Chapter 165. Squander (2)

"Is it just my feeling?"

Maybe she mistook him for someone else because his appearance was so ordinary. The newcomer from Neo tilted her head for a moment before refocusing on the auction.

"The next item is the unique-grade [Winter Cloak]. Its effect is strong cold resistance, and with just this cloak, we've entered an area where you can feel no cold even in the middle of Antarctica. The starting bid is 800 million."

By the way, this auction features a mix of unique-grade and epic-grade items. There was some concern that the excitement would die down if a lower-tier item suddenly appeared while they were discussing epic-grade ones, but surprisingly, the bidding competition continued smoothly. After seeing items easily surpassing 10 billion, when the number 800 million came up, it strangely felt affordable and worth buying.

"It's cheap. Should I buy one of those for a dungeon like the Ice Palace?"

Hesitantly.

Jakyeong cautiously raised her bidding sign for the first time. But to her surprise, the sign she held had the number 32 written on it, yet a reaction came unexpectedly from the seat with number 33 next to her.

"Is it for a gift?"

"Yes?"

"Are you perhaps bidding for a gift?"

The man with the hat asked the question. Surprised, Jakyeong replied awkwardly.

"No? If I get it, I'll probably wear it myself... I think?"

Why would he ask something like that when they first met?

"If that's the case, it's better not to buy it."

"Yes?"

"That item has too much magic power. It's not really compatible with delicate telekinesis. You use that kind of skill, right?"

"Ah, y, yes. You recognize it? Did you see it on the news...?"

"... Anyway, don't buy that one. It slows down your skills. If you're sensitive, it'll definitely bother you."

It seemed like there was a reason behind the fact that number 33 had spoken up.

"Slow down your skills? Wow, they should have mentioned that at the auction!"

"Maybe they hid the negative info to boost the auction price. They make more commission if it sells for a high price."

"Anyway, I almost got scammed."

"Well, still, if you adapt, it won't be completely useless... What I mentioned is just a minor compatibility issue."

The newcomer from Neo, who seemed to be purposely lowering her voice, was surprised by the man's explanation and thanked him. Right. So that's why the customers here are always accompanied by appraiser consultants. If they don't know the true value of the items, like her, they will suffer a loss.

"I'm glad I met a kind person."

She sighed in relief, feeling that the concept of affection still existed in Korea. At the same time, the auctioneer introduced the next item.

"This item is [Sacred Tree Seedling]. Bidding will start at 1.5 billion, with increments of 10 million."

Hmm. By the way, that's an Epic-tier item, but why is the starting bid so low?

Jakyeong blinked and scanned her surroundings. What on earth is a [Sacred Tree Seedling] that makes people look so indifferent? But before she could finish her thoughts, something changed in the situation.

"Yes, 15.1 billion has been bid."

Ssak.

Number 33 quietly lifted a sign next to her. Now that she thinks about it, this unnamed neighbor was participating in the auction for the first time.

"Are you going to buy it? What is that?"

Jakyeong casually spoke to the person beside her after seeing the item. The item up for auction was a plant in a pot with ivory-colored stems. While she knew it wasn't something that could be used as equipment...

"It's an air purifier."

"Yes?"

The young man sitting next to her began to explain.

"[The Sacred Tree Seedling] is said to purify the surrounding air when installed."

"Yes?"

"It might seem a bit silly for an Epic-grade item, but it's surprisingly good because it not only sterilizes but also filters out monster toxins and other harmful substances on a wide scale."

He said this and then raised his number plate again. However, even after his explanation ended, the gaze from the seat next to him didn't disappear. The man with the hat took another sip of his drink and continued speaking.

"By the way, why have you been looking so intently? Are you planning to bid?"

A question filled with caution was asked, but the other person answered with a smile.

"Actually, I was planning to buy it. My original goal was to get an Epic-grade item with the lowest starting bid here."

Someone unconsciously twitched their fingers.

"But since number 33 has entered, I'll just cheer you on. Fighting!"

But what followed was an unexpected stroke of luck. The member of the Neo Sisters felt surprisingly grateful for the nonsense of the person in the seat next to her, and in the end, she even changed her own plans.

The price of kindness. An appraiser consultant unintentionally eliminated a competitor in the auction, and as a result, acquired the planned item at a much cheaper price.

"2.68 billion. 2.68 billion. 2.68 billion. The [Sacred Tree Seedling] has been sold to the person in seat 33. I will introduce the next item right away."

"A 30% drop from the previous sale price! How could such luck exist? Is today really the day my luck is on my side?

"By the way, how nice is the house you're living in to be buying those air purifiers? Is it 100 pyeong? Or... that apartment in Seocho-gu? 180 pyeong?""

The man responded with a cheerful voice, happy to have saved some of his budget.

"5 pyeong."

At this, one of Neo's agents made a blank expression like an astronaut facing a galaxy.

A 26.8 billion-won air purifier for a 5-pyeong studio...?

"Hahaha."

It must be a joke, so should she just laugh it off?

"Anyway, since I've bought everything you wanted, if you'd like, I can explain the upcoming auction items to you. I noticed you came alone without an appraiser."

"Thank you!"

A few minutes later, after chatting about various things, the auction was already coming to an end.

"This concludes the 14th Epic Auction. We would like to thank everyone for participating. Those who have won bids, please follow the instructions for the next steps..."

As the auction was wrapping up, the woman from seat 32 turned her head towards the seat of 33. She wanted to say goodbye to the person who had helped her all along.

