Chapter 254: 「The Trickster」

Terra, Europa, Komag family castle.

Compared to nobles in other regions who mostly reside in Hive Towers, owning a vast estate is a manifestation of Komag's power and wealth.

The Patriarchs of the various noble families of Europa arrived by shuttle, and after landing on the tarmac, they straightened their robes and walked into the Komag castle.

The nobles gathered around the Komag Patriarch, each of them eager to converse with this powerful person.

Marchioness Delaquis, from the court of Terra, wearing an ivory-colored gown and a rose-gold necklace in a mesh pattern, walked to the side of the Komag Patriarch.

"Komag, when will the protagonist of our banquet, the honorable Graham von Erick, make his appearance?"

The surrounding Europa nobles pricked up their ears to listen.

The Komag Patriarch wore a smile; to demonstrate his intimate relationship with Erick, he addressed him directly by name.

"Graham will appear shortly; everyone, please be patient."

"Everyone, have you considered clearly whether to participate in this adventure?"

The blue-haired noble wearing burgundy spoke first: "Of course, a Paradise World only sixty-nine light-years away from Terra."

"Once built, it will inevitably be sought after by all the nobles of Terra."

"If it weren't for the fact that Erick only needs antiques to build a museum for visitors to view, I would be willing to take out twenty percent of this solar month's liquid capital to invest in this golden opportunity."

The surrounding nobles echoed in succession.

"Yes, no one would miss such an opportunity; I have been to Saros, located between the boiling magma of Io and the artificial oceans of Europa."

"That massive structure is a vast entertainment facility where the elite of Jupiter revel in opera houses, but compared to Erick's project, it is too dull."

"That's right, the orbital resorts of Venus are also not as grand as Erick's project."

"..."

The "Trickster" Tierni paused outside the banquet, the nobles' discussion reaching his ears.

The "Trickster" wore a smile, and amidst the praises of the attendants, he held his head high and walked into the banquet hall.

"The honorable Lord Erick has arrived!"

The attendant's voice drew the gaze of all the nobles, who turned their heads to look at "Erick."

The high-coiled hairstyle was the most popular style in the court of Terra, considered by the nobles to be a manifestation of elegance and chic.

His face had been slightly refined, giving him a noble temperament and a unique style.

His jawline was meticulously groomed; this aloof and transcendent look was leading the current fashion trend.

Marchioness Delaquis was the first to spend a huge sum to refine her jawline, and this unique look was imitated by many noble ladies in the court of Terra.

The nobles then looked at the Precision Power Armor on "Erick"; the Baroque-style armor was a relic of the "Dark Age of Technology," hard to find anywhere on Terra.

The surface of the armor was hung with various ornaments: wheat ears made of topaz, silver chains made of sterling silver...

The nobles had all received education in art appreciation, and they could see that every piece of decoration was a work of art, setting him off as noble and extraordinary.

The velvet cloak was like flawless fresh snow.

They all thought: 【Such a set of armor can only be maintained by a high-level artisan; only a truly powerful and wealthy person can afford the maintenance and upkeep costs.】

The "Trickster" activated Spirit Vision, reading envy and jealousy from the auras of the many nobles, without a hint of suspicion.

【Sure enough, to make these nobles firmly believe I am a visiting noble, a luxuriously decorated warship, a magnificent airship, and a display of squandering money are all indispensable.】

The "Trickster" spent a huge amount to complete this grand deception.

The technical artisan of the Treasure Hunting Squad from Voskonia, utilizing the sacred template contributed by Howard Fender, spent a huge sum to forge the Precision Power Armor.

The ornaments on the surface of the armor were harvested by the "Thief" from other regions of Terra.

The "Trickster" smiled slightly, and the "Charm" bestowed upon him by his extraordinary ability made even the well-traveled Marchioness Delaquis's eyes shine with brilliance.

"Gentlemen, ladies."

To coordinate with the "Trickster's" extraordinary ability, Tierni had a special implant embedded in his throat.

It was something he had stolen from an Achaemenid Empire family that had surrendered to the Imperium back when he was still a "Thief."

Tierni's voice was low, and the magnetic sound resonated like a musical performance.

"The Babylon I have built is a true Paradise World."

"Babylon's thousands of coral islands are scattered across the warm turquoise shallow seas, soothing the pressures of Terra, dispelling your fatigue, so you no longer worry about mundane affairs."

"Babylon has a uniform, warm climate and plenty of sunshine; each coral reef is home to billions of beautiful nautiluses."

