Chapter 154: Auction House Onboard (1)
There was a dark s.p.a.ce in virtual reality, with nothing but chairs.
Ten people wearing masks were seated, with the letters from the alphabet written on the forehead of their masks from ‘A’ to ‘J’.
The person wearing the mask with the letter ‘D’ looked at I and asked,
“Did we have to be that irrational with our request?”
“Right now, the Yongchun Group is very popular, and there are quite a few people who consider them as heroes.”
G furthered the point that I was making.
“He has a point. Since the TRA crisis was resolved in no time, their influence increased. If this is their a.s.set, then they are very valuable.”
A picture of Chun Yeowun floated in the middle. E, who was watching it, asked.
“What do we do if things don’t go our way? We have a huge number of VIP guests attending this auction.”
No one wanted to mistreat any VIP guests, as each of them had enormous wealth. At that, C laughed.
“Puahahahaha!”
“… Are you laughing right now?”
“Your jokes are too much.”
“Jokes?”
“Do you think the VIPs are there because of their wealth? Worrying about them is ridiculous.”
B, who was next to him spoke,
“You are speaking as if you don’t know. It is because a mess turns bigger if those rich VIPs go wild.”
The air around became tense, as despite being in the same group, they were compet.i.tive. As a result, each of the members kept the others in check.
“Haha… is this going to happen again? I heard that more than 30% of our original traders changed.”
F, who seemed to be a woman, changed the topic. The change of more than 30% of the original traderse meant that the invitations had been transferred. I nodded in reply.
“Among those, we have Kohaku of Speed, G.o.d of Killing Amuchai, and Holy Sword Jack Oren.”
“j.a.pan, Thailand and England… they haven’t come out till now. They have begun to move at last.”
B seemed interested. The people who were mentioned were the strongest in their respective nations.
“Is it because of that?”
“Has to be.”
Such people wanted to partic.i.p.ate in the highlight of the auction.
“Thanks to that, we will have quite an entertainment.”
Most of them in masks agreed to it, but D-mask mumbled.
“If only the problem were resolved, I would have gone and watched it in person.”
“Watch the live broadcast then.”
“Tch. As if I have a choice.”
Thanks to the change in topic by F, the atmosphere changed. People began to leave the virtual meeting until A and I were the last two remaining.
“I will now disconnect to prepare for the auction–”
“Wait.”
A, who hadn’t said a word since then, spoke. It wasn’t an annoying voice, but it was strangely harsh.
Chik!
As soon as he said that, the virtual s.p.a.ce changed. The scene was blocked from the eyes of the other masks, and only some of the masks could hear.
“Take care of Chun Mu-seong at the auction house.”
“Huh?”
I couldn’t hide his confusion. They were intending to make him a VIP, so he couldn’t understand his orders.
“But he…”
“As a result of the data calculated, the probability of him rejecting our offer is over 98.3%. He will not come outside.”
“Didn’t we think of a reason and decide to bring him to our side using the gift and the VVIP card to avoid that?”
The decision had already been made. However, there was a piece of information meant for only one mask.
“Among the ten, there is a leaker.”
“Huh?”
“Did you think that the change in the original guests was normal?”
“Then… you think we have a leaker?”
I’s voice became heavy. This wasn’t an easy task.
“A lot of VVIPs and VIP guests were being handled by that mask and will even try to contact this man, Chun Mu-seong.”
“… We don’t know who the leaker is?”
“It has to be one of the masks partic.i.p.ating in the entertainment.”
At that, I’s eyes trembled. There were three people at the table, including him, who decided to partic.i.p.ate in the entertainment, meaning he too was under suspicion.
“… Am I under suspicion too?”
“Do you want to prove your loyalty?”
“…”
“Get Chun Mu-seong and get rid of him.”
He had no choice but to do it to avoid suspicion and follow his leader’s, A’s, words.
“I understand.”
7 pm.
Numerous sedans were lined up in front of the hotel. All the auction partic.i.p.ants with invitations came down and waited in the lobby, and once their name was called out, they would get into the sedan.
“So the auction isn’t here.”
Chun Yeowun nodded at Bi Mak-heon’s words. That was why they said to hand over the VIP invitation to the driver.
