Chapter 32
The auctions of the sorcery world had originally been a feast for the clans.
The Hae Clan.
Among the twelve zodiac clans, they were the wealthiest of the wealthy—a clan of merchants to the bone.
They had no hands that molded magical artifacts themselves, but they were born with the commercial instincts to buy and sell every last one of them.
It was no exaggeration to say that the sorcery world's lifeblood flowed through their hands.
The largest auction house in the sorcery world run by the Hae Clan was Manbo Pavilion.
Ordinarily, it was just a market where trinket-like artifacts and elixirs changed hands.
But once a year.
There was a time when Manbo Pavilion drew the full attention of the entire sorcery world.
The Hundred-Blossom Festival.
For this limited-time stage, the direct workshops of each clan would all put forth the masterpieces they had refined over the year.
It was called an auction, but in truth it was a clash of pride between clan workshops and a showcase of their yearly harvest.
Which workshop's item would fetch the highest price.
That alone determined the ranking of the industry for that year.
This year's main points of interest had also been set long ago.
Rumor had it that in the Vermilion Bird Clan, Elder Painter Yoo Cheongwol would be unveiling a new masterpiece artifact for the first time in ten years.
And at Cheonhwa Hall, the debut of the ambitious top-tier Byeong-grade line, the 『Red Lotus』 series, had been announced.
Top-tier Byeong-grade.
At that level, the feast would be more than ripe enough.
Eul-grade?
There were hardly any people who expected that sort of thing in the first place.
Because an Eul-grade master was not someone who churned out Eul-grade items as casually as eating a meal.
What it took was to refine the essence of a lifetime of craft into a single masterpiece after years upon years of further study.
That was Eul-grade.
Whether one would leave behind a single piece in a lifetime, one piece in ten years, or, if luck was good, one piece in five.
Even the maker themself could not know.
So in years when even one Eul-grade piece appeared at the Hundred-Blossom Festival, it was all anyone talked about all year long.
And yet.
This year, three pieces had been put up.
And not from a clan workshop, either.
Under the name of some outsider no one even knew where he had come from.
***
[Blade of Infernal Fire — Eul-grade]
[Bow of Thunder — Eul-grade]
[Necklace of the Azure Sea — Eul-grade]
Exhibitor — Cheonsan Sect, Artisan Do.
When the Hundred-Blossom Festival's list of exhibits was made public, the reaction was explosive.
[HOT] LMAO holy crap, Do Hwang's aura is insane!!!
└ I just looked at the Hundred-Blossom Festival exhibit list and thought my eyes were playing tricks on me.
└??? Is this real?
└ Three Eul-grade items at once???
└ Kyaa, so Do Hwang really was Eul-grade after all
[Question] What even are items 1 through 3 in the Hundred-Blossom Festival list? Who is Cheonsan Sect's Artisan Do??
└ ? What is this now.
└ Wait, you don't know our Do Hwang?
└ So who is he?
└ Half the posts here lately are about Do Hwang, and you don't know this?
└ ㅡㅡ so who is he, then
└ Wow, Do Hwang is insane
There was no way it made sense.
Three Eul-grade items.
Even one famed clan would need several years to produce that, and that was if they devoted themselves to it entirely.
Of course, suspicion raised its head first.
└ LOL, Eul-grade my ass. When they actually open it up, it'll probably be Byeong-grade.
└ People keep hyping it up as Eul-grade, so maybe they think it really is Eul-grade.
└ Is Eul-grade some kid's dog name? The fact that they're releasing three at once is proof it's a scam ㅇㅇ
In the middle of that, an artisan from some reasonably renowned workshop cleared his throat, trying to sound composed.
―I've heard this Cheonsan Sect's Artisan Do is just a brat who might barely be twenty years old.
Eul-grade is something even dedicating a lifetime can't guarantee producing a single piece of, yet this unknown youngster has put up three at once, and no one even knows what he studied or where.
I can only lament the current state of affairs, where people are being swayed by an unverified self-proclaimed Eul-grade. I sincerely hope the Hundred-Blossom Festival does not commit the folly of undermining its own authority.
