CH 131

Episode 131. To the Auction House

* * *

“Good work, Mr. Hamel.”

Kran said, looking anxiously at Lucion.

“Alright. You can handle the rest, right?”

“Of course. Assigning the members, removing the corpses, and other trivial tasks, Hamel-nim doesn’t have to step in. I will report back later after processing it.”

“Yes. I am counting on you.”

Lucion said in a slightly weak voice.

It was about 3 a.m. now.

He felt sleepy, and he still hadn’t heard from ghost no. 23, but Heint was starting to bother him.

‘I’m glad the auction house is open in the afternoon.’

Lucion shuddered reflexively when imagined how the maids would decorate him like a doll.

“Are you okay?”

Kran’s voice rose slightly.

It was because Reint’s words about Hamel having a fever lingered in his head.

“Ah, I am fine.”

Lucion replied casually.

“From now on, It will be difficult for you to participate in the auction house while fixing this.”

[The same goes for you, Lucion.]

Russell said and snorted.

If the wound didn’t heal well already, he should at least sleep well.

Because of Heint, there were restrictions on his movement, and he was busier than Kran because he split his days into a double life.

If it weren’t for this reason, he would have desperately stopped Lucion.

“No, I’m fine for a day or so.”

Kran shook his head and called Lucion carefully.

“Hamel-nim.”

“What is it?”

“Are you sure you won’t come to the auction house?”

“Yes.”

He wasn’t lying because he wasn’t going to the auction house as Hamel.

“Yes. Don’t come to the auction house. I want you to leave Miella’s work to me and rest well. Even if it’s a fake position, If I can’t handle this much, I don’t deserve to play the role of the leader, right?”

With Kran’s anxiety starting again, Lucion looked at himself for a moment.

He had changed into new clothes, but they were slightly soiled from the previous battle.

“Hamel-nim. No matter what anyone says, Hamel-nim is the pillar of Ale. I hope you never forget that fact and take good care of yourself.”

Lucion was suddenly baffled by the sincerity and concern that Kran brought out not once but twice.

‘It’s worse than usual today…?’

[He’s going to cry.]

Russell also said with a stiff face.

“Oh, Reint asked me to deliver this.”

Kran remembered something and handed the medicine out of his arms.

“What… is this?”

Since Lucion hated medicine, his voice didn’t sound so good.

“It’s a fever medicine.”

“…Did you notice?”

“Reint did.”

It couldn’t be helped now that he’d been caught.

‘That’s why he’s worse than usual today.’

Lucion’s mask turned blue and he received the medicine.

“Yes. Give my thanks to Reint.”

“I wish you a speedy recovery, Hamel-nim.”

Kran bowed to Lucion and looked at Hume.

“I am counting on you.”

“Don’t worry. I am ready to serve Hamel-nim better than anyone else.”

Hume spoke proudly and raised the corners of his mouth.

Because he was Lucion’s butler.

* * *

“…Young Master?”

Despite the sound of Hume’s voice, Lucion could hardly open his heavily pressed eyes.

“Ugh….”

Lucion groaned.

As soon as he woke up, his head felt like it would explode.

It might have been due to a sudden rise in fever at night and a lack of sleep.

Ratta stopped sleeping and pricked up her ears.

She half-opened her eyes and asked.

―Lucion, are you sick?

[I knew you were overdoing it!]

Russell immediately put his hand on Lucion’s forehead.

He couldn’t feel the heat in his fingertips.

He couldn’t confirm with the ghost’s hand whether this was a slight fever or not.

Every time this happened, that sad fact came to him.

“No. It doesn’t hurt…”

[Hume. Check him.]

Russell cut off Lucion’s words and asked Hume.

“Yes. I’ll check right away.”

Hume put his hand on Lucion’s forehead.

Hume’s own non-human hand was able to measure temperature almost accurately.

“He still has a slight fever.”

At Hume’s answer, Russell put his fingers together and seemed to be thinking about something.

‘The black orb… What the hell is it?’

Obviously, he had no intention of denying that the black orbs helped Lucion.

But why did it keep causing abnormal symptoms in Lucion’s body? Russell kept thinking and thinking.

‘It’s definitely not a side effect from getting the black orbs.’

If it were a side effect, Lucion’s organs or parts of his body would have been broken by now.

‘…The only answer I can give is that Lucion is not fully absorbing the black orb.’

This was not something that could be done as a side effect.

Russell didn’t intend to say anything, lest Lucion care.

He just had to wait for Lucion to get through it.

Lucion looked at Russell’s expression, which was getting stiff, and opened his mouth.

“It’s okay, Teacher. It’s just because I can’t sleep. I am a little sensitive to everything.”

It wasn’t a lie at all.

How precious he had grown.

Lucion brushed down Ratta’s face, stared at her, and soon patted her.

“You can go back to sleep, Ratta.”

Ratta forcibly opened her eyes and rubbed her face against Lucion.

―Ratta, uh, Ratta can hold on.

“By the way, where has Bethel gone to?”

Russell had no choice but to let it go even though he knew Lucion was changing the subject.

No matter what he said to Lucion now, the pain didn’t get better, and he didn’t want to say anything more to the sick disciple.

Russell sighed and replied.

[Lucion, before you woke up, she said she was going to visit the branch and the auction house for a while. I guess she’s worried.]

“About the auction house?”

[Of course. The theme is light. Even if they wrote that they will be considerate of you in the invitation, we don’t know how it will actually be. Also, there could be warlocks wandering around.]

“Then, I will diligently develop light resistance today as well.”

At Lucion’s grin, Russell swallowed a sigh and hit him on the forehead.

[…Lucion, do you still think like that?]

