*****"Who was that person?"With an astonished look in her eyes, Grace was presently gazing at Williams as though he was someone amazing he hadn't seen before today."That was an acquaintance," Williams replied casually, acting as though he didn't notice the sort of gaze he was being given by Grace and that he didn't understand her question, but Grace didn't mind."An acquaintance?" Her voice adopted a teasing tone that conveyed disbelief in Williams' claim, but Williams maintained his casual expression."Yes," he nodded his head, causing Grace to roll her eyes speechlessly at him."As if I would believe that," she grumbled under her breath, but since Williams had no intention of discussing it further, she decided not to inquire again, especially now that she was certain that Williams was not an ordinary person.That's right.Although she was eager to learn further about Williams and his background, she had been restraining herself from asking. Her suspicion that Williams might not
***** Williams had believed that the Lapidary store mentioned by the attendant was going to be an immense store like the prior store, or even larger. He was astonished by how the place appeared as soon as they arrived, and he couldn't help but feel bewildered.It was anything but well-organized, and instead of a store, the location resembled a chaotic street with various small roadside shops whose proprietors were advertising various types of promotions in the area.Williams' brows furrowed, and he gazed around with sheer puzzlement.'Is this the Lapidary Store mentioned?''How can a place like this bear such an imposing name?'Never before since he knew her had he imagined that Grace would visit a place like this, as her earlier expression when she heard of this place had indicated. Williams was compelled to assume that the place they were visiting was a destination for affluent individuals.He couldn't help but glance towards Grace. However, he soon recognized that she, too, was pe
******[A subquest has been assigned to the host; The host is required to continue procuring gemstones with gems in them in this location until the host is approached by a human who will offer a mission afterward. Would the host like to accept or decline the quest?]Williams, “_”It was as if a sudden splash of cold water had been doused on him.Naturally, he wasn't delighted with this sort of quest.Why should he be content?Indeed, he had feigned ignorance and had hoped to acquire an array of gems in this store by simply buying too much of gemstones to cut. However, based on the current quest, Williams realizes that he must be incredibly fortunate, so fortunate that every stone he buys must yield at least one gem."Heyo! Move your little ass, young one!"It was the irate voice of an elderly man that eventually wole Williams from his reverie.He promptly apologized and stepped aside, catching the attention of both Grace and the attendant, who had walked quite away since they had no i
*****Everyone couldn't help but stare at Williams as if he were a big dummy.The silence in the area persisted for nearly ten minutes with this and then a little chuckle suddenly roused everyone."You, an unknown person wish to compete with me?"The scholarly-looking old man who hadn't uttered a single word from the start suddenly inquired with a deep disdain and disgust in his voice after one of the young men beside him finished laughing."No... no, sir, please don't mind that. I'm sure he was only jesting," Grace, known for her coldness and rarely conversing with others, quickly spoke out before Williams could, her voice filled with awkwardness and her eyes reflecting confusion as she gazed at Williams."What are you doing?!!! That's a senior Gemologist for goodness' sake!!" She silently scolded Williams, who continued to smile playfully at her, showing no concern that she didn't trust him.Grace was deeply troubled by this. Ever since she had known Williams, he didn't resemble so
***** "I'm confident that I won't lose. However, if I end up losing to you, which is not possible, then… I will happily agree to become your servant and make these three kowtow in apology for how they had spoken to you.”"No!!!!""Don't do that, master!!""Master, please!!!"These shouts came from the three young men who hadn't been able to react after learning that Williams wasn't the nobody they had imagined. They started trying they could to convince the old man not to use what he was about to use for his wager, but the old man didn't listen and even glared fiercely at them when they persisted."Do you think this man would lose?"This question left everybody momentarily stunned. Soon, looks of realization dawned on their faces, and they started grinning sheepishly."As expected of the master!"“Why didn't I think about the game being played by the master?”“The master would forever be the master in both wisdom and his profession.”They began to fawn over and butter up the old man
*****"Who will go first?" With a confident, playful grin on his face, the elderly man inquired of Williams once the stone cutter had arrived."You should take the first step," Williams, who had already set down the boulders in his grasp due to their weight, smiled at the elderly man and replied.“Even you already knew you wouldn’t win.”"Fool, I'm glad I didn't wager on him.""I'm so clever to have staked my daughter's school tuition on the master! Now I can both enjoy the evening with a courtesan and pay for my daughter's education after the master is declared to have won.""Hehehe, though the master's stones haven't been opened yet, I'm more than one hundred percent certain that he has already emerged victorious.""Are you merely speculating? Hehehe..."The crowd continued to voice a variety of sentiments, seemingly unconcerned about how Williams might feel. They didn't even mince their words at all and neither did they bother to urge the stone cutter to start his work. It was as
*****"It’s my turn now, isn't it?" Williams inquired with a calm voice astounding the crowd."Huh?"Though Williams' voice was not loud, it carried well enough for everyone to hear. With that, everybody there couldn't help but glance at him in silence before some began to tease him."Look who's still hanging around.""Hehehe, see that? He's actually still got the guts to remind us that he’s still here even after he has already lost."“This guy, shouldn't he already have escaped”“Looks like he still thinks he has a chance of winning.”Grace was the only one who felt sympathy for Williams, but there was nothing she could do when it was Williams who had chosen this path himself.Nothing.All she could promise herself was to do everything in her power to assist Williams in repurchasing his shares, even if not all of them.“Aish, my boy. I guess It’s really your turn.”The elderly man grinned broadly when he spotted and heard what Williams said, in a not-so-mocking but at the same time,
*****“I must be perceiving inaccurately.”Someone declared with a resolute tone after a moment, shattering the profound silence that had enveloped the area.As soon as the stillness was disrupted, various exhalations of amazement commenced to resound from the crowd, astonishing the person who had just spoken and rendered him stupefied once more.“That… that was truly a color emanating from the stone!”“How can this be possible?!”“Darn!”“Could it be that a gem would be unearthed from a big stone for the first time in years!”The area plunged into an enormous uproar in the blink of an eye, and everybody began to exclaim in unison.The clamor this time exceeded the one that had occurred when color was spotted in the elderly man's stone earlier.Everyone, including Grace, found this one perplexing.With her petite mouth wide open and having lost her composure, Grace gazed vacantly at Williams, unable to believe that he had genuinely selected a stone with a gem.She couldn't react for a