8-14. The Night before the Final
Satou's here. Back then, I imagined that auction was like a place where the wealthy were dealing with work of arts and jewelries with outrageous prices. My child's mind thought that work of arts should have been better put in the museum.
Nowadays, net auction is what comes to my mind (if I hear the word), Satou's.
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"Did something good happen? Satou-san."
Today I've come to help distributing food. After helping with the distribution for several times, lady Sera has changed her honorific calling for me from [Sama] to [San]. She's calling me like Zena-san is, but I feel shy when she does it. Mia will kick me if I'm acting shy, so I reply calmly.
"Yes, some difficult works have been going well."
Thanks to the many scrolls I've acquired from viscount Shimen's mansion recently, I'm able to nicely make magic swords with casting. That said, it's only at the level of the wooden holy sword I've made back then, so it's nothing but a first step. I can't see the prospect for the forging process.
In the book [30 Standard Circuits for Magic Tools] that I've bought back then, there are various circuits that look usable for making magic swords, so I'm going to attempt them one by one. There is also this interesting circuit for making airship, but seems that it needs materials from a monster that flies in the sky called Air Fish. They normally fly around over the open sea, so obtaining the materials is difficult.
"Master, some children who misses the food distribution have come, can we do something about them?"
"There were a lot of adults today after all~"
Lulu and Arisa have brought along two dogkin children like Pochi, and three ratkin children. Their ages are about 4-8 years old. Pochi is about to distribute some baked sweets that she's taken from her pocket. Since Lulu has educated her many times, the baked sweets aren't put directly in her pocket, but properly wrapped in a handkerchief.
"Hehen, thanks for it~"
"Bye~ now~ dog girl~"
Apekin children quickly snatched the baked sweets from Pochi's hand and ran toward the alleyway.
Due to the sudden turn of event, Pochi blinks for a while, and then yells "Wait nodesu! Stealing is bad, nano desu~" while running after the culprits.
"Liza, Tama, please."
"Yes!""Roger~"
I ask the two, and they run after Pochi. It'd be bad if she became a lost child.
I ask Nana to take the five hungry children to the stalls nearby and get them something to eat. I remind Nana not to give them something that's too expensive. Nana has a soft spot on [Young Organisms] after all. Well, Arisa is following them, so it's probably alright.
Soon, Pochi and Tama carry the apekin children while holding them overhead. They're tied with rope from somewhere.
"Master, I've caught the culprits nodesu."
"Sinners, to the gallows~"
"What should we do? They'll be dealt accordingly if we hand them over to the authority."
Liza, did you use [Dealt], not [Judged], just now?
I'm too scared to ask her.
The two little thieves are saying, "Sorry", "Won't do it again", but they probably don't really regret it. They'll either end up being slaves or beheaded if we turn them over to the authority. Even in the duchy capital, demi-humans criminals are given harsh punishment.
Let's leave making a mess of someone's life just because of baked sweets to that french-bread like person. I forgive them by only flicking their foreheads gently.
The children are holding their foreheads while rolling on the groudn, such exaggerated acting... or it should have been. Pochi and Tama hold their foreheads while looking like it's really painful. Strangely, even Arisa and Mia hold their foreheads.
I tell Liza to untie them, and have them help cleaning-up after the food distribution. The apekin children are helping with the work while calling Pochi, "Ane-san". They don't seem to have learned their lessons, they try to take the baked sweets from Pochi pocket, and get found out by Tama who then obstruct them. Pochi who's angry downs them with her fist, and they roll on the floor like before. Judging from the decrease of their HP, Pochi seems to have properly held back.
"Hey, Onee-chan miko."
Miko? Miko huh.
"What's the matter?"
"The adults are saying something like the demon lord will be revived."
"The end of an era. Everyone is going to die, they says."
"Will everyone die?"
Not only demi-humans children, human children are also encircling Sera with worried faces.
This was a topic that had come out during tea parties too, typical of the demon lord season to be the end of an era, looked like pessimistic views, and downfall were popular to discuss about. In addition it seems that the vibrations from my experiments with Arisa late at night had reached the ground above, and it became a rumor that it might be an omen for the demon lord revival. For that reason, the next day after that, I dug deep for two hours until a very deep layer to do the experiment there.
"It's alright, it won't happen, the hero will surely eliminate the demon lord."
"Nn."
"It's okay~"
"Master will beat down something like demon lord, like ZUBABAN, nodesu."
"Master, you have a serious responsibility aren't you."
Pochi and Tama hug my waist while looking up with sparkling eyes. Lulu says so happily, but she must not have seriously thought so. Only Arisa who knows the truth looks like she has mixed feelings. It's said that ignorance is bliss.
◇
"Good evening, head miko-sama."
"Ara, Nanashi-san. You're elusive like always."
She looks her age when I see her in the duke's castle back then, but for some reason, she looks young in this room.
"I've come here today to ask about the oracle regarding demon lord."
"Ara? You've annihilated it right? The oracle from Tenion-sama has told us that it's 『Annihilated』."
"It must have been defeated by a passing hero."
"Ufufu, let's leave it like that."
She laughs lightly you wouldn't think it comes from an old woman.
Oops, rather than that, I should confirm it.
"There are rumors among people on the streets that the demon lord is hiding itself in the underground of the duchy capital. Did the temple not announce that the demon lord have been annihilated?"
"I've told his excellency the duke directly, but the 『Annihilated』 oracle haven't come to the other temples, so we can't announce that the demon lord has been annihilated from Tenion temple alone."
