The banquet hall, where the auction was in full swing.
And in the administrator’s seat, with a clear view down over the hall, someone sat quietly.
Unlike the heated atmosphere of the auction below, this place was utterly silent.
An executive of the Trading Company and the demon currently presiding over the banquet—Serinu.
Neatly arranged black hair.
His black glasses made the look in his eyes seem all the colder and more dispassionate.
With an icy expression, he pushed his glasses up once.
“So you think the Arch Lich and that being are connected?”
“Yes, Lord Serinu.”
Serinu responded to his subordinate’s report.
There had been something he had briefly overlooked while preparing for the auction, and that was the relationship between that unidentified being and the Arch Lich.
Before the auction began, the unidentified being had approached the Arch Lich first, and the Arch Lich, too, had greeted that being.
Now that he looked, that being was indeed seated beside the Arch Lich.
An unidentified being.
It had covered its entire body with a black mask and robe, and even now, it was displaying tremendous power.
The force radiating from it was enough to make anyone who merely looked at it feel their knees go weak.
“Phew…”
Serinu leaned back against his chair and let out a long sigh.
Several variables he had never anticipated had appeared at this banquet, and that was no different from saying there was a hole in the Trading Company’s intelligence network.
The first of them was the existence of the Arch Lich.
At first, it had clearly been said to be a succubus’s dungeon.
The Trading Company’s audit team had investigated it, so the accuracy should have been very high.
And yet the ones who had actually come from the succubus dungeon were an Arch Lich and an Incubus.
The Incubus’s rank was on the higher side as well, but the Arch Lich’s existence had shocked Serinu.
‘To think there would be a 5-star.’
It had been quite a long time since any rank higher than 5-star had officially appeared on record.
Of course, 7-star beings had existed as well, but by now, those were nothing more than stories treated as legends.
In the end, this meant that in the current world of dungeons, the 5-star rank was the maximum.
Even so, the reason balance was maintained with humans was because of the gap in physique and nature between monsters and humans, even within the same rank.
They had developed from the start to kill and plunder their opponents. Humans, by contrast, were weak.
They needed armor to protect themselves and weapons to kill their foes. And not only that—humans were the ones who subdivided ranks according to the achievements of mages and knights, as well as all manner of accessories imbued with magic.
So even if they were of the same rank, it was never possible for them to fight on equal footing.
That was why balance had been maintained until now.
The problem came next.
‘Where did the hole open?’
The Demon Realm Trading Company was enormous.
It would not be an exaggeration to say it had thorough knowledge of every dungeon’s information.
And yet when it came to this dungeon, they had been wrong—absurdly wrong.
‘It wasn’t even a succubus dungeon to begin with.’
The fact that a 5-star Arch Lich had appeared meant the owner of that dungeon was not the succubus.
‘That 5-star Arch Lich must be the dungeon’s owner.’
The claim that the succubus was the owner had been a kind of smokescreen.
During a brief interval, Serinu had ordered his subordinate to gather information.
After looking into it further, even the Trading Company’s person in charge of that dungeon believed the owner to be the succubus.
‘To think they would dare mock the Trading Company…’
Just how lightly did they take them to act like that?
It was detestable.
No matter how precious a 5-star combatant was, if they had no dungeon forces, they were nothing special.
If that were not the case, why would Baalcherit have fallen?
Even though the Trading Company had all but declared it was seizing her dungeon management rights, why would she remain silent?
How strong a dungeon’s owner was mattered. But the size of the forces led by that dungeon mattered as well.
In the end, Baalcherit had lost her dungeon’s forces.
And even now, her strength was being whittled away by the White Order.
In short, trusting only in one’s own power could lead to a rude awakening.
And yet the Arch Lich had crossed the line.
Serinu believed it was necessary to make someone who had crossed the line understand reality at least once.
That was why he had drawn in Arkanea, one of the banquet’s participants.
Since he knew very well how terrifying a snake’s jealousy could be, it had been an easy matter.
On top of that, he had already prepared something with the slave that would appear in the next auction.
“Yes, if I look at it only up to this point, it was going smoothly.”
It had all been a plan to strike a blow against the Arch Lich.
If he felt helpless before the power of the Trading Company, he would become a good business partner from then on.
