Alexander was ready to light the lantern he had prepared upon entering the main hall of the castle but found that there was no need to do so.
Despite it being night, the hall was faintly illuminated by several fixtures in the walls.
A smile formed on Alexander's face when he saw this. It was a very good sign indeed.
"Whoever owned this place must have been well off to have so many lamps with luminous crystals in them."
Moving up to one of the lamps, Alexander opened it up and yanked out the shining stone within.
He could tell with a single look that it was pretty high quality. Better than any of the luminous crystals within his own family's estate.
Still, it was not valuable enough to make a dent in the amount of money he needed. Perhaps if he brought back several thousands of these luminous crystals, they would fetch the sum he needed. Unfortunately, Alexander would never be able to carry that quantity back down the mountain even if this castle had enough.
At the very least it was a good sign that these crystals remained. Had looters found this place, they undoubtedly would not have left a single luminous crystal.
This gave Alexander hope that more valuable treasures rested deeper inside. Perhaps he would find an untouched treasure filled with gold and precious gems.
"Maybe I will even find a relic." Alexander snickered, not truly believing he would come across something so grand.
With a giddiness to his step, he began walking down the castle halls and checking every room he came across.
However, as he traversed farther into the castle, his elation plummeted. Every room he had come across was in a terrible state of disrepair and held nothing of value.
The inside of the castle had clearly been the sight of a vicious battle, and anything that could have stood the test of time had been destroyed.
Everything else that may have once been worth hefty sums of money had decayed.
Alexander found the remnants of once lavish garments that would have fetched a great price in perfect condition, the covers of books that's pages had long since rotted, and pieces of artwork that lay in shambles.
As for things like gold and gems that always held their value, Alexander had not come across any.
He reconsidered shoving his bag full of the numerous luminous crystals that seemed to be the only thing that had survived whatever calamity befell this place.
Of course, he already knew that would not be enough. The dept his father had incurred was not something that could be paid off with a single bag of luminous crystals. And for his true goals, Alexander would need even more money than his father owed.
Reassuring himself that there were still plenty of places to search, he continued on. Scouring the enormous castle for anything that would get him out of his predicament.
"This is the last place I thought I would actually fine a treasure worth taking."
After checking several more rooms, Alexander found himself in one that had a sink and seat with a hole in the middle of it.
Without any doubt this was a restroom, though, one that had been incredibly lavish at one time.
Inside the faucet of the sink Alexander found a waterstone that would produce crystal clear fresh water when magic power was passed through it.
He had only ever seen such a luxurious use of waterstones in the mansion owned by the duke that ruled the territory his family lived in.
Alexander's family, being on the lower rungs of nobility, could never afford to use water stones in such a manner. It was much cheaper just to hire people to fill up raised tanks that supplied water to facilities like restrooms.
"Looks like it is still in good condition. I bet I will get a good amount for it."
With an outstretched hand, Alexander channeled some of his magic power into the water stone and the long dormant item came to life and blasted water into the dusty sink.
Certain that this stone would be worth bringing back with him, Alexander took a knife out of his pack and went through the effort of prying the stone out.
Once he had secured the stone in a pouch attached to his belt, he turned towards the toilet
It was in a state worse than the sink, with shriveled up mold all over it that likely grew when there was still water sitting in the basin.
Alexander was unfortunately not in any position to be choosy and began searching the toilet for another waterstone.
At the very least he did not go away empty handed and found another waterstone housed within the toilet. Albeit one that was only about two thirds the size of the one in the sink and worth a proportional amount less.
"I guess I will be raiding the rest of the restrooms in this place." Alexander said with a grim smile.
It was not the romanticized idea he had in his head about finding hordes of gold and gems, but with a hundred or so waterstones, he would be able to make the bare minimum amount of money he needed.
Yet, as he turned around to leave, he heard the sound of something being knocked over in the room that was connected to this one.
A hand on his sword, Alexander cautiously peered into the room to see what had caused the noise.
There, he saw the figure of an emaciated person with sickly green skin.
A foul smell far worse than the abandoned restroom assaulted Alexander as he stared at this creature.
For a single second neither he nor the monster moved, but the fleeting moment did not last long as the monster threw itself towards Alexander.
In a panic he slammed the thankfully still attached restroom door closed and pushed against it with all his might.
He felt a heavy slam as the feral monster smashed into the door over and over again.