Ch. 1821..1825: The Secretly Rich Man Chapter 1821-1825
Chapter 1821
Gerald Crawford: The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 1821
Looking at the crystal skull that Mario was holding onto, everyone below stage couldn’t help but cheer in awe, including Gerald and his party. After all, the four individuals hadn’t expected to find such a precious treasure out here of all places.
With the skull being so clear and dazzling, it was no wonder why it was capable of making everyone experience a special, indescribable feeling…
Whatever the case was, everyone snapped out of it when Mario cleared his throat before declaring, “Let’s start the bidding at four million! To make things clear, each bid increment shouldn’t be less than a million! With that out of the way, let the bidding begin!”
“Five million!” yelled a man as he immediately raised his hand.
“Six million!” shouted another man as he further increased the bid.
The way these people were shouting such massive numbers so eagerly could only be compared to water flowing off a waterfall. It was almost as though bidding by the million didn’t hurt them at all!
“Seven million! It’s mine!” declared a bespectacled man, almost as though he was sure that nobody would be able to top that.
Even so, this was an auction. As long as one had the money, it was a free for all. With that in mind, nobody even gave a rat’s arse about his statement.
“Can it and scram! I’m paying eight million!” scoffed a fat man as he glared at the bespectacled bidder from before.
With how quickly the numbers were rising, the crystal skull soon exceeded the ten million point. Had these people gone insane?!
“It’s… just a skull, right…? Have these people gone nuts? Do they even understand the value of money…?” exclaimed the astonished Rey.
“Heh. The rich live in a world we can never understand!” replied Gerald with a subtle smile.
While Gerald was certainly rich, he wasn’t interested in just throwing millions of dollars away just for some stupid skull. Money shouldn’t be spent that way!
By the end of it, the crystal skull ended up getting bought by the same bespectacled man at a whopping price of fifteen million!
“Congratulations, mister! With a bid of fifteen million, the crystal skull now belongs to you!” declared Mario.
The bespectacled man himself immediately began indulging himself in the admiration from the crowd. Seeing how proud and mighty the man now felt, one could say that this was what most rich people strived to feel.
Regardless, with the auction now over, Gerald turned to look at his party before saying, “Let’s go, there’s nothing else to see here!”
With that, the four then left the black market to continue wandering about the rest of the town…
Not long after, however, they came across the man—who had bought the crystal skull—again.
“Say… isn’t that the person who had bought the skull earlier, brother Gerald?” asked Rey, recognizing the bespectacled man.
Nodding in response, Gerald then watched as the man walked right past them, appearing somewhat nervous… Now why was that…?
Having a gut feeling that something interesting would happen if they followed him, Gerald then said, “… Hey, let’s sneakily follow him!”
Seeing no reason to object, the trio then began tailing after Gerald who was already ahead of them…
It wasn’t too long after before they managed to tail him all the way to a house of sorts…
After scanning his surroundings, the bespectacled man hurriedly entered the house, making sure to lock the door behind him…
“Stay here. I’m going ahead to have a look at what he’s up to!” whispered Gerald as he made a giant leap… before landing right on the house’s roof!
Chapter 1822
Gerald Crawford: The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 1822
Lying on his stomach, Gerald—who was careful to be quiet as he did all this on the roof—then stared into the yard… Only to see that the bespectacled man was now standing right before Mario! How unexpected!
From the looks of it, they seemed to be discussing something important…
While their meeting was already astonishing enough, what happened next truly shocked Gerald.
Eyes widened, Gerald could only stare as Mario took a dagger from his jacket and stabbed the bespectacled man right in the chest! Mario seemed to have stabbed the man right in the heart too, since the bespectacled man died almost immediately after…
As the bespectacled man flopped lifelessly to the ground, Gerald saw that his eyes were wide open, an evident sign that he wasn’t able to die in peace…
Regardless, with the man now dead, Mario then wiped it clean with a cloth that he had brought along before sliding the dagger back into his jacket…
Following that, Mario then shouted toward the house, prompting two men to come out shortly after.
“Take care of the corpse!” ordered Mario as the two men quickly nodded before stuffing the now dead bespectacled man into a sack and carrying him away…
Of course, Gerald had witnessed all this. Truth be told, he hadn’t expected Mario to be such a ruthless person. To think that he would just murder his own client right after obtaining the money… What more, the crystal skull was now his to have again! How cruel!
After seeing all this take place, Gerald was prompted to think, ‘What is even wrong with the world today… How heartless… He’s already paid for the item, just let him have it! At the very least, you could have spared his life even if you took the item by force!’
Whatever the case was, Gerald felt lucky that he hadn’t bid on the crystal skull back when he was still in the black market. After all, who knows if he could’ve potentially ended up dying like the bespectacled man…
Either way, Gerald then shook his head before returning to his party.
“Anything interesting happened…?” asked Juno curiously.
“Indeed. The bespectacled man is now dead!” replied Gerald without mincing his words.