His outlook had been optimistic.
But then another variable appeared here.
‘Black Mask…’
Serinu’s gaze turned toward the being wearing the black mask and robe.
The one called Black Mask.
“What is the possibility that Black Mask is the actual owner of the dungeon?”
A 5-star Arch Lich was already a problem, but now a being possessing power even greater than the Arch Lich had appeared.
And yet the Trading Company knew nothing.
What if they had not held this banquet?
‘It’s dreadful just to imagine.’
And so Serinu voiced one possibility.
What if that Black Mask was the dungeon’s true owner?
If so, it would make a subtle kind of sense.
But his subordinate’s words denied that possibility.
“As you know, Lord Serinu, the invitations we sent out are not ordinary. We confirmed that only the Arch Lich and the Incubus attended from that dungeon.”
“Hmm…”
Then where had that Black Mask sprung from?
Without even having been invited to the social gathering, it had broken through the Trading Company’s security and suddenly appeared from somewhere.
‘Is it truly an existence beyond the standard?’
He felt an urge to strip off that robe immediately and uncover its identity.
But the aura Black Mask emitted was far from ordinary.
‘Fear, chaos, despair…’
Because Serinu was a demon, he could sense those familiar scents.
But with only the information he had now, there was nothing he could know for certain.
No matter how much he thought about it, it was nothing more than conjecture.
“Then what happened to the investigators?”
While the Arch Lich was enjoying the banquet here, Serinu had not simply been idling.
He had dispatched mercenary monsters affiliated with the Trading Company to investigate that dungeon.
Contrary to his expectation that they would find out quickly, contact had been lost with the gnolls sent first.
So he had immediately dispatched the Trading Company’s investigators.
There was only one case in which contact with mercenaries belonging to the Trading Company was lost.
Something had happened to them.
Of course, there was a possibility that the mercenaries had broken their contract and fled, but such cases were truly rare.
There was no one who did not know what happened when one violated a contract with the Demon Realm Trading Company.
By the same token, harming those affiliated with the Trading Company also became a major problem.
It was no different even if they were mercenaries in a temporary contractual relationship.
If contact with them had been lost, there was a high probability that something had happened to them, and if something had happened to them, that meant someone had touched the Trading Company.
That was why he had dispatched the Trading Company’s investigators at once.
They were swift and precise, so by now, they had likely reached a conclusion.
“Yes, Lord Serinu. As it happens, we received word just a moment ago.”
As expected, the investigators moved quickly.
Serinu smiled in satisfaction and slowly nodded.
“According to what the investigators confirmed, all the gnolls were killed in the forest by wandering goblins. They stated that they would close the case with that conclusion and collect the corpses separately for examination.”
“They already closed it?”
At his subordinate’s words, Serinu questioned it without realizing.
Had the investigators ever reached a conclusion this quickly?
“Are they certain it was truly the work of wandering goblins?”
Shouldn’t they confirm whether it really had been done by wandering goblins?
Perhaps it had been the work of someone disguised as wandering goblins.
And yet from the investigators’ actions, he sensed an impatience to reach a conclusion quickly.
“……”
However, Serinu could not interfere with the investigators’ conclusion.
They belonged to a different department, and investigators were guaranteed independent activity.
But it was also true that something felt strange.
Why had the investigators reached a conclusion so quickly?
Had there been outside interference?
‘Could it be the succubus?’
Come to think of it, that dungeon was said to have a succubus.
Though she was a succubus pretending to be the owner, she was still a monster capable of charming others.
And the place where the gnolls had died was also not far from that dungeon.
‘No, that isn’t it.’
The investigators were capable people.
On top of that, with support from the Trading Company, they would never be at a level where they could fall victim to a mental attack from a mere succubus.
Serinu erased that possibility from his thoughts.
‘Then was it truly an accident, as the investigators said?’
Something felt unpleasant, but the matters unfolding here now had already grown too large for him to handle.
With the Arch Lich and even Black Mask demanding his attention, he had no desire for another headache.
“Fine, that matter is settled. For now, if the investigators bring up a different opinion, report it to me then.”
Even as Serinu spoke, the auction continued in the banquet hall below.
