Chapter 85: Undersea Auction House (2)
To think she was the enemy who killed my older sister.
Siss loosened the strength clenched in her fist and continued speaking.
[I’ve been running away from lissa for the past few years.]
How had it ended up like that?
Had the eldest sister who killed her own younger sibling tried to kill the youngest as well?
Or had multiple misunderstandings piled up on top of each other?
[Honestly, when I see lissa’s face…….]
I couldn’t know the reason, but there was one thing I was certain of.
[I might run away again.]
Right now, Siss was extrely anxious.
Watching her like that, Diesel couldn’t just stay still and stepped in.
[Hey.]
[……?]
Diesel reached out, passed through the hologram, and placed his hand on Siss’s shoulder.
[You told earlier to trust you.]
[……Yeah.]
[Then you should trust yourself too.]
[…….]
At those words, Siss, who had been looking at Diesel, lowered her gaze.
Just then, an announcent flowed from the banquet hall speakers.
[We would like to inform our honored guests who have visited ‘Lethe’s Abyss.’ An auction will be held shortly in the main hall, so those who wish to participate, please submit your applications.]
[We’re going, right?]
At Diesel’s words, Siss, who had been staring blankly for a mont, stood up from her seat.
[Yeah. We’re going.]
Her voice was still slightly trembling.
Even so, she didn’t look as anxious as before.
Diesel stood up after her and spoke.
[But they said we need to apply, so how do we—]
[It’s fine.]
[……?]
[I already did.]
Although he couldn’t see her face, for so reason Diesel felt like Siss was smiling softly.
The place where the auction was held looked like a gigantic opera house.
The seat Diesel sat in was a particularly luxurious VIP seat among them.
[Nice seats.]
[I put so effort into it.]
A special two-person seat arranged on the upper level.
A pri spot with a full view of the stage and the audience.
Before long, the empty seats were filled one by one, and the interior beca packed with people.
Diesel and Siss looked them over one by one.
‘As expected, the Electrosphere security here is insane.’
Perhaps because this was where the real auction took place, the security was on an entirely different level compared to the outer banquet hall.
The lower seats, which weren’t VIP, looked noticeably lighter in security, but even so, no ordinary hacker would dare try anything.
[I see so faces I didn’t see at the party earlier.]
[Well, that place wasn’t one you really needed to attend.]
As Diesel was briefly looking around, a familiar face caught his eye.
[Siss.]
[Huh?]
[Over there, at about three o’clock.]
[…….]
Strangely enough, there was a familiar face there.
A brown bear beastman he had seen in Podvig’s executive interview room.
‘Was it Director Michya?’
[He’s got guts. That’s not really a rank where you can walk around with your face exposed.]
Sure enough, as she said, the position of a ga Corp director was rather shabby compared to the others who had revealed their faces.
[More than that, it’s more surprising that guy’s still alive.]
Even if he was a half-dragon, he had been hit by a dragon’s breath.
Power strong enough to punch a huge hole through a skyscraper.
Perhaps because of that, half his body was now entirely prosthetic.
[It’s starting.]
As they were chatting idly, the curtain draped over the central stage was drawn aside, revealing a short, green-skinned man.
‘A goblin?’
The goblin man, neatly dressed in a suit, bowed his head toward the audience.
Then, in a sharp, ringing voice, he continued speaking.
“Ladies and gentlen! Welco to the Black Market! The auction will begin shortly, so we would appreciate it if everyone would take their seats!”
As the host flashed a grin toward the audience, a small gold-capped canine tooth glinted.
[You know this already, but the bidding thod is the sa as any other auction house.]
From the starting price, bidders compete until the item is sold to the highest bidder.
A rule simple enough for even a first-tir to understand.
‘He said just one.’
The item Siss had promised to support was only one.
‘Let’s stick to the plan for now.’
Aside from that, Diesel planned to buy a few reasonable items with the money he had saved up.
He had already checked the catalog and planned what to bid on and for how much.
“Then, let us begin the auction!”
With the goblin’s voice, the lights dimd smoothly, as if a play were about to begin.
“The first item! A ‘Fresh Branch of the World Tree’ grown in the sacred lands of the Scandinavian elves far to the north! Just being a byproduct of the World Tree already guarantees its rarity, but that alone wouldn’t be enough to enter our auction house, would it? What makes this branch special is that it is a new shoot that sprouts only once every fifty years! In other words, it is extrely ‘fresh’! If you look closely, sap is practically dripping from this cut surface— even to a complete amateur in horticulture like myself, it’s obvious at a glance that this is a valuable item!”
Perhaps displeased with the goblin’s vulgar introduction, a protesting shout burst out from so group in a corner.
‘Must be elves.’
As if Diesel’s guess was correct, Siss let out a small laugh.
[What a ss, those Northern European elves.]
“Ah, ah, the excitent is quite intense! In that case, let’s proceed right away! The starting bid is 20 million Qubit! Yes! Right off the bat, we have 25 million Qubit! Ah, soone over there has raised it to 30 million!”
In the end, the New Shoot of the World Tree did not end up in the elves’ hands.
[The winner’s a Russian orc. If the elves find out, this could start a war.]
[An orc?]
[Yeah.]
[Why would they need a World Tree branch?]
[I don’t know. They might use it for sorcery, or they might just be planning to make kimchi with it.]