But to her surprise, in the brief moment she had looked away, the man's profile had taken on a distinctly different aura than before.

"Huh?"

Short blonde hair. A sharp, icy aura, like the tip of a spear. The mysterious man, who had been rolling an empty water bottle in his hand, slowly shifted his gaze.

"Oh, it's done."

It was the moment the disguise was lifted. Just before entering the auction hall, he had cast an illusion magic over the most distinctive features of his face—his eyes and hair.

"If I had participated in the auction in my original form, it would have been troublesome, so I changed my appearance too."

But even though the illusion lasted only for a few minutes, it had drained three whole mana potions. It seemed like it wasn't as simple as it appeared. He took off the uncomfortable hat and stood up. Now that the auction was over, there was no need to maintain his disguise any longer.

"Next time, make sure to bring an appraiser with you."

Kim Giryeo left a farewell message in his usual voice to the bidder with number 32 before disappearing suddenly. The bidder who was left behind froze as if time had stopped, and only after a long time did she scream so stupidly that the room reverberated.

.

.

.

A few minutes later. While someone was determined to cherish this encounter as a lifelong memory, Giryeo had already forgotten about it.

"Yahoo!"

He held a flower pot in his hand and cheered.

[Sacred Tree Seedling]

[Grade: Epic]

[Description: Purifies the environment over a wide radius.]

That such an item was priced at 'only' in the 2-billion-won range... It was clear that Earth's inhabitants still had distinct limits to their knowledge. If its true function had been discovered, the [Sacred Tree Seedling] would have been valued just as highly as any other Epic-grade item.

"To get an epic item for this cheap."

As these details suggest, the item Giryeo won at the auction was one with a hidden unique ability.

[Description: Purifies the environment over a wide area.]

However, the information obtained through Earth's [Appraisal] skill was incomplete. Moreover, Earthlings tended to rely on such fragmented skill results.

The magic capacity is at mid-tier Epic level, yet its function is merely air purification? Just reducing some toxins or bacteria, and that's it? Besides, how are they supposed to bring such a large tree into a dungeon...?

Of course, some scholars argued that an item with such a large amount of magic power couldn't just purely the air. This showed the various experiments, convinced that there must be some hidden function. However, in the end, no one was able to uncover the secret of the Sacred Tree.

So, what could the true nature of this item, shrouded in mystery, actually be?

"Hmm."

Crack.

As soon as Giryeo arrived home, he broke off one of the branches of the Sacred Tree, exposing its blue crown. Then, he filled a cup with water and submerged the broken branch into it. The most important thing at this stage was the temperature. The water had to be cold, just before freezing, for it to function properly—probably.

"It's fortunate that I have a refrigerator at home."

After leaving the branch submerged in water for about a day, carefully monitoring the temperature, he diluted the brewed water and filled a foldable bathtub with it.

~ Splash!

A moment later, Giryeo submerged himself completely in the prepared tub, with the water reaching all the way to his head. As this showed, the Sacred Tree Seedling was an item whose effect could only be activated by covering the body with the substance that came from the wounds of the tree.

There is a similar concept on Earth called the River Styx.

Giryeo submerged his entire body thoroughly, determined not to meet the same fate as Achilles in mythology.

***

Okay, now it's time to experience its performance.

< Emergency disaster text[Dungeon Break] March 25, 09:18

Dungeon Break Alert near Mapo-gu, Seoul]

Finding a testing site wasn't difficult. No matter how much the gate detection abilities had developed, their accuracy still couldn't keep up with weather forecasts. As a result, humanity was always exposed to the disaster known as Dungeon Break.

"Hey, hey, hey. Stop it Stop it!"

"Ack, my foot!"

An intersection in Seoul.

Hunters armed with swords and spears were facing off against a horde of monsters. These were a small raid group that had happened to notice the Dungeon Break occurring while passing by and had taken action to deal with it.

The problem was that the enemy's rank was higher than theirs. Their team was hastily assembled with a mix of C and D ranks, while the opponents were at least 8 rank level.

"When will the association's support arrive? Hasn't it been 5 minutes since I reported it?"

"Ah, do something about it!"

However, they couldn't just retreat because their forces were inferior.

Glance.

The archer in the rear shifted their gaze to the back. What they saw was a primary school in Seoul, with its green grass playground clearly visible.

"Aaah! Why did it have to explode here of all places!"

Just a few more steps and that small school would be turned into rubble. They knew that, which is why they couldn't rush off and escape recklessly. They had to find a way to hold the monsters back, no matter what.

"Waaaak!"

Whoosh!

But in the midst of all this, the spearman who was holding the front line couldn't hold on and fell. The monster's sharp claws mercilessly tore through the skin of the prey, and when their comrades were seriously injured, the hunters all hesitated.

"What should I do?"

If only there had been even one B-rank hunter here, then maybe they could have done something...!

"Huh?"

But at that moment, the spearman who was being supported and retreating opened his eyes wide as if he had discovered something.

Tak, tak.

A young man in his twenties, dressed in a remarkably neat and clean outfit, which was rare in the world of hunters where blood flowed like a river. The spear-wielder recognized who had intervened and muttered quietly.

"That guy..."

S-rank Hunter, Kim Giryeo. The high-rank awakened being of Korea was standing just across a crosswalk.

The blonde awakened being glared at the broken traffic light before striding forward. Soon, a loud voice erupted from his direction.

"~ Everyone, disperse!"

He made the declaration with undeniable confidence.

"Everyone go back. I'll take care of it from here."

As if he had some kind of absolute [protection] on his back.