Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: 19. Goldrich's Gift (1)
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1.
The moment El Pam's party made their appearance, two places sprang into action first.
The fastest among them was none other than the Kania Merchant Group.
“Lord Ebock!”
Beiju barged into Ebock's office without even knocking and immediately relayed the news.
The instant he heard it, even Ebock was at a loss for words.
Silence fell.
It was that shocking of a report.
‘How?’
Ebock was certain.
‘There were two martyrs.’
That it was impossible for anyone other than those two martyrs to return alive from the Mystic Gate where they had sacrificed themselves.
That Jack Rich's tomb would devour countless adventurers from here on out.
And yet, a mere five-man party led by El Pam had returned alive from that very place? From a tomb no one could survive?
‘This can't be.’
Impossible.
No, it shouldn't be possible.
Beiju, standing before the stunned Ebock, felt the same bewilderment.
Neither of them could bring themselves to speak first, and the silence stretched on.
Knock knock!
What broke the silence was another Kania executive, Bisant.
“Lord Ebock.”
With a curt knock, Bisant flung open the door and strode in.
It was rude.
Ebock hated such discourtesy the most.
For someone like him, who had to hide his allegiance to the Black Mage, this kind of approach was the most dangerous.
Normally, Ebock would have unleashed a icy tirade at Bisant right then and there, and kicked him out of his executive position on the spot.
But not this time.
Ebock was so flustered that he missed his chance to vent his rage.
“Urgent message from our spy in the Goldrich camp.”
Above all, the content was worth Bisant's hasty delivery.
“I got the emergency update and mobilized right away, but it looks like a Goldrich executive is heading toward Jack Rich's tomb.”
The Goldrich Merchant Group was sending someone to meet El Pam.
“Who?”
“Not confirmed for sure, but... it seems to be Silverly.”
Goldrich's right-hand man, Silverly.
2.
Goldrich—there were a few names that always came up when speaking of him.
First, his two sons.
His eldest, Goldrich Junior, and his second son, Jack Rich. People were intensely curious about the pair who stood to inherit Goldrich's vast fortune.
But there was an even more intriguing name.
“No matter who ends up inheriting Goldrich's wealth, one thing's certain. If Goldrich drops dead, Silverly takes the reins immediately.”
Silverly.
Goldrich's right-hand man, who had stepped in to handle all operations after Goldrich retreated from the front lines. He was the true power behind the Goldrich Merchant Group.
What truly made Silverly famous, though, was something Goldrich himself had said.
“I gave Silverly the key to my secret vault.”
A man with access even to the secret vault of the great tycoon Goldrich!
And now, that very man stood before El Pam.
“I'm Silverly.”
Even in his sixties, Silverly's sharp eyes and slicked-back silver hair made a striking impression as he fixed that gaze on El Pam.
“I hear you have Jack Rich's will.”
His eyes gleamed with a piercing intensity.
Enough to intimidate most adventurers.
El Pam responded to Silverly.
“Yes, I do.”
Politely.
“And I'll deliver it directly to Goldrich himself.”
Politely refusing to hand the will over to Silverly.
Silverly's eyes turned icy.
Cold enough to kill El Pam on the spot.
And Silverly wasn't just eyes and aura.
“Don't cross the line. Isn't this the life you barely clawed back?”
Silverly was threatening El Pam.
He, who could mobilize the entire Goldrich Merchant Group, was threatening to kill him.
Yet El Pam didn't waver.
There was no reason to.
Silverly's glare and presence didn't even register with him.
‘Just as expected—Silverly shows up.’
Above all, this meeting was exactly what El Pam had orchestrated.
‘Jack Rich was murdered. They had no choice but to move.’
The will hadn't actually mentioned murder in the first place.
In other words, El Pam had forged it.
Not difficult at all.
Imitating Jack Rich's handwriting was child's play.
The issue was credibility.
‘The work of the Black Mage's followers. They'd keep it quiet, but the Goldrich Merchant Group must have sensed something off internally.’
That issue was covered too.
‘That's why Silverly had to come.’
If the Goldrich group hadn't noticed anything, Silverly wouldn't have bothered showing up personally.
Either way, Silverly needed Jack Rich's will from El Pam.
He had to use it as a lead to root out those targeting the Goldrich Merchant Group.
That was Silverly's job.
And that was why El Pam had set this stage.
‘Point the finger at the Kania Merchant Group, and they'll tear into them on their own.’
Pit Goldrich and Kania against each other.
‘And Kania really is behind it.’
Once they clashed, El Pam wouldn't need to lift a finger afterward.
Or rather, it meant he had to sprinkle enough spice to ensure a solid collision.
“Jack Rich was murdered. By none other than a comrade. The killer is inside the Goldrich Merchant Group. So I can't trust anyone but Goldrich himself.”
The spice here was trust.
“I am Silverly. Are you saying you suspect me of killing Jack Rich?”
“To be frank, you're my top suspect.”
Was this adventurer El Pam really trustworthy?
“My top suspect?”
“Goldrich has only his two sons. One's dead. One remains. But if that last one dies too, who becomes the heir next?”
“Amusing theory. Then let me ask: if I were the culprit, I'd kill you right here and take the will. So why risk your life refusing to hand it over?”
“If you're the culprit, Silverly, I'm dead anyway. It's not about risking my life. So there's only one thing I can do.”
Right there, El Pam instilled that trust.
