Chapter 107. Why are you here?2021.02.09.
“Aidan that human…”
“That’s right.”
Even if we didn’t have to say our names out of our mouths, the two of us understood each other. The man, Veron Arthur Devlica, had personally visited this place. Recognizing him wasn’t that difficult. The empty sleeves that were clearly visible even in the dim view and the unique atmosphere felt even though he was wearing a mask did not show any effort to hide himself. That was why I could recognize her at first sight, even though I had never seen her face. It is a well-known fact that the Emperor of Devlin lost an arm during the war.
‘I thought I could sell a trap, but I never thought he would come himself.’
I knew how crazy I was, but I didn’t expect it to be this much. To the extent that he would proudly appear in the capital of an enemy country, he would not be normal.
“miss. Are you talking about that man?”
I nodded at Casey’s question, and he lowered his voice to whisper to me.
“That is a puppet. It is not a real body.”
“Not a real body? what do you mean?”
“yes. It is to separate part of one’s own mana and move according to one’s will.”
Before I could fully comprehend Casey’s words, the presenter started making a fuss, singing the best price.
“1000 gold! 1000 gold is out! Any more?”
I quickly flashed the license plate.
“2000 gold.”
“2000 gold! 2000 gold!”
First of all, it was important not to take that earring away. I ignored Veron’s gaze at me and asked Casey insinuatingly.
“Are all wizards able to clone themselves?”
“It can’t be. It is taboo magic in that magic, Ermano. That’s really dangerous. If you get hit by an attack, the damage will be transmitted to the main body. No, it could be worse.”
Anyway, trying to catch the fake Veron sitting over there is no use because it’s not real.
“Hmm.”
A plan unfolded in my mind. In the meantime, the auction price soared without knowing the end.
“4000 gold.”
When Veron called for exactly double the amount I asked for, the emcee got even more excited and started talking.
“4000 gold! 4000 gold!”
The auction attendees began to hum at the huge auction price.
“Could those earrings be magic tools?”
“Isn’t it just a rusty old accessory?”
“What the hell are they…”
A shocked gaze scanned Veron and me in turn. I didn’t care about him and picked up the license plate.
“5000 gold.”
As I was calling the price and lowering the license plate, I suddenly noticed Aidan clenching his fists. He gripped it so tightly that it was white. Only then did I realize that I had been indifferent to Aidan.
“Aidan. are you okay?”
“No need to worry. It’s not a real body anyway.”
“Don’t worry about me. Aidan you are talking about.”
“…it’s okay.”
Even if I said it was okay, there was no way it would be okay. How happy people would be if they could forget the abuse after a few years. I covered Aidan’s fist with one hand. Then Aidan’s hand felt a little loose.
“okay. It’s okay, Aidan. It’s just a puppet.”
Veron can never play nonsense with Aidan. Because I am by Aidan’s side. And Aidan is no longer Devlin’s demon.
‘I can’t even lay a hand on my angel.’
I looked directly at Veron, who was staring at me, and raised the license plate.
“100 million gold.”
“100 million go gold?!”
The sound of gasping for breath erupted from everywhere. But it didn’t matter.
“miss. The budget that was set is-.”
Casey talked to me worriedly, but I smiled coolly.
“Don’t worry Casey.”
“But, lady, 100 million gold…”
“Do you believe me?”
“…I believe.”
Budget was never an issue. All I need now is firm determination and brilliant judgment.
“100 million.”
“120 million.”
. . .
“300 million.”
Between Veron and my workshop, the price of earrings skyrocketed like crazy. The auctioneer sneaked up to see if he had the ability to pay the price. Although he saw the blank check issued by the Evil Guild and disappeared. I gave Casey and Aidan a number of instructions even as the price went up.
“500 million gold.”
Veron suddenly raised 200 million gold. I felt a strong will to win the bid unconditionally. No matter how much a country’s emperor was, the range of cash that could be circulated was bound to be limited. It’s because the emperor doesn’t have the right to squander the national treasury at will. Moreover, this is Ermano, not Devlin. It was not an easy task to distribute that amount of money abroad.
‘Even so, 500 million won would be enough.’
So what about this one?
“One billion gold.”
The auction house became quiet as if cold water had been poured on my superprecipitation. The moderator now shouted in a soulless voice, not even knowing what amount he was calling for.
“One billion gold is out! Is there anyone else you want to call?”
“1.1 billion gold.”
Veron sang 100 million. It was possible to guess what the budget he had set for it was from the lower amount than before.
‘It must have been 1 billion gold at most.’
