Chapter 13
When I took the escalator up to the tenth floor, the hallway was crowded with people.
The entrance to the auction hall reminded me of a musical or a classical concert venue.
And, just like at any theatre, staff members were standing at the entrance.
“Three minutes until entry closes! Anyone who hasn’t entered yet, please come in immediately!”
I hurried over and handed my admission ticket to an employee before the doors closed.
The employee stamped the ticket and gestured for me to go inside.
My first impression as I walked in was simple.
‘It really is a theatre.’
There wasn’t much to look around at, so I went straight to the seat printed on my ticket.
Most of the people nearby were dressed casually, just like me.
Closer to the stage, however, I noticed people wearing expensive suits.
Just from the backs of their heads, they looked like the strict, demanding type.
‘They have department manager vibes. I’d better stay away from them.’
I silently steeled myself.
Soon, just like before a performance begins, the lights in the auction hall went out.
A host stepped onto the stage, the only place illuminated by a spotlight.
“Good afternoon. First of all, thank you to everyone for visiting the Huncat Auction Hall. As always, today’s auction will proceed from lower-grade items to higher-grade items. My name is Choi Jinhae, and I will be your auctioneer today. Now then, let us begin.”
As soon as the auctioneer announced the start, employees carried an item onto the stage and placed it on a table in the centre.
“Our first item is a B-rank buff-type item.”
It was a pair of earrings.
They increased magical power by 15% and also generated a one-time protective barrier once every three days.
The auctioneer explained that neither effect alone would have made the item particularly valuable, but together they were strong enough to deserve a place in the auction.
“The opening bid is twenty million won!”
“Twenty-one!”
“Twenty-three!”
People raised their paddles one after another, increasing the price.
The auctioneer acknowledged each bid while smoothly continuing the auction.
‘They’re calling out those numbers without hesitation. They really weren’t joking when they said hunters make a lot of money…’
I quietly watched everyone around me.
The B-rank earrings eventually sold forĀ 31.5 million won.
The winning bidder received a numbered tag, and the next item was immediately brought onto the stage.
The second item sold just as quickly.
After watching another three items, I completely lost interest.
Since I wasn’t buying anything, simply watching became unbearably boring.
Looking around, I noticed I wasn’t the only one.
Several people looked just as bored.
A few had even closed their eyes and were half asleep.
‘Can I leave?’
Nobody had said I wasn’t allowed to leave in the middle.
I quietly got out of my seat.
As I approached the exit, the employee standing beside the door woke from a brief doze after noticing me.
He quickly straightened his posture and greeted me.
“Are you leaving? If you exit now, you won’t be able to come back in until the auction is over.”
“That’s fine.”
After hearing my answer, he looked around before grabbing the doorknob.
The moment he pushed it…
Clunk.
“Huh?”
A confused sound escaped his mouth.
I blinked in confusion as I looked over his shoulder.
The employee fiddled with the lock beneath the handle before pushing the door again.
Clunk.
It still wouldn’t open.
Turning to me with an embarrassed expression, he whispered quietly,
“Ah… I’m sorry. I’ll guide you to another exit.”
“Okay.”
I followed behind him to another side door.
Clunk.
This one was exactly the same.
The door wouldn’t budge.
The noise drew the attention of several nearby people.
The employee looked flustered.
“The door… what’s going on…”
Unlike him, I had a very bad feeling about this.
Just as he apologised and pulled out his radioā
Kssshhh… Kshhh…
Before he even pressed the button, harsh static came from the speaker.
At the same momentā
Boom!
Rumble…
A small explosion echoed through the building, and every light in the auction hall went out.
As darkness swallowed the room, people immediately became restless.
“What the?!”
“What’s happening?!”
Everyone hurriedly took out their phones and turned on the flashlight function.
Beams of light scattered throughout the hall.
But they still weren’t enough to fully light the enormous room.
The auctioneer, somehow regaining his composure, tried to calm everyone.
“Everyone, please remain calm… It seems we’ve experienced some kind of electrical or system malfunction. Please follow the emergency lights…”
His voice gradually slowed.
Then it stopped completely.
A dull thud came from the stage, as though someone had collapsed.
“Wait… wasn’t that someone falling?”
But that was only the beginning.
