Treasure Hunting System： The Ocean Conquerer

Chapter 40: Chapter 40 Hello

It didn’t take much time. By around noon, Alka had simply cleaned up the villa and gained a rough understanding of its entire layout. It was a simple three-story structure. The first floor housed the living room, dining room, kitchen, and other common areas. The second floor contained the master bedroom, a secondary bedroom, and guest rooms. The third floor, aside from a balcony, consisted of some storage rooms, making it more like an attic than a full, separate floor. Besides some dust, there were no other issues with the villa. To be honest, it didn’t look like a haunted villa at all.

Sitting at a table, he looked at the blue dot on the map. A daredevil? Alka mused. This means the haunting of this villa might not actually involve ghosts or spirits. Instead, phenomena that could terrify people might occur.

While arranging the rental, Alka had spoken with the landlady. Most tenants, she’d said, were scared off after just a day or two, but no deaths had occurred. Any injuries were merely scrapes and bruises from people getting scared and bumping into things. This was why Alka dared to enter. There’s danger, but not much, he thought. Seeking treasure and wealth always involves danger; as long as it’s within an acceptable range, it’s fine.

He picked up a pen and paper and began sketching on the table, basing his drawing on the layout he’d observed while cleaning. He first attempted to draw the first floor.

Time passed, and late afternoon approached, nearing dusk. Alka looked at the nearly completed layout sketch. It was very rough, but it looked somewhat plausible. He blinked. However, the sketch remained unchanged, and no blue dot appeared.

It seems my drawing is indeed not good enough, he thought. My skill is adequate for rough maps of Islands, but drawing these kinds of detailed architectural blueprints is like a child’s graffiti. He casually tossed the drawing onto the table.

”I’ll see tomorrow if there’s a chance to get the design blueprints,” he muttered to himself. That’s the easiest and quickest way. It could save a vast amount of time. I just don’t know if the owner of this house still has them, or is even around anymore.

Thinking of this, Alka looked outside as dusk began to settle. He went back to the second floor, drew the curtains in his room slightly, then took out the hidden mechanical spider from his newly bought suitcase. Looking at the mechanical spider in his hand, Alka reached out and tapped the four pebble-like eyes on its head. As he tapped, the pebble-like eyes transformed from their stone appearance into Ruby-like crystals. Alka placed it on the small table in the room. The spider began to tap the tabletop with its copper-jointed legs.

After a short while, a voice emanated from the spider’s back.

”Hello? Alka?”

”Yes, it’s me,” Alka got straight to the point. ”I’ve roughly located a potential Treasure Vault.”

When he finished speaking, the voice from the spider’s back fell silent for a moment.

”You... found it?” Chadite’s voice was tinged with disbelief.

Alka only mentioned having some clues yesterday, and today he has confirmed information? Chadite thought. Is that a bit too fast? Or perhaps he’s being too hasty.

Hearing Chadite’s doubt, Alka said directly, ”That’s what I currently believe is the most likely place. But you know, due to the current situation, I can’t actually investigate in person, so I can only tell you guys. If you decide to take action, perhaps you should check it out.” He deliberately emphasized that this was just his guess and not confirmed information.

After hearing Alka’s explanation, Chadite’s voice came through, ”Okay, no problem. We’ll go verify it as soon as possible. You need to be careful too and hide your identity well.

”Bite Shark and his group are not easy to deal with. If you really get caught, surrendering is fine. They wouldn’t want to truly make an enemy of us.”

Bite Shark wasn’t stronger than their group, perhaps even slightly weaker. If either side deliberately eliminated members of the other, it would mean becoming true enemies, and no one would be foolish enough to do that.

”Don’t worry,” Alka replied. ”I’m quite safe for now, and besides, city patrols and inspections have decreased considerably.”

After chatting briefly and getting an update on the situation outside, Alka ended the call.

Dusk settled, and dim, yellow light poured in from the window. Watching the sun slowly sink into the sea, Alka had a simple meal and then headed to the second floor. He prepared to turn off the lights and rest early.

The room plunged into darkness. Alka closed his eyes, his hands instinctively checking the holster under his arm and the firearm secured to his thigh. Maintaining a slight alertness, he began to drift off to sleep. Gradually relaxing while still vigilant, he eventually fell into a Deep Sleep.

「Time passed.」

In the darkness, a slight coolness permeated the air. A trace of it touched the sole of his foot, and he instinctively nudged the blanket with his leg, tucking it in tighter. Warmth returned for a moment, but the coolness lingered.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

The simple water pump beside the house seemed to be drawing water from the tank.

TAP! TAP!

The sound of someone in slippers walking on the floorboards drifted over.

With a CREAK, the old-fashioned bronze faucet was turned.

The sound of dripping water began.

DRIP! DRIP! DRIP!

In the darkness, only the sound of dripping water remained. The sounds of the wind and chirping insects, the sight of the moonlight—all seemed to recede, as if having vanished completely.

Alka opened his eyes, his hand going to the vertically holstered grip of the gun on his thigh. His other hand fumbled under the pillow. He threw back the blanket, picked up the oil lamp from the nightstand, and headed for the door.

The sound of dripping water. In the silent darkness, it was remarkably distinct. The faint light of the oil lamp illuminated the darkness, seeming to pierce the silence as well.

He slowly pushed the door open. Raising the oil lamp, he saw that the brass faucet above the washbasin was dripping steadily, each drop splashing into the iron basin below. Alka walked over and tightened the faucet.

The instant he turned around, lamp in hand, he reflexively drew the gun from his thigh halfway, then let out a heavy sigh. He found himself looking into the Mirror in front of him. For a moment, he just stared... at his own reflection.

Damn it, I actually got scared by my own face, he cursed internally. He was already on edge, and the moment he saw the Mirror, the face reflected wasn’t the one he had known for decades. Fear surged through him for an instant. Fortunately, he reacted quickly enough to remember: he wasn’t himself anymore.

He leaned closer to the Mirror. He hadn’t paid much attention during the day, but now, aided by the clear Mirror, Alka finally took a good look at his current appearance. His hair was jet black; untrimmed, it had grown to a medium length, brushing past his ears. He would have been unaccustomed to it before, but now... well, he was already used to it. he mused. Finding a decent barber in a place like this wouldn’t be easy.

His facial features still carried a trace of youthfulness. However, his expression was mature, tinged with a certain sternness, making him appear slightly older than his actual age. He examined his eyes closely. Their color, an emerald green as deep as ink, was indeed quite rare.

”Still, this body is pretty handsome,” he muttered aloud. As the words slipped out, Alka paused for a fraction of a second. He subtly rubbed his hands together, then casually slipped the Ring off and on his finger. A faint smile touched his lips. Looking at his reflection in the Mirror, he said softly, ”Hello there.”