“It’s worth it. I’m also thinking of eating a little more ratcho because I might get exposed to light continuously.”

[Lucion. How much are you going to increase your light resistance?]

“I want to get it enough so that it won’t reach me.”

Heint’s red thread hadn’t broken yet.

That meant he could still die at any time.

Of course, not only Heint but also the priests were dangerous.

No, the light itself was an existence that drove him to death.

[If you go at this speed, the light won’t affect you for at least two years. So let’s go slow.]

Russell frowned.

“It’s because I have a short temper. I hope Teacher will be generous with me.”

Lucion smiled.

He knew it in his head, but that smile made Russell’s heart weaken again.

Lucion himself knew best that it was dangerous.

Lucion rose from his seat.

Hume immediately helped Lucion.

“What time is it now, Hume?”

“It’s eight o’clock in the morning.”

“Did Heint call me?”

“No, he went to the auction house from dawn to escort the auction house today, and he’s not here right now.”

“Is that so?”

Lucion seemed to hum automatically at the good news.

However, his facial muscles didn’t move freely because his body felt drowsy and heavy.

“Give me a painkiller.”

Lucion had a lot of work to do today, so he had no choice but to take medicine.

Even if he knew it with his head, his face quickly distorted because he hated medicine.

“You have to eat after breakfast.”

Hume shook his head.

“Besides, it’s not a very good choice now. Isn’t it time for ratcho?”

“Oh.”

Lucion held his head, nodded at the part he missed, and then smiled.

“Now you look like a real butler.”

Hume, who had always been unable to refuse, was now refusing naturally.

“Thank… you.”

Hume’s eyes turned round.

He was happy because it was something he wanted to hear so badly.

However, his facial muscles didn’t move freely.

“…This feeling is called daze.”

Hume looked at his trembling hands.

Lucion’s eyes widened.

‘What I just said wasn’t enough to make people’s hands shake…’

[Lucion, Hume must have been so hungry for compliments.]

Despite the sarcastic tone of Russell’s voice, Lucion hesitated.

He shut his mouth and thought for a moment, wondering if he had been so stingy with his compliments.

[…Lucion?]

He didn’t expect this reaction.

Russell opened his eyes wide at Lucion’s serious look.

“No, Young Master. It’s what I want to hear the most, so I’m really happy. The Young Master kept me alive and treated me as a real being, not as a monster…”

“…Stop there.”

Lucion uselessly tucked his hair behind his forehead.

He had enough of the flatteries.

Pfft.

He heard Russell laughing.

“Teacher, if you don’t tease me at least for a day, will your mouth grow thorns?”

[That’s right. I’m so happy that you know now.]

Lucion looked at Russell in embarrassment.

“I have prepared the ratcho for Young Master.”

Hume led him to the bathroom attached to the room.

Lucion looked sideways at Russell and walked along Hume.

Now he wondered if Hume would just need a weapon to hold.

‘…Zamad should be getting in contact soon.’

Lucion felt sorry for Hume, who fought with his bare hands every time.

According to the report of the subjugated ghosts that wandered near Zamad, the greatsword was almost finished.

But it was only according to the ghosts, not Zamad.

Lucion went into the bathroom and chewed up four ratchos that Hume had given him.

“…?”

By the time the grassy taste in his mouth had disappeared and the sweetness had risen, Lucion opened his eyes.

‘What?’

Lucion continued to mumble with a questioning look.

‘I feel a little lighter…?’

[What’s wrong?]

Russell saw Lucion’s expression and couldn’t hold back his itchy mouth.

“I feel a little lighter. It seems that the black orb’s real power hasn’t been absorbed yet. If not, how could I suddenly feel lighter?”

Light killed darkness.

If it was the power of the black orb that weighed down his body, it was natural for it to react to the light.

‘They said I was a broken vessel…’

The power of the black orb tried to stay in the vessel, but since the vessel was broken, it seemed that the power of the black orb, which had no place to go, was going around every corner of his body.

That was why abnormal symptoms occurred in the body.

“…Ha. Maybe I can’t absorb the next orb until the power is fully absorbed, and my body will keep being in this state.”

Lucion sighed and took a towel from Hume and covered his mouth.

[‘Why are you so quick-witted?’]

He was going to keep it a secret.

Russell nodded reluctantly.

[It looks like that to me too…]

Russell paused.

[Hume. Heint went to the auction house?]

“Yes. I saw him going out at dawn.”

[He’s coming this way…?]

Russell looked at Lucion right away.

Lucion, who had taken out his bracelet and was getting some light, stopped his hand.

‘Why is Heint here right now…?’

Lucion’s eyes shook.

“Hume. Now… Cough!”

The recoil from the light occurred immediately.

The towel quickly turned red.

Looking at this situation, the fuss was not the problem.

Lucion was dizzy at what would happen next.

“I’ll go out and block him.”

The moment Hume turned the doorknob to get out of the bathroom, Russell hurriedly shouted,

[No! Block the door!]

But the door outside opened before Hume could put his hand into it.

[‘That damn light. It’s so damn fast.’]

Russell frowned.

Heint ran at high speed with the power of light and arrived in front of the bathroom in no time.

“Lucion! Suddenly the light…”

Heint was wary of his surroundings with a distorted face, but he raised his bent hand above his head, panicking at the sudden flying fist.

Swoosh!

Clang!

Even with the light wrapped around his arm, the shock was great.

It felt as if he was blocking a speeding carriage.

“Hume! It’s me!”

Heint calmed Hume and his pupils shook.

“…Lucion?”

The towel in Lucion’s hand was stained red, and what fell on the floor was blood.

Tiring!

At the same time, Lucion’s eyes widened.

The red thread connected to Heint, which felt like it would get stuck forever, tightened.