Chapter 81: Auction (3)
‘Alright. This isn’t the time to be lost in thought.’
Gi-ryeo scratched his neck and tried to shake off the ponderings.
While he was lost in memories of his hometown, the situation over there had become quite dire.
“Our appraiser said it’s hard to confirm who used the magic book.”
“Then just refund it.”
“Unfortunately, refunds for opened magic books are generally….”
Esther shot a smile at the staff members.
“Looks like they intend to insist they didn’t do anything wrong until the end?”
“Huh, Mr. Hunter. But if you demand a refund based on something so hard to prove….”
“Then shall I borrow Justitia from England?”
Huh!
“Do you know? The Scales of Judgment. With that one item, we could know who’s lying among us. Can you handle that?”
The situation was on the verge of explosion.
But at that moment, the appraiser from the Magic Tower, who had been silent until now, stepped forward.
“Um, um! Mr. Kim Gi-ryeo…?”
Someone here had definitely noticed whether the magic book had been used.
“Come to think of it, how did you realize this magic book was an empty shell, Mr. Hunter?”
If Gi-ryeo added his explanation, verifying the claim would be much easier.
He glanced back at the Awakened standing behind him, seemingly looking for help. Then, Gi-ryeo reluctantly uncrossed his arms and stepped forward.
Not that he was particularly eager, but… helping a Curse Mage wouldn’t lead to any losses.
“It’s a simple matter.”
Thud.
Gi-ryeo placed his hand on the magic book sitting on the table.
What followed was a simplistically condensed explanation he delivered with all his might.
“Take a good look at the cover. Here, you see the broken part in the middle circle?”
“Huh?”
“It should originally be at an angle around 3 o’clock… but after use, now 1 o’clock and 6 o’clock are broken. Got it?”
The information he provided was a subtle change in pattern that was so minor it could easily go unnoticed if one wasn’t paying attention.
Alphauri hieroglyphs appeared to Earthlings like some sort of Morse code.
“Isn’t the pattern on the cover of the Sealed Magic Book just random?”
The auction house staff asked with a puzzled expression, but Gi-ryeo quickly nailed it home.
“It might seem like that before opening the book since it changes slightly, but in any case, the lines I mentioned become fixed after use.”
This was information that even the professional auctioneer did not know at all.
Rare-grade sealed magic books were traded only once or twice a year, making them extremely scarce.
Moreover, the fact that it was a one-time magic tool contributed further to the lack of information.
Gi-ryeo attempted to consider their circumstances. Sure, it made sense.
But feeling frustrated was a separate issue.
“Um…”
“Yes?”
“Don’t you usually examine the items a bit more… closely? This is something that can be determined with just the naked eye.”
He spoke out of sheer incredulity.
But once he let it slip, he realized it was a mistake.
This was a gathering of both the auction house’s appraiser and the Korean Magic Tower’s appraiser for product verification.
Huh!
The appraiser from the Korean Magic Tower appeared to have an Awakening Level around C-class at first glance.
At that level, they could easily fold F-class like crumpling a soda can without even being part of a combat class…!
“Oh, um… so what I meant was…”
Gi-ryeo hurriedly tried to repackage the comment for fear of offending them, but the Korean Magic Tower’s appraiser opened their mouth faster.
With a face full of admiration at that.
“… Sensei!”
What kind of ridiculous title is that?!
“So, what you’re saying is that appraisers shouldn’t just rely on Awakening skills but should also examine the essence of the items directly?”
“Yes?”
“Oh… this truly teaches me something.”
Surprisingly, instead of getting offended, they appeared to gain insight from his comment.
Moreover, Gi-ryeo’s statement began to be overly interpreted.
It made sense, considering he had that plausible title that hadn’t been broken yet.
“Indeed, you are someone who broke through the Tower’s maze, so it makes sense your perspective differs. You say we should value the naked eye over skills…”
“Wait, this person was the one who conquered that maze?”
The only Hunter to pass through the Tower’s maze.
That achievement was more than enough to add weight to one’s words.
People tend to attribute unnecessary significance to a celebrity’s casual remark.
“This young man is truly amazing.”
“Usually, when an appraiser awakens, they cling to that rare skill.”
“Exactly. Everyone gets so hung up on raising their skill level, no one goes out of their way to study the items like that.”
Chatter chatter.
The common topic quickly heated the atmosphere.
Seeing this, Gi-ryeo hurriedly interrupted their conversation. He certainly wouldn’t want to become famous in this specific area given that he had already faced threats of kidnapping for being an appraiser.
“Anyway, this isn’t the point.”
Ultimately, the crux was to reveal that the magic book had been used before it came into Esther’s hands.
Gi-ryeo proposed a few solutions regarding this.
Fetching another magic book to compare the banding phenomenon or obtaining an item to reveal lies as Esther suggested…
“Wait?”
However, unexpectedly, this issue was resolved in a much simpler way.
A few minutes later, the auction house manager arrived late to resolve the incident and said:
“Magic books emit a blue glow the first time they are used. Has anyone here seen the color change in the patterns?”
Not the band on the cover, nor the seal, but one more element that indicates the condition of the magic book?
As mentioned earlier, appraisers in this world tended to rely heavily on the magic bestowed by the sky.
This tendency was so strong it could be said to be dependent, making the obscure properties of items not well-known in the industry.
When the manager provided this new information, the room fell into an awkward silence for a moment.
