Of course, it was for that very reason that the Abyss Auction was illegal: Slavery was outlawed in The Empire. Of course, it had been abolished in na only; under the table, the slave trade still continued.
I keep bringing up the South, but that’s just what it was like there. Officially, they were rcenaries, but the clients had absolute control over their lives, and the contract had no end date. How was that any different from slavery?
As with any illegal activity, people would find loopholes and twist words to make it seem legal. When it ca down to it, though, enforcing the law was tricky, especially when the offender was in a position of great power.
I let out a sigh.
The Lord of Blood and Iron looked at and said, “You look like you have sothing to say.”
He sure was quick to pick up on things.
Since the Blessing of Truth made it impossible to hide anything, I just spoke my mind. “It’s just unexpected,” I said.
“What is?”
“I thought I wouldn’t care about the Bednicker family, but it seems like I do care after all.”
“...”
Maxim and the two disciples fell silent, maybe sensing that this wasn’t the ti to chi in.
The Lord of Blood and Iron seed to ponder my words.
“Does your blade only point toward the cult?” I asked.
Will you turn a blind eye to any other cris, any other offenses, that you know about?
If that was the case, I would be very disappointed in both the Lord of Blood and Iron and House Bednicker.
This feeling was unexpected.
It seed I still had expectations for them. After all, you couldn’t be disappointed if you never had expectations in the first place.
I wasn’t sure if this feeling was from the past or sothing I’d picked up in this life.
“Wait a minute... I'm sorry to interrupt.” Maxim looked at and asked, “Is this child yours?”
“Is it not obvious?”
“What?”
The Lord of Blood and Iron turned to look at .
Understanding what he was trying to tell , I nodded curtly while hiding my trepidation. All the unknown Middle Nas had left anyway, so it seed relatively safe to reveal my identity, if only to Maxim and his disciples.
Click.
I took off my mask. I hadn’t really felt suffocated while wearing it, but when I took it off, I felt a sense of relief.
Feeling more relaxed, I introduced myself. “I’m Luan Bednicker.”
Maxim looked at in shock. “Ha. That’s a fascinating...”
“Yes. It’s an amazing magic item.”
“...hobby.”
“...”
The Lord of Blood and Iron tried to extinguish the awkwardness. “Let us be respectful.”
“Of course. My mouth is heavy, so be at ease. It’s an honor, by the way, to et the youngest child of the Bednicker family. As a mber of Heroes and, more importantly, as a citizen of The Empire, may I express my gratitude?”
“...Of course.”
I shook Maxim's massive hand. It felt like I was shaking a bear's paw.
Then, seeing the two disciples with their jaws on the floor, I winked at them before looking away.
anwhile, the Lord of Blood and Iron said, “My blade cannot be everywhere in The Empire, but I have never ignored a sinner who entered my sight.”
“That ans...”
“The reason I am participating in the Abyss Auction is not for the auction itself. I have business with the organizer.”
“The organizer?”
“Raizen.”
I gasped.
That na was familiar.
Raizen.
Full na, Raizen Bednicker. The third son of the Lord of Blood and Iron.
* * * * *
* * * * *
The Lord of Blood and Iron, Dellark C. Bednicker.
As much of an extre believer in bloodlines Dellark was, he ensured that all his children excelled in their respective fields. Right now, the biggest nas were Hero, the eldest son; Hector, the second son; and Nero, the second daughter—and they likely would hold those positions well into the future.
In addition, the eldest daughter, Aquata, had made a na for herself as a mage, and the fourth son, Artis, had shown a talent for business from a young age. There was also Rudbick, who had faked his own death and infiltrated the Church of Darkness, quietly pulling off feats on par with Hero and Hector.
However, not all of the Lord of Blood and Iron's children achieved anything worthy of pride.
Take Luan Bednicker, for example. He had been a failed case, and he wasn’t the only one.
Of course, just because they failed to earn a reputation in combat didn’t an they weren’t influential elsewhere, like in politics, business, or even the underworld.
But such rumors didn’t spread easily and I’d never paid much attention, so who could say?
The reason I was so shocked to hear Raizen’s na now was because he was one of the three children of the Lord of Blood and Iron who had died before coming of age.
