Chapter 358: Valentina Sasha Danilova
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 358: Valentina Sasha Danilova
According to the World Hunter Association's announcement, the world's population as of this year is approximately 3.172 billion people.
And among those billions of humans, only three individuals in the current era had earned the title of 'Archmage'.
Mac Damon, the Black Tower Lord.
Duke Rupert Blake Winchester, the Blue Tower Lord.
And finally, Valentina Sasha Danilova, the White Tower Lord.
“...”
I stared blankly ahead.
Standing there was a beautiful, snow-white woman who seemed completely out of place in the dirty, dark back alleys of London.
The moment our eyes met, I felt a chill that seemed to seep into my very bones.
Valentina Sasha Danilova—the White Tower Lord—exuded an aura so detached from humanity that I found myself unconsciously believing the absurd rumor that she was half-Snegurochka, a figure from Russian folklore.
‘Why is someone who should be in Moscow here...?’
It went without saying that an Archmage was treated as a guest of honor in almost every country. The United Kingdom would be no exception.
No, as a nation known for its mages, they would likely be even more welcoming.
But I had never heard any news or read any articles about the White Tower Lord visiting the UK.
I wasn't a news junkie, but I wasn't indifferent to world affairs either, so I kept up with things.
‘...Don't tell me she entered the country illegally.’
There was no other explanation.
Logically, if it became known that an Archmage from another country was visiting the capital, the entire city would be in an uproar.
The same would be true in Korea.
The fact that even the British media was silent was proof that no one knew of her arrival.
Perhaps not even the British royal family or Duke Winchester.
And to avoid their notice, illegal entry was the only way.
“There is no need to be so tense. I have only come for a brief conversation.”
A voice as cold as if walking through a field of frost echoed softly through the street.
It was a hauntingly beautiful voice, but I couldn't sense even a sliver of emotion from the Tower Lord.
“Kang Hyun-woo, 2nd Grade Elementalist of the Gray Magic Tower, offers his greetings to the great Lord of the White Magic Tower.”
I placed a hand over my left breast, where my mana circle was, and bowed lightly.
While showing my respect, I carefully observed her reaction.
Unlike Duke Winchester, who had been friendly to me from the start, I wasn't foolish enough to let my guard down before an Archmage whose thoughts were impossible to read.
Of course, I couldn't show any hostility, but just standing by and doing nothing would be an undeniably foolish move.
‘...By the way, how old is she?’
The White Tower Lord standing before me looked to be in her late twenties at most.
But considering her record of activities, there was no way she was only in her twenties.
At the very least...
“Let's skip the pleasantries and get straight to the point.”
Snap!
With the snap of her fingers, all the faint sounds of the city vanished.
It was the Silence magic I often used myself.
Of course, the range and subtlety of her spell were incomparably superior.
“Sell me the core of the spiritual beast you won at the auction.”
“Pardon?”
Caught off guard by the completely unexpected proposal, I couldn't help but ask again.
Then, it suddenly occurred to me—the one bidder who had competed with me for the Millennium Hwari's core.
“...Were you, by any chance, Number 4?”
“...”
Twitch—
At that moment, the corner of the Tower Lord's mouth, which had been frozen in a cold expression, twitched ever so slightly.
It was only for an instant, but it didn't escape my eyes.
Thanks to that, I was certain she was bidder Number 4.
“I didn't realize the Tower Lord was also interested in auctions.”
“...I merely happened to stop by.”
She offered the excuse, but it held no credibility.
The fact that she had manipulated the barrier at the auction house to find out who won the core was proof enough that she hadn't attended on a whim.
I wracked my memory for a moment.
She had won a total of nine items, and strangely enough, they all had one thing in common.
“...Tower Lord, do you need yang energy? Or rather, fire-attribute elixirs?”
The essence of a Flame Regis, an A-grade monster rarely found in high-level gates; the heart of a Pallakka Bird, a known rare species; and even a Volcano Ruby, said to contain the heat of a volcano.
All the other items she had won were famous ingredients for fire-attribute elixirs.
“I cannot say.”
I nodded at her firm tone.
The Tower Lord was under no obligation to satisfy my personal curiosity.
Still, one question remained, circling in my mind.
‘...Why does she want to buy the core now?’
The final bid for the Millennium Hwari's core was 25 million pounds.
About 44.5 billion Korean won.
To me, it was a considerable sum, but to her, an 8th Circle Archmage and the Lord of the White Magic Tower, it must be nothing more than pocket change.
So why ask to buy it now?
No matter how I thought about it, her actions were incomprehensible, but my answer could only be one thing.
“So, your answer?”
“I'll sell it.”
I put on my most good-natured smile and took out the glass box containing the core.
This was the core of a Millennium Hwari.
It would be a lie to say I wasn't reluctant to part with it, but my relationship with the woman known as the unofficial queen of Russia was more important.
‘It's not like I'm in desperate need of internal energy anyway.’
I could always take my time and find another elixir to replace the Millennium Hwari's core in another world. What was important to me right now wasn't internal energy, but a clue to reaching the 6th Circle and the Flower Realm.
