socalfunplaces Chapter 293 Letter, Reporter and Hero
Chapter 293 Letter, Reporter and Hero
Chapter 293 Reply, Reporter and Hero
"Can we go now?"
"Hmm." The police officer at the door nodded expressionlessly, his tone completely flat. "You can leave once the formalities are completed."
Has everything been discussed above, so they no longer need a nobody like me? Or is there some other reason behind it all?
Well, the "premonition of disaster" wasn't triggered, which means that leaving here means there's no immediate danger to my life.
He followed the police officers to complete some simple formalities, and then went to the police station's finance office to pay a deposit of several tens of pounds.
"The investigation into this matter is not over yet, and you may need to be summoned again later." Before leaving, the police officer gave a routine warning.
It was already evening when he left the police station. Feeling the desolate evening breeze on the street, Lorne still couldn't quite believe it.
"Is this what they call the fickleness of fate? Winners are just so inexplicable—" Lorne sighed, preparing to go to the gun factory first.
These past few days, many people have been worried about him. Old Kohler, Ted, and Hugh and Sharon—he felt it was necessary to personally let them know he was safe.
But after walking a few steps along the street, his pace slowed down unconsciously, and he eventually stopped in place.
Forget it, let's wait and see. What if this is just a ploy by the authorities to lure us in? Going there now might implicate them.
Lorne planned to find a small hotel to stay in first. On the way, he picked up a letter from a public mailbox.
There were captains, and there were Danitzes—
"The captain's letter has been sitting here for quite a while now. It seems to have been delivered around the time I was captured. However, Danitz's letter is quite new—" Lorne examined the envelope a few times, making sure it hadn't been opened by anyone else, before carefully putting it into his pocket.
In the hotel room, he carefully set up a spiritual wall, making sure there were no "eyes" or "ears" in the room before taking off his shirt. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief, revealing several gruesome wounds on his ribs and back that had begun to scab over and heal.
He took a deep breath.
"Hiss—ah—"
He slowly pulled a blood-stained playing card from deep within the wound.
"Huff...huff..." Lorne breathed heavily, looking at the cards in his hand, and breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness, these cards are waterproof."
This card is the most valuable thing he currently possesses. He had been afraid of being searched by the executioners, so he had no choice but to stuff it into his wound. After all, both he and the card possess anti-divination properties; as long as the physical object isn't found, there shouldn't be a big problem.
"However, it seems that in the end, no strict body search was conducted. My actions were somewhat unnecessary and I only brought trouble upon myself." Lorne laughed self-deprecatingly, carefully wiped the bloodstains off the playing card, put it away properly, and then re-bandaged the wound.
After dealing with all of this, he sat down at the slightly shaky desk in the room and, in the dim light of the gas lamp, opened the two letters.
The first letter I opened was Edwina's reply. The handwriting was as neat and elegant as ever, exuding an intellectual and calm style.
Similar to Cattleya's, she also briefly introduced information about the "Time Worm." Edwina didn't have much of a clue about the "Full Moon Eating Language," but said she could inquire about it for her. At the end of the letter, she also included some instructions on making new talismans and some strange tales from the sea.
"The captain's style remains unchanged—"
Lorne put the letter down and opened another one. The handwriting on this letter was noticeably more illegible, far less neat than the captain's.
"Dog shit————"
The very first word was distinctly Danitz's style; Lorne could almost picture him cursing and swearing as he wrote the letter. He patiently continued reading.
"Brando! Do you know what we've been through lately?! That crazy woman, the Disease Admiral, is causing us trouble again! And she's upgraded her fleet! We fought her on the edge of the Raging Sea! Bullshit! Where does she get all that money—"
The captain didn't mention this in her letter. Did it happen after she wrote the letter? Or was she simply reporting good news and hiding the bad? However, "Admiral of Disease" has updated the fleet? Could her money have come from me?
Hiss—Lorne gasped, remembering the pile of materials he had collected back then.
Tracy used the money to arm the fleet, and then went to attack the captain—how could such a melodramatic plot happen?!
"However, the fact that Danitz can still write letters means that things haven't gotten that serious yet."
"Tracy is really something—if she can't find me, she'll target people connected to me—" Lorne clenched his fists, a cold glint in his eyes.
"Forget it, I'll deal with her at sea myself when I have the chance. At least in Backlund, I don't have to worry about running into her."
With a sigh, Lorne continued looking down.
But halfway through, his expression became somewhat distorted—he discovered that the letter was filled with the word "misery" from beginning to end.
"This guy—he definitely has ulterior motives." Lorne already had a premonition.
"Forget it, as long as it's not about money, everything is negotiable."
"I gave him several thousand pounds in bounty, he shouldn't be short of money, right?"
