A flash of swordlight, and Isaac Dunkinson, that so-called "uncle," split cleanly in two before Carlotta’s eyes.
Alia descended from downstairs, her expression unchanged at the sight.
She walked over and said, "Most of the servants were hired workers, not mbers of the Dunkinson rchant Guild. They’re all unconscious and don’t know who ca. As for a few individuals, they were indeed his close confidants, I’ve already dealt with them."
She hadn’t laid a hand on the innocent, but no one connected to the guild would escape.
Carlotta nodded, putting away Rose Cross.
They exited the courtyard and set off towards the next location.
Alia hadn’t listened in on Carlotta’s interrogation of Isaac earlier, so Carlotta felt at ease telling her that through questioning, she’d obtained the whereabouts of the remaining mbers of the Dunkinson rchant Guild and intended to deal with them one by one.
"So, what will you do about the Dunkinson rchant Guild itself?"
Alia asked, "The business assets that rightfully belong to you, aren’t you to plan them? Everything the Dunkinson rchant Guild possesses should rightfully be yours."
Carlotta paused, sighing, "If I directly reclaim them, people in the Bass Archipelago will start spreading rumors about a robber running loose. Yet those assets truly should belong to ."
There was no way to explain it. She couldn’t reveal her true identity and declare ownership over those assets.
To outsiders, it would rely look like the Dunkinson rchant Guild was wiped out overnight and its property seized by so thief.
"Are you going to abandon those assets then?"
Alia asked.
"No. I’ll just beco a robber. Let others misunderstand, I know for myself that they rightfully belong to ."
Carlotta wasn’t stubborn.
Although being seen as a criminal didn’t sit well with her, she still intended to reclaim what was hers.
On Island Six, the Dunkinson rchant Guild operates several businesses.
She arrived at the first one, observing the shop that remained open even at night. She slipped into the back and found the manager, threatening him to shut down imdiately.
With a blade at his neck, the manager complied without hesitation.
This manager wasn’t unfamiliar with Carlotta. Although he hadn’t been a manager of the White rchant Guild, he’d once been a mber. Now, he was serving the Dunkinson rchant Guild.
After closing the shop, Carlotta quickly executed him. As for the regular employees, they were hired locals from the Bass Archipelago, so she didn’t kill them, rely knocked them unconscious. None even caught a glimpse of her.
Then, Carlotta took everything of value from the shop.
"Not long ago I thought I was a bit poor..."
After gathering nurous goods, Carlotta wore a slightly odd expression.
The total value of goods from just one shop was already substantial, and this was only the beginning.
Next, she would seize more shops, and the wealth she acquired wouldn’t be disappointed.
...
Two hours later, Carlotta and Alia left Island Six.
They returned to Island Nine, where Carlotta went straight for one of the five managers, Winnie Vera.
She found him sound sleeping, his wife lying beside him. His wife, naturally, had also once belonged to the White rchant Guild.
Just as she had with Isaac, Carlotta revealed her true face before Winnie Vera, causing his entire body to tremble in shock.
Then ca a brief interrogation. His answers differed completely from Isaac Dunkinson’s, whether they were truthful or just another fabricated lie, she couldn’t say.
But Carlotta didn’t care about truth or falsehood. After questioning, she executed everyone who needed killing, without rcy.
Then, Carlotta and Alia moved across Island Nine, shutting down every Dunkinson rchant Guild shop one by one and seizing all goods within.
Notably, on Island Nine was also the Dunkinson rchant Guild’s main warehouse, from which many shops drew their supplies. Carlotta naturally didn’t overlook it, everything worth taking was stored inside Alia’s Ten Heart Pearl.
Her own storage cards simply couldn’t hold so much.
Finally, they arrived at Island Twelve.
The Dunkinson rchant Guild’s reach extended only to these three islands, and Island Twelve was overseen by one of the five managers, Kelly Newman.
Carlotta repeated her thod, entering Kelly Newman’s ho, interrogating her briefly, then executing her within his residence. Afterward, she claid all the wealth belonging to the Dunkinson rchant Guild on Island Twelve.
By the ti these tasks were nearly completed, dawn had fully broken.