In other words, he might be a con artist.
It was a convincing claim.
Public opinion quickly began to tilt to one side.
└ Ah, then it's obviously a scam lol. How is a twenty-year-old going to make three Eul-grade items?
└ What, he was a fraud? Figures. Tsk.
└ He kept going around viral-marketing himself as Eul-grade just because he fixed one sword, and now he finally pulls a scam
└ ???: Ah, I was going to make a solid profit and head back, but what a shame
A scam.
That Cheonsan Sect Artisan Do was surely up to some trick.
Before long, public opinion had settled on that conclusion.
But in spite of that public opinion.
On the day before the auction opened, Manbo Pavilion's official appraisal results boiled down to a single line.
[All three pieces are authentic Eul-grade.]
A merchant may lie, but a merchant's scale never does.
Needless to say, the bulletin board was thrown into chaos.
* * *
Cheonhwa Hall Main Branch, top floor.
Han Yerin's expression as she entered the clan head's office was far from good.
Han Yerin, the clan head of Cheonhwa Hall.
From morning on, reports had been pouring in nonstop.
Because of the ridiculous news that the man called Cheonsan Sect's Artisan Do had exhibited three Eul-grade items at the Hundred-Blossom Festival.
And at the very worst moment.
"……You called for me, Clan Head."
It was one of Cheonhwa Hall's chief artisans who had been summoned to the office.
The very man who, a few days ago, had been entrusted with Ishihara's sword and then turned it away at his own discretion.
Han Yerin tapped the tablet resting on her desk with her fingertips.
Displayed on the screen was the article that had shaken the industry for the past few days.
[The Return of the Sword Demon! Shaking the Rankings of the Korean Sorcery World]
Sword Demon Ishihara.
The legendary swordsman who had ruled the Japanese archipelago one generation ago.
Even decades after his death, there was no one in the Japanese sorcery world who did not know his name.
And Han Yerin recognized it from the photo in the article alone.
The sword his granddaughter was holding.
The blade that cut sorcery techniques.
The treasured sword that had made the Sword Demon a legend.
And for the past few days, the mockery that Cheonhwa Hall had sent that sword back without even touching it had been clinging to every bulletin board like a tag.
"So... a thing of this caliber walked right into our hands. And you sent it back at your own discretion. Is that what you're saying?"
"Th, that's……."
The man lowered his head, sweating coldly.
If it had come into her hands, the story would have been completely different.
She would have brushed it off by saying that since it was Eul-grade, it would take some time.
With the item in hand, she would have leisurely analyzed the internal structure of its sorcery technique first.
If there had been time, she could have even churned out a replica sword.
If that proved difficult, she could at least have aimed for a new product line that applied even fragments of that technique.
She might even have put that granddaughter under exclusive contract and used her as Cheonhwa Hall's billboard.
'Cheonhwa Hall has revived the legendary Sword Demon.'
That one line would have been the perfect card to raise Cheonhwa Hall's value not only in Japan but overseas as well.
All those possibilities.
Had been kicked away by the incompetent fool in front of her with his own hands.
“Cl-Clan Head... I, I really was never told that it was the Sword Demon's sword, not even once……."
"……That's enough. I don't want to see your face anymore, so please get out."
The man kept bowing over and over as he fled.
Once the door closed, Han Yerin leaned deeply back against her chair.
"……And that's the kind of person they put in as chief artisan."
She muttered, then let out a faint laugh.
Well, who was there to blame?
The well of usable talent had long since run dry, so lowering their standards again and again to fill the numbers with people like that was the reality of this field.
'……Well, the water's already spilled.'
The problem was the man who had scooped up that spilled water.
Cheonsan Sect, Artisan Do.
We had already known that an outsider artisan had been making quite a name for himself lately.
We just hadn't paid it much mind.
Even the clan's higher-ups seemed to be keeping an eye on him already, so she had figured that if they left him alone, he'd sort himself out before long.
No matter that he was backed by the Cheonsan Sect, what clan could retaliate when they didn't even know who had acted?
So there was no need to get her own hands dirty.
But.
'……Three Eul-grade pieces?'