“Deliver the dead man's will properly. That's an adventurer's duty.”
And it worked.
Rustle!
The tent flap where El Pam and Silverly stood opened, revealing a middle-aged man.
Brown hair and a distinctive mustache made him stand out.
‘Goldrich.’
The man hailed as Victoria World's richest.
“I'm Goldrich. Sorry about that. I had to test you.”
The moment he heard those brief words, El Pam didn't hesitate. He pulled the will from his bosom.
“Here is Jack Rich's will.”
Goldrich took it and immediately scanned the contents.
His expression didn't change as he read.
Impassively, he took in his son's suspicions and warnings about his killer.
Without a flicker of anger, he said,
“Thank you. For bringing my son's will all this way. Is there anything you need? Name it—anything.”
El Pam replied,
“I've already been paid with his belongings. I need no further reward.”
Like a true adventurer, settling accounts.
“Then I'll take my leave.”
As El Pam left the tent,
“Silverly.”
“Yes, Master.”
Goldrich turned to Silverly.
“Tear the Kania Merchant Group apart. Root and stem.”
3.
‘He'll tell them to tear Kania apart.’
El Pam could predict the order Goldrich would give the moment he stepped out.
Not a hard prediction.
‘His son's death is one thing, but he won't tolerate a traitor in his midst.’
Goldrich hadn't become Maple World's premier tycoon by luck alone.
Nor had the Goldrich Merchant Group risen to dominance in the port city of Lis just because of money.
‘The Goldrich Merchant Group's strength exceeds what anyone imagines.’
In truth, Goldrich's capabilities far outstripped public knowledge.
El Pam had seen it.
Even as the world crumbled, the merchant group that endured until the very end was Goldrich's.
‘Kania won't go down easy.’
Of course, the Kania Merchant Group—followers of the Black Mage—wouldn't collapse without a fight.
Their clash would likely drag on far longer than expected.
El Pam couldn't predict when it would end.
One thing was certain.
‘In the meantime, Kania will throw everything at killing me.’
El Pam's name would top their hit list.
Such a Kania wouldn't care about prying eyes.
They'd send martyrs openly to assassinate him, troll him, whatever it took.
‘Gapor would love that too.’
And that was exactly what the Gapor Merchant Group hoped for.
From El Pam's view, he was surrounded by nothing but killers. A dire situation.
But he felt no particular emotion about it.
‘Just as I planned.’
He had foreseen this from the start.
‘To kill me, Kania will send even stronger adventurers.’
No, he had wanted this.
‘Armed with unique items.’
For El Pam, who needed to gather every item he could, adventurers coming to kill him were a gift.
Of course, he wasn't planning to sit idle.
‘Spec up first.’
In that sense, the current situation wasn't ideal.
‘Now I have to tackle yellow-rank Mystic Gates, like it or not.’
Honestly, opening his 4th Circle in this Mystic Gate had been unplanned.
By the plan, he'd have stayed at 3rd Circle here and hit another orange-rank gate.
A critical deviation.
In orange-rank gates limited to 3rd Circle and below, nothing threatened El Pam. But in yellow-rank gates up to 4th Circle, he was just a rookie stepping onto the stage.
‘Somewhere safe.’
Wandering into any old adventure now was insanely risky.
Truthfully, that was El Pam's biggest headache.
No one among those guiding or commissioning Mystic Gates for him was trustworthy.
Only one, barely.
‘Deal with the Cross Hunters.’
Only they, fighting the Black Mage's followers, were somewhat reliable.
But even that wasn't easy.
Contacting a secretive group like the Cross Hunters was tough, and they had no reason to deal with El Pam.
Unless he joined them.
Unless something blew up.
‘I'll make contact first.’
Of course, El Pam wasn't one to give up without trying.
With his resolve set, he headed toward the tent where his companions waited.
That's when it happened.
“El Pam.”
Someone called him. El Pam turned.
There stood a male adventurer from the Goldrich Merchant Group.
But El Pam knew instantly.
‘Disguise.’
The man was in disguise.
Nothing obvious on the surface.
El Pam just sensed it.
The subtle tell of a disguised person versus one who wasn't.
More precisely, he spotted the unnatural.
He had to.
The era El Pam lived in was one where missing such cues meant death.
‘An ambush?’
El Pam tensed.
The foe might be a Black Mage follower.
“Perhaps this item.”
But then he heard the altered voice, suddenly feminine, and eased up slightly.
‘Cheryl.’
A familiar voice.
It was Cheryl's signal.
No need to be wary.
“Is this yours, El Pam?”
After the signal, her voice shifted back to masculine as she handed him a bag.
El Pam took it and checked inside.
A letter caught his eye. He examined it without pulling it out fully.
*Please rescue my comrade.*
The moment he read it, El Pam looked up at the disguised Cheryl.
Her eyes trembled ever so slightly.
It made sense.
‘For her to ask me this, the situation must be dire and critical.’
The insular Cross Hunters entrusting such a request to the still-suspicious El Pam.
‘And coming in person, this urgently.’
Her direct involvement meant it was no ordinary matter.
Coming to El Pam anyway signaled desperation, clutching at the last thread of hope.
El Pam stayed cool-headed.
‘I won't act on emotion alone.’
Debuting in yellow-rank Mystic Gates on the worst possible stage? No thanks.
He scanned the letter further.
‘Ah, there.’
Spotting the rescue target, El Pam replied without hesitation.
“Yes, that's my bag.”