Fifteen minutes before entering the auction house.
The waiting room was a completely different world.
The space continued endlessly, and along the walls, gemstones that all looked expensive were displayed in long showcases.
[How fascinating!]
[It is practically a museum.]
<Anne Boleyn’s Necklace>
A video played on the exhibit information screen.
<This is the necklace worn in life by the ill-fated queen Anne Boleyn. Its distinctive design features three pearls hanging beneath the initial B.>
And the video that followed showed Anne Boleyn’s head flying off beneath someone’s sword...
The gemstones displayed next were Marie Antoinette’s diamond necklace, the Blue Hope Diamond, and the Regent Diamond of the Pitt family, which had also been with Napoleon.
Whatever their origins, every one of them was splendid.
[They called it a Gem Auction, and it truly lives up to the name.]
[I will earn money later and buy all of them! I will!]
As Cha Jun-hyeok said this, his eyes genuinely blazed with passion.
Was he the unexpectedly materialistic type?
But if he did that, he would never live out his natural lifespan.
Those were practically a list of cursed gemstones.
...Ah, was that why he was already dead?
As I briefly mourned Cha Jun-hyeok’s tragically short life, shortened by his tastes, someone dropped a phone in front of us.
THUD—! CRACK!
Unfortunately, the phone bounced once more on the floor.
The slightly cracked screen shattered completely, and with it, a piercing ringtone began to ring.
RING-RING-RING—!
It was then.
SLASH—!
The execution of Anne Boleyn I had seen earlier was reproduced in reality.
In an instant, the phone owner’s head flew into the air.
Blood flowing from the severed neck stretched out long and wet the waiting room floor.
However, the man holding the sword showed no change in expression.
“Please maintain order.”
[There he is, there he is! The auction house attendant!]
He continued speaking in a composed voice.
“We will confirm the attendee list. Please line up in order.”
[The attendee list?]
[They always do it. It is probably for checking the number of people or something.]
Chae Seon-hwa flew behind the attendant and glanced at the list.
Then she made startled eyes and worked hard to make an X with both hands.
[It is not there! It is not there!]
[What is not?]
[Homeowner’s name!]
That was only natural.
[And Kerk’s name is not there either!]
“Kerk’s too?”
[Can that happen?]
[It is true!]
[I will look too!]
Cha Jun-hyeok, who had checked the list with Chae Seon-hwa, turned deathly pale.
[Surely the homeowner is not going to end up like us?]
[Th-that cannot be...! Then where will we live from now on?]
[We will have to sleep outside again, I suppose.]
[...Uh, oh.]
Chae Seon-hwa turned back to look at me with sorrowful eyes.
[I... I will be all right.]
But as Chae Seon-hwa said this, her voice trembled. It seemed the two of them had already decided I was a man who would die in one minute.
“That is enough.”
[Yes, yes. I too... I am prepared... in my heart.]
[Homeowner! Life as a ghost is not bad!]
Cha Jun-hyeok habitually wiped his nose.
However, I had no intention of dying right now.
And they had clearly said something at the entrance.
VIP guests were precious.
I took the iron mask out of the paper bag.
A gift I had received exclusively for precious VIP guests.
[Huh? That is...]
[Ah! From earlier!]
They had clearly told me to use it in an emergency.
For now, I would use it, and if that did not work, I would leave.
...But was it possible to leave directly from the auction house waiting room?
CLICK.
When I brought the mask to my face, I heard something lock into place.
Then a cold sensation covered my face in another layer.
“Hm, you there.”
The reaction was immediate.
The attendant stopped checking the list and approached me.
“Are you a VIP guest?”
“That is correct.”
The attendant took out a PDA and scrolled through it.
His gaze stopped at one place.
“Among today’s attendees, there is... one VIP.”
What a relief.
It seemed the reason Kerk’s name was not there was because he had been classified separately as a VIP.
“This way.”
The attendant’s sword smoothly melted away.
He guided me politely.
Beside the place marked as the auction house entrance was a golden door.
As he opened the ornately decorated door, the attendant said,
“Our auction house respects VIP guests. The identities of our VIP guests are kept strictly confidential, so even we cannot learn them.”
That was welcome news.
“However...”
When he opened the door, a transparent staircase appeared in the darkness.
“You must prove your qualification.”
