Chapter 891. Vacation (9)
‘What kind of crazy bastard would spend a million gold on a servant?’
Everyone stared at him in shock and surprise.
If an actual lunatic ended up appearing, then the person next to them would return to their normal self.
Everyone was just staring at Jin Cheong.
The people here seemed like they were under control, and the auction proceeded despite that, but one couldn't say that a million gold was a reasonable price.
Although supply was hard due to the slave trade ban, this price was still unreasonable.
With a million gold, an Average-rank adventurer party could purchase equipment that would allow them to become a Rare-rank adventurer party.
Actually, they'd get more than that.
The people's reaction in this auction house was natural, as a million gold was just too high of an amount for a servant.
‘The others were just pretending to be crazy.’
I was kind of surprised that Jin Cheong even had that much money, but when I thought about it, it wasn't actually that strange. He was the symbol of the Republic, and he was involved in many things, just like me.
Jin Cheong seemed to have realized that there wasn’t anyone else willing to fight him anymore. Perhaps they thought of him as a lunatic willing to spend a million gold on a servant, and Jin Cheong's arrogant look did not help at all.
“Crazy...” I mumbled.
“Jin Cheong of the Republic. I didn’t know you were such a lady-killer.”
'It had been a while since I heard that word. What year were you born?'
“I guess he's human as well. He's been pretending to be innocent and different from other people, but you know what? People like him actually have dirtier and more wicked hearts.”
Yes, Ms. Sarubia. I think you’re right.
“He’s known as the Hero of Shadows and the symbol of the Republic, but he's actually easily swayed by his dirty desires...”
The people’s attitudes toward him changed drastically. Just now, they were all screaming, but now, they were jealous. Jin Cheong also found himself in a difficult situation because he had just spent a million gold.
Privacy was paramount for the members of a black market, and the public would probably not hear of the purchase that he had made today, but one couldn't speak in absolutes.
The news of Jin Cheong, the Hero of Shadows and the symbol of the Republic, purchasing a servant for a million gold would probably become a hot topic. With a bit of exaggeration, ruining his life would be a piece of cake.
I was not sure about the others, but it could happen to him.
“Number 101 has offered a million gold... If there’s no one else who’s going to offer more, I will continue with the auction. Sold! Sold! Sold!” the host declared.
Jin Cheong stood up quietly, and he seemed to be annoyed because I could see him frowning slightly. However, he knew dropping the act now would be even worse. He was trying his best to remain calm as he left the room.
‘That bastard is really...’
“Thank you for your great support. We will end today’s auction here. Thank you once again to all our customers,” the host said, ending the auction.
The people started swearing orange talking amongst each other as they walked out. It was obvious what they were talking about, so I didn’t bother listening to them. It was a pretty interesting event, so I was sure many people would be talking about it.
They finished the auction by playing pretty classic music and showering everything with flower petals.
I was forced out of the auction hall, and it was probably to go through a few procedures. I ignored the gazes of the big guys, and we ended up in a pretty old-fashioned room. A woman, who looked like a staffer of the auction house, was sitting across from Jin Cheong.
“You’re here.”
Jin Cheong nodded while quietly drinking his tea.
“I’m sure you’re surprised, sir. About the item's delivery...” the staffer muttered.
“I’ll take her myself,” Jin Cheong replied.
“We’ll do as you say, but she has yet to receive any training. As we’ve mentioned, we’ll provide you with some options for free. I recommend looking at the guide for the list of options rather than me explaining those options to you,” the staffer suggested.
There were several options written in the guide, but I was not sure if they were even worth reading. Jin Cheong glanced at the guide, and then he closed the book as if he wasn’t interested in it.
“I’ll just take her right now,” Jin Cheong said.
“I...”
“I know the seal on her has yet to be removed. I’m not going to ask for a discount or be nitpicky about it... I just want to get this over with as fast as possible,” Jin Cheong urged.
“...”
“I’m telling you not to keep me waiting any longer,” Jin Cheong added.
‘He sure is acting pretty arrogant.’
I was sure the staffer was thinking the same thing as me. Anyway, he was basically the embodiment of desire who had just spent a million gold to buy a servant.
The staffer quickly got up from her seat and bowed. “We’ll make sure to take care of the aftermath. You can stay here for as long as you like, and if there’s anything you need, let me know."
“Enjoy your time,” the staffer said before leaving the room.
“...”
“...”
“Damn it,” Jin Cheong cursed.
“...”
“Are we done?” Jin Cheong asked.
“Accept your quest reward first. Don’t they even offer tea here? Commander, press that call button and ask them to bring tea and clothes that I can wear,” I requested.
“...”
“It’s really been a while. Doesn’t it remind you of the old days? I mean, we've met in an unexpected place again," I said.
“Stop the crap, and you don’t need to worry about that quest reward. We’re done, right? I—”
“Why are you in such a hurry?" I interrupted him, "Are you just going to leave me here? Are you insane? What if something happens to me..."
