Chapter 31

Complete faith.

Receiving such unwavering trust left her feeling slightly awkward.

That absolute trust stirred something unsettling within her.

Thump, thump. Her heartbeat quickened ever so slightly, and for some reason, it felt unpleasant.

She wanted to cut it off by saying, “Don’t trust me,” but the words wouldn’t come out.

In the end, she simply let out a small sigh and opened the door.

A dark, long corridor appeared before her. Walking down that hallway, she pushed aside a curtain seeping faint light, revealing an auction house far larger than she had expected.

The crowd was massive, and the heat was stifling.

The circular auction house descended in tiers toward the center, allowing a clear view from above.

Blending naturally into the crowd, she pretended to be a spectator.

“The Star Sapphire earrings—one of only three in the Empire—starting at 20 gold coins!” 

A man standing on the central platform shouted.

His voice echoed loudly throughout the auction house, likely amplified by some kind of artifact.

When the masked man pulled away the cloth, the earrings sparkled under magical lighting.

“20 gold!”

“25 gold!”

“40 gold!”

The bids climbed rapidly.

“Stolen goods.” 

Eched muttered, immediately recognizing the item.

Not long ago, a report from the capital’s guards mentioned that the daughter of a noble family had her jewelry stolen.

Typically, such minor incidents wouldn’t be reported, but due to the recent surge in crimes targeting nobles, they had been keeping a close watch.

The sapphire earrings, likely stolen, were sold for 100 gold coins. The next item brought out was also stolen.

By now, it was clear that this auction house was tied to the thefts.

“It seems they’re operating from here.”

“Catching the owner of this auction house should solve the theft cases as well.”

Stealing and then selling.

On top of that, this illegal auction involving dark mages appeared to be far more organized than they had anticipated.

“Could someone be backing them?”

For commoners, especially those from the slums, managing an operation of this scale would be nearly impossible.

Running such a large-scale business in secret was no easy feat.

‘There must be someone supporting them…’

But she couldn’t remember the most critical part. All she could do was investigate tirelessly.

The original story had flowed without major incidents, making it difficult to pinpoint the villain.

‘First, we need to capture the auction house owner.’

Scanning her surroundings, she spotted Eurell and Sir Taltos in the distance. Masked staff members were scattered throughout the venue, making it impossible to approach them directly.

‘Good thing we prepared signals in advance.’

Taltos, catching her gaze, scratched near his nose—a signal indicating that all preparations were complete. The magic on the entrance tickets had been analyzed, and knights had been stationed around the area.

She stroked her chin as a signal in return. Recognizing it, Sir Taltos immediately sprang into action.

He began stirring up chaos among the guests, drawing the staff’s attention.

“There’s an issue in Section B. We’ll address it immediately.”

As the commotion grew, staff members in the back moved swiftly and efficiently.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Eurell joined their group.

They quickly made their way to the back of the auction house, heading toward the staff passage.

The staff passage was fairly complex. It was also quite dark, making it easy to get lost for anyone unfamiliar with the layout.

“Where do we go from here?”

“The boss of any operation is always at the top.”

But to reach the top, they first had to go deep into the building.

There were two paths leading to the upper floors where the auction house owner was likely located. One was a special passage for VIP customers, heavily guarded.

So, they decided to take the underground passage, which had comparatively weaker security.

Since the auction was ongoing, there were no staff members guarding the passage.

As they descended, the air grew damp and oppressive. The chilling, clammy atmosphere clung to their skin unpleasantly.

“Shaterian.”

“I’m fine.”

It seemed even Eched could sense the discomfort. When he gripped the hilt of his sword, she patted his hand and urged him to keep moving.

Eventually, they arrived at what appeared to be a prison, filled with suppressed groans.

The place was like a scene from hell. Cries of pain mingled with the wails of children.

The stench of mold, blood, and rotting flesh combined into an unimaginable assault on the senses.

Tap, tap. The sound of footsteps echoed in the space. A staff member stopped in front of one of the cells and pointed at a cowering child.

“Come out.”

“……!”

The small child shook their head vehemently, tears streaming down their face. Judging by the way they only sobbed without making a sound, some kind of magic must have been suppressing their voice.

“This is…”

“No, Eurell.”

She stopped Eurell, who looked ready to charge in and cut down the staff member to rescue the child. His face was etched with rare fury.

“I understand how you feel, but we can only save them after capturing everyone involved.”

But just as she managed to calm Eurell, Eched suddenly stopped moving.

His gaze was fixed on the prisoners in the cells, as if he were rooted to the spot.

“Eched?”

As soon as she called his name, Eched moved in a flash, too quickly for her to stop him.

His movements were silent. Like a predator stalking its prey, he approached and knocked the staff member unconscious with a single swing of his sheathed sword. His actions were fluid, almost artistic.

