Chapter 649 – #131_Arcana Town(4)
#649
1.
There are social conventions in the world.
Rules that are implicitly agreed upon without the need to mention them.
For example, helping out with work even when a senior tells you to rest.
For example, not choosing Häagen-Dazs when you follow a friend to a convenience store after drinks, who promised to buy you ice cream.
These unspoken rules come together to lubricate human relationships and society as a whole.
In that sense, Siwoo’s request was excessive.
As soon as he heard the offer of a gift, he picked out the most expensive item in the store.
Moreover, Linne was not a friend or a kind senior,
and the item Siwoo chose was not something comparable to the price of Häagen-Dazs.
Of course, he knew it was an unreasonable move.
Yet, he was pushing forward for two reasons.
One, there might not be another opportunity like this, and two, he was convinced that he needed to secure at least one ally to escape Hexennacht.
“Why?”
Linne’s piercing gaze stabbed at his chest.
She seemed to not pay attention to anything, but in reality, she considered many factors with her insightful eyes.
The price of Alice, which had jumped up with repeated bids, was already exceeding the price of a fifth-generation multi-purpose stealth fighter.
More important than explaining the reason was lowering the psychological barrier to the enormous expenditure.
“Of course, I know it’s an unreasonable request. But it’s not for me.”
“Then?”
“The owner can be my teacher. I’m just asking to borrow it.”
Since there was no guarantee of having much time, he quickly added an explanation.
“Since there are so many witches who want it, you could sell it later at a similar price, or even with a premium.”
“……”
“If necessary, you can dispose of the Red Branch to add to it.”
Only then did Linne’s eyes widen slightly in surprise.
It was natural, considering he was readily offering to sell the ceremonial dress he used as his main weapon.
However, there were two layers of collateral involved.
One was that he was planning to research dimensional travel anyway.
Siwoo had already succeeded in summoning the Red Branch from Gehenna to Akula.
He was confident that he could succeed again if he just focused on it.
But that was secondary, and the real collateral was something else.
It was Linne’s own reputation.
After all, she had promised a gift and an investment with her own mouth.
It wouldn’t look good if she had to sell Siwoo’s items to raise funds.
Witches were all about pride and appearances.
“Hmm.”
Her eyes seemed to be assessing the value of the raw gem.
Time ticked by, and an awkward silence rolled over the taut tension.
Damn it.
This kind of thing really doesn’t suit me.
A battle of wits with a hundred-year-old sly fox, I really don’t want to do it.
“You still haven’t answered my question. Why do you want that witch?”
Siwoo inwardly cheered at her tone, which carried a strange sense of intimidation.
This meant the first hurdle was cleared.
All that remained was to dispel Linne’s suspicion.
“Ah… well… do I really have to say?”
“It’s a personal interest.”
If the questioning continued, his original purpose might be revealed.
Therefore, Siwoo chose to lower the probability of his request being granted, while also lowering the probability of arousing suspicion.
“She’s my ideal type. Actually, I even tried to hit on her when I was with my teacher, but I got rejected.”
Linne’s face hardened.
She looked slightly dumbfounded at the unexpected answer.
“……”
“It’s a rare opportunity to live as a slave, so I want to buy her. If you grant me this request, I won’t forget your favor.”
This was Siwoo’s second strategy.
To cover up his obvious intentions with an absurd excuse.
At the same time, it was a one-two punch strategy that was so absurd that it wouldn’t even be considered an excuse.
From a general point of view, it would look like a handsome guy was acting foolishly, trying to get with a girl he liked.
But Siwoo understood how he appeared to other witches.
Witches usually lived long lives, from 100 to 200 years, or even hundreds of years.
From the perspective of such a witch, Siwoo, who was in his second year as a witch, was no different from a toddler taking his first steps.
Would they care if a child was throwing a tantrum, wondering if there was some hidden agenda?
“Disgusting.”
Linne sighed, as if her interest and anticipation had rapidly faded.
“Desire is a great source of motivation.”
Siwoo calmly retorted without backing down.
He was speaking whatever came to mind, as if riding on the back of a tiger, so he honestly didn’t even know what he was saying.
“A promise is a promise.”
Fortunately, Linne didn’t preach about proper relationships between men and women, or give a lecture about the need for self-control to become stronger.
She simply shook a bell to call a clerk and instructed them to continue bidding until the auction was won.
“Thank you so much.”
Siwoo bowed deeply in front of Linne, who had a displeased expression.
2.
There were countless witches who wanted a 20th-tier great witch captured without injury.
Some witches had already liquidated their assets to prepare enormous sums of money, and others had gathered in groups of a dozen to pay together and share ownership.
However, Linne was the mastermind behind a Yakuza organization that dominated East Asia.
Not just some local thugs, but an organization deeply involved in politics, as well as the entertainment and construction industries.
Moreover, due to her frugal nature, Linne had piled up all the tribute money in cash, and her ability to mobilize funds was beyond imagination.
She won the auction for the Mercury Witch by bidding an amount that would make your head spin if you tried to calculate its value in detail.
The two were guided by a clerk to a reception room behind the auction hall.
