Chapter 17 Mutual Guarding

It's really hard to see how Luca came up with the word "staff."

But since Luca had once been an apprentice to a famous assassin, his abilities might be limited, but his insights were genuine.

Luca said an assassin needed to be versatile, so Gao Yi really had to learn a craft.

It didn't have to be particularly proficient, nor could it be, but it needed to be broad.

And he really had to master it to a certain extent, at least to the point where it looked convincing and not just somewhat convincing.

Just looking convincing was not enough; it could be deadly.

That was the principle, so Gao Yi had to learn to be a chef.

This first step in being versatile was to practice culinary skills.

The first step in practicing culinary skills was to see what kinds of Chinese restaurants there were in Freetown, to eat at all the Chinese restaurants in Freetown, and to taste what the locals liked.

Sierra Leone and Liberia are neighboring countries, and neither country is very big; there are definitely differences in their dietary habits, but ultimately they are quite similar.

"Sorry, I really can't eat anymore..."

At the first restaurant they tried, Gao Yi really wanted to smash the place because, apart from having a sign that said it was a Chinese restaurant, everything else was local.

The owner was Black, the chef was Black, the waiters were Black, and the customers were Black.

The dish they came up with, some kind of chicken stew, was just sweet and spicy.

An intense sweetness masked the gaminess of the chicken, and a heavy spiciness covered up all other off-flavors.

Then, seeing the locals pour the sweet and spicy thick stew over rice, then mix it with their hands before bringing it to their mouths, Gao Yi immediately lost all appetite, but still thought it might taste good despite its appearance.

After forcing himself to take a bite, Gao Yi realized he was indeed right.

With a look of resignation, he glared at Luca and said in a low voice, "You dare say this is the most popular Chinese restaurant in Freetown?"

Luca glared back at Gao Yi and said quietly, "Don't judge local tastes by your own dietary habits. You think this is a pile of dog shit, but..."

Looking at the soup bowl in front of him, Luca suddenly said, "I shouldn't have said that, now I can't eat it either."

Gao Yi had no appetite at all. He wasn't one to waste food, and he had indeed noticed that this dish was the most popular item in the restaurant, as seen on other tables.

However, even though Gao Yi braced himself emotionally, he still backed off when he actually had to eat the dish.

"This isn't Chinese cuisine, and there are many Chinese restaurants in Freetown. I think we can totally find a normal Chinese restaurant. Let me treat you to some real, delicious Sichuan cuisine."

Luca shook his head, then said with a tragic look, "Listen, this restaurant is the locals' favorite Chinese place. You can question their taste, but you have to accept their taste. If they like it, then you must like it too."

After that, Luca took a spoonful of the mixed rice and put it into his mouth, then said while eating, "It's actually not that..."

He turned his head, spit out the food, and then started coughing loudly, soon adding, "Sorry, sorry, I choked..."

Gao Yi was inexplicably frustrated, and waited until Luca's coughing finally stopped, then said quietly, "Man, you didn't have to go so hard."

Luca shook his head, saying softly, "I highly suspect that the Chinese restaurants in Suakoko are of this type, which is to say, the target likes this taste!"

Gao Yi looked desperate.

Luca continued, "Face reality. You're unlikely to be a waiter, being a chef is the most likely way to blend in. If the target likes this taste, then you must learn to make it. Once you get to Suakoko, it will be too late to learn."

Gao Yi looked around, making sure no one could hear his conversation, then said quietly, "The target is also a big shot. Do you think he likes this taste?"

"Britons aren't poor, what kind of ghastly stuff do they make? Dietary habits, pal, you've got to learn to accept them. You can find cuisine from all over the world in London, but Suakoko isn't London, nobody's there to elevate the taste of the people of Suakoko!"

No choice then, eat up.

Gao Yi tragically stuffed his mouth full of rice.

The rice was hard, the dish was sweet, and spicy.

Fortunately, tasting it was enough; there was no need to actually finish it.

The two of them struggled to eat enough to at least get a sense of the taste, then silently walked out of the restaurant.

Then, both of them sighed simultaneously.

After a long while, Gao Yi suddenly said, "How about, add some money?"

Luca nodded and said quietly, "I'll try to find another way."

Paying more was for intelligence, finding another way was also for intelligence.

Suakoko was too remote, too isolated; getting information was not easy.

Liberia was not at war now, but Suakoko had been occupied by Gray Horace,

which was effectively a lordship, so the Liberian government had economically blockaded Suakoko.

They hadn't completely sealed it off, but Suakoko's contact with the outside world was truly limited. Ordinary people wouldn't go there, and the only people who could enter Suakoko were businessmen with connections and backgrounds.

Methods that might work in big cities were all but useless here, unless Luca was willing to spend a lot of money to hire a dedicated intelligence broker to go to Suakoko and gather intelligence. Otherwise, it would be very difficult to get useful information.

