Chapter 330
Chapter 330
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 330
Chapter Title: Treasure Hunt (9)
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[Analyzing unique mana pattern. Please wait.]
The Golden Castle.
The entrance to the Treasury of Gold, where all the wealth Deimos had amassed was stored, was firmly sealed by a massive iron door.
There were three gates to pass through to enter the treasury.
Each gate was protected by dozens of barriers, and with his knights standing guard 24/7, not even a rat could slip through the Treasury of Gold.
The first gate guarding the Treasury of Gold.
A Main stood before the gate, which was impossible to enter unless one was part of the guard.
[Identity confirmed: ‘Orcal Del’ of the Golden Knights Guard.]
"Glory to the Gold."
The Main with a stern expression, called Orcal, saluted the iron gate with a sharp, disciplined motion.
*Creeak.*
The tightly shut iron gate swung open.
"Ah, you've arrived, Deputy Commander Orcal!"
"Glory to the Gold!"
As he stepped inside, the two Mains on guard duty saluted him.
"Sorry I'm late."
Orcal gave a slight nod to the guards.
"The Commander is waiting for you inside."
"Understood."
He turned and entered the guard office.
Inside sat a man with a warm expression and a magnificent mustache.
"You're ten minutes late for your shift."
"My apologies."
Orcal saluted the Guard Commander respectfully.
The commander looked back at Orcal and continued in a low voice.
"I'm not scolding you for being late. It's just that you're usually here at least twenty minutes early. I was just curious what happened."
"That's..."
Orcal's voice trembled.
The commander let out a low sigh and continued.
"Is it because of Jakal?"
"..."
Orcal silently averted his gaze from the commander.
"I heard he was taken down by a Nogwi."
"...Yes."
"If you're thinking of chasing after that creature, you'd best give it up."
The commander stood up and approached the silently standing Orcal.
"Our duty is, first and foremost, to protect Lord Deimos's treasury, isn't it?"
"I will keep that in mind."
"Good."
The commander breathed a sigh of relief.
He seemed less concerned about Orcal and more worried about how any trouble he might cause would affect him.
The commander put on his coat and headed outside.
"Call me if anything happens."
"Glory to the Gold!"
After respectfully saluting the commander's back, Orcal unbuckled the sword at his waist, set it aside, and sat down in the office chair.
"..."
Sitting in the chair, he scanned the handover report with heavy, sunken eyes, then strapped the sword leaning against the table back to his waist and stood up.
It was always better to check things with his own eyes rather than just relying on a report for the handover.
When he stepped out of the office, two Mains from the guard fell in behind him.
"Anything unusual to report?"
"No, sir! Nothing!"
Nodding gravely, Orcal took out a Sacred Stone engraved with a complex formula from his coat.
"I'm starting my patrol. Follow me."
"Glory to the Gold!"
He held the Sacred Stone from his coat up to the massive gate.
*Grrrrr!*
The Sacred Stone and the gate resonated, and the second gate guarding the treasury opened.
Stepping inside, Orcal looked at the third gate, which was firmly locked.
His authority only allowed him access up to the second gate.
To open the third gate, he needed the Sacred Stone held by the Guard Commander.
"Let's go."
"Yes, sir!"
Of course, there was no need to open the third gate just for a patrol.
Orcal walked down the long corridor with the two guards, checking for any abnormalities.
"...Hm?"
As he walked down the corridor, Orcal's steps came to a sudden halt.
"Is something wrong, sir?"
The guard following him tilted his head.
Orcal silently ran his hand over the corridor floor and walls.
"...There's moisture."
A faint dampness on his fingertips.
Deimos's domain, with its gold refinery, was naturally humid throughout, even though it was underground where no rain fell.
But the 'Treasury of Gold', where Deimos's treasures were kept, was an exception.
"M-Moisture, you say?"
"Look here."
"Ah..."
The guard's face turned pale as he touched the wall and felt the dampness.
Given the countless treasures stored within, moisture was as good as poison; it absolutely couldn't be allowed.