Rudbick’s death was faked...
Was Raizen’s death a lie too?
I wasn’t sure. Nor was I sure why the Lord of Blood and Iron was trying to et his third son now...
I tried to rember any useful information about Raizen Bednicker’s past, but nothing ca to mind.
Wait. Hadn’t I heard that he’d been enrolled at Kartell Academy?
“Raizen is the organizer of the Abyss Auction.”
I blinked, dumbfounded. “...I’m sorry?” I’d thought he was just another participant, but he was running the whole thing? “Is he not too young for that?”
The Abyss Auction was one of the largest secret auctions in The Empire. From what I'd heard, anywhere from ten gold to hundreds of thousands of gold could be exchanged in a single night...
That was on par with a major territory’s budget for an entire year. Even I, who had made a small fortune of five thousand gold thanks to the Sapphire Snake's corpse, couldn't quite wrap my head around numbers that big.
But the Lord of Blood and Iron spoke as if it was no big deal.
“Soone killed a high priest at fifteen, so this is not unusual.”
“Mm...” It was hard to argue with that.
He held out sothing to . “Take this.”
It was a pendant. The only unusual thing about it was the black gem in the center.
“It's a mbership pass. It will prove your identity. Show that, and they will let you bring at most two others.”
“Two others?”
“Yes. You three will act as bait,” he said while looking at , Ashol, and Hallo.
“Play the role of an immature child and buy every auction item you can get your hands on. If you do that, the organizers will act soon enough.”
“But about you, my lord?”
“I will be looking for crucial evidence with Maxim.”
I nodded. The Lord of Blood and Iron was suggesting a feint.
By the way...
It hadn’t been that long since I was stuck in bed, and here I was getting myself tangled up in this ss. Was that the price I had to pay for living an easy life in my past life?
I guess I wasn’t ant to live a carefree life.
* * *
After parting with Maxim and the Lord of Blood and Iron, I headed straight for the site of the Abyss Auction.
As soon as we left the restaurant, Hallo pointed a shaking finger at . “Y-you...! You... You’re a Bednicker!”
“Yep.”
“You said you were a student at the academy!”
“Transfer students are still students, no?”
Hallo looked away, embarrassed, before again shouting, “You badmouthed the Bednickers in front of !”
“You badmouthed them, I just agreed. It’s called basic conversation skills.”
“Wh...” Hallo stood frozen, stunned. Looking at her now, she seed just as simple as Mir. “To think you’d insult your own family to deceive ! Truly, an insidious Bednicker move!”
“Thanks for the complint.”
“Y-you also called yourself a nice guy. Where’s the sha?!”
“I am a nice guy.”
“A pervert who dresses up as girls can’t be a nice guy!”
“You disrespectful little—?!”
I could take all the insults aid at my family, but insulting was not sothing I could let slide.
Thankfully, Ashol stepped in at the perfect ti and stopped Hallo, whose face had turned red as a tomato.
“Hallo, stop it. Naru... no, Luan didn’t deceive you. He just kept a few truths hidden.”
“Asshole is right,” I said.
“...It’s Ashol.” He sighed, and I only gave him a blank look.
“Anyway, I never lied. I’ll introduce you to Hector tomorrow. After that, whether you two fight or compete, I don’t care.”
“Ha! You’ve already forgotten what we said? The person we want to fight most is you, Luan Bednicker!”
I let out a weak cough and said in a faint voice, “I'm sorry, but I'm still not feeling well. Even now, I’m forcing myself to stand.”
“What?”
“You’re really suggesting a duel with a patient? You, a mber of Heroes?”
“Wh-what? No...” Hallo stuttered, not knowing what to say.
Ashol, on the other hand, looked at calmly and slowly opened his mouth. “...It seems like it’s true that you aren’t in the best shape.”
“Hm?”
“But you could still beat us in your condition, right?”
As expected, this guy was both sharp and skilled.
Instead of answering, I pulled a map from my pocket and said, “If you really find to be a nuisance, just go off on your own. Since it was who the duke gave orders to, you two can just go ho, put your feet up, and go to sleep for all I care.”
