Chapter 913
An Invitation to Cooperation
Chapter 913 An Invitation to Cooperation
When a hole appears in a clear map, people often don't wisely avoid it; instead, they go closer to see what's there.
At least that's the case with Wade.
The chances of the snail puppet finding a suspicious person in a vast sea of people, who happens to be Prometheus or the Purifier, are extremely low.
In the vast majority of cases, they discover Muggle criminal activity, and occasionally they encounter a few clumsy wizards who are bad at hiding their whereabouts.
But the snails scattered throughout New York are like probes laid by Wade.
When he discovered that several of the black holes had suddenly lost signal, leaving an area completely under surveillance, Wade knew he had truly found his target.
Because the first batch of snail puppets were not best at monitoring and analysis, but at disguising and hiding.
They hide at the highest point of the trees, in the densest part of the foliage, so that people can't see them even if they stand on tiptoe and search hard.
They will also stick themselves tightly to the leaf stalks or vines, turning into similar colors, looking like small bumps that grow naturally on the plant;
If you have livestock or pets at home, they may hide in the pet's ears or fur.
Even without these, that tiny thing, no bigger than a broad bean, can easily hide itself in any corner.
So when they start to disappear, the reason is definitely not that they were caught by humans or birds and beasts; it can only prove that the other party used some kind of interference magic.
And this is the kind of person Wade is looking for.
Stern thought his carelessness had led to the exposure, but that was not the case.
Wade first identified the Stonefield family as suspicious, then deployed many "eyes" near the family's properties and mansions. While monitoring them, he accidentally discovered Stern, whose whereabouts were suspicious.
The Stonefield family had always used those strange dragonfly cars to interfere with magic, but while snails couldn't dodge the attacks, birds could pretend to be startled and evade them.
While monitoring the area, the robin even brazenly built a nest on someone else's territory.
The mother mirror of the Flowing Mirror was shrunk to a very small size by Wade and hidden in the eye of a robin.
At that moment, as Wade waved his hand, the mirror rippled like an awakened lake, quickly expanding into a smooth screen.
The scene inside the manor was clearly visible—Blorin was leading the puppet army across the lawn, and several dragonfly cars were slowly approaching in the distance.
Wade's gaze fell on Iraq.
He had seen Illari from afar and was deeply impressed by him, because the man had the kind of aura that Vader had imagined in every single hair of his—the typical alchemist.
Just then, the silver-haired, red-eyed vampire girl in the group suddenly stopped.
She tilted her head slightly, her blood-red pupils seemingly piercing through layers of space, gazing precisely at Wade behind the mirror.
A fleeting smile curved the corners of the girl's lips, so faint it was almost invisible.
Wade couldn't help but chuckle softly: "Long time no see, everyone."
……
Stonefield's attitude toward Brolin and his companion was unclear, but the rooms he arranged for them were indeed very thoughtful.
Brolin's room was luxuriously furnished; even a decorative painting hanging above his bed was worth millions. Besides the bedroom, even the puppets had a place to rest.
“Then…then I’ll sleep in this room.” Ilari picked out a small bedroom, looked around, and said, “It’s a bit small, but it’s very quiet.”
“How can that be? If the gentleman finds out that I’ve put you in the storeroom, I’m afraid I’ll lose this job.”
Assistant Paul bowed slightly and said, "Please follow me—we have prepared a room for every guest."
Ilari looked at Brolin, bewildered.
Brolin squinted at his assistant Paul, whose smile was impeccable yet whose attitude was unwavering, nodded, and then gestured for a werewolf puppet to follow Ilary. "Don't worry, it will protect you."
Illari's room was almost at the other end of the hallway, and he fell in love with the place almost as soon as he entered.
"Merlin! Is this really the room prepared for me?"
He instantly lunged to the wall, where there was an entire wall of transparent storage cabinets, filled with various rare metals, minerals, and magical materials that could be used for alchemy.
Assistant Paul explained from the side: "These cabinets are in a constant temperature and humidity environment, and can be vacuumed if needed to ensure that the materials are stored under the most suitable conditions."
Then Ilari saw the experimental platform—a huge, corrosion-resistant and high-temperature-resistant workbench, and even a brand-new smelting furnace.
Assistant Paul said, "The entire ceiling above is an exhaust vent that can instantly remove the harmful fumes produced during the alchemy process. At the same time, the overhead lights can adjust the spectrum to simulate various light levels from morning to night."
Not to mention, above the workbench is a huge magnetic tool storage board, neatly holding various tools—
Although they were all Muggle tools, Illari understood how to use them after just a glance, and even had many interesting ideas pop into his head.
"Merlin... Merlin..."
Illari stroked the brand-new workbench, the high-precision electronic scale, and the materials cabinet that almost made his mouth water, and couldn't help but mutter:
"Is this what the Muggles call paradise?"
Assistant Paul bowed slightly and smiled, "Are you satisfied here, Mr. Ilary?"
“Of course, of course, I’m extremely satisfied!” Ilari said excitedly, “I didn’t even have such good conditions when I was with the Purifiers…”
Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly snapped out of his daze.
He suddenly realized that the room's amenities, the sophistication of its equipment, the expense of its materials, and the attention to detail that catered to his personal habits far surpassed the suite he had previously glimpsed that had been assigned to Brolin.
The difference in money spent alone is at least tenfold.
A chill replaced his previous excitement, and Ilari turned uneasily to look at his assistant:
"You...you've put so much effort into preparing this, what exactly do you want to achieve?"
Assistant Paul adjusted his glasses and chuckled, “It’s obvious, Mr. Illari. The person we really want to work with is you, not Yodl Brolin.”
After he finished speaking, he glanced at the werewolf bodyguard standing next to Ilari. Seeing that the puppet was expressionless, like a wooden doll, he felt reassured.
Illari panicked: "Cooperate with me? I won't... I won't cooperate... If you reach an agreement with Mr. Brolin, I will naturally..."
"Mr. Illari!"
Paul interrupted him, saying, “In our opinion, you deserve such investment because you are more valuable than Mr. Brolin…”
“What we really want is a magic puppet, and you are the one who can provide it.”
"As for Mr. Brolin? Is a leader who abandons all his subordinates and runs away alone really worthy of your trust and following?"
"If one day you lose your usefulness, how can you be sure... Mr. Brolin won't abandon you?"
Ilari's forced composure crumbled; his lips trembled, and his eyes involuntarily revealed fear.
Assistant Paul hit the nail on the head regarding Illari's deepest fears: Brolin's ambition and ruthlessness terrified him.
He was actually very worried... worried that he too would become a sacrifice that Brolin didn't care about.
(End of this chapter)