Chapter 179: King of the Unclaimed Land (5)

This time, Yong-ho entered the auction house proudly unlike the last time when he had to sneak in through the back door.

He confidently entered the main door and felt a little joy while wearing the male lion's mask.

He felt different from what he did before.

The violent mana that swirled randomly like a blind sword was still the same. It was still swirling roughly inside the auction house.

But he didn't feel that it was burdensome anymore. He could ignore it naturally as if he was facing a breeze.

It wasn't just because Yong-ho understood his own mana better than before.

The reason was simple. His mana became strong.

He was different from the time when he had to look up at the dark sky.

This time, Yong-ho himself was in the sky. He could look down, and he didn't feel the sky above his head just far away.

Even now, after having absorbed Stravadi's mana, he had only five horns.

Actually, they were close to six. In other words, he reached a stage where he had to realize a new wall that he should overcome.

Catalina, who obtained five horns after Kaiwan, felt the same way as Yong-ho. She felt a little joy in her comfort.

"When this auction starts, it is highly likely that Samael will greet you directly. Until then, feel free to enjoy the free auction."

Sitri's whispering tickled Yong-ho's ears. He flinched unwittingly then quickly nodded and moved to the free auction house. Catalina and Kaiwan followed him closely.

The free auction house reminded him of an exhibition, as Sitri said. It looked like an exhibition with all kinds of items lined up along the wall.

[Devil Nails]

[Anyone who bled, hit by a devil's nails, is cursed by a powerful devil.]

[Anyone with a demon curse suffers from a demon's mental attack.]

[Not only your concentration, but also your overall physical ability decreases, and the effect varies, depending on the strength and weakness of your mental power. If you are both mentally and physically exhausted, you might be killed at once.]

[Additionally, it's highly likely that it will cause fear in the other person.]

[In order to maintain the devil's curse, you must constantly supply mana.]

Kaiwan's eyes glared when she was looking at a red dagger. It was very peculiar because not only its handle but also its blade was very red.

"How about this? Don't you think it's going to be quite useful?"

"Uh?"

Yong-ho, who was looking at the area next to only two cells from the devil's nails, responded awkwardly. When Kaiwan turned around, there was an elf spirit with a slim body for sale. Given that the elf had a chain around his neck, it looked like he was a slave from another world.

Kaiwan narrowed her eyes wide with a long face while Yong-ho began to eagerly examine the devil's nails.

Meanwhile, Catalina, flapping her ears and tail together, was staring intently at one of the rings.

[Dead spirit ring]

[It uses a nearby corpse to create a skeleton-type undead.]

[However, skeletons created in this way are destroyed as soon as mana is not supplied anymore.]

[If there is enough mana supplied, it is also possible to make corpses automatically undead within the range.]

Catalina recalled a smiling Skull in her mind. Wouldn't it be very effective if Skull went to the battlefield with this ring?

"It looks okay, but... it seems that its mana efficiency is bad. Why don't you get a necromancer-based familiar spirit?"

Catalina checked the bidding prices. The bidding price was not high as if its efficiency was not good enough like Sitri said.

"Necromancer?"

Yong-ho, who put the devil's nails down, also intervened. Certainly, considering the recent battle he had, he felt it would be nice to have a necromancer because there were enormous corpses everywhere each time he was done with the battle.

Of course, it was quite inhumane from an ethical point of view. However, he could not deny that it was an attractive item. The synergy effect when combined with the power of evolution seemed to be enormous.

As the proverb said, 'Strike the iron while it's hot,' Yong-ho looked around to see if there was a Necromancer familiar for sale.

Right at that moment, a surprisingly sweet scent tickled his nose.

Not only Yong-ho, but Kaiwan and Catalina also turned their heads instinctively as if they also smelled the scent.

The source of the smell was a sales item across from the elf spirit. There was a large pot and a small teacup there. Sitri said, pointing to the purple drink in the teacup "It's Soma. It is a soft drink with a slight hallucination effect. Since the scent is particularly good, it seems to be a really high-quality product."

Kaiwan swallowed, while Catalina flapped her ears violently. It looked as if she wanted to drink both of them but could not dare to ask her.

