Chapter 125: Father and Son (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 125: Father and Son (4)
"It's been a while, Your Imperial Highness."
My emergency relief pitcher was Princess Victoria.
"It couldn't have been an easy decision. Thank you for cooperating so readily."
"...It's nothing."
Victoria spoke while twirling a lock of hair beside her ear for no particular reason.
"I heard this involves the Heavenly Sword and the Imperial Family."
"To be precise, it's something that might put me at odds with the Imperial Family."
This was a point I had to make clear.
Victoria was in a position where she would have to turn against her own family—if not completely, then at least for the time being.
If she had agreed without receiving a proper explanation... I would be no different from a home-wrecker. Just like that oblivious Choi Seol-ah.
"That's why I came."
Victoria's eyes shone with profound resolve.
"As your disciple and a member of the Imperial Family, I cannot simply turn a blind eye to this."
"..."
Perhaps I had been projecting my past self at her age onto Victoria.
As if reading my thoughts, Ryozo nudged me with her elbow and whispered, "They say kids grow up fast these days, but she's matured far too early."
Maturing early wasn't inherently a good thing. More often than not, it meant growing up with a void where a crucial part of one's teenage years should have been. As a victim of that exact fate, I knew it all too well.
I tried not to let it show, brushing away a bitter smile from my lips.
There was a reason I kept turning my gaze toward Princess Victoria, even though we were always at odds.
That somber expression on her face was the exact reflection of my teenage years in my past life.
Episode: Father and Son
With Victoria here, virtually all the behind-the-scenes preparation on our end was complete.
From now on, ironically enough, we had to rely on Pertinax X's ability to host the event. The key to this showdown was how many customers he could steal away.
I continuously relayed my intentions through Choi Seol-ah. She maintained constant contact with Pertinax X to hand over the Daixo Sashimi knives bearing my signature.
"CEO, you need to make more aggressive moves to poach customers from them!"
"P-Poach...?"
"Yes. You're doing well enough right now, but we haven't hooked the big fish yet, have we?"
"M-May I ask why we must go to such lengths...?"
"My husband said that there cannot be two suns in the sky. Even if it is a black sun, there must be only one sun in the heavens. That was the belief of my husband, the Heavenly Sword."
Ugh!
While eavesdropping via radio in the back room of the real estate office, the flesh on my waist was pinched mercilessly.
'Ryozo!'
Ryozo gave me a coy glare. She then brought the headset back to her ear and murmured softly, "If you behaved yourself, Secretary Kim wouldn't be saying things like that."
Wow, this was wildly unfair.
However, if I voiced my grievance right now, I felt like the skin on my waist would be torn clean off. The pinching power of an archer... I shall refrain from further elaboration.
"If the Heavenly Sword said so...! Then I must naturally follow his banner...!"
"Great! Let's steal all their customers together and make the Kaiten Auction House completely deserted!"
"Yes, ma'am!!"
How ironic. I was the one who drove the Pertinax Auction House into bankruptcy, yet Pertinax X regarded me as an idol.
"Should I dig into his background?"
"..."
As expected of Ryozo. She had already picked up on the suspicious glimmer that flashed in my eyes for a split second.
'...I really can't hide anything from her.'
Feeling a chill creep across my skin, I nodded.
"Please do."
"After all, Geomma, this isn't just about you, so it doesn't hurt to be careful."
Ryozo draped the headset around her slender neck.
"I'll have Vixbig hack all the CCTV feeds around here."
"..."
That statement reeked of a seasoned professional.
"What?" Ryozo asked with a bright smile.
"I know nothing."
I stuck to playing dumb.
"I seriously know nothing..."
"Our Geomma has grown up so much."
This time, Ryozo gently pinched my cheek.
"Look at you, learning how to read the room."
I'm actually quite quick at distinguishing friend from foe, strictly within the domestic realm...
* * *
"Now then! The Heavenly Sword's cherished Daixo Sashimi Mk. 421 has been sold for a whopping 700 million won!"
Pertinax X led the auction in high spirits. In just a few days, his complexion had completely changed. His gaunt cheeks had filled out, and a healthy radiance defined his jawline.
Looking at him now, he bore a strong resemblance to Pertinax IX in his prime. Pertinax's clientele seemed to feel the same way. Without anyone asking them to, the guests had put on masks before entering—all to relive the nostalgia of the past.
"Welcome! What a splendid night!"
True to form, the auction house was buzzing with excitement tonight as well. It was packed. Seats were in short supply, so more than half the attendees stood at the back holding up bidding signs.
Thanks to Pertinax X's hospitality, I received special treatment and sat in the VIP seats. To be precise, Choi Seol-ah had secured several seats under the pretense of offering the Daixo Sashimi.
Choi Seol-ah had obtained multiple seats, so I visited the auction house not alone, but alongside Ryozo and Abel. Tonight was D-Day.
'I can't delay this any longer.'
The more money accumulated in the vault, the greater my anxiety grew.
I didn't start this to make money. I came to save Chloe from her Awakening. That was why I was pouring all my available manpower and knowledge into this.
When I relayed my intentions through my representative, Choi Seol-ah, Pertinax X looked quite troubled.
—Mm. We should strike while the iron is hot, but... Understood for now.
Even his tone of voice had apparently changed quite a bit.
Seriously, the taste of money changes a person.
"There are so many people..."
Abel clicked her tongue. She seemed quite uncomfortable. Sitting on my left, she pressed herself close to me.
