Dragonslayer’s Class Regression Chapter 171

Chapter 171

‘Edward Jiemens.’

He was the second son of the Jiemens family who participated in the Draker Tournament but failed to gain attention after being overshadowed by Zeke.

That Edward Jiemens was now with Dario Totolino.

Zeke looked at Dario.

Next to Edward sat a pale-looking giant with a face full of beard. He wore rings studded with jewels on his fingers and was dressed in old aristocratic attire, giving off a strict impression of a middle-aged man.

He gestured toward Zeke.

Zeke approached Dario and greeted him.

“It’s an honor to meet you. I’m Zeke Murray.”

Following old customs, Zeke took Dario’s hand and kissed his ring.

Seeing this, Dario’s expression changed.

“Unlike young people these days, you know your etiquette.”

Dario offered him a seat with a satisfied expression.

Then he introduced Edward sitting beside him.

“This is Edward Jiemens, a direct descendant of the Jiemens family. He’s about to receive his knighthood from Draker.”

Zeke jumped up with a surprised expression and bowed to Edward.

“Pleased to meet you. I’m Zeke Murray. I’ve heard much about the Jiemens family. And to become a Draker knight… I’m fortunate to meet such distinguished people today.”

Edward laughed heartily at Zeke’s words.

“Haha! Be at ease. Zeke Murray, was it? I hear you’ve become quite wealthy at a young age.”

“I’m fortunate enough to operate a few small businesses.”

Dario then said with a smile.

“Sir Edward. Mr. Murray has also shown great interest in this black ore investment.”

Edward nodded at Dario’s words.

“Good. As Lord Dario said earlier, anyone who doesn’t invest in this is a fool. It would be absurd to miss this opportunity to become wealthy.”

Zeke assessed the situation while listening to Dario and Edward’s conversation.

‘They’re getting bold. Even though Edward Jiemens is somewhat lacking, to think they’d try to work on a direct descendant of the Jiemens.’

The mafia’s methods were utterly vicious.

They search for wayward sons from powerful families as targets, then break them down with alcohol, gambling, and drugs.

After establishing a relationship and letting debt accumulate, they gradually hint at ways to make money through investments.

Those whose judgment has already been clouded invest money using their credit as collateral without thinking things through.

The first few times, they let them taste success and give them big money.

The wayward sons of noble families, having tasted money, invest not only their own money but borrow more to go all-in on these investments.

Edward seemed to be in exactly that situation now.

Edward exchanged a few more words with Dario before standing up.

Before leaving, he looked down at Zeke with a smirk.

“Have a good time. Let’s meet again if we can.”

Watching Edward leave with that subtle smile, Zeke noticed something suspicious.

‘These mafia bastards plan to take my money and pass it to that guy.’

It seemed they were using an indirect approach since directly working on a Jiemens direct descendant would be too risky.

They appeared to be planning to first give Edward big money through planned investments, make him gradually dependent on them, and then create opportunities for major deals with the Jiemens family.

He had wondered why they would target the Jiemens, but it seemed they weren’t just after Edward’s money.

‘Taking mafia money means falling into their trap. That guy seems quite lacking for a Jiemens.’

After Edward left, Dario finally spoke to Zeke.

“I apologize, Mr. Murray. Sir Edward came unexpectedly.”

It was an obvious tactic.

It was designed to show that he had such connections with the Jiemens.

Moreover, it helped gain Edward’s trust by showing him that wealthy businessmen were joining as investors.

‘Their methods are incredibly devious.’

Zeke responded to Dario’s words with an impressed expression.

“Not at all. From what I heard earlier, it seems both you and Sir Edward are involved in this black ore investment.”

Dario nodded.

“In fact, it’s one of the businesses I’m most focused on these days. As you know, black ore requires large investment costs, but the returns are substantial.”

“Indeed. After studying through the investment case, I’ve become more interested in black ore.”

Zeke replied while displaying a slightly naive demeanor.

Dario stared into Zeke’s eyes for a moment before nodding.

“Good. Mr. Murray, I see sincerity in your eyes.”

Having decided to work on Zeke, he gestured to Vincenzo.

“Please deliver the contract to Mr. Murray.”

Vincenzo brought over a pre-prepared contract to Zeke.

It was a contract agreeing to participate in the black ore mine investment.

Zeke quickly scanned the contract contents and smirked inwardly.

‘What kind of sloppy contract is this?.’

There were toxic clauses everywhere with cleverly twisted wording.

Not only was there no guarantee for even partial investment return if the mine development failed, but there were also absurd hidden clauses stating that Zeke would have to share any losses incurred.

Zeke kept nodding while reading the contract and took out a fountain pen from his pocket to sign.

Vincenzo gulped dryly watching Zeke about to sign the contract.

But just before signing, Zeke looked up as if remembering something.

“Oh my, look at me. I was actually planning to show this to Lord Rossi today, but it’s perfect timing since Lord Dario is here.”

Then he lowered his voice and spoke to Vincenzo and Dario.

“Actually, this isn’t well known outside. Before investing in the mithril mine, I made money somewhere else.”

Vincenzo’s ears perked up at Zeke’s words.

“You mean you did business in something other than mining?”

Zeke pulled something out of his pocket.

It was a jewel-encrusted box containing a beautifully decorated necklace.

