*****
NOVELASIUS
- TL: the guild
- Discord: https://discord.gg/GBKEa55867
- Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/topasius
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ENJOY~ PYUUN~
*****
The Fall Harvest Festival (2)
A platinum coin. Equivalent to one hundred gold coins.
The things you can do with that amount of money are countless.
For instance, you could buy an entire floor of a prominent building in the city’s bustling district, or if not a wyvern, then the finest horse from the southern mountains.
Even among the most lucrative Guardians, earning a platinum coin is a rare achievement.
In the Guardian Academy, only a select few, who can be counted on one hand, qualify for jobs that pay such sums.
If you’re a 1st-grade Guardian, you might earn it solo; for a 2nd-grade, you’d need a party; as for a 3rd-grade Guardian, they wouldn’t even be considered for such high-stakes hunts—it’s a reward reserved for only the highest of ranks.
And yet, here it was.
For just a day.
No, not even a full day—half a day at most.
They wouldn’t likely spend until midnight, so really, just one dinner.
To spend a platinum coin, just for that fleeting moment?
Isabelle—no, everyone present—turned to the person who had boldly declared this bid.
Who in their right mind had such an interest in Korin Lork that they’d be willing to burn through a platinum coin for just half a day?
In this Academy, who besides Marie Dunarev could afford such reckless spending?
The person who had spent that outrageous sum—a full platinum coin—was none other than an unexpected middle-aged man.
“Who could possibly—Marde?!”
“Ah, it’s been a while, Isabelle.”
Marde Dunareff. Marie’s father.
If Marie was a princess, then he was the Emperor of their empire. Commonly known as the “Potato Emperor.”
He was the true ruler of the southern empire, with wealth that was said to be unmatched across the continent. And there he was, at the auction.
– The Duke of Dunareff? Why is he here?
– What could bring such a big shot to this event…?
“Why…? What are you…?”
“Heh, Isabelle, did you think I wouldn’t see through your scheme? This must be Marie’s doing, asking you to win a date with that charlatan, Korin!”
“Uh…”
The Duke of Dunareff could barely bring himself to utter the word “date,” as if the very idea made him sick.
“Korin Lork! As long as I have eyes to see, Marie will never be by your side today! She will spend the entire day on a date with her dear old dad! Wahahahahaha!”
– Oh…
– Good heavens…
– Wow, that’s… something.
– This is kind of a buzzkill.
Yes, Duke Marde was here solely to prevent Marie from winning Korin in the auction.
To monopolize his daughter’s time, to keep her boyfriend at bay, he had made the ultimate move of bidding himself—a choice that was the very definition of overbearing!
“Uh, Father-in-law?”
“Don’t call me that!”
Korin raised his hand in disbelief, but the Duke was having none of it. Korin, however, spoke his mind.
“You’re being… a bit embarrassing.”
“History is written by the victors!”
It seemed the Duke had lost all sense of reason in his jealousy. Isabelle wholeheartedly agreed with Korin and cautiously raised the bid.
“110 coins…”
“Haha, Isabelle, my daughter may have plenty of money, but can she really compete with me? 1,000 coins!”
“Uncle…”
He raised his hand with such confidence, but to everyone else, it was nothing short of ridiculous.
‘A money game like this isn’t even a competition…’
No matter how much Marie could amass, she was still only an heir. Competing financially against the Emperor himself? It was absurd.
“Hoo-hoo, seems like there are no other bidders. Then, I shall—”
“Honey. What are you doing here?”
“Gulp!”
A voice entirely unexpected entered the scene, and with it, another person.
Elencia Dunareff. The Empress of the empire. The Duchess of Dunareff.
“Dearest…! Weren’t you supposed to be touring the festival with the kids and Marie?”
“I heard our Korin was up for auction, so I came to have a look. I never expected to find you here.”
The Duke stiffened like he’d seen a ghost. For what use is an emperor’s title now?
“Were you trying to sabotage Marie’s date?”
“Oh, oh no, dear…!”
For despite being an emperor, he was still just a husband.
“I swear, I can’t live with you! The kids are waiting, so come along!”
“Dearest…!”
Duke Marde was dragged away by his ear, much like a beast being led to the slaughter. He might have been a respected mage and the Potato Emperor, but he was no match for his knight-commander wife.
“Korin, dear son-in-law~ We should all have a family dinner soon!”
