Chapter 109: Chapter 109

Chapter 109 - Round Robin (3)

After the fierce bidding war for 『Phase Coordinates』, that trend did not continue.

This was thanks to the Imperial Princess and Kirios not participating in the bidding for other items.

However, intermittently as the auction continued, this time at the bidding point for the 『Otherworld Magic Condensation Cube』...

Thus, a grand, chaotic party unfolded with amounts soaring uncontrollably.

-The Imperial Princess and the Duchy are clashing again.

-Who will take it this time...?

-For the Imperial Family and the Duchy to compete to this extent, what on earth is the meaning of that artifact?

This was quite a spectacle for the other auction participants as well.

The Duchy of Enlight, which, excluding the Imperial Family, effectively held the highest authority on the continent.

And, above that, the Imperial Princess, above whom, excluding fellow royals, no one else existed.

A capital competition between the two—it would be an outright lie to say that the noble families, who loved gossip, weren't interested in such a situation.

Who was the winner and who was the loser?

The high-ranking figures of the Abellon Empire were discussing such matters in front of an amusing spectacle.

This time too, it was Kirios who dominated the bidding war.

"7 billion. Are there any bids above 7 billion?"

So far, the Imperial Princess and the Duchy had clashed a total of three times, but the Duchy had won every time.

-No matter how much she is the Imperial Princess, she can't match that amount. There are still later auctions.

-It seems the Duchy came prepared this time.

-I'm not sure if that artifact is worth that much...

-Oh, they must all have their reasons.

Now, in Korean Won, it has easily surpassed the 10 billion mark and reached nearly 70 billion.

No, well, I knew it wasn't impossible, really.

After all, it was the continent's highest noble family and the Imperial Family. The amount would likely seem plausible even if it went higher.

But witnessing such amounts exchanged so casually before my eyes was another story.

Yuna, tired from surprise, was now completely spaced out.

I curved my lips into a grin.

By now, you might have guessed it, but the strategy Regina and I chose to put the Duchy's side—more precisely, the Crown Prince's side—in a difficult position was bidding interference.

A strategy where we had no intention of bidding, but called out a significant additional amount, rapidly inflating the bid amount like a snowball.

One might think this: What if the Duchy gives up and backs down? Wouldn't that loss have to be borne entirely by us?

However, Kirios' side couldn't possibly give up. At least not in this auction.

There was a reason deeply connected to Kirios' side, and by extension, the Crown Prince's side, objective.

'They probably wouldn't even consider cost-effectiveness in the first place.'

As I said before, many of the artifacts appearing in this auction appeared as enemy possessions in the original .

And that meant that the Duchy, who bid on these artifacts, would deliver the purchased items to Ad Astra.

Ad Astra was not a merchant. If anything, they were closer to fundamental revolutionaries.

And such a stance would also apply to the Crown Prince and the Duchy, who were following Ad Astra.

'There's no way they would give up.'

It would be a rational decision for a member of Ad Astra to ensure the plan proceeded without a hitch, even at the cost of some financial bleeding.

Because of this, Regina could set aside her worries about the Duchy's side giving up and proceed with the interference.

And as a result, the Duchy's side would certainly have suffered a significant financial loss.

'But this isn't the end.'

Kirios' side prioritized achieving their objective over financial loss.

This literally meant that "a financial loss" was preferable to "a situation where artifacts cannot be used."

In that case, even if we inflicted financial damage, wouldn't the Duchy's side only feel bad but still achieve their original objective?

One might think that.

However, through our interference, Ad Astra would find it difficult to actively use the purchased artifacts.

'Because this auction received so much attention, after all.'

As you would know if you observed the stirring in the auction hall, the competition between the Imperial Family and the Duchy had already become a major issue among the people present.

But, would this issue really die down once it left the Railroad Mysterium?

What kind of people were these nobles of the Empire?

The opposing parties were the Duchy and the Imperial Family.

An auction where the amounts soared crazily.

Could there be any other topic that would overwhelmingly overshadow this story?

And we aimed for this part.

-If an artifact is successfully bid on here and flows to another location, would it be possible to track the successful bidder?

I had asked Regina this question before.

'If the buyer could be identified later when the artifact was misused, we could pressure that buyer, but is identification possible?'

That was the gist of the question.

-It's practically impossible. It's a principle of the Railroad Mysterium not to leak buyer information. It's also a selling point.

But what if we spread practically official evidence throughout the Empire?

