What Witch? This Alchemist is Breaking Bad!

After a period of time, inside a dilapidated house at the abandoned pier of Arend Island, separated by an iron table, Leon swept his gaze across the fifteen men lined up before him.

Father Auden stood at his left, while the masked Rena stood behind him.

On the production side, Leon had already transferred all the Magical Beasts he had been raising from the now exhausted Hamel Town Labyrinth to the newly cleansed Arend Island Labyrinth.

The Magical Beasts were in excellent condition within the new Labyrinth.

Rena had already confirmed that they had begun generating fresh Mana.

The Arend Island Labyrinth was undoubtedly sufficient to serve as the production base supporting their business.

However, to properly operate this Labyrinth, they needed to station new personnel on this side of the island.

In terms of numbers alone, Leon had quite a few people at his disposal.

On the sales front, through the list provided by Father Auden, he had essentially taken over part of the South Harbor County market that originally belonged to Mr.

Griffin Henry Potter.

The Magical Potions currently ordered by those noble and wealthy clients were now basically produced by him and Rena.

The replenished funds were already enough to cover their operating expenses, even leaving them with a considerable profit.

In the process of expanding the business, Leon had also instructed Father Auden to recruit more manpower to handle transportation, errands, and liaison work.

Most were former subordinates of Potter, along with that group of mercenaries who served as enforcers and guards.

The total number had already exceeded fifty.

During this period, he had conducted a simple assessment of their capabilities.

After discussing with Father Auden, he first selected fifteen among them and summoned them to Arend Island for a final round of screening.

Most of the dozen or so present had participated in the Labyrinth-cleansing mission.

They knew that Leon had invested significant resources to secure the Labyrinth, but most of them did not yet know his true purpose in taking it, nor did they fully understand the industry of raising Magical Beasts within the Labyrinth to produce Mana.

Once they were chosen to participate in the core production operations, they would inevitably come into contact with these secrets.

“You fifteen here were carefully selected by me from recent operations. I plan to assign you to work on this island. You won’t be required to live here permanently; shifts can be arranged. As for compensation, the starting pay will be double your current earnings.”

Leon’s opening statement immediately brought excited expressions to the faces of those present.

He raised a hand to signal them to calm down.

“There are many positions to be arranged here, but broadly speaking, they fall into two categories: inside the Labyrinth and outside the Labyrinth.You all should know that I spent quite a bit of resources to secure this Labyrinth. It is extremely important to our business.”

Some of the men instinctively nodded, their gazes toward Leon tinged with awe.

They knew the process by which Mr. Fenrir had taken the Labyrinth.

During the first cleansing attempt, Mr. Fenrir had dealt with that pack of Demonic Wolves without losing a single man.

Later, because of the appearance of that Drake, a young scout sent ahead had died, and the mission had failed.

Yet Mr. Fenrir had still paid their wages and had even honored the contract by providing compensation.

Just when they had assumed Fenrir would surely abandon the Labyrinth due to being unable to handle the Drake, only two days later they saw him return to the island with a few others, entering the Labyrinth once again.

After several terrifying dragon roars echoed from within, while they were still uncertain whether Fenrir and the others were alive or dead, Mr.

Fenrir walked out calmly and beckoned them to go inside to assist.

When they entered, the Drake they had believed impossible to kill was already completely dead, its corpse cut into numerous pieces and transported out of the Labyrinth.

“The positions inside the Labyrinth are the most core part. Simply put, we will be raising Magical Beasts in there. Many of you should have experience in this area.” Leon paused.

“In terms of base compensation, it will be five times that of your previous standard contract. Bonuses for unexpected situations and additional tasks will be calculated separately.”

A collective gasp rippled through the group.

Five times the pay meant over twenty thousand Fenni per month.

That meant even a stable monthly income alone would exceed what they earned from those life-risking ventures.

Being in the Underworld did not mean that taking risks automatically led to wealth.

Most of them simply had no other respectable livelihood.

Some had even served prison terms and bore criminal records, leaving them little chance of legitimate employment locally.

Long-term employment as bodyguards or enforcers did not pay much more than regular guards.

Twenty thousand Fenni a month—most officers in the Empire probably did not receive such treatment!

“At present, five positions are open. The work itself isn’t complicated, but it involves contact with many things that cannot be spoken of. I will only choose those I absolutely trust. In the future, the cadres responsible for various districts will also be selected primarily from this group.”

Leon’s gaze swept across them.

Every pair of eyes burned with eagerness, all conveying the same unspoken plea:

“Pick me!”

Without expression, Leon took out five small glass bottles filled with dark-red liquid and placed them on the table.

Under the confused stares of the crowd, he explained calmly, “These bottles contain a special Magical Potion. Simply drinking it will cause no issues. But if triggered by a Witch’s power—”

Leon signaled to Rena behind him.

She stepped forward, picked up one of the bottles.

The blood within instantly turned purplish-red, emitting an aura that evoked instinctive physiological fear.

The enforcers present showed visible apprehension.

They had seen Mr. Fenrir use this terrifying Magical Potion before—capable of petrifying both men and Demonic Wolves on the spot.

