The Spirit King's Crown
Many items went up for auction and found their owners.
The items offered by the White Bear Caravan all boasted incredible performance.
Their specs were enough to make one's eyes spin, and the leaders' eyes did just that.
The initial cool composure vanished, replaced by frenzied gazes as they dove into bidding.
Naturally, the auction prices skyrocketed exponentially.
It was worrisome—would the districts' finances collapse at this rate?
Pan Cheong-cheon clicked his tongue at the mad atmosphere.
'They're insane!'
But he had no room to criticize others.
He too had been consumed by the frenzy.
When he'd arrived at the auction hall, he'd planned to stay detached, observing from one step removed. But every item from the White Bear Caravan was staggeringly impressive, enough to make even him set aside his doubts and jump into the fray.
He secured Astro's Flame Sword, the Old Serpent's Crown, and the Shield of the Fallen Star.
All three were items with special attributes that could become major assets depending on how they were used.
Borlin, Cha Jin-cheol, Pan Cheong-cheon, and Raven all participated aggressively and claimed their prizes.
The Cloud Tree Necklace went up for auction as well.
Borlin jumped in eagerly and snatched up all the remaining ones.
The auction continued fiercely after that.
"Whoa!"
"I can't believe items like that exist. Insane!"
Briel and Levin kept exclaiming in awe at the auction items.
Being young, they had rarely seen dungeon-excavated items. So the treasures from the White Bear Caravan felt utterly novel to them.
Up to that point, Zeon had only watched, not participating in the bidding.
The items from the White Bear Caravan were certainly worth their high prices. But they fell short of meeting Zeon's standards.
As he watched the items find their new owners, Zeon thought:
'Too ordinary.'
Items emit their own unique wavelengths and mana.
Higher-grade items radiate even more powerful waves.
The current auction items each gave off distinct wavelengths and presences.
But they paled compared to the wave Zeon had felt yesterday.
He vividly remembered that intense, chilling sensation that had shaken his very core.
That was when it happened.
"The next item is called the Jailer's Rope. It was obtained with great difficulty from Gehol's Dungeon, and we still haven't uncovered its purpose."
Aleksandr brought out the final auction item.
What he presented was a rope used to bind prisoners.
Zeon had never seen an item in this form before.
The moment he laid eyes on the Jailer's Rope, a deep furrow formed between Zeon's brows.
He sensed an inexpressible ominous aura from it.
'What is this?'
Zeon stared piercingly at the rope.
But mere observation revealed nothing.
An item's additional effects don't show exact numerical values.
The owner must use it personally to discover them.
Coming from a dungeon, it was bound to have all sorts of options piled on.
That's when Zeon's eyes caught Demian standing behind Aleksandr.
Demian wore a beaming smile, as if immensely pleased by something.
Sensing Zeon's gaze, Demian looked over.
Demian gave a casual wave, as if greeting an old friend.
To someone who didn't know him, it might seem innocently boyish. But Zeon wasn't fooled by Demian's facade.
Demian was no longer a child.
Just as Zeon had grown wandering the desert for eight years, Demian had matured through countless trials.
Eight years was plenty of time to turn a boy into a man, an innocent child into a cunning adult.
Only Demian himself knew what kind of adult he'd become during that long span.
'Demian!'
As if hearing Zeon's voice, Demian flashed an even brighter smile and nodded.
While Zeon was distracted by Demian, the Jailer's Rope fell into Cha Jin-cheol's hands.
His eyes gleamed coldly after spending a whopping ten tons of magic stones to claim it.
'That's mine now.'
From the first glimpse of the Jailer's Rope, Cha Jin-cheol hadn't been able to look away. He'd felt a strange pull from it.
This sensation was entirely new to him.
He was a key subordinate of Kim Hyun-soo, the West District's overlord.
Naturally, he'd earned Kim's favor and replaced most of his body with machinery.
He looked human on the outside, but oil coursed through synthetic skin, and gears whirred within.
Only his head and torso remained flesh.
With limbs upgraded to powerful machines, he had little need for items.
There was no reason to pay them any mind.
But the Jailer's Rope was different.
For reasons unknown, from the moment he saw it, he'd felt a powerful soul-deep attraction.
Whether a man like him, with mechanized limbs, even possessed a human soul was questionable.
At that moment, Pan Cheong-cheon spoke up.
"So, that's all the items the White Bear Caravan prepared?"
"Not at all. We still have plenty left."
"Why not release them all today?"
"Where's the fun in dumping everything at once? Besides, the highlight is yet to come."
"Highlight?"
Pan Cheong-cheon's eyes sharpened at Aleksandr's response.
Everything the White Bear Caravan had offered so far had been extraordinary.
The prospect of something even better was bound to pique his curiosity.
Raven asked,
"What kind of item? Auctioning it today too?"
"It's so exceptional, we're scheduling a separate auction date."
