My Dream is to Get My Own House - Chapter 74

Episode 74

* * *

“So, Duke Odette has invested in this mine too?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Wow, that’s impressive! Grand Duke Castilla has invested as well?”

“Yes, indeed!”

I brushed back my purple hair and inquired, “I’m curious about the vision behind their investments. Can I meet Duke Odette as well?”

“You can meet him once the mine development is more than halfway complete. Haha, you might even meet him in the mirror right now.”

“Currently, Duke Odette is quite busy.”

Yeah, busy dealing with scammers like you guys.

I listened to Ann and Hans’ words with one ear and observed the mine surroundings. Sharp, black obsidian-like stones jutted out.

“Isn’t it impressive?”

“It’s truly amazing. How did you discover this mine?”

“Oh, our esteemed investor, Duke Odette, provided the funds and urged us to start development immediately.”

When did I ever do that, you lunatic?

I suppressed my sarcastic response and forced a smile.

“Oh, really? Duke Odette is indeed extraordinary.”

She could at least gild my face too while she’s at it.

“Haha, he truly is amazing!”

They awkwardly smiled and gestured in apparent agreement with my words.

“But really, they can’t recognize me despite speaking as if they know Duke Odette well.”

We received the disguise magical items from the messenger sent by Claude through the teleportation magic circle.

“As Claude said, if you press this, it activates the disguise magic!”

“…Could you close your eyes for a moment?”

“Why? What for?”

I heard the sound of him taking something out.

Then, before I knew it, the transformed Dylan stood before me.

After finishing the disguise magic, Dylan and I looked around the mine, occasionally squinting our eyes.

As far as I knew, the vein was not here, but this place appeared to be a perfectly developed mine.

Moreover, it seemed like all the development work was already completed.

If I want to find out what happened, I’ll have to throw bait.

“In any case, it looks quite impressive, and I’m tempted to invest.”

“If you invest, we will immediately pay back thirty percent of your initial investment. It will be deposited on a fixed day every month.”

I bit my lip tightly.

“Haha, the territory’s residents have already invested a lot!”

“Did everyone invest?”

“Yes, except for a few people. We paid dividends just last month, so you can rest assured.”

At that moment, the silently observing Dylan slowly took my hand.

How did he figure out I was feeling dizzy?

“These scammers.”

Such an obvious and clichéd scheme.

It’s a Ponzi scam.

The Ponzi scam involved using new investors’ money to pay dividends to previous investors, creating a multi-level scam. Initially, they paid out some dividends to dispel suspicions of fraud. However, once many investors had invested their life savings, they would suddenly stop the dividend payments and quickly disappear.

‘They’ve already looted this territory!’

Judging by their current state, it seemed like they were planning to gather money and escape soon.

What if they run away?

The territory I barely acquired would go bankrupt and be taken away from me.

Damn it!

I thought employing the residents and focusing on mine development would lead to a prosperous path.

I guess I’ll have to play the role of a hero.

“It’s so impressive. I also want to invest.”

But how do I handle these guys?

“Before that, may I take a closer look at Fjord Mine?”

Ann and Hans nodded eagerly as if giving their approval.

* * *

Dylan and I stared at Fjord Mine, also known as the Majung Stone Mine.

“It’s not a mine where we have to dig in; it’s an open-pit mine, so it’s safe.”

“As you can see, the majung stones are already exposed on the walls, making it easy to mine, and sales are already in progress.”

“Of course, all sales dividends are distributed!”

Ann and Hans each made a remark and showed me the “Majung Stone Sales Ledger,” which was impeccably organized.

It was undoubtedly a flawless ledger, neatly recording how the majung stones were brought in and taken out.

I handed the ledger back to them and casually asked, “The cost for hiring miners seems quite low.”

Ann and Hans exchanged glances and awkwardly smiled.

“These days, we can use magic to mine.”

No, it’s not like that.

Mining majung stones still required delicate human hands.

“The scale and revenue of the mine are considerable, yet you only hired a few miners. That’s impressive.”

