Chapter 189: The Real Big Gain

“If my appraisal skill isn’t mistaken, this bone should be from the wingtip of a high-level magical beast, a Thunder Eagle. It’s clearly been expertly processed and is a high-grade material for crafting magical weapons or witch artifacts. If I had to put a price on it, I’d say five hundred low-grade magic stones.” Little Will’s words left Senior Knight Molly stunned. Five hundred low-grade magic stones? She only had less than ten low-grade magic stones on her in total. This bone was actually worth five hundred low-grade magic stones? That was too exaggerated.

Snatch! Before Senior Knight Molly could even make a move, Little Will had already put the wing bone into his Apostle Space, making Senior Knight Molly grit her teeth in frustration.

“Anything else? Anything else?” The black market dealer naturally knew what magic stones were. One low-grade magic stone was worth roughly a thousand gold coins. He understood very well what five hundred low-grade magic stones meant—five hundred thousand gold coins. Moreover, magic stones couldn’t be measured in gold coins; they were hard to come by even with money.

“Among the transcendent items, only this one is valuable. The other ores and such are all worth anywhere from ten to dozens of gold coins, but it depends on who holds them. Ordinary people can’t utilize the efficacy of these ores, whereas I’ve fortunately inherited the dwarven forging tradition and can use them. Among the non-transcendent items, this slightly larger wood carving is the most valuable.” Little Will brought over the wood carving he had finally bargained for from the one-eyed boss.

“This seems to be a relatively new piece, doesn’t it?” The black market dealer said with some uncertainty, “Neither the style, the wood, the age, nor the craftsmanship seem to be particularly good. The paint on it is also ordinary. Is there anything special about this wood carving?”

“Pick it up and shake it hard.” Little Will hinted slightly, and the black market dealer immediately reacted, “Treasure hidden inside? You’re saying this is a treasure-hiding wood carving? But the weight feels a bit off, isn’t it a bit too light? Shouldn’t treasure-hiding wood carvings be heavier?”

“I simply appraised it and only know that it’s a treasure-hiding wood carving. I’m not entirely sure what’s inside, but whatever it is, anything that can be securely hidden must have some value, and this treasure-hiding wood carving is very successfully disguised, so its value shouldn’t be low.” Did Little Will truly not know what was inside? That was impossible. He had previously put it into his Apostle Space, and then with a thought, Little Will took out the contents, examined them carefully, and then put them back. The power of the Apostle Space made him both happy and apprehensive. However, realizing that the wood carving was just an ordinary object and couldn’t defend against transcendent abilities, he felt relieved.

“How do we open it? Just chop it open?” The beast tamer was impatient to see what was inside, but his opinion didn’t count here. The boss scholar and the black-hearted black market dealer were the experts.

“Generally speaking, treasure-hhiding wood carvings are one-time use. Even if there’s a back door, it usually can’t be repaired once damaged. It’s very troublesome to remove the contents without damaging it. The simplest way is to make a hole and then pay to have it repaired; the problem isn’t big, as the quality of this wood carving is average, and the wood is easy to find.” The black market dealer finished speaking and looked at Little Will. This time, he had to admit defeat. Not only had he misjudged, but he had also missed so many good things. What a failure.

“It’s not that complicated. In fact, this is a very ingenious mechanical puppet that can be opened with a certain technique.” Saying this, Little Will tapped and knocked on the wood carving, then simultaneously pressed down on two specific spots. With a “click,” a crack suddenly appeared on the back of the wood carving. Little Will applied a little force, and a small door appeared there, along with a tiny rope.

Pulling the rope out forcefully, a small silk bag also came out with it. The soft silk was filled with some bulging cotton. Little Will opened the bag and saw a necklace inside—a blood-red gemstone necklace.

“This, it looks like a Fire Eye. You’ve hit the jackpot, kid. The quality of this Fire Eye gem is excellent, worth at least three to five thousand gold coins.” The black market dealer couldn’t help but feel a little envious. How could this kid be so lucky? To stumble upon such a stroke of luck. And how did he know the switch for this treasure sculpture?

“Appraisal skill.” Little Will seemed to see through the black market dealer’s confusion and softly pointed out, and the latter suddenly realized, couldn’t help but praise how convenient a wizard was. Not only were their various abilities well-balanced, but their auxiliary role in daily life was also significant.

Little Will folded the animal skin map and placed it into the treasure-hiding wood carving, then quickly restored the carving. His movements were very skilled, which greatly impressed the black market dealer. After a moment’s thought, he couldn’t help but give a thumbs up. This move was brilliant! A treasure-hiding wood carving paired with a mysterious map was an absolute perfect match. As long as he encountered someone discerning, he could definitely sell it.

“Brother, sell me this combination. I’ll buy it for fifty gold coins.” The black market dealer’s price was neither high nor low. After all, Little Will had only spent a dozen gold coins to acquire it, and he had also taken away a several-thousand-gold-coin gem necklace.

“No problem. If you, old brother, go to another city and consign it for a high price, you’ll definitely profit.” Little Will offered him an idea. The black market dealer liked to travel around and often took on long-distance missions. Hearing Little Will’s suggestion, he couldn’t help but give a thumbs up. According to the one-eyed man, this map had been returned several times. Selling it in this city indeed wasn’t ideal, as it might be exposed, but in another city, that problem wouldn’t exist.