Those words were the signal.
Everything around me vanished, and I was standing before the staircase.
“We respond to only one value.”
The attendant was nowhere to be seen, but I could hear his voice.
“The staircase leads to the VIP seats.”
FLASH—!
Light entered the staircase.
The transparent stairs shone as they received the light.
They looked so fragile they might break at any moment.
But there were empty spots in the stairs.
Thin, round shapes that seemed meant to be fitted with something.
“One value.”
Was this it?
I took a Coin from my Inventory and brought it to the empty spot.
[It fits perfectly!]
[This is it!]
As expected, when I inserted the Coin, it fit exactly.
The stair into which I had placed the Coin quickly changed into a sturdy golden stair.
[These people are obsessed with money.]
[They really are!]
The door we had entered through had already closed.
If I could not leave from here, it was the same as being trapped in this space.
I climbed the stairs, inserting Coins one by one.
There were 144 stairs in total.
When I stood on the final stair, the door opened with a click.
<The Gem Auction House welcomes its VIP guest.>
We emerged into VIP-only second-floor balcony seats, completely separated from the lower level.
<As the VIP guest has entered, today’s auction will begin.>
[They are thorough with guest treatment here too.]
[Is this not too capitalistic?]
The lower floor was empty, and admission to the auction house had not even begun yet.
Regardless of whether there were people or not, the first item appeared on the screen.
Then an auction house staff member pushed out the auction item, which had been loaded onto an elegant cart.
<Auction Number 1. “Lee Se-a’s” Cursed Pendant.>
The oval red ruby pendant displayed on the screen rotated 360 degrees.
<This pendant was once owned by Lee Se-a, who had been ranked second among Korean Hunters, and it is said to be one of her belongings. There has also been testimony from a memento appraiser that she was holding it in her hand at the moment she died in the Tower.>
I nodded.
Somehow, I had thought that might be the case.
Beside the pendant stood something that had once been a person.
She was unwilling to let go of the pendant.
Of course, since a ghost could not touch the pendant, the ghost’s hand merely drifted through empty air.
[There is a ghost attached to that.]
[S-so scary...!]
“......”
But then, the ghost turned to look this way.
The ghost tilted her head with unfocused eyes and stared here for quite a while.
[Ahhh! Th-there is a ghost coming this way!]
[Shoo, shoo!]
Regardless, the ghost came right up in front of me and stood there.
[You! Can you see me?]
“...No.”
[Well done! Homeowner!]
[Ignore her! Ignore her!]
[......]
The ghost glanced sideways at the room-corner ghosts in my house.
Then, as though tired, she pressed a hand to her head.
[I already came here knowing you can see me.]
Since we had already exchanged words, it was hard to ignore her any longer.
“So?”
When I answered, the ghost’s face brightened slightly.
[Help me.]
[Lee Se-a, did you entrust something to our homeowner?]
[Hey! You are Cha Jun-hyeok, right? When did you die?]
[Recently. Even someone as strong as me must die one day. They say heroes die young, after all.]
Heroes die young?
This was the first time I had heard such a phrase used here.
[What nonsense. I knew it from the time you went around piling up karma with that mouth of yours. Be honest. You were betrayed somewhere, were you not?]
[......]
Lee Se-a accurately diagnosed the situation and rubbed salt into Cha Jun-hyeok’s wound.
However, Cha Jun-hyeok remained steadfast.
“Do not be ridiculous. And Lee Se-a, why are you attached to a jewel? Are you an evil spirit?”
At Cha Jun-hyeok’s words, Chae Seon-hwa suddenly grew serious. Even her voice trembled.
[An evil spirit?! What are you trying to achieve...?]
[...Cha Jun-hyeok, have you finally lost your mind? This is truly ridiculous. Why would I be an evil spirit? And what would I be trying to achieve? Do you think I am saying this for free?]
[Then?]
[Will you repay our homeowner?]
[Of course.]
She would repay me?
[My wealth. The wealth I have hidden away. I will give all of it to you. I am dead anyway. However...]
“Is there a condition?”
[Yes. First, win that pendant at auction. And...]
“And?”
[Find one cat for me.]
A cat?
[Wow! Lee Se-a, what is this? Are you trying to force our homeowner to adopt one?]
[Homeowner, do you perhaps have a cat fur allergy?]
