Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Gray Zone
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- Thud.
I absentmindedly lifted my head.
‘Huh?’
Carnel was crouched down in front of me.
Then, without a word, she reached out toward my face.
- Squeeze.
She grabbed the mask and yanked.
“!!”
I quickly pulled back.
I nearly toppled over backward in my chair but barely managed to regain my balance.
“Hmm…?”
Carnel clenched and unclenched her hand while tilting her head.
“That mask… it’s an artifact, isn’t it?”
No.
After trying to rip someone’s face off, that’s all you have to say?
I couldn’t hide my bewilderment as I stared at the shameless Carnel.
‘More than that, an artifact?’
Artifact.
Unlike artificially crafted magic tools, these were pieces of equipment possessing naturally occurring mystical origins.
In the game, both magic tools and artifacts were lumped together under ‘equipment,’ so I’d gotten momentarily confused, but Carnel had clearly meant the latter.
‘But is the 【Mask of Silence】 really an artifact?’
Well… it sort of fell into that category.
Nod.
I silently nodded my head.
“Wow! So that thing’s an artifact?”
Violet strode over to me, her hands clasped together, her face lighting up with excitement as her eyes sparkled and she leaned in close.
“Can you show it to me just once?”
[I can’t take it off]
I simply added the explanation to the whiteboard.
Violet blinked, freezing in place.
“…Huh?”
[I can’t take it off]
“…You can’t take it off?”
[Yes]
“Aww~ You’re lying. You just don’t wanna show us your ugly mug, right?”
…Why does everyone think I’m ugly?
Have you even seen my face?
‘Actually, I haven’t seen my own face either.’
But one thing was crystal clear.
The visage beneath this mask was undoubtedly handsome.
It had to be.
That was the only way any of this made sense.
A mute who couldn’t speak, with ridiculously subpar physical abilities.
There needed to be at least some ‘looks’ to make it all believable.
But soon enough, the futility of that fantasy sank into my chest.
‘Even if it is handsome, what good is it if I can’t take the damn mask off?’
Imagining an unseeable face just to console myself suddenly struck me as pathetic.
[（；´д｀）ゞ]
And in the same breath, heartbreaking.
‘Sniff.’
Sensing the abrupt shift in mood, Violet asked in a panic.
“Little bro, why’d you get all down in the dumps like that?”
[ಥ_ಥ]
“Uh… um….”
***
The next day.
Before the sun had even crested the horizon.
I arrived at an open lot on the outskirts of the Cradle.
And right beside me.
“Oh, Adel’s here, nya.”
Stood a cat.
No, Neru wagged her tail in greeting.
[Hi]
“Nice to see ya, nya.”
Truth be told, there was a reason I’d come all the way out here.
The previous day, in the student council room.
As I wallowed in sorrow.
“A demerit point feels too harsh… Community service might suit you better.”
“Yeah, little bro! People gotta sweat it out! Sometimes you need that time working to reflect on life!”
And so.
Community service in lieu of a demerit.
The punishment stayed on paper, but it’d been softened by one degree in practice.
‘My ace in the hole worked.’
That heartfelt despondence had landed at the perfect moment, purely by chance.
“So, what community service have we got to do, nya?”
[Beats me]
Community service.
Frankly, those six syllables felt downright alien to someone as diligent as me.
I hadn’t done anything wrong—in fact, I’d done something right.
So why was I out here picking up scraps?
‘I was just dispensing justice.’
I’d merely dealt with trash like Grace appropriately.
In a situation that called for a medal, they slapped me with community service.
Talk about unjust, rude, and downright absurd.
‘This is too much.’
But hey.
It’s not like I was gonna butt heads in rebellion or anything.
Still…
‘What the hell is this?’
A crumpled newspaper lying on the ground caught my eye.
[ The Est Viscount family implicated in drug manufacturing and distribution… ]
[ Heir suspected of drug use as well… ]
‘Whoa….’
At this point, it was a veritable encyclopedia of human garbage.
‘How the hell did this scumbag even get into the Cradle?’
Manufacturing drugs, distributing them, and snorting them himself?
Was there anything more loathsome under the sun?
It was a miracle a creep like that had wormed her way into this cradle of learning.
‘But… yeah, it all makes sense now.’
No wonder the girl was such a dimwit.
Her behavior was always off, but drugs sealed the deal.
I folded up the newspaper with a flick and tossed it into the trash bag.
‘Whatever. I've just gotta hit the auction house without a hitch.’
Right.
Truth was, I had a solid reason for volunteering for this community service so readily.
The soil of the Cradle beneath my feet.
And the secret space hidden within it.
‘I was not even that long since classes started, and….’
To be blunt, targeting the auction house right now, at this juncture, was straight-up madness.
Everyone was too busy acclimating to the Cradle for shopping sprees.
Most were laser-focused on training or just struggling to adjust to the unfamiliar surroundings.
‘But that lunatic’s me.’
Did training raise my stats?
Hell no.
My trait rendered training pointless anyway.
‘So I've got to make wise use of my downtime.’
Admittedly, nothing earth-shattering was up for auction this time.
Mostly rare items that were useless in practice.
Even so, I had exactly two reasons for heading there.
A handful of spirit elixirs, and one artifact.
“Looks like we’re done here, nya.”
Neru stretched after picking up the last of the trash.
[Yeah, seems like it]
I nodded in agreement.
For the record, we’d been at it for under twenty minutes.
‘Eh, whatever. The street’s clean, no overseers, no proof.’
They could count this as a full hour, no problem.
[Neru]
“Yeah?”
[Wanna go do something fun with me?]
