Chapter 65
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Masked Auction (3)
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‘Good, the plan is going smoothly.’
I scanned the audience with an innocent smile as the final auction item, muttering quietly to myself while lifting the corners of my mouth.
‘Just as expected, all eyes are on me now. This should make things even easier.’
Then, my gaze met that of the fake saintess, who was trembling slightly beside Mother while wearing her white mask. I gave her a reassuring wink, as if to say not to worry.
‘…No one knows the final item was swapped to a Belverk participant.’
Of course, the masked auction's security was ironclad, so no participant would know the final item had been switched from the fake saintess to me.
‘Except for the one who sold the fake saintess here, that is.’
That was my aim.
As a avid romance fantasy reader, I could confidently say this:
The culprit who thoroughly ruined the fake saintess and dragged her to rock bottom wouldn't miss her final moments for the world.
After all, in romance fantasies, the protagonist—branded as the fake saintess—is executed or ruined, only for the true mastermind to reveal themselves dramatically right then. This revelation allows the protagonist, realizing the truth, to regress back in time. It was a cliché often used in prologues.
In other words, if my prediction was correct, the culprit who made the fake saintess like this—the true mastermind—was definitely here. As the saying goes, the criminal always returns to the scene.
So today, I would not only help the fake saintess escape the auction disguised as me but also catch the Divine Church conspirator undoubtedly linked to my experiment.
Honestly, it was a slightly risky plan, but if you only chased safety, you'd never achieve great things.
- Pzzt….
As I smiled at the frozen audience lost in those thoughts, I quietly turned my eyes red without anyone noticing.
“Let's see…”
I still couldn't do much with Crimson Eyes beyond momentary superhuman strength or minor physical enhancements, but I'd trained hard specifically on hearing enhancement for situations like this.
- Belverk's youngest as the final item…?
- No idea, but buying them means vanishing from the world the moment the deal's done.
- You never know, maybe they were disowned and put up for auction….
- But they look way too cheerful for that.
The moment I activated Crimson Eyes, the panicked voices of the participants rang clearly in my ears.
“……”
Just as I was scanning the owners of those voices one by one with sharp eyes, sweeping the audience….
- This doesn't match the intel we acquired.
- Plan failed? What a shame. Grulk….
A suspicious conversation suddenly reached my ears.
‘What’s that?’
I turned toward the source and frowned, tilting my head.
“……”
It came from a participant flanked by two masked knights. For some reason, their aura felt familiar.
‘…Mother?’
It was similar enough to mistake for Mother at first, but she was far off, coldly glaring at the fake saintess holding me hostage.
‘And the conversation is weird too.’
Even more suspicious: their talk didn't sound like Divine Church conspirators.
Intel mismatch? It sounded less like the fake saintess's ruiner and more like someone who'd obtained info elsewhere and joined for some scheme.
‘This is a masked auction, after all….’
I tensed further, focusing on their conversation, when—
“Ten million credits!”
Something I hadn't anticipated began unfolding.
“Huh?”
The owl-masked figure resembling Marquis Magnaris suddenly stood and bid excitedly. Not her, of course.
“Disowned by your family? Then I'll…”
“……”
“……Eek.”
She tried speaking to me innocently but shut her mouth at the overwhelming killing intent from the Belverk side.
“Ten million credits… confirmed.”
“Huh?”
“Any higher bids?”
But with the dam broken despite everyone's hesitation, my bidding war finally began.
“Eleven million credits!”
“Thirteen million credits!”
“Twenty million credits!”
The merchant guild participants, habitually blocking low bids, suddenly covered their mouths and glanced at Mother.
- Grooo….
Already, Mother and the Belverks were shooting eyes at the merchants promising to erase their bases from the map if they bid again.
“Tw-twenty million credits… any more?”
As the host forced the bidding with a face screaming to flee….
“One hundred million credits.”
A low voice echoed clearly through the now-silent audience.
“One hundred million credits! The highest in nearly five years!”
I turned, startled, to see the mysterious figure from the suspicious conversation, flanked by those knights.
‘…Who the hell are they?’
Their aura felt far from the Divine Church, so why were they bidding when they hadn't targeted me originally?
“One hundred million credits. Any higher? Final check! Three, two, one…!”
While I tilted my head in confusion, the host rushed the countdown, desperate to end it.
Wait, am I actually getting sold here?
I'd just settled into Belverk life—no way was I adapting to a new environment!
“Haa…”
But my worries were unfounded.
“Ten billion credits.”
Mother stood, sighing coldly while glaring at my hundred-million bidder, declaring in a chilling tone.
