Dungeon Odyssey [EN]: Chapter 205

Dungeon Journal – Episode 206

# 206

Dungeon Journal

Episode 206

Six days of the scheduled seven-day auction had passed, and the seventh day’s auction began.

As expected of the final day, the atmosphere was even more electric than the previous auctions.

“Congratulations!”

“Oh! It’s mine! It’s mine!”

The participants who succeeded in bidding and those who did not were constantly experiencing alternating joy and sorrow.

“Hand it over to me while I’m asking nicely!”

“What nonsense are you spouting! If you wanted it so badly, you should have gone all out from the start!”

Fierce disputes continued from time to time, but the atmosphere only intensified.

However, Kim Jin-woo, sitting in his private seat in the VIP room, was lost in his own thoughts.

Too many things were happening in places he didn’t know about. The Black Merchant was hiding his true intentions, and Catherine seemed to know what they were.

Even though it was related to him, he couldn’t figure out what it was.

He felt regret for the path he had walked until now.

In the past, although he lacked power, he thought he had established a somewhat equal relationship with the Count.

Even when Anatolius sent Morrigan to cause conflict with the Parthenon, he brought in the person involved and successfully resolved the situation.

Also, many people were eager to exploit the newly emerging powerhouse on the 9th floor, but each time, he repeatedly crushed their ambitions and instead gained enormous profits.

He had fought like that, and that’s how he became a High Lord.

But suddenly, he realized that he was too ignorant. He knew too little about the big picture.

If his labyrinth was just a mediocre labyrinth located somewhere on the 9th floor among the many underground labyrinths, he wouldn’t have had these thoughts.

In terms of survival and combat, his achievements were so great that no one could belittle them.

But now his position was not just the owner of a single labyrinth, but a High Lord. He was also a true Lord who inherited the true name of the One-Eyed Monarch, possessed a fragment of the Radiant Monarch, and obtained the true name of ‘Greed,’ which did not exist in the underground.

Now, he could no longer focus solely on surviving and winning as before.

He had to anticipate the moves of the many monsters who could see several steps ahead, and furthermore, he had to exploit their weaknesses.

That was the only way to avoid being devoured without even resisting the overwhelming current.

It wouldn’t be easy.

Unlike the many who had existed in the underground for a long time, he was only the owner of a newly created labyrinth.

It was natural to endure many disadvantages in terms of information, and understanding the complex relationships between labyrinths was almost impossible.

But he couldn’t just stand idly by because it was impossible.

From the day he acquired the labyrinth, he had no choice but to struggle as he was incorporated into the underground ecosystem of eat or be eaten.

Even if he couldn’t fully understand how the game was being played, what the monster called the Black Merchant was thinking, or what the sinister nobles of the deep were up to, he had to create a foothold to survive.

“Hoo.”

To do that, he had to first identify his own problems.

The biggest problem was the incomplete awakening and the lack of knowledge that a High Lord should possess.

If he had properly inherited the memories of the High Lord, he wouldn’t have been caught off guard like a fool without knowing how the game was being played.

“Damn nobles.”

The culprits of all this were the nobles of the deep, including Anatolius.

Among them, the ones who most actively interfered with the awakening were Anatolius of Iron Blood and Brunhild, the Queen of Corruption.

Anatolius was the one who handed over Morrigan’s summoning stone, and there were many reasons to suspect the Queen of Corruption.

This was because he had already confirmed that Song Jong-cheol, who had guided him to Ustus, was with Brunhild’s messenger, Tyrenon.

If the two Counts had intentionally interfered with the normal awakening, the reason was obvious.

The Counts of the deep would have been concerned about a situation where the powers of a High Lord, which were stronger than necessary, would fully bloom and exceed their capabilities.

In fact, Kim Jin-woo, who had not inherited his memories, possessed power that was exactly equal to that of a Count of the deep.

To make matters worse, he became intoxicated with power without even properly inheriting it, and he overestimated himself.

There was no easier opponent than a careless one, so it was truly a situation that looked like a well-prepared meal for the sinister Counts.

But it wasn’t anymore.

