Schneider burst out laughing. "Looks like our guest doesn't trust us. No problem. If that's how it is, delaying this deal a little won't matter. Let's all rest for a bit."
He spoke of resting, but in reality his eyes were on the shrewdest of his old hands, and he gave him a meaningful look.
The old hand nodded, quietly set down his suitcase, slipped into the woods out of Leonard's line of sight, and Apparated away ahead of time.
Since his own men could not set up the ambush, then they simply would not be the ones doing it.
Watching Leonard sit back down, Schneider sneered inwardly.
Once those people got here, let's see where you can run, you fat sheep.
Time passed quietly as Schneider sat to one side, estimating the timing.
After his man reached the next stopping point, he would first have to contact the others, and only then would they come over. It would not take long, but they would not be in position immediately either.
Once the time was right, he could lead the fat sheep over.
A greedy smile spread across Schneider's face, and he failed to notice the young man among his subordinates quietly sneaking over to Leonard's side.
"Hey... I'm talking to you." Londo called softly, drawing Leonard's attention.
Leonard turned to look at Londo. He was hunched over, looking suspicious as hell.
The moment Leonard looked at him, Londo immediately raised a finger to his lips, telling him to keep quiet.
"What is it?" Leonard asked quietly.
"You need to be careful." Londo glanced around, and after confirming no one was paying attention to him, he continued, "Our boss looks like he's planning to make a move on you."
Leonard hesitated for a moment, mainly because he had not expected the young man to come over just to say that.
Could this be some kind of trap?
"Why are you telling me this?" Leonard asked.
"I don't think you seem like a bad person," Londo said.
"Not a bad person?" Leonard was momentarily speechless. He looked Londo over, wondering whether this was some kind of trick.
So his eyes deepened as he looked straight through the concealment of the black robe and into Londo's eyes.
It seemed... there really were no malicious thoughts there. This guy honestly thought Leonard was a good person just because Leonard had grabbed him when he tripped earlier.
Leonard was speechless.
He realized that this young man, who was several years older than Leonard was in this life, was genuinely naive.
"I'm someone sneaking across the border. I could very well be a wanted criminal, and you're saying I don't seem like a bad person?" Leonard asked, amused enough to tease him. "Were you asleep just now?"
"Uh... well... maybe you've got your reasons." Londo scratched his head, then said seriously, "Anyway, I'm warning you, run now. The boss has definitely set an ambush for you at the next stop. If you go there, you'll definitely get caught."
"That's not something you need to worry about. Just do what you're supposed to do." Leonard smiled and turned away, no longer looking at him.
"Hey. Why won't you listen?" Londo muttered, then suddenly noticed his boss's gaze turning this way. Startled, he hurriedly slipped off to the side.
Over there, Schneider judged that the time was about right and got to his feet, walking toward Leonard.
The ambush had already been set. Now all that remained was to wait for the fat sheep to walk into the trap.
Schneider rubbed his hands together impatiently, looking forward to the profit this job would bring.
Suppressing the restlessness in his heart, Schneider walked up to Leonard and asked, "Sir, are you done resting?"
"Mm." Leonard gave a short response and looked up at Schneider.
Looks like they've already put their people in place. Wonder who it'll be. This should be interesting.
Leonard walked over to Schneider's side. As he watched Schneider's hand settle onto his shoulder, a faint silver glimmer flashed in his eyes.
"Then let's get moving." Schneider pressed down on Leonard's shoulder and spoke impatiently.
Without waiting for Leonard to answer, Schneider bared his teeth in a savage grin and immediately Apparated.
In the middle of a vast forest, Schneider and Leonard appeared all at once.
In that instant, Leonard sensed powerful spells taking shape all around him. Schneider, who had just been holding his shoulder, immediately pointed his wand at Leonard from close range and cast a Petrification Spell.
"He's here! Now!" Schneider shouted. But the moment he noticed those terrifying spells, panic flashed across his face, and he scrambled out of the way.
Leonard slowly raised his head. Feeling all the spells around him rushing in with intense malice, he revealed a disappointed expression.
So it wasn't Obscurus after all. What a letdown.
...
Boom!
Boom!
A continuous chain of explosions rang out. Bursting flames, scattering smoke and dust, and all sorts of common and uncommon curses poured down like rain.
The wildly dispersing magic became a violent whirlwind that forced the surrounding trees to bow low. Furious flames burst into showers of sparks that set the grass ablaze.
The earth was ripped open, and thick clouds of dust engulfed the area.
"The hell are you doing?" Schneider, who had dodged aside, shouted angrily. "It's ruined! Completely ruined! You killed him. Where am I supposed to get more money now?"
"Schneider, mind your place. We are not tools for lining your pockets." A wizard in formal wear stepped forward, glanced at Schneider, and spoke with visible impatience.
...
He was a middle-aged wizard. Compared to Schneider, whether in bearing or in the value of his clothes, he far outclassed him.
And yet when facing him, Schneider showed not the slightest sign of being overawed. If anything, he was even more aggressive, pressing the other man hard.
"Theodore, are you joking with me? I'm the one supplying your funds so you can dress yourselves up like proper people, play whatever roles you like, and hide the parts of yourselves nobody gets to see. That's not so you can drag me down at a critical moment."
Schneider stamped furiously in place. "Why did you kill my target when I made it perfectly clear I wanted him alive? Do you know how much you just cost me?"
"Heh. Your losses are outside the scope of my concern. All I know is that you calling us in for this ambush annoyed me greatly, so I needed to teach you a lesson..." Theodore spoke in an unhurried tone, a pipe between his teeth as he rubbed his fingers together and lit it.
Blue smoke drifted upward. Theodore looked at the furious Schneider with disdain, as if he were staring at some filthy beast splattered with mud. Inwardly, he sighed at how smugglers without a shred of elegance always loved making a fuss.
But his refined composure was quickly shattered by Schneider's roar.
"That guy casually threw out more than three hundred Galleons! That means he's got clues to even more Galleons on him!"
Clack.
The pipe fell to the ground.
A stunned expression appeared on Theodore's face, and the hands that were usually so precise in spellcasting began to tremble slightly.
"How much did you say?"