And this Magical Potion appeared to have come from this mysterious Witch cooperating with Mr. Fenrir.

Those with sharper minds quickly understood why Fenrir had produced these potions.

Their expressions changed at once.

“The selection criteria are simple. Whoever drinks these potions first will obtain the core positions,” Leon said flatly.

Silence fell over the room.

Leon had anticipated this reaction.

He offered no further persuasion and simply waited.

After his Blessing had grown stronger, he had further experimented with his Cursed Blood and discovered some interesting changes.

Previously, when his Cursed Blood was fed to a living being, it would gradually lose effect after about two days.

But now, after feeding it to a target, he could continuously sense Mana fluctuations resonating with himself from that individual.

The sensing range could be quite far, meaning he could to a certain extent mark and locate those who had consumed the Poisonous Blood.

Even after many days had passed, as long as the target remained within the range in which he could manipulate Mana, he could trigger the poison at will.

Leon suspected that his Cursed Blood had evolved into a special kind of organism—one that could respond to his will and parasitize a target’s body long-term.

Through experimentation, he had confirmed that long-term control over others via Cursed Blood to prevent betrayal was now possible.

With the Labyrinth about to enter formal operation, he had no time for prolonged evaluation of recruits.

Thus, he chose this method to select five individuals for the core operations.

Those willing to drink the Cursed Blood were effectively placing their lives temporarily in his hands, greatly reducing the likelihood of betrayal.

After discussing with Rena, they decided to let everyone believe that the potion and its activation ability were in Rena’s hands as a Witch.

This added credibility and also allowed her to directly command personnel in core Labyrinth positions.

Now, the men’s awe toward Rena was no less than their awe toward Leon—perhaps even tinged with greater fear.

This Witch could not only kill with poison effortlessly but also control those dangerous Demonic Wolves.

When Leon stated the condition, all of them hesitated.

For quite some time, no one stepped forward.

Most of them dared to exchange gunfire, but drinking this dreadful Magical Potion was equivalent to working with a gun permanently pressed to their heads—an entirely different matter.

Father Auden leaned close and whispered, “It seems this method may not recruit anyone.”

Leon did not respond.

If no one volunteered, he would not lower the conditions.

At such a critical time, the Labyrinth’s initial operations could not risk betrayal.

At that moment, Simon, standing within the crowd, suddenly took a deep breath and stepped forward decisively.

“I’ll do it!”

The others looked at him in astonishment.

Ignoring their gazes, Simon picked up a bottle and said solemnly to Leon and Rena, “This life of mine was saved by Mr. Fenrir and Miss. Mr. Fenrir has always treated us well and kept his word. I’m willing to follow you!”

Scars remained on his wrist, face, and neck from the Drake’s Acid Mist.

During that desperate escape in the Labyrinth, he had nearly been devoured.

Leon’s Magical Potion had briefly hindered the Drake, and Rena had ordered the Demonic Wolves to drag his barely conscious body out.

The life-saving grace made him willing to trust the man and the Witch before him.

Moreover, he had keenly sensed that Mr. Fenrir was about to take over South Harbor County’s market and territory, with further expansion to come.

Showing loyalty early meant greater opportunity to rise.

Leon smiled faintly.

“Don’t treat it like a toast. Hurry and drink.”

Simon laughed awkwardly, then closed his eyes and downed the potion in one gulp.

The taste was not as strange as he had imagined—only thick with a metallic tang of blood.

After drinking, he nodded solemnly at Leon and was about to step back when Leon said, “Wait.”

Simon looked surprised.

“You used to be a Magical Beast Hunter. You have experience raising Magical Beasts, don’t you?”

Simon nodded.

“Good.” Leon gestured three fingers toward Father Auden.

Father Auden silently produced a Gold Voucher worth thirty thousand and handed it to Simon.

“An advance of one month’s base pay. I appoint you as supervisor. The others will follow your direction. You’ll be responsible for raising the Magical Beasts and conducting security patrols within the Labyrinth,” Leon said, locking eyes with him.

“Do well. In six months, your salary will increase by fifty percent.”

Simon’s leadership role was crucial.

Leon had to offer sufficient incentive.

Holding the Gold Voucher, Simon’s face lit up with joy.

“Mr. Fenrir, I won’t disappoint you!!”

He glanced back at the crowd—several of his own men were among them.

If they were willing to join him, that would be ideal.

Two of his subordinates, already tempted, saw his signal and decisively stepped forward to take bottles.

Encouraged by them, the remaining onlookers grew restless.

Several stepped forward tentatively, and upon realizing the fierce competition, rushed ahead.

Two men seized the remaining bottles.

Just as others prepared to snatch them away, Leon said coldly, “That’s enough. Whoever grabbed them first keeps them. No fighting.”

Those who had secured bottles smiled in relief.

The others retreated in frustration.

Even the same thing, once eagerly sought after, instantly increased in perceived value.

“No need to be discouraged. You can still obtain positions on this island. There will be many opportunities later,” Leon said, sweeping his gaze across them.

“Now that this is settled, let’s begin work as soon as possible.”