Chapter 61

Chapter 21. Tesing Underground Auction (4)

'He must be racking his brain, calculating right now. Whether or not he believes I'm the real Veradin, he must be going crazy wondering if the Zip family knows about this.'

He would have done the same. When people are in extreme situations, they first try to find a way to survive.

'But even if they are convinced I'm acting alone, they can't just attack me recklessly.'

The real Veradin Zip, or the fake Jin Runkandel. Both can be considered geniuses of magic, but for now, they are still just kids.

If a group of Tesing's unregistered mages were to attack, he wouldn't be able to avoid a crisis. Alu alone could handle it without needing to call the unregistered mages.

However, Alu must be aware that Veradin is not the only one to consider.

'How skilled are Veradin Zip's bodyguards?'

A young man with a slanted gaze and a woman with a calm expression. If Veradin were to be eliminated, these two would be the most dangerous.

It was hard to gauge. Neither of them emitted an aura, suggesting they might be mages, but they could also be high-level experts capable of completely hiding their power.

"And Jet, come here. Don't just lie there."

"Yes, sir."

"Tsk, your face is a mess. You must have been hit after mentioning my name."

"Ouch, sir. I'm fine. Don't worry about a guy like me... please focus on the family's affairs."

"Is that so? I understand. Do that."

Jet felt a moment of disappointment but knew it wasn't worth arguing.

"What are you doing? Alu, get the ledgers and registers quickly."

"Yes, Master Veradin. Hey! Everyone, did you hear Master Veradin? Hurry up!"

The Tesing members at the edge scattered like ants. A moment later, they brought over more than ten ledgers and registers, but they were all superficial records.

"Master Veradin, this is all that's in the auction house. The really important documents are stored in the magic vault at my residence..."

Alu trailed off and observed Veradin's reaction.

"Can I go and get them myself? I'll only be a moment."

"Haha... What kind of nonsense is this? Don't you understand the situation?"

"Master Veradin, that's not what I meant."

"Are you trying to mock me with such obvious intentions? If I send you alone to find the ledgers, you'll destroy the important documents and contact your accomplices to verify if I'm real and why I'm here."

That was the crux of the matter.

Alu knew it was an obvious ploy but had to try. His face turned red to the ears, and he bowed, only looking at Jin's feet.

"Hahaha... Alu, you must be embarrassed. Fine, do as you please. Go alone. Do whatever you can while you're gone, but remember, you're still in the palm of the Zip family."

Alu's face turned pale upon hearing this.

From Alu's perspective, it was a statement that could be misinterpreted.

'Alone... No, I was wrong. There are already Zip mages outside...!'

A meaningful smile appeared on Jin's lips, stemming from his certainty that Alu would misunderstand.

"I misspoke, Master Veradin. I will go with the person you assign."

"Get lost. I'll expect you to act wisely from now on, Spider-hand Alu. I'll be checking the warehouse in the meantime."

Alu's expression turned blank. If he could impress Veradin from now on, he might survive.

"It will take about two hours, Master Veradin. You should guide him to the warehouse while I'm gone."

Alu left the auction house with a determined look. Now, only the Tesing members and Jin's group remained.

A few perceptive officers approached and began leading Jin to the warehouse.

"The boss's residence and villa have quite a few items, but our official warehouse is just one. This way, please."

What a funny guy. As soon as the boss was in danger, he subtly hinted at embezzlement by mentioning the items in the "residence and villa."

What would their reaction be if they all knew he was a fake? A hollow laugh escaped him.

This was Jin's first time seeing the Tesing underground auction house warehouse. One floor down from the auction house, the warehouse spanned three levels.

The first floor had slaves, the second had magic books, and the third had artifacts. The scale and systematic organization were more impressive than expected, leaving Jin's group somewhat flustered.

The slaves showed no reaction to the strangers, as they hadn't yet been drugged and had no hope.

"I'll be outside. Call me if you need anything."

As soon as the Tesing officer left, Jet started making a fuss.

"I knew you were extraordinary from the start! To think you're a member of the Zip family. Sir, please give me more opportunities to show my loyalty. I'll do anything."

"Good idea. From now on, investigate the origins and real names of the slaves on the first floor. The family will send people to take them away later."

"Ah! Yes, I understand. I'll start immediately."

The Zip family officially prohibits slave trading. Of course, there are many who buy and sell people, but as long as they don't get caught, it's fine.

The underlings need to enjoy the spoils of their labor.

"Kid, what's your plan? I think that Alu will definitely come back to confirm if you're a fake."

"Yeah, that's probably what will happen."

