Chapter 2: My Soul Was Told It Smells

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Isekai Soul Auction...!?

"Then, without further ado! Let's introduce the first soul up for auction!"

As the host in the silk hat shouts this, a woman in a stylish black suit (her face also obscured by a white mist, making it unrecognizable) carries a soul placed near me onto the stage.

"Let me introduce the profile of this soul!"

The silk hat removes the plastic case covering the soul and reads from the document in his hand.

"The name is Shota Suzudou, a 17-year-old male! The ace of the soccer team and a central figure among the boys in his class! With high athletic ability and leadership, he is bright and positive, truly a soul material suitable for a protagonist!"

Ah, that soul is Suzudou-kun.

Indeed, as the silk hat said, Suzudou-kun was a leader and popular among everyone in the class.

Well, it didn't concern me, though.

"Oh, what a fine-shaped soul. And such a crisp scent, too."

"Excellent soul quality! I definitely want it..."

"Well, it's not exactly what I'm looking for... but what beautiful colors!"

The gods in the audience freely critique Suzudou-kun's soul.

...Indeed, even to me, who isn't accustomed to seeing souls, Suzudou-kun's soul had a beautiful color.

Kind of a passionate red... like the color of a beautiful flame? That was what his soul looked like.

As for me, on the other hand...

Um...

Yeah...

"Alright! Let's start the bidding! This high-quality soul, 'Shota Suzudou'! Starting at a minimum bid of 10,000 mana!"

"20,000!"

"25,000!"

"53,000!"

Suzudou-kun's soul's price keeps rising. Apparently, the currency? is called "mana."

"108,000! Currently at 108,000 mana! Do we have any gods willing to bid higher!?"

"Fine...! Then 110,000 mana! How about that!?"

"110,000! 110,000!... Any more?... No more, then! The soul of 'Shota Suzudou' goes to you... 'Holy Goddess Laintorlie', sold! Please do not forget to set memories, divine protection, and other settings when using!"

"Of course!"

The one who came up to the stage to receive Suzudou-kun's soul was a beautiful blonde goddess.

She lifts the soul above her head, showing it off to the other gods.

"Tch! Laintorlie got the jump on us right from the start!"

"But, I'm looking forward to it! The 'Hero VS Demon Lord' series by Laintorlie and Baharia is always entertaining! Can't wait for the broadcast!"

"It feels a bit too conventional, though."

The surrounding gods, while appearing disappointed, still smile and applaud.

Broadcast? What's that?

"Next! Moving on! The next soul we will introduce is..."

In this manner, the souls placed around me were auctioned off one by one to the gods.

From observing this, it became clear that the 29 souls lined up here, including myself, seem to be my classmates.

Didn't the silk hat say earlier "harvested from Earth"?

Were we, the entire class, kidnapped, turned into souls, and put up for auction?

Uh... And?

Our wills aren't considered at all?

Is that okay with the gods?

...I guess it is. Everyone seems to be having a blast.

...Well, if I were asked whether I have any regrets about my previous life, I don't, so I guess it's fine.

"80,000! 80,000!... No more? Sold! The soul of 'Ken Gouki'... 'Thief God Yabo', sold!"

On stage, the soul of a boy named Gouki was auctioned off.

For the record, Gouki was, to put it bluntly, a bully.

Regardless of gender, he would bully anyone he didn't like by any means necessary.

I was also one of his victims.

Things were done to me that I don't want to put into words.

But nobody helped me.

The world is cold, isn't it?

"Kakaka! Look at this soul! This distorted feel is almost artistic, isn't it~!? For my divine protection, it's gotta be one with this kind of stimulating scent!"

Thief God Yabo, as he's called, receives Gouki's soul and returns to his seat in high spirits.

So, a thief god, huh? Just hearing that makes it abundantly clear he's not exactly a wholesome entity, right?

"Now! Moving on to..."

As Silk Hat's words reach my ears, I feel a light sensation of floating.

The plastic case I'm in is lifted and carried onto the stage.

...It's my turn now.

"Aihara Runa! Bad at studies, sports, everything! No friends! No family to help her! Bullied by everyone, honestly a high school girl who's a complete failure!"

My introduction is harsh!?

No, it's not wrong... sadly, it's not wrong!

But still, I've been trying so hard! Super hard, right!?

Whether I was being hit, had things stolen from me, or was ignored by the whole class... "family" and all!!

Despite the hardships, I've tried to live with a bright and positive attitude!

Won't anyone recognize that effort?!

...Uh, what's with this atmosphere in the venue?

Why does it suddenly go silent when I come out?

Hey gods~! Don't be such a buzzkill~! Why are you slightly recoiling!?

"Dirty..."

Someone in the audience said that.

It was a small murmur, but in the hushed venue, the words resonated sadly.

...Yeah, I get it. I understand why someone would want to say that.

Even the bully Gouki had a soul that was somewhat translucent. It was misshapen, but still.

As for me...

...It's pitch black.

You might even say it's darkly tainted.

And then there's the occasional rusty red color that appears and disappears, utterly filthy.

Compared to the other souls, it's understandable if mine seems disgustingly dirty.

Maybe it is...

"Ah, a-ah, um..."

Silk Hat is panicking.

Caught up in hosting, he seems to have just realized how incredibly filthy my soul is.

Aren't you a bit underprepared? That's quite negligent of you, buddy~! A failure as a professional... professional god (??), aren't you?

"So... then, the minimum bid for this soul will be... 1 mana! Just 1 mana is fine! Yes, let's start the bidding!"

Silk Hat sets the minimum bid in a clearly half-hearted manner, and the auction for my soul begins.

The assistant, a lady in a gloomy black suit, removes the plastic case covering me.

The next moment.

"Yuck, what's that smell!? That soul stinks!!?"

"Cough, what... unbelievable! Unbelievable!? What's that smell!?"

"Oh... Oh god! Blargharghargh..."

The venue instantly turns into a scene from hell.

Gods pinching their noses and looking uncomfortable are the better ones.

Some gods are on the floor, convulsing.

A slime-like, formless god is vomiting.

Rude, right? You look just like vomit yourself!

Well, anyway.

My soul is not only filthy.

It's also incredibly... smelly.

"My... apologies! My sincerest apologies!! It seems that during the process of harvesting souls, some trash got mixed in!!"

Silk Hat is profusely apologizing.

Calling me trash, that's harsh.

After all, this is the soul of a high school girl who's been trying hard for 17 years!

"We'll dispose of it immediately! Immediately with annihilation!"

Silk Hat pulls out something resembling a small remote from his pocket and starts operating it. Suddenly, a black vortex appears in front of me.

...Huh? Annihilation??

"Now connecting to the void... Connection established! This trash, along with its stench, will be discarded into the void! We deeply apologize for causing you any discomfort!!!"

Eh? The void? Disposal? What are you talking about?

While I'm still not fully grasping the situation, watching Silk Hat and the lady in the black suit apologize profusely to the audience...

With a satisfying "whoosh," I'm sucked into the black vortex... into what they called the void.