Chapter 672 Necklace
In the central region of Pritz in northern Faraluo, at noon, the capital city of Faraluo houses the National Museum of Faraluo. Among the intricate Faraluo buildings, it stands majestically with countless exquisite sculptures, also known as the Upper Grant Palace. It was once the royal palace within the city during the Faraluo Dynasty, used primarily for issuing decrees, handling government affairs, and holding various conferences. If the Palace of the Goddess is where the king resides and entertains, then this place is where he works.
After the Cold Moon Revolution, it became the National Museum of Faraluo, housing numerous artifacts and documents from various historical periods, both domestic and collected from colonies through various means. Almost all of the documents that Sander provided to Doro were sourced from here.
Now, following Adele’s request, Sander’s subordinates secretly led her into the museum. In a small, window-side room inside, Adele, dressed casually yet brightly, sat at an ordinary desk. She had one leg crossed over the other, reading a magazine while waiting leisurely for something.
“Miss, what you asked for is right here.”
At this moment, a black-suited Black-clothed Person entered the room and placed a wooden box on Adele’s table after walking up to her. The box was covered with many labels and had a thin layer of dust that hadn’t been wiped off, suggesting it had been stored somewhere for years.
“According to the archives you identified, the artifact inside should correspond to the description, obtained from Bourbon late period, acquired from Northern Ufeiga, fortunately preserved until now,” the Black-clothed Person explained to Adele after placing the box in front of her. Adele looked at the box and nodded with a smile.
“Thank you. May I look inside?”
“No problem, we’ve already unlocked it,” the Black-clothed Person responded simply. Adele immediately put down her magazine and focused on the wooden box. After examining it closely, she opened the unlocked box.
Upon lifting the lid, Adele saw protective paper fillings inside. She carefully removed them to reveal another paper-wrapped object. When Adele picked it up, she could feel a sharp-edged item inside.
“It doesn’t seem quite right… According to the archive, this artifact should be larger,” Dorothy commented via the information channel. Adele echoed the thought.
“Could there be a problem? Shouldn’t opening it directly be fine?”
“Wait a moment.”
Dorothy spoke, then controlled a pre-prepared tiny insect to crawl out from Adele’s sleeve, onto her hand, and into the paper wrapping. Soon, Adele heard Dorothy’s serious voice.
“You can open it.”
Hearing this, Adele began to unwrap the paper package, revealing a golden artifact with distinct edges. The artifact was intricately decorated with various patterns, forming a triangular shape with a missing eye symbol on one face and four corners.
“This is it… but the crystals are missing. You should keep looking inside the box,” Dorothy said through the information channel. Adele carefully checked the box but found no crystals. She then looked up at the nearby Black-clothed Person and asked directly.
“Is this all? Are you sure you didn’t make a mistake?”
“No mistake, B0047 artifact, Crystal-embedded Gold Carved Triangular Pyramid, this is it,” the Black-clothed Person replied seriously. Adele continued.
“There’s gold and a hollow, but where are the crystals? Can you explain where they went? Were they classified separately in another box?” Adele asked. The Black-clothed Person fell silent, pondering how to respond when a familiar voice echoed in the room.
“No separate classification. What you have is the complete artifact.”
Hearing this, Adele was stunned and turned to the source of the voice. There stood Sander, the fourth governor of Faraluo, wearing a trench coat, carrying a cane, wearing a flat cap, and smoking a cigar.
Seeing Sander enter, the Black-clothed People immediately bowed respectfully. Sander waved slightly and gestured to his subordinates, who left the room, closing the door behind them, leaving only Adele and Sander.
After dismissing his subordinates, Sander slowly walked to Adele’s side and sat at the opposite table. Watching him sit down, Adele softly spoke.
“I didn’t expect Governor to be so interested in coming here personally. Looks like the administration hasn’t tied you down too much.”
Looking at the suddenly appearing Sander, Adele spoke with interest. Her words were simple; she was questioning why Sander wasn’t dealing with assassination attempts or pressuring political rivals but instead came here.
“Hmm… In those matters, I’m in a proactive position, but this is just on the surface. My disadvantageous position in the Faraluo political arena remains unchanged. I can’t just use a bit of initiative to push them too hard, accelerating their next move against me. Now, I need to slowly use this initiative to engage them and build more allies. This isn’t urgent, so I have time to focus on other things.”