Not as far as I knew.
[Will this be worth it? How much hidden wealth are we talking about?]
[How much? Perhaps about...]
The ghost fell deep into thought.
[About fifty billion won?]
[F-fifty billion?!]
[What? Are you a chaebol?]
At Chae Seon-hwa’s words, the ghost neither confirmed nor denied it.
[Surely... Lee Se-a. Were the rumors true?]
[What rumors?]
[That you were Bill Yates’s hidden child...]
The ghost stared straight at Cha Jun-hyeok.
That was an expression of pity.
I understood.
The ghost’s current appearance was unmistakably that of a native Korean.
At least in this state, even if she were reborn hundreds of times, she could never be mixed-race.
[Not Bill Yates. Lee Cheol-woo. That was my grandfather’s name.]
Lee Cheol-woo?
Surely not...
“Jinsung Group?”
[That is right! You know it?]
There was no way I would not know it.
Jinsung Group was ranked first in the business world of our country, sixth in global brand rankings, and was said to be a company that had achieved true globalization.
[You will help me, right?]
[Just trust our homeowner!]
[Homeowner is truly a good person. Are you perhaps sleeping outside? The night air is cold, so please do not do that. Just come live at our house!]
“......”
<Is there no one who wishes to bid on Lee Se-a’s Cursed Pendant?>
The first auction item was stuck at its starting price.
1,000 Coins.
I entered the number into the Digital Auction Bell and shook the bell in the balcony seat.
<Yes! Number 1! Bid price, 1,000 Coins! A bid has been placed. Is there anyone else?>
Of course there could not be.
I was the only one in this auction house.
It was an auction that had begun fifteen minutes earlier than its original time.
Naturally, the first-floor entrance was blocked, and the auction house did not seem particularly inclined to open the door early.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
<Lee Se-a’s Cursed Pendant! The successful bidder is Number 1!>
[Thank you!]
[That is wonderful!]
[Congratulations! Lee Se-a.]
Since I had exchanged 1,000 Coins for fifty billion won, it did not feel wasteful at all.
As the auction proceeded, the seats on the first floor gradually filled.
Interestingly, the auction held here was divided into Part 1 and Part 2.
If Part 1 was an auction focused mainly on gemstones, as expected of a Gem Auction, then Part 2 was an auction of various valuables containing gemstones.
Kerk’s Compass, which I had been waiting for, appeared as soon as Part 2 began.
<Today’s Surprise Item! The third one! Golden Goblin Kerk’s Compass! A bestseller at our auction house. It is a beautiful compass with a cover decorated in diamonds. It has returned for Season 3! The bidding begins at 1,000 Coins!>
I entered 1,000 Coins into the Auction Bell and shook the bell.
<Yes! 1,000 Coins. We have 1,000 Coins. Any others?>
JINGLE!
JINGLE!
Bells began ringing here and there, and the bid price continued to rise.
<Kerk’s Compass, 3,000 Coins. We have 3,000 Coins. If there are no other bidders, it will go to Number 9. From now on, I will call the winning bid three times.>
JINGLE!
I shook the bell again.
<4,000 Coins! We have 4,000 Coins!>
But the other party did not back down.
JINGLE! JINGLE!
<5,000! We have 5,000 Coins!>
Then I would go with 6,000 Coins.
JINGLE!
<Yes! Number 1! You have bid 6,000 Coins! Are there any higher bids?>
This time, the other party hesitated slightly.
JINGLE!
<Number 9! 6,500! 6,500 Coins! Does anyone wish to bid higher?>
6,500 Coins.
The fact that they had awkwardly attached 500 to the end meant they were running out of ammunition.
This was a good sign.
JINGLE!
<Number 1! 7,000 Coins! You have bid 7,000 Coins!>
The opponent remained silent until the auctioneer called the final bid twice. Then, on the third call, they shook the bell.
<Yes! We have 7,200 Coins! 7,200! 7,200 Coins! Are there any other bidders?>
From 500 to 200.
The game was already over.
JINGLE!
<7,300! 7,300 Coins! Number 1 has bid 7,300 Coins!>
And just as I expected, this was the last bid.
[It worked!]
[Homeowner! Congratulations!]
<Golden Goblin Kerk’s Compass! The successful bidder at 7,300 Coins is Number 1!>