He realized his ignorance through his conversation with Catherine and identified his own problems. He had no intention of moving according to the Counts’ intentions anymore.

So, he pondered what he should do after leaving the auction house.

His eyes deepened as he contemplated the path he should take, and his aura became heavy.

“Oooooooo!”

While he was lost in thought, a commotion broke out in the auction house. The cheers that erupted from the general seating area were enough to wake even Kim Jin-woo, who had been completely absorbed in his thoughts.

“How much is it!”

“Hurry up and reveal it!”

The excited participants were shouting over each other, but he, who had been preoccupied with other thoughts, couldn’t grasp the situation and could only blink.

As if sensing his confusion, the Myoin assistant, who had been silently watching from behind, intervened at the right moment and explained the situation.

“An additional bid has just been placed, and the amount seems to be considerable. Judging from the auctioneer’s surprise, I think it must be an enormous amount that cannot be compared to the amounts that have been offered so far.”

“What?”

Even Kim Jin-woo, who had no interest in the auction, couldn’t help but be intrigued by those words. So, he listened to the Myoin assistant’s words and observed the scene below the stage.

“Tell us! Tell us! Tell us!”

The excited participants in the general seating area were shouting ‘Tell us!’ as if they were possessed, and the Imp auctioneer was running around the stage like a madman.

“The highest bid in the history of auctions hosted by the Black Merchant has just been recorded!”

Perhaps the bid was higher than expected, the Black Merchant emphasized that it was the highest bid in auction history.

“So how much is it!”

“Stop stalling and tell us!”

The loud shouts and the gentle rebukes, the high and low of the voices were different, but the sentiment was the same: curiosity about the bid.

“An enormous amount that would be enough to upgrade an average labyrinth to its limit and still have enough to grow several more labyrinths to their limit!”

Could the screams of joy be like this? The auctioneer tormented the participants with a voice that was about to break.

“A whopping 250,000 Gems, equivalent to about 100 high-grade Down Gems, has been offered as the bid!”

As soon as the auctioneer finished speaking, silence fell over the noisy auction house.

“250,000 Gems! 250,000 Gems! Not 25,000 Gems, but a whopping 250,000 Gems!”

The auctioneer, who had been completely heated up, shouted the bid repeatedly, perhaps because he was flustered by the unexpected silence.

But the auctioneer’s worries were unfounded. The participants in the general seating area were only momentarily speechless in surprise at the enormous amount, and then they let out a cheer a beat later.

“Woo-hoo!”

“That’s insane!”

The owners of the labyrinths, who would have been despondent about their situation of being pushed back by the financial power of the VIPs or revealed their greed if it had been a mediocre amount, expressed cheers and admiration at the outrageous amount.

At this moment, they weren’t excluded from the auction; they were as excited as if they were participating in a festival.

Indeed, the amount of 250,000 Gems was enormous.

Even the Baron’s seal, which was treated as the most precious item, was traded for less than 100,000 Gems, so if 250,000 Gems came out as the auction price, it was impossible to even guess how great the item was.

Kim Jin-woo, wondering about the identity of the item with such a high price tag, narrowed his eyes and looked at the stage.

“250,000 Gems! Are there any more than 250,000 Gems!”

The auctioneer was holding something in his hand, but it was difficult to know the identity of the item because he was shaking it while making a fuss.

“This item is the core of a labyrinth.”

The Myoin assistant, who had been watching Kim Jin-woo’s expression, subtly intervened and started talking.

“Just the core of a labyrinth?”

He had expected something extraordinary because an outrageous amount had been offered as the bid, but it was just the core of a labyrinth.

As he took a step back with a somewhat disappointed face, the Myoin assistant continued to speak.

“If it were a normal labyrinth core, the bid would not have been so high. But the labyrinth core that is being sold this time is not an ordinary core.”

“How great is the labyrinth that they are demanding such a high price for?”

At his words, the Myoin assistant paused for a moment and replied.

“A replica that recreates the achievements and fortresses of the old monarchs, a copy of the Great Labyrinth.” The moment Kim Jin-woo heard the words ‘Great Labyrinth,’ he felt dazed as if he had been struck in the head.

