Magic Gold Coins

"Huh? What is this?"

Lia suddenly discovered Wawa sleeping soundly amidst a pile of materials.

Wawa was covered by an empty Magical Cloth bag, making it hard to spot if one wasn't paying attention.

Wawa had already grown to about 1.2 meters tall, with its large head taking up half its size.

Covering its head, its body resembled some kind of grey-green woody material, making it quite inconspicuous.

"This is my contracted creature, its name is Wawa."

Ian didn't hide Wawa's existence. After all, it was getting bigger, and in the future, when he formed his own faction, the "Mysterious Shack" would be his base.

Ian lifted the Magical Cloth bag, allowing Lia to see Wawa's full form.

"It... it looks, well, very strange."

Lia looked at Wawa's large head, its nearly invisible eyes while sleeping, and its small body, unsure how to describe it.

"Haha, it's still in its growth phase. It doesn't look like this when it's mature."

"Then what does it look like when it's mature?"

Ian said meaningfully, "I'll definitely call you to see then."

During their previous conversation, Ian had learned that Lia's extraordinary profession was Navigator. What Navigator could resist the allure of a unique and powerful warship?

Lia felt Ian's smile was a little odd but didn't sense any malice, so she decided to let it go.

Next, Lia tallied the Enchanted Weapon Oil. There were 21 cans, each weighing one pound.

Based on the previous pricing, the total came to 1638 gold coins, equivalent to 1092 Divine Grace Gold Coins.

Lia had prepared 10 magic gold coins that emitted a faint purple glow, paying the remaining amount with Divine Grace Gold Coins.

Lia placed a small, exquisite black leather pouch containing all the gold coins on the table and pushed it towards Ian.

Ian curiously took out a magic gold coin from the pouch. The texture of the magic gold coin was somewhat like a light purple gemstone. The front featured a constellation map, and the back had a balanced scale, looking quite exquisite.

Magic gold coins were slightly larger than Divine Grace Gold Coins, with a diameter of about 3 centimeters.

Meters and centimeters were a unit of measurement introduced in the early period of this era by the Astrologers' Guild based on the laws of celestial movement. One meter was about 3% longer than the length in the previous life.

Currently, this measurement system was widely adopted by official bodies in various countries. The measurement units of the previous era, yards and feet, were basically no longer in use.

Magic gold coins were alchemical products, containing compressed, attribute-less Mana. The value of one magic gold coin was roughly equivalent to 100 Divine Grace Gold Coins.

At the same time, magic gold coins were also a highly stable enchanted material with broad applications. Therefore, generally, the value of one magic gold coin was greater than 100 Divine Grace Gold Coins.

The "Whaling Group" was willing to pay with magic gold coins, which could be considered quite generous.

Satisfied with his curiosity, Ian put the magic gold coin back into the pouch and pushed it back to Lia.

"There's one more thing I'd like to ask Lia for a favor."

Lia pursed her lips and smiled, "You are now the most important partner of the Whaling Group. As long as it's something we can help with, the Whaling Group will spare no effort."

Her words were pleasant, but Ian could only believe half of them.

Ian cut to the chase, "I need a new place to live. It needs to be large, as close to the sea as possible, and preferably in a quiet environment where I won't be disturbed."

Wawa was getting bigger and bigger. With its current growth rate, he had to find a new place quickly. It also needed to be closer to the sea for easy access.

He had thought carefully about why he was approaching the Whaling Group.

The Whaling Group was a local power. They could access resources that he might not be able to.

Moreover, with their continued cooperation, there would be frequent interactions, and it was unlikely he could keep things from them, nor was there a need to.

Now that their cooperation was going well, it would be a waste not to utilize their resources.

Upon hearing Ian's request, Lia's expression changed slightly. She couldn't help but wonder if someone from the Whaling Group or the Breath of the Ocean had offended him.

"Don't overthink it. It's not that I'm unhappy with my current living situation. It's just that my contracted creature is growing a bit too fast, so I need a bigger place."

Seeing Lia's expression change, Ian knew she had misunderstood and quickly explained.

"Oh, I see. You startled me. I thought we had done something wrong and offended you."

Lia breathed a sigh of relief. "Trist, do you want to rent or buy?"

"Rent or buy is fine."

"Then I'll arrange for someone to handle it immediately. I'll definitely help you find a suitable place."

Lia knew Ian had money, so she didn't even ask about his budget requirements.

Lia was very efficient. By three or four in the afternoon, she had presented Ian with a list of properties in Paradise Port that met his criteria.

It had to be said that Paradise Port, after thirty years of unremitting development by various parties, was already very saturated.

There weren't many properties that fit the requirements.

Ian selected a few of the most suitable ones and, with Lia, went to view them one by one in the Breath of the Ocean's carriage.

Paradise Port wasn't small, with several locations scattered around. By the time Ian had seen them all, night had completely fallen.

Of the places he'd looked at, the most suitable turned out to be a lighthouse—or more precisely, a tower converted from an abandoned lighthouse.

This lighthouse was originally built by the exploration fleet that first landed on Paradise Island, situated on a small peninsula jutting out northwest of Paradise Port.

However, after the crescent bay where Paradise Port was located was discovered, new lighthouses were built on the north and south tips of the bay to better guide ships.

From then on, this original lighthouse was abandoned. It was later bought along with the surrounding land by a Poderia noble and converted into a five-story tower.

But as it turned out, that was a terrible idea.

The "bend" on the northwest side of the bay blocked the sea breeze from the north. The wind would swirl in the bay formed by this small peninsula, causing the tower to be constantly buffeted by howling winds that sounded like ghostly wails, even after stone walls were added around it.

Ultimately, the tower was abandoned again. People took over sporadically in the interim, but they quickly sold it off, and it remained neglected until now.

Ian pondered for a long time before finally deciding on this place.

It wasn't that he was seeking hardship. The other houses were either not fully by the sea, too small, or too densely populated.

This peninsula tower fit perfectly and was cheap—only 200 Divine Grace Gold Coins.

For such a large area, it was practically being given away. He wouldn't be living there for more than a few months anyway, so he could endure it.

Seeing Ian readily pay the money on the spot, the two directors of the Hyde Real Estate Trading Company beamed with joy. Their work enthusiasm immediately surged, and they quickly helped Ian complete the relevant paperwork.

They also promised that the tower would be cleaned before sunrise tomorrow, and the new property ownership certificate would be delivered to Breath of the Ocean by morning.

On the way back, Lia still looked helpless. Her persuasion had no effect on Ian's decision.

This man, who didn't speak forcefully, was surprisingly resolute when making decisions.

But upon hearing Ian say he wouldn't be staying long and would be leaving soon, Lia suddenly felt a pang of disappointment.

Perhaps she wasn't a qualified director of the Whaling Group. Her first thought wasn't about retaining this important partner for the Whaling Group, but rather that she would never see this interesting man again.

Sea of Miracles was vast, so vast that every parting could be a final farewell.