Return of the Shattered Constellation

Chapter 231: Star, the Star Auction (6)

‘Who is he?’ Chang-Sun narrowed his eyes.

Judging from the man’s divine class that Chang-Sun sensed, he seemed to be a demon duke or a grand demon duke. However, that was all Chang-Sun could tell due to his mask.

「W-wait…!」

Chang-Sun noticed Simon Magus’ voice trembling. From that alone, he sensed a variety of emotions, including confusion, shock, and…

‘Fear,” Chang-Sun thought.

Simon was the first demon king and the one who started gnosticism. Peter the Apostle, who had performed many miracles in the <Saha World>, was his rival. Even so, Simon still felt fear now.

‘He recognized [Peter’s Key] right away too.’

Chang-Sun always had his golden key under his top just in case someone could recognize it. However, even Heoju and the other Celestials couldn’t immediately identify it since it looked like a useless Rank C item. Unlike them, the man in front of Chang-Sun noticed the golden key right away.

「He-he’s the great…!」Simon muttered in awe as Minerva and Mars stood between Chang-Sun and the man with black hair, hiding Chang-Sun.

“Just walk away,” Minerva said, acting especially belligerent. Her eyes emitted golden light that the flashy mask couldn’t hide.

Recognizing Minerva, the puppy-masked man with black hair smirked. “Hahaha, I was wondering who you all were… but it was you?”

Although he sounded friendly, his voice faintly held madness.

“And the war maniac is here too? This is a funny combination. Have you gotten closer now?” The man chuckled.

Mars snorted. “Why would I try to get close with this woman? I’m here for my apostle.”

“Apostle? You?” The black-haired man tilted his head and then turned to look at Chang-Sun with interest. “The famous mad dog has an apostle… This is interesting! He even has Peter’s keepsake.”

The black-haired man’s red eyes gleamed wickedly again as he asked, “Who in the world are you?”

The black-haired man seemed about to do something to Chang-Sun any minute now, so Minerva and Mars stayed on alert, grabbing their weapon handles. Chang-Sun couldn’t sit still either, so he started circulating his <Dusk Lightning> energy inside him. As tension slowly filled the hallway, Mercury slammed the end of his staff on the floor.

Thud!

A shockwave spread, disrupting the subtle tension.

The black-haired man glared at Mercury, who nonchalantly pointed upward with his chin as he asked, “Uriel has been scowling at us for quite some time now. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

The black-haired man, Minerva, and Mars also looked up, finding a seraph[1] with three sets of splendid wings scowling at them from the balustrade on the fourth floor.

[The Celestial ‘Garden Gatekeeper’ is keeping an eye on the people who are causing a disturbance!]

The seraph was Uriel, known to be a clairvoyant. He could see everything that was going happening on the ground and was even ready to fly down to the floor if anything happened. The auction house was the most important building of the <Star Grave>, so causing a commotion inside it was strictly prohibited. Not even the powerful <L’Infernal> demon was an exception to that rule.

Discontented, the black-haired man crossed his arms and quietly snorted. The belligerent air around him was dissipating.

“I’ll talk to you again later, human,” the black-haired man said as he headed to the other room.

Chang-Sun quietly watched the man’s back, for some reason having a strong feeling that this confrontation wouldn’t be the last of it.

* * *

The black-haired man entered the room, finding another man already on the sofa. While the black-haired man was in formal clothes, the other person was wearing a Hawaiian shirt with watermelon and mango patterns, shorts, and slippers.

“What took you so long?” the man with a Hawaiian shirt asked. He was drinking a cup of lemonade with a straw and a lemon slice on top. Unlike the black-haired man, who looked wicked and decadent, he looked very carefree.

The black-haired man looked at him and frowned in discontentment. A ruler of the <L’Infernal> should have dignity, but Satan, the carefree man, had none of it. After Baal’s death, Satan had become one of the Seven Deadly Sin Monarchs—the rulers of <L’Infernal>—and the holder of the divine rank of Ira.

“You knew, didn’t you?” The black-haired man asked.

“What are you talking about?” Satan said.

“Peter.”

“Well, I’m still not sure what you’re talking about!” Satan answered dramatically.

The black-haired man was certain that Satan held the divine rank of Ira because he had an exceptional talent for making people furious as hell.

“I met the person who seems to possess [Peter’s Key] on my way over here.”

“Wow! Is that so? That’s really good for you, man. You’ve been looking for it for a really long time, haven’t you?” Satan clapped and acted so dramatically that anyone could have seen he was lying.

“You were the one who suggested that I come here.”

“Come on, that’s not true. I recommended this place because you grumbled about needing soldiers for your army. Am I wrong? I didn’t lie, you knowww!” Satan smirked.

The black-haired man just narrowed his eyes in response. Although the people who knew him would have become scared if they saw him, Satan wasn’t fazed at all. Annoyed, the black-haired man eventually sat down next to Satan, who smiled enigmatically as he looked at the man.

* * *

“Gosh, we couldn’t have run into a worse person.” Mercury shook his head.

