"Isn't that a place that lends money using items as collateral?"
Boris asked, bewildered. Julia nodded with a confident look in her eyes.
"Yes, but it's also a place that sells that stuff."
In rare cases, some rare gems were subject to high taxes when purchased or inherited. This was because they were very beautiful but caused severe destruction to nature when mined.
So, sometimes, there were instances of laundering sources to avoid taxes, and that was when pawn shops were used secretly. It was one of the illegal activities that Semele also cracked down on.
"That's why pawn shop owners often come from a jewelry background. If they can issue their own appraisals, it's easier to wash their identity."
Julia said, recalling her knowledge of jewel distribution. Although the countries are different, looking at the documents in the carriage, it seemed that Shavel and Semele were almost identical.
Endymion, who was ordering the knights in plain clothes to provide a long-distance escort, spotted Julia and approached her. Julia quickly opened her mouth.
"Mion, that pawn shop. It looks old, but it's quite large. If there were no customers, it would be difficult to maintain a shop in this central area."
Endymion nodded, his eyes immediately knowing what she was thinking.
"The door fits well into the door frame. I guess there is a need and a means to keep it from warping."
Just as light and darkness coexist, the truth is that legality and illegality also coexist.
Julia exchanged a glance with Endymion, then quickly walked out of the bright, bustling street and dragged Boris into a dark alley.
***
"Welcome!"
The pawn shop owner, who had been just flitting around, greeted them cheerfully. But then, upon seeing the attire of the three people coming in, he made a puzzled expression.
"Oh, are you lost? If you turn left, you'll find Darita's costume shop. Oh, I told them to put up a sign because the directions are confusing."
The owner grumbled, as if this was a common occurrence. The three were dressed in rather fancy clothes for an old pawn shop, so he seemed to think they had entered by mistake.
"How much?"
"Oh, how long does it take to get there? It's close. If you go quickly, it'll take less than three minutes..."
"I'm asking how much it would cost to buy all the items here."
Endymion interrupted with a noble look on his face.
"... Yes?"
The pawnbroker doubted his ears, then took the pouch Endymion took out from his bosom.
"Huh!"
The owner, who had been through all sorts of hardships and was worn out by life, was so shocked that he almost lost his breath. Inside the velvet pouch was a large sum of money, enough to buy this pawn shop.
"I... I didn't recognize you, my dear guest. Please sit here!"
The owner, his hands trembling, quickly locked the door. He then sat Endymion. Julia and Boris down on the sofa and made tea for them.
"Hehe. I guess you've heard about our pawn shop? We're going to be receiving a bunch of new valuables tomorrow. Would you like to see that too?!"
The master grinned. Julia smiled beside Endymion, who had an arrogant expression on his face as if he were sitting on a throne.
"I want to see the Jewels."
"Ah! Do you want that? Then, among the items you purchased, the jewels first..."
The pawn shop owner was about to run into the warehouse, groaning. Julia exchanged glances with Endymion and Boris, then shook her head calmly.
"I'm looking for something very special, not just anything. Have any new gems come in recently?"
Then the pawn shop owner's face changed strangely. His sharp eyes quickly scanned the three of them once more, and Julia smiled faintly and gave him no hints.
"Excuse me, but can you please verify your identity?"
It wasn't a negative. It was a hint that a 'special' new gem had come in recently.
The owner's slightly wary gaze seemed to indicate something. Julia felt her heart pounding and handed over the foreigner identification card she had brought.
"Ah, you are a noble of Semele."
The master's eyes became less wary, perhaps because he understood that they was a wealthy foreign noble. Endymion urged him on with a blank expression.
"Bring me the most recent one."
"What should I do? The piece of the sea was already sold a few days ago."
The owner looked embarrassed and made excuses.
The sea? Julia asked quickly.
"Is that a round, blue gem?"
Then, the owner nodded. It seemed like he knew where they had heard the rumor and came looking for them.
"Yes, yes. Do you mean the one that is as big as a grown man's fist, round without any sharp edges? A clear and pure blue color, like it was cut out of the sea, with a wave
pattern like the endlessly rising sea water."
It matched the appearance of the magic stone.
Julia looked at the two men with wide eyes. Endymion's brows were furrowed, and Boris had his mouth covered as if he was about to scream.
The owner was so busy trying to please her that he didn't notice.
"Well, I guess the whole of Lumar is out of it these days, so you missed the news of it being sold out. Unfortunately, the Sea Fragment is a gem that I have never seen before, so there are no more of them..."
"I have to have that."
Endymion stepped forward strongly. Then, the master clutched his purse tightly and panicked. It seemed as if he was anxious about losing a rare and important guest.
"Then, if you give me just a month, I'll try to find the exact same thing!"
"I don't have the luxury of that. I'll buy it myself, so tell me who the buyer is."
The master swallowed dry saliva as Endymion urged him coldly.
"I'm sorry, but the buyer's personal information is confidential..."
Jjang.
Endymion took out another pouch from his bosom and threw it at him. The master who quickly caught it and peeked at it opened his jaw. Endymion asked proudly.
