Chapter 163 - Conflict (2/2)

“This is the very reason why we can’t ditch her and partner up with the black-market alliance. Malcolm has bigger ambitions that you think, and he’s not that simple. Setting up an alliance to increase his wealth is just one of his goals. He wanted to make use of the alliance to take control of the Na.s.sau’s pirates. If he succeeds, he would be powerful enough to a.s.sign captains that he likes for every pirate crew. And no one will be able to go against him.”

Then, Zhang Heng finally voiced out his opinion.

“Actually, the black-market alliance has a weakness as well. The are formidable when we look at them as an alliance but the truth is, their inner structure is not as tough as we think it is. The core members of the alliance are Redmond and Malcolm. Redmond is the wealthiest and most experienced black-market merchant in Na.s.sau.

“For his sake, all the black-market merchants of Na.s.sau gathered and came up with a proposal that everyone could agree on. Sadly, Redmond is getting older. Even though he’s the leader of the alliance, his job is limited to stabilizing the structure of the alliance and resolving conflicts. Malcolm is the real guy running the whole thing. He rose to power too quickly in Na.s.sau, and in his quest for ultimate control, he’s offended many people. This is why he needs Redmond’s good reputation to help him set up the black-market alliance.

“Are there any conflicts between the two of them?”

“I have no idea.”

“Huh?”

“Both of them are powerful individuals in the alliance. I know that they would have to put on a show that they are good partners. However, I don’t think outsiders know the true nature of their relations.h.i.+p. A few days ago, I got to know that Redmond already knew Malcolm before Malcolm came to Na.s.sau.”

“That should mean that they are in good terms, right?” replied Billy.

“No. I don’t think so. Malcolm and Redmond are both successful businessmen, and I believe that they are professional enough not to allow emotions to ruin their work. Meeting Malcolm tonight confirmed my speculations. He is very confident. Though he dislikes us and knew that we have potential to bring ma.s.sive trouble to the black-market alliance, he remained calm and put only said positive things. To eliminate any future problems, he’s willing to put the past behind him. Likewise, he’s not one to allow friends.h.i.+p to determine his decisions. After working with Redmond for so many years, it’s impossible that there are no problems between them. We just need to dig them out.”

“You’re talking about driving a wedge between Malcolm and Redmond?”

“It hard to go up against a huge alliance like this from the outside. Like I said earlier, their inner workings aren’t as stable as we think it is. Once the relations.h.i.+p between Redmond and Malcolm becomes sour, the black-market alliance will lose its stability. But even that’s not enough. We need to make sure that we can attack them from the outside as well, and speeding up the process of destroying them is essential. I will talk to Carina about this once she returns to Na.s.sau. Right now, we need to figure out how to ruin their relations.h.i.+p.”

“If there are conflicts between them, I don’t think outsides would know anyway since the top is very secretive. Perhaps we can create some friction between them.”

“That’s a good idea as well. However, I will only do that as a last resort. Redmond and Malcolm are sharp enough to spot any engineered conflicts. Things might become worse for us if they find out.”