“Please take care, Mother.”
“Who’s your mother?! Huh? Who said that?! Gah…!”
As the Duke of Dunareff was dragged away by the Duchess, Isabelle carefully raised her hand.
“…1,000 gold coins.”
It was a much higher price than she had anticipated paying, but it was still within reason.
Certainly, no one but Duke Marde could have outbid a four-digit gold sum, leaving the rest too shocked to raise their hands.
Korin sighed in relief, thinking the bidding was over, but then—
“2,000 gold coins~”
– What?
Two thousand…?-
– 2,000?!
The arrival of yet another dark horse made the room freeze. Isabelle stiffened when she saw who it was.
“Korin, dear~”
A returning 3rd-year student. The saint who should have been at the sanctuary—Estelle, waved with a smile.
“Why are you here?!”
If she wanted to dine with him, she could’ve just asked. Why go through the trouble of spending money…?
“2,100 coins…”
“3,000 coins! Just finished a match.”
– A match? You mean the tournament? The quarterfinals started 30 minutes ago, didn’t they?
– Did she just wipe out her opponent and come straight here?
While the auction room was abuzz with shock, Isabelle felt her stomach churn.
Whenever she raised the bid by a single gold coin, her opponent countered by adding a thousand.
A thousand gold coins was an enormous leap. To an ordinary family, a single gold coin could cover living expenses for a month, but a thousand?
There were rumors going around that the Saint had lost her mind recently, but could they actually be true?
“Isabelle, dear~ I know someone must have put you up to this, but are you sure? It’s not your money, after all~”
Estelle Hadatha El Rath. The lovely pink-haired Saint had a tendency to get what she wanted.
“Ugh…”
Isabelle bit her lip in frustration. Estelle was the leader of the continent’s largest religious order, but not a business mogul with vast personal wealth.
Her status was strictly that of a Saint and a spiritual leader, not a financial powerhouse.
At least, that’s how it should have been.
But Estelle Hadatha El Rath was one of only two heirs to the throne of this country, and she had recently seized the assets of the deposed pope and cardinals.
If she were still a devout Saint, she would have gladly donated this wealth to the church, but she was no longer that person.
Having abandoned her old faith and seeking to become a new goddess herself, Estelle had swallowed up slush funds that even the imperial family would envy.
Of course, Isabelle didn’t know the details, but she could sense that she was outmatched in this financial showdown.
‘Marie said she didn’t care how much it cost…’
Isabelle knew that Marie’s monthly allowance was tens of thousands of gold coins. This was just the “maintenance” money she received from Duke Marde.
Her income from mines, fields, and estates was separate.
Marie was the kind of ultra-rich who could drop a hundred thousand gold coins and just shrug it off, thinking she’d have to be a little more frugal next month.
No matter how extravagant Estelle’s spending was, she couldn’t compete with that. But Isabelle, the one who had to spend the money, felt differently.
“Ugh…”
Her financial instincts were perfectly normal. Moving even a hundred gold coins was enough to make her nervous, let alone a thousand.
Of course, Estelle or Marie would have gladly spent the money to block a rival, but…
– So, so… there are no more bids… right? I, I’ll take that as final.
Faced with such an astronomical amount, the auctioneer, a trembling fourth-year student, could barely keep his composure.
And who could blame him? Three thousand gold coins—thirty platinum coins—was more than most Guardians could earn in a lifetime.
And to think it was being spent on just one meal? The scale of wealth on display was staggering.
“Then! It seems my little brother is mine for the day~”
Estelle cheerfully skipped up to the stage, as if she hadn’t just spent an unimaginable sum. She wrapped her arms around Korin’s waist and declared with pride,
“He’s mine now. Got it?”
Her confident declaration left everyone speechless.
······
···
Shortly after the auction, Marie eagerly approached Isabelle.
“Isabelle~ How did the auction go? Where’s Korin?”
“Uh… Marie, about that.”
Marie, smiling expectantly, was puzzled by Korin’s absence. Her golden eyes showed not a trace of doubt.
“Isabelle?”
“Well, you see…”
Isabelle explained everything. How Duke Marde had intervened, and how Estelle had ultimately won with a bid of three thousand gold coins.
“But… but why? I gave you a blank check…”
“Spending that much money on a single meal just seemed… unnecessary. Besides, you can dine with Korin whenever you want.”