“…Huh? But why? And how?” exclaimed Rey, astonished.
“Remember that auctioneer back at the black market? That Mario guy? He killed him!” explained Gerald as he further elaborated what he had earlier saw.
By the time Gerald was done, Rey and the others were momentarily stunned speechless. To think that Mario was actually such an evil person!
“…Since he committed the murder so efficiently… He must have done the same to all the previous clients!” said Juno.
Nodding in response, Gerald then replied, “I believe so as well. These people are making quick bucks without having any losses!”
“How obnoxious!” growled Rey.
Even so, there wasn’t really anything the four people could do. After all, the bespectacled man was already dead.
“…Regardless, let’s leave this place as soon as possible. Lingering around here is bad news!” said Gerald after a brief pause, now well aware of how evil people could get in this town.
With that, the party of four then began leaving the area…
Unfortunately, since it was already getting dark, Gerald and his party had no choice but to stay the night in town… Interestingly enough, all the accommodation places here resembled ancient inns.
After locating a rather inconspicuous inn, the four then decided to stay the night there…
Chapter 1823
Gerald Crawford: The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 1823
Upon entering the inn, Gerald saw the innkeeper and called out, “Evening! Any available rooms, boss? We have four people and we require two rooms!”
Looking at them, the innkeeper then asked, “Before that, where do all of you come from?”
While Gerald and his party were rightfully startled, Gerald simply smiled before replying, “We’re… From Swindawn City! We’re just here for leisure!”
Hearing that, the innkeeper then nodded before saying, “Very well, then. Here are your two room keys! Your rooms are at the end of the corridor on the second floor!”
“Appreciate it, boss!” replied Gerald as he took the keys and began leading his party upstairs.
Following the innkeeper’s directions, the group then made their way to the end of the corridor. The ladies were to sleep in the room on the left while Gerald and Rey would sleep in the right one.
Regardless, Gerald quickly locked the door behind him once he and Rey had entered.
Now that they had privacy, Rey was prompted to ask, “…I’m not sure if you’ve noticed this, but people in this town seem to give outsiders like us strange looks… The innkeeper was no exception either…”
“I have, and I have a gut feeling that the innkeeper isn’t a good person either. With that in mind, let’s take turns sleeping and keeping watch over the situation. I’ll be first to keep watch, and we can switch places later in the night,” suggested Gerald.
“Sounds good!” replied Rey, feeling much safer now that Gerald had suggested that.
At that moment, knocking could suddenly be heard coming from Gerald’s door.
Raising a slight brow, Gerald then asked, “Who is it?”
“It’s the innkeeper! I’m here delivering some warm water!” replied the innkeeper as Gerald and Rey exchanged glances with each other.
Signaling for Rey to open the door, Rey then did as he was told.
With the door now open, the innkeeper then entered with a kettle of hot water before placing it on a table.
Watching as the innkeeper smiled at both of them, Gerald then faked a smile as he said, “My, my! How thoughtful of you to deliver hot water to us!”
Chuckling in response, the innkeeper then replied, “It’s only right for me to do so for my customers! Regardless, I’m here to tell you not to head out the inn at night… It’s not too safe out there in the dark. Try to just stay in your rooms!”
Upon hearing that, Gerald and Rey exchanged glances again, wondering what the innkeeper was on about.
“Boss-”
“Got it, boss! We appreciate the warning!” said Gerald as he cut Rey’s sentence short.
Nodding in response, the innkeeper then replied, “Good to hear! Also, if there’s anything you need in the night, don’t hesitate to call me!”
After saying that, the duo then watched as the innkeeper left their room…
Stepping out to make sure that the innkeeper had gone downstairs, the confirmation that he was really gone made Gerald breathe a sigh of relief as he closed the door again.
“About what you did earlier…” muttered Rey.
“Some things aren’t meant to be asked so bluntly, Rey. Remember that,” said Gerald.
Briefly nodding, Rey then asked, “Got it, brother Gerald. Either way… After what just happened, do you still think that the innkeeper is a bad person…?”
Chapter 1824
Gerald Crawford: The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 1824
While Rey could tell that something was off about the innkeeper, he simply couldn’t pinpoint what it was, and quite frankly, that was driving him insane.
Shaking his head in response, Gerald then replied, “While I’m not too sure where he’s bad or not, I’m at least certain that there’s a problem with him. After all, I saw him constantly looking around our room earlier, almost as though he was searching for something. My guess is that he must have some secret here!”
What more, the fact that the innkeeper had told them not to leave their rooms tonight only served to make them more suspicious of him. With that in mind, the curious duo was now keen on unraveling his true nature tonight!
“…Let’s head to Miss Zorn’s room for the moment!” said Gerald.
Rey was thinking the same thing, and with that, both of them then walked out and began knocking on the door opposite of theirs…
“Who is it…?” asked Juno in a similar fashion to how Gerald had asked earlier. It was a clear sign that she was being vigilant as well.
