Chapter 164 Shock of the New Member
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Returning to the study room, Audrey had already arrived. She smiled and greeted Glaint and the others before asking, "Mr. Hobert, did the initiation ceremony go smoothly?"
Hobert nodded, "Very smoothly."
"That's great to hear!"
After everyone had taken their seats, Hobert spoke, "Let's begin. Let the new member introduce themselves first."
Karl said, "Beautiful Audrey and two charming ladies, I'm Karl. I've been fascinated by mysticism since childhood, especially recently learning about some family matters. I hope to become an 'Arbiter' through gatherings of the 'Justice League'."
Xio and Fors were stunned for a moment, then realized: the Vincent family was a notable Arbiter family.
Sitting at the head, Hobert said, "That's easy! Xio, do you have the potion formula for Arbiter? Would you be willing to sell it?"
Xio hesitated slightly, "Yes, I would."
Of course, she would. Rather than letting the potion formula gather dust, she preferred exchanging it for some pounds.
Karl widened his eyes. He never expected the "little girl" in front of him to have the Arbiter's potion formula.
Hobert continued, "The Arbiter's potion formula is controlled by the royal families of Loen and Feynapotter, as well as nobles from both countries. It's a rare potion formula."
"But since it's needed by a member of the gathering, how about 300 pounds as the market price? Karl, can you accept that?"
Karl nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes!"
Too good to be true! He had only recently learned that becoming an Arbiter would give him some status at home and a chance to compete for heirship.
Though he wasn't valued much at home, 300 pounds wasn't too difficult for him.
Hobert asked Xio, "Would you accept?"
Xio smiled, "I would."
She hadn't expected to earn 300 pounds right at the beginning of the gathering!
Hobert added, "I also have the main ingredients for Arbiter, similarly priced at 320 pounds according to the market."
Previously, he had explained to Glaint that to prevent the potion formula from leaking, he had procured an extra two grams of Crown Jellyfish Venom Crystals, increasing the potion's cost.
The additional two grams of Crown Jellyfish Venom Crystals would not be added to the potion, but stored by Glaint for future use. Therefore, Hobert was now asking for 320 pounds, without worrying about Glaint questioning him.
Karl stood there completely dazed. He never imagined that the problem that had plagued him for months would be solved so easily at this seemingly low-end gathering of the Justice League.
Hobert noticed Karl's expression and thought he might not have that much money.
It made him a little speechless. He hadn't expected that a noble's son couldn't even get 600 pounds: "If you don't plan to buy it, then wait until the next gathering to say it again."
"I'll buy it! I'll buy it!" Karl stood up excitedly. "Sorry, I was shocked just now. I didn't expect to be able to buy the Arbiter's potion formula and main ingredients so easily. I, I'll go back and get the money now."
"Not today," Hobert said. "Come over the day after tomorrow morning, and Xio and I will hand over the potion formula and main ingredients to you."
Karl nodded repeatedly, "Okay, okay."
Audrey smiled faintly beside him. She hadn't expected the Justice League to have such great power already, completing a trade for a Sequence 9 potion formula and main ingredients so quickly.
It somewhat made her proud. The Justice League was visibly growing at a rapid pace!
"Next, let me explain why I called this meeting," Hobert said. "First, let me briefly tell you about my experience yesterday."
He then explained about the pre-trial, the open surveillance, the call to the Loen Royal Hotel, and the nearly being framed at night.
As he spoke, Hobert found three noble youths surprisingly excited.
They had only seen such an exciting story in storybooks, especially Hobert's repeated counterattacks, which made them feel relieved and eager to join.
Only then did the three noble youths start to feel a bit angry.
Audrey frowned, "I didn't expect Backlund to have such a dark side."
"Where there's light, there's darkness," Hobert smiled. "I called this meeting to rally the power of the Justice League to help me win this lawsuit."
"You should all understand that this is a just act, and it also carries certain risks, so whether you want to participate is not mandatory, and of course, there is no compensation.
"But I think maintaining Backlund's justice is the best reward, after all, we are the Justice League."
Audrey clenched her fist, "Since I listened to your defense, I have been working hard in this area. But I found that those kind gentlemen and ladies, as soon as they heard about this, immediately became indignant."
This made it impossible for her to guide the topic in the direction she expected.
Hobert said, "They are only kind because you haven't harmed their interests. Once you harm their interests, you will know how vicious they can be."
Glaint also said, "I tried to persuade those wealthy and noble people who sided with Arnold, but..."
He shook his head. "Our power is too weak."
"You're going in the wrong direction," Hobert said. "First, don't rush to take sides. Second, don't intensify the conflict.
"The reason why so many people are helping Arnold now is because he has elevated this matter to a class conflict.
"But because our power is weak, we can't treat this case as a class conflict. We must try to portray this as Arnold's personal behavior: he's stingy and unwilling to compensate his employees' losses, which triggered this case.
"Use moral kidnapping to depict our actions as just and remember! Depict Arnold personally as despicable and shameless.
"Turn class conflicts into personal conflicts, and you won't encounter such resistance."
Audrey brightened, "That's indeed a good idea. Why didn't I think of it?"
Hobert thought to himself, 'That's because you haven't read "Selected Works of Mao Zedong.'
[T/N: I heard this become nationalistic in later chapters…]
He said, "The trial is tomorrow. I hope that in the recent period, you will tell the nobility circle about Arnold's personal despicableness.
"Whether I win tomorrow or not, such propaganda should not stop, because I estimate that after tomorrow's trial, Arnold will vigorously smear me and my principals.
"With you forming a tide of discussion in the noble circle, it will be a great help to me."