"Who bought it?"
"Mo, it's Duke Moffat!"
***
Daughter.
"Take care!"
After leaving the pawn shop, the three sat down at a table in a park away from the crowd.
"Ha, huh. Right."
Boris burst out laughing in disbelief.
The pawn shop owner, who had received a huge amount of money, quickly revealed the Information. Naturally, he also swore to keep the three of them secret.
So, the situation was like this.
A while ago, a strange man came and offered a magic stone. It was an unfamiliar gem without an appraisal certificate, but it was beautiful to look at, and the quality was good. The man didn't want a lot of money, so the owner quickly bought the gem.
The Duke of Moffat was said to have a hobby of collecting unusual gems, and he often visited this pawn shop where rare items were secretly brought in. He was a special customer who would secretly buy a unique gem that caught his eye.
The pawn shop owner set a high price for the magic stone. He showed it to a couple of old noble regulars, but it didn't sell easily because of the price.
Just as the owner was contemplating lowering the price, the Duke of Moffat, who had come to visit a few days ago, bought it right away. The owner, who had made a fortune, was overjoyed and said that he had named it "Fragment of the Sea" just as the Duke had wanted and even wrote a certificate of appraisal.
Finding out the whereabouts of the Magic Stone was a huge achievement. However, there was an unexpected problem.
'It seems that the Duke was quite fond of the Fragment of the Sea. The Duke's servant who came to run an errand yesterday asked if there were any more Fragment of the Sea and gave him this information. He is going to show them off in front of everyone at the ball today. He is even ambitiously displaying it by placing it in the center of his prized stattoo!"
Things got out of hand. Boris finally lost control and started venting his frustrations.
"Hey, you thief! I'll show you the hot taste of the Magic Tower!"
Boris ran out with his eyes wide open. Julia grabbed Boris's hood as he ran away.
"Ouch!"
The frail Boris staggered and fell to the ground. Endymion looked at him with pitiful eyes and crossed his arms.
"I don't think you should rush into it so quickly."
"Why are you doing that? Someone has stolen the property of the Magic Tower! We must quickly catch that guy and punish him and forcibly retrieve the Magic Stone. Ha, if only the communication port hadn't been broken, I would have contacted the Magic Tower right away and given them a taste of something hot!"
Boris let out his anger as the fearful mine loomed before his eyes. Endymion, sitting with his long legs crossed, pointed out with an arrogant face.
"If that were the case, you would have been fired immediately."
"Oh, that's it."
"What excuse do you have for contacting them? 'Someone stole the magic stone, and the gate was destroyed? What excuse do you have for retrieving it? Didn't you say that the gate's operation method and location were top secret?"
It would be a perfect punishment for exposing secrets. Boris became dumb as he was driven by Endymion's fierce pressure.
'He always acts so scary when he talks.'
Julia said kindly, pinching Endymion's thigh under the table.
"If all this is true, then Duke Moffat knows nothing about it. So if we go and try to take it back by force now, we'll only be revealing the secret of the Magic Tower ourselves."
I see. I never thought of that.
Boris nodded with a look of shock on his face. Endymion, who had been flinching at the pinching of his thigh, leaned over slightly after seeing that. Then he whispered in Jul ia's ear.
"Julia, let's just go back to Semele. He seems a bit naive, but if we threaten to silence him, that'll be enough..."
Slap!
A slender hand struck a strong thigh. Endymion immediately shut his mouth.
"Huh? Who hit the horse?"
Boris, who was very depressed, looked back in bewilderment. Julia glanced at Endymion and whispered softly.
"No. Then what about Boris?"
"That's something he has to figure out for himself."
Julia blinked. She felt so strange when Endymion acted so cruelly. The way he treated her was so different from the way he treated others.
"Regarding the suspicious forces, we can discuss them through official letters. You don't have to go all the way to the Magic Tower."
But the blue eyes remained calm. As if something was missing.
'I wish I could get along better with other people.'
Julia, who felt a sense of alienation and regret at the same time, pointed out the problems one by one.
"That's in return for Boris delaying the forced repatriation. But what if we break our promise first?"
"So, that's your own personal matter..."
"Mion, please. Taking advantage of other people's misfortune. I did/n't know you were so bad."
Julia said in a disappointed voice. At that, Endymion's pupils, who had been cynical the whole time, wavered.
"I won't have skinship with you until you reflect on yourself."
"...What?"
"It's your situation anyway, so it doesn't have anything to do with me, right?"
Julia turned her head sharply, determined to change Endymion's scornful nature.
"Julia."
An expression of a cat that had been rained on followed Endymion as if he had lost his world. But Julia turned around proudly.
Meanwhile, the knights dispatched to find out the truth returned. They bribed the Duke's servants who had come out on errands and secretly investigated the matter and reported the results.
And everything they heard at the pawn shop was true.
First, the Duke of Moffat has a new jewel that he recently acquired nd cherishes very much.
Second, the jewel will be revealed to a large audience tonight.
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