“A wise choice. As for the price...”
“I'll take exactly 50 million pounds.”
About 89 billion won, exactly double the auction price.
For the record, I wasn't trying to rip her off.
Quite the opposite.
As I just thought, whether it was 25 million or 50 million pounds, it was all just pocket change to her.
Anyone could figure that out just by recalling what Han Lael had told me about the Jinryu Han family's annual income.
Therefore, this could be seen as a minimum courtesy to the Tower Lord.
Fundamentally, the rich don't prefer cheap items. To them, 'price' signifies 'value'.
If I offered to sell a painting identical to one auctioned today for a mere fifty thousand won, would the nobles open their wallets?
‘Not a chance.’
I shook my head, smiling to myself.
What was important to them was the satisfaction of owning a painting worth tens or hundreds of billions and the vanity of showing off their wealth.
Of course, I wasn't lumping the White Tower Lord in with them.
I was simply respecting her as someone who knew the core's value.
It's easier to understand if you imagine a situation where a seller offers to sell a ten-thousand-won toy for a thousand won. People who are pinching pennies would think it's their lucky day and happily buy it. But if you offered it for a thousand won to the rich, who make money just by breathing, you might actually offend them.
Their pride wouldn't allow them to gleefully purchase an item whose price (value) had been diminished.
Of course, the Tower Lord might think differently.
But having just met her today, I had to make my judgment based on the average reactions of the wealthy people I'd encountered so far.
Besides, 50 million pounds was a relatively cheap price.
If I put it up for auction in China, Japan, or Korea, I could easily get hundreds of billions.
“...What?”
But it seemed the Tower Lord didn't think so.
*
“...What did you just say?”
Her voice sounded as if the surrounding temperature had dropped by ten degrees, and I reflexively swallowed dryly.
A cold sweat ran down my back as the atmosphere shifted.
“50 million pounds.”
But I had no intention of backing down.
I felt I had already shown enough goodwill just by agreeing to resell an item I'd won at auction.
But to cut the price on top of that?
There was no bigger sucker in the world.
More importantly, my opponent was a rich person hundreds, even thousands of times wealthier than me.
She was probably one of the ten richest people in the world.
And there wasn't a single madman on this earth who would give a discount to someone like that.
“Are you asking me to accept such an absurd price?”
Swoosh—
At that moment, a cold wind blew from somewhere, scattering my bangs.
Her tone was still calm, but it was laced with a subtle anger.
“...Accept, you say?”
I loosened my tie and ruffled my neatly styled hair.
Always maintaining a deferential posture wasn't the answer.
“Could you please tell me what part you're not satisfied with?”
“The winning bid was clearly 25 million pounds. Does it make sense for the price to double in such a short time?”
I sighed inwardly at the White Tower Lord's words.
Was she ignorant of how the world works, or was she just shameless?
“...I simply set the price based on the item's value. It's true that I won it for 25 million pounds, but I don't believe that amount represents the item's actual price.”
The essence of an auction is to discover the value in an item that others have missed and acquire something expensive for cheap.
And selling that item for a higher price is not strange at all; it's perfectly natural.
“Moreover, if I were to put the Millennium Hwari's core up for auction in East Asia, I could expect a profit of more than ten times the amount. If you doubt my words, you are welcome to verify it yourself.”
“...”
Hearing my words, the Tower Lord moved her lips several times as if contemplating something.
Having heard from Han Lael about the income the Lord of the Gray Magic Tower earned, her reaction was completely incomprehensible to me.
‘...Could she be someone else?’
It was a bit of a stretch, but for a mage, 0% was never a possibility.
[Would you like to use Unicorn's Gaze on the target?]
[Y/N]
To be honest, I wasn't thrilled about using Unicorn's Gaze.
It wasn't a matter of conscience; for me, Unicorn's Gaze was a kind of red pill.
This ability allowed me to learn the name of someone I'd just met, but it also revealed whether or not they were a virgin.
What if I met a woman so beautiful it was love at first sight, used Unicorn's Gaze on her, and it came back as 'non-virgin'?
Her past with other men would surely play out like a panorama in my mind.
That was exactly why I hadn't used the ability when I met Delia. I had used it freely at first without knowing, but over time, I naturally learned of this side effect.
Tiring—
[Valentina Sasha Danilova
Status: Virgin]
The moment I saw the screen pop up, I was at a loss for words.
‘...It's really her?’
And she was a virgin.
The White Tower Lord was a virgin. It was hard to believe even seeing it with my own two eyes.
I was sure her age was...
“Very well. I will pay the 50 million pounds you first proposed.”
At that moment, the Tower Lord, who had been deep in thought, nodded with a resolute expression.
Her demeanor made me feel awkward, and I scratched the back of my head for no reason.
It wasn't an amount she should have been so worked up about.
“However, I only have 20 million pounds on hand right now. I would like to pay the remaining 30 million with something else. Is that possible?”
“Pardon?”
The Tower Lord's eyes, as she uttered the rather unbelievable words, still held no trace of emotion.
I had no idea what she was thinking.
And yet, strangely, it felt like the temperature around us had risen, just a tiny bit.