And all at once.
That was a whole different matter from having fixed a sword by chance.
'……Then.'
There was only one answer.
That so-called 'Artisan Do' was probably nothing more than a flashy signboard.
In reality, hidden artisans within the Cheonsan Sect were making the goods, while that brat was being used as a front to release them to the market.
What on earth was he up to?
'……Well, that's not what's important right now.'
This Hundred-Blossom Festival was the debut stage for Cheonhwa Hall's Byeong-grade top-tier line, the 『Red Lotus』 series, which they had poured three years of effort into.
Cheonhwa Hall's biggest event of the year, with journalist interviews scheduled down to the minute.
Some nobody who had rolled in from who-knows-where was about to ruin the feast.
At this rate, they would lose the spotlight entirely.
'……We can't let that happen.'
Han Yerin picked up the receiver on the desk.
Before the dial tone could ring twice, the other side answered.
―My, my, Clan Head Han herself calling me directly. What can I do for you?
It was a managing director from the Hae Clan, in charge of Manbo Pavilion's operations.
"Hoho, nothing serious. I was just calling to say hello."
Han Yerin smiled softly.
"By the way, Manbo Pavilion has been quite noisy lately. ……You placed an item of dubious origin right in the middle of the banquet table, didn't you?"
―Hahaha…… Well, the appraisal results were so clear-cut. Since we are merchants, after all……. I hope you can understand…….
"Managing Director."
―……Yes.
"You don't need me to spell out how much our Hyeonmu Clan contributes to Manbo Pavilion every year, do you?"
A dry swallowing sound came through the receiver.
―……N-No, of course not.
Han Yerin cast her gaze out the window and added in a cold voice.
"Should we take the items down? Ah, of course, you should understand that it won't just be our Cheonhwa Hall pieces that disappear."
―Th, that's…….
The managing director hurriedly chose his words.
―……H-how would you like us to handle it?
You should have done this sooner.
"That's what a banquet is, after all. If an uninvited guest spoils the fun."
Her lips curved into a crescent.
"The host has to clean things up."
***
And once the auction curtain rose, the Goblinfire community was, quite literally, ablaze.
[Live] The bid for the Blade of Infernal Fire has already passed 1 billion won ㄷㄷㄷ
Where did all the guys who were saying it was a scam until yesterday go?
└ Kyaa! The four great clans were all stuffing their pockets among themselves, and then Do Hwang got them good. Serves them right!
└ They were acting all high and mighty, but Do Hwang stripped them bare? Now they can't do a thing?
For freelance sorcerers who had grown sick and tired of the clans' tyranny, this was pure catharsis, like a ten-year-old blockage finally being relieved.
Manbo Pavilion's item page was on the verge of having its server crash from the flood of traffic, and people were getting a dopamine rush watching the bids soar in real time.
People clung to that screen all day long.
Even while working or eating, they kept refreshing Manbo Pavilion's price window.
Every time the number jumped a notch, the bulletin board shook.
And as time went on.
[Shocking] Current bid for the dagger 'one blade' > total of the 『Red Lotus』 series
Is this really right? lol This was supposed to be Cheonhwa Hall's ambitious project for the year
└ Cheonhwa Hall? ……Ah, you mean those mediocrities who couldn't even make three Eul-grade items?
└ Hey, but they still are a true prestigious clan with a Gap-grade line
└ If they have Gap-grade, why didn't they put out Gap-grade and instead posted Byeong-grade lol
└ You think making Gap-grade is easy? lol
Up, and up again.
The bids showed no sign of stopping.
└ Wow, how high is this going to go ㄷㄷㄷ
└ But if you add those three together, how much is it even……? At this rate, isn't this going to hit the highest price in Hundred-Blossom Festival history for real?
└ Kyaa…… this is dopamine, man. Lately I go to work and open the price window first thing
The three artifacts were trampling the authority that clans had built up over a lifetime.
In just a few days.
Right when the star of the banquet was about to be completely upended.
* * *
……Huh?
On the fourth morning.
People who were refreshing the price window as usual were all met with the same screen.
[This product does not exist.]
Even the dagger.
