Chapter 84: The Slave Hiding Their Power (4)
After the auction ended and on the way back to the mansion, it was already late, nearing midnight.
“48.6 million… that’s quite a purchase.”
Shiron gazed intently at the receipt in his hand. The expenditure was well beyond his expectations, but there was no problem paying the amount specified on the receipt.
The black card that Shiron possessed was also accepted here at the auction. A card like magic, with no limit and no interest, transferred the ownership of the bid items to Shiron without any collateral.
Of course, it was a debt that must be paid back someday. Since he had no intention of just waiting for the empire to collapse without planning to repay it, Shiron put the receipt and the black card into his pocket.
‘Besides, the important thing right now isn’t the debt.’
One might wonder what could be more important than an enormous debt nearing 50 million, but given the immediate circumstances that lay before him, a debt without a deadline seemed insignificant.
Shiron squinted his eyes and looked at the two people walking ahead.
“What’s your name?”
“You may call me Elise, Master.”
“Ah, no need to be so formal and call me ‘Master.’ Just ‘Miss Siriel’ or ‘Miss’ is fine.”
“Then I will do so.”
The woman who referred to herself as Elise spoke evenly to Siriel, who was about as tall as her own chest. In the end, Shiron couldn’t overcome Siriel’s determination to bring this woman into the mansion.
‘Really…’
Did Siriel really press the button on her own will?
Doubt and unease began to sprout, and Shiron’s mind became troubled.
Whether or not she was aware of Shiron’s state of mind, Siriel, whose bedtime had long passed, walked towards the mansion with steps as bright and alert as if she had no trace of sleepiness.
Siriel’s attention was entirely captivated by the woman who would become the new member of the family.
“Do you have any pain anywhere?”
“None. Thanks to the good care I received at the auction.”
“Hmm. There is no bad smell but rather a scent of flowers.”
“I took a bath before going on stage. But please don’t worry, I do not neglect my hygiene ordinarily.”
“Your way of speaking is neither crude nor pretentious. For a slave, you are well-educated… How did such a commendable child come to be adrift? Isn’t it strange, brother?”contemporary romance
“How would I know?”
As Siriel turned her head back to speak, Shiron responded brusquely.
In the end, it was decided that this suspicious woman would be brought into the mansion.
It wasn’t a matter of just shouting or ignoring Siriel’s opinion. Regrettably, there was a rule that didn’t allow for the cancellation of a bid once made. If one truly wished to withdraw, they’d have to pay a penalty fee equal to 100 percent of the bid amount.
‘I should see if I ever go back there.’
Thus, despite debts or whatever, 4.7 million shillings was just too much money to give away to someone else for nothing.
Since he had suddenly started bleeding from the nose in the middle of the auction, the conviction that this woman’s eyes sparkled seemed to be of no help in the current situation.
‘They all say they’re so confident in their abilities, so I can’t just walk out recklessly.’
The ‘Auction’s’ force was an element not featured in the game. Moreover, the woman named Elise, who was conversing affectionately with Siriel, was not a character that appeared in the game. Therefore, Shiron could not act rashly.
Whether it was a bluff or not, if it were Hugo or Glen, who were touted as the strongest in the empire or listed in the setting book as among the strongest in the world, they could plunge into action without forethought. Unfortunately, the only cards Shiron had were two demon maids.
‘Why did Hugo have to be on an expedition at a time like this…’
Heaving a deep sigh, Shiron decided to keep an eye on this woman named Elise.
For better or for worse, Elise had not exhibited any sudden behavior from the auction to the mansion. However, her intentions could not be discerned from her expression or actions. It was convincing enough if it was an act; her demeanor was impeccably that of a lonely slave bearing a deep wound.
“Then, brother! I had fun today!”
Upon reaching the main house, Siriel turned around and clasped Shiron’s hands.
Siriel finally released her cousin-brother into freedom as midnight approached.
“Thank you for being with me so late at night. You must be very tired. Go inside and get some sleep.”
“Eh, tired? Not at all.”
Putting aside his discomfort, Shiron smiled at Siriel.
“Sleep well and have sweet dreams. And Elise, was it?”
Shiron stroked Siriel’s hand and then shifted his gaze to the side.
“Yes, that’s correct.”
The restraints on her limbs were removed, and Elise, with her beauty that would shine anywhere, no longer bore the impression of a slave.
“Please take good care of Siriel.”
Shiron extended one hand toward her, managing a clean expression that made him look quite the gentleman.
“…What does this mean? I don’t understand.”
“It’s a handshake. Don’t like it? Then it’s okay not to.”