After hearing Adele, Sander replied calmly. He flicked the ash from his cigar and continued.
“I heard you quickly chose items after receiving the artifact archives. I’m curious—what item caught your eye that was overlooked by the Judge of Heaven Church for a century? Unexpectedly, it was this.”
Listening to Sander, Adele asked directly, holding the golden artifact.
“Do you know what this is? Do you know where the crystals went?”
“Indeed… Due to well-known reasons, I have extensive knowledge about Bourbon history, including traces related to the artifact in your hands.”
“What is it? Not related to Charles again, right?” Adele asked straightforwardly. Sander recalled and responded.
“Yes, it is related to the King Charles. According to the Bourbon Court History Volume 14, when King Charles was 47, he celebrated the victory over Pritz and Iwig in Northern Ufeiga, establishing Faraluo’s dominance there. A grand celebration was held in Pritz to display his triumph. This included an exhibition showcasing numerous war spoils and treasures from Northern Ufeiga.
“At this celebration, Charles personally toured the exhibition and bestowed treasures to loyal soldiers and important lords. The ‘Crystal-embedded Gold Carved Triangular Pyramid’ was named ‘Victory’s Radiance’ and was part of the exhibition.”
Sander explained calmly. Adele guessed and asked.
“So, were the crystals given away by Charles? Then why is the gold base still here?”
“Not exactly. Charles didn’t give away this artifact. Many lords coveted this exquisite piece made of gold and crystal, but Charles didn’t grant any. Because Queen Maria, whom he loved dearly, wanted it… Specifically, she wanted the crystals.
“Maria was naturally fond of jewelry. While collecting beautiful jewels to fill her collection, she was also a connoisseur. Legend has it that she first saw the crystal of ‘Victory’s Radiance’ at the celebration and was deeply captivated.
“Maria believed the crystal was incredibly pure and clear, one of the best she had ever seen. She requested her husband, King Charles, to grant her the crystals so she could craft a beautiful piece of jewelry. Charles, of course, wouldn’t refuse his beloved queen’s request and promptly removed the four crystals from the gold base, granting them to Maria.”
Sander explained calmly. Listening to him, Dorothy couldn’t help but comment in her mind that the queen was truly clueless.
To Dorothy, the carvings on the gold base were meaningful, with dense, orderly lines embodying a geometric beauty. If she had to compare, seeing it was like a programmer seeing a perfectly coded program without any bugs. To an engineer, it was like seeing a neatly wired server room. It was delightful and beautiful everywhere.
‘This woman just doesn’t get it,’ Dorothy thought, continuing to observe Adele. Adele, after glancing at the carvings on the gold base, remarked.
“The carvings aren’t very appealing… rigid and harsh, no wonder the queen rejected it outright. Did she successfully turn those crystals into jewelry?”
“Yes, after being crafted by court artisans, the four crystals were turned into a necklace called ‘Light of Maria.’ Whenever Queen Maria wore it, its brilliance often amazed the crowd. This necklace became one of the most famous treasures of the Bourbon Royal Family, symbolizing Queen Maria herself,” Sander said. Adele then asked seriously.
“So, what happened to that necklace afterward? I remember Maria died in a shipwreck with Charles. Wasn’t it lost at sea?”
“No, when the Nokdoen shipwreck occurred, Maria didn’t wear her cherished necklace. Instead, she left it in the Palace of the Goddess. After Charles and Maria’s deaths, their son, Robert, who was the first in line to inherit the throne of Faraluo, succeeded them. He later became known as the Greedy King. The ‘Light of Maria’ was also inherited by Robert.
“As for the Greedy King’s story, I don’t need to elaborate. During his reign, the Cold Moon Revolution erupted, and Bourbon’s wealth was plundered…” Sander said seriously. Hearing this, Adele frowned.
“Wasn’t that necklace lost in the plunder of the Cold Moon Revolution?”
“No, it wasn’t lost, it was stolen! The ‘Light of Maria’ was stolen by a despicable thief before the great plunder of the Cold Moon Revolution!” Sander said angrily, extinguishing his cigar, causing sparks and ashes to scatter.