“No higher bids, of course?”
No one dared contradict her.
“T-ten billion credits… closing…”
The auction fell forcibly silent at history's highest bid from Mother.
“Phew, safe…”
I wiped sweat with my sleeve, peeking at Mother anxiously, when—
- Belverk again.
A mutter too provocative to ignore came from the back of the audience.
- Their interference has been severe lately.
I whipped my head toward the voice. Someone at the far back stood alone and quietly slipped out.
‘System Sis! Analyze them!’
Confirming they were the Divine Church 'conspirator' from their exit, I urgently summoned the system for tag analysis.
Tag analysis in progress…
Yeah, gotcha. Once I confirm their identity and tell Mother everything….
“…Hm?”
But the unidentified figure slipping out suddenly stopped.
“……”
Then, despite the mask, our eyes met—or so it felt.
- Pzztzzzt…!
The system before me glitched with noise.
Tag generation failed.
#Locked Tag #Locked Tag #Locked Tag #Locked Tag #Locked Tag #Locked Tag #Locked Tag
A critical error has occurred.
I stared blankly at System Sis fizzling out powerlessly, then turned back to the mysterious figure.
“……”
Our gazes locked firmly this time.
- Swish….
They broke eye contact first, turning to leave the auction. I watched, frowning.
‘…They have a black heart tattoo.’
Where had I seen that symbol before?
I couldn't quite recall, but it felt vaguely familiar….
- Zzzt….
Forcing down a sudden headache, as I racked my brain for the mark's origin….
“Hm?”
The auction lights flickered all at once.
- Pop…!
Then they all went dark, plunging the auction into blackness.
- Wh-what…!
- P-power outage?
- Ridiculous! All lights are mana-powered….
The auction grew chaotic in the pitch darkness when….
“Huh? H-huh.”
My body floated upward out of nowhere as I dazedly looked around.
“Whoa?!”
The next instant, I was in someone's arms, speeding out of the auction.
Meanwhile, at the auction about a minute after darkness fell.
“Chaos, life, dawn, sun, flame, awakening, harvest, cycle….”
Marquis Magnaris, eyes closed in unusual seriousness, chanted words while gathering vast mana.
“ᚦ ᛞ ᛋ ᚲ ᛗ ᛃ ᛒ ᛋ.”
⟨ Restoration Chant ⟩
Her eyes turned blue as her words turned to mana. Sparks flew, and lights flickered back on one by one.
“Wh-what?!”
“Th-they're gone…?”
As light returned, squinting audience members frowned then shouted in shock.
“The kid vanished?!”
Even before Lilien could use her Unique Ability to adapt, the lights were back—but Kairen was gone from the stage.
“You bitch…”
“Eek.”
“What did you do to the kid?!”
Lilien stared blankly, then grabbed the fake saintess's collar, eyes red with intimidation.
“It wasn't her.”
Uriel, seated coldly, shook her head quietly.
“Lowlifes might not notice, but only one could blind our Crimson Eyes even briefly.”
Releasing the fake saintess, Lilien muttered incredulously.
“…You mean Belverk's head maid?”
Indeed, creating darkness to fool Belverk blood and Marquis Magnaris—even momentarily—was impossible without Belverk's head maid, rank 1 Hierarch Demon.
“B-but… she's with the eldest daughter now…”
Realizing this, Lilien paled and stammered.
“She moves as the eldest's personal maid.”
Uriel, grasping the full situation, was the same.
“Then…”
“No wonder we didn't react.”
Their gazes shifted to Astridje, still seated quietly.
“The device passed down from the founding matriarch, preventing the head from directly interfering in heir competitions.”
“……”
“First time seeing it in action. I've only operated from the shadows.”
Red mana tendrils like rose vines bound Astridje without gap.
“Haa…”
She coldly eyed the binding vines, sighing lowly.
“Looks like my eldest daughter has lost her fear.”
Suddenly standing, she emanated unprecedented killing intent and strode forward.
“Time to show why it's an unwritten rule.”
Toward the auction basement, where her son Kairen's presence pulsed strongly.
“Ugh…”
I had no idea when I'd passed out, but forcing heavy eyelids open, I groaned.
“Huh?”
Fully awake, the sight before me was….
“……Eek.”
The masked woman who'd bid a hundred million on me sat coldly ahead, flanked by two fearsome knights.
‘But what’s she doing now?’
Even in this mess, one intolerable thing: she had me chair-bound, slowly unbuttoning my top.
“Um, excuse me…”
“……”
“This is child molestation!”
Should've never come to the auction.