Next, he slashed through the cell bars with his sword. With minimal effort, the iron bars crumbled.

Eurell joined in, and together, the two of them turned the prison into disarray.

“Hey…”

She sighed deeply at the sudden rescue operation, gathering the freed prisoners in one place.

It was better to focus on organizing the situation than to waste time lamenting.

“If you stay here, the Imperial Knights will arrive soon.”

At her words, the voiceless prisoners shed tears of relief.

The two unconscious staff members were tied up using ropes found in the corner.

“Well, there’s no helping it now. Eurell, stay here and keep watch.”

With Eurell’s agreement, she and Eched headed toward the staircase leading to the top floor.

“These stairs are ridiculously long.”

Her breath came in gasps. She had to pause after climbing only a short distance.

Three years of isolation and four years of desk work had taken a toll on her stamina.

“Get on.”

Despite climbing the same stairs, Eched wasn’t even slightly out of breath. She didn’t want to be carried, but… it was better than holding them back.

“Fine.”

Without a word of protest, Eched lifted her into his arms and began climbing the stairs with long strides.

“I need to exercise.”

“I agree.”

“Can you not respond to my self-talk?”

She glared at him sharply, but Eched didn’t seem to care.

“You can exercise with me.”

“Ha… Don’t be ridiculous. If I trained with you, I’d collapse in less than a day.”

Less than a day? Half a day would be impressive.

“Hmm… I’ll try to match your pace.”

“No thanks. I’ll do it on my own.”

“A good teacher would make it more systematic.”

“A teacher depends on the person. I have no intention of burdening a busy Knight Commander. Maybe Eurell or Sir Lutz, but not you.”

“So, I’m not okay, but my subordinates are?”

His tone instantly revealed his displeasure.

“It’s not because you’re lacking. It’s because the gap between us is too wide. No need to get upset.”

‘Besides, learning something from you… Honestly, my pride wouldn’t allow it.’

Somehow, they had ended up chatting like this while she was being carried in his arms, but weren’t they supposed to be rivals?

“Taking it personally…? Is that what this is?”

Eched asked as if he were a child learning about emotions for the first time. She nodded.

“You feel bad because it seems like I’m looking down on you. But that’s a misunderstanding. I don’t look down on you. Even though you’re annoying, I acknowledge your skills.”

His nodding carried the same energy as his usual demeanor.

As they exchanged such words, they soon reached the top floor.

She got out of Eched’s arms and flung the door open.

It was a private box seat overlooking the auction house. A place reserved for VIP customers only, but it was already empty.

‘We’re too late?’

That couldn’t be. Her sharp instincts whispered that this was a trick by those people.

She scanned the spacious room. Other than the passage they had used, there were no other visible doors.

“There’s always a secret door in places like this.”

She knocked on the patterned walls as she walked slowly.

Thud, thud, thud, thunk.

A grin spread across her face.

“Eched!”

As she stepped aside, Eched broke through the wall without hesitation. Fortunately, it was a wooden door, so no dust clouds were stirred.

Behind the broken section, people who had been hiding revealed themselves.

“Found you.”

This was the true business area for VIP customers. The heart of this auction house.

“Oh my. How did you make it all the way here?”

The man at the front, who had been explaining something, smiled faintly and asked. At the same time, he signaled to the staff guarding the walls, who began surrounding them.

“I heard there was a commotion in the hall. Are they with you?”

“Hey, mister. Is there anyone here besides you?”

She asked lazily as she looked around the interior.

“Mister…”

The lips beneath the mask, which covered only his eyes, twisted. But as someone who dealt exclusively with VIP customers, he quickly composed himself with a polite smile.

“Are you looking for someone?”

“I’m looking for a dark sorcerer. Know anything?”

“A dark sorcerer… Unfortunately, I’m not acquainted with such dangerous individuals.”

“Really? That’s too bad. Oh, ma’am, please stay still. It’s too late to run now.”

The woman, who had been restrained, flinched. Beside her, a man who had also been startled suddenly shouted in anger.

“What have we done to deserve this? Do you even know who I am?!”

The saying “speak kindly, and you’ll hear kind words in return” was a lie. Shaterian had been polite, yet all she received was rudeness and disdain.

“How rude. I don’t care who you are, mister. You’re involved in an illegal auction, so of course, you’re guilty.”

“How dare you!”

“Dare? Are you the Emperor? Oh, or maybe you’re part of the Imperial Family I didn’t know about? If so, I’ll grovel.”

Of course, only in her thoughts. She smiled sweetly as she spoke, causing the man to jump in frustration.

“You, you…! You wench!”

“Yes, this wench is right here, you scoundrel.”

The man couldn’t come up with a retort and instead trembled with rage, shouting incoherently.

It was a pity he was wearing a mask. If not, she could have enjoyed the sight of his face contorted in fury.