Chapter 427

Once the auction was over, I decided I would talk to him again. I made that lighthearted plan in my head.

"Oh."

And even in that brief moment, it seemed the conversation had wrapped up well, because Esther was already approaching with a relieved expression on her face.

"Phew."

"What happened?"

"I was worried he might shamelessly ignore even the [Fairy's Promise], but thankfully, that wasn't the case."

"How could anyone ignore the result after the item was actually used?"

"The world's gone completely mad these days. You can't even expect common sense anymore."

Talking with her soon revealed something else.

S-rank hunters were almost always people with strong public recognition. Because of that, the foreign hunter in question was apparently quite famous and had an enormous number of followers on SNS.

"Using the internet to settle a dispute... that's such an Earth-like idea."

So a hunter from a certain Western European country began repeatedly posting things like this in places where many people would see them: a friendly photo taken together with South Korea's second S-Class Hunter, accompanied by a caption along the lines of, 'We had a slight misunderstanding, but we've resolved it well, and now our relationship is even better than before.'

To be precise, this had been done at Esther's request, since she was the victim.

Honestly, trying to correct the rumor one acquaintance at a time would only create more opportunities for the story to become distorted along the way. So after thinking it over, Esther had apparently chosen to make a public statement online instead.

"I'd honestly like to swear, 'If you ever fall into paranoid delusions again, may you actually receive the [curse],' but..."

It seemed her true feelings were somewhat different from how things appeared on the surface.

"Just endure it."

"Yes. But now that I'm a guild master who has to run an organization instead of living like a shut-in, I decided to hold back my fists somehow."

In any case, nothing new had happened because of the false rumor.

That meant we were able to bring the confrontation with the European S-rank to a peaceful conclusion before it escalated any further.

"There are two ways to achieve peace, and the best one is a calm discussion."

It was a rather intelligent and thoughtful conclusion.

"Excuse me."

But just as I was quietly feeling satisfied with the peace on my side...

"Giryeo-ssi."

The familiar Korean curse specialist suddenly spoke from beside me.

"By the way, this matter was only resolved so smoothly because you personally stepped in, Giryeo-ssi. But..."

If she had something to say, she could have just said it.

Yet despite clearly having more to add, she hesitated for quite some time and couldn't bring herself to continue. Judging from the atmosphere, it was as if she'd remembered a sentence she couldn't say lightly.

"What is it?"

So I waited with interest to hear what she wanted to say.

"Cheeee......"

Unfortunately, the speaker activated just before she could continue.

[Attention to all auction participants.]

Why had we come all the way to this distant federal country in the first place?

In truth, our main purpose wasn't to resolve disputes.

If possible, I would have preferred not to see that unfortunate Awakened named Leo at all.

"It's about to begin."

But I had endured that long flight out of necessity, in order to trade the [Sin Classification] loot I had finally obtained.

'Lower-ranked hunters often can't even touch things like this... I'm about to see a whole bunch of high-quality magical tools.'

The three S-ranks who had been talking while seated—namely Esther, the foreigner, and me—heard the announcement from above and moved forward.

"It's pretty dark inside."

Once we entered the auction hall, I openly showed a little curiosity.

When I asked Esther what she'd been trying to say earlier, she didn't give me a proper answer.

She simply dodged the question as though it were difficult to talk about right now.

"Hmm."

I just hoped the words that Earthling had been hiding weren't some sort of curse or insult.

"For now, I'll just focus on selling the loot."

Tang. Tang. Tang.

After a short wait, a clear, resonant sound rang through the hall.

The organizers had struck a wooden hammer to signal the start of the event.

***

Ten million dollars.

Fifty million dollars.

And sometimes Swiss francs, Korean won, and so on.

There's only one item being sold, so why are there so many different ways to express its price?

"Maybe it's because I haven't gone out in a while, but modern society feels unfamiliar to me all over again."

As all sorts of thoughts passed through my head...

"Anyway, adapting to a new planet isn't easy."

By then, a full three hours had already passed since the auction began.

There was no need to consider any new bids. The trading event was already nearly over.

"Hmm."

Still, simply saying that the event had gone smoothly felt a little inaccurate.

"Adapting to human society really is difficult."

At this point, it was worth mentioning that I had been in quite a generous mood after going out for the first time in a while.

My attachment to money had weakened to the point where I was willing to buy a [Fairy's Promise] worth hundreds of millions for someone else's sake, and today in particular, I had been unusually generous toward humans.

So I wanted to make one thing clear.

I had absolutely no malicious intentions at the beginning...

"Giryeo-ssi."

"Yes."

"What are you thinking about?"

To get straight to the point, I had publicly announced here that I {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} would share the [Appraisal] results when the highly toxic greatsword went up for auction.

That had happened only about thirty minutes earlier.

Normally, the buyer would have to hire a professional appraiser anyway to verify the item's authenticity and pay the fee themselves.

But if I personally vouched for it for free under my own name, the chance of the item failing to sell would go down.

That said, lowering its appraisal value was another matter entirely.

The greatsword called Hydra had already become famous under other nicknames...

[Former S-Rank Hunter's Beloved Item: What Was the Loot He Obtained from the Japan Raid?]

For reference, I had never revealed the weapon's actual performance.

The main reason was that I feared exposing my F-rank status.

However, the sword's appearance was simply too distinctive.

Black leather on the outside.

Deep green within.

As a result, even without any details about its abilities, the artifact had already become widely known around the world as one of a Korean hunter's prized possessions.

"Why on earth are people so interested in that kind of useless information..."

Anyway, the person who ultimately won the bid for Hydra asked me for my opinion.