People started collapsing all over the auction hall.
Even the employee standing beside me suddenly fell toward me.
“W-Whoa.”
Without thinking, I caught him and gently laid him on the floor.
In those few seconds, everyone nearby had already lost consciousness.
I simply stood there, blinking blankly as panic and fear crept over me.
Ding.
A notification that seemed audible only to me snapped me back to my senses.
[Mental intrusion detected. Synchronisation is recommended.]
[Synchronisation is recommended.]
I didn’t have time to wonder what a mental intrusion even was.
“S-Synchronise.”
The moment I obeyed the prompt, flower petals rained down over my head, and my hair turned white.
‘In this state, doesn’t my Strength increase too?’
I remembered lifting the melee fighter with ease back in the previous dungeon and grabbed the doorknob once more.
Creaaak…
Of course…
The door still refused to open.
At that point, only three words remained in my mind.
‘I’m screwed.’
“What do I do…?”
As I clutched my head in frustration, a strange sound came from above me.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
To be precise, it sounded like someone was trying to smash down a door.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only person who hadn’t passed out.
“I really don’t want to do this…”
But I didn’t have much choice.
Flap.
I spread my wings and hurried up to the second floor.
A man stood in front of the upstairs door, kicking it with all his strength.
“…Ha.”
He must have realised it wouldn’t open either, because he lowered his leg and turned around.
The moment I saw his face, I shouted at the top of my lungs.
“Haje Guild! Guild Master! Baek Mun-il!”
He wasn’t startled at all by my sudden shout.
Instead, he smiled as if he was used to this sort of thing.
“That’s me, but if you suddenly yell my name like that, it still catches me off guard.”
“Ah! S-Sorry! It’s my first time seeing someone so famous in person.”
The moment I apologised, the synchronisation rate displayed at the edge of my vision increased slightly.
‘Why…? I only greeted him. Why does the system think I’m some innocent fool?’
I needed to raise my synchronisation rate to use my skills anyway.
I decided to stop worrying about why it kept increasing.
…Otherwise, I’d drive myself crazy thinking about it.
“Still, it’s nice to be recognised. You’re a healer?”
“Huh? Yes. How did you know?”
He merely shrugged without explaining.
Maybe it was one of his skills.
The thought crossed my mind, but I wasn’t particularly curious.
Even if I knew, it wouldn’t help me.
Once I got out of here, we’d probably never meet again.
After looking at me and the unconscious people nearby, he muttered,
“Then again, your resistance must be pretty high too.”
“Resistance? Oh, you mean the stat?”
Baek Mun-il nodded.
The problem was…
I didn’t even know what the Resistance stat actually did.
Perhaps my confusion showed on my face.
He shrugged and explained.
“The Resistance stat determines how well you resist debuff attacks. The higher it is, the better you can protect yourself from status effects. You’re an unregistered rookie, aren’t you?”
“Ah… yeah. Wait a second. Status.”
As soon as I called up my status window, it appeared before my eyes.
My Resistance wasĀ 187.
Objectively speaking, I had no idea whether that was high or low.
I wanted to ask him, but I worried it might be rude.
As I hesitated, Baek Mun-il spoke first.
“My Resistance is high even by S-rank standards, so it’s hard for me to judge the strength of this mental attack. Would you mind telling me what your Resistance is?”
Since he asked, it was only polite to answer.
Besides, I wanted to know too.
“Sure. Mine’s 187.”
As soon as I answered honestly, my synchronisation rate increased a little again.
I should’ve just said it was almost two hundred…
Who knew answering honestly would make the system think I was an innocent idiot?
Baek Mun-il frowned for a moment before quickly reaching a conclusion.
“That’s around A-rank. Then this skill must be A-rank or lower.”
He remained perfectly calm, as though this sort of situation wasn’t unusual.
I looked around at all the unconscious people.
“We don’t know who did this, do we?”
“We may not knowĀ who, but we knowĀ whatĀ did it.”
Baek Mun-il tilted his chin toward the stage.
Following his gaze, I saw faint black smoke drifting upward.
My eyes widened as I leaned over the railing to watch it.
The black smoke crawling along the floor slowly gathered together, forming a gigantic shape.
There was only one explanation for such an unnatural phenomenon.
A demonic beast.
