Chapter 511: I Didn’t Steal Them
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
At the same time, at Duke Constantine’s mansion.
There were three official archduke families in the Holy Dragon Kingdom, namely the Campbells, the Saint Laurents, and the Ptolemys. The heads of those three families all had their titles conferred by the King and medals that symbolized their position. Even though Constantine was also called a duke, he was only a quasi-duke. His title was much different compared to the three. There were a few quasi-dukes like him in the royal city.
As a quasi-duke, Constantine had some power in the capital. He mainly engaged in the food trade and gained many customers in the capital. His family’s trade included salt that the ordinary people ate and high-tier magical beast meat for the noblemen. They even provided food for the army.
The head of the family, Constantine Romani, was strolling in the garden, reading a document in his hand.
“Ever since we introduced the sun fruit and moon fruit to make wine, the turnover of the tavern has increased by quite a bit. However, because we don’t have the formula, the wine we develop is not as good as the Holy Dragon Tavern. If we want to buy the formula from the Holy Dragon Tavern, it would be too expensive. Furthermore, the sun fruit and moon fruit can’t be cultivated. If that continues, the catering industry in the capital will be controlled by the Holy Dragon Tavern,” Romani muttered worriedly.
In the past, the Holy Dragon Tavern was the best tavern in the royal city. That was because of the plaque that King Landhar III personally wrote for them. However, that did not mean that no taverns in the royal city could compete with the Holy Dragon Tavern. The situation had changed. Ever since the start of the tournament, the royal city had been filled with sun and moon fruit wine. If a tavern did not have those two types of wine, there would not even be customers.
However, only the Holy Dragon Tavern had the resources to obtain those two types of fruit. If the other taverns in the kingdom wanted to get those two types of fruits, they would have to buy them from the Holy Dragon Tavern. If they did that, the Holy Dragon Tavern would earn a large number of gold coins. The consequence was that once the Holy Dragon Tavern raised the price of those two types of fruits, the other taverns would have to pinch their noses and endure it even if they did not accept it. In other words, it was equivalent to controlling the entire industry in the capital.
“We won’t have to worry if our family can find a way to produce the sun fruit and the moon fruit.”
The sun fruit and the moon fruit were produced in the Forest of Eternity in the south; they needed more than a thousand years to mature. Furthermore, the Holy Dragon Kingdom’s environment was different from the Forest of Eternity. He had tried to use seeds of two kinds of fruits to cultivate a complete tree, but he had failed. It was hard to imagine how the forces behind the Holy Dragon Tavern had cultivated the fruit.
While Constantine was deep in thought, a servant came to him and said, in a low voice, “Master, the Young Master is back.”
Raising his head, Constantine found that Payge was riding a carriage to the main gate. He had just come from the main entrance and carried a huge box in his hand. He looked exhausted.
“He should be in classes. Why is he back? And what is he holding in his hand? ”
A puzzled expression appeared on his face, followed by a displeased expression on Constantine’s face.
As the family heir, Payge had been suffering from a strange illness since he was young. He had to eat a large amount of food every day, and he was not very interested in the family’s trade. So, Constantine had sent Payge to the Royal Academy. He thought that Payge did not want to inherit the family’s business. At the very least, after graduating from the Royal Academy, he could become a soldier.
It seemed like Payge had returned from the Royal Academy early. It was apparent that he was not taking her classes seriously. If he could not inherit the family’s business or become a soldier in the future, Constantine’s family would decline sooner or later.
With that thought in mind, Constantine walked to the manor’s entrance with a serious expression. “Payge, what are you holding in your hand?”
“Father, why are you here?”
When Payge heard his father’s voice, he subconsciously raised his head; he looked guilty. He subconsciously placed the giant box behind him. That scene made Constantine even more curious about the thing in his hand.
“Payge, I’m talking to you. What is in that box? Answer me.”
“N-nothing.”
“Nothing? If it’s nothing, why don’t you let me see it? Open it. Don’t make me repeat myself. ”
Payge hesitated. After a long while, he reluctantly opened the box, revealing the things inside.
The box was full of gold coins. The heavy coins made a clattering sound as the box was opened. Many rolled out of the box and fell to the ground.
The shiny gold coins reflected the sun’s light, causing Constantine to be dazzled. “What’s going on? Payge, where did you get so much money? Did you steal them?”
Constantine roughly estimated that there were at least one million gold coins. Their entire family’s property was only worth ten million gold coins. The gold coins in Payge’s hands were equivalent to one-tenth of their family’s assets. Constantine did not believe that Payge could obtain so much money through proper channels. He also did not know what illegal methods his son had used to obtain such a large amount of money. Payge had really disappointed him.
“Father, I did not steal these gold coins. Someone else gave them to me.”
“Oh? Tell me, who would be so kind as to give you one million gold coins?”
“It’s Watson. He gave me the money.”
“Watson? The kingdom’s strongest genius? The person who had caused such an uproar in the city? Watson, the heir to the throne?”
“That’s right. It’s him.”
Payge nodded. He had just left the Severed Fingers Gang’s headquarters and had received a large sum of money. He wanted to put the money at home immediately, but he did not expect his father to know about it. He did not plan to say anything about him working for Watson. He was a low-profile person, and Watson had reminded him to keep it a secret.
It was difficult to explain how he had received a million gold coins in one go. In addition, he had to keep the potion secret. The best way he could think of was to hide the gold coins and not tell his family. At that moment, he thought about how he could explain it to his father.
Payge’s hesitation looked suspicious to Constantine.
“Payge, I’ve always taught you that it’s okay if you don’t have the ability. However, you don’t know how to improve yourself. Such an attitude will never get you far in life! You’ve never had any special hobbies other than eating since you were young. Previously, I supported you in becoming a student at the Royal Academy because I thought you finally had something you wanted to do. Now, it seems like I’ve indulged you far too much. From now on, you don’t have to go to the Royal Academy. Anyway, with your talent, you won’t become an elite even if you graduate from the Royal Academy. It’s better for you to stay home and learn about food manufacturing. At least in the future, the family won’t be in decline because of you.”
Constantine snorted, and his words made Payge turn pale. “Father, I’m not lying.. Watson really gave me these coins.”
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