But I had no intention of letting Veron go.
“Two billion gold.”
“…!”
This time, even Veron didn’t immediately call the price. Casey said, ‘Two billion gold, two billion gold!’ I heard a muttering voice, but I didn’t care at all. A moment passed. The moderator, who came to his senses belatedly, exclaimed in amazement.
“Two billion gold! The highest is 2 billion gold! Is there anyone else you want to call?”
No one lifted the license plate. The presenter shouted with a wide smile, probably glad that the battle was finally over.
“Then, the highest bid will be won at 2 billion gold!”
“2.5 billion gold.”
Veron cut off the moderator’s words and picked up the license plate. People looked at me with anticipation, thinking that a huge price competition would start again.
“2.5 billion gold! Are these earrings worth it? Can you call more?”
“….”
“Is there anyone else you want to call?”
The host also glanced at me. But I pushed the hood even deeper and leaned back on the sofa.
“2.5 billion gold…a successful bid! Please pick up the item after paying the price after the auction is over.”
After a long competition, it was Veron who finally obtained the essence of the tree of creation.
‘Whew, I almost got the winning bid.’
How does it feel to win a pair of earrings at the ridiculous price of 2.5 billion gold? It was only regrettable that the auction house was dark, so I couldn’t see his expression. In addition, it was clear that the judges were distorted, so Veron stopped looking at me. Casey asked me, stamping her feet.
“What are you thinking about now? Wouldn’t it be difficult if that essence was taken away?”
“It’s difficult, but it’s okay.”
“It’s difficult, but what the hell is good?”
“But buying that for 2.5 billion won’t be like that.”
“Did he buy it?”
“Then you are stupid.”
Aidan had told me that Veron hates having his things taken away. It is said that he is always confined to the imperial castle and doesn’t show up, so he must be quite lacking in social skills.
‘I’ll be respected as the only successor and I’ll never lose because I’ve grown up.’
That was exactly what I was aiming for. Making Veron win a bid at a ridiculous price. It’s an outrageous price, so even if it came in my hands, I wouldn’t even feel like I got it.
“Then what are you going to do with those earrings? Are you giving up?”
“I didn’t give up. The next auction starts, so let’s take a look.”
“You have a plan, too?”
Perhaps reassured by my words, Casey let out a deep sigh and sank into the sofa. After the fuss, the auction house was more heated than before. There were many rare stolen goods and items, but there was no fierce battle like the competition between me and Veron.
‘When will it end?’
It was the time when he was enduring boredom while constantly checking Veron’s location. thud. thud! I opened my eyes wide at the loud sound that rang the floor.
“catch! Get it right!”
“Move the kid with care!”
When I saw the stage at the clamor, the auction house workers were carrying something heavy while struggling. The epicenter of the thumping was the object they were moving. Two objects covered with cloth. One was very small in size and the other was the size of an adult male host.
“Now, this auction item is a rare monster!”
As the moderator rolled up the cloth, the compact cage appeared. In the big cage, there was a big beast with great wounds, and in the small cage, there was a baby beast. The bear-like beast’s fur was red, and it had wings on its back.
“Kreurreu…”
A large demon with all its hair erected into the cage. thud! The people fell silent for a moment at the tremendous sound, and then began to cheer.
“Red Prover!”
“Come on, start the auction!”
The emcee smiled skillfully while calming the cheering crowd.
“This red prober is truly special. It’s because it even comes with a baby! The red prober’s ferocious nature makes it impossible to tame it, but it’s a different story if you have offspring. The fact that they are a race with strong paternal and maternal love, so they can be tamed!”
“Wow!”
“One plus one! Let’s start at 10 gold.”
After that, it was a fierce competition between people whose eyes were blinded by rare monsters.
“1000 gold!”
“5000 gold!”
“100 million gold!”
“200 million!”
“500 million!”
When everyone was frantic to get their hands on a rare monster, I heard a different voice.
[mom mom. I’m scared.]
[It’s okay, baby. It’s okay.]
[Mom. Noisy. scared. Mom.]
The baby witch whimpered and pulled herself as close as possible to the big cage.
[Mom, don’t go.]
[Mom won’t die.]
[Mom hurts…]
The mother’s witch, who was still looking at the baby witch, bumped into the cage again. As a result, the wound widened further and blood began to pool on the floor. The more the Demon Beast struggled, the more people cheered.
“10 billion!”
“1.5 billion!”
They’re probably doing that because they can’t hear the conversations the demons are having. No, it might not matter even if you hear it.
