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“Hey, my friend. Who do you think you are?”

“I’m just a worthless person who couldn’t recognize a noble and foolishly committed a social blunder.”

Hmm. Very well-educated.

It’s true what they say, you learn through pain when you’re ignorant.

“So, why are you here today?”

“…I came to use the auction house.”

Well, if you’d said that sooner, wouldn’t it have been better?

You could have gotten your ticket without any trouble and gone home safe and sound, right?

People here are so unfriendly.

When someone is lost and wandering, they don’t think to help and just run off on their own.

“Then let’s see your ticket first.”

I stretched my hand out to ask for it. After all, that was my original goal.

The noble, with a reluctant expression, pulled out a stamped envelope from somewhere in his clothes that looked like it wouldn’t even have pockets and handed it to me.

“Haha… so can I leave now?”

He said it in a tone that clearly wanted to escape quickly.

I grabbed the noble’s shoulder as he turned to walk away.

“Where are you going?”

“W-What? Since I gave it to you, doesn’t that mean we’re done here…?”

“What do you mean? You need to guide me.”

The invitation was a bonus; I was looking for you because I didn’t know the way!

“Come on, lead the way.”

I raised my right fist, and the noble, flustered, nodded quickly.

“Y-Yes!”

So we followed the noble as he walked ahead.

After wandering through back alleys for a while, he entered an entrance of a crumbling building that looked like it could collapse at any moment. Naturally, the only path was a staircase leading underground, so I followed him inside.

As I entered the building, what caught my eye was an interior so different from the entrance, it felt surreal.

A clean table and chairs with patterns, torches softly glowing, and neatly arranged bookshelves.

That’s probably why it felt more artificial. Who in the back alleys would be able to afford such decorations?

But that’s not what’s important right now.

This is a dead end.

“Hey, are you sure this is the right way?”

What if it turns out to be a trap, or if he’s leading me down some strange path to mess with me?

As I grabbed the noble by the collar, his face paled as he quickly clarified.

“N-No! This is definitely the right place! Please, follow me this way!”

The noble moved towards the lone bookshelf in the room and stopped right in front of it.

Is there a mechanism on the bookshelf? Just as I was thinking that, he pushed the bookshelf with both hands, and it turned with a creak.

‘Whoa…’

I silently marveled, thinking how far I had to go to reach this point.

If this were a game, I would have been cursed out for being a newbie rejecting others.

How would anyone find something like this without being told?

Picking this place out of numerous buildings is hard enough as it is.

“Let’s go.”

As I expressed my lingering complaints, the noble turned back to me.

“Is this the end?”

“Not yet.”

Wow, there’s still more?

Couldn’t the writer just throw something vague together since they’re not going to describe it anyway? Without a guide, I’d be in big trouble. Following the noble down the stairs behind the bookshelf, we entered what looked like an underground waterway.

Low ceiling, musty smell, and rats appearing here and there.

There was a central path with flowing water and paths on either side for people to walk.

‘Nobles really navigate places like this well.’

After walking for a while to reach the end of the underground waterway, we encountered yet another dead end.

“Again…?”

I couldn’t take it anymore.

The secret to navigating a horrible maze isn’t to follow any particular hand, it’s to smash through the walls.

So I casually pulled out a bomb from my inventory.

“We’ve arrived.”

The noble walked to the wall and smoothly passed through as if being absorbed by it.

“…a barrier?”

“What the hell is going on?”

You’d think someone was hiding the empire’s secrets in here.

They must be serious about hiding it. There’s no way there’d be such space buried deep underground otherwise.

Just how much have they been hoarding for themselves?

Following the noble through the wall, I found a door in front of me, and when I entered through it:

“A changing room?”

One side was a large mirror, and the opposite side had a collection of uniforms and dresses.

“Usually when people come this far, they disguise themselves like me, but once you enter the auction house, you can’t be looking all shabby. You’ll change here, then enter through the front door and submit your invitation.”

