Dungeon Hunter - Chapter 116

Chapter 116: Episode 33. Auction of Devildom (3)

One million!

The starting price was high. It was close to the point average.

But if it comes with the Highendall name, this item probably was worth it. Highendall was known as the master of swords. Even though there was not much information about him, he was known as an unrivaled demon and the expert in swordsmanship.

“One million.”

“Oh! You bid without hesitation! Archduke Ariel Diablo bids 1 million points!”

Ariel Diablo eyes shone. She was the one who could handle all kinds of weapons, the Weapon Master. It was only natural that she had her eye on the item that would enable her to learn the special swordsmanship.

She was greedy and had a strong obsession with new fighting skills. All the demons knew about it, so they could not challenge her easily.

Yes. It was a challenge.

If it was merely a weapon, things would be easier. However, this necklace comes with a very unique swordsmanship. As the saying went, “The master craftsman doesn’t blame his tools,” every weapon she obtained showed high destructive power. She was able to do that because she had been learning all kinds of techniques.

And if she learned the special swordsmanship of Highendall, called Moonlight Drop, it was obvious that her skills would improve. I was sure because I had seen her in my past life.

Ariel, who recognized the value of swordsmanship, was excited. Her long goat’s horn became longer, and she was spreading her mana.

“1.1 million,” I opened my mouth and called out my bid.

At the moment, the atmosphere of the venue became cold. Ariel stared at me coldly, but I didn’t care at all. Auction bids were basically open to everyone. I didn’t think it was necessary to feel diffident to challenge or respect each other.

If there was something I wanted, I could just get it. I had lots of points, more than last year and two years earlier. I did not know how many points Ariel Diablo had, but she would not have more than me.

Deboron nodded his head. “1.1 million points! Count Randalf Bruciel! You are a strong man!”

“1.2 million.”

“Oh! Archduke Ariel. I’m expecting a fierce battle.”

It looked like she wanted the Necklace of Highendall badly. I took a moment to look at the other demons. The starting points were 1 million. The demons, at least those above Duke, would be able to join the bid. They probably earned an enormous number of points when the angel invasion event had occurred.

But now, Ufa’s camp was quiet. What they needed was something that could restore their power immediately. So, they needed strong monsters. They did not care about the special swordsmanship. It looked like some of Ufa’s demons wanted the necklace, but Ufa was suppressing them. Oculus and Pandemonium also seemed to be aiming for something else.

“I guess she is my only competitor.”

So, there would be no other competition if I outbid Ariel. It seemed like the other demons would not join now, so it would be okay to go easy on it.

“Keen competition? I don’t think so.”

“1.5 million.”

“Will the same thing happen this year again? Count Randalf bids 1.5 million points!”

Last year, I took most of the things in the auction. And I intend to do the same this year.

Ariel’s expression was stiff. Of course. The average points were 1.3 million, and I alone raised it by about 300,000. The actual average points were close to 1 million.

Even though she was Archduke, it would be hard to have more than 1.5 million. Furthermore, it would be too reckless to use it all here.

“I’ve got 1.5 million. Is there anyone else?” Deboron carefully looked over the venue. And he went on, “Congratulations! The Necklace of Highendall is won by Count Randalf. You will never regret it. The winning item will be… well, you already know, don’t you?”

The items will be delivered immediately to the dungeon through the crack, after the auction. Deboron gave me a playful wink. I quietly crossed my arms.

The next auction item was interesting enough to capture my attention.

“I will introduce you to an unusual Lich. Ordinary Liches remind you of ‘death.’ But this one, oddly enough, talks about ‘life.’ Here is the Lich, Gaparam!”

There was no cage. A Lich in white robe walked out in a grand manner. It didn’t have a rotten smell, as though it wore fresh skin. But its movement was awkward. But that was not the only surprising part.

“I am looking for a demon who can support me to continue my research. My annual research cost is roughly 3 million in terms of points. The man who helped me so far is broke, so I inevitably signed a contract with the Spirits of Darkness. They told me that there would be a lot of demons here who can help support my research.”

“…So, he said,” Deboron said.

This was a bit unusual. No. It was beyond unusual. A monster presented himself.

“I am sure I heard his name before.”

I actually had been thinking about it ever since I received the note from Deboron. I knew I heard about him somewhere, but I could not remember where.

“Research life? What does that mean? Explain more,” Ufa said.

Gaparam took out something from his white robe. It was a glass flask that contained something like an embryo inside.

“This is a Homunculus that I created myself. Although it was a failure, I think I have made some progress. My goal is to create a more complete Homunculus than the one created by ‘Delisys,’ the demon known as the god of magic and biotechnology.”

Homunculus. A perfect, flawless creature.

It was a supreme monster that was created by Delisys. Demons didn’t know if Delisys was human, demon, or fallen angel. Regardless, he was the best of the best in those fields.

Homunculus only took a month to grow to adulthood. After that, it only needed three months to learn everything. The problem was, its life was too short. It usually died within three years. The meaning of a more complete Homunculus probably meant increasing its maximum lifespan. However, no one had solved the problem yet.

“Nonsense,” said Pandemonium.

Pandemonium was a demon that mastered spells, and an expert in magic. He was skeptical of the completion of a truly perfect Homunculus.

Gaparam frowned. “Why do you think it is nonsense? There is no limit in magic. Homunculus is just something on its journey to perfection. There is no reason that I can’t make it.”

“How long did you research?” Pandemonium asked with a smirk.

Gaparam answered, “I’ve been working on it for 360 years.”

“740 years. It’s more than twice the duration. That is how long I studied it.”

