At his introduction, the man on the right frowned and spoke.
"If we ask you to introduce yourself, you must use your real name, not a false one." He said with some anger, taking the men present by surprise.
Louis turned to look at him and waved his hand, as if he wanted to ask him a question. It seemed to say: And what is my real name, Sir?
Even the gesture carried a sarcastic tone.
The man in the middle frowned and looked at him. He seemed to personify what Louis wanted to ask.
"And what is his real name, Mr. Iseni?" His tone was not one of question, but rather of rebuke.
Was he saying that the surname bestowed by them should be considered false?
That was an insult to the reputation of the House of Shadows. Naturally, this man was angry.
Because of this, Iseni realized his mistake and lowered his head.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Jackvin."
"Hmph."
Jackvin looked back at Louis and nodded to him.
"I'm sorry." He spoke.
Then spoke again. "Thank you for your introduction, Mr. Carwine."
"Since you are taking Fraid's place, does that mean you will be taking over the industries and missions he issued?" he asked.
"I will be in charge of everything he did before; that was the contract agreement. Industries and the sniper missions. Also, Hawkeye spy missions and so."
"Well, that's introduction enough." He rose to introduce himself.
"Jackvin Wisehal. I'm in charge of manufacturing factories and medicine trafficking, and I control most of the stores in the Central Industrial Zone. I also hold the title of Temporary Leader of the Table of the Four Houses." He said, then looked at the two to the side and introduced them.
He couldn't let these idiots say something stupid again.
"He is Mr. Iseni; he is in charge of the overall finances of every Industry and Factory. He is known to be the Collector Leader. While he is Mr. Dicson, he is in charge of everything left unsaid and leads the Awakened."
After a quick introduction between the three, Louis returned to his seat.
Jackvin looked at the Awakened behind. "You may leave." He spoke.
They looked at him. "Are you sure?" they whispered.
He nodded.
He couldn't act scared in front of a young man, let alone if it would be his chairmate. They didn't trust him, but they also understood that no one would act stupidly in front of such influential people.
Of course, he had countermeasures if Louis wanted to do something; he didn't plan to be left unprotected when his opponent was an Awakened One.
The Awakened came out after their confirmation.
Then they looked at Jessy quizzically.
"She's my assistant," Louis said. "You don't need to worry about her presence; like you, she's a normal person who has worked for you guys before."
Jackvin nodded. "She was the trigger? I heard that a problem occurred between Fraid and a girl from the organization in the first instance." He asked carefully.
"Well, he dared to steal something I gave in thanks for services rendered. I just repaid him in kind."
Jackvin nodded heavily. "I see."
According to what they had been told, the difference was that Fraid stole 500 thousand Jens, and now he had been robbed of over 900 million Jens.
'What a payback.' He thought wryly.
But they weren't his words.
"Well then." Jackvin said and looked at Mr. Dicson.
"Today, Mr. Dicson and I called a meeting because of a vitally important mission to discuss. It encompasses our finances and our bettors."
Dicson pulled out a scroll and laid it on the table.
"One of the year's most important races will be held this Sunday. All the bookmakers have their eyes on it, as the best horses in the region will be in attendance. The Evergreen-trained horses are favorites and have attracted a huge crowd, including bankers and powerful mobsters from up north."
"As a key player among the bookmakers, the House of Shadows is firmly in, but our bets look like a bust. We could lose more than 5 billion Jens if we leave things as they are."
With his words, the scroll could be read by all.
Unknown characters were sent on a mission to poison the horse water that the House of Shadows was sponsoring.
While the House of Shadows' biggest bets were going through the Evergreen Horses, there were two in particular that they were betting on outright to get 3rd and 5th place.
It was a very specific bet that gave a very good return. Their rivals could not allow them to achieve that success.
Now, the mission is precisely for this.
The Old Moon House, one of the Four Houses of the Industrial District, was the one that wanted to poison the horses. They were betting on two other equally ranked and perhaps better-trained Horses to get those 3rd and 5th places, respectively.
And the bets with them amounted to even more money than those of the House of Shadows.
If they allowed it to go on like this, they would lose more than 5 billion Jens, and their direct rival would also grow stronger and gain ridiculous prestige among bookmakers.
"...That's why we need outstanding people for a mission this Saturday. We'll have to put those horses to sleep in the wee hours of the morning, but powerful people protect them; they are all Awakened." Dicson said, putting the parchment aside to pull out another.
"I have already written down what will be asked for in the mission, but it is free in return at your discretion, Mr. F..." Dicson quickly coughed. "Sorry. Mr. Carwine."
Jackvin nodded and looked first at Iseni.
"Mr. Iseni, you are the one in control of the finances. How much money should we use this time to attract the necessary awakened?" he asked.
Iseni considered it and grabbed the scroll to read it thoroughly. Even though he was temperamental, he was a guy who knew what he was doing when it came to money.
Seeing him so thoughtful, Jackvin diverted his attention to Louis.
"Mr. Carwine, you will be issuing this mission, as Hawkeye's group needs to participate. Have you considered changing anything, or do you have any suggestions?" He asked.
Louis smiled softly. "I do have a suggestion."
"Oh?" All three raised their eyebrows to hear what he had to say. What kind of suggestion could such a young person give on a mission like this?
Louis put his gun on the table.
"The mission you have is already fine. The people you want to hire are enough; you could add a spy specialized in that situation and give them considerable money, since we're dealing with millionaire bookies."
"But I want to take this mission personally. Since you seem to doubt my capabilities, I will prove them on that mission, and then we can work more calmly, " he said, smiling softly.
They were words that were full of falsehood. Yes, he wanted to do the mission because it was important, and if he created a mission of it, it would surely get him a good amount of System Coins.
But to take the doubt away? No.
He simply wanted to see a horse race and understand more about those Four Houses they mention so much.
And, what better way to get to know one than by facing it?