Chapter 256

256th Episode: Hassan Goes to the Auction – Part 4

“Hassan, did you see this? It’s full of stories about yesterday’s trial you went to!”

Luna giggled mischievously, flapping the newspaper as if she’d stumbled across something amusing.

Luna, reading a newspaper?

Ever since that scandalous article about potions was published, Luna had refrained from even looking at a newspaper. Seeing her engage with one now left me with quite a sense of triumph. Apparently, the Luna-exclusive newspaper I had painstakingly created overnight had its desired effect.

Even I, who had taken evening strolls with Keng Keng perched on my shoulder, couldn’t help but reflect on the incredible resilience of the human spirit. Perhaps it truly has the willpower to overcome trauma. Moreover, Luna is no ordinary human.

“Wow, elf prices have gone all the way up to 400 gold. You were there too, weren’t you Hassan?”

“Hmm, sounds about right.”

“That’s right.”

Luna nodded and flipped to the next page of the newspaper. Just as I was pondering what her casual acknowledgment meant, Luna added another remark.

“Still, it’s tempting to own a white elf slave.”

“What?”

I was genuinely shocked when Luna blurted out something that sounded like a line from a romantic drama protagonist. I was so startled that I felt as if I momentarily floated an inch off the floor while sitting.

“Why would you want an elf slave, Luna?”

“Well, if it’s a slave, I can legally assign labor! A white elf who uses magic? I could easily use hair or nail clippings for potion ingredients and more.”

“Oh… Don’t you already have Paranoi for that?”

“Paranoi, she’s just wandering around these days. After joining some foundation called STN, she’s been constantly yelling about nymph labor rights and survival rights. It’s driving me crazy!”

It seemed Luna had developed a growing discontent with Paranoi lately. I had always thought they got along like close sisters, but it appears they’ve been harboring some underlying conflict.

What, then, is this STN foundation? With talk of labor rights, it sounds like some sort of human rights organization.

A human rights organization in this world? Hard to believe such a soft concept could exist in this rugged reality.

Remembering Paranoi’s behavior since we first met, she had always been the type to advocate for rights on behalf of the bizarre tree-like creatures known as Stormps.

On the other hand, she was also a scheming opportunist and authoritarian, always eager to expand her share of hell.

I’ve been worried lately because Paranoi hasn’t been showing up at home much. Could she have been hurt or upset after being banished to the forest for secretly eating the wildling potion?

Apparently, she’s actively involved in some strange foundation. I couldn’t help but imagine Paranoi surrounded by several nymphs who look like her, holding placards and protesting. Chatty, noisy nymphs.

If only I boiled water in a pot, they’d probably all run away. Boiling water nymphs.

It was certainly an amusing scene to picture, and I chuckled to myself as I contemplated it. At that moment, Luna spoke.

“Anyway, it’d be nice to have a well-behaved elf slave. If only I had the money, I would’ve bid at the auction. Hassan, how much money do you have right now?”

“Me?”

I recalled my pouch of gold coins that I’d left at Luna’s house. Thirty gold coins earned from escaping the abyss, plus another ten from various tasks—about forty gold coins in total. This was still quite a significant amount.

For comparison, it’s enough to buy a house with a garden in a small to medium-sized city like Kolkata and fill a warehouse with flour.

But Luna frowned slightly.

“I have only around ten gold coins I can use at the moment. That makes fifty gold coins together, which is far from enough to buy an elf slave. Ugh, I want to own a slave—!”

The desire for a slave, when heard from a modern perspective, is a somewhat eerie tale.

However, Luna is a small workshop owner, and it’s understandable if she merely wishes for a well-behaved part-timer. In fact, in 21st-century South Korea, all self-employed bosses would love to have a slave. Many already treat their part-timers or managers like slaves, and don’t even get me started on the Ministry of National Defense.

Even my father was no exception.

He often grumbled how he wanted to take a few years off and let someone else manage the health center. He probably planned to enjoy his retirement while leaving it to me. Thinking about it now, I was meant to be a slave at the health center too.

So what happened in the end? Father must have been designing his retirement life with mother, thinking I would take over the business. Now that I’ve disappeared, did he hire part-timers? Or did he start training my younger sister as a successor? She absolutely hated places like health centers.

Still, I hope they’re all doing well without me.

Thinking about it made me a little melancholic.

I miss mom.

If she could see me now, suffering with burn injuries in this bizarre and distant land, she might shed tears.