“That’s not the point! I mean, it is, but it isn’t!”
It wasn’t just about the meal. It was about winning. About not letting anyone else take the opportunity away from her.
“I could have spent a million gold coins!”
“What?! You lunatic, get a grip!”
Isabelle was beginning to realize just how wealthy Marie truly was—and it terrified her.
In a luxurious hotel suite, the table was set with a lavish spread of steak and centuries-old wine. But the romantic atmosphere was heavy with silence.
“······.”
“······.”
The reason was simple. Korin had been staring intently at Estelle without saying a word since they had arrived.
His gaze was far from his usual gentle one.
“Um… little brother?”
“Don’t call me that.”
“Aw…”
“And stop with the pouting.”
“Ugh… are you mad?”
Estelle shrank back, clearly intimidated by the simmering anger in Korin’s demeanor.
If his anger had a maximum scale of ten, it was currently at a six. It wasn’t a full-blown rage, but the fact that he had never shown this side of himself before was significant.
“I really want to smack you, but I’m holding back because I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Why…”
“Are you seriously asking me that?”
“I really don’t know…”
Estelle looked genuinely confused, which only served to increase Korin’s irritation.
“Three thousand gold coins is not a joke. I never imagined you or Marie would go this far.”
“But… it’s not that much…”
“It is a lot, and it’s not an amount to be thrown around like this.”
“Well…! Well, would you rather have been won by Isabelle? Maybe by Duke Marde?”
“That’s not the point—”
“It is to me.”
Estelle stared directly at Korin, her expression serious.
“Three thousand gold coins? Sure, it’s not a small sum. But I spent it on something worthwhile, and I’m completely satisfied.”
She smiled brightly, with no trace of regret.
Korin found her attitude unsettling.
“There’s a limit to everything. I never intended for you all to buy the ribbons with money.”
Korin’s goal was simply to win the highest bid and earn the golden ribbon. He had expected Ren to win the auction with a modest bid, maybe twenty or thirty gold coins at most.
And he had planned to give the other ribbons as gifts to those who cared about him.
The idea that the ribbons would end up being bought felt utterly wrong to him.
Whether she understood this or not, Estelle’s expression hardened.
“Buying the ribbon with money?”
“······It ended up that way.”
Estelle reached out and gently took hold of Korin’s arm, pressing his hand against her cheek. She wanted him to feel her warmth.
“Sure, you could see it that way. But given the circumstances, both Marie and I would have acted the same.”
“······.”
“What we were trying to do wasn’t buy a ribbon. We were stopping you from being sold.”
Estelle’s gaze was intense, devoid of her usual playfulness. She knew it was a crude attempt. But she felt no shame, no regret.
“I know why you entered the auction. I know why you’re participating in so many events. You’re shouldering a burden and feel responsible, and I find that endearing. You’re not someone who can be bought. Money can’t buy you. But…”
Estelle’s eyes burned with emotion. Jealousy, possessiveness, a consuming desire to own this one person entirely.
“I can’t stand the thought of you being owned by someone else, even for a moment. It’s… so… very… unpleasant.”
“You’re giving it too much weight.”
“Isn’t that up to the situation?”
Estelle softened her gaze and smiled.
“At least for me, it’s a very big deal.”
Korin was puzzled by Estelle’s intense feelings for him. What had caused her to become so obsessively fond of him?
Before his return to the past, her interest had been a simple affection. But now…
Maybe it was because she had abandoned her faith. The Saint who once prayed for salvation and mercy had transferred her devotion to him instead.
“Sigh… Please be more careful next time. I’m not as strong as you think.”
“Hehe, I’ll be careful! Oh, right, the food will get cold. Should I cut the steak for you?”
“I’ll manage.”
Estelle beamed as she poured the wine.
Well, at least I’ll get to drink tonight, Korin thought as he reached for his glass.
– Sssssss
A sensation slithered up from his ankle to his calf.
Though blocked by the fabric of his trousers, Korin knew there was only one thing it could be, hidden beneath the table.
“You know, little brother.”
Estelle propped her chin on her hand, a sultry smile playing on her lips.
“How about we play a naughty game?”
Her smile was irresistibly seductive.
*****
NOVELASIUS
- TL: the guild
- Discord: https://discord.gg/GBKEa55867
- Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/topasius
*****
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