So the other side leads to the auction house.

It took quite a while to get here.

“Can I go now…?”

“Sure. Get lost.”

Rustle.

In an instant, I drew my sword and separated the noble’s head from his body.

As the clean cut began to gush blood, I kicked the corpse to let it float away in the underground water.

“Is it alright to kill him?”

“Better than leaving him alive and getting into trouble later.”

If he manages to escape and comes back for revenge, that’d cause more trouble.

This way, I deal with it ahead of time.

Even though killing a noble is usually a big deal, with no CCTV here, who’d know who did it?

If I kill him and get away with it, wouldn’t that be considered an assassination?

“Anyway, if anyone wants to change, hurry up.”

“I think I’ll pass.”

“So do I!”

I was still in the same black uniform I wore when I was a professor, and Riche looked decent enough, even if it wasn’t luxurious. Yui was already in a dress suitable for a noble, so she had no issues.

Then that means…

“Do I just have to change?”

“Yep.”

Only Luna, who was in leather armor, needed to change.

“Umm… I’ve never worn a dress before. Riche, could you help me?”

“Ah, sure. Luke, wait outside for a moment.”

“Why? It’s not like I haven’t seen everything already.”

“That’s not the same!”

“Come on.”

Kicked out just because she’s changing?

What a cliché.

I stood my ground, confidently crossing my arms and clutching the Iron Horn to the ground, unmoving.

“Uugh…! Yui, help me out…!”

“Okay? But I don’t see it budging even if we push as three instead of two?”

Riche seemed determined to get me out, pushing against my chest, but it was no use.

I’m a manly man. A woman’s strength wouldn’t faze me.

“Riche, let’s just go ahead. I’m fine.”

“Ugh…”

Since I said I was fine, Riche helped Luna change into the dress.

Even as a last resort, when Luna turned around to change, why was she making such a fuss? It’s not like anyone would see.

While Luna was changing into the dress, I looked around to see if there was anything else.

It wasn’t just clothes here; there were also accessories like rings and necklaces.

Among them, the item that caught my eye the most was a mask.

An important object that covers the face and ensures anonymity.

There were various types of masks, from a plain white one with only holes for the eyes and mouth to an eye mask suited for balls. They all differed.

“But what is this…?”

Among the masks, one stood out as if it were an Easter egg planted by the writer.

Still, I liked things like that, so I didn’t hesitate to put on the mask.

The mask I chose didn’t just cover my face, but also covered my whole head. Due to its nature, my field of vision was inevitably limited.

“Yui. How do I look?”

“Uh? Eek!”

Hmm. Yui’s reaction seemed satisfactory.

Just then, Luna and Riche, now in dresses, glanced at me, shocked, and stepped back.

“······!”

“What, what is it?”

“You guys should quickly grab masks too.”

I’m not sure if it’s mandatory, but it’s a rule to wear masks in a place like this.

Besides, it’s not beneficial to show your face.

“It’s fine to wear them, but do I really have to wear that mask?”

“Yep. I just really like it?”

“What about that…?”

“Respect my preferences.”

Anyone would think I was wearing a severed head with its insides hollowed out.

Why are they so surprised?

“Let’s hurry if we’re ready to go.”

As I opened the door at the end of the changing room, there were spiral stairs leading down again.

“Ugh… more stairs.”

Today, I couldn’t help but miss escalators and elevators so much.

We descended those stairs for about five minutes. At the end, we found a building so magnificent, it was hard to believe we were in an underground area.

On the way to the entrance, a red carpet was laid out, as if someone wanted to flaunt their wealth, and two large men were standing guard at the entrance, so I confidently walked up to present my ticket.

“I’ll need to check your ticket.”

“Here.”

I showed the guard the ticket I had received from the noble I killed earlier.

The guard scrutinized it to see if it was genuine, then, after confirming, spoke.

“Ticket confirmed. Are the people behind you in your party?”