And the bow, and the necklace.
All three had vanished without a trace.
[????? Why did the auction pages all get taken down?]
They were just accepting bids a moment ago??
└ Damn it, I was going to scrape everything together and buy it, what a shame.
└ Seriously, what happened??
Soon after, a dry single line was posted in Manbo Pavilion's notice section.
[Notice] Please be informed that the registration of these 3 exhibited items has been canceled due to insufficient verification of eligibility.
└ What are you talking about; you said they were Eul-grade.
└ LOL, I knew this would happen. They were fake listings from the start lol.
└ So they really were scammers, huh ㄷㄷ
└ What's that supposed to mean;; looks like the higher-ups were unhappy.
The bulletin board descended into chaos in an instant.
Shock and confusion, criticism of the clan, and mockery aimed at Do Hyeon were all jumbled together willy-nilly.
And the festival-like atmosphere that had been in full swing quickly cooled as though someone had poured cold water over it.
* * *
Clang. Clang—
Amid the sounds of hammering, a voice from a phone call came from one side of the workshop.
"Yes. ……Yes. Insufficient verification. Ah, of course. If those are the rules, what can we do? Yes, thank you."
After hanging up, Seo Jian looked down at her phone and grinned.
I pushed the heated lump of metal back into the forge and asked.
"Is it Manbo Pavilion?"
"Yes. They just officially notified us. They say all three pieces' registrations have been canceled."
She shrugged and added.
"……Still, that's exactly how we expected it to go."
It was.
From the very day they'd first put them up for auction, Seo Jian had said that this was a likely outcome.
That Manbo Pavilion belonged to the Hae Clan, and the Hae Clan was in no position to ignore the Four Great Clans.
Besides, the Hundred-Blossom Festival stage itself had originally been a venue for the clans' direct workshops.
A place to put out the new works they had made over the year all at once, compete against one another, and drive both price and reputation up as high as possible.
The Hae Clan was merchants making money by taking their cut of the winning bids in exchange for setting that banquet table.
So no matter how sky-high the bids for our goods might climb.
It was impossible to drive off the big spenders who would keep filling that banquet table year after year, just for the sake of a few pennies' worth of commission right now.
A merchant never does business that loses their biggest customer.
"It was a miracle it lasted four whole days, really."
Seo Jian smiled faintly.
It was Manbo Pavilion itself that had declared the pieces authentic.
And then, to turn around and call it an 'insufficient verification' now.
That was a little too lazy as an excuse.
"Thanks to that, now there's only one thing left in people's heads."
Cheonsan Sect's Artisan Do.
Someone the clans had to clamp down on with everything they had.
He was the real thing.
Hehe…….
Seo Jian covered her mouth and let out a wicked grin.
"Now then. Let's slowly move on to the next step."
* * *
A few days later.
A post went up on the Goblinfire bulletin board.
[??? Anyone see this?]
This month's regular auction at Gyeongseong Auction, the special exhibition for modern and contemporary crafts, has the following catalog.
Lot 77. Unknown artist, blue crystal necklace.
Starting bid ― 3 million won.
└ What is this?
└ Gyeongseong Auction is that... the place where ordinary people buy and sell paintings and ceramics, right?
It was an ordinary-looking post.
An online auction site visited by ordinary people with no connection to the sorcery world at all.
A place where antiques, crafts, and such things were traded.
└???? So what about it
└ Zoom in on the photo
└…?
└Uh... uh?
└ ……Wait.
└ Doesn't this look exactly like that thing????
└ Holy crap……!
In the photo.
Right in the middle of the necklace resting quietly atop a worn pedestal.
There was a moonlike blue spirit stone set in place.
One of the very three pieces that had made the sorcery world buzz so loudly for four days.
[Necklace of the Azure Sea — Eul-grade]
And from that day on.
To ordinary eyes, it would have seemed like nothing more than an antique piece of jewelry.
Suspiciously many bidding inquiries began pouring in.
notes":"Adjusted the title to match nearby chapter style more naturally in English. Kept the chapter prose aligned to the Korean source, including preserving list markers, brackets, ornaments, and speaker cues."