NOVEL NEXT C40
C40: Swimming in Gold (2)
“I have no money.”
“……What kind of joke is this?”
Sana replied quizzically to the unexpected words that Kagehiko had suddenly uttered.
The place they were in was once called Sablona Castle. It was an abandoned castle that was now the hideout of the Phantom Thief Shadow.
Within the castle, the room that Kagehiko calls the “Collection Room” is filled with mountains of gold, silver, treasures, and artifacts that the thief Shadow has stolen from all over the continent. Surrounded by such a mountain of treasures, “I don’t have any money” is a statement that is beyond sarcastic and makes Sana think that he has lost his mind.
“No, I didn’t think it would cost this much to maintain a hideout. I guess owning your own home is a lot of work.”
A month has passed since we took Sablona Castle into our hands. The abandoned castle, which had originally been a nest of undead, has been completely repaired. Kagehiko used magic to fix the parts that could be repaired with magic, but there were many places that could not be fixed without spending money. He had to buy new furniture and household items, so his wallet was running out of money.
“Then why don’t you just sell the treasure you have there? It’s stolen, but the Dark Guild can buy it for you.”
“You’re trying to buy me off at a low price?”
Kagehiko’s expression twisted in disgust.
“I’ve sold what I could. All I have here are memories, or treasures that I can’t part with!”
“I wonder why men are so romantic. Isn’t immediate money more important than memories?”
“If I could be that dry, I wouldn’t be a thief. I’m doing this irrational job because I chose dream over reality.”
“That’s fine…………If that’s the case, I have an interesting job for you.”
Sana sat down on the couch and began to talk.
“What? If it was a job for the Dark Guild, I’d be there in time.”
“Not this time. Kagehiko, have you ever heard of a monster called the Millennial Whale?”
“……I’ve heard of it, but I’ve never seen it.”
The Millennial Whale is the name of one of the largest monsters living in the seas of this world. As the name implies, the whale is said to have lived for hundreds or thousands of years, and has a body as huge as an island. It usually lives at the bottom of the ocean and is rarely seen by people, but every 10 to 20 years it comes up to the surface and attacks fish, marine monsters, and sometimes ships.
In the years when the Millennial Whale came up, fish catches dropped drastically because they are devoured, and fishermen cannot go out to sea to fish because of the risk of being attacked by it.
“I heard that the thousand-year whale showed up the other day. A big merchant’s ship was attacked and swallowed whole.”
“Hmm, I wouldn’t accept a quest to kill it. I’m not that serious of an adventurer.”
No, it seems that the ship was carrying a large amount of gold that, of course, ended up in the belly of the whale.”
“Oh, I see. So that’s the reason.”
In other words, why don’t I steal the gold from the belly of the whale and give it to them?
“It’s not so bad. Even a whale would have a hard time keeping indigestible food in its stomach forever. I’m an animal lover, even if I don’t look like one, so I’ll help you out.”
My next target is the stomach of the Millennial Whale. The prey was a fish bone stuck in the stomach…or rather, a gold nugget that had been swallowed.