"You need to take me outside, at least, and I’m hungry. I need to eat something. If they offer Mirror Salmon here, I’ll take..." I trailed off.
“...”
“...”
“About our deal...”
"You bought me, damn it, so you should take responsibility,” I complained.
'Look at this luxurious room. I think it’s more luxurious than my room.'
It had been a while since I stretched my legs. I sprawled out on the couch and started eating the snacks in front of me. I glanced at Jin Cheong and saw that he was looking at me with an annoyed look.
‘I shouldn’t push it. I think he’s really mad.’
I was sure he was really annoyed to meet the worst guest possible during his vacation.
Lines existed so that people wouldn't cross them. If one crossed the line, one could end up in a bad situation. What was the point of Jin Cheong and I maintaining a new bond between us?
There was no point to it, so we simply decided not to cross each other's lines.
“Don’t look at me like that. If I had made a mistake, then I sincerely apologize,” I said.
“I want to say that your existence itself is a mistake,” Jin Cheong said.
“...”
“And your apology does not really matter to me,” Jin Cheong added.
“Don’t be so cold, all right? Since we’re already here, we might as well talk about something meaningful. How long have you known about the black market? It seems like you’ve been using this place for a while now. Please tell me what you know,” I requested.
“...”
“I’m not trying to find fault with you here. I know that you can use this black market to obtain items that you can't obtain through ordinary means. Anyway, are you aware of what has been going on in Colorado?” I asked.
“Colorado?” Jin Cheong asked.
“Yes.”
“Dumbass. We aren't in Colorado,” Jin Cheong said.
I went silent and started tapping on my thigh.
‘Have I really traveled that far?’
I wasn't really looking outside at the time, but the journey was so short that it didn’t make sense for me to be outside of Colorado. It wasn't like I was transported via a griffon or through a warp gate...
“It’s true that you can reach this place using the warp gate in Colorado, but I don’t know the exact location of this place,” Jin Cheong said.
“How can you get here using a warp gate? Warp gates...”
‘They were all installed by Ha-Yan.’
“I should be asking you that question. I’m sure there are many ways to do so. Someone could have stolen a warp gate's core, or there might be another powerful mage capable of installing warp gates.
"Personally, I think the former is more likely, but it’s none of my business how this place was created. As you said, all I care about is getting the item that I want. Of course, I’m not happy with the atmosphere of this place...” Jin Cheong explained.
“Hm...”
“Based on your appearance, it looks like you were kidnapped from Colorado. What the hell are you up to that you're looking like that?” Jin Cheong asked.
“Ah, they were distributing potions there,” I told him.
“What?”
“Wait, you don't know that? Dumbass,” I said.
“...”
“I believe it’s a hallucinogenic potion that is incredibly addictive. I found more issues, but they’re not worth mentioning because the top priority is the potion being distributed throughout the city,” I said.
‘He doesn’t look so good.’
I was just going to continue the conversation, but seeing him frown made me think that there was something bothering him, or he could be disappointed by the fact that he had yet to catch on to that fact.
Of course, there was also a chance that he was disappointed in himself because I called him "dumbass."
Regardless, I had to acknowledge the fact that I had been neglecting the continent.
I never imagined that one could get here using a warp gate, and it was also possible that the warp gate wasn't in Colorado. This black market was massive, so it might be connected to other places as well.
There were only a few warp gates, but...
“Does the Republic have a warp gate as well?” I asked.
“...”
Jin Cheong nodded lightly. Had there ever been a case where a warp gate's core was stolen? After all, I was pretty certain that only Jung Ha-Yan was capable of making warp gates.
Jin Cheong was probably right—someone had stolen a warp gate's core, or they had taken over a few warp gates unbeknownst to Jung Ha-Yan.
Based on the situation, there could be a few reactionaries at the Magic Tower. After all, Ha-Yan didn't install those warp gates by herself.
What were we supposed to do next? Investigate the Magic Tower?
‘This is an issue that comes with becoming too powerful...’
We hadn't been able to identify any issues in places that were beyond our scope like Colorado.
“You didn’t do anything despite knowing that?” I questioned.
“We’re not that close. Why would I tell you that?” Jin Cheong retorted.
‘You’re being too nitpicky here.’
Knock, knock, knock!
When I heard knocking on the door...
“I brought the tea and food you request—”
'Take this!'
“C-Commander... P-Please! Please!” I exclaimed.
“What?”
“Ack! Mas... ter! Agh! Not there...” I screamed.
“You bastard! What the hell are you doing?!” Jin Cheong shouted.
“No more... Ahhhh!” I screamed.
“You lunatic! Shut up right now!” Jin Cheong yelled.
“Mmhm! Mmhm! Mmhm!”
'You should’ve treated me better instead of turning me into a joke. The ordinary Ki-Yeon is not so delicate that she'll have issues becoming the joker of Lindel.'
“I-I’ll leave these... outside. I-I... hope you have a great time...” the staffer said meekly.
They were definitely stupefied by what they heard.
Jin Cheong frowned deeply, and I believed it was an expression that suited him the best.