The Legend of the Fishermen of Sicily

"Bookkeeping?" Leo repeated the key information from the other person's words.

In the coffee shop, he heard Andrei and Nino say similar words.

"Yeah, bookkeeping." Nicholas looked up. "What? Don't understand what bookkeeping means? You can buy things without paying upfront and settle the bill at the end of the month."

Leo explains:

"There is no such custom in my hometown."

Nicholas put the bag on the counter, sat back down, and continued his nap.

"Italy is Italy, and Sicily is Sicily. We have our own rules."

Leo handed over the banknotes again; Sorbetto had spent a lot of money today, and he couldn't afford to let him spend any more.

"No need to keep accounts, I'll settle the money now."

Nicholas yawned and waved his hand repeatedly at Leo, indicating that there was no room for negotiation:

"I only listen to Solberto, let's go back."

Leaving the grocery store with the bag, the villagers on the road automatically avoided him, and the 'barrier' was activated again.

But for some reason, Leo felt... he had developed a slight liking for Sicily.

......

The next few days passed peacefully and routinely.

During the day, I wandered around Marzamemi, firstly to get a more comprehensive understanding of the village's information and terrain, and secondly to let more villagers know—friends, you have a new neighbor, so hurry up and close the 'barrier'!

I, Leo, am a man who is going to build up my power in Marzamemi. How can you back down from me?

Besides going out to the streets to get acquainted with people, he would also go to the coast every morning and evening to dig for seashells, catch crabs, and practice his cooking skills.

Solberto disliked the taste of boiled crab, so let's make the seafood taste even better and let him try my cooking next time we meet.

Unfortunately, Leo had no talent for cooking. His efforts were like alchemy... and the crabs he made weren't even as good as those boiled in plain water.

The mint and eggplant salad recipe I learned from watching turned out terribly bad; it would be rejected even by stray dogs and cats.

Leo could only eat it with resentment, warning himself as he chewed—never again should he study cooking, it was too terrible!

The good news is that my crab-catching skills have improved considerably – sometimes I can catch the fierce "general" crab in one go.

One evening, as Leo was squatting on the rocks looking for crabs, a blue screen suddenly appeared in front of him.

[The host has mastered precision strikes and can upgrade the skill.]

[Upgrade Requirements: Raise your reputation to 10]

Power determines means. In Sicily, no one is afraid of a homeless man who can shoot; they are afraid of someone with a family, brothers, and a story—first acquire those.

You have received the mission: Who is whispering?

[Mission Description: Obtain at least three pieces of valuable intelligence information]

[System Note: Without seeing the undercurrents around you and hearing the whispers of the streets, even the strongest power is like a tree without roots. Gather crucial intelligence about this area, understand the people's sentiments, identify potential risks, and keep all unusual movements under control. A true godfather is not the most powerful fighter—but the one who knows first.]

[Quest Reward: Reputation +1]

[Precision Strike] is extremely useful in Sicily and may be the core of future overseas expansion; Leo must upgrade it.

He looked at his system panel.

[Host: Leo Volpe]

[Identity: Anonymous]

[Reputation: 3]

[Faction: 0]

[Skill: Precision Strike]

"Still so far?" He sighed, then looked down and continued looking for crabs. "Luckily, I lack everything except time."

......

To obtain intelligence information, several key locations cannot be bypassed.

The first place is a coffee shop. Italians can't live without coffee, and there are always many people going there every morning.

The second place is the tavern. The tavern in Malzamemi is not crowded during the day, but it becomes lively and crowded at night.

But Leo didn't want to go to either of those places.

Because it costs money.

I'd rather get something for free than spend a single penny.

He not only didn't want to spend money... he also wanted to make some money from it.

......

The next morning, Leo appeared at the fish market in the open space of the dock, carrying a large basin filled with crabs he had caught that morning.

There aren't many crabs, since they're just props. Anyway, no villagers will come to Leo to buy anything... It's enough for them to have a legitimate identity there.

Otherwise, if he wandered around the fish market, no one around him would say a word when he approached, and it would probably take forever to complete the task issued by the system.

The fish market doesn't have fixed stall locations; whoever arrives first gets to choose.

To avoid being left out, Leo arrived early with his crabs, becoming the first person to set up his stall and occupying a prime spot that everyone passing by in the fish market would pass by.

Before long, the fishing boats returned one after another, and the fishermen who had returned the night before also appeared with their catch. When they saw a large basin in front of Leo with crabs in it, they looked at him as if they had seen a ghost.

The villagers reacted the same way.

Each villager greeted the people around them as soon as they appeared, since they were neighbors who would see each other all the time in the village. But today, the way everyone greeted each other was particularly strange.

"Good morning, El Salvador. What brings you here today? Where's your wife? Oh, she's taking care of the kids. Okay, see you later. I'm going to find some rock snapper; I'm craving some."

"Good morning, Kimi! What did you bring back today? Lobster! Such fresh lobster! But I'm looking for sea bream. If I can't find any fresh ones, I'll come back to you!"

"Good morning, my dear Toldo! It's been several mornings since I've seen you. What are you buying today? Oh, no problem, I'll have Buffon come over this afternoon!"

"Good morning—" the villager said the first part of the sentence as usual. When he saw that the person squatting on the ground was Leo, he said "Huh?" and then looked at the crabs in front of him before leaving in confusion.

"Good morning." Even though he had already left, Leo still smiled and replied.

I'm usually alone and don't have many opportunities to talk.

That morning, he received several greetings such as "Good morning?", "Good morning huh?", "Good morning um?", "Good morning ah?", and "Good morning oh!", which put him in a pretty good mood.

Moreover, they also "collected" quite a bit of useful "intelligence".

For example, whose child wet their pants, whose husband lost money gambling, whose sheep escaped and is now wanted by the whole village, and a young man named Angie who had a fight with his father and had his allowance cut off.

Leo didn't know who Angie was, but he silently mourned for him for a second because the villagers had said some very unpleasant things about him.

"Too much information, it's giving me a headache." Leo rubbed his ears and continued to sift through the dense information to gather useful insights.

Suddenly, he heard something different.

"Have you heard the news? The government is about to release new regulations, requiring commercial fishing to apply for a license. This time they're serious!"

Leo shifted his position, pointing his ear towards the direction from which the sound was coming.