As I thought about it, Pandemonium was the oldest among the Archdukes. He looked old, but it was hard to guess his age. He was known to have existed even before the previous Dark Lord.

“Are you saying it is impossible just because you could not do it? Ha. I think you are spouting nonsense!”

“It’s just an impossible field. Should I simplify it for you? Add 1 to 1 to get 2. If I get three by adding something else here, it is another problem entirely. Likewise, if you take something out of the equation. It will only result in something completely different. The Homunculus is already complete. It just has an extremely short life expectancy.”

It was cynical and critical. But I looked at Gaparam differently.

“Homunculus… Gaparam… Special event.”

The memory of Gaparam came to me. A special event had happened abruptly before the final war in my past life. Gaparam had appeared with a group of completed Homunculus and Chimera corps. Then, the dungeon of a duke had been smashed.

As the final war approached, the demons’ capabilities and powers were beyond imagination. Gaparam had attacked one of the dukes with exceptional power.

Gaparam had been killed from countless attacks by the duke’s cliques, but he had laughed. He had said when he died, “The research is complete. The confirmation is over.”

The Homunculus that I saw that time was truly amazing. It learned everything quickly and became strong rapidly. But it had the issue of a short lifespan so, there was a limit. However, the Homunculus that Gaparam had made, exceeded the limit. The Homunculus even battled the highest Demonic Dragon of 4Lv.

“He said the research was complete.”

I looked at Gaparam. He seemed pretty upset. The reactions of the demons around him were also cold.

He should not have appeared in the auction, originally. It seemed like he joined accidentally while the Spirits of Darkness gathered monsters that matched the high points.

“It will succeed. All the steps are set! All I need is to continue the study!” He shouted, but the reaction was still cold.

“Hmm. Homunculus…”

“That is such an inefficient monster.”

“I can’t waste three million points a year. Well, I bet no one can earn that many points anyway.”

That was true. All things aside, 3 million points a year was a bit extreme.

“I only need that many points for the early stage. After I set up my workshop and settle down, a million a year will be enough!” Gaparam was desperate. His voice was trembling.

But it was still very expensive. One million points cannot be taken for granted. They were the amount that an ordinary demon could barely collect in a year. The demons were quiet. At that moment, I called for Deboron.

“Hey, Deboron.”

“Oh, yes. Count Randalf. How can I help you?”

“So, what is the starting price?”

“Oh, it starts from zero. His ability is no different from the average Lich… We put him up as a special case.”

“You damn demons!” Gaparam shouted. “You guys have no idea how important my study is! Ignorance is a sin! You are all the sinners!”

“…But I don’t think he will be popular,” Deboron sighed. He went on, “Shut up, Gaparam. You promised us that you will leave it to your fate. If anyone bids for you, your will is all up to that customer.”

“Damn it!” Gaparam stomped his feet angrily.

Anyway, if he had already signed a contract, his will was irrelevant. The only hope he had would be to meet a demon that would let him keep researching.

“I’m sorry for the interruption. Anyway, let’s continue with the auction. The introduction is done, and the starting price is zero, as I said. Please, just bid the points as you wish.”

Although he seemed troublesome, he was still a Lich. In the shop, it would cost 280,000 points to buy.

“1,000.”

“Then, I will call 5,000 points.”

“50,000!”

“100,000! I don’t think he is worth more than this price. He will just cause trouble anyway.”

The price had not risen from 100,000. The Auction of Devildom was an excellent opportunity to get good stuff at a cheap price. No demons would want to get a bad-tempered Lich that anybody could get from the points shop.

None of them were thinking about the Homunculus matter anymore. No one could afford to let him continue the research. Everyone just thought that that would be a waste of points. So, they just thought of treating him like a regular Lich.

Gaparam’s face was getting stiffer. He shook his body and clenched his fists. It seemed like he was pretty upset that his research was treated like this.

“We have 100,000 points. Anyone else?” Even Deboron looked like giving up.

Gaparam yelled in anger for the last time, “My study will be completed! No one could beat my perfect Homunculus! Why don’t you understand that?”

“Wow. He is totally insane. Deboron, can I withdraw my bid?”

“Sorry, sir. You can’t do that.”

There were only ridicule and contempt. Gaparam’s research was not recognized at all. Deboron shook his head and tried to close the auction quickly.

“Then, with 100,000—”

“500,000.”

“Count Randalf. Did I mishear?”

“I said 500,000, Deboron.”

Deboron rapidly blinked his eyes, but soon, he realized what was going on. For their benefit, it was better to sell anything more expensively.

Gaparam looked at Deboron, and Deboron nodded. He let him know that I was the only one who had enough points to support his research. Then, Gaparam finally relaxed.

“He is closing a losing deal.”

“He is still a mystery. Even though I watched him last year and the year before.”

Of course, the demons’ reactions were different than Gaparam’s.

“A Lich, Gaparam is won at 500,000 points! Congratulations, Count Randalf.”

Gaparam bowed deeply to me. After that, he raised his head and declared to the other demons.

“You stupid demons! I will make you regret it! My research will be completed! It will be too late when you want my study at that time!”

“Drag him out!”

Deboron even yelled at the end. Soon, Spirits of Darkness came and dragged Gaparam out forcibly. But, Gaparam did not look too upset about it.

There was silence for a moment. Indeed, he left the most impression among the monsters. Well, obviously, in a bad way.

“Hmm, hmm… I will introduce the next item right away. Do you know about ‘The Valley of Souls?’ There is a legend related to it. So, we checked it out, and found the ‘Soul Butterfly!'”

The auction continued.