Don't tell me, there are other demon lords out there?
I'd hate it if there's something like the great demon lord.
I return the resurrection artifact that has been filled with magic during our conversations to the head miko. I put back the holy sword that has acted as a battery replacement into the item box.
"Thank you, Nanashi-san. I prefer that there won't be a situation where this is needed."
"I'd love that."
When I'm about to leave, I'm given something by head miko-san.
Indulgence.
It's not the same thing as the one for collecting money in the previous world, it's an item that lets you erase one crime that has been etched in the Reward and Punishment. It's not clear what the head-miko intends to do by giving it to me, but since it looks useful, I quietly accept it.
◇
I put on one of the wig that I've got on the downtown, and walk into the night town in Nanashi-style. There are many gentlemen who are walking around in the red district dressed with thin hooded overcoats, so I'm unexpectedly inconspicuous.
My expenditures have increased ever since I've become a noble, so I'm visiting the dark auction that's secretly open during the martial art tournament. It requires a written invitation to enter, but since a lot of nobles who have been sacrificed for the demon lord carry it, I have it in my storage without doing anything.
Since you can employ agents, I decide to dispatch one. The commission fee is one silver coin for each displayed item that has to be paid even if they don't sell. The agent will take 10% charges if the item is sold at higher price than the minimum fee. Since I'm told that items that don't have appraisal's report won't sell well, I have the official appraisal in the auction hall to issue them. There are 10 official appraisals, and even though they all have dark circles under their eyes, they all smile amazingly. It's probably the best season literally. I unintentionally give the person a stamina recovery potion.
I'm going to exhibit medicines and weapons.
The medicine is magic potions with Nanashi sign that increase vitality and partly health.
I realized that they would sell well from the conversations of the family heads old men during the tea parties. It's no different in any world. The raw materials are from armor newt, so I can make them as many as I like, and the market price is also quite expensive. It'll be troublesome if the person who takes the medicine die during the intercourse, so I've lowered the quality to some extent.
I had brought 10 sets with five items per set I made, but they sold at higher price than I expected. I guess I should try making hair regrow and breast enlarger medicine next time.
The weapons are mock magic weapon made from monster's materials, and the result of trial-runs from the magic swords casting. I've got the title [Blacksmith of Magic Swords] when I'm casting the magic sword.
As for the weapons from monster's materials, spears, swords, and bows were selling well among the people who looked like explorers or guards.
People who look like nobles were buying the casted magic swords. That person who's buying it looks a bit familiar. I confirm with AR, he's the military accountant of the duke. The knight who looks like an escort generates magic edge when he pours mana into it. He seems to be quite a user.
He's generously paying 100 gold coins for each, but is he fine spending that much? I'm worried even though it's someone else problem. They're casted from weapons I've got from the thieves' hideout and then melted, the magic liquids are also of common quality, so each of them costs almost zero to produce. Even if the materials are bought, it probably only costs two gold coins at most. The rip-off is only the best part.
The military accountant approaches the agent, and asks if he can provide another 10. Since I can make 10 of it even if I just have one hour, I accept it. The next auction will be held in about three days, so I promise to bring it in the final day.
I get 780 gold coins in total.
It's the sum after the agent's fee of course. The biggest earner is the five casted magic swords that have been sold for 570 gold coins. There are money to be made everywhere indeed.
Since I've made more money than I've planned, I also bid in the dark auction to also reduce the market. Mixed among magic tools, they're exhibiting things like, fallen young noble women, illegal medicines, or medicine to level up. Since the AR tells that the level-up medicine is [EXP +1000], it's meaningless for me. I've bid a drop item from the labyrinth city for 70 gold coins. The price is lower than I've thought, but looks like it's extraordinary even for a disposable item.
It seems that I also have to use the agent for buying things, so I request one. Several magic books and three scrolls. They're things that only appear in dark auction, it greatly smells of crime.
Nature Magic: Fake Patch
Nature Magic: Unlock
Nature Magic: Lock
They're scrolls that have been refused in viscount Shimen's scroll workshop.
The last day is going to exhibit the featured products like, [Princess of the Fallen Kingdom], [Monograph of Ancient Language], and [Air Force Engine of Airship]. Princess of the Fallen Kingdom, she can't possibly Arisa's and Lulu's sister right?
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After I've recharged myself in the pleasure quarter, I mass produce magic swords in the usual open space at the interior part of the underground labyrinth. Since I got tired along the way, I also made many spear and halberd type ones. The production cost of halberd is high, but it's also the most expensive in the dark auction, so I make them. There was a circuit for changing mana into electricity written in the standard magic circuit book, so I added it to the halberd afterward. It seem that the users can get electrified if they put wrong amount of mana into it, so I've also added a protection circuit on it.
>Title [Blacksmith of Magic Weapons]
Even though I've used Deodorant to erase the trace, they still find out that I've gone to the pleasure quarter. Women's intuitions are sharp even though they're small.
It seems that the king will also attend the tournament's final tomorrow.
Moreover, lady Ringrande and the prince are going to do an exhibition match before the final. If a disturbance is going to happen, it's either during that match or the wedding.
The prince and his cohorts don't seem to be in contact with the [Wings of Liberty]. It seems the earl's mansion from before has been discovered, the members' number have been halved. The people who have escaped from the hardships are hiding in the sewer.
Since it looks like they'll be decapitated if they're captured, they have no choice but to enter it and can't come out. If possible I want them to make it into their dwellings and live their remaining life quietly please.
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