet.

Father Auden let out a soft sigh and asked, “What are you here for?”

Leon turned his head at the sound of the voice and greeted him, “Hello, Father Auden.”

“What are you here for?” Father Auden asked again.

“Something that isn’t suitable to talk about here,” Leon said.

“...Come with me.” After a moment of silence, the priest gestured for Leon to follow him into the monastery.

Soon, they arrived at the study where Father Auden worked.

Leon found a seat on his own and sat down.

The priest also sat down and indicated with his gaze for Leon to explain his purpose.

“You don’t seem surprised that I’m here,” Leon said.

The last time Leon had asked the priest to settle the Hesh family’s debts and then left as if he were wrapping up his final affairs, Father Auden had once believed Leon was going to turn himself in.

At the time, Leon had not explained his plan at all.

“I have my own information sources. I knew you didn’t turn yourself in, and I also knew how the case was concluded. You used money to buy the life of a woman who was about to die, saved the Witch you wanted—impressive. That was something I didn’t expect,” Father Auden spread his hands.

“Now you can already take your Witch and find a place to enjoy life. Why come looking for me again? Spending money on that kind of deal, I don’t think you still have much left that needs laundering.”

“You helped Potter manage his business. You should have quite a few channels,” Leon finally stated his purpose.

“Do you know where I can buy live Magical Beasts?”

In truth, Leon himself knew a few local dealers, but tracing the line through them to find people secretly breeding or hunting Magical Beasts would take a great deal of effort.

By comparison, seeking out Father Auden, who had once managed Potter’s business, would likely save time.

Potter had channels for smuggling Mana and Magical Beast materials from outside, and on a certain scale at that.

If Potter’s channels could be obtained, it should be possible to acquire a certain quantity of live Magical Beasts.

“What do you want Magical Beasts for?” Father Auden frowned the moment he heard this.

“What else would they be for besides business?” Leon replied.

“You still want to do business?” Father Auden first widened his eyes, then couldn’t help laughing.

“You nearly died once already. After barely escaping disaster, you still want to do business? The Labyrinth has been sealed, Potter is dead, and the Earl’s forces have already begun setting things up. You no longer have acquisition channels. Even if you buy Magical Beasts, how are you supposed to do business?”

“These aren’t things you need to worry about, Father. You only need to tell me whether you have connections. If you do, you take the money and get the job done,” Leon replied expressionlessly.

“Also, I need to hire a group of enforcers. Among those still alive from Potter’s people, are there any reliable ones? I hope you can introduce them to me.”

The smile on Father Auden’s face vanished at once.

He reassessed Leon, sensing something.

“You got on the Earl’s ship?”

“Relax. If I’m asking you to handle things, you won’t get into any trouble,” Leon did not directly answer the priest’s question.

“How did you do it?” Father Auden stared at Leon in disbelief.

The Earl’s power structure was extremely tight.

If it were compared to a regular army, then the forces Potter had run in South Harbor County were no different from mountain bandits.

The Earl’s side was not something one could simply join at will.

Of course, individual regional officers could hire people as they pleased, but according to the intelligence Father Auden had, the Earl’s forces had not yet stationed any officers in South Harbor County.

Originally, the most suitable person to take over South Harbor County was an officer responsible for River Valley County, nicknamed Jero.

There were rumors that this man had kinship ties with the Earl and was relatively trusted.

However, in Father Auden’s assessment, this officer’s capabilities were not particularly strong.

Long ago, this man had wanted to take over South Harbor County, but when facing Potter, who had Father Auden assisting him, he had never gained any advantage in business—until the past year, when the Earl increased his investment in the area.

And shortly after Potter’s death, this man suddenly disappeared from River Valley County, vanishing completely.

Under such circumstances, the Earl should have personally taken charge of redeploying forces in both River Valley County and South Harbor County.

At this time, the only ones who could continue operating in South Harbor County should have been people personally appointed by the Earl.

At a time like this, for Fenrir—who had once supplied Potter—to so openly seek to restart business on the Earl’s territory and even recruit manpower, it was either sheer stupidity, like smashing eggs against a rock, or proof that he had already boarded the Earl’s great ship.

“Answer my question first,” Leon said.

Father Auden examined Leon for a while, then replied, “I have what you want, as long as you can pay.”

“Give me a quote,” Leon replied calmly.

The two million advance payment provided by the Earl was already in his hands.

He now had ample startup capital.

Through the priest’s connection, he could attempt to gather and repurpose part of the resources Potter had once left behind in the Underworld.

“What types of Magical Beasts do you want?” Father Auden asked.

“Safe, small Magical Beasts with fast reproduction rates, suitable for extracting Mana. Head-Hunting Rabbits, Slimes, insects, plants—anything is fine. Each type needs at least twenty specimens, all live and capable of breeding,” Leon said.

“I’ll draw up a list for you.” Father Auden stood up and opened a locked cabinet to search for documents.

“As for the enforcers you want, how many people? Any requirements? What skills do they need?”

“Five to ten people. I want to seize one or two escorted carriages,” Leon stated bluntly.

Father Auden, who had just taken out the documents and locked the cabinet, lifted his eyes to look at him.

“Are you sure this won’t cause trouble?”

“Sometimes, if you don’t strike first, people will climb all over your head. That’s the real trouble. Among the people you’re introducing, none of them have robbed shipments before?”

Leon asked.

As far as he knew, there had been no shortage of Underworld conflicts within South Harbor County.

“When we were fighting with River Valley County, everyone robbed each other. I can introduce a few professionals who work cleanly. Now that Potter is dead and the Earl’s forces have taken over, the officers who should have fled already have. Many of the people below lost their jobs along with them. Quite a few still can’t find employers. If you’re willing to hire long-term, with my introduction, I can make them happily call you ‘master,’” Father Auden said.

“I’ll arrange a task and see how they perform,” Leon replied.

“When do you want the goods and the people?” Father Auden asked.

“As soon as possible,” Leon answered.

“The Magical Beasts will take at least three days to prepare. As for the people, if you’re sure you want them, I can contact a few right now to discuss terms with you. If I can reach them immediately, they should be able to arrive within one or two hours,” the priest said.

“That would be best,” Leon nodded.

Father Auden took several envelopes from a drawer and went out.

From the monastery, he returned to the main hall, stopped the attendant who was about to close the doors, and instructed him to deliver the letters to designated locations and specific people.

He then returned to the study.

Leon sat patiently in place, waiting.

“Tea?” Father Auden asked.

“No need,” Leon shook his head.

“Then, can you tell me now?” Father Auden asked.

“There’s nothing much to tell. More or less what you’re thinking,” Leon replied.

“What does the Earl want to get from you?”

“He wants to try a new source of goods,” Leon answered briefly, without elaborating on the details of his deal with the Earl.

Father Auden sat back down thoughtfully and raised an eyebrow at Leon.

“You’ve really risen fast.”

“It’s only just begun. There are still many problems to deal with,” Leon said.

“But the returns should be considerable, right? I’m guessing you’ll have a lot of money to launder later,” Father Auden said.

“I said there are many problems to deal with. Now isn’t the time, Father,” Leon replied.

“If there are many problems to deal with, then you should need an advisor,” Father Auden said, staring intently into Leon’s eyes.