“Yes.”

“Uh… pardon me… but are you really going to wear that mask inside…?”

“Is there a problem?”

Didn’t you bring it for us to wear?

If it was provided, then I can wear one, right? Why are you acting like I shouldn’t be wearing it?

“Ahem… it’s nothing. Have a good time.”

As the two guards opened the door, a large circular area appeared, where various participants were in the midst of an auction.

*

“Next item up for auction!”

The host in the center of the auction house lifted a terrifying-looking sword from a chest and shouted.

“This sword is made from the teeth of an A-Rank monster, the Hydra! The starting price is 50 gold coins! Minimum increment is 10 gold coins!”

Tsk. The man clicked his tongue.

To sell something, without knowing whether it’s real or fake, at such a price.

No one can tell if what the host is saying—that sword being made from real Hydra teeth—is true until they buy it and have it appraised.

In short, who would buy it? The nobles with money who love to gamble.

Collecting rare artifacts or magical tools, individuals who collect all sorts of swords—those kinds of people buy suspicious objects at high prices.

Royal auctions may appraise items to ensure authenticity, but in this shady place, none of that exists. If you get fooled, it’s your fault.

The reason the man was sitting there, clicking his tongue, is that it was part of his job.

He doesn’t have a specific title. He simply receives a list of auction items with their prices from the organizers and places bids at prices above what is listed.

As the man thought about this, their little league started.

“60 gold coins!”

“60 gold coins bid!”

“80 gold coins!”

“Current bid at 80 gold coins!”

“100 gold coins!”

“100 gold coins! Any more bids?!”

Exactly 100 gold coins.

After that, it went quiet.

The bidders must think that sword is worth less than 100 gold coins.

However, whether the sword is real or fake, the name “Hydra” alone makes 100 gold coins far too low.

The target price for this Hydra sword was 200 gold coins. That was his job, and even if he couldn’t reach that goal, he had to draw bids close to it.

So he subtly raised his hand to place a bid.

“110 gold coins!”

By raising the bid like this, he was subtly advertising to those who wouldn’t recognize this as a good weapon, indicating that it was a genuine item.

If he raised it all at once, his intentions would be obvious, so he raised it gradually, making it feel like a psychological battle.

Only then could he continue.

“120 gold coins!”

Someone followed him.

At the sound of the bidder’s offer, the corners of the man’s mouth rose behind the mask.

He waited for the host to count down, sensing the atmosphere.

When the host seemed to be ready to end, he quickly chimed in.

“130 gold coins!”

The bidding war continued, and as they neared the target price of 200 gold coins.

“190 gold coins!”

Just as the man reached near the goal, he thought, ‘Please, just one more time to reach 200 gold coins…!’

But suddenly, the opponent, who had been following closely, fell silent as if losing interest.

“190 gold coins! Sold!”

“Ah…”

Caught off guard, the man found himself the unexpected buyer.

But it didn’t matter. Such instances were rare, and since he was an undercover plant from the auction house, even if he won the bid, he wouldn’t be the one actually buying it.

He’d probably stash it somewhere, and it’ll come back up for auction later.

‘I regret this one, but I can adjust better next time.’

This occurred because he had been too eager to hit the target price this time.

Let’s play it safer next time.

While he was gathering his thoughts, he found himself scrutinizing a fake elixir that was the next item up for auction.

However, again and again, the man couldn’t avoid being outbid.

The reason was that someone kept pulling off the bids just above him, seemingly reading his mind and knowing precisely when to halt.

At this point, he figured it out.

The other party was doing the same thing he was.

And it seemed they were trying to mess with him.

‘What a jerk…!’

The man whipped his head around, searching for the culprit.

Just then, after he shouted his bid, he spotted a man eagerly raising his hand to bid again.

But… he was clearly wearing a suspicious-looking mask.

‘…A pig?’

That’s right.

He was wearing a pig mask.

 

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