Chapter 265 Deceiving the trader to get more profit
Chapter 265 Deceiving the trader to get more profit
Ding!
[Task Received: Return to Origins (1/3)]
[Description: The past is calling you. Head to Clinton City at the address [open attachment]. There, you will find what will lead you to the answer.]
[Reward: "Shop" function, passive skill "Charm Aura"]
[Punishment: Death of the user]
Adam was speechless. If it weren't for the fact that he was currently lying with Lina, a scream would have escaped his mouth, waking not only the residents of this house but the entire city.
He had seen such a task for the first time. Besides the fact that the meaning of the task was vague, he could not help but feel that he was being led somewhere dangerous.
Although the rewards were attractive, the punishment was too harsh! If he failed the task, he would die. And if Adam had any thoughts about waiting for better times, a timer suddenly appeared.
[Time until task failure: 72:00:00]
"Eh..."
The man felt as if he had been doused with cold water and lost his voice. With such conditions, he could no longer casually approach the completion of this sudden task, which was likely part of something bigger.
"What does returning to the origins mean?" Adam wondered, but he could not find an answer.
The only thing he understood was that the task required meeting someone.
"I thought that for tasks to appear, a trigger was needed. And this trigger should either concern me... or someone close to me," he thought and then frowned: "Could one of the girls have moved here? But how is that possible... isn't the Higher Realm xenophobic? Strange..."
Although he was glad of such a possibility, he somehow doubted the reality of such an event. Nevertheless, he would still have to face it head-on.
For now, he needed to take care of moving Lina to Clinton City. Her decision to come to him today already showed her intention - she agreed.
"All that remains is to figure out what to do with this place," Adam thought, gently stroking Aunt Lina's hair as he pondered: "Maintaining it will be expensive, and selling it... I don't know if she'll want to."
However, he was prepared to accept any decision she made. A forcibly plucked melon will not be sweet. All that remained was to wait for the morning, which was about two hours away.
***
The next morning, after they had all enjoyed coffee with Lina's signature pastries, everyone was in a good mood... yes, the third was Richard, who was playing the role of the third wheel.
However, Adam did not drive him away. The future of this place was being decided here and now. He knew that neither Lina nor Richard wanted to part with this place, which had become a place of memories for them.
"Aunt Lina, I am ready to accept your decision in any case."
With his finances after winning the competition, he had no problem paying the rent for this place. Barbara had given him five million. Adam was amazed at this, but considering that Elrion's bag was bigger... this time, Lady Clinton had tried very hard.
Although such an amount was laughable for someone in her position, for Adam, it could become the trigger to getting his life back on track.
Techniques were very expensive, and they still had to be found, but he could use Barbara's connections for this, which was a clever reward after he agreed to become Elrion's bodyguard.
So Adam waited. He waited for an answer from these two. The man was ready to approve any choice they made, so he did not rush them.
Five minutes passed. Lina suddenly sighed for no reason and then looked around the place with a complex expression.
"I bought this place after divorcing my husband. Although I had money thanks to the monthly 'marriage fine,' I decided to use it wisely and increase my income, which I succeeded in doing. As a result, my gray days became a little brighter, and I even had a dream of opening a confectionery network throughout the Empire," Lina said, talking about herself and smiling during this short story, indicating that she was very attached to this place.
"..."
Richard remained silent. He, too, was broken after his father left, but thanks to his mother's efforts, he eventually returned to his normal daily life.
And now, leaving home... was not very easy, but for Richard, who was young and promising, it was easier. The flame of youth burned within him.
"Although it's hard for me to leave this place, I agree to go with you. I plan to sell my assets in the village and use that money to try to open a confectionery in Clinton City, although I doubt it will be enough," Lina said, putting her hand to her cheek and sighing.
"It will work out fine. As far as I know, renting a building there is not that difficult. I will ask Elrion to help me," Adam said and casually waved his hand.
The benefit of connections was something he would use without shame. In any case, it was better to use shortcuts than to crawl along the long road.
