Inside the carriage, filled with static.
All that could be heard was the sound of a pen scratching away.
I rested my chin on the window and glanced at him. Abel was busy checking documents and marking something off.
Is it normal to do paperwork in a carriage? Usually, you’d be thrown around, but he seemed unaffected.
Perhaps the carriage was magically enhanced, as I didn’t feel a single bump. Maybe Abel had set that magic up himself.
“What’s up, Adele?”
I froze for a moment as Abel looked up from his documents at me.
“Oh, nothing… I was just wondering how the Royal Auction House is.”
“Don’t expect too much. From what I’ve heard, it’s just a place for magical catalysts and buying slaves.”
‘…Slaves.’
Speaking of which, wasn’t slavery legal in the Empire of Arye?
That thought left a bitter taste in my mouth, and I couldn’t help but smile wryly. Having lived in modern times, the concept of slavery felt utterly foreign to me.
“So, why are you going to the auction, Abel?”
“There’s a rather useful catalyst up for auction this time. Since you’re here, I thought it wouldn’t hurt to check it out.”
“…I see.”
With that, the carriage was filled with silence again. Lily, who had been sitting next to me, seemed tired and was dozing off against her seat.
How much time had passed like that?
“We’ve arrived!”
At the driver’s voice, I woke up Lily next to me. She looked at me with sleepy eyes, then shook her head to regain her senses.
“Did we get here already?”
“Yeah. Get ready.”
“Got it!”
Saying that, Lily tidied her clothes and then glanced at mine. Abel tucked away the documents into thin air and spoke to me.
“Get yourself ready and come out. I’ll be waiting outside.”
“Yes.”
After he closed the door, Lily began adjusting my outfit. After a while of fussing over my clothes, she took a deep breath and said.
“Um, this looks perfect!”
“Thanks, Lily.”
“It’s my job!”
She said that with a bright smile before hopping out of the carriage. As the door opened and Lily stepped down, Abel reached out his hand to me. I cautiously took his hand and stepped out of the carriage.
“Here’s your mask. It has a recognition-inhibiting spell, so you don’t need to worry.”
Abel produced two rabbit masks from thin air and handed one to Lily and me. He then pulled out a wolf mask from his pocket and put it on.
Strangely enough, I could hardly see his face. It was as if only his face was covered in mist.
‘…Interesting.’
As a third-rate mage, recognition-inhibiting magic was beyond my capabilities. Just as I was about to put on the mask I held, I hesitated.
“…Abel?”
“Hmm?”
“Why am I getting the rabbit mask?”
“Doesn’t it suit you?”
“I’m not so sure about that.”
He grinned and stepped closer to me. Even with the mask on, I felt like I could see his face, making me subtly step back.
Maybe it was because we had shared a bed yesterday or perhaps it was the morning humiliation that made me a bit reluctant to face him closely.
Seeing my reaction, Abel spoke up.
“You trembling in front of a wolf seems just right for a rabbit.”
“…When did I tremble?”
“Of course, it was from embarrassment, not fear… but isn’t that the same?”
“Ugh… let’s just go.”
I said that, fearing he’d say something cheesy again. At my response, Abel chuckled and replied.
“Let’s do that.”
Putting on our masks, Lily and I followed Abel as he started walking. Exiting the area with the carriages, we came in sight of a large building. It looked to be over ten stories high.
‘…Is that magic?’
There’s no way such a height could be achieved without magic in this medieval era; it felt right to assume it was magic. While I mulled this over, Abel opened the building’s door and stepped inside.
The interior was quite neat.
The marble floor showed no signs of dust, and the walls were bare white wallpaper. It seemed to be maintained regularly. Well, given that it was an auction house run by the Imperial Family, upkeep was a must.
“By the way, starting now, we shouldn’t call each other by our names. Anonymity is standard at the Royal Auction House.”
“Understood.”
Lily nodded along and accompanied me as we followed Abel. After walking down the corridor a bit, we arrived at a huge wooden door.