There are no Zip mages outside as Alu imagines. He will be on guard, thinking they are watching him, but will eventually realize it's a misunderstanding and contact his acquaintances.

Those who know Veradin Zip's appearance and current location. It's only a matter of time before Jin's identity is exposed.

"Why did you tell Jet to investigate the slaves' origins? We can just run away, but he's a dead man anyway."

"No, the papers with the slaves' origins and real names will save Jet. If we send the slave list to the Zip family and leak it to the imperial news, Tesing will inevitably fall, even if we are fakes."

When public opinion moves, the Zip family can no longer ignore this place.

They will send elite mages to rescue the slaves, completely destroy Tesing, and start to clean up the corrupt Akkin.

The Zip family's image is more important than the bribes of the lower-ranking members, so this is a natural outcome.

'Hypocrisy will make them act.'

Jin plans to write Jet's name as the whistleblower. The Zip family will protect him.

Of course, Jet will suffer during the investigation by the imperial authorities and the Zip family, but as a person with a strong survival instinct, he will likely only give favorable testimony.

For example, "There was no Veradin impersonator in Akkin, and I just felt disillusioned with Tesing's slave trading and decided to report it."

It's not because Jin likes Jet. He's thinking of his two-year-old son.

Once witness protection begins, Jet will naturally clear his life in the back alleys and spend the rest of his days in a quiet, unknown place with his son.

It's not a bad future for them. In fact, it's the best future possible, especially for the child.

That innocent child was, after all, following in his father's footsteps.

"Alright, let's say the situation unfolds as you expect. What's next?"

"What else? We need to go shopping for free and then escape before Alu returns. The Zip family will take care of the aftermath. You pick out some useful magic books from the second floor. Gill and I will select artifacts from the third floor."

"Wow... Young master, are you going to keep choosing such reckless actions? This nanny is shocked."

"Take it as a compliment, Gill. Let's start."

In the Ruteo Magic Federation, artifacts are generally more valuable than magic books.

While it's common to find excellent ancient magic books at such auctions, high-quality artifacts are rare.

The third-floor artifact warehouse looked like a junkyard to Jin. It was surprising to find a single masterpiece among the low-quality artifacts.

The ring artifact, 'Demon King's Helmet,' didn't take long to find. It was in the smallest box among the old stock in a corner of the warehouse.

'This is it!'

A low-quality silver ring with a small ruby.

Suppressing his excitement, he put it on his left ring finger and felt the ring's magic power dance along his finger.

The magic power was intangible, like dozens of invisible threads wrapping around his finger, gradually moving to envelop Jin's head.

And it fully merged.

'Ordinary mages can only perceive this as a slight increase in magic power. That's why it has been treated as a mediocre item.'

Now, whenever Jin wants, the magic power will form a pitch-black helmet in his head.

Only someone who hasn't used such a high-quality artifact or lacks Jin's level of magic power sensitivity would fail to notice this power.

'Helmet activation.'

Whoosh!

Testing it, the black magic power quickly spread. The magic power formed lines and surfaces, adhering to his face.

It took less than a second to complete. The finished helmet covered his face completely, revealing only his eyes and nose, and extended to his neck.

Sharp, thin, and stylish horns protruded from both ears.

Before Gill could react, Jin deactivated the helmet and smiled in satisfaction.

'Actually, I was half-doubting, but to find this from the start...'

With the ring found, there was no need to waste time on the third floor.

"Gill, there's nothing useful here. Let's go to Murakan."

"Hmm, even I, who know nothing about magic, can see that there's nothing noteworthy. Still, I'll pick up a few jewelry artifacts that look valuable."

The situation in the magic book warehouse was similar. They thoroughly searched for any possible legacy of O Henserk but found nothing useful by the time Jet had gathered all the slaves' origins and real names.

"Kid, since we already have Chen Mei's magic book, there's no need to be greedy. Let's go."

It had been an hour since Alu left. Returning to the auction house, the members greeted Jin's group respectfully.

"Jet, you can go now."

"Yes, sir. I'll wait at the inn. Hehe, don't forget this Jet's contribution."

"Contribution? You tried to sell us out."

"Ah, please forget the past. Thanks to meeting Master Veradin, this Jet is completely reborn."

Jin let out a hollow laugh.

"Right... Let's forget the past, Jet of Akkin. Come here for a moment."

"Sure."

As Jet leaned in, Jin whispered softly.

'I'm not Veradin Zip. So, take your son and run. Preferably to the Viment Empire. I promise, if you do this, you'll survive.'

For Jet, it was a shocking revelation.