Lina fell silent and could only smile awkwardly. Adam had solved all her problems, so she could not find any reasons that would hinder their move. It seemed that this time, the man was serious.
"How charming he is," Lina thought, and her cheeks blushed slightly. She looked excited.
Richard, meanwhile, lost his voice when he saw his mother's embarrassed look. He looked at the smiling Adam and then thought.
"At this rate, I really will have to call him stepfather all the time... ugh... he looks only a little older than me," Richard lowered his head, but very soon he remembered Adam's promise: "One way or another, why not? My stepfather promised to help me settle in Clinton City, and he's even introducing me to a prostitute... what's not to like about an ideal father?"
...although his idea of a real father was questionable, Adam was still able to win him over.
A few minutes later, when everything had already been decided, Adam and Lina went in search of willing buyers. After a few hours, a merchant who had passed by purely by chance responded.
"Oh, what a great condition this place is in! Just as you said, Sir Adam!" the merchant named Blake replied.
"Of course. I made sure that this place looked clean upon your arrival. All the furniture and other things have already been packed and are being prepared for shipping, for which your services will be required, sir," Adam said with a smile.
"Very well, no problem! I will send you a check for payment, so don't worry about the delivery," the merchant said, waving his hand, and then handed over a token: "This is a token for 3 million Rihm. It can be exchanged for an equal amount at the Moon Bank."
"Thank you for your cooperation."
They both shook hands with a smile and then went their separate ways. Lina, Adam, and Richard got into the carriage and drove away, while the merchant finally managed to catch his breath.
The assistant, who had finished filling out the papers, looked at his boss with a strange expression and then asked, "Boss... the market value of this building, including the land, did not exceed 2 million. Why did you buy it at such a high price?"
"Tsk... you don't understand anything! This young man is most likely someone under the personal command of Knight Clinton, who governs these lands. I tried to get some information out of him, but he just smiled. He's definitely from the aristocrat's close entourage!"
"Ooh... that's how it is!" The assistant was amazed and said with admiration on his face: "You're amazing, Boss!"
"Hehe, of course! This way, I've established connections with someone so important. So we're in clover!"
***
"Amazing... I know that the price of this building was no more than two million when it was bought, and you managed to sell it for three million," Richard said in amazement, looking at Adam, who took a bottle of wine out of the refrigerator. He asked: "How did you manage to do that?"
"Very simple... I just pretended to be someone important," Adam said and suddenly burst out laughing, his stomach starting to hurt from laughter. He wiped away tears from the corners of his eyes, explaining: "This merchant thought I was from Lady Clinton's close entourage, so he bought it at a higher price to please me. He probably wants to get in touch with Knight Clinton through me for something."
"Huh? But won't you have problems because of this?" Lina asked worriedly: "You deceived him."
"And how will he prove it? I didn't say anything and didn't answer his questions, so it's his fault," Adam shrugged and said, pouring wine for Lina and himself. Then he nudged Richard, saying: "Pour yourself some."
"Tsk..."
Ignoring the disgruntled Richard, Adam handed the token to Lina and then said with a smile.
"Here. You can exchange this for an equivalent amount of money at any time, that is, three million Rihm. This will come in handy if you want to get into confectionery."
"Th-this..."
Lina was a little excited. She had not hoped to continue her business, as she thought that this money might be needed by Adam to buy a house.
"But what about the house?"
"What do you mean? The house is already there; I was recently told that the place had been vacated. The house is in a not-bad neighborhood, for military personnel, but it's close to the main square," Adam explained and then added: "There, I think, are two floors and a zero floor, where a training room is located. In principle, a good thing for military personnel."
"Oh..."
Lina admiringly sighed and looked at the token with a complex expression. She hesitated a little, but still clenched it in her hand, and then...
"Thank you very much," she said with a smile, looking into Adam's eyes.
"Don't even mention it. I live only to fulfill the dreams of beautiful women," Adam said, raising his glass.
"Hehe..."
They clinked glasses, completely ignoring Richard, who could only look away and drink his wine.
He was examining the ceiling.
"Oh, how beautiful! And the birds are singing... beautiful."
To be continued...