Dame Wasp: Master, we've hit the Motherload. Please share my senses so I can show you exactly what I mean.
Ace: Rose, I have company. I can't use sense-share right now. Just cast the video to my phone, and I'll view it there.
Dame Wasp: Alright, I'll get on it.
Dame Wasp: I've cast the video onto your phone, Master.
Dame Wasp: Master, are you seeing it?
Ace: What is that? A pile of bones and rags? Are those human skeletons? I thought they excavated all the human corpses by the early 1900s.
Dame Wasp: Not these ones. They seem to be buried almost 3,000 feet deep below the lakebed. I think these unfortunate souls drowned in a fault beneath the lake, reaching 3,100 feet below the lakebed. Later, the fault got filled with layers of sediment due to the landslide that unfortunate night, so no one ever managed to find them or the riches buried with them.
Ace: Holy shit! That's a huge discovery, Rose. Wait a minute, how are we going to get them without anyone noticing?
Dame Wasp: Don't worry, Master. I can use my braid laser to perform laser boring and reach them, and once I grasp the treasure, you can recall me.
Emi: Master, you can use my talismans to create a barrier on the lakebed and set up a temporary shop underwater. This way, Senpai and you can mine buried treasures right under everyone's noses without any disturbance.
Ace: Emi, I'm not sure about using talismans on such a grand scale. Though we didn't sense anyone from the 'World of Curses' staying at the resort they could be using high-level stealth arts. We need to be cautious and avoid using curse energy on such a large scale. Do you have any underwater breathing talismans? We could just use those to mine underwater and your storage talisman to secure the haul.
Emi: I do have 'Underwater Breathing' talismans.
Dame Wasp: Master, you're doing it again. You're being too cautious. The dig site is about 500 yards from the lakeshore, and the depth of the lake there is 3,300 feet. The chances of someone from the 'World of Curses' staying at the resort and sensing us using curse energy at the lakebed from who-knows-where are very low, almost negligible.
Ace: Guys, it wouldn't hurt to be cautious. And Rose, you're my first toy summon. If you act , you'll set a bad example for the others.
Dame Wasp: I'm sorry, Master. I'll do better next time.
Emi: Master, Rose-Senpai didn't mean any disrespect. She was just looking out for you. After all, swimming for hours, 3,300 feet underwater, and mining for treasure would be taxing. But within the barrier, you'll be safer and more at ease. You can also use my 'Presence Erasing' talisman to erase any trace of curse energy.
Dame Wasp: Emi, I don't need you to speak up for me. Hurry and apologize to our Master.
Emi: I'm sorry, Master. I spoke out of turn.
Ace: That's alright. I made a casual remark. The status screen failed to convey the intended tone. Dame Wasp, you did nothing wrong. I'm not always right, and I need you guys to help me stay on track. Also, Emi, good job standing up for your Senpai. I prefer these kinds of active and harmonious team meetings. Let this harmony be an example for the toy summons yet to join us.
Emi: Thank you, Master. Senpai, don't mention it.
Ace: Alright, let's get back to work.
Ace: Dame Wasp, use your cybernetics to make a detailed map of the dig site and all buried treasures so you can excavate them efficiently when we commence Operation 'Fortune Dive' at midnight.
Ace: Emi, make sure you have enough 'Barrier,' 'Presence Erasing,' 'Underwater Breathing,' and 'Storage' talismans.
Ace: You two discuss and decide how much time and how many talismans we need to excavate all the treasure from that buried fault. Now, get to work.
Dame Wasp: Affirmative.
Emi: Goryō itashimasu (I will comply).]
Pocketing his phone with a satisfied smile, Ace sipped his soda, recalling the mother lode of buried treasures discovered by Dame Wasp. The rush and excitement of a treasure hunt were unlike anything else. He couldn't wait for midnight to start digging. Thinking of the treasures, Ace couldn't help but grin from ear to ear, looking like a loon.
He looked around with a silly grin on his face, only to find Mandy glaring at him. Perplexed, he raised an eyebrow, silently asking, 'What?' But she turned away without responding, seemingly mad at him for reasons only known to her.
'What crawled up her butt?' Ace wondered, but he didn't dwell on it for long as his mind drifted back to fantasies of treasure hunting. After all, it was every boy's dream, right up there with banging the hottest teacher in their school. Knowing that tonight one of his fantasies was about to come true, how could he not be excited?
"Mandy, I might consider selling my 25 acres to you if you can help me get a $1.5 million loan, in cash, by this afternoon. It should be interest-free for the first week," Old Greg suddenly proposed. He had just double-checked the little info Mandy shared with him and learned from his contacts at the town hall why Lansky was urgently selling his orchard.
It turned out Lansky was under investigation by the IRS. His sudden rush to sell assets at bargain prices only made him look more suspicious of whatever the IRS was investigating him for. Sensing an opportunity to buy Lansky's orchard for less, the big farming company withdrew their offer at last minute, using corporate inspections as an excuse to bide their time.
Old Greg could have waited like the organic farm company, but he knew that as time passed, Lansky would grow more desperate, and the competition for the orchard would only increase. Someone might swoop in and buy it from Lansky right under their noses, just like Mandy had bought Hank's 10 acres from under his nose. Not to mention, the IRS could freeze Lansky's assets at any moment. Most importantly, he had been eyeing that orchard for years and wasn't about to let it slip through his fingers this time.
Being both a friend and rival of Lansky, Old Greg knew the orchard well enough to make a bid of $4.4 million for it with his eyes closed. It was nearly $200k less than what the big organic farm company had offered, but he thought Lansky might agree if he could pay the full amount on the spot, in cash.
However, Greg could only arrange $2 million by this afternoon. With Mandy's $900k for his 25 acres and an additional $1.5 million loan, he planned to make Lansky's orchard his by this evening.
Listening to Old Greg's proposal, Mandy frowned but quickly countered, "That changes things. I can get you a $1.6 million loan, in cash, interest-free for the first week by this afternoon—if you sell your 25 acres to me for $800k right now. Of course, I'll be paying in cash too. Do we have a deal?"
"Deal!" Old Greg instantly agreed, adding, "I like how you do business."