The Bass Archipelago began brightening as early as four in the morning, and now it was past six, the sky already clear and bright.
Carlotta returned to the inn on Island Nine, taking out Alia’s Ten-Hearted Pearl to review her haul.
"Got quite a lot of stuff."
Carlotta asserted, "And this is only part of it."
"Are there still shops from the Dunkinson rchant Guild we haven’t visited?"
Alia asked.
"No, we’ve visited every single one. But beyond them, there are a few small surprises. I’ll go pick those up tomorrow night."
Carlotta said with a smile.
Although she hadn’t received intelligence yet, from deduction she suspected Isaac’s son and the other two managers were likely also in the Bass Archipelago, perhaps holding onto sothing worth her attention.
Next, Carlotta took out the Stellar Workshop, gradually extracting the nurous alchemical materials from the Ten-Heart Pearl and feeding them into the workshop’s furnaces, which devoured them all.
The Stellar Workshop was currently no bigger than a fist, yet it was like an endless abyss, capable of swallowing vast quantities of alchemical materials without any sign of being full.
Carlotta suddenly realized this device could practically serve as a spatial item. However, it probably wouldn’t care about anything except alchemical materials.
It took her so effort to get the Stellar Workshop to consu all the intended alchemical materials and even finished alchemical creations, because these weren’t being destroyed outright. Until she fully constructed the first-stage ship, she could retrieve them anyti, so Carlotta stored everything she possibly could.
Then she checked the progress of the first-stage ship, it had reached 52 percent. Compared to before, it had increased by a full 9 percent.
"Just all the alchemical materials and finished products from one rchant guild only boosted it this much?"
Carlotta was montarily stunned, but then she reconsidered, this might actually be acceptable, even substantial.
After all, the Dunkinson rchant Guild wasn’t exclusively focused on alchemy.
Their trade included everyday goods and other commodities, which made up the bulk of their inventory.
"Regardless, the construction progress of the first-stage ship has finally passed the halfway mark... and this was with a Moonlight-class ship already inside. The road ahead remains long and arduous."
Carlotta sighed.
After feeding the alchemical materials, Carlotta flipped through the rest of today’s intelligence. There were still so things she needed to do.
Such as acquiring alchemical materials from the Swan Trading Company, and acquiring the Sky Cornerstone from Zorn Wilson.
But these required money.
"It’s still early. No need to rush to sleep. Alia, co with to Island No. 4."
Carlotta said, putting away the Stellar Workshop.
Island No. 4?
Alia thought for a mont. She rembered it was a rather bloody island, with thousands of arenas built upon it where people fought to the death. It was also a paradise for gamblers. People dreaming of getting rich overnight were everywhere, betting on arena fights and earning money soaked in blood.
"Why do you want to go there?"
Alia asked curiously.
"I learned during last night’s interrogation that a werewolf with forty-four consecutive wins is about to be taken down by capital manipulation. So I’m going to place a bet and make a little profit."
Carlotta attributed her source of information to people from the Dunkinson Trading Company.
Alia imdiately understood. Cases of capital manipulation weren’t unfamiliar to her. Even in so arenas in the Wendell Empire, such arrangents were common, letting a winning "gladiator" attract massive bets, then rigging the fight to make him lose, thereby reaping the gamblers’ money.
"Let’s go."
Carlotta took Alia’s hand and left again.
She didn’t feel anything toward the beastn in the arenas, nor would she stand up for them upon hearing about this so-called capital manipulation.
Although the thods used in the arenas were disgraceful, the beastn weren’t particularly sympathetic either.
Beastn from the Southern Continent, though capable of communicating with humans, mostly had underdeveloped intelligence and couldn’t properly manage their race, similar to Berserkers. Yet their reproductive ability was extrely strong, causing food supplies to dwindle.
Thus, invasion beca inevitable.
It was said that wars with beastn were constant in the Southern Continent.
And in the beastn’s diet, humans were included.
But in humans’ diet, beastn were not. Normal humans couldn’t bring themselves to eat such human-like creatures, yet beastn could devour humans without hesitation. Therefore, nearly all humans harbored no good feelings toward beastn.
