Back in the Dock Area, the sales team didn't have to sell canned meat today, because the daily fresh goods they hadn't managed to pull over before departure had all been packed up and taken away by the housekeepers or stewards.
Merlin’s people arrived earlier than Wayne’s; they had already seen some monks walking through the streets and alleys midway, and after meeting, they updated each other on the latest situation.
The Detective Agency had undergone simple grouping, with an old hand leading a new one, allowing them to be temporarily on duty without needing detailed explanations of the work process; for now, they just needed to follow suit.
Connal, as usual, took his men to stroll around the Sailor Gang’s territory first, then they each checked houses according to their assigned zones, especially searching for vacant rooms outwards from where the incident occurred last night. Wayne, meanwhile, took Sanders and went to James Damody’s gang hideout again, to see if the gangsters had undergone any changes or new discoveries in the past two days.
As soon as they met, before Wayne could even ask, James Damody preemptively probed, “I heard there was a gunfight and an explosion in the Sailor Gang’s territory last night. A distillery was destroyed late at night, and it’s said that people with red armbands appeared near there before and after the explosion.”
“My people did it. I was there at the time,” Wayne knew what he wanted to ask and answered simply and directly.
Otherwise, how could he explain? Should he say that they encountered a cultist who could summon a frame of an evil god, that they blew up the large house, that the small wooden house was blown up by the cultist himself, and that the Cathedral’s people were also involved?
The former would result in a deduction in “professional ethics” for revealing extraordinary world matters to ordinary people, while the latter would result in a deduction in “human relations” for unnecessary clarification.
So, they could only attribute everything to the Detective Agency. Those who understood would understand, and those who didn’t only needed to know the general idea.
Let the gangsters guess for themselves.
After speaking, Wayne didn't give the other party a chance to press further and directly steered the conversation to the main topic, “Is there any progress on the matter I entrusted to you?”
James Damody was sensible in this regard; the smile on his face slightly receded, and he lowered his head to answer the question:
“My people have conveyed your message to the leaders of the friendly gangs. A few seem to be observing, but no one has explicitly stood up against the plague investigation. As for having us arrange people to check their respective territories… at least I have arranged for my subordinates to do this, but unfortunately, there are no results worth reporting to you yet.”
Wayne guessed that this guy most likely hadn’t arranged for his subordinates to help with the investigation. It seemed he wouldn't get any effective clues from the gangs today.
So he quickly stood up: “No news is good news. However, please help me convey two more messages to those gentlemen—first, investigating the plague is a very important matter right now, and I suggest everyone temporarily abandon their prejudices; second, if our people discover a problem first, then during the handling, we will not care whose territory it is, and if anyone tries to obstruct us again, it won’t be as simple as just being tied up in the small square for public display. What happened in the Sailor Gang’s territory last night is a case that can be repeatedly used as an example.”
“Yes!” James Damody also stood up.
Wayne managed to give the other party a pleasant expression, “It’s always more dignified to do some things proactively than to have others do them for you.”
Damn it, we outsiders almost lost our lives last night, and you local snakes are still not moving.
When I have time, I’ll help you optimize the environment. Besides the Sailor Gang, we’ll start with the laziest ones first.
…
Entering the Ireland settlement again, Wayne and his team first went to the address to find the guide from yesterday, so as not to waste time due to language barriers.
The latter tried to slip away when he first saw Sanders, and after jumping out of the back window, before he could even stand firm, he saw Wayne waiting under the eaves.
When he honestly approached, he no longer dared to take the employment fee Wayne had given him, carefully handing the dollar coin back to Wayne, “You can command me anything, I will try my best to cooperate, no reward needed.”
“Take it if I give it to you,” Wayne didn't reach out to take it, “Have any gang members come to find you?”
“No, no, no, none.”
The guide named “Seren” shook his head repeatedly, and after Wayne silently watched him for a few seconds, he quickly told the truth, “They just advised me a little, they didn’t do anything else.”
“Very good, then let’s continue. Today, focus on the vacant houses in a few blocks near you, including those damaged, abandoned, and unused recently. Also, briefly investigate the residents along the way, focusing on recent outsiders with a Windsor accent.”
At this point, Wayne added, “Tell those who came to advise you. Before the investigation is completed, I don’t want to see anything happen to my guide. Otherwise, I might take it out on all the gangs in this vicinity.”
The guide was obviously startled and quickly put on a fawning smile: “It’s not that serious. Everyone in the community knows each other, and investigating the plague is a good thing, they should understand.”
“That’s best, let’s go.”
It must be said that the living environment in the Ireland settlement is somewhat similar to what is called a “family compound.”
And the guys who can become street loafers and petty thugs in the community are mostly the “second generation” or more generations of illegal immigrants. Although their lives are not too good, they often don’t have to struggle for survival like the “first generation.”
Although they are all mules, their families are, in a sense, “mule aristocrats” among illegal immigrants. At least they can consistently have enough to eat and support unproductive family members.
The guide Wayne picked seemed to be the best among them, knowing the situation in the community like the back of his hand. Not only could he casually recount old community stories from many years ago, but he could also casually point to a house and tell the basic family situation of its residents, knowing even more than the tax officials in the City Hall.
“Newcomers often aren’t picky about housing and work. Many people only stay for a few years and then try to leave. Those who can live here permanently usually have some relatively stable livelihoods. So, there aren’t many completely vacant houses in our community; it’s common for several people to sleep in the same room, living more crowded than rats.
“Regarding the rats you mentioned earlier, I specifically asked about them privately in the tavern last night. Everyone doesn’t seem to have any special feelings, thinking there are still as many rats in the community as before.”
Walking to the end of a street, Wayne still found nothing, so the guide quickly explained, as if afraid Wayne would get angry.
Today, no thugs came to disturb them, and most of the residents at home were very cooperative, even proactively asking Wayne and his team to come in and check to clear themselves of suspicion.
Wayne was a little suspicious if there was a problem with his investigation approach, and he briefly recalled the situation last night and the previous waterfront incident:
“The gangs here should also have hideouts for daily gatherings, right? Are there any houses among them that are usually empty? And haven’t many people died on the docks recently? Could it be that some people were actually living alone, and then when they died, their residences became vacant?”
“Ah, this…” The guide became a bit hesitant, “The latter situation is unlikely. A vacant residence is actually not too bad a thing for everyone; it will quickly be reoccupied. As for the situation within the gangs, I’m not too sure about that…”
Wayne pondered for a moment, “Where would the leader of your community’s violent group usually be at a time like this? Take me to talk to him?”
“This… wouldn’t be convenient?”
“Very convenient, extremely convenient.” Wayne put his arm around the guide’s shoulder, “Why are your legs so weak? Don’t worry, he’ll welcome us.”
Forget it, checking house by house is still too inefficient, and just waiting for James Damody to relay messages also wastes time.
It’s better to find whoever’s territory has a problem. Being a bit overbearing is fine; conditions are limited, and everyone just has to make do.
