Time quietly passed inside the Auctionarium.
By the time the brief reunion inside the Hall Family's private room had settled down, the sun had already reached the height of the afternoon. Outside the large one-way window, the bright sunlight still illuminated the city beyond, while inside the grand auction hall below, the atmosphere gradually became more lively as guests continued arriving one after another.
Not long afterward, several attendants of the Auctionarium began visiting each of the private rooms situated on the third floor. One of them eventually arrived before the Hall Family's chamber and respectfully handed several thick catalogs to the servants outside before quietly leaving.
Frisca casually accepted one.
Leon merely reached for his own without much interest.
Winston stood behind Relict and silently waited.
Meanwhile, Seila carefully handed one of the catalogs to her young master.
The booklet was surprisingly detailed. Every item scheduled to be auctioned that day was carefully listed together with a brief explanation of its origins and uses, along with an estimated starting price for bidding.
At almost the same time, the auction hall below finally became full.
The seats arranged across the first and second floors were now occupied by merchants, nobles, influential families, and guests who had traveled from neighboring cities. Quiet conversations echoed throughout the hall as people waited for the event to officially begin.
Then, one after another, many of the lights illuminating the audience gradually dimmed.
The remaining lights slowly converged toward the center stage.
A large curtain hanging at the far end of the hall slowly parted.
A well-dressed man and woman, both wearing elegant formal attire, gracefully walked onto the stage. After giving their greetings and briefly introducing the rules of the Auctionarium, they officially declared the start of the Grand Bazaar's auction.
Soon afterward, the first item was presented.
Then the second.
Then the third.
Rare herbs.
Fine jewelry.
Beautiful accessories.
Old weapons.
Pieces of armor.
Small antiques collected from outside the city.
The atmosphere below quickly became lively as bids rose one after another. Many of the guests seated on the first and second floors enthusiastically competed for the displayed treasures, sometimes raising the price several times over before a winner was finally decided.
Compared to them, however, the third floor remained considerably quieter.
Only a handful of private rooms had shown any intention of participating so far.
Most of the influential families simply observed.
The early items clearly failed to attract their interest.
Relict quietly flipped through the pages of the catalog while occasionally glancing toward the stage below.
After comparing the listed items with what was actually being presented, he slowly lost interest.
'There really isn't much worth looking at.'
At least, that was his honest assessment.
The treasures below might appear valuable to the people of this era, but after experiencing the Heaven's Alignment Era and witnessing creations far beyond the current civilization's understanding, the things being auctioned now simply felt ordinary.
Without saying anything further, he casually handed the catalog to Seila.
The young maid accepted it with both hands.
Since this was her first time attending an event like this, she quietly began reading through the pages with visible curiosity while occasionally looking toward the stage below.
Meanwhile, Relict simply leaned back against his chair and slowly closed his eyes.
He had originally intended to take advantage of the peaceful atmosphere to rest his body.
However, before he could do so, a familiar voice interrupted him.
"Is there really nothing that interests you?"
Relict did not open his eyes.
Instead, he simply listened.
Frisca had already closed her own catalog and placed it neatly upon her lap. She quietly looked toward him before continuing.
"Or..."
A faint smile appeared on her face.
"Are you simply not participating because you didn't bring any money?"
"If that's the reason, I don't mind lending you some."
Hearing her words, Relict could not help but smile a little.
"Thank you, Frisca."
He remained leaning comfortably against the chair.
"But there simply isn't anything here that catches my attention."
Frisca quietly lowered her eyes and looked back at the catalog resting on her lap.
A few moments later, she spoke again.
"What about the Necklace of Ultyr?"
She lightly pointed toward one of the pages.
"It says here that it can nourish a person's vitality."
Only then did Relict slowly open one eye and glance toward her.
A faint smile quietly appeared on his face.
"I don't think it would be particularly effective for me."
Then he added,
"But I appreciate your concern."
Frisca blinked.
A trace of confusion gradually appeared on her face.
"Why?"
She tilted her head slightly.
"Isn't the Curse of the Surface supposed to drain the vitality of the person afflicted by it?"
Hearing the question, Relict quietly looked at her.
For a brief moment, a thought crossed his mind.
'Is she simply curious...'
'Or is she trying to understand my condition?'
The thought only lasted for an instant before disappearing.
Whether it was curiosity or concern ultimately did not matter.
After everything that had happened today, he no longer saw any reason to hide this particular truth.
Relict slowly shifted his gaze away from her and calmly answered.
"The Curse of the Surface..."
He paused briefly.
"...isn't actually the main problem."
The room quietly fell silent.
Frisca looked at him attentively.
Even Seila gradually lowered the catalog she had been reading.
Behind them, Winston also shifted his gaze toward his young master, while Leon quietly stopped swirling the liquor inside his glass.
The room remained quiet after Relict's answer.
