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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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Northvan.
A bustling city, the largest in the northern region.
Smaller than the capital, Centralvan, but comparable in size to Eastvan and Westvan.
A young woman walked through the crowded streets. Her short, blonde hair, barely reaching her shoulders, peeked out from beneath a white hood.
Her golden eyes, like the midday sun, shone brightly, adding to her mystique.
Those beautiful eyes, combined with her innocent, almost puppy-like expression, evoked a protective instinct in those who saw her.
It was late autumn, the cusp of November.
Winter arrived early in Northvan. Fallen leaves carpeted the streets.
The clear blue sky, visible through the bare branches of the trees, seemed especially vast today.
The young woman took a deep breath, the cold air stinging her lungs.
‘I should have brought some friends.’
Ethan, Arthur, or even Sepia would have been helpful. She sighed, her breath forming a white cloud in the cold air.
‘But my true identity is still a secret.’
Tesha, the young woman, rested her hand on the hilt of her shortsword. It was a habit, a way to calm her nerves when she was thinking.
Beyond the city walls, the Winter Mountain Range, stretching from Northvan to Herbeia, loomed majestically.
But the perpetual snow of the Winter Mountains was gone.
It had melted overnight.
‘It must be the demons’ doing.’
And it wasn’t the only strange occurrence lately.
Yesterday, while eating at a tavern, she had overheard a conversation about the sudden disappearance of Northvan’s largest assassination organization.
‘Good riddance, I say.’
‘That’s just a rumor, isn’t it? They didn’t find any bodies!’
One of the men, who looked like a city guard, clicked his tongue.
‘No bodies? There was blood everywhere! Trust me, I’ve been a guard for twenty years. They were massacred. I don’t know why, but…’
The man laughed heartily, as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He continued, explaining how he had discovered the assassins’ hideout.
‘I found it while investigating the bloodstains. And guess what? Their vault was empty!’
‘Really? How much was there?’
The man held up three fingers.
‘300 million?’
‘300 million?! At least 3 billion! They were the most notorious assassins in Northvan. They must have charged a fortune for each assassination.’
Tesha listened intently, her mind racing.
‘The snow on the Winter Mountains melted, and Northvan’s largest assassination organization disappeared…’
They could be unrelated incidents.
But who could melt an entire mountain range and wipe out an entire organization?
Even the Northvan City Guard couldn’t have done it. The only ones capable of such a feat…
‘It has to be the demons.’
And they might have sacrificed the assassins.
Tesha was in Northvan because of the autumn break.
Well, technically, it wasn’t a break.
Neydia Hero Academy, being the empire’s premier institution, was currently holding entrance exams for next year’s incoming class.
The entrance exams lasted for a week.
It was a long process, with applicants coming from all over the empire and multiple exams to administer.
Classes were suspended while the professors oversaw the exams. The current students simply called it “autumn break.”
Tesha sat on a bench in the town square, flipping through an auction catalog.
The Northvan auction, held once every season, featured a variety of rare items.
Unclaimed weapons, treasures found in dungeons, skill orbs dropped by demons and monsters…
But there was one item in particular that Tesha was interested in.
A blue gem.
Her master had told her about it. The gem in the catalog, with its unique markings, was identical to the one her master had described.
It looked like a gem, but it wasn’t, according to her master.
And the auction house seemed unaware of its true value. The starting bid was surprisingly low.
‘I have to retrieve it before it falls into the wrong hands…’
Tesha smiled and closed the catalog. She stood up, clenching her fists.
Just then, she saw a man with black hair walking across the square. His back looked familiar.
‘Ethan…?’
He was far away, but it looked like Ethan.
She hurried after him, hoping to catch up and say hello.
“Oh…!”
A carriage passed by, blocking her path. Tesha stamped her foot impatiently.
She briefly considered jumping onto the roof of the carriage, but it was already too far away.
She sighed. The man who had looked like Ethan was gone.
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At the Northvan social gathering.
I was attending a pre-auction social gathering.
It was a service provided by the auction house, a way to network and gather information about potential buyers.
The entrance fee alone was several hundred thousand Elleh.
It was an exclusive event for the wealthy. They even had premium annual memberships.
I wasn’t a fan of these events. They were mostly just opportunities for wealthy people to brag.
“May I see your ticket?”
“Ticket? I have plenty of money…”
A woman, dressed like a noblewoman, stood at the entrance.