[Kimchi with a tree branch……?]
[Central Asian orcs even make kimchi with tree roots. A tender fresh branch like that would be perfectly edible.]
“Now, the next item is……!”
And so, for a while, various different items passed by.
Among them, Diesel won the items he had planned for in advance at reasonable prices.
Then, soon, the item he had been waiting for appeared.
“This one is also a very special item! Anyone with even a slight interest in artifacts will have their eyes on this! It is the legendary craftsman’s artifact, ‘Magnus’s Business Card’!”
[Diesel. What are you going to do?]
Siss asked as she looked at Diesel.
[Hmm……. For now, let’s wait.]
“The starting bid is 30 million Qubit!”
The mont the auctioneer finished speaking, Diesel was the first to raise his hand.
“30 million Qubit, the bidder in the upper seats!”
‘I’ll test the waters a bit with my own money first…….’
If the price stayed low, it might be better to save Siss’s help.
Even though I knew all the auction items appearing today, there was always the chance that so surprise item not listed in the catalog could co out.
“Now, we have 35 million Qubit! Ah! Imdiately 40 million, 40 million has been called!”
The maximum amount I could bid right now was about 60 million Qubit.
That would already count as a fairly decent shopping spree.
‘If I stretch things a bit, maybe I could make it to 70 million…….’
As I was calculating the expected amount.
“100 million.”
Suddenly, a price more than double the current bid was called.
‘……That bastard.’
When I turned my head, there stood the brown bear beastman executive from Podvig, confidently raising his hand.
“100 million! 100 million Qubit has been called! Is there anyone else? Let repeat! The current bid is 100 million Qubit!”
With the auctioneer’s exaggerated excitent, the hall fell deathly silent.
‘100 million…….’
No matter how hard I squeezed, this was beyond my limit.
“Is there no one else? In that case—!”
As I was fidgeting with my hands, thinking that.
[200 million.]
Little Sister called an even bolder amount.
“…….”
“200 million! Is there anyone else? The current bid is 200 million Qubit!”
The brown bear’s expression twisted viciously at the unexpected situation.
He openly shot glances at Siss and muttered.
“220 million.”
“220 million has been calle—”
[300 million.]
“Ah, straight to 300 million! 300 million has been called! What a bold bidder we have!”
“…….”
The brown bear’s expression warped even further.
“350 million…….”
[400 million.]
“There’s not even ti for to speak! 400 million! In an instant, it jumps to 400 million!”
“You damn bastard…….”
Now he was outright baring his fangs and glaring at Siss.
Eyes that looked like he might bite her to death at any mont.
“400 million! Is there anyone else? The legendary artifact craftsman Magnus’s Business Card is currently at 400 million!”
Despite the auctioneer’s shout, the brown bear rely trembled in place, unable to open his mouth.
At that, the goblin banged his chro-plated hamr with a clang and spoke.
“Sold for 400 million! Congratulations!”
Four hundred million for a single business card.
No matter how much it was said to have an effect that recharged artifacts, it was a winning price far above the average.
Watching Siss boldly call out prices, I found myself quite curious about just how much wealth she actually had.
[That guy’s pretty small-minded for a ga Corp director.]
Even after such a huge expense, she tossed out a relaxed remark.
Given her personality, it probably wasn’t just bluster.
And so, all the auction items listed in the catalog were finished.
‘Is that the end now?’
Contrary to expectations, there was no particular movent from the Despotis hacker side.
‘Still, I can’t let my guard down.’
As I was scanning the surroundings with that thought.
The goblin still standing on the stage flashed a grin and continued.
“Now, with that, all auctions for the items we inford you of in advance have concluded. But surely none of you thought that was really the last, did you?”
Then he spread both arms wide and shouted.
“Now, let us begin today’s highlight auction!”
‘Highlight?’
Sensing sothing ominous, I asked Siss.
[Siss. What is this?]
[I don’t know either. There was no information about this.]
Flick, flick.
Suddenly, all the lights went out, and a spotlight shone on the goblin.
“The motto of my Black Market has always been to present items that are ‘rare,’ ‘valuable,’ and ‘new.’”
Along with his explanation, the stage floor began to open automatically.
“I guarantee you. What I am about to show you is an item that none of you here could have possibly anticipated.”
With that extraordinary line.
From the floor, a pitch-black rectangular pillar began to rise.
[This……. I’ve got a bad feeling about it.]
Perhaps she sensed sothing wrong.
Siss clenched her fist tightly.
“Allow to introduce it!”
The rising square object ca to a sudden stop.
Then, with a pshshhk sound of steam venting, the top opened.
“After countless efforts, we finally recovered this rare item from a deep trench in the Pacific Ocean……!”
The goblin continued, wearing a grin that looked like it might tear his face apart.
“A legendary weapon said to have been used by a great hero who once saved the world……!”
“…….”
Thud.
As the case opened, the item inside was revealed.
‘That is…….’
A weapon of a unique shape I had never seen before in my life.
Just by its appearance, I wondered if it could even be called a weapon at all.
Because what lay there was nothing but a lone handle.
But the mont I saw it, I knew exactly what it was.
‘The Arc Blade…….’
“It is the sword called the ‘Arc Blade,’ the blade that Supre Swordsman Lee Hamin held in his hands until the very end!”
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