Dungeon Hunter - Chapter 115

Chapter 115: Episode 33. Auction of Devildom (2)

I could see the demons thinking hard. They were smacking their lips, thinking of what they could do after obtaining Mago.

The demons had not recovered their original power yet. So, if anyone who bought the highest monster at level 2 could possibly get back to leading position.

The demons had been building up their power. The one who took Mago would be able to accelerate their plans to massacre the humans or killing the other demons. That would disrupt the equilibrium.

“Ufa… He seems impatient,” I thought.

I turned to look at Archduke Ufa. There were fewer lackeys around him, unlike usual. Fagan Grewoolly was banned from the auction, but there should have been two more demons. However, they were not here since I had killed them.

No one knew about it. So, Ufa’s expression was priceless.

His mind seemed to be busy. He was showing hostility towards the other demons. His eyes were filled with greed while staring at Mago.

“Hey, Ufa. It looks a little shabby around you.”

The demon with the horn of the great goat, the one who had the perfect beauty that would not exist in any other world, the demon who was the rightful heir of the Dark Lord, Archduke Ariel laughed at Ufa.

She did not get on well with Ufa because their characters were so different.

Ufa frowned. “Shut up, Ariel! You pulled the rug out from under my feet. That was so different from your usual moves. So I won’t sit back anymore.”

“What do you mean, Ufa? I never plot things sneakily, unlike you.”

“Ha? Really? I never saw a normal bitch pretending to be noble, either.”

Ariel’s face changed. “I never shy away from a challenge. That is my creed. If you want to fight that much, just tell me. Although this is a childish taunt that you made because of your own stubbornness and delusion, it would be a good time to cut off our undesirable relationship.”

“Don’t be cocky. Ariel Diablo…”

The two of them growled at each other, revealing their teeth. Both of them knew they could not just start a fight. They were not sure if they could win. So, they shook each other’s trees, instead.

But what if one of them succeeded in getting Mago? I was sure that at least Ariel and Ufa would do their best to get Mago. Pandemonium and Oculus did not seem as desperate as the other two. In particular, I had no idea what Oculus was thinking.

When my eyes met Oculus’, he grinned widely. It was as if he was telling me that he knew me well. I did not like it.

Oculus definitely had something in his mind. He had fought against me once before and checked a little bit of my power. But still, he seemed pretty relaxed.

“He must have prepared something,” I thought.

He told me that he obtained important information about me in exchange for his arm. I had no idea what that information was, but depending on what it was, I would need to change the way I dealt with him.

“Where is your arm, Oculus?”

“…”

Oculus quickly dropped his grin and turned away.

“Tut-tut. He is not very social.”

The one who slandered Oculus was Pandemonium. Pandemonium was very negative and critical, so it was better to just ignore him. But Pandemonium did not stop.

“Don’t you think so, Randalf Bruciel?”

“I have no idea.”

I suppressed my pounding heart. Throughout my life, including the past one, I had no connection with Pandemonium. It was the first time that he had ever talked to me like this. This meant that I was somewhat acknowledged, since Pandemonium did not like to talk with lower-class demons. He didn’t even like to talk to his own demons.

He was the type who would quietly stab others from the back. That was the impression I got from Pandemonium. I quietly opened the Mind’s Eye.

Name: Pandemonium

Occupation: Archduke of Devildom (Dungeon Master)

Title:

<ul>

Spell Breaker (Epic, Mana +10)

Prophet of Apocalypse (Epic, Intelligence +10)

Viper’s Tongue (Ex U, Mana +8)

</ul>

Capability:

Power 80 Intelligence 82(+10) Speed 91 Strength 78 Mana 85(+18)

Potential (416+28/500)

Others: He has eaten the Spirit of Death. The words he spits out have an aura of death.

Skills: Spell Break (Epic), Unique Barrier (Epic), Death Force (Epic), Amazing Observation (U)

[Comparison]

Pandemonium

Power 80 Intelligence 92 Speed 91 Strength 78 Mana 103 Potential (416+28/500)

Randalf Bruciel

Power 96 Intelligence 93 Speed 91 Strength 85 Mana 98 Potential (412+51/500)

I had a higher total capabilities. After I obtained the Infinity Armor, I had been growing slowly but steadily, and the difference was becoming obvious. These days, my statistics had been increased by 1 Power, 1 Speed, 2 Intelligence, and 2 Mana. But he was still an Archduke. His pure capabilities were very high.

Pandemonium frowned. “You wicked thing. You used a skill to read me, didn’t you?”

I calmly answered, “What are you talking about?”

“There is no way I was wrong because I know the most about spells.”

“Then, I guess I did use a skill to read you.”

There was no need to argue. Especially, if the opponent was Pandemonium. The longer the argument went, the more tired I would become. Although I had never talked to him before, I knew that much at least.

“You are a mysterious demon. Tell me the truth. Did you kill Ufa’s demons?”

It looked like he had breached the subject that he was suspicious about.