“It’s Gerald!” replied the youth as Juno opened the door a few seconds later.
Seeing that Rey was there as well, Juno was prompted to ask, “Is… something the matter…?”
“Let’s talk inside,” replied Gerald as he and Rey entered her room, only to see that Yrsa herself had been watching television on the bed.
Once she locked the door behind them, Juno then got straight to the point as she asked, “So… What happened?”
“Essentially, both Rey and I feel that the innkeeper is a little off. With that in mind, we’d like you two to come sleep in our room later. We’ll just leave this room empty for the night,” said Gerald.
“I’m assuming you’re trying to use our current room as bait to test the innkeeper for foul play…?” asked Juno who was quick to catch on.
“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” replied Gerald with a firm nod.
“Well, alright then! Give us some time to wash up first then! We’ll head to your room once we’re done!” said Juno, now fully in on the plan.
With that settled, Gerald and Rey then went back to their room first.
It was about ten minutes later when Juno and Yrsa came over as well.
While it was certainly cramped, the four of them sharing a room would certainly make things much safer. After all, if the innkeeper truly was a despicable and lusty person, then having the two girls sleep in their own room was definitely a terrible idea.
While it was true that Juno was a strong cultivator, none of them could say for sure that the innkeeper didn’t have special means to deal with them.
Whatever the case was, now that all four of them were here, Gerald then said, “Alright, you girls sleep on the bed while Rey and I sleep on the table. In case you’re worrying about a midnight attack, Rey and I will be taking turns keeping watch the entire night. If anything happens, we’ll surely alert you girls!”
After saying that, Gerald and Rey then sat on the table.
Juno and Yrsa themselves got into bed and promptly fell asleep… This was going to be a long night for the boys…
Fast forward to a few hours later, it was late into the night, and not a single sound could be heard… It was honestly a bit scary.
Even so, the silence was what eventually gave away the tapping of approaching footsteps that stopped right before their door…
Staring at their room door, Gerald and Rey were now fully vigilant…
Chapter 1825
Gerald Crawford: The Secretly or invisible Rich Man Chapter 1825
Slowly moving toward the door, Gerald then peeked through the peephole… and almost immediately after, his eyes widened when he realized that the innkeeper was standing right in front of Juno’s room!
Retrieving what appeared to be some kind of incense out from his pocket, Gerald watched as the innkeeper then lit it before placing it by Juno’s door… From the looks of it, he was doing so, so that the smoke would seep into her initial room…
With that done, Gerald quickly backed away when he realized that the innkeeper was now walking toward his room!
By this point, Juno and the others were wide awake.
After seeing Gerald’s reactions, Juno couldn’t help but whisper, “…What’s wrong, Gerald…?”
Cupping his hand over his mouth, Gerald then took a towel before cupping his mouth and nose with it.
Immediately understanding what Gerald was trying to relay, the others got their own towels and did the same as Gerald made sure to open the room’s window as well.
Soon enough, everyone watched as white smoke began seeping into the room through the bottom of the door… Had Gerald not opened the window, the room would’ve been filled with smoke in seconds!
Regardless, Gerald and Rey’s hunch had apparently been correct. The innkeeper really did have vile intentions… After all, why else would he do something this shady in the dead of night?
It was lucky that they suspected him. Otherwise, they would’ve surely gone fully unconscious by now…
Either way, Gerald peered through the peephole again after a short while to see if the innkeeper was still there.
While Gerald was thankful that the innkeeper was no longer there, it confused Gerald as to why he just left like that. After all, he had already gone through the trouble of doing all this!
After thinking about it for a while, Gerald then headed to the bed before lying down… and right after that, he freed his soul from his body!
Naturally, Rey didn’t know that Gerald was having an out-of-body experience, causing him to instantly widen his eyes in shock when Gerald suddenly appeared deeply unconscious.
Just as he was about to check on Gerald, Juno raised her hand, signaling for Rey not to move.
Upon seeing that, Rey realized that Gerald was doing this on purpose. With that in mind, he then returned to his seat…
As for Gerald, his soul was already drifting around the inn. He was going to get to the bottom of what vile things the innkeeper had planned if it was the last thing he did! Soon after, he found the innkeeper leading two men upstairs…
Raising a brow, Gerald then followed the trio all the way to Juno’s initial room! Of course, none of the men could see or even detect Gerald’s presence in his current form.
“The two ladies are in that room, Mr. Panther! They’ve both been knocked clean out with my bewitching incense!” said the innkeeper with a sinister smile as he looked at the sturdy-looking man beside him.
“Good job!” replied Mr. Panther as he nodded in satisfaction, prompting the innkeeper to retrieve the room’s spare key…
Once Juno’s initial room was open, all three of the men entered…
However, they quickly found themselves stunned when they realized that the room was completely empty!
“…And where are they?” asked the flabbergasted Mr. Panther.