Of course, it’s entirely my fault and no one else’s. Still, I felt a pang of regret as I raised my head to look outside the window. Though the rain had lessened a bit, it was still dark and cool outside.

I almost started yearning for sunlight after several continuous days of this gloomy weather, but remembering how unbearably hot it had been before made me appreciate the rain once again.

“Rain harder, will you! Drive this heat away!”

Lost in such thoughts, Luna suddenly spoke.

“It’s raining, and I need to take Keng Keng for a walk. This is such a hassle. Also, Nemea doesn’t give lessons on rainy days.”

“Walk? Didn’t I take Keng Keng out yesterday?”

“Well, yeah, but… didn’t you feed him something yesterday, Hassan?”

Her question reminded me that I had fed Keng Keng two or three mice the day before.

“Um, I’m not sure. Why?”

“Keng Keng’s gotten fatter! Look at this!”

Whoosh!

Luna rushed downstairs and soon returned, placing a luminous, rainbow-colored spider on her palm.

“Clang, clang!”

“What the…? What was that sound just now?”

“Keng Keng’s gotten so fat he can’t properly bark anymore! If this continues, he’ll no longer be ‘Keng Keng’ but ‘Clang Clang’!”

“Clang!”

Honestly, I thought a slightly fatter spider wouldn’t be such a big deal, but the change in its barking startled even me.

Was giving Keng Keng three mice at once yesterday such a bad idea? If my actions cause one of Luna’s beloved pet spiders to develop any chronic ailment and shorten its lifespan, my conscience might get prickled.

“Starting today, Keng Keng will fast for a week. Don’t give him anything, Hassan!”

“Heeoooh~”

“Alright, I understand.”

“Speaking of which, isn’t it about time for you to change your bandages, Hassan?”

“Hmm, maybe.”

Hearing Luna’s words, I glanced at the bandages tightly wrapped around my body. Images of myself walking unwaveringly into the flames to subdue the burning Elpride flooded my mind.

Thinking back now, I must have been out of my mind that day.

How did I even think of walking into that blazing pillar of fire? It was natural to expect third-degree burns all over my body.

Skin ruined, airways closed, fingers fused together—it was miraculous I survived at all.

Swoosh, swoosh.

Gradually, my hands began to tremble as I reached to unwrap the bandages. Burn injuries tend to leave significant scars on the human body.

I couldn’t even imagine how my scorched body had transformed.

What if it had horribly changed? As such fears clouded my breathing, Luna placed her hand gently on mine.

“Looks aren’t everything, Hassan.”

Luna seemed to have read my mind. There was no need for further words; her gesture was enough.

“…”

I remained silent.

That night, why I had suffered such severe burns and what really happened with Elpride were things I didn’t discuss. Nor did Luna ask.

Though the news had portrayed me as a heroic knight who dived into the flames to stop the blaze, Luna must have had a vague sense that the reality was far more complex.

As always, I owe Luna a great deal.

Swoosh, swoosh.

I peeled off the bandages from my hands. Thankfully, the salve seemed to have been absorbed well into my skin, leaving no noticeable scars on my hands or the back of them.

Even after fully exposing my arms and shoulders, there weren’t any major signs of burn scars. The only noticeable change was a darker and shinier complexion.

“Hassan, your skin has tanned!”

Indeed, it looked like Luna’s observation was correct.

My originally dark complexion, already darker than most Samaritans—Koreans—had now turned into the color of a deliberately tanned and fashionable glow.

What is this?

I had expected distorted scars from the burns, could this be the blessing of Venus, the goddess of beauty called “the Tanned Skin”?

Thinking about it this way made the situation somewhat clearer.

What powers does this blessing grant?

Based on the name “Tanned Skin,” there didn’t seem to be any immediate implications other than a change in appearance.

Still, my skin actually felt somewhat improved. Could this blessing from the goddess of beauty, Venus, be related to skin care?

As time flowed on the next day, and the relentless scorching sunlight beat down again after the rain, I began to understand a bit more about the effects of my newly acquired blessing, “Tanned Skin.”

*

After a heatwave comes a downpour, and after a downpour, the sky above Sodomora flips back into another heatwave.

The world seemed to forget how stiflingly hot it had been during the rain. As soon as the rain clouds cleared up, everything dried up as if there had never been any rain at all.

Strangely, because of the rain, the air was even more humid than usual. Living in the little hut without an air conditioner or dehumidifier was truly a torment like none other.