Even though the auction items were ordinary unlike in the past, the atmosphere felt foreign to her—the situation where masked people called out bids. I covered her hand to reassure her.
"Don't worry. This kind of culture might end today anyway."
"Huh?"
Abel spun her head toward me.
Behind her wolf mask, she blinked her eyes innocently. It reminded me of Skoll and Hati.
When I merely offered a faint smile, a response came from my right. It was Ryozo, wearing a white cat mask. She entwined her arm around my right arm.
"This looks like it'll be fun."
"..."
Just as I tried my best to look away and focus on the auction,
"Excuse me for a moment."
There was a slight stir in front of us. A female customer excused herself past the seated guests to reach her assigned spot, as the seats were arranged in long straight rows like a movie theater.
Wearing a fox mask, she sat down directly in front of me. It was a seat in the VIP section that had remained vacant until now.
Meanwhile, the auction led by Pertinax X reached a crescendo. Even though the same item had been on offer for days, the guests raised their bidding placards as if trained to do so.
"800 million!"
"820 million!"
"We have 840 million...!!"
Reaching new record highs continuously, huh. To think a Daixo Sashimi knife I bought and scribbled on would fetch 800 million won. This felt way too much like a scam.
Not that I needed to feel any pangs of conscience.
'It'll all be over soon anyway.'
At that moment, the curtain behind the auction stage curled upward gracefully on both sides, resembling a noble lady lifting the hem of her skirt in a polite bow.
Standing by between the curtains was a woman with long, slender limbs and a striking rabbit mask. None other than Choi Seol-ah.
Since tonight was the final night, Pertinax X had prepared a special event.
...Choi Seol-ah, who was rumored to be my favored concubine, personally took the stage.
Handed the microphone, Choi Seol-ah feigned a sorrowful demeanor as her lips parted.
"...Hello, everyone. I am the Heavenly Sword's lover... When I first began this to honor my departed husband, I never imagined so many of you would grace us with your presence..."
The bullshit continued. I had to endure the merciless, accusatory glares raining down on me from both my left and right.
"Ha. Unbelievable."
A low laugh leaked out from in front of me. It came from the female guest sitting ahead. She crossed her legs and spoke in a pretentious tone,
"Acting like she's his one and only concubine when she's just one of the Heavenly Sword's countless side pieces at best... Disgusting."
...Excuse me. I am not that kind of bastard.
Even while that was happening, Choi Seol-ah pressed on as if delivering a grandstand speech.
"However, as I mentioned to Lord Pertinax X before! I did not request this auction to make money! That is why, even though I could have submitted more, I intentionally capped it at 444 items for this Pertinax Auction House..."
"A truly regrettable thing," Pertinax X chimed in.
You've already made a fortune off just that much, though.
"...However, what truly breaks my heart is... that my love for my husband has been tainted."
Pertinax X tilted his head like the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
"What do you mean...?"
"I have been a regular at this Pertinax Auction House for a long time. This place, everyone, has for generations dealt in things that should never have been handled."
Flustered, Pertinax X tried to damage-control.
"T-That is true! Which is why I am struggling tirelessly to set things right in my generation!"
"Yes. That might have been your original intention."
Choi Seol-ah took a bold step forward.
At that, the woman in front of me flinched, her shoulders shuddering. It seemed like she had been about to spring into action. Let's leave her be for now.
Choi Seol-ah declared:
"An auction house that originally dealt in contraband! Yet now, thanks to my husband's grace, we are presenting items touched by such divine light to all our distinguished guests."
Choi Seol-ah raised the Daixo Sashimi high in the air—a holy gesture reminiscent of the Statue of Liberty.
"And yet! My husband's grace!"
She thrust it forward.
Pointing straight at Pertinax X.
"This man, blinded by greed, has been using it for money laundering!"
"...!!"
Pertinax X staggered backward.
"W-What are you...!"
"Did you think I wouldn't know? No matter how I thought about it, it was strange. Normally, in auctions like this, if the exact same item is repeatedly put up, the price should drop. No matter how precious the artifact is. There might be one or two exceptions, but setting record-high prices for 444 items in a row is far too artificial."
Choi Seol-ah recited the lines I gave her word for word without missing a beat.
"So I tracked the funds to see how they were being used."
Ryozo had a bit of a hard time with this part. Since auctions were fundamentally cash transactions, tracking wasn't easy. But she pulled it off anyway, meticulously scanning through the serial identification numbers on the bands binding the stacks of bills.
From there, Ryozo passed the baton to Abel. As the queen of high society, Abel compiled a list of nobles who had recently been aggressively purchasing luxury goods. Then, she delivered it to Speed Weapon at the Association via 'flammable paper.'
Based on that, Speed Weapon put together an elite team.
Kwang...!
They had just arrived.
"Hero Association!"
Speed Weapon held up the paper in a pose as if shouting, "Make way for the Royal Secret Inspector!"
"Everyone currently present on scene is under emergency arrest for suspicion of involvement in illegal money laundering!"
"T-The Association...!"
Pertinax X paled in horror.
Then he darted his eyes—in my direction.
No. At the seat right in front of me.
It was the exact moment the woman tried to spring up to her feet.
"Freeze."
I pressed my sashimi knife against her delicate liver.
"Would you prefer a paper warrant, or a physical one?"
As I whispered, the woman froze solid.
This chilling thrill.
It's been a while since I was back as Kang Geomma.