Ding– ding– ding–

“The fifth item has been sold to customer number 101!!”

I succeeded.

“Unfortunately, the upcoming items will be even more beautiful and magnificent. Now! Let me introduce the next item!”

The later the item appears in the auction, the more intense and fierce the competition becomes.

Items that are valuable and precious enough to be coveted by many people are placed in the latter part of the auction, while moderately interesting items are placed in order from the beginning.

The fifth item that I won was a product that came out in the early to middle part of the auction, and although it was an ambiguous product to be called valuable, a fierce competition took place among a small number of people, making the tension in the auction hall rise even more.

Numbers 35, 71, 99, and myself, 101.

As the price rose, the number of people calling out their numbers gradually decreased, and at the point where competitors stopped themselves, I jumped into the auction by doubling the price.

35, 71, and 99, who had been competing until the end rather than giving up like other people who were gradually giving up as the price exceeded their limit, looked at me as soon as the item they had been aiming for was sold to me.

It seemed like they were staring at me, but…

“Hoho.”

I covered my mouth with a feathered white mask and raised my fan, trying to suppress my laughter that was about to burst out. But I couldn’t help but make a sound because I was happy that I got what I wanted.

There may be people from the duchy and the second prince among the three people who competed against me in this auction house.

I don’t know who the other person is.

‘Well, it doesn’t matter. The important thing is that it’s in my hands.’

Expecting that there would be opponents who were aiming for the item that I had already won, I came to the auction house prepared to call out even a million crowns.

Ten thousand crowns was enough money to buy a small fiefdom, and I brought the family’s check just in case the price went higher than expected. But I decided to use it only in the unavoidable situation of losing the item because I had to act so as not to leave a trace as much as possible.

But the winning bid price ended exactly at 5,000 crowns, and I was able to easily resolve it with the money I had. I breathed a sigh of relief inside.

“Let’s go back, Sir Roim.”

“Yes, madam.”

As I got up and left my seat, Sir Roim, the escort knight standing behind me, knocked on the door twice.

The door of the private room where I was opened at the sound. As I walked slowly, the auction house employee closed the door of the room I came out of and bowed.

When I went down to the first floor, there was another employee standing in front of the stairs, but unlike the ordinary employee who opened and closed the door, he had shiny clothes, was neat, and had a silver badge on his chest.

“Are you leaving?”

Nodding my head at the employee’s question, the smiling employee lowered his eyebrows grabbed me once.

“It’s unfortunate. There are still many items in the upcoming auctions that guests will be interested in.”

Without saying anything in response to his words, I smiled brightly and covered my mouth with a fan, the only empty part of my mask.

The auction staff who held me was quite disappointed with my gesture of refusal.

‘Well, I bought something for 5,000 crowns, one you thought wasn’t a big deal.’

The employee who stopped holding me once pointed to one side and guided me.

“Then let me guide you to where your item is.”

I spent almost a month organizing and reviewing everything I had experienced and remembered before my regression.

Excluding things that I’m not certain about, I thoroughly organized the things I must obtain, along with the methods and places to obtain them, and the people associated with them. Among them, the first thing to appear chronologically and obtainable is the item I won at this auction house.

A sapphire ring that holds the color of the sea.

“Here it is.”

As I went deeper into the auction house, there was a large door securely locked with multiple locks. The employee opened the door with a key and led me further inside along the long corridor.

Considering the size of the auction house itself, it seemed to be quite deep inside. I opened the internal door that made me think so and let Roim in.

While I was looking around the room, the employee who opened the lid of the box where the auction item was stored showed me the item and then closed the box, handing it to Sir Roim.

This item is like a gemstone that has yet to prove its worth.

There will come a time within a few years when this item will be used.

“The color of the sea suits you very well, madam.”

I obtained one of the things I must have.

It was tiring to work diligently from morning to obtain this, but it was certainly worth it.

Nice to meet you. Oksanna’s ring.

ㅡㅡㅡ

Oksanna’s ring.

