Chapter 182: Guests From Other Dimensions
Walfred pressed the button to register goods for auction so he could unload the [Legion Commander’s Baton].
And a moment later.
A familiar list appeared.
[Please select the item to register for sale.]
[Currently registrable items]
▷Ring of the Decaying One
▷Void Exile’s Pocket Watch
▷Necklace of the Frost Spirit King
...
The list of artifacts he currently owned.
Walfred selected the [Legion Commander’s Baton] at the very bottom. The baton gleamed for a second and then vanished without a trace.
Then a new alert appeared.
-----
[Item name]: Legion Commander’s Baton
[Rank]: Unique
[Please enter a ’starting bid’.]
[Please enter a ’buy it now price’.]
(If left blank, values will be set automatically.)
(Note: no buy it now price will be set.)
-----
"...Ah."
Come to think of it, he’d never once considered it.
How much he should sell this thing for.
’What’s a good price range?’
He had no feel for it at all.
This was his first auction, so he hadn’t gotten a proper read on market rates yet.
’I’d be satisfied with even 100,000 coins.’
But if he set the buy it now price at 100,000 and the baton sold the instant the auction started, that would sting in its own way.
After a long stretch of deliberation.
Walfred finally came to a decision.
’I’ll leave it to the organizers.’
If only to get a rough sense of the going rate.
Walfred decided to trust the Dimensional Merchant Guild, the organization running the auction. The instant he touched the listing button without entering a price—
His sale registration went through.
-----
[Item listing complete.]
[Item name]: Legion Commander’s Baton
[Starting bid]: 100,000 coins
[Buy it now price]: -
-----
The price was better than he’d expected.
Exactly the figure he’d had in mind.
And since that was the starting bid rather than a buy it now price, it meant he might pull in more than that once the bidding actually got going.
’Good thing I left it to them.’
Walfred smiled, satisfied.
Just then.
Ding!
[Dimensional Merchant Guild: Notification]
[If you have no further items to list, you may proceed to the waiting room. Touch the [Confirm Transfer] button below to be transported immediately.]
A helpful notice appeared.
He had nothing else to sell anyway, so he touched the confirm transfer button at the bottom without hesitation.
And in that instant.
Flash!
Along with a bright flare across his vision, Walfred’s body vanished like smoke once again.
---
A moment later.
Walfred felt his stomach churn, much like when he’d first been transported to this place.
But the discomfort didn’t last long.
[You have entered the waiting room.]
The alert appeared, and his condition steadied.
When he opened his eyes, a large, lavish waiting room spread out before him. It was on a completely different level from where he’d just been, spacious and comfortable.
And a moment later.
Something caught his eye.
’Those people...’
Even at a glance, their clothing and features brimmed with individuality. They looked nothing like hunters, and Walfred’s expression turned curious.
’It really drives home that they’re from other dimensions.’
Martial artists who looked like they’d stepped out of a wuxia film.
There was also an elf woman with striking looks and pointed ears, and a humanoid robot built entirely out of silver alloy.
He was taking it all in with fascination when—
"Hey there, friend."
Someone suddenly spoke to him.
A man with light brown hair and green eyes. The moment Walfred saw the thick winter gear the man was bundled in, he was certain.
This man was a hunter from Earth.
"You’re from Earth too, right?"
He’d apparently gotten the same read off Walfred’s outfit. When Walfred nodded without a word, the man’s eyes narrowed.
"Hmm, I don’t recognize you. Which means one of the regulars must have dropped off the list."
The man stroked his chin and muttered to himself.
But only for a moment. Then he broke into an easy smile and offered a handshake.
"Julian, wind attribute S-rank hunter."
Walfred had no interest in making friends, but the man was from Earth and had introduced himself first, so ignoring him wasn’t really an option.
Walfred reluctantly took the offered hand.
"Walfred."
"Oh, from the New America Republic, huh. Are you connected to Elma somehow? Family? Relatives?"
"Not even close."
"Ha, well, good to meet you anyway, friend."
Julian laughed with easy good humor.
Then, as if something had suddenly come to him, he tilted his head and asked again.
"Huh? Hold on. What was your name again?"
"Walfred."