“Hahaha! Yes, 300 magic crystals have been bid! The two Water Rippers who lost their dungeon will go into the arms of Lord Arch Lich!”
The host’s hearty laughter reached even Serinu’s ears.
A monster that looked like a frog with bat wings attached—the Water Ripper.
Its tail contained a small amount of poison, so it was a monster that could be used for scouting as well as simple warnings.
“Come to think of it, ever since the slave auction began, only the Arch Lich has been winning bids.”
At his subordinate’s words, Serinu showed interest once again.
“He won all the slaves?”
Serinu was shocked by the fact that the Arch Lich had monopolized all the slaves.
The slaves brought out at auction were usually monsters from dungeons that had failed to repay their debts, or wandering monsters abducted by the Trading Company.
Sometimes there were humans who had failed in dungeon raids as well.
But the prices were never cheap.
Of course, they were not particularly expensive either, but winning bids on all the slaves was another matter.
The two Water Rippers that had just been won had gone for 300 magic crystals.
And it was not even as if the bidding had been fierce.
The price had gone up to 100 magic crystals, and then the Arch Lich had immediately called 300.
“Insane!”
Just how much money did he have lying around to buy a mere pair of scouting monsters for that kind of price?
Even if payment was to be made later, could he handle it?
“Hoo.”
Serinu found himself surprised many times today.
But this was not a loss.
The auction was an event that would have happened anyway, and above all, he could use this opportunity to assess the Arch Lich’s financial power.
The auction continued.
“How about this gargoyle? Normally, it remains frozen like a statue, but when an intruder comes, it attacks. A gargoyle that displays greater strength the more powerful the magic poured into it! Would it not be an excellent opponent for human adventurers? Heh heh.”
“Yes! 1,500 magic crystals have been bid! The gargoyle, too, goes to Lord Arch Lich!”
The gargoyle’s rank was 1-star.
Its rank was the lowest, but the fact that it was an artificial life-form made it rare.
There were not many beings capable of creating gargoyles.
Knowing that, the Trading Company sometimes accepted gargoyles as payment instead of money from beings capable of producing them.
As long as magic was supplied, they were beings that lived undying lives, and so their usefulness was extremely high.
Though it was 1-star now, if powerful magic was infused into it, its rank would rise much higher.
At least this time, the Arch Lich’s choice could be called correct.
With magic at the Arch Lich’s level, the gargoyle’s rank would quickly become 3-star.
“Next is an ogre! Its intelligence is not great, but as long as it is given proper rewards, it is a kind that will be loyal to its new master! With their tremendous brute strength, would a dungeon not become much more secure with even a single one?”
Next was an ogre.
It was a two-headed monster, and although its intelligence was low, it possessed monstrous strength.
Of course, that, too, was won by the Arch Lich.
“……”
By now, Serinu was at a loss for words.
And the next item was the one Serinu had been waiting for.
“Now then, everyone participating in the auction! The next goods are a group of humans!”
The auction host raised his voice and refreshed the atmosphere.
“But they are not ordinary humans! They are people affiliated with an order, no less! Two priests and seven paladin trainees! We are about to begin the auction for a total of nine people, but…”
The host briefly looked upward.
When his eyes met the host’s, Serinu nodded.
“We will take a brief break before continuing the auction!”
At the host’s words, the corners of Serinu’s mouth rose slightly.
“Tell those slaves. In addition to the Arch Lich I mentioned earlier, have them attack the black mask beside him as well. Tell them that if they succeed, I will let them go, and on top of that promise, I will pay them gold coins.”
His plan was to use the human slaves to strike a blow against the Arch Lich.
In addition, he intended to glimpse a little of the power of the Black Mask beside him.
In any case, it was an operation using nothing more than human slaves.
“And whether those humans succeed in the attack or fail, kill them all.”
But if the human slaves fell into the other party’s hands, the story would change.
The circumstances linking them to the Trading Company might be exposed.
So a safeguard was needed here.
Silencing them by killing them.
If slaves revolted, immediate execution was only proper from the Trading Company’s standpoint.
In other words, whether the human slaves succeeded or failed in attacking their target, they would all die.
That was what promises in name only were like.
Now, the true stage was about to begin.