Carlotta only wanted to place a bet, earn so money, and leave.
During the day, passenger ferries traveled between the Bass Archipelago. Carlotta and Alia didn’t fly, but instead found a ferry bound for Island No. 4.
Mainly because Island No. 4 was quite far, located further south in the Bass Archipelago.
About an hour later, Carlotta and Alia arrived at Island No. 4.
At a glance, the people walking around on this island, their spirit, deanor, and expressions, were sowhat different from those on other islands, giving off an unpleasant feeling.
"So these are gamblers."
Alia didn’t like such people. She whispered, "Carlotta, once you make your money, rember to leave. Don’t get addicted to gambling. It’s sothing that can ruin a person’s life."
"I know. For your sake, I won’t fall into it."
Carlotta nodded firmly.
Alia glanced at Carlotta. She really could tie everything back to her.
The Crimson Arena was one of the more well-known arenas on Island No. 4. Carlotta didn’t have much trouble finding it.
She entered the Crimson Arena and directly stated she wanted to place a bet on the upcoming match. Naturally, soone politely explained the situation to her.
In the Crimson Arena, duels happened every day. Today’s lineup of matches quickly appeared before Carlotta.
Her target wasn’t on it. Her target was tomorrow.
So she asked the staff to bring up tomorrow’s lineup. This ti, she finally found her target. Without hesitation, she took out almost all the money she had and placed her bet on the tiger-demi human’s victory.
When placing the bet, Carlotta had altered her appearance. After all, as soone who had never co to bet before, suddenly appearing today and placing a large sum on the tiger-man’s victory would look suspicious.
But Carlotta thought it wasn’t a big deal. The arena’s betting rules were very complete. Even if she placed a large bet on the tiger-man, it wouldn’t cause the arena much loss. As the organizer, they will only earn more.
More importantly, places like arenas inevitably had insiders leaking confidential information to relatives and friends, allowing them to bet against the odds and make a huge profit.
Perhaps, she would be seen as such a relative or friend?
Anyway, since the arena on Island No. 4 belongs to the Bass Archipelago, it had to abide by the Bass Archipelago’s rules and couldn’t refuse to pay out.
After placing the bet, Carlotta left behind a newly opened bank card in the Bass Archipelago and withdrew. Once the result was out, she wouldn’t need to return to Island No. 4 to collect her winnings. Most islands in the Bass Archipelago had banks exclusive to the Bass Archipelago. She could simply go to one of those banks and withdraw her money directly.
After placing the bet, Carlotta left under the staff’s bewildered gaze. An ordinary staff mber really wouldn’t know this match was part of a capital setup.
Carlotta didn’t intend to stay long on Island No. 4. After placing the bet, she left with Alia and returned to Island No. 9.
It was already eight in the morning.
Carlotta still didn’t rush to sleep. Instead, she once again changed her identity, went to the Swan Trading Company’s shop on Island No. 9, and approached soone from the company to inquire about the piled-up alchemical materials, wanting to see the psychological price of the Swan Trading Company.
Perhaps, the person she dealt with was Jessica Gray, whom she had t several tis before.
Because she had altered her appearance using the Illusion Mask, Jessica didn’t recognize Carlotta. She spoke freely, not showing any eagerness to offload the batch of alchemical materials, to avoid being priced too low.
But Carlotta already knew from intelligence that the Swan Trading Company was sowhat troubled by this batch of stagnant alchemical materials.
So she remained calm and finally said, "The price is still too high. I won’t buy it. After all, the versatility of these alchemical materials is really poor. I’m also worried about being stuck with them. I’ll co by next ti. I’ll take my leave for today."
Thus, Carlotta left.
Although her relationship with the Swan Trading Company wasn’t bad, when it ca to large sums of money, she still needed to be clear.
Although she had gained many things from the Dunkinson Trading Company, most were items. The amount of directly usable funds wasn’t much, and her financial situation was still sowhat tight.
Next, she inquired about Zorn Wilson’s whereabouts, but heard nothing about the whereabouts of this famous vampire.
Instead, she heard about the Dunkinson Trading Company, the matter of the company being wiped out had already been discovered.
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