"Hmm, Walfred, Walfred... That rings a bell for some reason. Ugh, where have I heard it?"
While Julian was racking his brain—
A bright, cheerful voice cut into the conversation.
"He’s only the most famous person out there right now."
A woman with long black hair and a clean, elegant look.
She appeared to be in her mid-twenties and was unmistakably Chinese. The winter gear she wore was plastered with unfamiliar characters.
"Walfred, the man who took down a Spirit King solo. You made such a fuss about wanting to meet him someday, and you can’t even remember his name?"
"Huh? That’s this guy?"
Julian yelped in surprise.
He shot Walfred a look asking whether it was true, and when Walfred gave an indifferent nod, Julian couldn’t hide his delight.
"Now this is a fated encounter. I’ve been wanting to meet you at least once before I die."
"Me? Why?"
"Ha! Because you’re famous, obviously!"
What a lightweight.
That was Walfred’s private assessment of Julian.
’Although...’
That probably wasn’t Julian’s real face.
He seemed cheerful and easygoing on the surface, but his eyes hadn’t been smiling at all this whole time.
It was as if he’d pulled on an intricately crafted mask to hide what was underneath.
’Better not get tangled up with him.’
There was no reason to exhaust himself dealing with someone whose intentions he couldn’t read. Having settled that cleanly, Walfred looked away from Julian without a second thought.
He turned instead to the Chinese woman who had cut into the conversation. She noticed his gaze and smiled brightly.
"Ah, I’m late with the introductions."
Her eyes curved softly in a smile.
The woman bowed slightly and gave her name.
"Li Xiaoqing, dark attribute S-rank."
"Walfred. I’m currently in Key West..."
"I know. You’re with Elma, right?"
Before he could even finish introducing himself—
Li Xiaoqing cut him off with breezy confidence.
She’d probably seen the posts Elma had put up in the community about the White Whale extermination. Then Li Xiaoqing glanced around and murmured.
"But since she’s nowhere in sight and you came alone, I’m guessing she funneled all her coins to you so you could take part in the Dimensional Auction."
Sharper than expected.
She’d read the whole situation off a handful of small clues. Walfred neither confirmed nor denied it and kept his poker face.
"Well, fine. But let me give you one warning."
"A warning?"
"Yes. If an elixir goes up today, it’s mine, so don’t get in my way for no reason."
She said it with a smile on her face.
Li Xiaoqing’s remark sounded like a declaration of war, and Walfred’s expression went flat with disbelief.
What a joke.
Who did she think she was, laying claim to the elixir?
"And if I say no?"
"Well, then there’s nothing to be done."
Li Xiaoqing shrugged.
Then the smile dropped from her eyes entirely, and she whispered in a voice gone cold.
"If you ignore my warning, then when whatever you’re after comes up, I’ll keep outbidding you over and over and drive the price as high as I can."
In other words, she’d make absolutely sure he couldn’t get what he wanted at a fair price. Even at that blatant threat, Walfred didn’t so much as blink.
"..."
He simply kept his silence.
She must have taken that as a sign the threat had landed.
Li Xiaoqing put her signature smile back on and spoke gently, almost coaxingly.
"As long as you don’t interfere, neither of us loses a thing. I’m giving you my word on my own name, so you can trust..."
"Ha, trust my ass."
Before she could finish—
Someone cut in with a scornful snort. A young man who looked like he was from the New America Republic, with strikingly good looks.
"A leopard can’t change its spots, huh. You pulled the same crap last time and got cut off by Elma, and here you are again, trying to fleece the new guy?"
"...That was an unfortunate accident."
"Bullshit. The only unfortunate thing here is your brain."
The young man wore a sneer.
As the blunt insults kept coming, Li Xiaoqing’s expression turned ugly in an instant. Seeing that, the young man smirked.
"What? Got a problem? Want to step outside and settle it?"
"...Hmph. Forget it."
Li Xiaoqing was the one who backed down first.
Clearly offended, she turned on her heel with irritation written all over her face. With that conversation over, the young man turned to Walfred next.
"You probably heard it from Elma already, but don’t trust anybody here. Not that prissy Chinese bitch, not the guy playing the cheerful act, and not me either."