“I don’t know how complete the restoration is, but it is certainly precious and valuable in itself.”

As soon as he finished speaking, cheers erupted from the auction house once again.

“300,000 Gems have been offered! 300,000 Gems!”

The auctioneer, with a face that looked like he was about to suffocate, shouted like a scream, and the participants in the general seating area jumped to their feet. They were completely excited as the competition that they thought was over continued again.

“350,000 Gems!”

But that wasn’t the end. The auction price continued to soar.

“400,000 Gems!”

“430,000 Gems!”

“450,000 Gems!”

Silence fell again at the endlessly soaring auction price. The auctioneer, who had been excited and running wild at first, now only stuttered the auction price with a pale face.

“550,000 Gems!”

Kim Jin-woo, who unexpectedly heard the name of the Great Labyrinth at an unexpected time and place, had lost interest in the auction.

He was only focused on the replica of the Great Labyrinth itself and tried to figure out the power and intentions of the Black Merchant.

But even he widened his eyes at the continuously soaring auction price.

He had gained enormous wealth by emptying the association’s vault, but even he could not participate in the current competition.

“Are the Dukes stepping in?”

“Even if they are Dukes, this is…”

His feelings were no different from those of the general participants who were muttering with pale faces.

“Please, wait a moment!”

Then, the auctioneer, who didn’t know what to do on the stage, received a gesture from someone and stopped the auction.

“Since the auction price has exceeded 600,000 Gems, we will declare a temporary break in the auction. From now on, those who wish to participate in the bidding should separately express their intention to participate. The subsequent auction will be conducted only with those who have guaranteed identity.”

It was said to be a guarantee of identity, but in the end, it meant that they would check whether they had the ability to pay, as the auction price was too high. Considering the strong pride of the nobles, it was a proposal that they would never accept, but no one complained because the item was so significant.

“Bring him here.”

While the auction was temporarily stopped, Kim Jin-woo ordered the Black Merchant to be summoned.

Since the Black Merchant had made the game so big, there was a high possibility that he would not have the capacity to pay attention to each VIP, but he would certainly not refuse his summons.

As he expected, the Black Merchant arrived after a short time.

“Get out.”

The Black Merchant, who abruptly dismissed the Myoin assistant, bowed to him with an unusually respectful attitude.

“What would you like to know?”

“Tell me, how did you get that?”

Kim Jin-woo, the only High Lord in the current underground, had to know the source of the Great Labyrinth replica.

He pressed the Black Merchant with sharp eyes, wondering how far they had approached the power of the High Lord.

“We didn’t get it.”

The Black Merchant replied calmly to his words, keeping his head down.

“We made it.”

The Black Merchant, who had been taking an excessively humble attitude since the last meeting, could not hide the pride in his voice.

“The reason why we couldn’t go on an outing for a year was not only because of the war that broke out in the underground.”

“You stayed indoors and devoted all your energy to creating the Great Labyrinth?”

The Black Merchant nodded and continued to speak.

“Our Black Merchant has devoted all its efforts to restoring the Great Labyrinth for a year. And as you can see, we succeeded.”

Kim Jin-woo’s heart was conflicted.

Undoubtedly, the Black Merchant would have poured unimaginable amounts of money and time into restoring the Great Labyrinth. If they even stopped the merchant business, which was their main source of income, it was clear how much effort they had put in.

In other words, the restoration of the Great Labyrinth could be said to be a remarkable achievement made by the Black Merchant themselves.

But what is this feeling of bubbling up as if I had been robbed? That’s probably because the Great Labyrinth was a power only allowed to the old monarchs, the High Lords.

So he openly expressed his dissatisfaction.

“I don’t like it.”

As he expressed his displeasure with a cold face, the Black Merchant looked at him and replied.

“The appearance of the Great Labyrinth replica is not necessarily a bad thing for the Lord.”

The Black Merchant’s face was quite confident, as if he wasn’t just making excuses.

“Isn’t it true that you are more interested in items that you can pay for and buy than items that are difficult and highly competitive?”