Tony paused for a moment before adding, "We might not be able to get the legendary thief's help, but your suggestion still has some merit. We can look into other highly skilled thieves on the market and hire them instead."
Both Tony and Manny knew deep down that even though the fearless assassins they trained were capable, tearing the family heirlooms away from Laurence would be no easy feat.
In fact, the hired killers in the underworld were growing increasingly reluctant to take their contracts. Every time they accepted a job from the Longbottom family, they had suffered devastating losses. After it happened one too many times, the syndicate bosses started turning them down.
They would only cooperate with the Longbottoms if the target was not Laurence.
Tony had spent a fortune to hire these men to raid Laurence's estate for two reasons. Firstly, to preserve his own strength, and secondly, to make Laurence an enemy of the syndicate bosses so they would destroy Laurence for him.
However, the results left Tony incredibly frustrated.
Whenever those syndicate bosses mentioned Laurence, they would grit their teeth in pure hatred, looking as though they wanted to tear him to pieces. Yet, all they did was vent their anger with words and not a single one of them had ever openly targeted Laurence.
They did not even attempt any assassinations, which left Tony baffled. He was the one hiring them, yet when they suffered heavy casualties, they turned around and threatened him instead.
Did those bosses know that Lilian was Laurence's mentor, and that was why they were afraid to touch him?
Tony admitted that no one wanted to offend a doctor with a legendary reputation like Lilian, but surely she did not possess that much leverage.
Even if Doc himself were still alive, he would not command that much fear.
What Tony did not realize was just how vast the network of connections and wealth Doc's generation had left behind. Laurence had grown up with Doc and alongside the apprentices and descendants of Doc's old peers. So, they were all part of the same generation, raised together.
Today, those peers were titans in their respective industries. Laurence had always insisted that he did not need their help to get his revenge, but they were not about to just sit back and do nothing.
Every syndicate boss who had ever done business with the Longbottoms had been strictly warned by a mysterious figure. The warning allowed them to take contracts to cause minor inconveniences for Laurence strictly as business transactions, but under no circumstances were they allowed to target Laurence outside those bounds.
If anyone dared to target Laurence unauthorized, that mysterious figure could wipe out their entire syndicate overnight. A warning letter from them required nothing more than a specific crest to strike absolute terror into the hearts of those syndicate bosses.
Over the years, those bosses had taken a massive amount of money from Manny and Tony, sending countless assassins after Laurence. However, it only ended in them being severely injured or behind bars, and none of the men they sent out ever returned.
It had cost the underworld so many men that they eventually refused to take any more orders from the Longbottoms, no matter how much money was offered.
In private, they cursed Laurence's name, but not a single soul dared to make trouble for him on their own time.
Even without the warnings from that mysterious figure, they would not dare act rashly. They had all experienced Laurence's terrifying strength firsthand, and many secretly felt that the mysterious entity's protection over Laurence was entirely redundant.
Did a guy like Laurence need protection?
He was always the one doing the beating, never the one getting beaten.
"Pops, I'll keep an eye out," Manny replied.
Both Manny and Tony knew exactly where they stood. They knew that proceeding with the original plan did not guarantee success, but they still had to try.
What if, by some miracle, they actually managed to steal the token?
Tony picked up his phone from the coffee table and checked the time on the screen before saying to his son, “Go on then. Be careful, and tell everyone to take proper precautions. Don't fall victim to that itching powder again.”
Manny muttered an acknowledgment and turned to leave. By the time he walked out the front door, he was fully geared up in protective equipment so that no powder could touch his skin. The only downside was that it was the middle of summer, and wearing that protective suit was baking hot.
It was only after he got into his car and turned on the air conditioning that he finally felt a bit of relief.
He was personally leading the operation tonight because he was the only one who could recognize the family token. He also had to ensure that if his men did manage to steal the token, it would not be snatched away by others within the family.