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In the end, I bought all the female slaves, didn’t I? My spending is in the hundreds of millions. This is more like a contribution to a religion than to a mistress. You think I’m a cult leader or what?! I’m actually worried about Orty’s future now.

Hm?! The stares from the people around me are hurting. Wait, why am I getting a lot of attention? Some of them are even staring at me like they’re going to kill me at any moment.

I see! It must be because a newcomer to the auction suddenly showed up and bought all the slave girls! I guess that’s enough reason to be frowned upon.

I guess I can expect to get attacked after the auction, then. I’m really glad I called Edim. I wouldn’t have made it home safely without an escort.

That was when two of the killers-to-be approached me. One is a fat guy with a drum belly, wearing flashy clothes with bad taste. The other was a skinny guy with a fussy look on his face.

“You, number 64, you’ve been doing nothing but bidding big numbers, can you even pay them?!”
“Yeah. You even bid on Jessie, I was aiming for her, so you better not be lying through your teeth.”

Sure enough, they came to complain.

“Should I kill them?”

Edim immediately uttered the dangerous word.

“W-, wait. Let’s save the killing for last. We can still talk things out.”
“Kill us, you said? You w̲h̲o̲r̲e̲, don’t you know who we are?!”

Mu?! So we can’t talk things out?!

The two men were ready to draw their swords.

Hey, stop. It’s really going to be war if you pull that out. I won’t stop Edim, and you guys will be red paste in an instant.

“Order, please. Order. I will not tolerate disorderly behavior in the auction hall!”

The emcee said, and the mercenaries rushed to action. These are the guards hired by the boss who is in charge of this district. Every single one of them looks as strong as a one-man army.

The two men who came to me turned pale and shuffled off when they saw the mercenaries.

“Thank you for your understanding. This auction is an event that represents the one who managed the entire Eville district, the Dark Emperor. Please do not make any misbehavior.”

There he goes, the “Dark Emperor,” flashing his presence like the Mafia. The effect is immense. In an instant, silence returned to the room.

“Pfft. The Dark Emperor, he said…”

Edim chuckles.

I agree. That name sure invites a laugh. But he’s a scary guy. We need to be cautious here. You never know where the Dark Emperor might be lurking.

“Edim, hush.”

I put a finger to my mouth, warning her.

“Yes. However, Lady Tilea. The name Dark Emperor is nothing but an insult. You might even take it as a treason.”
“Wh-, what are you saying, Edim?! Th-, that’s not true, Lady Tilea. That’s a mistake. It’s the people around me who started saying the Dark Emperor to refer to y—”
“Shut up, both of you!”

Orty tries to talk about the Dark Emperor, but I force him to shut his mouth.

You damn chuuni! I bet you’re going to say “The Dark Emperor is my servant, this is my garden!” but I won’t let you. Jesus, don’t you know words create disasters? The walls have ears, ever heard of that?

Despite my worries, the emcee returned to the stage and the auction resumed.

“Whew, what an eventful day! Now, the auction is down to the last item. Today’s main event, a descendant of the Gulda tribe, a beautiful girl of the highest caliber, a limited-time item just for today.”

As the emcee said this in a tone of excitement, a strong man appeared, pulling a chain.

And the girl tied at the end of the chain is…

Wow, she is captivating, after all. What a beautiful girl. The audience was also impressed.

“Fufu, pick your jaws from the floors, ladies and gentlemen. Look at this, isn’t the color of her hair just as white and radiant as ever? Her skin is smooth, and her eyes are beautifully clear. All of her features suggest that she is a princess of a noble lineage. In fact, she is a gem that could be presented to a minister, or even the king of this country. However, I present her as the centerpiece of this auction.”

The host’s tart tongue and realistic explanation drew the audience in. The price is going to go up.

“The price will start at 20 million.”
“25 million!”
“Thirty!”
“Fourty!”
“One hundred million!”

There he is, Bowzen. He simply backed out when we bid for the girls before this one, so he’s saving up for this, isn’t he?

He suddenly attacked with “100 million,” hah.

“The gentleman at number 31 offered 100 million. Anyone dares?”
“Two hundred million.”
“Oh!”

I held up two fingers and called.

“Two hundred million?! You guys can’t even pay that much!”
“Of course I can! Look at this!”

I open the bag Orty gave me and show him the plentiful platinum coins.

The crowd is abuzz.

“Order please, order. I don’t need to remind you that false declarations at auctions are punishable. And not just with a hefty fine. You could spend the rest of your life in jail. We trust that none of our customers will take such a risk. So, let’s resume. Two hundred million, anyone else?”
“F̲u̲c̲k̲, 300 million.”
“I won’t lose. Three hundred and five.”
“Kgh, 400 million!”
“Ooh!”

The murmuring crowd grew louder once again. It seems that it has become a one-on-one duel between Bowzen and me. Others had already left the fight.

Bowzen, no matter how hard you try, it’s futile. I have Orty, the young master of a wealthy family, wealthier than you are.

Currently, the bidding price is 400 million…

Let’s raise it all at once and deliver the finishing blow!

“Five hundred million!”

I raise my five fingers firmly and let out a triumphant call. That, obviously, should put Bowzen in his place. Is he reaching his limit financially?

Hmm, then maybe I went too far with five hundred million. Should I have done it in increments of ten million? I’ve spent so much, the Dark Emperor or the house must be laughing in satisfaction.

“F-, f-, five hun…”

That Bowzen, he can’t make the call. I guess this range is his limit after all.

Alright, victory is mine. I can’t help but make a victory pose.

“Oh, we have it! With a double push, we reach one billion, a new record for today!”
“Huh?! Why? There were no other calls!”
“Lady Tilea, even without other calls, additional pushes are possible. Therefore, your previous action counts as calling double the previous amount.”

Huh? Huh? Huh? No kidding?

“Now, are there any other bids? It seems there are none. Therefore, the lady from seat 64 has become the winning bidder. Congratulations!”

Haha, I won the bid with one billion gold!

UWOOOOHHH, I-, I messed up again! I accidentally did a double push this time.

One billion… In this era of low prices, I’ve spent an amount that can easily sustain three generations of leisurely living.

Yeah, no way I can face Orty with this. I mean, 1 billion? That’s such a huge blunder, I can’t even blame Orty if he demanded me in bed for that.

Well, I won’t give him, of course.

“Aah~ Sir Orty, the great? Teehee~ ♪ I accidentally spent a billion. C-, can you even pay for that?”
“Lady Tilea…”
“Yes, yes, what is it, Sir Orty? Please say whatever you want. You can scold this fool to the death.”
“M-, my deepest apologies! The funds I brought with me are not enough…I will return to get the shortfall ASAP! Let’s go, Edim!”

Saying that, Orty was carried on Edim’s back and left the venue.

Haha, what should I do?

I’ve been left alone in the venue. Can Orty really bring the funds? Orty’s daddy will surely put a stop to his spending if I keep moving big money around like this.

And if he does…

S̲h̲i̲t̲.

If Orty doesn’t come back, then it’s all over for me. I’m basically going against the Dark Emperor right now, I’m sure they’ll put me in a drum can and send me to the bottom of the sea!

ABABABABABA S-, somebody save me!!