The "Trickster's" "eloquence" dragged the nobles into the scene he depicted, listening to his every word.

"Every island in Babylon has magnificent palaces, neat marble squares, rich gardens, and majestic amphitheaters."

"Composed of perfect landscape pavilions, allowing you to take in the beautiful scenery of the islands."

"Walking around the pavilion, the picturesque scenery will soak into your hearts."

The nobles were immersed in the hallucination created by the "Trickster's" "Mental Interference," and every person's face revealed an expression of satisfaction, joy, and relaxation.

The "Trickster" felt his Spirituality consuming rapidly and concluded with a powerful sentence.

"Gentlemen, ladies, Babylon is your dream garden."

The nobles came back to their senses from the hallucination created by the "Mental Interference," and each of them realized the huge value hidden within.

The opera houses of Jupiter and the orbital resorts of Venus earned vast wealth from the nobles of Terra, including themselves.

The Sigillite relied to a certain extent on the support of the hundreds of noble families who controlled the opera houses and orbital resorts.

The Sigillite also provided protection for these families, and no one dared to reach out their hands there.

Now, they saw a new opportunity.

A new Paradise World—Babylon.

This was a golden opportunity not to be missed, and every noble wanted a piece of the pie.

The blue-haired noble wearing burgundy spoke first again.

"Erick, your vision of Babylon is admirable."

"But it also consumes a vast amount; please allow me to provide you with support."

The other nobles also realized this and expressed their willingness one after another, using the name of support to grasp a share of the profits.

Although Erik had refused their requests countless times, perhaps now he would feel the pressure from everyone's "sincerity" and accept their "goodwill."

The Trickster shook his head slightly, the decorations hanging on his armor shimmering in the eyes of the nobles.

The shining radiance caused the nobles' breathing to hitch, their confidence wavering.

Each of them could bring out one ornament, and several powerful figures, such as Komag and Marchioness Delaquis, could even produce several.

But no one could be like "Erik," whose armor was adorned with dozens of treasures.

They even suspected that if the surface area of the armor were not limited, "Erik's" armor would be covered in even more decorations.

"I am not short on money," the Trickster said confidently:

The Trickster mobilized his Spirituality, activating "Thought Misdirection."

"My glorious tapestry still requires pearls to embellish it!"

"But the pearls I need are halls of art."

Patriarch Komag was the first to recover, and he glanced at the surrounding nobles.

The long-standing Komag family had a foundation far beyond what other families could compare to; even Marchioness Delaquis could not compare to him.

He said confidently: "Halls of art."

"Babylon needs halls of art; items from various eras can intuitively present the style of each age and bring artistic enjoyment to noble guests."

"Just as the Sigillite said, 'The essence of human art can bring a level of spiritual enjoyment beyond that of natural scenery,' art will be the perfect complement to natural scenery."

The Trickster looked at Patriarch Komag gratefully: "That is correct; what I need are the ancient items you all have collected."

"Every noble who generously provides art pieces will share in the profits of Babylon with me."

The many nobles' breathing hitched, and Patriarch Komag smiled as he pointed to the wall clock above his head.

"Erik, the wall clock above my head was made in the eighteenth millennium to commemorate the invention of the Warp Engine, from which point humanity transcended the concept of time in interstellar travel; it was crafted by the renowned master Artisan Rahim."

He emphasized his tone and said: "There are only fifteen in the entire Imperium; they accompanied the earliest ships equipped with Warp Engines, and only ten eventually returned to the Imperium."

"They are the symbols of an era."

The Trickster felt his Spirituality become more lively, and bits of power within his body dissolved; he bowed slightly: "This is exactly the art piece I have dreamed of."

Komag was secretly pleased, thinking to himself.

【This is a good start; once Babylon is built, it will be mine sooner or later, just like how I "bought" the Rahim wall clock from a merchant.】

Most of the nobles harbored the same thoughts.

Although "Erik" was wealthy enough to rival a nation, they all believed that by relying on force and conspiracy, they could make their families the sole owners of this shining pearl, Babylon.

Two days later, the Trickster promised ninety percent of Babylon's profits in exchange for two hundred and fifty collection items from the various families.

After boarding the luxury airship, he thought to himself.

【It was worth the years I spent screening targets and meticulously crafting the image of a wealthy foreign noble.】

Through this swindle, I feel that I have perfectly mastered the power granted to me by Lord Ninglu and have become a true "Trickster."】

(End of chapter)