Inside the carriage, filled with stillness.
The only sound was the scratch of a pen.
Resting my chin on the windowpane, I casually glanced at him. Abel was busy, it seemed, checking documents and marking something off.
Normally, who does paperwork in a carriage? With the carriage rocking, it’d usually be impossible—but he seemed to be an exception.
Perhaps that’s because this carriage had been magically modified, for I couldn’t feel a bit of its swaying.
Maybe Abel had applied those magical modifications himself.
“What’s the matter, Adelle?”
Abel’s gaze left the documents and turned to me, causing me to hesitate for a moment.
“No… I was just wondering how the royal auction house would be.”
“There’s not much to expect. From what I’ve heard, it’s mainly for those looking to acquire magical catalysts or slaves.”
“…Slaves.”
That’s right; I dimly remembered that slavery was legal in the Arie Empire.
A bitter taste arose in my chest, and a wry smile escaped me. Coming as I did from the modern era, slavery was nothing short of an incredibly foreign system to me.
“Then why are you here, Abel?”
“It seems there’s a rather useful catalyst coming up for auction. Since you’re here as well… I thought it might be worthwhile to stop by.”
“…I see.”
With that, the carriage was once more filled with silence. Lily, who had been seated beside me, must have been tired, as she’d already begun to doze off, her head bobbing.
How much time had passed?
“We’ve arrived!”
At the driver’s voice, I gently shook Lily awake.
She blinked a few times and looked at me groggily before shaking her head and coming to her senses.
“Are we already there?”
“Yeah. Get ready to go.”
“Got it!”
So saying, she adjusted her clothing before turning her attention to mine. Abel had created a pocket in the air to stow his documents before informing me:
“Tidy up and come out. I’ll wait outside.”
“Yes.”
As he stepped out and closed the door, Lily began adjusting my appearance.
After scrutinizing every inch of my outfit, she finally exhaled with a satisfied tone.
“Perfect!”
“Thank you, Lily.”
“It’s what I’m here for!”
She beamed as she said this, and then stepped out of the carriage. As the door opened and she alighted, Abel extended a hand toward me.
I took his hand and carefully descended from the carriage.
“The masks are here. You’ll be fine; they have identity-obscuring magic.”
Abel conjured two rabbit masks from thin air and handed them to Lily and me, while pulling out a wolf mask from his coat and placing it on his own face. Strangely, his features became obscured—fog-like, as though veiled.
“…That’s impressive.”
Recognition-obscuring magic was one of the spells I, as a third-class magician, couldn’t manage. I paused mid-reach for my mask.
“…Abel?”
“Hmm?”
“Why is my mask a rabbit?”
“Does it not suit you?”
“I don’t know about that…”
He grinned and took a step closer to me. Even though he wore a mask, it felt as if Abel’s face was right in front of me, so I unconsciously took a step back.
Was it because we’d fallen asleep face-to-face yesterday, or because of the morning’s embarrassing incident? I felt somewhat apprehensive about meeting his face at such close proximity.
Abel noticed my reaction and spoke.
“The sight of you trembling fits the rabbit motif perfectly.”
“…I never trembled!”
“Of course, it wasn’t out of fear, but rather embarrassment—still, a tremble is a tremble, no?”
“Ugh… let’s just go.”
Afraid he might say something more teasing, I voiced my impatience. To my reaction, Abel smirked and said,
“Let’s.”
When Lily and I don our masks, Abel took the lead. As we left the area where the carriages were gathered, a grand building came into view.
It stood at least ten stories high.
“…Magic, no doubt.”
In this medieval era, it would be impossible to construct a building of such height without magic, so it seemed appropriate to assume so.
As I pondered this, Abel opened the door to the building and entered.
The interior was impressively clean.
The marble floors were spotless, and the white walls undecorated, suggesting regular upkeep. Certainly, an auction house overseen by the royal family would require careful maintenance.
“By the way, we are not to call each other by name from here on. The royal auction house operates on anonymity.”