“Then it seems like the auction house is split in two. Shall we do as discussed before?”
There were two types of invitations. General and VIP one.
“Ah!”
Hu Bong had a sad expression. It was because in the event of two auctions, he would enter the General one with Bi Mak-heon and Im So-hye to find traces of Baekgi.
This was because only him and Chun Yeowun knew how Baekgi looked.
“Guest Amuchai.”
When someone called out the name, the people In the lobby gasped.
‘Amuchai?’
Chun Yeowun looked at the person being called.
He heard this name in the most recent Ghost that he made. A sharp looking Thai man with brown skin and blue hair appeared.
“G.o.d of Killing.”
Bi Mak-heon seemed shocked.
“I didn’t even think that he would come here. In Thailand, he is called the G.o.d of Killing. He is the apex and unrivaled.”
G.o.d of Killing, Amuchai.
A monster so strong that he had no enemies within his nation. Ark Young and Hu Bong asked,
“Huh? Mak-heon, is he that strong?”
They couldn’t find anything special about him. In fact, it was difficult to read others since the kinds of martial arts were different for each nation.
Step!
Amuchai, who was called, pa.s.sed by and stared at Chun Yeowun. He heard that Mersen had died at the hands of Chun Yeowun.
However, he couldn’t take revenge on him.
“คนขี้ขลาด”
[Cowardly b.a.s.t.a.r.d.]
The East Asia Union received Chun Yeowun’s message from Tuan, who returned alive: he wanted all the agents who infiltrated the auction house to refrain from causing friction with Chun Yeowun.
Amuchai couldn’t understand the reason, but he decided that the moment the mission was done, he would kill Chun Yeowun with his own hands.
“Guest Chun Mu-seong.”
Before long, his name was called.
“Hu Bong. If there is a problem, let me know right away.”
“Yes, my Lord.”
Chun Yeowun’s party, which was divided into two, moved. The sedan drove on the overpa.s.s for about 30 minutes and arrived at a port.
“Huh?”
-Huh? The smell of the sea wafted after a while.
The fox in Chun Yeowun’s hand poked its head out. The unique scent of the sea made it feel good. She felt like growling.
‘This isn’t even a cat, what is this thing doing?’
-Come to think of it, I had never been to the sea with your ancestor.
The golden fox looked at the sea with shimmering eyes, thinking of the past. The lights around the place made the sea shine. Just looking at the view was enjoyable.
“This is my first time here, Teacher.”
Surprisingly, it was Ark Young’s first time too. He had never been to any body of water before because he had always stayed in the Kunlun Mountains.
“This way.”
Since there were numerous ships in the port, the driver and an attendant in the front seat guided them on a speedboat. The speedboat was very fast.
“It isn’t here?”
“Ah! The auction house is over there.”
The attendant pointed to a small and sparkling thing over the sea. It was far enough to make it tough for humans to see.
[Zoomed-in night vision mode activated.]
With the various functions in Nano, Chun Yeowun could see the huge ship floating in the middle of the ocean.
The auction was being held on a ship.
‘I can’t attack or act out.’
Chun Yeowun thought about it, deciding that it didn’t mean much. The speedboat carrying the VIPs quickly crossed over and headed to the auction house on the ship.
When viewed from a distance, its size looked normal, but up close, it was huge, like a ship made by weaving together several ships.
‘Gorgeous.’
It wasn’t an exaggeration to say it looked like there was a Las Vegas on the ship, as there were lights all around and the splendid decoration.
Wheik!
As the auction was being held in the evening, the chefs were cooking in the open kitchen and the food was being served at a buffet. It seemed more like a festival.
And then came an announcement.
-VIP guests on the last speedboat, please come to the central dome where the auction is being held.
The center of the ship was crafted with an open ceiling.
Upon entering, there were designated seats and in the center was a wide pedestal that rose about 2 meters high.
As the last people entered and took their seats, a man in a purple suit and purple mask walked up. The man grabbed the mic and spoke,
-First of all, we would like to welcome all the VIP guests who have come here to the auction, which has resumed after a year.
The man in the mask seemed to be in charge of this auction. Chun Yeowun gave Nano an order.