Even though the auction below continued unfolding one item after another, the people inside the Hall Family's private chamber were no longer paying much attention to it. The occasional voices of the auctioneers and the rising bids from the guests simply became background noise as the conversation gradually drifted toward another topic.
Relict slowly closed his eyes.
Rather than answering immediately, he quietly considered how he should explain his situation using the knowledge and understanding of the current era. The true nature of his body was naturally impossible to reveal, so he could only explain it through the concepts that these people were already familiar with.
A few moments later, he opened his eyes once more.
His gaze calmly met Frisca's.
"I probably possess a sparse draconic bloodline."
Frisca blinked.
The answer clearly caught her off guard.
Her curiosity was immediately piqued, but at the same time, she found herself unable to fully understand what he meant.
"A sparse draconic bloodline?"
She slightly tilted her head.
"What exactly does that mean?"
Before Relict could answer, Leon casually spoke while continuing to watch the auction below.
"It simply means that the lad's dragon essence is so thin that it is practically unusable."
The old man slowly swirled the liquor inside his glass.
"For ordinary people, the amount of dragon essence within their bodies naturally grows as they mature."
"But in his case..."
Leon briefly glanced toward Relict.
"The amount is so little that it may as well not exist."
Relict quietly nodded.
"That is correct."
He turned his attention back toward Frisca.
"The dragon essence inside my body is simply too sparse."
"It cannot compensate for the damage continuously caused by the Curse of the Surface."
He spoke calmly, almost as though he were talking about someone else's problem.
"Because of that, my vitality continues to weaken little by little every day."
He lowered his eyes slightly.
"And eventually..."
"My body simply reaches its limit."
The words left his mouth without the slightest trace of fear.
Nor sadness.
Nor resentment.
It was simply a fact that he had already accepted long ago.
Standing beside him, Seila unconsciously tightened her grip around the catalog she was holding.
Only now did she truly realize that her young master had likely made peace with his own death far earlier than everyone else.
Behind them, Winston quietly let out a small sigh.
The old servant lightly shook his head, but he did not say anything.
This was not a new topic for the people of the Lyn Family.
Meanwhile, Frisca quietly lowered her eyes.
She had only intended to ask out of concern, yet somehow the conversation had reached a much heavier subject.
Still, her curiosity eventually overcame her hesitation.
"I see..."
She carefully looked at Relict again.
"Then what you actually need..."
"Is a way to restore the quality of your bloodline?"
Relict simply smiled helplessly before shaking his head.
"That would not solve my problem."
This time, Frisca became even more confused.
She simply looked at him, waiting for him to continue.
However, it was Leon who once again answered first.
"A person's bloodline is determined from birth."
The old man casually took another sip from his glass.
"You cannot restore something that already exists in its original state."
Only then did Frisca realize that she had used the wrong words.
She immediately waved both of her hands.
"W-wait."
"That isn't what I meant."
She hurriedly corrected herself.
"What I wanted to ask was..."
"Is there no way to improve someone's bloodline?"
Leon quietly thought for a moment.
Then he slowly nodded.
"Hmmm..."
"A bloodline transfusion may be possible."
"Provided that the donor possesses a stronger bloodline."
"And that the blood itself is compatible."
Frisca's eyes immediately brightened.
However, Leon calmly continued before she could speak.
"Unfortunately, there are no practitioners within the Sumari Kingdom capable of performing such a procedure."
"If one truly wishes to undergo a bloodline transfusion..."
"You would need to travel to the Yin-Yang State."
The words immediately made Frisca understand just how difficult such a plan would be.
Subconsciously, she looked toward Relict.
Then toward Seila.
Then Winston.
Only then did she realize that none of them appeared surprised by the explanation.
It was obvious that the Lyn Family had already considered this possibility long ago.
Which could only mean one thing.
The real problem lay elsewhere.
Frisca looked back at Relict.
"Have you still not found a suitable donor?"
Relict quietly shook his head.
"Actually..."
"We are not lacking donors."
The answer immediately drew everyone's attention.
Frisca stared at him.
Even Leon finally turned away from the auction stage below.
Almost at the same time, both of them spoke.
"Then why haven't you done it?"
"Lad..."
Leon narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Is there something else wrong with your body?"
Relict slowly closed his eyes.
For several moments, he simply remained silent.
The room gradually became quiet once again.
Finally, it was Winston who spoke.
"Young Master."
His voice remained as respectful as ever.
"Whether you choose to reveal this matter or not..."
"The Master will respect your decision."
The words immediately made both Leon and Frisca understand that there was likely another secret hidden behind Aton's condition.
Frisca instinctively wanted to stop him.
If this involved the private matters of the Lyn Family, then she did not wish to force him into revealing it.
However, before she could open her mouth, Relict had already opened his eyes.
He looked calmly toward the people inside the room.
Then, in an equally calm voice, he answered.
"I cannot enter the Inner World."
...