“Mabel’s complexion doesn’t look good.”
“Are you okay, miss?”
Aidan and Casey were worried about me. I took a big deep breath.
‘…It’s a complete revision of the plan.’
There will be risks involved. You may have encountered an unexpected situation. But if I hadn’t seen it, I couldn’t stay still since I had already listened to that conversation. If he could get the magic beasts out, he could endure it.
“Casey. My plans have changed.”
“yes?”
“Take the demons and move to the guild headquarters. Did you bring a short-distance movement magic tool?”
The short-distance movement magic tool was made by Casey with materials secretly stolen from Devlin, and it was not commercialized because there were no manufacturing materials in Ermano.
“Yes? But that’s for the young lady to escape.”
“are you okay. In case you don’t know, let’s move on to us.”
Casey didn’t understand, but she nodded her head. I turned to Aidan.
“Aidan. We have other work to do.”
“Please order.”
It was then. Hard! There was a creepy sound of scratching on the floor and walls. The sound went all the way to the ceiling. The auctioneer came running in amazement.
“I am a tree. Trees have covered the entire opera house! All entrances are sealed!”
My first plan came true wonderfully. Not even a single ant can escape from this opera house. Since it was an illegal auction house, there was not even a hint of remorse. I laughed a little watching the people who were wandering around.
“I take over this auction house.”
***
“Unexpected.”
Veron, who came to the auction house through an alter ego, laughed at the unexpected confinement. The news that the essence of the creation tree would appear in the illegal auction house in Ermano was information I had heard from Duke Javier a few months ago. Duke Javier’s whereabouts became unclear, and the kidnapper was expected to be Aidan, so he thought he would come. But I never thought I’d be locked up like this.
‘It’s not Aidan’s ability, is it the little emperor?’
I never thought that the young one would come in person. At best, Veron, who knew that Aidan would come, planned to bring Aidan to Devlin. Although it was distorted by the unexpected appearance of a rival.
‘It must have taken the growth elixir.’
Efforts to conceal identity were also virtual. Veron moved stealthily among the people who were taken aback by the suddenly rising tree. The auction was won at an absurd price of 2.5 billion gold, but all was useless as long as the auction house went into chaos.
“The demon beast has disappeared!”
“I heard a phantom thief!”
In addition, the eyes of the auctioneers were all focused on the stage as the demon suddenly disappeared. Veron walked leisurely and headed to the back of the stage. In the place where it moved along with the energy of the essence, the earrings that had been wrapped for the successful bidder were placed. The purpose was two earrings and Aidan, but I had to give up Aidan. It was just then that Veron made his decision.
“Veron Arthur Devlica.”
A girl’s voice came from behind. Mabel’s cool gaze scanned Veron.
“I have to give up 2.5 billion gold. Can I just take it with me?”
“It’s not even the land that I rule over anyway.”
Veron held the box proudly and scattered the mana of his whole body. I thought I’d get the things, but I thought they would scatter and disappear from this place. But that was the thought that made Mabel soft. Mabel’s abilities that Veron knew were about healing and growing plants, so he judged that he was not a threat at all. But Mabel was different.
“I just can’t let you go.”
Mabel’s hand slumped toward the floor. In an instant, a divine spear was created in Mabel’s hand. It was a fleeting moment to pierce Veron’s heart.
“Keugh!”
Veron’s mana, which had not yet been dispersed, convulsed and went out of control.
“Aaaaaaa!! you you!”
Veron, who was writhing in pain, stretched out his hand toward Mabel, crawling on the floor. However, it could not be reached and soon disappeared.
***
A slightly risky plan worked.
“Aidan and the essence are all mine.”
I hummed and picked up the box of earrings that had fallen to the floor. I ordered Aidan to stay away in case Veron tricked Aidan, but fortunately Aidan listened to my order.
‘I thought it was dangerous and said no, but it was unexpected.’
The last thing left was to get out of this auction house with Aidan. It was when I was walking down the aisles of the Opera House waiting room in search of Aidan.
“…!”
A very familiar person was walking across the street.
‘Oh why is Oscar here?!’
I was about to make a sound. Fortunately, Oscar didn’t seem to have found me. I quickly closed my mouth and hurriedly moved in the direction I had come from.
‘What are you doing here? It’s an illegal auction house?’
When I was walking, thinking hard with my head stiff and not turning, I bumped into a person walking in front of me without seeing it.
“I’m sorry-.”
Raising my head, I was more surprised than when I saw Oscar.
‘It’s Dad!’
Why is Daddy here again?