"Looks like there's a problem with the humidity control system."
"I-I'll contact the Commander right away!"
One of the guards rushed outside.
"We need to call the facility manager."
Orcal frowned and walked back to the office.
He tried to urgently contact the facility manager at the main castle via the communication Sacred Relic, but for some reason, the call wouldn't go through.
"Hmm."
A low hum escaped him.
"The manager isn't picking up."
"I'll go to the workshop myself!"
"No."
The guard's duty wasn't just to protect the Treasury of Gold, but also to maintain and manage the treasures stored inside in pristine condition.
The management facility had to be restored to normal as quickly as possible.
"Which of the executives is skilled in adjusting Sacred Relics?"
"I heard Lord Arcturus possesses exceptional skill."
"Arcturus..."
"He's the executive who manages the gold refinery."
He'd heard of him.
Wasn't it Arcturus who designed the factory's facilities?
"I'll contact Lord Arcturus right away!"
"I'll do it myself."
Executive-level Mains were often arrogant.
It would be difficult to even get a proper word in if the call wasn't from a fellow executive.
"Glory to the Gold. This is Deputy Commander Orcal of the Guard."
Orcal sent a communication to Arcturus.
-*Ah, yes. G-Glory to the Gold.*
Arcturus's voice came through the communication Sacred Relic.
*'Hm?'*
Orcal frowned at the sound of his voice, which seemed somewhat frightened.
He wanted to ask what was wrong, but this wasn't the time for it.
"The management facility in the treasury has malfunctioned. Could you come and take a look yourself?"
-*Understood.*
Arcturus readily accepted the proposal without even asking why he was being called instead of the facility manager.
"...You understood?"
He was momentarily taken aback by the swift acceptance.
-*Yes. I'll head there right away.*
"Ah, yes. Understood."
Being the one asking for help, he was in no position to question why the request was accepted so easily.
Just as he ended the communication and set down the Sacred Relic.
"The humidity control system is broken?"
The office door opened, and the Guard Commander walked in.
"Yes. I confirmed it during my patrol."
"B-But when I checked, there was no such..."
The commander's voice trailed off as he bit his lip anxiously.
Seeing him break out in a cold sweat and avoid eye contact, it was easy to guess that the commander hadn't done a proper patrol.
"It seems the device hasn't been broken for long."
"R-Right?"
"Yes."
"Haha. Right! I'm sure there was nothing wrong when I checked!"
The commander patted Orcal's shoulder with a relieved expression.
"So, have you called the manager?"
"He was unreachable, so I called another executive who is skilled in adjusting Sacred Relics."
"Another executive?"
Orcal nodded and told the commander that he had called Arcturus.
"Hmm. Arcturus... Can he really fix the device?"
"He designed the factory facilities himself, so I believe it's well within his capabilities."
If he could build the complex gold refinery facilities, there was no way he couldn't fix a simple Sacred Relic with a humidity control function.
"And even if a problem arises..."
The blame could be shifted to the unreachable facility manager and Arcturus.
"C-Cough. I see."
The commander nodded and turned away.
"Commander! He's here!"
Arcturus arrived at the Treasury of Gold quickly, as if he had been waiting for the call.
"G-Glory to the Gold."
Arcturus saluted with a thoroughly intimidated expression.
The commander approached Arcturus with his characteristic warm smile.
"Well now, thanks for coming. I was told to trust you to fix it, is that right?"
"I wouldn't go so far as to say 'trust'..."
"Haha! No need to be modest! You can do it!"
The commander subtly shifted the responsibility to Arcturus while patting his back.
"The humidity control Sacred Relic is inside the treasury. I can open the gate, but for security, the guards will have to go in with you."
"What? W-With the guards?"
Arcturus shook his head with a flustered expression.
"N-No. It's not a complicated job, so I'll just go in alone, fix it quickly, and come right out."
"Hmm. That might be difficult. Is there a particular reason you must go in alone?"
"N-Not really, but."
Beads of cold sweat formed on Arcturus's forehead.
"I understand. I-I'll go in with them."