Vincenzo looked at the necklace and was shocked.

“This. Isn’t this an artifact?”

Zeke nodded.

“Yes. Actually, I happened to buy a hill a few years ago and discovered a dungeon inside.”

Vincenzo asked Zeke in surprise.

“Are you saying this artifact came from there?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’m only telling you two this… but that place was actually a Golden Age relic.”

Dario’s eyebrows twitched as he listened from behind.

Finding a Golden Age relic site literally changes one’s life the moment it’s discovered.

The relics and artifacts that pour out from there were worth far more than any ore.

Zeke lowered his voice again and continued.

“I’ve been secretly hiring people to explore the dungeon, and valuable artifacts keep coming out. I’ve been converting them to cash through contacts at the Dorta auction house, but there are limits to this. If there’s any investigation into the source of funds, that would be troublesome too.”

By now, Dario and Vincenzo were drawn into Zeke’s words.

Dario, who had been listening from behind, spoke up.

“Why are you bringing this up?”

Zeke inwardly smirked as he got to the main point.

“We discovered something new while exploring the dungeon… it was a double dungeon.”

Vincenzo was shocked.

“A double dungeon means there’s an even older ancient relic site underneath?”

Zeke nodded.

“Yes. When we translated some stone tablets found there, there were some strange contents. Words like immortality appeared. And mentions of Elder Dragons too. I figured there must be something.”

For a moment, Dario flinched at Zeke’s words and stood up from his seat.

‘Did he notice?’

There was a possibility Dario caught on because he mentioned too direct words.

Zeke watched Dario’s actions nervously. Fortunately, Dario sat back down with sparkling eyes.

He said to Zeke.

“Continue.”

“When we tried to dig deeper, it seemed impossible with just a small exploration team, so major operations would be needed. But I’ve already sold the front artifacts as stolen goods, and doing large-scale construction would draw attention from authorities, so I wanted to seek advice from both of you.”

Dario and Vincenzo exchanged glances at Zeke’s words. After a moment, Dario stood up.

“Mr. Murray. Let’s talk privately over here.”

Dario took Zeke to the inner room.

Inside were guards and knights who appeared to be blood ability users.

Dario gestured to them.

“Wait outside.”

The guards were flustered.

“Boss, but…”

When Dario flashed his eyes sharply and gestured, all the knights and guards finally left the room.

Dario said to Zeke.

“Would you like a drink?”

“Of course.”

Dario brought whiskey in glasses from the bar on one side.

The two clinked glasses and drank the whiskey.

Dario spoke first.

“Zeke Murray. You surprise me.”

Zeke scratched his head with an awkward expression.

“I apologize if I surprised you. I just wanted help from Lord Dario…”

“Do you know who I am?”

Zeke responded in confusion.

“Of course. The one who owns the most mines on the continent…”

“My real name is Dario Nostra.”

At those words, Zeke’s expression went blank for a moment. Then his face turned pale.

Seeing Zeke’s reaction, Dario smirked.

“Seems you’re not completely ignorant about this.”

“L-Lord Dario. No. Don Dario. I just had good intentions…”

“I like you.”

“Pardon?”

Zeke was startled for a moment at Dario’s words.

He continued.

“Zeke Murray, you’ve shown me sincerity. There’s a lack of sincere people these days.”

“That’s right, Don Dario.”

“I want to repay you for that sincerity you’ve shown. I’ll take care of that double dungeon problem you mentioned earlier.”

Zeke brightened at Dario’s words.

“Th-Thank you!”

“Where is this dungeon located?”

“It’s in the central region of Allensia, my hometown. It has nothing to do with Argos where dungeons usually appear. Just an ordinary neighborhood hill.”

“World-changing discoveries often happen in such ordinary places.”

Dario smiled and poured more whiskey.

“Don’t worry about the Kingdom of Allensia or the Treasury. No one handles taxes more professionally than us.”

Zeke wiped his cold sweat with his sleeve and nodded.

“This worked out wonderfully. Thank you sincerely, Don Dario.”

Then Dario suddenly lowered his voice.

“However, we’ll be taking the relics that come from that double dungeon.”

Zeke showed a bewildered expression at Dario’s words.

“W-What do you mean?”

“Greed always brings trouble. Only foolish people desire things they shouldn’t have. Are you a foolish person?”

He took a sip of whiskey before continuing.

“As I’ve shown a token of friendship, I expect you to show sincerity and trust in return. If not…”

Dario fiddled with the ring on his finger as he spoke.

“Some very unpleasant things might happen.”

The moment Dario revealed he was from the Nostra Family, he had already decided to take the dungeon Zeke mentioned.

Hearing his words, Zeke’s hands trembled.

It was the kind of reaction any ordinary businessman would show before a major mafia boss.

Zeke answered with a shaking voice.

“…I understand, Don Dario.”

Dario smiled with satisfaction and spoke again in a gentle voice.

“Good. Then let’s rewrite the contract.”

He went to the bar and pressed a button.

The liquor display slid open to reveal a safe.

Dario authenticated the magical security by matching his eyeball and opened the safe.

Inside were piles of contracts along with secret ledgers.

These were contracts forcibly taken from others’ rights and shares.

Dario took out a contract from the safe and handed it to Zeke.

Zeke swallowed dryly looking at the contract.

‘Oath of Silence.’