Volume 1 – Chapter 1.4
That Keller was said to be the greatest assassin in the Franz Kingdom. No one could survive in his pursuit.
He was the very reason why Boss could stay in his position for thirty years, and why the United Union of South Port and the Lord of Thethnburg never tried to carry out mass extermination operations over the Thief Union. The Thief Union members spread over half of the southern region. The United Union and the Lord knew the Old Nest was just in Leila, the southern city, that is not the biggest nor the smallest one, but they did not take any actions.
No one of them wanted to lose his life mysteriously in his sleep.
In addition, never a foreign Thief Union had ever settled in the south. This is also owing to Keller.
Therefore, any deceiving the Boss and the old man would be proved to be very stupid.
Perhaps the only way to get such a large amount of money without breaking the rules was to wait, till the nest split up.
But there would be many other troubles in front of him，maybe even worse.
Fabian kept chewing things over in his mind, during the journey to South Port.
But he had not forgotten his mission.
When almost arriving at South Port, Fabian jumped off the coach quietly. It was still one kilometer away. He wanted to move his tight limbs, so he decided to walk there.
Fabian walked along the stage road, heading to South Port.
South Port was a large city which was ten times larger than Leila.
And, South Port was a new city with a quite short history.
Like all the new cities, South Port was full of vigor and chaos.
If looked down from the hillside, it would been seen that South Port alongside the sea arced like a crescent moon. The roads were not as orderly as those in Leila, not to mention far worse than Thethnburg which was known for its rigour.
Dozens of different sizes of docks bordered on the curved coastline. Several ships were berthing, waiting to be loaded or unloaded.
Countless workers were busy working.
Spacious warehouses were seen all over.
Workers pushed the cart in and out, and the cargoes about to be loaded were scattered over the docks.
The ore and wood bound for Siba, the cloth and grain shipping to the Eley, were piled on the crowded docks.
Instead, those unloaded from ships were the famous horses and barrels of wines from Siba, as well as the dazzling fine silk, blankets, and all kinds of glassware, which were all shipped from Eley.
According to the old man, except for glassware, the silk and blankets were shipped from far more distant places.
The merchants of the Eley Kingdom who owned these goods were the richest people he had heard of.
Fabian looked at these gorgeous and luxurious things. He was extremely jealous when looking at the silk blankets wrapped in thick linen and watching the glassware packaged in solid wooden boxes and taken out carefully by workers.
Each one of those things was worth more than two or three times the value of the stagecoach that he had been dreaming of.
No matter how much he was eager to get them, he knew those things were not what he could touch.
Even the Boss, the most powerful man, had never imagined to have these things.
Even if they made it that stole them successfully, they still had no way to sell them.
No merchant would be willing to buy expensive goods of unknown origin. They did not dare to offend the united union which specialized in dealing with these goods in South Port.
It would also fiercely enrage the South Port United Union, and it was the only thing they could not tolerate. The Boss didn't want to be on so bad terms with South Port.
As for Thief Union, a prosperous South Port was a guarantee that they could live better.
Fabian turned his eyes onto the busy streets.
That was what attracted him most in South Port.
There were plenty of rich people, and their wallets were always full.
There was no nest, since the foreman was caught by the security team of the United Union, no one had built a nest in South Port.
The security team was as sharp as a razor. They all wore civilian clothes. They were said to be rewarded a fifth of the lost if they caught a thief. so the members would love to catch thieves and throw them into prison.
From thieves' point of view, the cell were directly connected to gallows.
They all knew the cell was not used to hold the thieves, but the bankrupt merchants, the debtors, and the unscrupulous traders who lead the market into chaos.
There was no residence for thieves, rogues, and swindlers in cell.
Fabian warned himself "better be careful".
South Port was different from Leila. As an open city, it didn't have tall walls and wide gates as those in Leila.
The outer suburbs was the poorest region.
The simple bungalows were dockers' place, where the conditions were not as bad as cell and slum, but not better either.
No drainage facility was operated in South Port, so muddy narrow streets and smelly pools were seen everywhere.
Crossing over the outer suburbs, then come to the bustling streets.
This was a completely different world. The streets were filled with all sorts of shops and kinds of luxurious brand signboards.
In Leila, only the upmarket stores were able to decorate themselves by hanging a fine blanket at the gate, and that would be a very proud thing.
But in South Port, blankets and silk curtains were seen everywhere.
At the entrance of some of the most luxurious stores even stood large vases of a man's height, which were from Eley and originated from distant place.
And the shops decorated with peacocks' tail feathers and pheasants' feathers Fabian had never seen seemed extremely poor in this place.
Walking on the dazzling and bustling street, Fabian felt himself become a rich man.
He was checking out the comings and goings of everyone.
It was a prosperous city, where most of the people were dressed brilliantly. The clothes on Fabian's didn't seem outstanding in this place.
The streets were busy. The gorgeous silk and precious fur were nothing here.
Those who wore odd clothes were the most conspicuous.
There was no water on the docks and busy commercial streets. South Port was unfriendly to wagons, as they would bring the water elsewhere.
In the busiest part of the city, there are many stagecoaches brought with long lines of convertible carriages.
They were free.
The first time Fabian came to the city, he was quite surprised by its novelty.
But now Fabian was not as innocent as he had been. See, he jumped onto a slow coach.
As it moved, Fabian enjoyed the scenery of both sides.
On both sides of the bustling streets were the shops selling sky-high priced commodities and numerous restaurants decorated with elegant arrangements.
Fabian got off the coach at the busiest center and started wandering around.
In the shops in South Port, if the customers did not speak, the shop assistants would not take the initiative. Visiting shops without buying anything would not cause dissatisfaction among the assistants.
Therefore, visiting from this shop to that one was quite common in South Port. It was called a road trip.
Fabian temporarily joined the crowd on the streets. He went into every shop to take a good look.
Most of the shops in South Port were quite luxurious, and the assistants were equally outstanding. In the eyes of Fabian, everyone was suitable for the role of a rookie.
If someone wanted to establish himself in the most prosperous shop in South Port, he had to be smart and comply with customer requirements. A neat appearance was also indispensable.
But Fabian didn't know what their character is. Were they easy to control? Were they bold enough to take on new roles but afraid of betraying him?
And those people who had been working in this place for a long time were equally unsuitable.
Although the old man said that they shouldn't be wrong, the possibility of making a mistake is quite large if someone had been to South Port before.
He kept looking for a long time but didn't get a satisfactory person.
Suddenly, someone behind him shouted, "You're slacking off again. How many times have I told you? Watch out. I'll kick you out."
Fabian looked back and saw a slightly hunchbacked middle-aged man yelling at a 15-year-old child.
The frightened eyes of the child drew his attention.