The two jailers’ expressions immediately darkened to the extreme.
Fear surged through their hearts, and whatever thoughts they had of making a move vanished in an instant.
They silently calculated their situation.
"If we openly fall out with him now, we have absolutely no chance of winning."
"We should endure it for now and find a way to get away."
"Once we return to the prison, we can report that John escaped."
"When the kingdom mobilizes its forces, he will definitely be captured."
"Not only will we be able to recover all that wealth, we can also silence him and take revenge."
After reaching this conclusion, the two men immediately suppressed their hostility and forced flattering smiles onto their faces.
"We drank a little too much just now, my lord."
"Please forgive us for offending you."
"We should take our leave now. We can meet again another time."
Yet when they had first sat down, neither of them had drunk even a single drop of alcohol.
Their excuse was full of obvious holes.
John instantly saw through their intentions.
He understood the situation perfectly.
"These two are members of an official institution."
"If I have them killed in public, it will inevitably cause unnecessary trouble and leave behind endless complications."
"But if I let them leave, they will immediately report my escape."
"Then the authorities will probably send men after me."
"I cannot simply allow them to walk away."
John frowned slightly.
After thinking for a moment, he said,
"I actually haven’t had enough to drink yet."
"Why don’t the two of you stay here until I finish this cup before leaving?"
The two jailers’ expressions instantly became extremely ugly.
They knew their scheme had been seen through.
Unfortunately, the situation was no longer under their control.
They did not dare resist and could only remain where they were.
John stopped paying attention to them.
By now, many capable people inside the tavern had begun stepping forward to recommend themselves.
A tall young man carrying a sword approached and bowed.
"My name is Leon."
"I am proficient in various forms of swordsmanship and have spent many years escorting ships at sea."
"I am willing to serve under you, my lord."
John could not judge the young man’s true ability at a glance, so he turned toward Izer.
Izer instantly understood what he meant and answered quietly,
"My lord, Leon is considered the strongest swordsman in the entire Cloudspire Harbor region."
"Even I am not his match."
John nodded.
"Not bad."
"You’re hired."
He casually tossed out a gold coin.
Leon caught it cleanly and replied with a calm expression,
"Thank you, my lord."
The precision of that simple movement alone revealed the skill of a top-tier swordsman.
Immediately afterward, more and more people stepped forward to introduce themselves.
"My lord, my name is Kade. I am proficient in all aspects of law and can handle legal matters on your behalf."
"You’re hired. Seven gold coins per month."
"My lord, I am Grey. I specialize in operating ship-mounted cannons and artillery, as well as repairing military equipment."
"You’re hired as well. Seven gold coins per month."
"My lord, my name is Hughes. I am an experienced sailor and know virtually every sea route in this region."
"Good. Seven gold coins per month."
"My name is Valen. I once served as the captain of an ocean-going fleet. I specialize in naval strategy and fleet command."
"Excellent."
"You will serve as the commander of my fleet."
"Twenty gold coins per month."
The tavern contained all kinds of talent.
Legal experts, craftsmen, physicians, sailors, captains, and specialists from practically every profession could be found there.
John categorized them according to their specialties and his current needs, then determined their salaries one by one.
Every recruit could first receive one gold coin as an advance, after which their monthly salary would be paid normally.
Ordinarily, even wealthy merchants hiring elite sailors would pay no more than one gold coin for an entire month of work.
John, however, offered one gold coin as an advance alone.
The weekly equivalent of his salaries far exceeded what ordinary people could earn in half a year.
Such extravagant compensation was practically unheard of.
Faced with such an incredible opportunity, the unemployed and idle flocked toward him.
Even many shop owners with stable businesses and veteran craftsmen were willing to abandon their previous livelihoods and swear loyalty to John.
In only a short period of time, John recruited eighty elite subordinates from various professions.
He then summoned the tavern owner and calmly instructed,
"Prepare a private room for me."
"And tonight, every drink in this tavern is on my tab."
"Thank you for your generosity, honored guest!"
The tavern owner was overjoyed.
He immediately bowed and arranged an elegant private room.
Once John entered the room, the owner loudly announced to the entire tavern,
"Everyone, tonight is your lucky night!"
"Every drink in the tavern will be paid for by Lord John!"
Boom!
The entire tavern instantly erupted.
People cheered wildly and raised their cups in salute.
"Thank you for your generosity, Lord John!"
"Lord John is truly magnificent!"
"Such wealth! Such generosity!"
Inside the private room, John sat together with Izer and the two jailers.
Before long, Kade walked in with a puzzled expression and looked toward his new employer.
"Do you know any high-ranking officials in Cloudspire Harbor?" John asked.
"I do."
Kade looked confused.
"Boss, are you planning to..."
"Nothing complicated."
John smiled.
"I simply want to make a few friends."
He had already planned everything out.
Once he became "friends" with the local authorities, the first thing he would do was clean up his identity.
After that, he would purchase warships, recruit sailors, buy cannons, and begin building his forces.
Kade immediately understood and laughed.
"Boss, you found the right man."
"This is exactly the sort of thing I’m good at."
John directly handed Kade one hundred gold coins.
"I want someone with real authority."
"When you find him, don’t say anything else at first."
"Just give him these gold coins."
"Then tell him that if he agrees to meet me, I will give him another nine hundred gold coins."
Hiss—
The two jailers sucked in cold breaths upon hearing this.
Good heavens.
Just for agreeing to a meeting, the man would receive enough wealth to support an ordinary family for several lifetimes!
Even Izer and Kade were stunned.
Their boss was unbelievably rich.
And unbelievably generous.
Kade immediately began thinking.
"With this much money, as long as I seriously complete every task the boss gives me, how could I possibly fail to gain his trust?"
"And once I become one of his trusted men, how could I ever lack money again?"
The thought made Kade even more respectful toward John.
He immediately left to carry out the assignment.
...
Cullen was the Deputy Speaker of the Upper House of the Lothar Kingdom.
At the same time, he was one of the kingdom’s senior officials and one of the most powerful figures permanently stationed in Cloudspire Harbor.
His opinion carried considerable influence throughout the Lothar Kingdom.
Within Cloudspire Harbor itself, his words carried enormous weight, and his authority was no weaker than that of the governor.
When Cullen saw the one hundred gold coins in Kade’s hands, he frowned slightly.
A trace of disdain appeared in his eyes.
What a joke.
Why had Cullen chosen to remain permanently stationed in Cloudspire Harbor?
Because there was far too much money to be made here.
A mere one hundred gold coins was nowhere near enough to catch his attention.
Unless...
There were one thousand gold coins.
"Lawyer Kade, what is the meaning of this?"
Cullen spoke with obvious displeasure.
"We are old friends."
"Why bring out something so vulgar?"
"Deputy Speaker Cullen, my friend said that as long as you are willing to meet him, another nine hundred gold coins will be presented to you."
Kade smiled.
"Oh?"
Cullen was startled.
A sharp gleam flashed through his eyes.
Then his expression immediately turned furious.
"What do you take me for?!"