Chapter 472: The Goods

“Quick, quick, all of you move faster!”

“Where the hell is all that strength you bastards show on a woman’s bed? Why are you all so damn slow—move it, faster! You must finish moving all the goods within an hour!”

“If you don’t finish, then all of you can go stand guard at a brothel for me!”

Belrand, Lower District, Wes Port.

The night was thick, everything shrouded in a deep, heavy darkness.

Under the moonlight, the rippling water reflected faint silver. A huge number of ships had already returned to harbor, and the sailors and dockworkers who had toiled all day had all fallen asleep.

The Rat King Sam stood atop a stack of massive wooden crates, his expression stern as he stared at his subordinates, who were silently and quickly unloading item after item from an extremely inconspicuous ship.

Like a busy swarm of ants.

The goods were not large—about the size of suitcases—but they looked extremely heavy, usually requiring two sturdy adult men to lift one together.

Thus the progress was slow.

Sam was dissatisfied with the speed, but there was nothing he could do. He stomped the ground impatiently a few times, then suddenly turned his head to look at the guard beside him.

“Any movement?”

“N–no, none!”

The guard clutched an expensive communication stone tightly in his hand, and when Sam suddenly questioned him, he immediately tensed up.

“No abnormalities for now!”

Hearing this answer, Sam suddenly let out a breath of relief.

The lookout squad had not reported anything unusual. That meant everything was proceeding according to plan, and the intel he had received had been correct.

Tonight, the Guard Unit would have its manpower heavily reassigned for another mission, leaving them no time to pay attention to what he was doing here!

Ever since that new Lower District Governor took office, the Guard Unit had undergone drastic reforms. The gangs in the Lower District could no longer reach into the Guard Unit, and all operations had truly been forced into shadows no ordinary person could reach.

Fortunately, he still had channels through which he could obtain information about the Guard Unit’s movements. Otherwise, all of his operations would have become extremely passive.

Still, although things had become more difficult...

“It’s different now. Now it’s not the same...”

Sam stared at the goods, a fiery heat flickering in his narrow, squinting eyes.

Yes—he was no longer the rat gang leader who survived on crumbs falling from the fingers of greedy nobles while acting as their black-glove enforcer!

He was now the true Rat King, one of the true giants of the Lower District—Rat King Sam!

After the incident a few months ago, forces in the Lower District had undergone huge changes. The two gangs that once held the most power, the Red Fire Gang and the Hyena Gang, were both completely wiped out in a single night. All forces were reshuffled, and the Rat King’s Mouse Society had naturally taken the opportunity to grow, unceremoniously absorbing large territories that originally belonged to «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» those two gangs.

Sam was not worried that such rapid expansion would bring disaster. He knew that many people were indeed drooling over the meat in his bowl right now, but he also knew they absolutely would not dare to act rashly.

Because everything he had now came from a single correct choice.

And the balance the Lower District currently maintained also came from that choice.

Behind him stood that—

“Sir!”

Someone suddenly approached, pulling Sam out of his deep thoughts.

“What is it!”

Sam’s gaze snapped over like lightning. His eyes were still small, but he truly felt his presence now carried a different sort of authority.

“There’s... a slight problem with the goods.”

The man spoke hesitantly.

“A slight problem?”

Sam’s expression instantly turned vicious. Though his frame was short, when his brows tightened he looked like a beast about to pounce.

He had no choice but to be vicious—this shipment was extremely important. They were magical materials he had obtained at great cost, smuggled in to avoid the exorbitant tariffs on magic items. Smuggling magic materials was a serious crime, but if he sold them successfully, he would make a huge profit—enough to equip every one of his subordinates with new weapons!

But likewise, if anything went wrong... he would have to sell several of his favorite casinos, not to mention many of his territories, just to fill the enormous hole.

“You’d better speak clearly—what slight problem? If anything goes wrong with my goods, all of you will have to go sell your asses!”

“N-no, no, it’s actually not the goods—it’s my wording.”

The man instinctively covered his backside at those words, anxiously saying:

“It’s the owner of the goods. He seems to have some new business and wants to talk with you, Sir?”

“The goods’ owner?”

Sam froze.

His dealings with the goods’ owner had always been through extremely covert channels. What he was doing now absolutely couldn’t see the light of day, and he didn’t even know whether the owner was a man or a woman...

And now—

“The goods’ owner came?”

“Yes...”

The subordinate stepped aside, and Sam looked up.

Just in time to see that extremely inconspicuous small boat drifting slowly between the cargo vessels.

The boat bore no markings, only a single flickering light at its bow, as if waiting for someone to come.

“He’s waiting for me?”

“Yes, he said he wants to discuss a business deal with you personally.”

“Alone?”

“And with one guard.”

“Only one guard?”

“Yes, we checked in advance—only the goods’ owner and his guard.”

“Heh, bold indeed. Not afraid I’ll kill him and steal the goods?”

The Rat King let out a cold laugh, then turned to glance behind him.

His ever-present guard gave him a slight nod, indicating the lookout squad still found nothing unusual.

“Let’s go. Time to meet this goods’ owner.”

As an old-timer who had mixed in the Lower District for many years, Sam did not consider himself timid. Since the other side invited him, he had the courage to go meet them face to face.

“You, come with me.”

He motioned to the guard.

After walking two steps, he issued another order:

“You—find another team. Keep eyes on that boat at all times. Wait for my order!”

“Yes.”

...

Rat King Sam stepped onto the small boat.

It really was just a small boat. Sam couldn’t sense any magical aura from it, and the guard behind him also shook his head, indicating that their detection tools had found no magical devices pre-installed.

Sam lifted his head and looked at the goods’ owner across from him.

It was a wealthy-looking middle-aged man, whose eyes became even smaller than Sam’s when he smiled.

“You’re Mister Gro?”

Sam spoke the man’s name, even though he knew it was only an alias.

“Haha, and you must be Lord Rat King—an honor, an honor. I’ve long heard of your illustrious reputation in the Lower District.”

Mister Gro burst into hearty laughter, surprisingly enthusiastic. He even lifted his arms as if to hug Sam.

Seeing Gro’s mountainous bulk, Sam shivered and hurriedly raised a hand to block him.

“Stop. Spare me the courtesies. You said you want to keep doing business with me, so take out your goods first—let me see your sincerity.”

“Hehe, Lord Rat King really is impatient.”

Despite Sam’s blunt tone, Gro did not seem offended. He glanced around warily, then signaled his black-robed guard to come closer before finally relaxing a little. Only then did he sneakily pull out a small box.

“Please look, Lord Rat King—this is something worth mountains of money.”

“Worth mountains of money?”

Sam had his guard check it again to confirm it wasn’t a trap, then leaned forward curiously to peer into the small box.

But the moment he saw the item inside, his expression changed drastically. He shrieked:

“Damn it—this thing you call a treasure is this?!”