“Hmph! He can’t mess with my apostle anyway.”

“Are you going to fight him?”

“If needed!” Mars shouted like a general.

“I don’t mind fighting, but don’t do it here if possible.”

While Mercury and Mars were busy talking among themselves…

“That man earlier is Agares[2], so be careful.” Minerva warned Chang-Sun as soon as they entered the room.

Chang-Sun’s eyes narrowed. He was familiar with the name. Agares was the grand demon duke and the second-strongest demon in the <L'Infernal>. This great demon king was in charge of ruling the vast eastern region of <Hell> and led thirty-one legions and hundreds of subordinates.

His divine ranks were destruction and madness. His madness was so strong hearing his voice was enough to corrupt a person’s soul. Fortunately, he always stayed in his territory and rarely made an appearance in public. That was why Chang-Sun didn’t expect to run into him here.

“Agares tends to obsess over things, but no one can predict what makes him obsessed. He would even wage war for it if he has to, so you have to act as carefully as possible. I don’t know why, but you’ve caught his eye,” Minerva explained, seemingly very worried.

Chang-Sun nodded. At the same time, Mercury quickly devised a plan as he mumbled, “For now, our only option is to quickly win the bid for the items we need and get out of here in secret. I might have to call Mister Sol and borrow his sun carriage… ”

“Hmph! You think about running away like a coward first before you come up with a plan of attack?” Mars grumbled.

“You’re welcome to stay here alone and fight him off on your own. Considering Agares’ personality, he wouldn’t have come here alone, so it’s going to be one fighting deity battling two or more great demon kings. Haha! You’re going to look really cool. If you die, I’ll put up a cool statue of you at the center of the <Olympus> yard.” Mercury put a stop to Mars’ reckless bravado with ease, then thought up a countermeasure.

Rendered speechless, Mars also started to think, crossing his arms. Minerva and Chang-Sun focused on the auction. An angel with two sets of wings, the host of the auction, was coming up the stage.

『Hello, everyone. We, the auction committee, would like to express our gratitude to our esteemed guest for sparing the moment…』

The host eloquently announced the start of the auction, catching everyone’s attention. The items for this auction appeared one by one.

『This item before you was tragically left by the Celestial who oversaw healing before they were annihilated in the last <Myth War>…』

Living up to the reputation of the <Star Auction>, the host showed the people nothing but exceptional items.

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ gasps upon seeing such a splendid weapon!]

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ yells that she found something more splendid, so she shouldn’t lose this!]

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ pulls out her hair because the host has started to count down!]

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ wakes her mother up, saying that they should get the item no matter what!]

…

[The Celestial ‘Primordial Evil Dragon’ subdues her daughter with ease, telling her daughter that she is too noisy.]

…

[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ shakes his head and says that anyone will go bankrupt in no time if they’re as easily tempted as a certain Celestial.]

The Celestials in Chang-Sun’s channel watched the auction with him.

[The Celestial ‘Taurus’ wonders whether or not he will be able to meet you if he visits the <Star Grave> right now.]

[The Celestial ‘Tsunami Bringer’ is thinking about going on a vacation for the first time in so long.]

[The Celestial ‘Antlered Animal King’ prepares to stand up.]

[The Celestial ‘Plague Monarch’ says that she has an item that is really good for men. She asks if it is okay for her to meet and sell it to you.]

…

Those watching Chang-Sun seemed eager to visit the <Star Grave>, wondering if they would be able to meet him.

‘It’ll become really chaotic if they all come running to the <Star Grave>,’ Chang-Sun thought.

He didn’t really want any interference with his work, and some of these Celestials were in <Horoscope>, making Chang-Sun frown slightly. Although he wasn’t sure why, Agares, who obsessed over [Peter’s Key], was here too, so Chang-Sun likely had to get out of here as soon as possible.

‘Where is Heoju?’

Heoju would have already made a fuss by now, but even after Chang-Sun’s channel had gone online, he was still missing.

『Everyone must have been waiting for this item. It’s Ou Yezi’s divine sword!』

The host’s remark caught Chang-Sun’s attention. Meanwhile, Minerva and Mars’ eyes widened, and Mercury stopped pondering and watched the auction with interest. Chang-Sun noticed the spectators, who hadn’t been showing much interest in the auction until now, sitting up straight. Many people looked in the stage’s direction. When a dashing sword was presented on the stage, the spectators that had filled up the building exclaimed.

Ooong, oong, oooong!

Ziiiing―!

The crests of the [Yuchang Sword] and the [Zhan Lu Sword] on Chang-Sun shook so hard they seemed like they were about to jump out at any moment.

『Judging from how fervently you’re all paying attention, it seems everyone here has keen eyes. Yes, that’s right. Ou Yezi the Divine Blacksmith found a copper lump after ‘Mount Cheonnyeon’ crumbled down and the ‘Yakah River’ dried up. Having pounded that copper lump for over ten years, he was finally able to forge this—the [Chunjun Sword]!』

The [Chunjun Sword] was created by absorbing the vital force of mountains and rivers. Hence, rather than smelling of iron or blood like other weapons, it had a refreshing scent that made people feel as if they were in a forest.