“Hmm, this place is even more humid than Ideope.”

Ideope Island was known as a tropical marsh. Although Luna had spent her childhood there, I had assumed she would have some resilience to this humid heat.

“Too hot…”

Luna lay flat on the cool floor after the rain stopped, much like a frog hiding under the shade to escape the heat.

“Is it not hot for you, Hassan?”

Lying on the floor, Luna looked up at me. I was gazing outside the window, but strangely, I didn’t feel the oppressive heat. Perhaps I’ve developed some resistance after being thoroughly roasted by the fire.

It was then that I thought back to the blessing “Tanned Skin” I had acquired. Perhaps this blessing was providing me with some immunity to heat and scorching temperatures.

Good to know.

“Hassan, are you going out in this heat? For a lesson with Hippolyte?”

“I guess it’s about time. If I stay inside, I’ll just stiffen up.”

“Alright, could you get some ice on your way back? Maybe we can make a ‘totem to chase the heat’ or something.”

I wasn’t really sure what a ‘totem to chase the heat’ was, but getting some ice wasn’t exactly a big deal, so I nodded.

As I stepped outside, the scorching sunlight and cicada chirps attacked my senses once again.

My steps naturally directed me towards Hippolyte’s house in the East Gate area. Although visiting that area wasn’t particularly rare, going to Hippolyte’s house felt like it had been a while.

Knock, knock.

A weary face appeared at the door. Sun-tanned skin, silver-haired, a cigarette dangling from her lips—it was none other than Antiope.

“Hey, Antiope.”

“Ah, Hassan, come on in.”

“Doing well? It’s been busy, so we haven’t seen each other in a while, huh?”

“There’s an inspection coming up from the Royal Castle next week. I’m exhausted. So, what’s the matter? Did you come to see me?”

Puff, whoosh—Antiope blew smoke right into my face. What nerve—she not only disregards non-smokers but even blows smoke directly into one’s face.

I frowned deeply, and she burst into laughter, clearly finding it amusing.

“Even someone who’s unafraid of fire can’t stand smoke, huh.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I’ve heard it all. Walking into the flames, huh? That story made quite a ruckus for a while.”

“Is that so?”

“Anyway, good thing you came. I also had something to talk to you about—come inside.”

Antiope moved from leaning against the door, opening the space for me to enter. Without waiting for any words from me, she sprawled onto the bed, removing her leather clothing to reveal her back to me.

Lightning patterns I had drawn before, along with some unfamiliar designs, adorned her back. A few humans confronting a giant with wings.

“So this is what that story looked like?”

“Yeah, well done, right?”

“Did you show this to me for a reason?”

In response to my question, Antiope slapped the bed enthusiastically with her feet.

“Not really—there’s no way. Just give me a massage on my shoulders, quick.”

“Just like that?”

“Why pretend you don’t know? It’s all your fault, making me depend on massages. You’re trying to domesticate me that way, aren’t you?”

Antiope’s words rang oddly suggestive, so I glanced around.

If Hippolyte heard this, she’d likely jump out from somewhere yelling, “Antiope, is that how I taught you?”

“My sister won’t be back until late this evening; she’s out with fire recovery duties.”

“Ah, then there’s no reason I came here—I’m here to learn aura techniques.”

“Does that even matter? Just give me a back massage. Quickly. On my shoulders! Back! Hurry!”

Antiope acted like an impatient Korean, even throwing a tantrum. Was this how she usually behaves? I felt I had seen this kind of behavior before.

In the underground waterways of Kolkata, there used to be some people who were into a drug called “Tremble.” Those who couldn’t get their fix would exhibit withdrawal symptoms, whining like children.

Could my massages be addictive?

I chuckled at the absurdity of it. With that thought, I moved my hands toward Antiope’s lower back. Using my thumb, I began to press and work her overly-tense erector spinae.

“Ahahaah! That feels good!!”

Whereas Hippolyte would quietly accept a massage, Antiope was the type to loudly proclaim her satisfaction. Her level of enthusiasm was such that onlookers might misunderstand.

“The feeling of struggle has been rewarded!”

Reward…

Hearing that word brought something to my mind like a flash of lightning.

“Reward…”

[Author’s Afterword]

As you readers well know, especially if you’ve followed my works since previous installments, there’s no NTR or character distribution here…!

If this episode concludes smoothly, it will indeed be time to wrap up all the delayed episodes and dangling plot threads once and for all…!!!

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