Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Using Others' Things as My Own (5)
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"Ahem, you've got a good eye, customer. Anyway, you know the rules, right?"
"I do."
"Right. No refunds or anything if you change your mind later. I told you this one's weird. If you buy it anyway, it's on you."
The old man repeated his warnings to me several times before finally stepping back.
"No need to worry about refunds. Tie that worry up and put it away."
I waved him off and turned away. I had no more business with the old man.
"Well, what a peculiar customer."
The old man muttered under his breath, glancing sideways at me.
"Anyway, I'll have to buy another one. This time a proper one..."
I left the old man behind and moved away. I headed to a corner of the black market to examine the snake more closely.
"Found a good one."
There was a blue spot on its belly. That was definitive proof this was the one I was looking for.
"Now, let's see..."
I found the snake's spine and rubbed it slowly from top to bottom.
"Here it is."
I pressed the protrusion I felt with my fingertip.
"Squeak!"
The snake opened its mouth with a strange noise.
Plop.
A stone it had been holding in its mouth dropped into my waiting palm.
"Hoo."
I placed the stone in my palm and examined it closely.
It was smooth, like a pebble. The dull gray surface showed nothing special.
"It really looks like an ordinary stone."
I picked it up with my fingers and turned it this way and that.
I felt no special power. It didn't react to me or change in any way.
But this stone was actually...
"A magic crystal, huh."
Magic crystal.
A rare ore that contains mana, found only very rarely.
To properly utilize a magic crystal's power, it must be processed. By cutting it at precise angles with consistent refraction, you draw out its inner power.
The problem is that unprocessed raw crystals look just like ordinary stones. Without special identification tools, they're often thrown away on the roadside.
But,
"With this guy, it's different."
I grinned at the limp, drooping snake.
The blue spot on its belly was closely tied to its birthplace.
This one was a variant of the Point Egg Eater that inhabits the north. The temperatures in the capital must feel sweltering hot to it.
So it desperately seeks something to cool its body.
"And that's this magic crystal."
In other words, it's a natural magic crystal detector. Specifically, it only finds ones with a cold aura.
"Still, getting my hands on it like this is something."
This snake was the one Cain acquired in the original story.
Cain stumbles into the black market by chance and spots the dying snake in the old man's hands.
Unable to stand watching the old man shake the snake violently, he ends up buying it.
"But to think that snake only eats magic crystals."
As expected of someone who has it all, his luck is insane.
He happens to enter the hard-to-find black market, happens to encounter the ultra-rare special breed Egg Eater Snake there, and happens to find that it only clamps onto cold aura magic crystals.
"And it's exactly what he needs."
A few days later, back in his territory, Cain faces a massive crisis.
The Sword of Summer, Cadenza, appears in the center of his territory.
Its nickname is Flame Sword. It bestows flames that burn its wielder to the bone.
The moment Cain grabs it, he's engulfed in hellfire. An ordinary human body has no chance, but the stone in his pocket protects him at that instant.
"What amazing luck."
The ordinary stone he thought it was, carried around in his pocket after taking it from the snake's mouth, turns out to be a magic crystal.
The cold aura magic crystal helps Cain withstand Cadenza's flames. Thanks to it, he succeeds in dominating Cadenza and becomes the owner of the Sword of Summer.
"Not this time."
I'll snatch that magic crystal first.
"Kekekeke."
I let out a sinister chuckle as I scratched the snake's chin.
Ssssk, ssssk.
The snake flicked its tongue between its jaws. It seemed to like the chin scratch, as its movements perked up a bit.
I grinned at the snake, which would do me a huge favor today.
"Looking forward to working with you."
With this guy, collecting all the magic crystals in this black market would be a breeze.
Just let it loose on a stall and pick up whatever it tries to gulp down.
The merchants would freak out, but so what.
"Toss them one gold coin and done."
Just like that old man earlier.
"Alright, shall we go?"
I wrapped the snake around my forearm and started walking. The sun was slowly setting between the tall buildings.
"Cain should arrive here in a few hours."
By then, I'd already be out of the black market. Having swept up all the magic crystals, my original goal.
"I wonder if you can become Cadenza's master without a magic crystal."
No, it would be tough. The current Cain is just a skilled swordsman and noble young lord.