‘Nano. a.n.a.lyze the voice.’
Chun Yeowun wanted to compare the person who appeared in the recorded video with an altered voice and this man to see if the people were the same.
[The result from a.n.a.lyzing the tone and intonation pattern of the voice is negative.]
They weren’t the same person, as there was no way that the same man would come here.
However, someone sat in the seat ahead of Chun Yeowun and started talking to him after turning his head a little.
“You are the vice-chairman of Yongchun, right?”
He was a man in his 40s with a bald head and a wide smile. He reached out for a handshake.
“I wanted to see you at least once, as it is such an honor.”
Chun Yeowun ignored the hand. The bald man lowered his hand, sighed, and talked again.
“Perhaps I greeted you too openly? First time here? At the auction, I mean. I think it will be the third time for me.”
Despite being ignored, the man continued to talk. Ark Young wasn’t his a.s.sistant, but he took the role and asked.
“Do you have some business, sir?”
At that, the bald man waved his hand.
“Hey, nothing like that. I was just trying to get acquainted with the vice-chairman of the Yongchun Group, who seems to be running a lot of things these days. Just wanted to form a relationship.”
There were a lot of people who had been doing this lately to Chun Yeowun, all because of his rise in fame.
“If it’s fine with you, let’s have a drink and talk during the break…”
Just as he was about to ask Chun Yeowun, the bald man stopped at what he heard the host say:
-Prior to the full-scale auction, this time, I would like to take some time and boost the excitement. Those of you who know me, might know what I am saying.
“What?”
The eyes of the bald man became sharp. He lost the smile he was trying to put on and turned his hand away.
“I need to go away for a while. I will see you again later.”
With that, he tried to walk down stairs. Chun Yeowun, who had no interest in him, became suspicious of his last movements, and said to Ark Young,
“Ark Young. Can you follow him and find out who he is contacting?”
“Yes, teacher.”
Ark Young’s level would easily allow him to follow the man. As the bald man made his way towards the east exit of the dome, Ark Young trailed shortly behind.
He didn’t even have to use light steps because of the huge music and the noise around.
“d.a.m.n it. What are they planning… putting the last thing first!”
The bald man kept muttering and headed somewhere. To the right of the exit at the east side was a hallway leading to a bathroom which he might enter.
‘I need to keep my distance now.’
Because there were fewer people in here, Ark Young decided to stay a little farther away. so he proceeded slowly as the bald man pa.s.sed by the bathroom and entered the warehouse with a sign saying “NO ENTRY”.
‘Hmm.’
Ark Young was confused because there were security guards, who seemed strong, guarding in front of that warehouse.
Taking them down wasn’t a problem, but it would create a mess with the CCTVs overflowing in this place. However, he was able to learn one thing.
‘That man is involved in this.’
Otherwise, there was no way he could freely enter this warehouse that was clearly saying no entry. Meanwhile he heard the cheers from the crowd in the dome.
“Woahh!!!”
People cheered because of the performance on the podium. An iron bar made of special alloy was cut.
-See that? Watch the cutting of this special alloy rod.
Swish!
Something black was spinning in the air above the podium. And then it stopped in front of the man in a black uniform on the podium.
It was a Wheel weapon made of black iron.
-This is a weapon that we found in an old temple in the Yunnan Province.
The Ryun, or Wheel, floated in the air, but what was even more shocking was that this man in black wasn’t a warrior.
-This mysterious weapon moves according to its owners" thoughts. The man here is an ordinary person who never learned martial arts, but the sharpness of this weapon allows him to cut down any metal or alloy.
“Wow!”
People shouted and applauded. Several people looked at it with greed in their eyes while the masked host continued.
-This Wheel is being auctioned for an A cla.s.s core. Anyone can become the owner of this wheel once the A cla.s.s core is paid.
Yu So-hwa clicked her tongue at it. Although the weapon was strange, it was ridiculous to pay an A-cla.s.s core for it.
This was literally an entertainment show.
‘Who would go up and give an A-cla.s.s core for such a thing and risk their life…?’
Yu So-hwa’s eyes widened.
“V-Vice-chairman!”
Was it Chun Yeowun who was walking up on the podium?