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Chapter 8
Cressida took the memorandum with a reluctant face and somehow ended up looking even more hurt.
What’s with her—is there a clause she doesn’t like?
But contrary to expectations, Cressida surprisingly signed it obediently.
Hmm. I don’t know what she’s thinking, but at least I won’t be suddenly betrayed now, right?
I felt proud that I’d buttoned up the first button of the seventh regression nicely.
After finishing our meal, we threw on new robes and headed straight to Airy Bank.
We needed to do some prep work to sink Molden completely into the mire.
Of course, Cressida did all the important parts, and I just watched from the side.
Ah, I did some signing in the middle too. She said she’d make me a card as thanks.
As we left the bank, Cressida held out a small box.
“The card’s already out?”
I opened the box at the same time as the question.
I’d assumed it would be a moderately low grade, but what was inside was a Silverlight—a third-grade card.
“Huh……?”
“It’s a gift. Didn’t you tell me to pick it out myself?”
I didn’t think she’d actually go and throw money at it to get one made, though.
Silverlight requires a minimum deposit of 100,000 Sern and at least three years of banking history to obtain.
Truly befitting the Young Lady of the Cressida family—what generosity. It’s not just the money; she’s casually handing over credit that takes a long time to build.
“How much did it cost?”
“100,000 Sern. And today I’ll pay you 1% of the necklace’s winning bid as a service fee.”
My jaw dropped.
She’s just giving this to me? No, really, she’s being this generous……?
The Cressida family really is beyond imagination. Man, this is why Derren Molden went crazy!
‘At this rate, maybe I can tear up the contract I wrote earlier?’
More importantly, can I even spend all of this before graduation day?
If I graduate safely, I should check where the nearest branch is.
Lost in miscellaneous thoughts, I soon arrived at the auction house. The number we received was 27.
“Here, drink this.”
“What is it?”
What I handed Cressida was a finger-sized vial.
“A voice modulation potion.”
Our faces were covered, but just in case.
For reference, this is my own handmade product. Strawberry flavored. Effect lasts three hours.
She seemed hesitant, so I drank mine first, and only then did she follow suit.
When I tested my voice, a slightly lower, rougher tone came out.
“How is it?”
“I can’t recognize you at all. For something that tastes like a child’s drink, the effect is impressive.”
“Oh, so an adult’s bitter taste is your preference? I’ll keep that in mind next time.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
It wasn’t.
As we bickered, a familiar figure came into view. It was Derren Molden.
‘Well, he’s not even hiding his face.’
No, he was rather conspicuous. To the point where he looked like someone desperate to announce to the whole world that he was here.
Other than him, there didn’t seem to be anyone worth paying much attention to.
Well, there weren’t any particularly special items in the catalog either……
‘If word had spread that the necklace was up for auction, the number of participants would have increased tenfold.’
And the moment it reached the Ducal House’s ears, the consignment would’ve been doomed.
“Look over there—that person seems to be hiding their identity like us.”
Cressida gestured slightly with her chin.
Following her gaze, I saw someone draped in a long robe from head to toe, just as she’d said.
What is it, someone important? With Cressida here the plan won’t go wrong, but somehow it’s bothering me……
‘Nox…… Belgrave?’
Am I mistaken? I think I just saw those distinctive green eyes.
‘Come on, no way. It’s not like he’s the only person in the world with green eyes…….’
Of course, there aren’t many people who could imitate that uniquely irritating look in them either.
“Suspicious…… Well, as long as they don’t go after our item, it’s fine.”
“I’m confident I won’t lose no matter who goes after it.”
Cressida’s words were true.
* * *
Derren Molden sat back comfortably and watched the auction.
‘Worthless items, unremarkable participants…… Fortunately, no one who’ll get in the way.’
As he gauged the prices of auction items and the level of the participants, he couldn’t help but curl the corners of his lips.
‘This will go smoothly according to plan.’
He was originally a proud man.
Nevertheless, for the sake of his family’s revival and his own advancement, he’d hovered around Cressida’s side and volunteered as a servant.
But each time he was rejected, it was hard to endure the surging humiliation.
‘A wench who has nothing but her family name…….’
Then, on the day of the party, the emotions he’d been suppressing finally burst.
Swept up in accumulated anger and shame, he’d snatched the pendant in a fit of pique.
It wasn’t something he’d planned in advance, but he thought it had turned out rather well.
The moment she’s despairing over losing her most treasured possession, if he somehow found it and returned it, she’d see him as a savior without knowing anything.
How satisfying would it be to see the Cressida Young Lady dancing in the palm of his hand? Just imagining it made his chest tingle.
“The final item.”
At that moment, the single item he’d been waiting for appeared.
“Eloy Krantz’s thirteenth work, <Fragment of Lost Memory>. It’s also famous as a pendant that Empress Ellinea favored.”
The auction house fell silent in an instant. Greed began to gleam in the eyes of those who understood its value.
“This item does not come with a certificate of ownership.”
However, the commotion didn’t last long.
No certificate of ownership meant the item’s provenance couldn’t be guaranteed.
Even if you paid a fortune and obtained it, there was a high chance you wouldn’t be recognized as its owner later or would get caught up in unexpected disputes.
“Bidding starts at 1 million Sern, with increments of 100,000 Sern.”
And the starting price was excessively low compared to the item’s value.
‘The auction house must want to get rid of it quickly too.’
Molden raised his paddle leisurely, certain of victory.
“Number 45 bids.”
“Number 27, 1.1 million!”
A paddle went up almost simultaneously, and he whipped his head around. A suspicious figure wrapped in a robe came into view.
“1.2 million…… 1.3! 1.4…… 1.5 million!”
Now that the auction had actually started, the fruit he couldn’t eat looked sweet to everyone else—one after another, people raised their paddles.
Molden’s face crumpled involuntarily.
But he soon smoothed his expression with hopeful thoughts.
‘The small fry don’t matter. I’ve prepared plenty of money. At best, the pendant’s worth 8 million Sern. And with no certificate of ownership, the price can’t possibly go higher than that.’
Once the bidding passed 3 million Sern, the pace gradually slowed. People were starting to feel that was about the limit of its value.
Just as Molden, wearing a victorious smile, was about to raise his paddle again—number 27’s paddle went up.
A low female voice rang through the hall.
“Ten million Sern.”
“What……!”
“Yes, ten million Sern has been bid!”
The auctioneer’s excited voice rang out.
“Number 27, ten million Sern! Any more?”
This is a disaster. Those were the only words for it.
‘Who on earth would spend ten million Sern on something like that……!’
Molden ground his teeth and raised his paddle.
If the necklace went to someone he didn’t know like this, the entire plan would go up in smoke!
“Yes—! Number 45! Ten million one hundred thousand!”
“Thirteen million.”
“Thirteen million has been bid—ah, number 45, thirteen million one hundred……!”
“Fifteen million.”
‘This madman!’
Molden barely swallowed the urge to shout that out loud.
‘With what I have now…… it’s not enough.’
At this rate, even factoring in the recovery, the brokerage commission paid to the auction house alone would already exceed half a year’s budget for his family.
‘Spending this much?’
Burning the price of a building in the capital on a single necklace of uncertain provenance?
It was an eccentricity Molden’s mind simply couldn’t comprehend.
Could his luck really be this bad? He’d even secured the participant list in advance just in case—where did this nouveau riche come from?