I planned to make him increasingly ordinary. By stealing the many futures prepared for him and walking that path ahead of him.
"Oh, right."
As I strode along, I snapped my fingers with an "ah."
"Time to call Melina."
To make good use of the magic crystals I'd acquired.
"Heh heh heh."
With every step, the smile on my lips deepened. It was truly a breathtakingly beautiful evening.
❖ ❖ ❖
The hall of Vent Tavern.
There were no customers. Taverns usually didn't open until late afternoon.
Elice sat alone at the table in the center of the hall.
Tap, tap.
Her finger nudged the necklace on the table.
A delicately and intricately crafted locket hung from the silver chain in the center.
Tap.
The tip of Elice's finger touched the locket.
"..."
Elice stopped her finger and lifted the necklace. She stared endlessly at the locket, then murmured softly.
"Mother..."
Elice's voice was hoarse, barely audible. Her eyes grew wet as she gazed at the locket.
In her childhood, when she wandered alone from village to village.
She hadn't eaten for three days. Her stomach ached so much her vision spun.
Desperate, she sold her mother's keepsake. With the meager sum, she barely bought a piece of dry bread.
Only after putting it in her mouth did she realize. She had lost the only thing that let her remember her mother.
"...I thought I'd never see it again."
Once she had grown strong enough, she returned to that village. The terrified fence repeated that he'd sold it to another merchant.
She killed him, but it brought no relief. Only regret that she'd never see the item again.
"Why was it there?"
The auction house Abel mentioned.
Elice had gone there half in doubt.
Until then, she couldn't shake her frustration. She sighed, wondering why she'd even come.
That was before the necklace appeared in the jewelry auction.
"That's...!"
No doubt about it. Over ten years since she'd last seen it, but she knew instantly.
It was the very necklace she'd sold as stolen goods in her childhood.
"Starting at 100,000 gold!"
The necklace's price was staggeringly high. Unbelievable that she'd sold it ten years ago for just one gold.
It showed how much that fence had haggled her down.
"Should've made him die more painfully."
Elice ground her teeth thinking of him. But that wasn't important now.
The moment she saw the necklace, the only thought was that she had to buy it.
"150,000 gold!"
She joined the auction desperately.
To get the necklace, she had to use every coin in the pouch Abel gave her. He'd given her exactly the amount needed to buy it.
"How did he...?"
Did he know it would appear there? Did he know how much it would sell for and prepare accordingly?
Just how much did he know?
Doubts piled upon doubts, endless and without a clue.
Elice murmured, clutching the locket.
"How did he find out about me?"
Just the other day, the wastrel young master stuck in the western territory suddenly appeared and spilled all her secrets.
She hadn't shown it that day, but Elice was furious inside. She assumed information had leaked somewhere.
After Abel left, she investigated him using every means. She concluded it was impossible for him to know about her.
"Then how?"
After the auction, she had to admit it.
Her past, known only to her, was exposed, and irrefutable proof appeared before her eyes.
"It's unbelievable, but..."
Abel Ovest Kindriel had something special. Something completely different from the ways she'd ever gathered or handled information.
"This is just the tip."
What Elice tasted was merely a fraction of the vast information Abel held.
He casually opened the pouch to show a glimpse, cleverly asking if she wanted the rest.
"Just how far does his knowledge go?"
At this point, Elice wouldn't be surprised if Abel knew how many moles the emperor had on his butt.
And he was the type to say such absurd, embarrassing things without batting an eye.
'Plus, you still have those beautiful eyes.'
Suddenly, Abel's face appeared before her. His low whisper and mischievously sparkling eyes came with it.
"-!"
Elice quickly waved her hand to dispel Abel's afterimage.
"Haa."
It had been too long since she'd heard such words from a man her age. Maybe that's why her heart fluttered more than it should.
Click.
Elice closed the open locket. She caressed it gently, lost in thought.
"El..."
As she sat like that, Dexter started to speak to her, but
"Shh."
William blocked him.
"No, she needs to eat."
Dexter protested with a frown. He held a tray with her late lunch.
"Let her be alone."
William shook his head firmly. His gaze went to the necklace in Elice's hand.
"How did that...?"
He let out a low groan.