“Understood.”
Lily too nodded beside me before following Abel. As we walked down the hall, a large wooden door appeared before us.
Before the wooden door stood an armored knight.
“Please present your entry pass.”
Abel removed the pass from inside his coat and handed it over.
The knight scrutinized it momentarily before handing it back alongside a ticket.
“Have a pleasant auction.”
The knight then opened the door, allowing Abel, Lily, and me to enter. Inside, the structure resembled a modern-day movie theater.
The difference, it seemed, was that the chairs were paired, with a generous amount of space between each set.
“Wow…”
Lily gasped in awe at the massive size of the auction house. Abel looked around briefly before walking to a seat and sitting down.
“Take the seat beside me. The maid can sit in the adjacent chair.”
“Seat? Where’s the…?”
When Lily questioned, Abel casually gestured to a chair that had appeared out of nowhere.
Had he conjured it via magic? But why would he bother with such a thing?
To my quizzical look, he explained,
“It appears he values his maid enough to conjure one for her. Is there a problem?”
“No… just… thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Abel nonchalantly responded before looking up at the stage where the auction would begin.
“..Unpredictable.”
A considerate man who shows his kindness in the oddest moments.
“..Whatever.”
Let’s focus on the auction.
After all, Abel had mentioned the possibility of purchasing anything I wanted. But would I find anything desirable here?
Just as I thought this, a man appeared on stage, donning a clown mask.
“Please take your seats. The auction is about to begin.”
Through an amplifying enchantment, the masked man spoke, looked around the audience, and continued.
“Excellent. Let’s get this auction started.”
Workers then carried something up to the stage.
“Our first item is the scale of a deep-sea fish. Harvested from a monster dwelling 400 meters underwater, this is the only pristine scale among its kind. It has been certified by the mage’s tower as a magical catalyst.”
As the cloth covering the item was pulled away, a bronze-colored scale was revealed. I recalled reading that rare monster materials were sold as magical catalysts.
As soon as the item was unveiled, about six people raised their bidding plaques.
“The minimum bid is 10 gold.”
1 gold was approximately worth 1 million won, so this was starting at 10 million won—that was a hefty price.
“12 gold!”
“12 gold bid.”
“15 gold.”
“15 gold. Any higher?”
“20 gold!”
The bidding was intense, with the price soaring towards 100 gold.
“102 gold. Any higher?”
Why would someone pay so much for it? As if reading my thoughts, Abel answered my unspoken question.
“Most magical catalysts cost around this much. They are the primary means by which a mage enhances their skills.”
“…I see.”
That’s why magic abilities don’t improve easily. Surrounding myself with so-called “mages” who understood such things, I realized how much I had been missing out on unnecessarily.
Sighing, my attention returned as the auction for the deep-sea fish scale ended at 120 gold and the next item was introduced.
“Our second item is an ancient glove.”
When the black cloth was removed, a black-stained gauntlet came into view. Though parts of it were worn from age, its overall condition was fairly good.
“The minimum bid shall start at 50 gold.”
“55 gold!”
“55 gold.”
“65 gold.”
“65 gold. Any higher?”
“80 gold.”
“80 gold.”
“200 gold.”
“200 gold, understood.”
When Abel suddenly raised his plaque, I was momentarily surprised.
Was he really ready to spend 200 million won on a glove? Of course, for a noble family’s budget, this amount was probably like dust.
Still, did this glove really hold that much objective value?
My questioning gaze received no answer.
“Any higher?”
Even the others hesitated at the 200 gold mark, but one person countered.
“210 gold!”
“210 gold. Any higher?”
“300 gold.”
“…!”
He quickly lowered his hand.
“…I have no idea.”
It utterly baffled me why he’d bid 300 million won on this gauntlet. Abel must have some plan in mind.
The auctioneer, visibly surprised, stuttered a bit.
“300 gold. Any higher?”
Counting down five seconds, the auctioneer nodded.
“The ancient gauntlet has been sold for 300 gold.”