Heading to the auction house now meant there was a high chance of running late.
‘I can’t show up late solo.’
There’s a saying.
‘Misery shared is misery halved.’
Which meant… I needed company.
“Ooh… Let’s roll right now.”
The cat and I locked eyes and coolly made up our minds.
***
“Where’s this place, nya?”
[A fun spot]
Neru and I came to a halt at the end of an alley, right before a dead-end wall.
“There’s nothing here, nya.”
Just your average blank wall.
But I knew better.
This wall hid an entrance.
‘Where was it….’
In the game, one interaction button and done.
As I probed brick by brick with my fingers.
‘Got it.’
Tap.
One brick sank in under my fingertip.
- Whirr.
A magic circle materialized in midair.
It glowed, tearing open a rift in space.
“Ooo….”
[Let’s head in]
“Roger that, nya.”
Our vision was sucked into a momentary flash of light.
When I opened my eyes again.
“Oh… it’s all sparkly, nya.”
Beneath lights dazzling enough to hurt the eyes, all manner of equipment and potions were on display.
‘Seeing it like this brings back memories.’
A space I’d grown sick of in the game.
Encountering it in the flesh felt worlds apart.
‘Known as the ‘Gray Zone.’’
A gathering spot for those who walked neither in light nor shadow.
Where the sidelined flocked together.
Yet at the same time, a place brimming with desires too radiant to lurk in true darkness.
Magic tools, alchemical goods, monster byproducts.
Items never permitted in official trade became fodder for haggling and deals here.
‘Though calling it the underworld isn’t quite right.’
An underworld born from inability to operate in the light.
But even among underworlds, this was the uppermost echelon.
The upper crust of the shadows, so to speak.
‘The real underworld doesn’t bother hiding.’
The syndicates operating within the Empire, the calamities hellbent on humanity’s doom.
By comparison, the Gray Zone was the underworld’s idea of legitimate.
“So… what’re we doing here, nya?”
[Auction]
“An auction?”
[They have something I want]
“Ooh… sounds fun, nya.”
Neru’s tail swished with excitement.
We pushed into the central area, where a massive building loomed.
“Welcome. Is this you first time?”
The staffer at the entrance bowed in crisp uniform.
A smile played on his lips, but it never reached his eyes.
[Yes]
“That’s right.”
The staffer gave us two sheets of paper.
“Our Black Market requires a dedicated identity. Please provide a codename and occupation for entry, transactions, and future perks.”
I glanced down at the paper.
[Wanna make up a name and job]
“Ooh… I’m great at that stuff, nya!”
Of course, all these identities were fake.
Real name? Real job?
They were worthless here.
The Black Market must never learn a client’s ‘truth.’
It could only know the ‘fiction’ they chose to show.
‘Eh… good enough.’
I scribbled something half-assed on the paper and handed it back.
“Mask Man… King of the Sea… Yes. That was the most impressive.”
The staffer’s expression turned peculiar.
A strange glint in his eye, like it’d been ages since he’d seen a setup like this out there.
But for me, it wasn’t off-base at all.
✦━━━━━━━━━━━━✦
[ Adel ]
Limit Break : ★☆☆☆☆
Attributes
: 「Abyss」
: 「Nothingness」
Achievements
: 【King of the Abyss】
: 【Slime Slayer】
: 【Class A】
: 【…】
✦━━━━━━━━━━━━✦
See? Achievements don’t lie.
Sure, it’d changed to King of the Abyss now, but it’d been King of the Sea before that.
“Stylish Cat… Master Assassin… Yes. Phenomenal.”
“That’s what I think too, nya!”
Neru nodded proudly.
The staffer processed the forms with practiced ease, like he’d seen it all.
“No need for a mask for you, Mask Man.”
He eyed me briefly before turning to Neru.
“Need one to cover your face?”
“Ooh… yeah, nya!”
The staffer produced a box.
A gorgeous mask straight out of a masquerade ball.
“Totally my style, nya!”
Neru slapped it right onto her face.
“Mask Man, Stylish Cat—enjoy your time.”
The staffer politely held the door open.
[Let’s go]
“Onward, nya!”
The interior was as spacious as expected—a place where even Neru could frolic freely without a soul batting an eye.
“But what’re you buying, Adel, nya?”
[Elixirs and some glasses]
By auction house rules, all sale items were under wraps.
No one knew what would appear until the bidding kicked off—not even guesses were reliable.
But.
‘That doesn’t apply to me.’
Who didn’t know?
The key items for today’s auction were already cataloged in my head.
I couldn’t recall everything, but the must-haves? They were burned into my memory.
“Ooh… Adel’s loaded, nya?”
Hah, listen to her.
[What do you take me for, Neru?]
Me? Adel.
The Cradle’s premier pickpocket.
Noble spine-snapper.
[I’m rich]
It was not my money yet—but soon-to-be-my money was scattered everywhere.
‘The rewards due to the diligent.’
And for diligent purse-snatchers like me? It was fitting compensation.
“Ooo… you are worthy of my approval, nya.”
Neru nodded in admiration.
At some point, she’d slotted me into her ‘good friend’ category.
It was cat logic, sure, but it didn’t feel half bad.
“Get me one too, nya.”
[Obviously]
Come to think of it, was there a catkin-specific affinity item in today’s auction?
The exact name escaped me.
‘My memory’s fuzzy.’
But it was definitely on the list.
‘How much was it again?’
No matter how I racked my brain, the price wouldn’t surface.
I’d never bought it in the game, so only its rarity lingered in recollection.
‘No way a single item costs over ten gold, right?’