Chapter 223

– Dinging!

– “Ancient relics of the old kingdom have been discovered.”

– “This item is a trace of the Kingdom of Wederos, providing significant information to the player upon acquisition.”

– “It can secure key evidence!”

‘Now, backing out seems tricky.’

I glanced at my status window and secretly sighed.

While I could push through other things with my own strength and cleverly acquire others, venturing into dangerous areas was no issue. By performing gimmicks there, I managed to collect bits and pieces.

I thought missing just one wouldn’t be too bad. That’s what I told myself, planning to just wait it out until now.

But does this game really work that way?

My thoughts changed as I approached.

Even if all evidence was gathered and a Clue and Prove Event was conducted, the core evidence wasn’t there, so the next scene didn’t proceed.

And who knows what might happen just because of this one missing piece.

On the final reveal day, it’ll probably be worse.

Since any mishaps could bring trouble, I need to seal every variable perfectly.

“100,000 Pessel!”

“110,000!”

“120,000 here!”

That’s quite a hefty sum.

With 200,000 Pessel already spent, I don’t have much left.

Then…

“Do you need that?”

At that moment, Harnier grabbed my arm and asked.

“You should cancel your bid this time.”

– Groan.

Harnier smiled prettily as she activated the bidding button.

“Such a sword is usually handled by merchants, so this is my specialty, right?”

Holding my fist tightly and saying that felt reassuring.

***

“Congratulations on your winning bid.”

The auctioneer greedily handed the silver dagger to Harnier.

Harnier completed the transaction without getting caught, subtly signaling me to give it later.

A wise decision.

Whether I gave her a gem or she gave me the dagger, either action would look odd here.

So we silently agreed to pass the time until the auction ended.

Before I knew it, the auction time had passed.

After three auctions, even the last ultra-rare items were sold, and it was time to disperse from the black market.

Harnier told me it was time to leave.

“It’s about time to slip away. Oh, I haven’t told you where I plan to exit, right?”

“No, I know.”

“What?”

“I overheard by chance.”

Explaining what I heard from the nobles, Harnier nodded in agreement.

“The auction is over! It’s a shame, but if you need more, feel free to browse around. That’s all from the Masked Jester K!”

As expected, there was no need to verify anything.

Thanks to this, Harnier and I could leave the normal auction venue.

“Whew. We managed to slip away somehow.”

“…No, that’s not it.”

However,

this couldn’t be that easy.

– Rumble!

The ceiling in front of us collapsed.

“Hey, there’s decorum. You can’t just eat everything and run off!”

“Of course, you two were working together, right?”

Unseemly nobles appeared behind us.

They threatened us with magic, waving their hands.

“This silent collusion on the floor, you shouldn’t do that.”

“If you want to leave in one piece, you should listen to our proposal.”

These types are starting to get annoying.

Still, I’ll ask.

“What’s your proposal?”

“It’s simple. Just hand over what you have and go.”

“If you hand over one, we won’t touch the other.”

“Maybe one of you could stick with us.”

Asking was already a mistake.

There are always such scoundrels everywhere.

“If you give up one, they’ll just take the other by force. Why bother with proposals when you can just overpower weaker ones?”

They’ll pretend to take one and then take both, or take both from the start.

They blocked us because they had this in mind from the beginning.

From here, escaping safely becomes unlikely, making variable actions likely.

What can I do?

– Ding!

“A hostile entity has appeared!”

“Combat is possible. Proceed?”

-Swish.

This is a typical response.

“Ha. Look at these two trying to break through us.”

“Should’ve taken the opportunity. Huh?”

“Judging by the magic circle with holes, looks like your skin is as loose as an uncared-for pore. Sad. Oh, struggling here while imagining some man? Huh?”

“You crazy woman!”

“Are you done talking?!”

“Seems like you’re sensitive about the truth. I was just guessing.”

“Fine. I’ll personally turn your plump skin into cracked desert land.”

Those rough-looking thugs couldn’t tolerate the insults and started pulling out their canes.

“Fools who don’t seize opportunities deserve a beating!”

“Let’s die together, arrogant kids!”

Countless spells began to unfold.