"Sir, first of all, thank you for sharing the [Appraisal] results. I trust you, so I won't request a second verification."

"Yes."

"But if it's not rude, could I ask you one question before I receive the item?"

"Yes."

"How potent is the weapon's poison? Please answer based on the standards of an S-rank user."

I had genuinely only answered out of good faith.

"It's nothing special. To be honest, when facing an S-rank monster, I don't think this alone would provide any meaningful advantage."

The problem came immediately afterward.

Although the Hydra auction itself had gone quite smoothly, the hunter who won the bid suddenly began complaining about a faint stomachache.

"Oh! What the? My stomach hurts."

"That weapon's supposed to be poisonous, right? Then... could it be because of the poison...?"

"He wasn't even cut by it, but he's hurting just from standing nearby?"

In the end, after a series of events, a strange rumor spread around the venue.

Apparently, what the Korean hunter had really meant was:

'You guys are nothing special.'

Since word had already spread around the auction hall that I was supposedly breaking down physically, I could understand why people might get confused by the entire situation.

Still, it wasn't exactly something worth worrying about.

"The item's already sold, and maybe because of their pride, they didn't even ask for a refund."

It was just that I had accidentally ended up screwing over the buyer, which made things a little awkward.

"Huh?"

But then, while I was lost in thought...

"Finally!"

The long-awaited opportunity appeared.

"Let's get this over with right away."

Before long, I spotted a pale-skinned foreigner in glasses heading somewhere.

I instinctively followed him out.

After walking for around forty-five seconds, I found myself in a familiar place, facing him once again.

"Uh, um... h, hello?"

The restroom.

For the record, it didn't seem as though running into someone here was considered particularly pleasant.

The man who had once proposed to Esther couldn't even control his expression properly. He simply glanced sideways at the alien creature with obvious discomfort.

'Or maybe he's just reacting that way because he really needs to go?'

I gave him a polite nod and held back what I wanted to say so he could deal with his "urgent business" first.

"--"

As I lingered by the sink, washing my hands a little too slowly, the Awakened man—who had been stealing glances at me through his lenses—unexpectedly spoke first.

"By the way, what happened earlier really surprised me."

I wondered what exactly had surprised him so much.

"The [Fairy's Promise]... I'm not sure that's the correct translation, since the name differs somewhat from country to country."

"Fortunately, there's no problem."

"That item, when set to its maximum penalty, is said to bind someone almost as strongly as an actual pact. Apparently, there have even been quite a few cases where people were left crippled because of it."

For the time being, I simply listened.

"But while I was watching from the side, I noticed that Miss Esther even seemed uncomfortable around you."

I listened quietly and leaned forward slightly, signaling for him to continue.

"Always keeping a physical distance. Constantly watching your every move, like someone dealing with their boss at work."

"--"

"Anyway, just like the rumors say, it doesn't seem like the two of you are particularly close. Which means you used a [Fairy's Promise] with someone who's practically a stranger."

At that point, the other man shrugged.

"That's why I was surprised. Honestly, I also found the choice rather worrying."

"Worrying?"

"I'm a little concerned that talking too much might get me into trouble again. But still, if you'll allow me to say this... people in my country speculate that the reason you retired was because of an 'illness.'"

"But what does that have to do with the [Fairy's Oath]?"

"It's unsettling when someone who's supposedly too ill to continue their career seems completely detached from everything."

Ah.

"To be honest, it makes you wonder whether they're using an item like that so fearlessly because... they feel they have nothing left to lose."

That had never been my intention.

But unexpectedly, this conversation made me realize something.

"Ah--"

Come to think of it, Esther had kept hesitating earlier too, opening her mouth as if she wanted to say something, only to stop herself halfway.

That worried gaze.

The faint wrinkles between her brows.

And so on.

I recalled the expression she'd been wearing and instinctively understood the truth.

"So that's what the Guild Master of the Korea Magic Tower Guild was trying to say too."

Apparently, from an Earthling's perspective, a terminally ill person using a [Fairy's Promise] could be interpreted in a rather unusual way.

But what could I do about it?

Even if I went out of my way to explain that I was fine, no one would believe me anyway.

"I'm far too old to be called a boy, yet every day I end up playing shepherd for something I never asked for."

By now, I couldn't even be bothered to explain anymore.

So after a brief moment of thought, I simply gave up on the whole thing.

Then I brought up the topic I'd wanted to ask about from the very beginning.

"Alright, I've heard everything that surprised you. Now, may I ask you something?"

"--Yeah, yeah... yes!"

"It's nothing too serious. I've just been curious for a while about how you ended up proposing to Hunter Esther."

At that, he looked taken aback and barely managed to answer.

"You're curious about that?"

After all, until yesterday, we hadn't even known each other's faces.

So it was understandable that a Korean suddenly asking about someone else's choice of spouse would feel a little embarrassing.

"Did Esther herself ask you to do this?"

"Not at all. On the contrary, I promise I won't tell her anything you say. So from now on, please feel free to answer honestly."

I was worried he might dodge the question and fall silent.

So at that point, I added just a little seasoning.

An Alphauri technique known as [Wordcraft].

"What's this... could this be some kind of tactic South Koreans use to, um, test or probe someone..."

"Test or probe? I don't know what you mean. Anyway, whatever the reason, it's fine. Just speak honestly and comfortably, alright?"

Simply put, it meant that a spell had been activated, imbuing each word with tremendous force.

"Honestly..."

Of course, compared to genuine [Mind Control], its stability was far inferior.

At best, it could only nudge someone toward sincerity in a rather unusual way.

But that seemed to be enough.

After a moment, the other man began to answer with a rather blank expression.