“I’ll take this necklace, a thousand gold coins.” Senior Knight Molly directly snatched the Fire Eye necklace and then offered a jaw-dropping price.

“The gem is five thousand gold coins, the necklace six thousand gold coins. No bargaining!” Little Will wasn’t afraid of her.

“Why don’t you just rob me?”

“Is robbing money faster than this?”

“I don’t have money, but I still want the necklace.” Senior Knight Molly resorted to being unreasonable, making Little Will grit his teeth in anger. What could he do when this person was acting like a rogue?

“Borrowing rights to the Kendall family’s private library.” Little Will had long coveted that private library, which he had entered a few times in the company of old General Reynolds. He knew that every time he adapted a orc boxing technique, the old general would take him there, but unfortunately, he was only allowed to look at the catalog and not actually choose books himself. Otherwise, he would have sacrificed them all in one go.

“Heh heh, do you think that’s possible?” Senior Knight Molly scoffed, curling her lips. “The Kendall family branch in Drake City has a history of several hundred years. The books in the private library are all truly valuable. You think you can get borrowing rights for a few thousand gold coins? Little fellow, are you awake?”

“Then forget it, the deal’s off.” Little Will immediately tried to take the necklace back, but Senior Knight Molly dodged, “It’s mine!”

“No, it’s mine, because you couldn’t offer the chips I wanted, so it doesn’t belong to you.” Little Will’s outstretched hand showed no sign of retracting, his meaning very clear.

Senior Knight Molly gritted her teeth fiercely. “Come with me for a moment!” Saying so, she pulled Little Will aside and began to whisper.

“Our Kendall family wants that wing bone. Five hundred low-grade magic stones are impossible. How about one hundred low-grade magic stones?” Senior Knight Molly didn’t mention the Fire Eye necklace, but instead brought up the Thunder Eagle wing bone first.

“No deal. Thunder Eagles are high-level magical beasts, and their wing bones are extremely rare. Five hundred low-grade magic stones is already a low price.” Little Will would absolutely not let her off so cheaply.

“Oh, then should I have a chat with Mojes? I think she’ll speak for me.” Senior Knight Molly directly brought out Little Will’s nemesis, but she didn’t succeed: “You should give up. I’ve already decided to give this wing bone to my grandfather, on the condition that he helps solve the worries of that high-level warrior. If I’m not mistaken, he’s currently being hunted and fleeing, and the reason for being hunted is very likely this wing bone.”

Senior Knight Molly was slightly taken aback. After carefully considering Little Will’s previous description, she realized that this was indeed possible. Moreover, this wing bone clearly didn’t look like an old item. Could that high-level warrior have engaged in a black-on-black scheme against a transcendent family?

“Then forget the wing bone, but the Fire Eye necklace must be mine. A thousand gold coins is my absolute limit.” Senior Knight Molly clearly really liked this necklace.

It was only then that Little Will remembered that this female knight was indeed not good at managing finances. Although she was the eldest daughter of the Kendall family, she couldn’t even produce a few thousand gold coins. If it were Yuna Peck, she wouldn’t even bat an eye for anything less than ten thousand gold coins.

Wait, Yuna Peck! This necklace and Senior Knight Molly were completely incompatible. Instead, Yuna Peck of the Pink family would really like this color. Instantly, Little Will understood Senior Knight Molly’s plan. “No matter how much you can sell it to Yuna Peck for, I only want five thousand gold coins.”

“How did you know I wanted to sell it to little Yuna?” Senior Knight Molly was greatly surprised, then realized she had let it slip and glared at him fiercely. “That price is too high; I’ll barely make any profit.”

“You’re so stupid. With a beautiful, intricately carved box and a piece of high-quality silk, you could sell it for at least seven to eight thousand!” Little Will looked like he was disappointed in her. “Please, you’re the eldest daughter of the Kendall family in Drake City. What kind of ladies and misses do you associate with? Would they care about one or two thousand gold coins? Borrow a few slightly inferior pieces of jewelry from your brother, then invite the ladies and misses to admire them together. Casually mention that this necklace doesn’t suit you. If Yuna Peck is truly interested, she’ll definitely ask for the price. Then, you can play hard to get. I don’t believe it would sell for a loss when people are competing for it.”

“Little Will, you’re truly ruthless! But I like this idea! Five thousand gold coins, I’ll buy it!” Senior Knight Molly had just finished speaking when her demeanor suddenly dropped: “But the money will have to wait until I sell this necklace for a high price. No, I can just give it directly to Mojes then, right?”

“There won’t be a next time!” Little Will glared at her fiercely. “I won’t let you play along in this kind of thing next time.”

“No, I’ll keep an eye on you. Oh, by the way, wasn’t all your money confiscated by Mojes? How do you still have nearly two hundred gold coins?” Senior Knight Molly was greatly puzzled.

“The Rose Knight Guild’s salary and bonus, and the Odd Job Agency’s salary and mission bonuses were all given to my mother by you, but the city guard’s salary is directly paid to me.” Some things are better left unsaid too clearly. Senior Knight Molly suddenly understood; she really couldn’t interfere in that place.