At the same time, the mana around me changed a little bit. His skill, the Unique Barrier (Epic) was spreading. It seemed like he wanted to withhold information.

“He doesn’t want the other demons to hear about it,” I thought.

Information was power. Pandemonium knew that well. I did not know how he concluded that I was the one, but it was a really surprising observation. However, I wasn’t kind enough to give him the answer he was seeking.

“Pandemonium. I think you did it.”

I didn’t say it sincerely. I said it menacingly to warn him that if he was not sure, he should not mess with me. But Pandemonium replied firmly.

“Ufa is lazy by nature, but once he makes up his mind, he can become very, very annoying. I’m very much aware of that. Why would I make such a fuss?”

Indeed, he understood Ufa very well.

The reason I could kill Ufa’s three demons was because he did not recognize the seriousness of the situation. Apart from Fagan Grewoolly, the other demons were mediocre ones. So, he mustn’t have cared about them.

But things had changed. Ever since Duke Fagan Grewoolly died, Ufa’s camp bonded tightly. They were probably gritting their teeth trying to find out the real culprit.

I answered, snorting, “Was the reason ever important to us?”

“Ha-ha. Yes, you are right. But still, you haven’t answered my question yet. I think the other Archdukes are ignoring you since they had too much to think. But I think the one who nudged Ufa was you or Ariel.”

“Even if I do nothing, you will still fight and destroy each other. Why would I even bother? And in the first place, weren’t you the ones who thought that I could not do anything alone?”

“The reason doesn’t matter,” Pandemonium said. “And aren’t you the one who twisted our prejudice? The things you had done in the auction for the past two years… if that was for attracting our attention, I will tell you, you have succeeded. Thanks to you, things are more interesting now.”

His Unique Barrier disappeared. And he walked away as if nothing had happened.

“Is he looking down on me?”

It looked like Pandemonium was convinced that I was the culprit. Of course, he would not give that information to Ufa. If I fought against Ufa, it would bode better for him anyway. So, he did what he did to instigate a fight.

“Dear me!” I thought.

Maybe I was too arrogant because I had memories of my past life. They weren’t puppet dolls that could be controlled as I wished. This might have happened because I lowered my guard down somewhere.

“I guess it won’t be easy.”

I was sure that this year’s Auction of Devildom would be the starting point for the real battle.

“Ladies and gentlemen! Thanks for coming to the Auction of Devildom this year! I, Deboron, happily greet all of you.”

In the large venue, as the curtains drew back, Deboron appeared dressed up as a clown.

He made a profound curtsy and looked around the hall. His face seemed very innocent.

“Oh, the number of demons is smaller this year! As the host, I feel sorry to lose customers. But we can’t stop the auction. And as you saw, this year’s items are extraordinary! Every single thing is a precious treasure.”

“Stop chattering,” Ufa said.

“…I am sorry, sir. Then shall we begin?”

Ufa was in a hurry. It was clear that someone was targeting him. The gap between him and the others had begun to increase. So, he wanted to get things from this auction to keep the balance.

The other demons were also anxious to see the progress of the auction. The items they had seen were way better than last year’s. It was not just “important” for them to get the items, it was a “must” to get them.

“The average points of this year have risen so sharply, so we were very concerned. We could not sell the same-leveled items as last year. As such, we had to prepare a very special item for the first one.

“Let me introduce the item to you! It’s an Epic Grade item. You can increase your force rapidly with only this! The Necklace of Highendall!”

A few Spirits of Darkness brought out a jewelry box. Deboron proudly introduced the object in the box. It was a necklace that emitted a dreamy atmosphere as if it was a miniature moon. The mana in it was very pure, too.

“It came out,” I nodded lightly.

I knew this item well, and it was one of the must-buys. Originally, Ariel was the owner of this necklace. But… would she able to get it this time again?

I opened the Mind’s Eye.

Name – The Necklace of Highendall (Epic)

Description: A necklace once belonging to Highendall, who was a prophet and the master of the sword. He was drunk on the mana of the moon that shines in the dark sky. It is said he became the moon itself after he died.

<ul>

The mana will rise by 3 points when the moon rises. After the user collects the moonlight, the user can use the special swordsmanship “Moonlight Drop (Epic, Passive).”

</ul>

** If the user’s mana is over 90, the speed of collecting moonlight will increase.

Actually, the necklace itself did not have a significant effect. There was an option that could increase mana by 3 when the moon came up, but it was hard to say if it was that valuable.

Even a Unique grade item could do that, too. But I would get to learn the special swordsmanship, called “Moonlight Drop.”

The special swordsmanship meant that the item could display more power than the original grade, depending on how it was used.

Moonlight Drop could be a one-sword or two-sword skill. I started to use two swords after I had got the Sword of the Emperor. So, I desperately needed this skill.

All the demons activated their observation skills. Soon, their eyes shone with greed. As if he liked this change, Deboron smiled widely.

He said, “The price is starting from… 1 million points.”