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Conrad focused on the woman's words and smiled.
The fact that he had not received an immediate refusal was a good sign.
Katherina remained silent for a few moments.
Then she turned around, opened a bottle of beer, and placed it in front of Conrad.
"My name is Katherina."
"What do you want to know?" she asked.
Conrad paused for a moment.
The question was important.
The answer he gave could change many things.
If he asked the wrong question, he could make enemies and reveal his purpose.
If he asked something too insignificant, he would gain nothing useful.
"Can you tell me about the unofficial influential figures of Meteor City?"
"Powerful organizations."
"People connected to the Elders..."
Katherina frowned.
"That's a fairly dangerous question," she said.
"But there is no harm in talking about it."
"Especially since you're a foreigner. It's natural for you to ask these things here," she said.
Katherina picked up a cloth and slowly wiped the counter while thinking.
"There are three groups worth knowing about if you're asking about influential people in Meteor City."
"The first is obvious."
"The Phantom Troupe."
Conrad nodded.
Even outside Meteor City, the Phantom Troupe was known.
Katherina shrugged.
"There isn't much to explain."
"They come and go."
"Most people know who they are."
"Most people know what they do."
"They're connected to Meteor City, and many people respect them because they protect the city in their own way."
"Beyond that, I don't know much, and even if I did, I wouldn't talk about it."
Conrad took a sip of his beer and listened.
Katherina continued.
"The second group is called the Wastelord."
"They are much less famous outside Meteor City, but inside the city they have real influence."
"The Wastelord oversees collection, sorting, buying, selling, and bartering."
"Most of the resources entering and leaving the city pass through their hands at some point."
"Scrap metal, machinery, electronics, construction materials, food shipments, fuel, almost everything."
"They have connections to the Elders."
"Direct connections."
"If the Elders want something managed, it often ends up becoming the Wastelord's responsibility."
"The man in charge is called Pluro Palbio."
"I've never met him personally, but everyone knows his name."
"They say he can look at a pile of garbage and tell you exactly how much money it can generate."
Conrad remained silent.
The organization sounded more important than its name suggested.
Katherina then lowered her voice slightly.
"The third group is stranger."
"It's called The State Of Sold."
"Stupid name if you ask me."
"But they're powerful."
"What they sell depends on what buyers want."
"Artwork."
"People."
"Organs."
"Anything that has value can potentially be sold through them."
"They handle much of Meteor City's trade with the outside world."
"If something leaves the city and reaches international markets, there's a good chance they were involved somewhere along the chain."
"The woman controlling it is Madame Eria Laytia."
Katherina stopped speaking for a moment.
"Unlike Pluro Palbio, people are careful when talking about her."
"Very careful."
"Some say she's a businesswoman."
"Whatever the truth is, she controls a large amount of money."
"And in any city, money creates power."
Conrad slowly nodded.
-
"Now..."
"These organizations could be used as bridges to reach Lamar."
"At the same time, it might be easier than dealing directly with Meteor City and creating hostility with the Elders," Conrad thought.
Looking at Katherina, he spoke again.
"Can I get another beer?"
Katherina nodded and opened another bottle for him.
As she placed it on the counter, she narrowed her eyes slightly.
"For the information I already gave you, along with the beers, you'll need to pay fifteen thousand Jenny."
Conrad smiled.
"That's fine."
"I'm going to ask you another question."
"This time it's different."
Katherina paused.
"The way you put it tells me the question is going to be more dangerous..." she said.
Conrad smiled.
"What can you tell me about the Blue Flower Elder Palace?" he asked.
Katherina immediately took a step backward and drew a deep breath.
She glanced around several times before answering.
"I'll answer that question..."
"But I want another fifteen thousand, Jenny."
Conrad nodded.
He pulled a thirty-thousand-Jenny banknote from his pocket and handed it to her.
After taking the money, Katherina began speaking.
"The Blue Flower Elder is one of the mysterious elders that people know about more compared to the other elders..."
"As far as I know, there are two fields that attract most of his attention and his palace where he runs the operation."
"The first is their relationship with the Mafia."
"The second is medical testing and human experimentation."
"Very little information comes out of those places," she added.
"But sometimes we hear stories."
"People connected to the Blue Flower Elder occasionally recruit residents."
"They offer food, shelter, or direct payment."
"In exchange, those people participate in various tests."
"The payments are good."
"But becoming sick or getting injured afterward is also very common."
"A lot of families accept the offers because they don't have another choice."
"When people are desperate enough, they accept almost any risk."
She paused for a moment before continuing.
"They also provide recruits to Mafia organizations in exchange for payment."
"At least that's what people say."
"Whether every rumor is true or not, I couldn't tell you."
Conrad nodded slowly.
"I understand..."
The information was limited, but it was enough to begin forming a rough picture.
Medical experiments.
Mafia connections.
Recruitment operations.
None of those sounded like activities that could be ignored.
"Give me another beer."
"And bring something small to eat as well."
Katherina thought for a moment.
"Would you eat some fried potatoes?" she asked.
Conrad gave a simple nod.
"That works."
Katherina disappeared into the back of the bar while Conrad leaned slightly against the counter and took a slow breath.
A general idea was beginning to form inside his mind.
Not only regarding the Blue Flower Elder Palace, but also concerning Lamar himself.
The more he learned, the more certain he became that Lamar's position inside Meteor City was not accidental.
Someone involved in the Palace's operations would likely have access to resources, personnel, and information that ordinary people could never obtain.
It also explained why the Hunter Association had treated the mission differently from a normal assignment.
Conrad took another sip of beer.
At the very least, he was finally beginning to understand the environment he had entered.
And understanding the environment was usually the first step toward finding the target hidden inside it.
"If Lamar is a Nen user working with other Nen users under the Blue Flower Elder..."
"It is more than likely that he is using his nen abilities on the matters of human experiments compared to working in the matter of mafia..."