Mithril Treasury

Hearing Gawain's unconscious remark, the mysterious veiled woman paused slightly and blinked in confusion. "My name is Melita Pernia. The pronunciation may indeed be a little different from the names commonly found in the Northern Kingdoms..."

Gawain hurriedly pulled his thoughts back on track. "Oh, sorry. Never mind, never mind. My pronunciation was off."

He then coughed twice, trying to make himself look more serious—and salvage the atmosphere while he was at it. "Then, Miss Agent from the Mithril Treasury, what brings you here in the middle of the night—and through the window, no less?"

The woman jumped down from the windowsill and approached Gawain. "Coming through the window was a necessary measure. After all, who knows how many eyes are watching this place right now? And the item you left in the Mithril Treasury is classified as 'top secret.' According to the agreement made back then, whether it was being deposited or retrieved, the entire process had to be carried out in secrecy."

As she spoke, she stared at Gawain with eyes that glimmered faintly violet in the darkness. Her veiled face revealed no expression, but the scrutiny in those eyes was unmistakable.

Gawain's mind was already racing.

He knew about the Mithril Treasury—or rather, his memories contained records related to the Mithril Treasury.

The Mithril Treasury was not some mysterious organization. In fact, the vast majority of Sentient Beings in this world knew of its existence. Yet at the same time, no one dared claim to understand the true nature of this "treasury."

On the surface, it was a comprehensive vault. It could store money for you and safeguard your treasures. As long as you paid enough, you could confidently entrust anything to them—or at least, that was what the Mithril Treasury advertised. And in truth, to this day, no one had ever heard of anything deposited with the Mithril Treasury going missing. At the same time, the Mithril Treasury also offered lending services. It had countless agent locations and agents across the world. As long as one met its credit requirements, anyone could easily find them and borrow money—or something else—from them. There were only two things to keep in mind. First, how much you could borrow depended entirely on the Mithril Treasury's "rating" of you, and it had never disclosed its rating criteria. Second, you had to repay the debt.

The Mithril Treasury ensured that every copper coin it lent out was recovered with interest.

Just as no one had ever heard of an item entrusted to the Mithril Treasury being lost, no one had ever heard of anyone escaping its debts. It was said that a cunning Fire Elemental Lord had once tried to challenge this rule. Though Elemental Creatures had no need for money, this unconventional Element Lord borrowed an enormous sum from the Mithril Treasury, then returned to the Elemental Plane to watch the mortal world make fools of itself. Yet in the end, it repaid every last debt.

On the third day after the repayment deadline, the Element Lord's core and elemental fragments appeared at an auction in the north. The money from the auction was precisely enough to cover the total of its debt and late fees.

This showed that the Mithril Treasury dealt with more than humans. In fact, it conducted business with every Sentient race in the world. As long as someone had financial needs, they were a potential customer of the Mithril Treasury. Even the eccentric elves of the south and the dwarves in the west, hard as stone, were no exception. It was said that Mithril Treasury outposts could even be found in Kobold caves. No one knew whether the organization had been founded by humans, elves, or some other race, but it had always existed like this. Not even the Magic Tide seven hundred years ago had disrupted its operations. In fact, a portion of the loan that had funded the founding of the Ansu Kingdom had come from it—though Charles I had at least repaid that money in the end.

The treasury agent was still watching Gawain curiously. Without betraying a hint of it, he swiftly organized the chaotic thoughts in his mind. He realized that tonight's unexpected visit was likely connected to a transaction from seven hundred years ago. The Gawain Cecil of that era had clearly been a client of the Mithril Treasury, but the fatal problem was...

There was not a single memory related to it in his mind!

Gawain had absolutely no idea what the Cecil ancestor from seven hundred years ago had stored in the Mithril Treasury!

As his thoughts spun rapidly, he instinctively wanted to make up an excuse to conceal the blank in his memory. But just as the words were about to leave his lips, he noticed the scrutiny in Miss My Little Pony's eyes. Something stirred in his mind, and he forcibly swallowed the lie.

This woman was full of mysteries. Before he knew her background, he needed to minimize variables as much as possible. Lying might cause trouble—because some special races possessed special talents that could detect lies.

He calmed down and looked into Melita's eyes. "What did I deposit back then?"

"You don't remember?" Melita's eyes curved slightly, as if she were smiling. "Was it because you slept for too long?"

"I slept for seven hundred years. I suppose I really did forget a few things," Gawain said, tapping his head. "By the way, do you keep entrusted items indefinitely even if the person involved has died?"