"Haha. Thanks for understanding."
The commander led Arcturus toward the third gate.
He took the Sacred Stone from his coat and held it near the gate—
"Please wait a moment!"
Orcal's urgent voice echoed through the corridor.
"What is it now?"
"..."
An ominous premonition ran down his spine.
It wasn't logic, but instinct, that was warning him.
*Do not let this man inside.*
Orcal stared intently at the terrified Arcturus, his lips sealed tight.
"...Your arm."
"My arm?"
"What happened to that arm?"
Orcal, who had been observing Arcturus closely, approached and roughly grabbed his forearm.
"Aaargh!"
A pained scream erupted from Arcturus's mouth.
"What do you think you're doing!"
"It was treated hastily, but this is clearly the mark of a broken arm."
"What?"
Orcal tore Arcturus's sleeve, exposing the area around his arm.
An abnormally swollen forearm.
It was the kind of injury seen when a broken arm had just recently regenerated.
"Why is your arm broken?"
"T-That's."
At Orcal's sharp questioning, Arcturus staggered back, his face pale.
"T-There was an accident..."
"An accident?"
A cold sneer formed on Orcal's lips.
"You were attacked."
There was no way an executive-level Main would break his arm in a mere 'accident'.
"An attack..."
"Commander, you're aware of the news that Jakal's unit was hit recently, aren't you?"
"...Don't tell me a Nogwi has invaded the domain?"
"It won't be just a Nogwi."
Considering a Nogwi's mental state, it was incapable of devising such a cunning plan.
"Then..."
"Yes, it means rats targeting Lord Deimos's treasure have infiltrated the domain."
"..."
The Guard Commander's eyes glinted coldly.
He turned his head to a guard standing idly by and said.
"Contact the main castle's administration right now and confirm if today's scheduled gold delivery has arrived."
"Yes, sir!"
The guard, who had rushed off somewhere, returned in less than five minutes.
"They say today's scheduled gold delivery has not yet arrived!"
"Is that so."
The corner of the commander's mouth twisted up.
The fact that the gold that should have arrived hadn't.
It could only mean one thing.
"It seems the rats have taken over the factory."
*Flinch.*
Arcturus's shoulders trembled.
"T-That's not..."
"Quiet."
A suffocatingly immense mana surged from the commander as he clamped a hand over Arcturus's mouth.
"I'm not stupid enough to fall for your clumsy acting."
"Mmph! Mmmph."
*Sizzzle!*
The commander's hand holding Arcturus's mouth began to burn hot.
"Can you guide me to where the rats are right now?"
"M-Mmph. Mmph!"
Arcturus, his face a mask of terror, darted his eyes around before nodding frantically.
"Good."
The commander held out the Sacred Stone in his hand to Orcal.
"I'll take care of the rats. You check inside the treasury to make sure nothing has been damaged."
"No, I'll go with you..."
"Deputy Commander Orcal. Was my order difficult to understand?"
The commander glared at Orcal, his eyes gleaming with greed.
His eyes were filled with the desire to catch the rats that had invaded the domain and take all the credit for himself.
"...Understood."
"Haha. I'll be sure to tell Lord Deimos that your role in catching these rats was not insignificant."
The commander gave a good-natured smile and assembled all the guards within the treasury area.
"We're going to catch some rats!"
"Yes, sir!"
The guards rushed off in a group toward the factory.
"...Hah."
Left alone, Orcal sighed and held the Sacred Stone in his hand up to the third gate.
*Grrrrr!*
The final gate opened, revealing the countless treasures stored within the Treasury of Gold.
Orcal stepped into the Treasury of Gold and closed the door behind him.
And then.
*Crack, crunch!*
With a gruesome sound of breaking bones, Orcal's face began to twist and contort like mashed clay.
The jumbled, twisted face settled back into the features of a young man.
"You know, the easiest time to fool someone..."
Oh-jin looked at the treasures filling the treasury and twisted his lips into a wide grin.
"...is when they think they're not stupid."
Cackling laughter echoed through the Treasury of Gold.