She wore a pink dress with a plunging neckline, a white fur stole, and an elegant overcoat. She looked like a wealthy heiress.
Her blonde hair was neatly styled, and her deep blue eyes were striking. She could have passed for an elf.
The ornate belt around her waist caught my eye.
Northvan wasn’t exactly known for its safety. It was strange for a woman like that to be here without an escort.
It meant one of two things: she was either unaware of the dangers of Northvan, or she was strong enough not to need an escort.
“I’m sorry, madam, but you cannot enter without a ticket.”
“I hate the cold. Here, take this money and let me in.”
Despite her elegant attire, she seemed unfamiliar with the rules.
Only premium members and those with pre-purchased tickets were allowed to enter.
The attendant at the entrance was a man, and he couldn’t take his eyes off her.
“But madam, you need a ticket…”
“There’s… no other way?”
“Well… you could enter with a companion.”
“A companion?”
The woman placed a hand on her forehead and looked around. Several men approached her, hoping to be her companion.
“Madam, I have a ticket for two…”
A man pulled out a ticket, but the woman smiled at me and walked over.
“Hello.”
I stared at her, puzzled. She smiled as if we were old friends.
“Could you help me, young man?”
“I don’t mind, but…”
My premium ticket allowed me to bring up to three companions.
Tia had helped me acquire it from a trading company in Eastvan.
“I can compensate you handsomely.”
I had plenty of money. My investments were doing well, I had sponsors, and I had earned a substantial amount from demon hunting.
And the Black Brotherhood’s vault had been quite lucrative.
“I don’t expect anything in return.”
“Oh my! How kind of you.”
The woman clapped her hands, delighted. She showed her membership card, and the guard bowed respectfully.
“A premium member. Welcome, madam. I’ll escort you.”
“Thank you, but that won’t be necessary.”
He looked like he was about to assign a guard to escort us, so I declined. I was planning to have a quick meal and then return to the hotel.
The woman followed me as I walked towards the banquet hall.
“What’s your name, young man?”
“Ethan. And you are…?”
“Etidorpha. Call me Dor.”
Etidorpha? Dor?
I had never heard that name before. She wasn’t a major character in “The Strongest of the Dragon Academy.”
Or perhaps Dor wasn’t her real name.
Someone this beautiful couldn’t be a random extra.
The banquet hall was filled with people dressed in elegant attire, enjoying the buffet.
They were all here for the three-day auction.
“Ethan, what brings you here?”
“I’m here for the auction.”
I wondered why she would ask such an obvious question. We were attracting a lot of attention, just by being together.
“What about you?”
“I’m looking for someone.”
Ah, she was probably looking for her husband, who was gambling away their fortune. That would explain why she couldn’t enter without a ticket.
It was a classic trope: the wife dragging her gambling husband out of the casino.
“Are you here to drag your husband out of the auction?”
“Fufu, no, that’s not it. Don’t be too curious. A woman’s secrets are what make her beautiful.”
What could I say to that? I shrugged. A waiter arrived with steak, lamb chops, and a bottle of wine. It was a complimentary dinner for premium members.
“I feel bad that you’re treating me. I always repay my debts.”
“I never refuse when someone offers to repay a favor.”
Dor smiled, resting her chin on her hand. She seemed amused. She took a sip of wine. The chandeliers and candelabras glittered overhead.
“Good evening. Mind if we join you?”
Two gentlemen approached our table. They seemed more interested in Dor than in me.
We exchanged greetings, and they started talking about business, bragging about their wealth and accomplishments.
“I’ve doubled my investment in an adventurer’s guild this year.”
“Haha, I discovered a gold mine on my property.”
It was like a scene from Titanic.
“What do you two do? You must be quite successful to be attending this auction.”
Dor smiled, hiding her mouth behind her fan.
“It’s a secret.”
“Haha, and the young man?”
“I’m an investor.”
“An investor? I know a thing or two about investments. How much have you made? Ah, that was rude of me. Haha.”
I sipped my wine, then replied.
“About a billion Elleh in the past year.”
The two gentlemen stared at me, speechless. Dor burst out laughing.
“Dinner’s almost over. Shall we go upstairs, Ethan?”
Dor leaned closer, her voice a playful whisper. She rubbed her bare foot against my leg under the table.
It was a blatant seduction.
She was looking for someone to spend the night with.
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