Chapter 54:
Taking Action Ahead of Time
At six o'clock that evening, in the locker room.
"The medicine hasn't arrived?" Ophelia, who was standing in front of her locker and about to take off her prison uniform, startled.
"Yes. According to the schedule, I should be able to get the next batch of drugs tonight." Meirujinu, standing beside her, whispered, "But it seems there might be a problem now."
"What do you mean?" Ophelia hadn't quite grasped the situation.
"I had arranged for three inmates who were taking the drugs to bring them in with their belongings, and I even bribed the prison guards in the process." Meirujinu lowered her voice, staring at her own locker.
"But just before the lockdown was lifted, someone tipped me off that those three were taken away by the guards directly. I'm afraid... the items might have been intercepted."
"Didn't you prepare a diversion?" Ophelia widened her eyes.
"Yes, I did. I never expected the warden to counter so swiftly..." Meirujinu's expression became serious. "I've been outplayed."
As the drugs spread within the prison, the warden must have sensed something amiss and become alert.
To divert his attention, she had deliberately orchestrated a series of diversions to disrupt the guards.
She not only arranged for several prisoners to ingest drugs that raised body temperature, creating a fake outbreak, but also instructed the twin assassins to attack Evangeline, causing a sudden injury event.
However, what she didn't anticipate was that Aiden not only saw through her plan but also managed to urgently uncover the batch of drugs despite limited resources.
"Isn't this a disaster for you?" Ophelia grew nervous. "If those people reveal your involvement—"
She had now boarded Meirujinu's ship, and if Meirujinu's plan failed, she would undoubtedly face repercussions.
But Meirujinu calmly interrupted her, "Don't worry, they won't confess anytime soon. They were also involved in the riot plan, and the severity of a riot far outweighs trafficking prohibited drugs. Besides, they have signed a contract with me."
"What contract?"
"It's my unique technique, a binding spell that compels them to keep silent about any information regarding me."
By Relying on the magic potion brought in beforehand, Meirujinu could temporarily restore her magical power and cast spells.
She wielded a secret technique capable of blocking memories, a method she had long used to control the assassins she trained, ensuring they could never disclose her information.
This time, she employed the same method to control the inmates who sought drugs from her.
"But even if they don't expose you, Aiden has been suspicious of you for a while now," Ophelia realized the problem.
"Now that he's confirmed the existence of the drugs, you'll surely be closely monitored."
"You're right," Ophelia responded. "So, we have to act ahead of schedule."
"Are you serious about it?" Ophelia's gaze became sharp.
"With the channels for drug inflow cut off, time is no longer on our side. If we can't continue expanding manpower with drugs, waiting further just gives the guards more time to react. It's better to act sooner, catching them off guard,"
Meirujinu explained as she removed her prison uniform and discreetly handed something to Ophelia.
Looking down, Ophelia found a small vial containing dark red liquid.
"A magic potion made from the blood of several magical beasts, it can cause a rapid surge in vampire magical power for a short period of time," Meirujinu whispered.
"When?" Ophelia confirmed the plan with her.
"Prepare for tonight. I'll distribute the drugs to others. You go to the necromancer, pretend to inform the warden, and lure him to the interview room"
Meirujinu repeated quietly. "Then, I'll create chaos in the infirmary. When the riot squad concentrates there, we seize the opportunity to break out of the cells."
"Didn't you say earlier we should break out from the infirmary?"
"No, the manpower there is all expendable. The real escape route is in the interview room."
"Are you planning..." Ophelia slightly widened her eyes.
"Yes, we need to gather all the strong individuals to jointly ambush the warden. That's the only way we can get the key to leave the prison," Meirujinu squinted.
Late at night, 11:30 PM, Warden's office.
"Can't find anything?" Faced with the report from his subordinate, Aiden's reaction was slightly shocked.
"Yes, we've tried every method," Franda answered with a serious expression. "They just refused to talk."
"Did these guys mess up their brains with those drugs?" Aiden couldn't help but sneer.
After Veronica successfully discovered the drugs hidden in the incoming items, Aiden immediately began investigating from these items.
However, contrary to his expectations, the owners of the items containing drugs were not the inmate 3340 he had been suspecting.
These items were brought in from the outside, intended for three different female inmates. And these three female inmates, without exception, were drug addicts.
According to Megan's confession, the three of them were the ones bribed to bring in those items.
The interesting thing about these drugs sent in was that, according to the prison doctor proficient in pharmacology, the powder hidden in the items was more akin to raw materials for drugs.
It required a series of processing and preparation before becoming consumable drugs.
Of course, further testing was needed to determine what drugs could be formulated. However, in the hands of those unfamiliar with the field, these things were practically garbage.
They could only be useful when handled by someone proficient in pharmacology, and these three female inmates lacked that background.
In other words, the "drug lord" who was spreading the drugs in the prison didn't personally come to bribe Megan for supplies this time. Instead, they used drugs as bait to make their underlings, the small fry, do the job.
These small fry, driven by their addiction, wouldn't refuse the drug lord requests. After obtaining the raw materials, only the drug lord had the expertise to formulate them into usable drugs.
As the drug lord, that person had no need to worry about these small characters embezzling these things.
Aiden noticed that this time his opponent seemed unexpectedly cautious. Even though he had already removed the corrupt elements within the prison guards, and exposed the small fry responsible for bringing in the raw materials, he still couldn't find the identity of the person causing trouble in the prison.
Although he strongly suspected Inmate 3340 was the mastermind, he couldn't take action against her without sufficient evidence.
He managed the prison by adhering to the rules, order was the foundation of his role as a manager. From his standpoint as a manager, he couldn't actively break the game rules.
As an interrogation method, Aiden still trusted Franda, the experienced prison guard. If she couldn't get results, it would be difficult to extract information from them in the short term.
However, he found it hard to believe that a few small characters addicted to drugs could maintain such high loyalty to the drug lord who supplying them.
At this moment, a prison guard knocked on the office door and saluted Aiden when she entered.
"What's the matter?" Aiden asked.
"A prisoner claims to have information about the flow of drugs within the prison and wants to personaly report it to you in the interview room," the prison guard respectfully replied.
"Which prisoner?"
"It's Inmate 3100."
Inmate 3100, precisely the number for Arsena, the necromancer working for Aiden.
"Arsena?" Aiden frowned, thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright, bring her to the interview room. I'll be there shortly."