As night filled the sky and the sun completely set, Jin-hyuk stood waiting in an abandoned alley.
'Nights are pretty cold here.'
He had come out a little early in case he missed the black market's set starting time, but the nights here were cold.
Still.
Because his desired condition had been achieved, even standing around waiting felt enjoyable.
'It's said that having a strong bank account gives you confidence you didn't have before. Guess that statement is true.'
Thirty million dollars, or over thirty-five billion won in Korea.
Jin-hyuk had earned it within ten minutes. It was an incredible jackpot that would go down in the history of Las Vegas gambling.
'That is enough to win the bid for a replica.'
He heard that over a hundred items were being auctioned, so the competition probably wouldn't be that fierce.
'Especially because I do not want to be noticed by others.'
A pearl in the mud.
Items whose value was incomparable to the money spent on them. Those who didn't know their true worth would hesitate to spend money on them.
Anyway, the time had come…
And the moment he thought that—
Woong!
He heard the sound of a car approaching. After a moment, a black Benz stopped in front of him.
The car window lowered, revealing a man in a suit inside. Probably a black market employee.
"Guest 117, is it you, sir?"
"Yes. That is me."
Jin-hyuk showed him the invitation card and number.
"We have confirmed it. We will now take you to the location of the auction. We ask for your understanding as you must wear a blindfold for security reasons." 𝘙àＮ𝐨𝔟Ёṡ
A blindfold?
As expected, even magic was being blocked.
In movies and other media, blindfolded protagonists figure out their destination by counting seconds or memorizing turns.
But in reality?
It would be fun to try, but it didn't work.
[The location is thirty minutes away. A mansion in the middle of the desert.]
[We must hurry so we aren't late. But what do we do?]
Even without doing anything, he could glean the information using the Eye of Gluttony.
'I should try this on players next time.'
In the past, all players had already left the Tower of Trials by the time he created this Eye. Even if he wanted to experiment, there had been no one to target.
'I don't have to worry about that anymore.'
If humanity didn't want to perish, they had to use everything available and climb the Tower.
Testing whether the Eye of Gluttony worked on those who used magic and those who didn't—and to what extent—would be valuable.
It would be a different kind of pleasure to know that. Jin-hyuk let his thoughts wander as he leaned back into the car seat.
It took precisely thirty minutes.
"We are here."
With those words from the staff, the car stopped.
He was finally able to remove the blindfold.
'Phew. I thought I was going to suffocate in there.'
As Jin-hyuk stepped out of the car, a surprising scene unfolded.
"Oh."
He exclaimed unconsciously.
He couldn't help it.
This mansion was far more splendid and beautiful than he had imagined. The starry night sky and surrounding oasis harmonized with the mansion's exterior, creating a picturesque scene.
"You may hand the invitation to me. Enjoy your time, sir."
After rechecking the invitation's authenticity, the staff member bowed. Jin-hyuk, now alone, entered the mansion.
The moment he passed through the gate, his gaze fell on the pond in the garden.
[The promise—you haven't forgotten it, right?]
Elise's voice rang out. Right. She was still here.
Helping him identify a demonic human on the plane had been a special achievement, so he had allowed her one wish. She had wanted to see the outside world.
"It doesn't matter. This is fine, right?"
Las Vegas had far more to offer outdoors—fireworks, motorcycle performances, and countless forms of entertainment.
Yet she wanted to visit an auction house for the wealthy?
[If you want to blend in with the noble-blooded denizens of the night, you need this level of dignity. It isn't a bad mansion. Even if it was built by humans, it is acceptable.]
Ugh.
"Living in a small place like the ring suits you just fine. And what is this 'nobility of the night'?"
Was she talking about nobles lurking in corners?
[What!? A bat doesn't wait in corners!]
Elise shouted indignantly, making the ring vibrate.
"I didn't say it like that…"
At this point, he felt a little bad for her.
Right.
She had suffered enough in the past, so he simply nodded. After all, it was a spacious mansion—something rare to see.
He also couldn't sense any cameras or magic inside.
'As long as the invitation is checked, internal security must be looser.'
Above all, given the nature of the guests, privacy had to be strictly protected.
The procedures were smooth.
And no one would notice if one more guest appeared.
Woong!
Jin-hyuk infused mana into Braham's Ring.
Elise emerged in human form.