A knight in armor stood in front of the wooden door.
“Please show your entry permit.”
At the knight’s words, Abel handed over the permit from his pocket. The knight scrutinized it for a moment before returning it and giving Abel a number plate.
“Enjoy the auction.”
As the knight opened the door, Abel, Lily, and I entered.
Inside resembled a modern movie theater. The only difference was that the seats were somewhat far apart, even if they were joined in pairs.
“Wow…”
Lily gasped in surprise at the auction house’s enormous size. Abel glanced around before heading toward a seat.
“Sit next to me. The maid can take the seat next to her.”
“Chair? Where…?”
When Lily questioned him, Abel pointed to a newly appeared seat that hadn’t been there before. Did he create it with magic? But why would he do something like that?
Seeing my confused gaze, he replied.
“Since you seem to be a personally cherished maid, I thought it was only right. Is there a problem?”
“No, just… thank you.”
“Not at all.”
Abel replied nonchalantly and then turned his attention back to the auction stage.
‘…Unpredictable.’
He was a man overflowing with kindness in the strangest ways.
‘…Well, whatever.’
Let’s focus on the auction for now. Abel had mentioned it was fine for me to buy what I wanted. But I wondered if there was anything worth my attention at the Royal Auction House. Lost in thought, I look up as a man appeared on stage.
He was wearing a clown mask.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats. The auction will begin shortly.”
The man announcing through amplification magic glanced around before continuing.
“Very well. Let’s begin the auction.”
With his words, several sturdy men brought something onto the stage.
“The first item is the scale of a deep-sea fish. It’s the only intact item from a monster living at a depth of 400 meters. It has been certified as a magical catalyst by the Mage Tower, so please take note.”
As the cloth covering the item was pulled away, a bronze scale was revealed. I’d heard rare monster materials were sold as magical catalysts.
As soon as the product was unveiled, about six people raised their number plates.
“The minimum price starts at 10 gold.”
One gold is roughly worth about a million won… so it starts at ten million. Quite a hefty price.
“12 gold!”
“12 gold, noted.”
“15 gold.”
“15 gold, noted. Any more?”
“20 gold!”
The fierce bidding continued as the price for the deep-sea fish scale quickly approached 100 gold.
“102 gold. Is there a higher bid?”
What was so special about that scale that it commanded such a high price? Almost as if reading my thoughts, Abel answered my query.
“Most magical catalysts are around that price, you see. For wizards, catalysts are the most helpful for enhancing their abilities.”
“…I see.”
So that’s why magic abilities didn’t seem to improve easily. Even if there are wizards around, they’d know about these things. I let out a sigh, feeling like I’d done unnecessary work.
In the meantime, the deep-sea fish scale sold for 120 gold, and the next item was brought out.
“The second item is the Gauntlets of Antiquity.”
As the black cloth was removed, a blackened gauntlet came into view. It seemed a bit worn but overall, it was still in good condition.
“The minimum price starts at 50 gold.”
“55 gold!”
“55 gold, noted.”
“65 gold.”
“65 gold, noted. Any more?”
“80 gold!”
“80 gold, noted.”
“200 gold.”
“Uh…”
I immediately lowered my hand.
‘…I don’t get it.’
What made it worth 300 million? Of course, I knew that for an aristocratic family, that amount was like a speck of dust.
But does that gauntlet objectively hold that much value?
He didn’t answer my puzzled glare.
“Any further offers?”
Those holding number plates were hesitating at the number 200 gold. Among them, only one person raised their plate.
“210 gold!”
“210 gold, noted. Anyone else?”
“300 gold.”
“Ugh…”
I quickly withdrew my hand again.
‘…Beyond my understanding.’
What was it about that gauntlet that justified a bid of three hundred million in my mind? Abel must have a reason. The announcer seemed slightly flustered by the number.
“300 gold has been bid. Any higher offers?”
Counting down from five, the announcer nodded and announced.
“The Gauntlets of Antiquity have been sold for 300 gold.”
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