It is a ring with an unrefined sapphire that has a subtle mix of green and blue colors and is simply thickly placed on a bronze ring. In terms of current aesthetics, the design may be considered a bit crude.

The ring itself is nothing special, but the sapphire on top of it is a valuable gemstone that is worth quite a lot on its own.

But, of course, I didn’t buy this as an accessory.

“Come here, Sir Roim.”

I called Sir Roim and took out a small black leather pouch that was jingling inside the cape I wore over my dress.

Then I untied the tightly closed pouch and took out something from inside it.

“Madam, this is…”

I raised my finger to my lips towards Sir Roim, who was surprised.

“Shh!”

It was no wonder that Sir Roim was surprised because what I took out of my pocket was a ring that looked exactly like the one I won at the auction.

As Sir Roim approached me, I opened the jewelry box, switched the ring I was holding with the one that looked the same, closed it again, and handed it to Sir Roim.

“Please keep this safe.”

ㅡㅡㅡ

“Goodbye.”

I handed a silver coin to the employee who followed me to the entrance and said goodbye. He bowed his waist in gratitude towards me and I smiled and turned away from the auction house.

“This way.”

Following Sir Roim towards the carriage that was waiting for us, we entered an alley. Since the auction was not over yet, there were no people coming out, so it was quite deserted with just Sir Roim and I leaving the alley.

Clang–

“Madam, step back!”

I heard the sound of metal friction for a moment and Sir Roim perfectly covered my sight and drew his sword.

It happened so quickly that I didn’t know what was going on and just hid behind Sir Roim. But soon, I realized what was happening.

“Who are you!”

It seemed hopeless to look at the situation over Sir Roim’s shoulder since he was bigger than me, so I just lowered my head and could barely see the situation under his armpits.

Three people were waiting for me in front of the carriage, and they were wearing navy blue hoods. They weren’t really hiding their identity since they weren’t wearing masks under their hoods.

And next to them, the carriage driver was lying unconscious on the ground.

“Don’t move! How dare you, do you even know who this is!”

“That watcher hiding behind. Let’s talk for a moment.”

“Step back. I’ll cut you if you come closer.”

As one of the men reached out his hand and approached, Sir Roim tightly grasped his sword with his right hand and placed his other arm behind him, pushing me back against his back.

“I’m sorry, madam.”

Then he whispered quietly.

I tapped Sir Roim’s back twice as if to say I was okay, and when I looked up, I saw sweat dripping down his neck from behind the visible part of his neck.

He was tense.

“I want to talk to the lady in the back. If you agree to my request, I won’t lay a finger on you.”

“How can we believe the words of the ones who killed the carriage driver?”

“Ah.”

The man on the far right looked at the fallen carriage driver and nodded in agreement.

“We didn’t kill him. He was making too much noise, so we scared him and he fainted. By the way, lady? Come out for a moment.”

“Madam, please ignore them. Don’t move behind me.”

“Anyway, all trained dogs are the same.”

“Madam? You’re not a lady? You’re older than I thought.”

I felt Sir Roim’s arm that was wrapped around me tighten as he chuckled at their words.

I tapped Sir Roim’s back twice again and revealed myself in front of them.

“How dare you!”

“Sir Roim, don’t respond to their lowly words one by one. That’s right. Do you have something to say to me?”

“Madam!”

“It’s okay.”

“Hello. Lady–no, madam.”

“I don’t think you were calling me out so eagerly just to greet me. What’s the matter?”

“You’re colder than I thought.”

What they want is clearly the ring of Oksanna, which I won in the auction today.

One of the three people who competed until the end must be the one.

“What do you want?”

“Madam probably already knows?”

“The item I won in the auction.”

“Yes. You’re right. You’re wise.”

“Who sent you guys?”

“That’s a bit stupid.”

As they laughed and insulted me, Sir Roim blocked my path again, and I asked the laughing ones in a bad mood.

“If I give you what you want, can you swear that you’ll just leave?”

“Of course. Madam. We swear that there will be no contact.”