After all, they were friends who had risked their lives for each other. If the other party really encountered some insurmountable difficulties, he should help them out of both courtesy and reason. Moreover, he had now established a connection with the mysterious queen, and his channels and methods were much more numerous than before.
However, the next line shattered his illusions.
"You're in Backlund, you should know about that damn stock market crash, right?"
What? The stock market!
Lorne suddenly had a very ominous premonition. With unease, he continued to look down.
"Depend on!"
"I've lost all my money! Borrow four thousand pounds from me for an emergency!"
"You're asking me for money when I'm so desperate for it?!"
"Didn't we give you eight thousand pounds back then?"
Lorne was furious and cursed the other person a few times at the letter from afar, but after a moment, he sighed helplessly.
"I guess they used a lot of money for promotions, which is why they don't have much cash left—well, I can understand, I can understand, promotions are indeed a top priority."
"Eight thousand pounds, he should at least be promoted to Sequence 6 by now."
"Speaking of money, the captain has just been through a major battle, and he's definitely short of funds for ship repairs, ammunition resupply, and compensation for the wounded."
"Hmm—" Lorne rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on. After thinking for a while, he had an idea.
He picked up a pen and paper and began to write a reply.
In the letter, Lorne explained that he was also facing some trouble and was very short of cash, but he had a lucrative business opportunity that he could introduce to Danitz. He had a shipment of high-quality weapons that Danitz could sell, and Danitz would receive a share of the profits if the deal went through.
Backlund is currently in turmoil, and this unrest will soon spread to the maritime colonies, leading to a deterioration in security and a significant increase in the demand for arms from all sides. This is definitely a lucrative business opportunity.
For gun manufacturers, materials are actually easier to manage. Many material processing plants have gone bankrupt and are selling off various raw materials at low prices to minimize losses. Although the original supply channels have been cut off, they can always be found if one is willing to look.
The only problem is the sales channels. As long as the captain can help absorb some of the weapons, even if it's only a small portion, it will be enough to keep Lorne's factory running until he manages to raise the remaining £100,000 needed to acquire the entire supply chain.
After thinking for a moment, he wrote another letter to Edwina, explaining the matter in detail. He knew that Danitz couldn't handle this alone; he would need the captain's help.
In his letter to the captain, Lorne first expressed his gratitude and greetings, then subtly proposed a potential arms sales partnership. He stated that, as a token of his sincerity and gratitude for the captain's continued care and guidance, he would like to include something the captain would definitely find interesting as a "gift."
The potion recipe of the "Disaster Priest".
The captain has the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom behind her, and she herself is a neighboring "Reader" channel. Both publicly and privately, she will definitely value this business.
"The captain has helped me so much, it's no big deal to repay him—"
After waiting and observing cautiously for two days in the hotel, Lorne felt that things outside really did seem calm.
The authorities seem to genuinely intend to minimize the impact of the Kaping case, adopting a strategy of downplaying the issue and letting it go. As long as he, the "survivor," doesn't speak recklessly, there shouldn't be any further trouble.
He first sent out a reply to the captain and his men, then took a horse-drawn carriage to the East District.
As soon as he stepped off the carriage and onto the familiar yet always somewhat chaotic streets of the East District, Lorne felt inexplicably uneasy.
-
Even though the "Disaster Perception" doesn't react, there's still a strange feeling.
"It seems like...something really troublesome is going to happen..."
With a sense of unease, he walked towards the gun factory.
"No—there are too many people!" Even when he was still more than a hundred meters away from the factory, he could see a huge crowd gathered at the factory gate, and the noisy commotion could be faintly heard even from a distance.
Old Kohler stood anxiously at the door, trying to disperse the crowd, but his frail figure and aged voice seemed so powerless in the face of the throng.
"Snap!"
A shutter click suddenly sounded, and Lorne instinctively raised his hand to cover his face.
"James Scott is here!" Someone with sharp eyes shouted from the crowd.
What's going on? Before Lorne could figure out what was happening, he saw the group of people gathered at the door suddenly start making a fuss and all turn their gazes toward him.
Looking at the various cameras, both long and short, that they were holding, as well as notebooks and pens—Lorne raised an eyebrow.
Are these a group of... journalists?
"Wait, what are they trying to do?"
As he watched those people rush towards him like hungry tigers pouncing on their prey, the blinding flashes, the clicking of camera shutters, and the clamor of questions carried on the wind to his ears.
"Mr. Scott! Are you the hero who single-handedly infiltrated the Cappin villa and rescued several kidnapped girls?"
"Mr. Scott, could you talk about your experience and thought process at that time?"
What are your thoughts on the police initially detaining you as a suspect?
"I heard that your factory is also facing difficulties during this financial crisis. Is this related to your act of bravery?"
Huh? What's going on? A bead of cold sweat trickled down Lorne's forehead.
It seems like I've encountered some huge trouble again.