Viktor awkwardly rubbed his hands: "Where did you get that idea? How dare we go against the entire Church? We're just discussing it with the two of you. If you don't agree, then you don't have to show up! As merchants, honesty is paramount. A small family like ours can't make waves in Lyata!"
"Mil brother, I have a plan that kills two birds with one… Mmph—!"
Seeing Alice's eyes dart around, Mil knew she was full of mischievous ideas again, so he simply covered her mouth.
Then, he smiled at the spokesperson and said, "I apologize, but we cannot comply… However, the two of us are here not only by invitation but also to participate in the auction. We are quite interested in this fake kiss of rebirth."
Viktor frowned in confusion. This turn of events was indeed beyond his expectation…
If the brother and sister left, the authenticity of the item could still be debated.
But as it stood, this auction item was destined not to fetch a high price.
The family never suffered losses, and the spokesperson Viktor's gaze grew a few shades darker…
After a moment of thought, Viktor's gaze fell upon Lady Alice: "…Does Lady Alice have any thoughts?"
Mil pulled Alice's hand back, signaling her to remain silent: "Sigh… I can guess what she's thinking. It's probably to have us go along with your plan first, and once it's announced as fake, the other party will surely be eager to sell it to recoup their losses, and then we buy it back at a low price."
The spokesperson's eyebrow arched, and he nodded approvingly, a cunning smile playing on his lips.
But in that case, if the price wasn't right, the other party might not sell, and Mil wouldn't necessarily profit in the end.
Meanwhile, Alice, with a hint of grievance on her face, tugged hard at Mil's sleeve and said, "That's not it! Mil brother…"
"Alright, alright… You speak!"
"Anyway, we brought the real one, so we'll just sell it to him directly. Then we'll go back to Duke Charles and tell him that what he gave us was fake…"
The smile on spokesperson Viktor's face vanished instantly. Instead, his gaze towards Alice became three parts blank.
Mil rolled his eyes at Alice and tapped her forehead: "What are you thinking? Do you think Duke Charles wouldn't know if the item was real or fake?"
"But what we brought back to show him was indeed fake! When did it get swapped?"
Saying this, Alice spread her hands and glanced at spokesperson Viktor across from her.
Viktor suddenly straightened up, sitting ramrod straight, his eyes much clearer.
Alice continued, "Could it be that the buyer was unwilling? Did they secretly swap it for us? The people attending the auction are all prominent nobles, right? The kind with fiefdoms or property, who can't run away. We'll tell Pope Uncle about this too!"
That's right!
The Holy Maiden clearly took the real item, but when she came back, it became a fake, and the buyer ended up with the real one. What's going on?
Those who are sensible will probably obediently return it and receive a souvenir from an old artisan.
Mil sighed, patting his forehead, while spokesperson Viktor gave an awkward smile: "This is… Saint Alice, right… Right?"
Merchants need to be honest, but she is the Holy Maiden.
Alice seemed not to have had her fill, chattering incessantly: "Or, we leave the item here, and we flee back to the holy… Mmph—!"
Mil couldn't listen anymore and covered her mouth. Viktor cleared his throat and voluntarily took a step back, saying, "Mil, how about this… If you are unwilling to come forward, this item won't sell for a good price. Since you are interested, it won't be put up for auction. Let's discuss it privately."
"Alright, forgive my rudeness…"
That night, after the two parties settled on a good price, Alice directly acquired the auction item.
However, as the saying goes, since they were already there…
Mil decided to stay and see what treasures would be at the auction the next day.
In the game's plot chronicle, this city also had a lord-level demon lurking here—
The fallen Siren clan.
…
Royal Capital.
Inside the palace, Diana was placed under house arrest, and the Holy Sword was temporarily confiscated.
Although her father, the King, protected her in every way possible, those nobles all took advantage of her misfortune…
First Prince Otto was a proud role model for Diana. Compared to her constantly busy father, Otto played more of a father figure in Diana's growth.
In the lavishly decorated room, the bright moonlight was cut by Gothic pointed arched windows, leaving streaks of light on the floor…
A woven royal tapestry trembled in the shadows, and embers from the fireplace leaped out, performing a dying dance on the tapestry's golden threads.
Diana replayed the situation over and over again, but no matter how she tried, she couldn't piece together the complete truth…
Who would kill her brother Otto, but leave her alone?
Was it just to frame her?
What was the point? If they wanted to eliminate her, why didn't they act directly then?
This behavior was more like blatant revenge…
"Thump, thump, thump!"
The door suddenly knocked. This was the first time in the past four days that someone had knocked on her door outside of dinner time.
After opening the door, the maid's expression was somewhat excited: "Your Highness, Volk is here to see you!"
"Teacher?!"
"Please change your clothes quickly. He's waiting for you in the side hall!"
With that, the maid withdrew.
Diana admired two people the most: one was her brother Otto, and the other was her teacher—
The Chief Royal Mage, Volk.
As the Holy Sword Wielder, Diana didn't need to learn much magic, just some basic theoretical knowledge and some essential magic for Holy Knights.
But Volk's influence on her was equally significant.
In the side hall, the elderly Volk sat on a chair with his head bowed, his white hair much more prominent…
He wore the Royal Mage's robe, which also appeared somewhat disheveled.
"Teacher!"
Diana excitedly ran forward, tears uncontrollably falling. Volk looked up, his expression also somewhat haggard: "Your Highness, I've finally seen you!"
"Teacher! Why are you here? How are things outside?"
Volk sighed and shook his head: "…Honestly, it's very unfavorable for you. Although everyone can see that you've been wrongly accused, all the evidence points to you."
Diana's heart sank, but Volk continued: "However, I met a Royal Knight these past two days… He was by your brother's side at the time, performing guard duty, and he was the only one who survived the scene."
"Where is he? Did he see the killer?"
Diana was a little agitated, but Volk's expression was somewhat cautious, and he whispered with a deep frown: "He's someone the Third Prince brought, but looking at the Royal Knights' mission assignments for that day, it was indeed him. What he said also matches the evidence at the scene."
After speaking, he clapped his hands, and a figure slowly emerged from the shadows of the corridor, bowing to Diana: "Your Highness, I was indeed at the scene, but I was worried that if I spoke, you might not believe me… At least, the killer I saw was Mil."
Upon hearing this, Diana felt as if all strength had left her body, and she collapsed onto the chair, her eyes vacant.