Just by looking, it’s clear a lot of mana is gathered.

But it’s unstable.

It’s clear where to strike and where to avoid.

– Ting, ting! Ting!

“What?!”

“How did you manage all that?!”

“You fools. Can’t even shoot a magic arrow straight, so we had to step in?”

“Move aside! It’s a mess anyway, just beat them down with weapons!”

A group smelling of alcohol and medicine came forward.

Their weapon paths are obvious.

You can clearly see how and where they aim.

A brute force type.

If you hit him here, his shoulder will pop out.

“Ugh!”

A big guy swinging a huge weapon.

He can’t control his power, so dodging will make him stumble and cause team damage.

“Ah!”

“Where are you swinging that thing, idiot!”

Others swung swords carelessly, losing them; another got kicked in the knee and fell; yet another took a big swing and got knocked out after taking a hit.

Only this level.

The pretentious ones are all the same.

In contrast, my fiancée was different.

“Harnier, are you ready?”

“Yes, almost done.”

– Gulp.

Harnier calmly canceled incoming mana arrows. The reduction in their number made her movements smoother.

Moreover, she was preparing multi-casting. Another spell to melt the ground beneath them.

“Wait, this…”

“We can’t escape!”

“Someone, block them!”

“Aah! Let go of my hair!”

“Then I’ll be dragged down too!”

No one could cover for anyone else. They all flailed in the mud.

Unable to do anything, I used my sword, and Harnier used her magic.

Taking down a few with each, the corridor quickly quieted.

Well, this should do it.

Now we can—

“There he is!”

…What?

Why is he here? I clearly tied him up.

“That guy! He stole my button!”

– Ding!

“Episode XI: Source of Contamination ongoing.”

“An issue occurred at the black market! Button usage time exhausted.”

“Escape from the black market begins.”

“You must escape within the set timer.”

Ah.

This damn game.

They never mentioned a usage limit.

“…”

“Carsein? What does that mean?”

Seeing the guards rushing in, Harnier panicked and asked me.

“Sorry, Harnier. Just hold on a little longer.”

“Wha—?! Aaaah!”

I grabbed her and ran.

***

“Isn’t here. Is it over there?!”

“Not visible.”

“Damn it. Could they have gone back into the black market?”

“Let’s check again. If we can’t find them, there’ll be chaos!”

The guards’ footsteps faded.

When their voices quieted, I could finally relax.

“Haa.”

“Haa.”

I wasn’t the only one breathing heavily.

Harnier, too, seemed anxious about being discovered, sighing in relief.

“Hehehe.”

Relaxing, she started laughing prettily.

“Even you make mistakes sometimes, and I find it amazing every time.”

*Sigh*. Not that funny.

Not something to laugh about with tears in your eyes.

– Ding!

“Episode XI: Source of Contamination cleared.”

“Successfully escaped from the black market, evading the pursuing forces.”

Well, clearing the episode is enough.

“Now, you can receive it, Harnier.”

“Oh, I forgot.”

Harnier took the box with the gem.

Her eyes slightly sad, she opened the pendant and placed the gem inside.

“It fits perfectly, as if it belonged there.”

“…Yes. I didn’t expect to wear it again.”

Her eyes, which seemed unable to look away from the pendant, gently closed as she smiled and handed me the silver dagger.

“Here you go, Carsein.”

“Oh, right.”

I had forgotten too.

She said holding it would confirm specific evidence.

Without it, I wouldn’t have touched it.

But…

Unlike before, it glows brightly now.

– Ding!

“Silver Dagger of the Kingdom of Wederos acquired.”

“Memorial activated.”

There’s no reason to think deeper.

Memorial reveals Carsein’s past and provides crucial clues.

So, it’s obvious evidence against the Waglew faction will appear here.

But…

-Crackle, crackle. Zap!

“What?”

A strange crackling sound, followed by even brighter light.

-Fwoosh!

The newly appearing Memorial backdrop was unlike any I’d seen before.

-Hahaha.

-Mom, I’m here.

“…”

Laughter and chatter of mother and daughter spilled from outside the house.

Yeah, this place is familiar to me.

“Why the hell is that house showing up here?”