“…Haha, well, would you like to see inside the mine now?”

“How about it? Isn’t it impressive?”

It was time to turn the tables.

Instead of delving further, I moved inside the majung stone mine.

“Yes, it’s really impressive. Can I look around more?”

“Haha! Of course! Oh, there’s a lot of majung stones on that path as well.”

As they turned their backs, I scanned the mine.

Sharp majung stones dotted the walls of the mine.

I gently brushed my fingers over the majung stones and smiled.

At the moment my faint light touched the majung stone…

Crackle.

With a small sound, the rock disappeared.

I closed and opened my eyes.

“These majung stones are magically crafted fakes.”

I had no idea how much of it was fake.

This massive mine itself could be an elaborate deception.

To cast such powerful dark magic, an enormous amount of money would be required.

But it wasn’t an impossible feat, especially for someone with substantial financial backing.

“Who could be the mastermind behind this? Someone with this much capital…”

At that moment, I sensed Dylan’s breathing becoming slightly rough.

His cheeks showed a hint of blush.

He must be vulnerable to dark magic.

Without hesitation, I quickly grabbed his hand, trying to help him break free from the influence of dark magic.

However, his cheeks turned even redder, and his body rapidly began to emit heat.

Dylan immediately grabbed my hand.

“Thank you.”

“…?”

“I’m happy.”

Hold on a moment.

It seems like he seriously misunderstood something.

Dylan firmly held my hand and muttered as if talking to himself.

“A honeymoon-like event like this…”

…Something’s off.

But I didn’t have a chance to explain the reason behind my actions to Dylan.

Ann and Hans, who were leading the way, glanced back at us.

I awkwardly smiled while holding his hand.

They greeted us with ceremonial smiles.

“Are you a couple? You two look great together!”

Dylan nodded his head unenthusiastically.

I quietly mumbled, “Ah, I really like this mine. I’d like to invest in it.”

Ann responded with a bright smile, “Yes, you’ve made an excellent choice.”

“Hmm…”

I chuckled and said, “Then I’ll bring the money to the mine front tomorrow morning.”

“Great!”

They happily nodded their heads in agreement.

* * *

The next morning, I looked into the mirror.

Thanks to the disguise magic still working perfectly, my face appeared like that of an elegant thirty-five-year-old lady.

I tore up the forged Imperial citizen registration certificate that Claude had sent me and laughed sinisterly.

Claude had asked me something when he sent the forged document.

“Can I do something like forging an identification card?”

[You can.]

“You seem pretty sure about it.”

[Well, you have to use trashy methods against trash.]

[What if you get caught? Your mansion might turn out to be owned by Claude.]

[So what?]

[Even if you get caught, you can just go with it. I’m a noble, after all.]

Wow, he really was trash!

I was deeply impressed and nodded.

“Okay! I’ll become trash too!”

…And that’s why I’m here today.

Since the early morning, Dylan had diligently gathered all the residents of the territory and brought them to the front of the mine.

“Bring all the residents who invested in Fjord Mine to the mine entrance.”

“Understood.”

“Oh, just in case, please make sure not to get caught by Grand Duke Castilla.”

“There’s no way that would happen.”

“We don’t know what the future holds! He might be the mastermind behind the scam. Be cautious and careful.”

“Yes…”

For some reason, Dylan seemed very serious.

But even though he seemed down, he still carried out his tasks diligently.

All the residents had gathered in front of the mine.

Just the people who invested in the mine numbered in the hundreds.

Thanks to the massive crowd, the area in front of the mine was bustling like a market.

“What on earth is happening?”

“Some handsome knight told us to gather in the middle of the territory.”

“Ugh, really?”

“I heard about it!”

“What’s going on?”

“Today, they’re going to show us a demonstration of mining in the mine, right?”

“Oh! Can we finally see how much majung stones have been mined?”

Right next to the office, the entrance to the mine was already filled with majung stones.

People were gazing at the majung stones with awe in their eyes.