Ashol shook his head. “We can't do that. Our master has expectations for us as well.”
“Is that so? Then I’m not taking any more complaints, so keep your mouths shut and follow ,” I said sowhat harshly.
Hallo once again got angry at my tone, but Ashol shot her a sharp look and she kept quiet.
From that, it was clear that Hallo didn’t have the final say in things. Ashol seed to be the one calling the shots when things really mattered.
Anyway, after leaving the academy for the first ti in a while, I headed to the place the Lord of Blood and Iron had told about.
When I saw the location for the first ti on the map, I was surprised. “I didn't expect the auction to be held at the Owl's Magic Tower.”
“Yeah, right?”
The Abyss Auction was held on the top floor of the Owl's Magic Tower. It was being held in the heavens, not underground. I wondered if this might be one of the reasons the Abyss Auction had managed to stay hidden for so long.
One could say it was a small but effective trick.
By the way, using the tower ans they must have so connection to the tower’s master.
But that wasn’t too strange. Mages were generally pragmatists, and personal research and advancing to the next level took a ridiculous amount of money. If they were offered a huge amount of gold in exchange, it wouldn’t be easy to turn down.
I realized this was my first ti going to a magic tower, so I asked, “Do you know anything about the Owl's Magic Tower?”
Hallo ignored , but Ashol answered, “Well... I heard they specialize in indigo magic, one of the seven colors of magic.”
“Indigo... that’s summoning magic, right?”
Summoning magic beca especially difficult as one progressed to the higher levels because it was closely related to space and ti magic.
Space-ti magic, huh...
No wonder. Even if the Abyss Auction was exposed, the organizers could easily cover their tracks and disappear, hence why an unofficial auction was being held right in the middle of the capital.
I’m really assured that everything is well run in this country...
No wonder Glenn had his doubts about The Empire. The Empire, although fine on the surface, was actually in a precarious state where it might collapse at any mont.
Back to the current situation, though, we headed toward the back door of the tower just as the Lord of Blood and Iron directed.
He said the wizard is wearing a black robe.
The wizard proved easy enough to find since most people here were wearing indigo robes. I showed them the pendant, and they gave a slight nod with an expressionless face.
“Welco,” they said, as if they were greeting a custor.
We followed behind as we were led to a room. It was a spacious room with luxurious carpet, but it felt oddly empty given the size. There was nothing inside except tables and chairs.
It must be a waiting room.
I sat down in a comfortable spot and looked around.
There were about a dozen people in the room, all of whom seed to be auction participants based on their attire.
Surprisingly, none of them had their faces covered.
Are they just bold, or do they trust the security here completely?
Or maybe there was so other reason I didn’t know about.
It was at this mont.
“The Abyss Auction is not what it used to be.”
Since I’d entered the room, I had sensed soone staring at ... But I wasn’t the type to shy away from things like that, so I stared right back.
A pudgy man with a pig-like grin sneered at . “I can't believe they’re giving little brats mbership passes now.”
Judging from his clothes, he looked like he ca from a pretty wealthy family. He was so massive that even the finest clothes and jewelry looked more like gaudy decorations than signs of wealth.
“This bastard...”
“Don’t.”
Ashol quickly stopped Hallo before she could do anything.
anwhile, I gave the pig a once-over and nodded to myself.
Despite his condescending attitude, the clothes and accessories he wore were the real deal. He might have terrible fashion sense, but at least he knew how to pick valuable items.
Hm. He might be useful.
I did not have an eye for appraising things. I could judge the worth of weapons and armor at a glance, but antiques? That required entirely different knowledge.
You had to know the nas, traits, and cultures of long-gone kingdoms, cities, and tribes...
Obviously, I didn’t.
Of course, I did have soone with an unparalleled eye for value—the Martial God himself. But unfortunately, I did not have the Sword of Seven Sins with right now, and no sword ant no Martial God.
Which ant I could make use of this pig instead.
Whatever he bid on, I’d just outbid him.
We’ll call this Operation: Make One Poor Bastard Regret Showing Up.
Not like it mattered much. Once the Lord of Blood and Iron stepped in, this auction would be reduced to nothing.
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