Chapter 52: Gift
'Wow… These people are too strong for me to handle alone.' He could barely go toe-to-toe against a fourth Circle Official Walker with his current strength. If he were to face six Official Walkers and one Elite Walker, he would be captured in seconds!
'Damn it, I should leave this place before this 'Shadow Stealth' spell effect wears down.' Without hesitation, he turned around and started walking towards the mansion compound wall at an incredible speed.
In a few seconds, he approached closer to the wall, jumped up with full force, and leaped towards the other side.
He landed on the other side with a slight thudding noise and dashed towards the nearby tree shadow before hiding in the darkness.
A few seconds later, the police officer checked the surroundings from the entrance gate. After confirming no anomalies, he returned to his position.
On the other hand, Raven breathed out a sigh of relief and slowly walked out of the shadow.
But instead of going back, he proceeded to walk forward.
A few minutes later, he arrived at a nature park and decided to enter. At that moment, not even a guard was stationed at the park's entrance, which looked desolate.
Thanks to the tall ornamental trees and plants, the whole surroundings appeared dark.
'This is the place I'm aiming for.'
He soon found a park bench in the trees and quietly sat on it.
After that, he took out his school notebook and tore a page. Then, he also took out the silver pen and started writing a few lines in it.
"Now, let's make the gift look more extravagant." Saying so, he opened the inventory and took out the two-meter-long golden chest.
"Unfortunately, this is just an iron box with gold lines to make it look beautiful," Raven mumbled, opened the golden chest, and put the letter into it.
"Although I don't want to spend my money, it can't be helped." In truth, he didn't trust Count Spade a single bit. After all, some random gang members kidnapped a fallen noble and also seemed to be entering Bristol Street like their own home. And even after six months, no action seemed to be taken from any side.
'There is a high possibility that Count Spade knew of this matter but chose to ignore it.' It was so obvious some secret dealing must have been made between Count and the 'Kidnapper.'
"Is it worth risking my wealth on some random guy just because he has the surname 'Holmes'?" He couldn't help but ask.
[It's worth the risk.] Zera spoke firmly.
Letting out a deep sigh, Raven took out the 'Feral Eye Crystals,' Trollsbane Glands, Tri-Cobra's poison gland, two 60cm long venomous Fangs, and Six jade-like eyeballs and put them inside the golden chest.
'Each item is worth more than 200 to 300 gold coins. Those six Tri-Cobra eyeballs are especially precious items used to make an 'Evil Eye' potion capable of temporarily allowing the user to see the 'Invisibility' and enchant their vision to an incredible level. Each is worth more than 500 gold coins because the 'Evil Eye' potions always play a vital role during wartime. This potion also has another name called 'Assassin Killer Drug.'
"The total value of these materials should be around 5,000 gold coins!" That was large enough to buy a two-story house!
"This should be enough to make him move, right?"
[I don't think so. Let me ask you a question: how much worth does a wine factory cost?] Zera's sudden question startled him.
"Maybe 10,000 gold coins?" He said without thinking much.
[The minimum land needed to set up a wine factory is around 20 acres. Although I don't know how large the Holmes Wine Factory is, it should have over 50 acres. What is the average land cost per acre outside this city?]
"From what I heard from my sister, an acre of land outside the Darkcross cost around 1,500 gold coins. If this is in Giaris City's outskirts, the cost should be around 2,500 to 3,000 gold coins…" Raven abruptly paused.
"Oh my god! As you mentioned, if the Holmes wine factory has more than 50 acres, its land value should be 150,000 gold coins!"
[Correct. Also, Holmes Wine is a famous brand in this city. Along with the buildings, machinery, planting materials, storage buildings, Winery Accessories, etc., the total value of the Wine Factory should be 300,000 gold coins! Do you think 5,000 gold coins are enough to bribe Count Spade?] Her words left him speechless.
"What should I do now?" Raven asked, looking clueless. In truth, he thought of giving up on rescuing Thomas and going on his way.
[Put the two elemental Crystals too. Also, tell him in the letter that this will be an advance payment for rescuing Thomas. Once he is rescued, tell him you will give him five potions similar to the 'Elixir of Insight' every year. Of course, it will only be effective up to Radiant Walkers.]
"You are talking about the 'Potion of Enlighten Glimpses,' right?"
[It is only an Adept Rank potion (Rank-2). However, this world's knowledge of wisdom, power, or enlightenment skills is limited. That's why even a tiny insight-related potion could be considered legendary. Of course, revealing that you know of such a treasured potion recipe could threaten your life. But that's only happen if Count Spade finds out your real identity.]
"Hmm, I understand." Raven hurriedly took out the paper and started writing another line. After that, he also put two Rank-1 Elemental Crystals and closed the golden chest.
[Put only the two elemental crystals and 2000 gold coins in the chest. Take back those materials.] Zera spoke.
'Why?' Raven furrowed.
[Count Spade isn't an Alchemist or a Wizard, so there is no way he would know these materials' worth just by looking. It's better to cover the whole chest with gold coins and make it look like a treasure box.]
Raven did as Zera told him and finally prepared the 'Golden Chest.'
After that, he waited for more than 50 minutes in the park and finally moved toward the direction where Count Spade's mansion was located.
…
After walking for five more minutes, Raven found the largest mansion in the street.
'Count Spade's mansion house!' Two guards stood at the entrance like in other mansions and constantly monitored the passersby.
As soon as he arrived closer to the mansion, Raven activated the [Shadow Stealth] skill and went into an invisible mode.
Then, he quietly walked towards the compound gate and leaped onto the other side.
Although he saw a few servants standing at the mansion's main building's entrance, the security seemed pretty relaxed.
Thanks to that, he didn't face any hardship when sneaking into the mansion. After that, he quietly looked around, walked towards the left side corridor, and analyzed every room on his way.
'Kitchen, store room, Dining room, painting room, library, study…' He stopped before the study room and slowly opened the door.
It was a 10x10 room with a single study table and a few wooden chairs at the center. He also saw a bookshelf on the left side and noticed the whole study looked average.
After a swift look, he took the 'Golden Treasure Chest' from the inventory and placed it beside the bookshelf.
Then, he quietly left the study, walked away from the corridor, and soon left the mansion's main building.
By the time he sneaked out of the mansion's compound gate, the [Shadow Stealth] effect had also worn off.
'Thankfully, I managed to leave the mansion on time.' If he had encountered an Elite Walker in the mansion, there would be a high chance of his location being exposed.
[That was a risky move.] Zera commented.
At that moment, the guards at the entrance also noticed his presence and looked at him quietly.
[So, what's next?] Zera couldn't understand what he was planning and asked in puzzlement.
'I can't turn around while the guards are watching.' As he spoke, he walked past Count's mansion house and quietly moved toward the end of the street.
As he walked further, the security appeared more relaxed, and even the size of the houses seemed smaller.
[You are almost close to the end of the street.] Zera said.
'Now, I can go back.' After confirming that no one was nearby, he quietly turned around and started walking.
At the same time, he took out the leather bag from his inventory and put a pair of new dresses, a bluish potion vial, a book from Knight's training academy, and even a pouch filled with a hundred silver coins into it.
[Is it to fool the police?]
'Yes. I'm visiting the daughter of a Noble at this hour. It's completely abnormal. So, I have no choice but to let them think we have some deep relationship.'
[Daisy is going to be pissed if she learns that you are using her name like this.]
'Hehe, I'm also giving her a clue that I'm still alive. When the Police officers learn that Daisy hasn't returned from the academy, they will report everything about me to Count Spade. Others might think of this as a normal thief's action, but Daisy is different. She can guess that the one who sneaked into this street is me.'