At that moment, a woman wearing an ugly and terrifying red ghost mask elbowed her way through the clients and came to Yong-ho. The woman who checked the Soma quickly wrote the bidding price.

Because of her ghost mask, Yong-ho could see her face, but given her figure and charming air, she was obviously a great beauty. She was wearing a colorful red suit that suited the ghost mask, but unlike her long and loose sleeves, her lower body was almost naked. Her white legs tied with a thong underneath the short skirt that revealed her thighs clearly were attractive with beautiful curves.

Yong-ho looked at the woman. It was not because he was attracted by her stunning beauty.

His heart was pounding, and his breathing became rough before he knew it.

Obviously, he felt it before. This time, the way his heart trembled was different from when he first ran into Catalina and Kaiwan.

'The man wearing a ghost mask?'

Someone came to his mind suddenly. He was a giant man who met her eyes the other day when she visited the auction house. 'No, it's not that my heart is pounding.'

He didn't get it right back then partly because he was at a distance from the other party, and it was partly because he felt it on impulse back then. But he could understand it clearly now because he obtained the heart of the Demon God. He could distinguish it because he had experienced his heart throbbing when he met his lover several times.

It was greed. Greed was the source of his excitement.

Then why was his heart throbbing? Because he wants to have her? Because of his sexual desire?

Right at that moment, he got goosebumps. And the woman turned around as if on cue.

They looked at each other, wearing their masks. The woman, who faced him, frowned as if something was strange, and he stopped being nervous with an effort.

Instead of avoiding her eyes right away, he stared at her for a little while.

Her rainbow-colored eyes were shining like stars. They had an air of dignity and intensity that overwhelmed him.

He caught his breath. He just acted like someone who accidentally met her eyes. He smiled awkwardly inside the mask then nodded at her lightly like an English gentleman in a movie he had seen one day. Then he turned around and walked on naturally.

Sitri hugged his arm. She egged on him to see the next auction items quickly. As if she read his intentions, Sitri led him away from that woman.

Catalina and Kaiwan also acted tactfully. As Yong-ho's familiar spirits, they did not make the mistake of looking back. While moving away from that woman, Catalina's tail became a little stiff, but Kaiwan managed it well. Catalina flinched when Kaiwan grabbed her tail tightly in a surprise, and thanks to her quick-witted action, it looked like they were playing pranks on each other like close friends.

The distance between Yong-ho and the woman increased further. The auction crowds filled the place they left.

Even after Yong-ho's party left and the auction was going on here and there, the woman was standing still in place as if fixated on it. She stared at him for a while, then tilted her head only after he completely disappeared. Then she bit her lips out of frustration.

"What the hell is it?"

She didn't murmur it to herself. Actually, she was talking to a woman with a bear mask who caught up with her belatedly. With a strong build and lots of muscles, she was big enough to fit in the bear mask. She also looked at the direction the woman was gazing at. There was nothing special over there, so she tilted her head and asked, "What's the matter with you?"

The woman did not answer right away but just closed her lips once. Then, crossing her arms, she said, standing a bit stiffly, "It's definitely my first time seeing that man. But why was my heart throbbing as soon as I made eye contact with him? My breathing was also rough."

At her serious question, this woman with a strong build blinked her eyes.

Then she expressed her opinion mixed with embarrassment and expectations.

"Because you fell in love with him at first sight?"

"No way. How can I love him only by looking at his eyes on the mask?"

"You must have checked out his figure, let alone his impression, right?"

She puckered her lips again at this strong woman's response.

Obviously, she liked his build quite a lot. She was also happy about his height.

"No, it can't be. And he was a weird guy. Even when he made eye contact with me, he wasn't agitated at all. Rather, he nodded at me in a composed manner. He must have smiled even inside the mask."

"Have you stared at him with your jewellike piercing eyes?"

Only

Asking the question, this strong woman got embarrassed.

Then the other woman apologetically replied as if to make excuses, "Well, I did before I knew it. I just looked at him. That's all."

"Hmm, it looks like you were clearly attracted to him. There are few men who remained calm even after encountering my master."

The woman's eyes were the eyes of a king. Because of this, anybody without extraordinary courage and boldness didn't dare to encounter her.

"Do you think so?"

"Yes, you might have taken a liking to him."

The strong woman asked with more interest this time.