“… Not 10 million, but 12.24 million Shaland?”
“You heard right. I said 12.24 million Shaland.”

The owner nodded at my clear words, grabbed a note of unusual texture from one side of the general store, and handed it to me.

‘Is the auction going to be held here on this date…’

If it wasn’t for the novel, I wouldn’t have known that this tranquil-looking general store was actually the place that showed how to get to the illegal slave auction house.

‘I memorized the numbers specifically because it was Christmas Eve. I would never have remembered them if they were different numbers.’

The venue where the slave auctions are held is also planned to change every time. If I didn’t know the meeting place, I wouldn’t have been able to find it at all.

After grabbing the note, I made my way back to the duke’s castle, relieved that it was going according to plan.

‘I have a lot of work to do before the slave auction starts.’

After taking care of several things at the same time, the time passed quickly until the day of the slave auction.
Fortunately, the preparations went smoothly, and on the day of the slave auction, I went out feeling refreshed.
Originally, it was difficult for a noblewoman to go outside, but no one cared about me except my mother anyway.

“Yes, do what you want to do. Let me know if anything troublesome happens.”

I told my mother that I was going out because of the cosmetics business, and she gave me permission easily.
Of course… Even if it was a cosmetics business, if she knew her daughter was going to a slave auction, she wouldn’t have given me permission easily.

I shook my head a little, took the note I had received that day out of my inner pocket, and looked around.

‘It’s meticulous… Was there a place like this near the capital?’

Had the luxurious carriage not stopped, I might have mistakenly thought I had come to the wrong place. From the outside, it didn’t seem to have anything to do with anything illegal.

Once again, I pressed the mask that covered my face and the wig I was wearing so that my original hair color could not be seen.
Swordsmen were guarding the entrance, looking surprisingly threatening.
They also wore masks so I couldn’t see their expressions, but their coldness, which went against their big physique, stood out and created a chilling atmosphere.

“Show me your pass.”

A pass? That didn’t come out in the novel.
However, I pretended not to be embarrassed and held out the note of unusual material from the general store. Whether it was the right answer or not, it passed right away.

How long did I walk along such a luxurious but dark passageway… When I thought that it would be hard to get in and out without guidance because the path was complicated, unlike the old, inconspicuous facade, a magnificent underground auction house appeared.

I took a seat after receiving the paddle for the auction. The seating area was dark, while the podium was bright enough to blind me.
However, unlike how splendidly decorated it was, it had a dreary and cold atmosphere.

“At this auction, you must…”
“There are no proper children at auction houses these days.”
“The blue-eyed slave that appeared last time…”

I ignored the buzz around me and waited for the auction to begin.

“Finally, the day of the auction that many people were looking forward to is here!”

Not long after I sat down, the auction began.

“He’s tall, but not to my taste.”
“It’s a waste of 10 million Shaland.”

But since it was the first one in order, people didn’t react much.
I heard sneering voices saying that the standard had lowered, and others giggling in a mean way.
It was the same with the one after that.

“Hmm, 40 million Shaland.”
“Anyone else would like to bid?”

Still, as the order passed, the number of people participating in the auction increased.

“45 million Shaland.”
“Then I’ll do 50 million.”

One of the slaves, who showed unusual talent, had a successful bidder after a light competition.

“There were hotter slaves last time.”
“Still, isn’t that slave a little better?”

Slaves with beautiful looks and eye-catching characteristics disappeared as quickly as they climbed up the podium.

“60 million Shaland!”
“70 million Shaland!”

Even though they were wearing masks and I couldn’t see their faces, like me, I felt like I knew what kind of expression they were wearing.

As the auction progressed, the atmosphere gradually began to heat up.
The number of people rushing to buy slaves exploded as the order progressed.

“I’ll bid 150 million Shaland. I won’t give up on this slave!”
“Ha, 200 million Shaland. I’m the one who won’t back down!”