"Hmph! Big talk. It won't stray far from the level of these items."
"Of course, everything here is excellent. We obtained them with great effort, and they're worth every bit. But I dare say the item on the fifth floor is on another level entirely. Whoever claims it will wield power beyond anything before."
Aleksandr's words made the attendees' expressions harden.
They couldn't guess what remained, but such bold claims suggested it was no ordinary item.
Borlin said,
"If it's that impressive, I'd like to see it."
"We need to lay eyes on it to prepare how many magic stones to pour into the next auction, right?"
"Exactly! Let's take a look."
Pan Cheong-cheon and Raven chimed in agreement, and Aleksandr shrugged.
"Very well, then. I'll show you the White Bear Caravan's ace in the hole. Follow me, everyone."
Aleksandr led the auction attendees to the fifth-floor warehouse.
Demian, trailing behind, discreetly disabled the sealing magic circle.
The moment Aleksandr opened the warehouse door, cracks formed on the group's faces.
"What is this?"
"Hm!"
"Fuck! What the hell?"
Everyone's complexions changed.
As high-rank Awakeners, they reacted to the ominous aura leaking from within.
Zeon's expression grew grave as well.
The wave he'd sensed yesterday emanated from inside the warehouse.
Demian sidled up behind Zeon and whispered,
"Impressive, right?"
"What is this thing?"
"Heh heh!"
Demian let out a strange chuckle instead of answering.
In the warehouse center, hovering midair without a pedestal, a crown embedded with a blue gem radiated mystical energy.
Borlin, Raven, Cha Jin-cheol, Pan Cheong-cheon—all were captivated by the blue-gemmed crown.
Borlin's pupils shook violently, like an earthquake.
"Such a mana fragrance..."
Elves in Kurayan could smell scents in mana itself.
Its pure, pristine energy, blessed by the World Tree, allowed them to perceive fragrance in mana. But the elves who came to Earth lost that ability.
Terraforming had ruined the planet.
No mana on Earth matched Kurayan's purity.
Ice Queen Serion Olia had once said she was sad she could no longer smell mana's fragrance.
Borlin hadn't understood then.
Elves born on Earth, like her, had never experienced it.
But now she knew why Serion had said that.
The refreshing chill deep in her chest, the sensation of her crown chakra blooming open.
No one had told her, but she knew instinctively—this was mana's fragrance.
Borlin asked,
"Wh-what is this?"
"The Spirit King's Crown."
"Spirit King's Cr...own? You mean it's connected to the Spirit King?"
"We don't know. We found the crown in a dungeon called the Spirit King's Tomb. Hundreds of Awakeners died conquering it. That's how hard it was to obtain."
"And its effects?"
"We don't know. It's sealed. Maybe the real Spirit King is sealed inside."
Aleksandr's words stirred the room.
Many things had crossed from Kurayan to Earth.
Heteromorphs like elves and dwarves, even monsters.
But one thing hadn't: spirits.
Earth was too ruined for spirits to survive, so none existed.
Thus, Earth-born elves had no memories of spirits.
A crown that might seal the Spirit King. If the Spirit King revives, spirits could appear on Earth too. Then rebuilding the planet might not be a pipe dream.
Spirits inherently aligned with nature.
Their revival would revive nature itself.
Borlin's heart pounded.
If the Spirit King is truly sealed inside, we must secure it.
The Spirit King was both blessing and calamity.
A contract with the righteous would bless Earth; with the wicked, it would bring global disaster.
Borlin said,
"You're really putting that up for auction?"
"Yes."
"Auctioning something so dangerous? Are you sane?"
"How do you know it's dangerous?"
"What?"
"It's never been used once. We can't know its performance. Judging it dangerous based solely on its name? I can't understand that."
"If it's truly tied to the Spirit King, you can't hand it to another district. Elves should manage it—sell it to us."
"We can't. We have our caravan's rules."
"This won't end well for the White Bear Caravan."
"Is that a threat?"
"What if it is?"
"The others won't like that."
Aleksandr smirked and glanced at the representatives from other districts.
Only then did Borlin realize her mistake.
She'd revealed her hand too early in front of rivals.
Raven and the others spoke up.
"Rules exist to be followed. You don't think being elves exempts you from human rules, do you?"
"Spirit King's Crown, huh. Tempting."
"We need to secure this one."
They all bared their greed.
The Spirit King's Crown exuded a presence leagues beyond the items they'd already claimed.
They made no effort to hide their avarice.
They were competitors, not allies.
Whatever the crown truly was, they couldn't let the North District have it.
Damn it!
Borlin bit her lip hard.
The mood was irreversibly ruined.
There was nothing she could do now.
"You'll regret this decision today."
With that, Borlin withdrew.
Zeon's eyes darkened deeply.
So that's it—they held the auction to show this to the elves after all.
Now he could see the picture Demian was painting.