‘It seems like a great match for Celestials who get their powers from forests,’ Chang-Sun thought.

[The Celestial ‘A Good Season to Hunt’ howls that she should definitely have the sword.]

[The Celestial ‘Primordial Evil Dragon’ admits that it certainly is a tempting sword.]

The auction was hitting up.

『Three billion. We have three billion Karmas. Is there anyone else? What about four and a half billion? We have four and a half billion Karmas. Five billion? We have five billion! Wait, we now have seven billion…!』

The audience repeatedly raised their signs.

『The competition is fiercer than I expected. Yes, we’ll continue with the price of ten billion Karmas, and the price will increase by a billion. Eleven billion. Twelve billion. Can we get fifteen billion?』

As the price soared, the spectators who participated without giving much thought to it soon gave up. The competition now only revolved around the VVIPs on the second and third floors. The man wearing red clothes and the woman with a blue hat raised their signs most eagerly.

‘Are they Imhotep and Mayahuel?’ Chang-Sun wondered.

Imhotep was a Celestial of agriculture[3] who oversaw the concept of good harvests, while Mayahuel symbolized fertility. Few Celestials were richer than them. Although the host was quickly increasing the price, Chang-Sun wasn’t fazed. In fact, he was smiling.

‘I want it.’ Chang-Sun’s eyes turned sharp.

Just like he did with [Balmung], he strongly desired to get his hands on the [Chunjun Sword], but he had to control himself since Kali’s priests would show up soon.

『The auction is heating up! We have thirty billion! Thirty-one billion? Do we have thirty-one billion…?!』

『One hundred billion.』

The host stopped when he heard someone speak from the third floor. Imhotep and Mayahuel, who had been trying to obtain the [Chunjun Sword] using any means, turned their heads toward the source, and their eyes widened. At the same time, the uproarious hall quieted down, almost as if someone had thrown a wet blanket. Even the Ruling Celestial of a <Society> would be shocked if they heard that bid.

Agares, who was wearing a puppy mask in VVIP Room 1, looked down upon the people outside the window. He was now speaking through the loudspeaker inside his room.

『D-did you say… one hundred billion Karma?』the host asked.

Agares replied,『Why? Is there a problem?』

『N-no, not at all. Then… is there… anyone else?』

The eloquent host creaked like a malfunctioning robot, and Imhotep and Mayahuel quickly exchanged glances. Although it was difficult to read each other’s faces due to their masks, it seemed they had successfully agreed to work together and defeat Agares first.

『We now have one hundred and ten billion from the lower floor. Is there anyone—!』

When the host continued the auction, Agares quickly said, 『Two hundred billion.』

『Two hundred and ten billion…!』

Imhotep and Mayahuel tried again, but Agares simply raised the price once more.

『Four hundred billion.』

With how things were turning out, Imhotep and Mayahuel couldn’t fight back anymore. Every time they raised their signs, Agares multiplied the price, silencing them.

『Is there… anyone else? 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. 0. The [Chunjun Sword] has been sold at the price of four hundred billion Karmas!』

Thud, thud, thud!

The hall remained quiet even after the host swung the gavel three times with his shaky hand. However, Agares just lightly snorted and turned away as if his victory was guaranteed from the start.

‘He’s really throwing money in the air,’ Chang-Sun thought, wondering if this was how Choi Bu-Yong used to feel before.

“Ha…!”

“I heard about him being crazy. It seems the rumors are true.”

“I actually envy him for being able to spend that much money at once.”

Minerva and the other two Celestials chuckled dryly and bitterly, but Chang-Sun didn’t get carried along and just focused on the stage because he had a feeling that the very reason why he was here would show up soon.

『Master,』the Elfin Root said, its voice shaking.

‘Hold on, Elfin. I’ll bring your friends soon.’

『Yes, sir. Thank you,』the Elfin answered.

Meanwhile, the host wrapped up the auction of [Chunjun Sword]. introduce the next item.

『That bidding war was really intense and fist-clenching, wasn’t it? It was sold at the highest price in the entire history of the <Star Auction>. I’m sure that the current item will also live up to your expectations. I present to you, the priests of the ‘Goddess of Massacre and Destruction’!』

Tap, tap…

As the host presented the next item, about twenty tied-up Gray Elves came up the stage, each of them sharing similar looks to the Elfin. They seemed devoid of emotions apart from their silent rage.

『We normally would have auctioned off the current item one by one, but the seller of the current item was very adamant about selling them in a set. Hence, I beg everyone’s understanding regarding this matter. Now then, let the auction be—!』

The moment the host tried to announce the start of the auction, Chang-Sun pressed the button for the loudspeaker and said,『Five hundred billion.』

“…!”

“…!”

“…!”

Every spectator turned their head.

1. A rank of an angel. ☜

2. A demon that appears in several grimoires. ☜

3. He is actually an Egyptian god of architecture and engineering. He became deified after his death, but he also made many contributions to Egyptian agriculture. ☜