The fact that they had a lot of wealth didn’t mean that they had dignity when fighting.
There have been a few nobles whom I passed by on the street somewhere, but it was the same that they were wearing a mask of dignity both then and now.

“Haha, aren’t you looking forward to winning the bid? It’s very rare to find such a beautiful slave.”

Regardless of their appearance or specialty, I paid no attention to other slaves.

From the beginning, there was only one goal I was aiming for.
How many times did the masked people raise and lower their paddles?
The atmosphere heated up and I could feel the air in the basement becoming murky.

“The next one is a very precious slave that you will only see here!”

Some whistled as if it was interesting. Even the people who were watching without interest, were bored with the long order of things, straightened their postures.

“Ooh, a different species!”
“Finally, we get something worth looking at.”

The host’s voice grew louder and louder as the people talked in whispers.
But even those people would not have focused and looked at the slave on the stage as much as I did.
I had only been waiting for this moment, after all.

“Ladies and gentlemen, look at the color of this slave’s eyes! The left eye is purple, and the right eye is blue! It’s a type of heterochromia that you can’t see in an ordinary human, only in a different species!”

Many beautiful slaves appeared earlier, enough to make the rich fly at them, but he was strikingly impressive even among them. He was so gorgeous that even though he was dressed as a slave and in shabby clothes, you couldn’t look at anything else.
On the contrary, however, the visibly vicious and threatening atmosphere was completely different from what he looked like.
The man had tight restraints, perhaps because his personality was as great as his looks.

A head that would fly away if he did the slightest nonsense.
Knowing this better than anyone else, the people smacked their lips even when they saw the man’s rebellious attitude.

“I guess you need to beat some sense into a guy who doesn’t even know his own circumstances, huh?”
“It’s no fun if he’s only docile. It’s nice to tame kids like that. Ohoh.”

There was a lot of talk about Serian. Even the eyes of those who pretended to be noble twinkled. It was the hottest reaction so far.
The slave on the podium would surely have heard them too.
Conscious of the heat, the host of the auction was excited and talked to the slave.

“Now, tell us how great a slave you are.”
“…”
“Introduce yourself to your master, hm?”

But Serian said nothing.

He was different from the other slaves who were trying to meet the best possible owner.

“This… slave’s name is Serian. Doesn’t it suit him well? Haha.”

So, in the end, the host had to introduce his name instead.
There was a way to control him with the restraints, but with the auction taking place, he seemed to be careful in case he got injured.

“Ha, haha. Even slaves like this have to do everything they are told to do if there is a winning bid. Wouldn’t that be an attractive point?”

The bewildered host immediately turned the conversation around. Then, he confidently raised his voice.

“It’s not just his appearance that’s impressive. This slave can use summoning magic!”

However, people’s reactions were not as explosive as before.
Although summoning magic was unusual, most people seemed curious yet puzzled because it was an unknown field.

“Isn’t summoning magic… calling mysterious beings?”
“What do you do after calling them? Order them to fight?”

The host seemed disappointed because the reaction was weaker than expected, but my eyes shone at the comment.
I didn’t know about the others, but here, at least I knew how great summoning was.
It would be a great help for me to grow crops, and if he improved a little more, it could be useful in many areas.

‘No wonder. When it is later discovered that summoning magic is such a tremendous power, Serian will achieve military glory.’

People were only interested in the unusual hair color, great appearance, and rebellious atmosphere of this species.

“750 million Shaland.”
“751 million Shaland.”
“760 million Shaland.”
“765 million Shaland.”

That’s why I didn’t spend money.
I bid the highest price that had come out so far, but my opponent and I fought a petty fight and gradually increased the amount.
I also wanted to say a line like, ‘I’ll bid ten times more as the bid that was just placed,’ like the protagonist in the novel, but I had not yet recovered all my business funds to do that.
This is why you shouldn’t waste money.

“… It was sold to Number 25 for 817 million Shaland.”
“Whew.”

Ah, it was a tough fight.
He was a much-needed slave, so this was a good amount of money.

——