“No, on the contrary, it’s an honor.”
Elise slightly bowed as she took Shiron’s hand.
And then,
Shiron manifested his holy power.
However, no bright light burst forth. Only a warm energy was confined between Shiron’s and Elise’s hands.
Shiron intentionally tried to draw Elise’s consciousness to himself, exerting his holy power and ‘attacking’ as if the demon would leave a mischievous child alone.
It would be madness to do without any insurance, but Shiron had something he trusted. He thought of the face of a cheeky maid and looked into Elise’s face.
But Shiron’s expectations were spectacularly off the mark.
“…Your hand is somewhat warm, my lord.”
“Is that so? It’s the first I’ve heard of it.”
Elise smiled faintly, causing Shiron to be the one flustered.
‘Isn’t she a demon?’
The fact that she showed no reaction to the holy power, which would make even the high demon Encia frown, somewhat softened Shiron’s heart. He found more reason to observe her a little longer.
After Shiron left, Philip, the butler, soon joined and led Siriel and Elise.
Their destination was the western annex of the main building, where the servants usually stayed. Walking softly to not wake anyone, Siriel said,
“This is going to be your room now. Is there anything you’re curious about or need?”
“No, there isn’t. I am just grateful for your excessive kindness.”
“Mhm, such a good girl. I like you more and more, you know?”
Siriel crossed her arms and nodded her head, looking up at the butler.
“Ahem. Then, Butler.”
“Yes, Miss.”
“Starting tomorrow, train me to fulfill my role as a servant faithfully. Of course, I’ll also greet the lady of the house.”
“I will heed the command.”
“Good!”
Siriel beamed with a grin that seemed quite satisfied with her impression of Eldrina.
“See you tomorrow!”
Click-
Siriel cheerfully waved her hand and closed the door.
For a moment, Elise stared blankly at the closed door.
“…This house seems pretty decent?”
After blinking several times, Elise smirked. Her aura changed as if shedding her old self and becoming a new person.
The little miss was kind, and the house was spacious.
Moreover, the potential of the girl who was to be her master seemed the best among all the humans she had seen so far.
Swoosh-
Elise waved her hand through the air. The action was meaningless, but without her ‘wand,’ she wanted to indulge her mood in this way.
Soon, the room she was staying in transformed.
A rainbow-colored barrier enveloped the room as if encroaching upon it.
A 10-star spell, Illusory Invocation.
With this, nobody could tell what was happening inside this room. Even an outsider looking through the window would have their imagination replace the truth with the most fitting scene instead.
“Ugh… Ugh! I thought I was going to die of boredom!”
The change was not only in the space. Her appearance also changed drastically.
The crimson hair and black eyes were gone, leaving only a woman with purple eyes and silver hair tinged with gray.
Seira, the owner of the wand inlaid with a transcendence stone, plopped down on the bed and started massaging her shoulders.
She was sore here and there, perhaps because she had been wearing an ill-fitting restraint all day.
“But then…”
However, there had been something interesting enough to make her forget the discomfort today. Or should it be called a discovery?
Even though he had a nosebleed, possibly due to overload, it was the first time in 500 years, since after the death of Kyrie, that a child had withstood her mental interference, which had never failed against humans. Was his name Shiron?
“What a sly little child.”
‘After all, just a plain human child, yet how did he recognize the wand?’
[The Forgotten Sorceress Seira] licked her lips once.
Despite the bidding price going so high that one might give up, that child ignited the bidding war with veins popping in his eyes.
27.5 million shillings was not an amount easily handled even by the royalty of a small nation. Moreover, the wand had nothing but the flashy word ‘transcendence stone’ and an outdated image of being 700 years old, right?
“Is the kid crazy for antiques?”
It would have been easy to assume that there was no one left in the world who would recognize an item of the Forgotten Seira.
Seira regarded Shiron as nothing more than a mad antique collector.
However, that boy was not simply mad about antiques. Seira was certain she knew what the warm touch she felt from his hand was.
Divine power. And quite pure at that.
‘It’s impossible for a child of that age to manifest such power…’
Then, a pure question popped into Seira’s mind.
‘By the way, why did he use divine power?’
Seira pondered this while stroking her chin.
‘Could it be he mistook me for a demon?’
“Ahaha!”
Seira clutched her stomach and rolled around on the bed. Finding it ridiculous, she laughed heartily for quite a while.
Having lived a life of amusement for so long, there had been instances when she was mistaken for a demon whom she had fought all her life. Seira could not give up her playful lifestyle precisely because of such a rare occurrence.
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