第１５４８堀：意外と秘宝はあるのかも？ (Part2)
"I neglected to mention this earlier, but regarding the location of the treasure Canaria spoke of, the people here in Hinsua also believe it to be within that mausoleum. They’ve heard the rumors for ages, but seeing as the site is royal property and no one has ever dared lay a finger on it, they assumed it was either a trap or simply empty."
"That’s only natural," Kagura said, nodding in agreement with my assessment.
It was a sentiment shared by the major powers—or rather, by every nation that had participated in the auction. If such a treasure truly existed, it might not have prevented Vinosia’s fall entirely, but it certainly would have bought them a significant amount of time.
As that thought lingered, Deryu spoke up unexpectedly.
"This is a bit of an afterthought, but is there not a chance the 'treasure' in question has already been flogged off? A classic anticlimax, no?"
A heavy silence fell over the room. No one could offer a rebuttal, for there was no evidence to the contrary. It was entirely possible that even if they had sold it, the funds weren't enough to stabilize the country. Or perhaps they had waited years for the rumors of the sale to die down before...
"Well, for our purposes, the actual existence of the treasure doesn't matter," I said, breaking the silence. "What matters is that this confirms there’s a high probability the enemy is holed up in that tomb."
We were claiming to be treasure hunters, but the treasure was never the goal. Our objective was to intercept the Dark Guild and the Dungeon Master likely lurking there.
"True enough," Deryu conceded. "However, I think it would be unwise to ignore the treasure entirely, wouldn't you?"
"Ah, you have a point. Since the other side thinks we're here for a payday, we should probably look into what this treasure is supposed to be."
Deryu was right; being too indifferent toward the prize would only make us look suspicious.
"So, what exactly is the treasure of a fallen kingdom supposed to be anyway~?" Mikos chimed in with a curious tilt of her head.
"Canaria didn't seem to know the specifics, but the high-ranking officials in Hinsua spoke of gold, jewels—the kind of things that translate directly into hard currency."
"Hmph. So you *did* do your homework after all," Deryu remarked.
"It just came up in conversation. They even mentioned that if we find it, we can keep half."
As I’d mentioned before, we had informed the Hinsua leadership that our search for the treasure was a front for hunting down the Dark Guild. They had offered us the treasure as compensation for the trouble we were taking on. Assuming it even existed, of course.
"I can't believe you're all getting so worked up over something that might not even be there," Enola said, her eyes narrowed with skepticism. "And where did these rumors of gold and silver even come from? What’s the basis?"
Her doubt was well-founded, but I had an answer.
"Interestingly, there is a bit of logic behind it. You know how the old Vinosia royals—Canaria’s family—were? The textbook definition of tyrants who bled their people dry with exorbitant taxes. You’ve heard the stories."
I should mention that Canaria, Ria, and Dressa were not present for this briefing. Given the nature of the discussion, I’d asked them to sit this one out from the start.
"Yes, we’ve all heard. What of it?" Enola asked.
"That’s the hint. The old Vinosia royalty lived in absolute decadence until the people revolted and the state collapsed from within. That means all that tax money was converted into *something*. Sure, a lot went toward fine dining and slaves—things that leave no trace—but do you really think people driven by that kind of bottomless greed would stop there?"
I looked at Enola, who didn't even need a moment to consider it.
"Unlikely. I see... so the theory is they kept a hoard of liquid assets?"
"Exactly. The country went bankrupt, but people like that don't just cough up their entire personal fortune and say they’re broke. It’s not in their nature."
"People like that do only one thing: they grab their private wealth and run," Senal added, her expression twisted in disgust.
Indeed. Just because a nation’s coffers are empty doesn't mean the individuals in charge are penniless. They would have fled with as much as they could carry. In fact, that was exactly how Canaria and her kin had managed to live in quiet exile.
"I see. So that's the reasoning behind the 'treasure,'" Hiren said, nodding as the pieces clicked into place.
"And on that note," I concluded, "we’ll finish gathering what we can about this treasure today and move out tomorrow. There’s no point in lingering here any longer. The fact that Hinsua is focusing so much on a dubious treasure suggests they’ve run out of actual leads anyway."
It was as good a sign as any to get moving.
And so, we began our final preparations to head into the former territories of Vinosia. It might not have been enough to save a kingdom, but as a personal fortune, it was certainly worth the cover story. Whether it actually existed, however, remained to be seen.