Useful information included things like the name of Gray Horace's favorite restaurant, its location, what the building looked like, who the owner and chefs were, and mainly what the cuisine tasted like.

It wasn't necessary to delve into Gray Horace's taste; knowing the restaurant's characteristics was enough.

Gathering information about the restaurant was very simple; just go there once. But precisely because it was such a simple task, it was one that Gao Yi and the others could not accomplish.

Suakoko was too isolated; once inside, they would inevitably draw attention. Figuring out the restaurant's characteristics there was simple, but if they couldn't blend in as waitstaff or chefs, then they would be at a disadvantage.

Gao Yi had thought that they could just slowly gather information, but after today's meal, he felt that perhaps they should just give it up.

"Getting a person to just go to Suakoko for a look, how much would that cost?"

Luca said quietly, "Ten thousand dollars."

"That expensive!"

Luca looked desperate and said, "You think it's expensive? The Liberia Intelligence Bureau has always had ties to the target. If I buy intelligence from official Liberian channels, through any channel, it could potentially be leaked to the target. What do you think?"

"Uh... troublesome."

"If we just find a local person and give him a thousand dollars to go to Suakoko for us, do you believe he would just make something up?"

"That's the problem..."

Luca shook his head and said, "We can only look for professional intelligence brokers, source from Africa, have them go there once. Ten thousand dollars is the minimum, not even typical for an intelligence broker, but that's all we can do."

Gao Yi was silent.

Luca said quietly, "No way around it, ten thousand dollars. I'll try to find an intelligence broker to go."

Gao Yi suddenly said, "There's only one way, we split up. You go to Suakoko to scout, get concrete intelligence, then I'll come over."

Luca looked at Gao Yi, hesitated a moment, and said, "It might be better if we stick together."

Is it really better to stick together? Of course, the answer is no.

Anyone could see that splitting up and working cooperatively was the best choice.

But now they couldn't split tasks because Gao Yi didn't quite trust Luca, and Luca trusted Gao Yi even less.

Gao Yi was worried that after killing the target, Luca would abandon him and run off, then hoard the reward.

Luca was afraid that Gao Yi would run away, then he'd never be able to recollect his external debts.

Although Luca also knew that Gao Yi could just kill him and similarly deny his own debts, so being together with Gao Yi was actually more dangerous. But the problem was human nature, and Luca's personality flaws played a role.

The two had established enough mutual trust to maintain this cooperation, but it was far from real trust.

Gao Yi knew where the problem lay, but it wasn't easy to resolve.

Both going to Suakoko, even if they stayed separately and acted separately, the target was still too obvious.

He really didn't know how such a partnership could continue.

After pondering for a long time, Gao Yi suddenly said, "Gathering intelligence, learning to cook, blending into a restaurant, waiting for the target to show up, this plan won't work. It's too complicated, takes too long."

Luca scoffed and said, "This plan is already very simple, even too simple. You know how long a real assassin would take..."

"Alright, I'm not some real assassin, and neither are you; you're just a middleman. Stop talking like you're some famous assassin."

Luca was choked up, then said to Gao Yi, "You, you..."

Gao Yi just has one drawback, he likes to speak the truth, and the truth always hurts.

"I've decided. We'll act separately. I'll go to Suakoko, you just prepare to help me escape."

Luca was stunned, then said, "You're going alone?"

"My plan is very simple, get close to the target, take a chance, and kill the target."

"Then what?"

"There's no then."

"What kind of plan is that?"

Gao Yi scoffed twice disdainfully and said, "You don't trust me and I don't quite trust you either, so I'll go by myself, and you only need to make sure I can leave."

"This..."

Gao Yi continued, "Give me your Dark Web account; I'll use the built-in camera feature to record the target's death as evidence, but I won't submit it.

Since the target is also a big shot, his death will at least be big news in Suakoko. A little investigation by the Dark Web would confirm that the target indeed died, and the video would be proof enough that I did it, which should be enough to claim the reward.

Finally, I'll take the phone with the evidence, and once you help me get out of Suakoko, we submit the evidence and wait to divide the money. Clear enough, right? If you don't come for me, I can't leave Suakoko, I die, and you don't get any money. This is my plan, do you agree?"

The submission of evidence wasn't set in stone; surely the type of evidence chosen would depend on the actual circumstances. Gao Yi's idea was enough to prove that he killed the target and to claim the reward, but as long as the phone with the evidence was in his possession, he wouldn't worry about Luca running off on his own.

For Luca, as long as Gao Yi entered Suakoko, it really wouldn't be easy for him to leave, which was a plan he could accept.

Without hesitating too long, Luca nodded heavily, saying, "Alright, let's do that!"