Whether due to S-class presence or the peculiar nature of the situation, everyone’s memories were blurred.
“Ah… was this book like that?”
“Well, I’m not sure.”
“I was only focused on Esther, so I can’t say for sure…”
This incident ultimately concluded by verifying whether the book glowed through CCTV.
“There’s no light…!”
The auction house’s mistake was revealed.
“No way, this is worth hundreds of millions. Who used it behind our backs…?”
“Maybe there was tampering from the time it first went on sale. Immediately request an investigation from the association!”
“Ms. Esther, I sincerely apologize!”
Esther seemed to have been indifferent from the beginning regarding the 5 billion, showing no significant emotional change.
But the problem lay with one F-class’s feelings.
‘I can’t help but swear.’
The fact that the book glows was an entirely unfamiliar piece of information to him.
No matter how great a mage was, he couldn’t know the properties of every book in his hometown.
While Gi-ryeo marveled at a dusty textbook having such an effect, he simultaneously swallowed down rough curses.
‘I want to go home…’
Wait, did they seriously hold a lengthy discussion for over an hour regarding this simple issue?
*
“Hahaha! A blue glowing pattern, huh? Right? I wonder why we turned such an easy matter into a difficult one.”
“…….”
“It’s been so long since I used a magic book that I guess I forgot. Well, you know, it’s such a rare item. I usually don’t remember trivial information like that.”
After everything was wrapped up. In the G1 corridor of the auction house.
Esther walked ahead, chattering cheerfully. However, the expression of the Hunter next to her was far from pleasant.
They had just returned from an exhausting wild goose chase.
‘If I had known it would be this tiring, I wouldn’t have followed her to the auction house.’
Kim Gi-ryeo quietly followed Esther, massaging the back of his neck.
But soon after, a topic that could change the situation slipped from Esther’s lips.
“Oh, right, I want to show my appreciation.”
Appreciation?
As he pondered this, Esther explained right away.
“Thanks to you today, we safely saved 5 billion.”
It didn’t immediately make sense to him.
“How does that mean I saved 5 billion? You still ended up buying the magic book after hearing my advice.”
As Gi-ryeo retorted, Esther smiled and added a few words.
“But without you, I would have either opened the magic book at home or given it to another guild member.”
“Ah.”
“In that case, it would have become quite complicated to prove the defect.”
So, she’s thanking him for alerting her to this matter ahead of time?
“Also, the way to distinguish the magic book would have been pretty valuable information. Since it was revealed because of me…”
“Um.”
“I’ll definitely show my appreciation. Really, since we’ve come this far, do you need any items?”
Items he needs.
Being a person blinded by greed, Kim Gi-ryeo accepted that offer wholeheartedly.
“Then… could you buy me a Pyromancer Necklace?”
However, after seeing the price of the necklace, Esther’s expression completely changed.
Soon arriving at the second floor of the Hunter Market.
Esther held the price tag for the Pyromancer Necklace that the other person wanted and began to wear a serious expression.
‘Oh no!’
Gi-ryeo thought to himself.
‘It was madness to ask for something over 50 million, no matter how rich she is!’
He wanted to maintain a good relationship with the Curse Mage, so he began to prepare an apology.
But there was no need.
Esther’s expression was hardened for another reason.
‘Equipment costs only 50 million…?’
From the perspective of an S-Class Hunter, in truth, an item priced at 50 million was hardly usable.
Items at such a low price typically only had D~C-class levels of effectiveness.
Esther had never worn equipment that costs less than 100 million, making it even more difficult for her to understand.
Gi-ryeo’s request was so remarkably and utterly frugal.
‘On top of that, the equipment grade is rare?’
What kind of miserly request is this?
To ask for such a small gift, seemingly intending to leave no debt, at least in formality.
“Hmmm…”
Kim Gi-ryeo was trying to brush aside the favor owed to the leader of the Korean Magic Tower.
Esther finished interpreting his behavior and wore a vague smile.
This meant she found even greater favor for this F-class Hunter.
“The Pyromancer Necklace, huh? The gold color would suit you well, Gi-ryeo.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re a warm tone, right? Isn’t that why you dyed your hair like that?”
Esther chatted lightly about the necklace as they headed to the checkout counter.
“Here, this is the payment.”
Then, without a moment’s hesitation, she took out a black-coated card and completed the payment.
All of this transpired in just a few seconds.
“Um?”
“Here you go. This will do, right?”
Cling.
Gi-ryeo accepted the necklace she handed over in a daze, only for Esther to follow up with a question.
“By the way, Gi-ryeo, this is just my personal observation.”
“Yes.”
“Handing over a substance like Huema Je seems like it was carelessly given, and while you’ve dismissed offers from other guilds, you’ve only accepted our external appraisal…”
“Yes…”
“I sometimes feel like you’re supporting our Korean Magic Tower…”
Esther rolled her big eyes as if choosing her words carefully.
“Is this simply my misunderstanding? If it’s not a misunderstanding, what is your intent in… helping us?”
However, despite her careful approach, he answered simply, almost deflatingly.
To this F-Class Hunter, this conversation topic wasn’t something to ponder deeply.
“Huh? The Korean Magic Tower? I don’t really care what happens to a place like that.”
Kim Gi-ryeo replied with a calm expression.
“What I care about is only you, Ms. Esther.”
The context felt a bit odd.
Still, it wasn’t exactly incorrect.
He was always keeping an eye on the Curse Mage, assuming that being on her bad side would be troublesome.