'As Regina and Kirios' bidding war became a hot topic, those items will also receive considerable attention.'

One-way Teleportation Portal.

Otherworld Magic Condensation Cube.

These were all listed in the catalog. From their names to their effects.

People would wonder what value these artifacts held for the Imperial Family and the Duchy to compete over them so fiercely.

And... some would undoubtedly investigate the reasons.

But what if it was later revealed that these artifacts were involved in a major incident?

Wouldn't they remember then?

Who the owner of those successfully bid artifacts was.

We would be able to pressure the enemy based on that voice.

"Next, the finale of this Round Robin—!!"

In the very late stage of the auction, the auctioneer in the white mask, unusually, raised his voice and shouted. Newest update provıded by n0velfire.net

"Created by the legendary necromancer 'Black Bride'... the artifact that overturns the natural order, 『Death Without Cost』. The starting price is 6.4 billion!"

Now. This was the highlight of this Round Robin.

Let's see how many billions it goes for.

Before the Round Robin commenced, Kilt, the Imperial Princess Regina Eliade Abellon's guard knight, unusually voiced his objection.

"...Imperial Princess, I humbly offer my unsolicited advice. Please reconsider this matter. It is utterly absurd."

Kilt simply could not understand.

What kind of event was the Round Robin? Wasn't it a world where hundreds of millions, even billions, of money were exchanged as if they were nothing?

But, to plunge into that place based solely on a boy's words?

'...It's ridiculous.'

Kilt's common sense couldn't comprehend it.

And objectively speaking, it was a perfectly rational judgment.

"The Young Master's words have no basis whatsoever. They are merely delusions...!"

To believe those delusions and jump into that Round Robin.

The judgment that the enemy would not back down, when heard, was also entirely based on Rain Enlight's story.

However, the Imperial Princess merely looked at Kilt with dry eyes.

"...Imperial Princess. From a practical standpoint, it makes no sense. If you misjudge and suffer a large financial loss in the auction, it will greatly damage Your Imperial Highness' prestige."

A debauched Imperial Princess more interested in art or entertainment than state affairs.

That was the public image of the First Imperial Princess, Regina Eliade Abellon.

Most of this image stemmed from the Crown Prince's Faction's sabotage.

Sabotage aimed at disparaging the Imperial Princess and promoting the First Imperial Prince, Claudio Renart Abellon, who only thought of the nation.

In terms of public opinion, the Imperial Princess' Faction was at a significant disadvantage compared to the Crown Prince's Faction. Thus, over the years, the Imperial Princess' prestige had been eroded by this sabotage, like clothes getting wet in a drizzle.

But now, a situation arises where enormous amounts of money are poured into artifacts?

'What else could it be but a perfect situation for the opponent to exploit maliciously...!'

Kilt was desperate. As mentioned earlier, his judgment, when viewed generally, was not only reasonable but absolutely correct, and the Imperial Princess' actions appeared incomprehensible.

However. The Imperial Princess remained firm.

"...Do you truly trust that Young Master, this Kilt, considering the current situation, can only see him as a puppet of the Crown Prince's Faction."

And, when Kilt brought up that remark.

Regina called his name in a flat voice, devoid of her usual gentle and sweet tone.

"Are you my guard knight, or an advisor?"

A clear drawing of the line.

'Do not interfere with your liege's judgment; do your own work from your own position.'

This, too, was an undeniable axiom among axioms.

Thud. Kilt could only lower his head at those words.

Being the knight of the noble, beautiful, and seemingly fragile Imperial Princess was, after all, his pride and reason for existence.

He couldn't refute her. Conversely, the Imperial Princess had silenced Kilt's countless words with a single phrase.

Kilt could only conclude his audience with the Imperial Princess without any gain. It meant he was unable to change the Imperial Princess' mind.

And then, someone slowly approached him.

It was Aisa, his fellow Imperial Princess' guard knight and a close confidante of the Imperial Princess.

"I just can't accept it, Aisa."

At Kilt's words, Aisa shook her head.

"...No matter what path Her Imperial Highness chooses, I believe a knight's duty is to follow that path."

Kilt didn't remember much of what followed in the conversation.

His conversation with Aisa simply scattered into thin air.

And only one thought remained in his mind.

'...The parasite that is not only obscuring Her Imperial Highness' vision but also eating away at her...'

And so, another spark was igniting in a place unknown to the Imperial Princess and Rain.