It seemed that since it was a large transaction, they would handle the contract and payment on the spot.
“Wait here.”
“When will you be back?”
“It will take about 30 minutes.”
Even for a wealthy person like Linne, it would take time to pay that much cash, so Siwoo was left alone in the reception room.
Fortunately, there were no other witches around.
Well, it was natural to receive VVIP treatment after such a large transaction.
The reception room, with a red carpet laid out like an awards ceremony, was splendid.
It felt like being in the reception room of the Geminai mansion, so it seemed that the tastes of the rich were similar everywhere.
“I could use a cigarette.”
That was what he thought as he sat on the sofa and looked at the ashtray on the table.
It was too much to endure a daily life that would turn into Swiss cheese without a cigarette.
At that moment.
“Want one?”
A hand suddenly appeared.
Between the fingers of a hand wearing a white glove was a cigarette, scattering wisps of smoke.
The lipstick stain on the filter was strangely seductive… but that wasn’t the point.
“Never mind if you don’t want it.”
Turning around, he saw a blonde witch smiling brightly.
Her eyes were a dazzling gold.
Her short hair suited her very well, and her dress, which exposed her shoulders and upper chest, was impressive.
The ‘Golden Witch’ who had been in charge of today’s auction removed her elbow from the back of the sofa and stood up.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Lydia Magnus. I’m not going to eat you, so you don’t have to be so scared.”
“……”
“Really not going to smoke? It’s good.”
Lydia’s tone was friendly, and she even took out a cigarette from her case and offered it, but he had no intention of being fooled by her appearance.
Bianca also looked decent on the outside.
How could he be distracted by the appearance of a witch who was clearly a great witch and calmly engaged in human trafficking?
“Give me one.”
But he had a rough idea of what was going on.
Even if they were enemies, they were still witches and people.
That was the impression Siwoo had gotten while observing this city.
Only a very small number of enemies were witches who would start a mess without thinking about the consequences.
“Are you an enemy?”
“I was affiliated with the Qliphoth, for now.”
“Are you going to sell me too?”
“That’s tempting.”
From their first meeting, they were having a friendly conversation like, ‘Are you a criminal?’ ‘Yes, I’m a criminal,’ ‘Are you going to kidnap me?’ ‘I’m considering it.’
He was already exhausted from the invisible battle he had waged with Linne.
He didn’t have any more energy to spare.
Lydia performed a strange act of making a monocle with her fingers and said,
“How much are you worth? If you’re lucky, you could buy a country, couldn’t you?”
“Can you get to the point?”
“You’ve got guts. I like you.”
The sound of her laughter was like the clinking of gold coins.
Yet, she had a sense of dignity and the composure unique to a strong person.
“I was wondering what was going on when the picky Sword Witch took you in. You’re quite the charmer. Does Linne like that kind of thing?”
“Of course, she even took me as her disciple.”
“……”
Her laughter stopped abruptly, as if someone had pulled the radio cord.
Her expression changed from moment to moment.
It didn’t seem like a particularly strange or surprising thing to say, but she was unusually thoughtful.
“I heard that the Tiferet Duke is your teacher in name?”
“That’s an old story. Is it important?”
He deliberately spoke in a slightly arrogant manner.
This was the wild.
Since there was a tendency to try to axe down any prey that looked weak, it was better to appear cold.
Fortunately, there were plenty of references.
There had been quite a few unusual witches among the people he had met so far.
After saying it, he was impressed by his own acting.
If he acted like this, wouldn’t he look like a young witch who was full of himself, arrogant, and didn’t know the ways of the world?
“Interesting. I don’t know what you’re thinking. But it’s interesting.”
The Golden Witch muttered incomprehensible words despite his somewhat harsh remarks.
If it was another battle of wits, he would refuse.
He had used up all the brainpower he had for today. He just wanted to get it over with quickly.
Although Linne was awkward to be alone with, her position as her disciple was subtly helpful in this kind of situation.
“Honestly, I’m uncomfortable in this kind of place, you know? Thanks for the cigarette. But I’m a customer, so please let me be comfortable.”
“I didn’t mean to bother you. It’s just that a male witch is rare. I came to see. You’re different from what I expected, so it’s doubly interesting. I thought you’d be more docile and groveling.”
The Golden Witch chuckled and crossed the sofa to put out her cigarette in Siwoo’s ashtray.
“Since you made it fun, how about I give you a hint?”
“A hint?”
Lydia, who had appeared out of nowhere, suddenly said something even more out of the blue.
“You’re not the only one who’s thinking.”
“What do you mean?”
“Everyone is thinking about what choice is best in many ways. It’s a chaotic time, isn’t it?”
“So what exactly is that…”
“Linne isn’t as simple as she looks. Well, is that obvious?”
He had no idea if it was a warning or what.
He didn’t know why she was saying this.
But it was a meaningful statement that was enough to ring alarm bells in his instincts.
“Come find me when you have time. There’s a lot more I want to talk about. Maybe our interests align. Of course, keep it a secret from Linne.”
Lydia, who had been making cryptic remarks, turned her back and left a business card instead of a clear interpretation.
