The Factory was not far from where they were, but it was not the same one where the main headquarters were located.
These guys operate in the shadows, so their bases are scattered around the city. Even though they had several factories, only one was known as 'The Factory'; the rest were just arrival points, where they issued some missions occasionally or were used only for jobs.
In the area where 'The Factory' was, many workers worked in different jobs, either masons or other jobs.
There were also many beggars on the streets.
Louis saw them and nodded slightly. 'They are spies.'
As he walked among them, he could feel many watching him intently while pretending to be asleep.
Their beggar disguise was good enough that a spy like Jessy could not tell who the spies were, although she knew there were spies.
Still, none of them moved until they entered the main factory.
Then, several beggars seemed to wake up from a deep sleep and started moving in different directions.
No one noticed anything strange because many of these beggars were crazy, too. Sometimes, there were strange things, but they were used to that by now.
Still, seeing those two millionaires passing by piqued the interest in many of them, so murmurs began to ring out despite being at work.
For their part, Louis and Jessy soon reached the center of the factory.
The sound of machinery and the smell of oil were intense. This was a manufacturing factory in full operation.
Some guards approached him.
"The factory is not open for foreign visitors today. There is no orchestrated reservation for today, so we will ask you to return."
"I don't come here for sightseeing." Louis pulled out the credentials Fraid had given him along with the documents and showed them to him.
They both frowned.
'Mr. Fraid?'
'Impossible. I've seen him before, and he doesn't look like that.'
After they saw it, Louis put it away and stepped forward.
"Wait." They both quickly raised their arms to stop him.
"What's the matter, still doubting?" Louis asked.
"Not for nothing, but I've never seen your face before. So, can you wait a moment? We'll ask if you're invited." This time, they both exerted a powerful force.
'Awakened Ones.' Louis nodded softly.
Besides, they were quite powerful.
"Good." He replied.
Then one of them turned and left.
It didn't even take 15 minutes when he came back and signaled them to come in.
"Come in. Sorry for our rudeness earlier. We were just doing our job."
Louis didn't respond; he just went inside.
"She is?" The man stopped Jessy to confirm her identity first.
"She's my assistant."
"Oh. Go ahead then. Come with me."
Subsequently, they both followed behind that person and quickly walked into the factory.
'It reminds me of the first factories that existed on earth.'
Many people were at work, moving heavy, but well-oiled gears or pounding things with different tools.
Hammers, axes, and so on.
The heat was also terrible because the factory was devoted to working with iron or metals in general, and fire.
The sound of screaming could occasionally be heard from inside, and the smell was terrible, but it all looked charming to someone used to high technology.
Although he studied it briefly in college, he has always loved gears. The Industrial Revolution was a great era in his mind, despite its many problems.
That's why he enjoyed every moment walking around here. But they quickly arrived at the factory's main offices. Two people stood side by side, powerful awakened ones guarding the office behind them.
Neither moved.
"Come in, sir." Said who was leading them.
Then they entered.
As they entered, the temperature inside dropped considerably. A strange cold seemed to hit everyone.
Tension was felt, but Louis simply sat in the vacant seat, and Jessy stood behind him.
Each of the three men in front of him had few people at their backs, also Awakened, all of whom set their eyes fixed on Louis as soon as they saw him enter.
They seemed to be scrutinizing him.
Louis chuckled a little.
"If I had come to kill you, do you think you would be alive?" He spoke.
"Haha." The leader among them laughed. "We don't think you're here to kill us, Young Sir. You're already part of us."
He seemed friendly, but...
Louis looked at the awakened behind them.
"Really? Then why have those guys studied every step I've taken until I sat down?" He smiled and looked back at the man sitting in the middle. "Even now they're studying my breathing."
The three of them turned and scolded their bodyguards. "Do you want to act with restraint?"
That made the bodyguards nod and withdraw their stares, though they were still watching him.
Watching this little exchange was enough to make Louis realize several things.
'They're not loyal subordinates, just bodyguards to the highest bidder. If I wanted to kill them, it would be a piece of cake.' He smiled.
But he wasn't going to do that.
For now, he had succeeded in his task, and he was sitting, face to face, with some influential and powerful people in the city.
His plan was taking shape.
Although taking control of this place was part of the plan, everything would fall apart if he suddenly came in and took control of a criminal organization like this. Criminals don't act in the same way as normal businessmen.
They have no restraint whatsoever, and although they love money, they also love chaos.
Starting a war against these three would trigger a fragmentation of the organization, as no one would respect it in any essential way. Besides, they have contacts, and, according to Dan, one of those contacts is the leaders of the R-Lockward Family.
'I still don't know enough about the city, I can't mess with them.'
So he made the decision not to move against them. What had been accomplished so far was enough for now.
They had no idea of his thoughts.
"We work in the shadows of society, Young Sir. If you want to join us and have the power to do so, then we will accept you, for we do not work with weak men or idiots." Stated the man in the middle.
"But that contract signed for 100 million... I hope you keep it hidden. In the sight of the other Houses, that is a tremendous weakness they will try to exploit."
"I know. I'm not stupid."
"Good." He smiled. "Would you please introduce yourself then? We'll do that too, since we'll be working together from now on."
"Very well." Louis stood up.
"My name is Louis Carwine. There's not much to introduce myself, as I'm sure you have some information about me. But I will be working with you from now on. I hope you'll be kind."