She wasn't the size of a small dog this time but stood at nearly 150 cm tall.
She was still small compared to her real height—over 170 cm—but it was enough to avoid suspicion.
"Mm! The air outside is amazing!"
Elise stretched.
Long silver hair. Red eyes.
"I poured in as much mana as I could, but going beyond this size is unreasonable."
"It's fine. It's still better than being under thirty centimeters."
She smiled happily.
"It's nice to think of it that way."
"Well, are you going to do something at the auction?"
Elise's eyes sparkled.
As someone whose subordinates once seized anything she desired, money meant nothing to her. Auctions, therefore, were fascinating.
"Right. Take it slow. It's almost time."
Jin-hyuk checked his phone.
Ten minutes.
Soon, a war of capital would begin.
In an amphitheater at the center of the mansion.
Originally designed for opera, it had been converted into an auction hall for the world's wealthiest people conducting shadowy deals.
"Now 175… I attend this every year, but I still get excited when it starts."
"I heard the 'Heart of the Ichthyosaur' is being auctioned?"
"Really? Is it finally coming out?"
"It must be because the Tower of Trials appeared. Ancient constellation treasures are being reproduced using magic."
"Kuak. I'm looking forward to it. Even if I don't win, I want to see it."
"And they're accepting precious metals and bonds along with dollars this time. Of course, that comes with a ten percent fee."
"Then competition will be fierce. I should recheck my balance."
Whispers filled the hall.
More than half the seats were occupied. Jin-hyuk and Elise found empty ones.
Then—
"Haha. Nice to meet you."
An old man in a black hood approached.
Jin-hyuk frowned. He recognized him.
Not long ago, an old man from the Demonic Humans Association had proposed a strategy to major guilds regarding the 3rd Floor raid.
That same man was here.
'Another one.'
Given his previous presence, he had to be at least an executive.
"…."
Beside him stood Alex, whom Jin-hyuk had met on the plane.
'He must be furious.'
The handsome man with a rotten personality. Clearly upset about losing his elixir.
Naturally, Jin-hyuk didn't care. Regret was reserved for fellow humans.
"I am Julius Cadrick. As you may have noticed, I am the teacher of this foolish disciple."
So that was his name.
Jin-hyuk activated the Eye of Gluttony.
Name: Julius Cadrick
Gender: Male
Age: 58
Level: 30
Strength: 11
Agility: 9
Stamina: 10
Magic: 49
Misconduct: 25
Stat Points: 1
Coins: 130,855
Occupation: Necromancer
Unique Ability: Gravekeeper of the Cursed Tomb
Skills:
Lv6 Wailing Wall
Lv6 Commander's Command
Lv5 Night of the Dead
Lv5 Regeneration
Lv4 Area Weakening
Lv4 Infectious Disease
[Copy Condition]
Psychologically furious due to the repeated failures of incompetent subordinates. After completing the black magic class he supervises, earn an A+ grade to copy one skill or ability.
Jin-hyuk knew it.
As expected, his abilities were excellent. The unique ability would synergize well.
Gravekeeper of the Cursed Tomb allowed the summoning of numerous familiars with minimal mana. While clearly necromantic, it offered summoner-like utility.
But—
After reading the copy condition, Jin-hyuk's head hurt.
'The system is insane.'
Playing the role of a model student?
What kind of condition was that?
Necromancy didn't interest him much, making this requirement excessive.
Everything about it was annoying.
'But the ability…'
Should he try it someday?
Jin-hyuk looked at the old man.
"Thanks to your disciple, I obtained something valuable. It made for a pleasant flight."
"Haha. I'm glad. So I'll ask you again about the information. This time, I came personally."
"You mean the masked player?"
"Yes. It's an extremely important matter for us. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say our lives depend on it."
Was that a threat?
Jin-hyuk smiled.
"If that were true, I would've said I'd tell you later."
"Unfortunately, we don't have time. We need it as soon as possible."
"I don't know."
Whether they were desperate or not was none of his concern.
What did it have to do with him?
If they were truly in a rush, they should have sent a dozen elixirs.
Despite Jin-hyuk's response, Cadrick remained calm.
"Hm. Think carefully before deciding. From what I see, you came here to obtain something."
"So?"
"If we set our minds to it…"
Cadrick's eyes turned cold.
"It means we can buy every item being auctioned tonight."
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