"So, have you made up your mind?" Perfikot looked at the pudgy man in front of him, who was behaving quite nervously, clutching his hat with both hands, and asked seemingly nonchalantly.
Oliver could naturally tell that Perfikot was testing him, but at this moment, he willingly walked into the trap.
He merely said humbly to Perfikot, "Honorable Baroness, although I don't know exactly what is happening, I know this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, one that if I don't seize, I'll regret in my dreams for the rest of my life!"
Two hundred and seventy thousand pounds was a very tempting figure, but the pudgy man was not blinded by this astounding wealth.
Or rather, he had already changed from simply wanting to make money through this matter to wanting to understand what exactly was happening and how he could maximize his profit from it.
For Oliver, the only chance to figure out what was going on was to gain Perfikot's approval and learn the truth from her.
"That's a very interesting description, and to some extent, you're not wrong." Perfikot glanced admiringly at the pudgy man, then brushed her fingers across her lips, asking Oliver with interest, "I seem to have told you not to be blinded by money and to come to me only after thinking it through. So, Mr. White, have you thought it through?"
Hearing Perfikot formally address him by his surname, Oliver knew this was a critical moment. As long as he didn't mess up now, he was only one step away from gaining the knowledge he sought!
So, at this moment, what appeared on Oliver's pudgy face was a mix of genuine nervousness and firm determination. He resolutely responded to Perfikot, "I have thought it through, Honorable Baroness, and everything at White's Alchemy Workshop is at your service."
"Wagering your alchemy workshop? An excellent bargaining chip, but it's not enough." Perfikot took a sip of her aromatic tea and asked the somewhat nervous Oliver, "If I asked you to abandon everything now and follow me to the New Continent, would you be willing?"
The words sounded a bit ambiguous, but Oliver White was a middle-aged man nearing his forties, old enough to be Perfikot's father.
While it wasn't rare among nobles to have interests similar to the damnable bishop, Oliver undoubtedly lacked the courage to entertain any improper thoughts toward a baroness.
Or rather, in the mind of this pudgy man, there was only profit and money; nothing else held much significance for him.
It's not that he had no impure thoughts about Perfikot, but even if he did, he would suppress and discard them, choosing to consider whether it aligned with his interests in the most rational way.
If one must define this pudgy man, he is a pure profit-driven individual, even willing to sell the rope to hang himself.
So, after Perfikot said this, his mind immediately flashed to his potential gains and losses.
For this pudgy man, as long as there were profits to be made, he didn't mind agreeing to Perfikot's conditions to explore a new market in the New Continent.
But this was based on the premise that there were indeed profits to be made; he needed to find out what was going on and what kind of benefits he could gain.
So after hesitating for a moment, he straightforwardly asked Perfikot, "My Lady, may I ask what the reason behind all this is?"
For a businessman, information is one of the most critical factors in determining profit. Without sufficient information, he simply couldn't assess the pros and cons or make any decisions.
Perfikot saw this and didn't make things difficult for the pudgy man, she only said to him, "You want to know specific information? That comes with serious consequences and responsibilities.
Currently, all information is the Empire's top secret. If you know, you will need to bear the corresponding responsibilities. If the news leaks from you, the consequences..."
Perfikot spoke with some gravity, but Oliver showed no hesitation or retreat, he just earnestly nodded and promised Perfikot, "If I leak the Empire's secrets, I am willing to bear all responsibility."
"Since you have said so, then I won't say much more. The Empire's top secret is that this world is going to be destroyed." Perfikot said this astonishing secret to Oliver with a tone as casual as discussing the weather tomorrow.
Moreover, according to calculations and prophecies, humanity only has three years left, with potentially a harsh winter to face in the second year.
This kind of secret still needs to be kept for now, but eventually, it will become common knowledge.
Therefore, Perfikot didn't particularly concern herself with confidentiality. The reason she spoke so seriously to Oliver was merely to test whether this pudgy man was trustworthy.
And Oliver, after hearing Perfikot's words, was stunned for several seconds without any reaction.
After all, the notion of the world being destroyed sounds absurd, it even makes one want to laugh.
If the world is fine, how could it possibly be destroyed? That's not how jokes go!
However, Perfikot's serious demeanor, combined with all the information he'd gathered, indicated that this affair seemed to be no joke.
So, after twitching his lips, attempting to smile to lighten the mood, he found that Perfikot's face bore no hint of jest. Consequently, Oliver stiffly asked, "Is the world really going to be destroyed?" Google seaʀᴄh novᴇlfire.net
"Yes, according to my calculations and the predictions of the Royal Astronomical Society, this planet's core will freeze within three hundred years, and for humanity, the countdown to the collapse of modern society is now down to just three years." Perfikot finally stood up, explaining to the still incredulous Oliver, "Within the next three years, the temperature in Langton City will drop to minus forty degrees. You may not know what that means, but it..."
"I know, I've been to Hyponia and witnessed the winter there." Oliver impolitely interrupted Perfikot's explanation, his face turning slightly pale, trembling as he spoke in a dazed tone, "It's a cold that can shatter steel; no one can survive in such cold!"
"In fact, there are people who survived such cold." Perfikot thought of someone who trained themselves into steel amidst such cold, but she didn't elaborate, instead telling Oliver, "What we need to do is ensure the people of the Empire can survive in such cold."