“How can I believe that?”

“How can we make you believe it?”

“Make everyone, except you, to step away.”

“That’s a bit. Your dog might attack me.”

“I swear on my honor. Sir, put away your sword.”

“Madam. That’s really dangerous.”

“It’s an order. Put it away.”

“…Yes.”

Sir Roim hesitated for a moment but put away his sword at my command, never taking his eyes off them.

“You know that even nobles die for their honor if they play on the streets. Good. Madam.”

As soon as the man who accepted my condition snapped his fingers, the other two disappeared into the alley we came out of.

“Well then. Will you keep your promise?”

“Sir, bring out the item.”

Sir Roim took out a box from the pouch tied to his uniform and handed it to the man, nodding his head as if to hand it over, and walked forward.

“Wait.”

“What?”

“You’re coming at me with eyes that look like you’re going to kill me. Shouldn’t I feel uneasy?”

“What do you want me to do about it?”

“Madam. Bring it for me.”

“That’s ridiculous…!”

If I keep doing this, I’m going to arrive at the dukedom later than planned, so I sighed and called Sir Roim.

“Phew, Sir, bring it.”

“Madam! That’s really not allowed!”

“Oh. I won’t touch a single strand of the Madam’s hair. I swear.”

“What’s the point of your damn oath?”

“Fine. Good. I swear on my master’s honor.”

“Keep your nonsense to a minimum–”

I was getting more and more tired of their bickering.

Since it was a fake ring anyway, if I had gone through this much trouble, the man wouldn’t have suspected it, so I decided to quickly hand over the ring.

“Stop! We’ll leave this item on the floor, and if we step back, you can take it. Is that okay?”

“Fine. Let’s do that.”

Sir Roim put the item on the floor and stepped back about ten steps with me, and the man slowly approached.

Without taking his eyes off us, he picked up the item and held it up, smiling brightly and stroking the box with his other hand as he spoke.

“Good. I’ll keep my promise. You don’t have to see us again.”

“Just get lost.”

“I’m glad you gave it up so easily. Madam. Don’t regret this item too much. It was too big for you to have in the first place.”

“Well, that may be true. It might be more appropriate for your master than me. I thought it was a rather insignificant item.”

When I mentioned his master, the man’s demeanor changed in an instant, as if I had deliberately provoked him.

“Haha. Madam. Can I give you some advice before you go?”

“Don’t bother.”

“What?”

My firm response seemed to momentarily surprise the man.

“I can’t waste any more time with your pointless advice.”

“Haha. Then I won’t give you advice, but I’ll give you some information. The coachman will have to pay for what he’s received.”

With those words, the man turned his body and, with a sharp little sound, the box suddenly shot up into the air.

“What?!”

The box, which had escaped from the man’s hand, landed in the arms of a masked person who was standing on the roof of the building behind us.

Was that person also one of the three people aiming for the item?

I knew they were aiming for it, but I didn’t expect that on the day of the auction, two of them would already be fighting over Oksanna’s ring.

As the masked man ran across the roofs of several buildings, the man who had been stumbling in front of me chased after him with a pale face.

I barely managed to hold back my laughter at the sight.

“Was that really all…”

“It’s over now.”

“Madam. Did you expect all of this?”

“Well, I expected they were aiming for it, but I didn’t expect them to be this fast.”

“…You’re amazing.”

“Let’s just go.”

Sir Roim approached the carriage cautiously as I spoke.

“By the way, Madam. I think we need to find a new coachman.”

“Oh, there’s no need for that.”

I approached the fallen coachman and quickly swung the heel of my shoe down towards his face.

“…Aah!”

The coachman, who had opened his eyes slightly upon hearing my footsteps approaching, was startled and flailed about when the sharp heel came down towards his face like a broken doll.

Sensing my gaze coldly staring down at him, he immediately stood up without even raising his head.

After looking at him for a moment, I turned my body.

“It seems the coachman has arrived. Let’s go.”

“…Yes, Madam.”