"Under normal circumstances, the death of the client signifies the termination of the contract. After that, there are two possible ways of handling the entrusted item. If there are clearly designated heirs, we hand it over to them. If there are no legal heirs, the item becomes the property of the Mithril Treasury." Melita really was smiling as she slightly raised a hand. An exquisite little deposit box appeared out of thin air in her palm. "But the item you deposited back then was special—you specifically purchased indefinite storage service for it. That means that as long as the Mithril Treasury remains in operation, your item will be stored forever, and only you may retrieve it."

As she spoke, she added, "You paid quite a considerable price for this service back then. After news of your death reached us, we thought it would become a troublesome dead account. But it seems nothing is ever certain."

Gawain frowned deeply, realizing that this matter was probably more complicated than he had initially imagined.

But now was not the time to investigate it. He first had to retrieve the item before making any further judgments.

"Can I take my item back?"

"You don't remember the original contract, which does make things a little troublesome. But rest assured, the Mithril Treasury has encountered all kinds of problems. We have ample experience handling every unexpected situation." Melita held the deposit box in both hands. "Memory is only a minor issue. Please place your hand on this rune. These ancient spells will naturally verify your identity."

Gawain considered it for two seconds while activating the knight class's Danger Sense talent. He could not sense any threatening aura from the deposit box, and the rune itself showed no fluctuations of curses, poison, or other negative energies. Only after confirming this did he place his hand on the paw-print-shaped rune.

A faint warmth rose from his skin. With a click, the little deposit box's lid sprang open a crack.

"That's all?" Gawain asked in some surprise.

Melita smiled. "Making things as convenient as possible for our clients is one of the Mithril Treasury's guiding principles. It helps clients pay their bills more effectively—though of course, your bill was paid in full seven hundred years ago."

As she spoke, she opened the box completely and handed it to Gawain. He looked down, only to find that it contained nothing more than a dull crystal.

Wait, this crystal looked strangely familiar.

Gawain temporarily suppressed his doubts and looked up at Melita. "Why did you choose to find me now? Was that also part of the agreement from back then?"

"Not at all." Melita shook her head lightly. "We simply needed some time to verify that you had returned to life. Originally, I planned to meet you on your way to the royal capital, but your route was truly... erratic. I had no idea what plans you intended to carry out, so I simply waited for you here in the royal capital. By the way, I've been waiting here for quite some time. Rice is expensive in the royal capital, and rent isn't cheap either—but since you are a valued client, I won't charge you for those expenses."

Gawain: "..."

Then why the hell did you bring it up?!

Gawain turned his head and said faintly, "Rice in the royal capital is indeed expensive. The guard I keep also has quite an appetite. You injured him this time, and his recovery will probably cost quite a bit. I won't charge you for that either."

Melita: "..."

Miss My Little Pony seemed to smile stiffly twice. In any case, her veil made it impossible to see clearly. Finally, she shook her head and raised a hand, offering him something. "Then, Mr. Gawain Cecil, this transaction has been successfully concluded. As a valued client of the Mithril Treasury, you will receive a gift."

Gawain accepted it curiously, only to find that it was a silver-white ring. "What is this?"

"The Mithril Ring. Every valued client receives one after completing their first transaction. Through it, you may contact your dedicated agent at any time—your personal client representative. If you encounter any financial difficulties in the future, or have treasures that need safeguarding, you may contact me directly. Of course, for ordinary small-scale services, you may also bring this Mithril Ring to the nearest Mithril Treasury agent location. It will grant you many benefits."

After saying that, she turned and walked toward the window through which she had entered.

Gawain raised the ring in his hand. "Then I hope I never have to borrow money from you."

Melita had already stepped back onto the windowsill. Hearing Gawain's words, she turned and smiled. "Believe me, Mr. Gawain. Everyone may encounter financial difficulties. The Mithril Treasury's doors will always be open to clients in need."

The moment Gawain heard this sales pitch, which sounded just like someone selling credit cards in his previous life, he waved his hand. "All right, all right, I get it. Miss My Little Pony, you should hurry back. Rice is pretty expensive in the royal capital."

Melita's foot slipped. Whether it was because of the rice prices or My Little Pony, no one knew. But this time she did not turn back, instead vanishing directly into thin air.

A moment later, her figure appeared in a small attic on the top floor of the estate.

It was a place that basically never received visitors, normally used to store odds and ends. Now, however, it also contained bedding, pillows, pots, bowls, and various other household items.

Melita had not lied. She really had been waiting here for a long time...

While packing her luggage, the agent lady shook her head. "Good thing the food was all your family's rice."