If a sword could stir people into such a frenzy, then it was no ordinary blade.
Yet compared to all that excitement, the man standing before her seemed far too... ordinary.
Could it be...
For a brief moment, Angelina wondered if he had merely approached her because he coveted the sword.
The thought that her kindness might have been exploited like that left a bitter taste in her mouth.
Once the suspicion took root, it only continued to grow.
Something feels off...
Unfortunately, there was no way to verify it right now.
Just then—
The man, who had been alternating his gaze between the sword and Balcony No. 5, turned his head.
Their eyes met naturally.
Angelina silently stared into his brilliant blue eyes.
In the darkness of the alley, they had looked unnaturally vivid. Under the dim candlelight of the auction hall, however, they appeared more turquoise than blue.
Even so, they retained that strange, captivating brilliance.
"Is something the matter?"
His voice was calm and even.
There wasn't the slightest trace of malice in it.
After a moment of silence, Angelina slowly shook her head.
Whether he's telling the truth or not... it won't be too late to find out after I have the sword.
She turned her attention back toward the auction stage.
"Eighty-nine million? No? Eighty-eight million?"
It seemed the fierce bidding war had finally come to an end. The auctioneer was making his final call.
"Going once at eighty-eight million! Going twice—!"
Just as he raised his hammer...
"One hundred million."
Angelina lifted her bidding paddle.
"Cough! Pardon?"
The auctioneer nearly choked when he heard a bid crossing the hundred-million mark, but quickly regained his composure.
"One—One hundred million from Balcony No. 1! Any higher bid—"
"One hundred twenty million."
The man in Balcony No. 5 answered immediately.
So he really had been the last remaining competitor.
Angelina looked toward him again.
Apparently displeased by the sudden jump in price, he was glaring in her direction.
The distance and his mask hid most of his expression, but he looked unmistakably furious.
"One hundred twenty million from Balcony No. 5—"
"One hundred thirty million."
Angelina raised the price without hesitation.
"One hundred thirty—"
"One hundred fifty."
"One hundred ninety."
"Two hundred million."
"Two hundred thirty."
"Two hundred forty."
Compared to this, the earlier bidding war had been child's play.
The price climbed so rapidly that even the auctioneer struggled to keep up.
A chilling tension settled over the auction hall as Angelina and the man in Balcony No. 5 silently stared each other down.
"My lady, isn't this going a little too far...?"
Hallie, clearly unhappy with the situation, tried to stop her.
"Don't."
Angelina waved him off with a hint of irritation.
"Three hundred million."
Every participant's jaw dropped.
Even the auctioneer seemed too stunned to continue.
The man in Balcony No. 5 hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Three hundred fifty—"
"Five hundred million."
"Damn it."
His curse rang loudly enough for it to reach her balcony.
"Five hundred twenty—"
"One billion."
He made one last desperate attempt.
Angelina crushed it before it could even begin.
"God damn it!"
The man violently hurled his bidding paddle onto the floor.
Watching him, one corner of Angelina's lips curled upward.
"Trying to outspend a Flobert?"
Throwing absurd amounts of money around...
Really was satisfying.
After leaving the auction house, the four of them moved to a deserted location.
"My lady... you seem to be in an awfully good mood."
Hallie spoke with the exhausted expression of someone whose spirit had been completely drained.
"Mhm. I am."
Angelina answered brightly.
Just as Hallie had said, her face positively sparkled.
So this is what it feels like to recklessly throw mountains of money at something completely useless.
Now that she'd experienced spending without worrying about limits, she felt strangely exhilarated.
It almost felt like she'd already crossed the first item off her bucket list.
"Here."
She held out the sword, wrapped tightly in layers of cloth.
"Your family heirloom."
The man hesitated before finally reaching for it.
That was the moment—
Angelina suddenly pulled the bundle back.
"There's just one thing."
She deliberately placed the wrapped sword just beyond his reach.
"What proof do you have that this really is your family's heirloom?"
"..."
His outstretched hand twitched visibly.
The reaction was obvious enough that even someone as indifferent to others as Angelina couldn't miss it.
"Honestly, before I entered the auction house, I didn't really care. I simply thought it was a sad story."
After all, family heirlooms were antiques.
She had assumed they'd simply been appraised and auctioned off accordingly.
"But this sword's popularity was far beyond anything I imagined."
Even accounting for the fact that it was an enchanted sword imbued with lightning magic...
The bidding had been excessive.
Far too excessive for what was supposedly the heirloom of an ordinary knightly family.
"To be honest, I could just hand it over to you and walk away."
She had considered countless possibilities.
What if he'd approached me only because he wanted this sword?
What if everything had been an act? What if he was actually working together with those thugs?
Perhaps he intended to resell it.
Or use it for something sinister.
Or maybe he simply wanted it for his own collection.
Of course...
It was entirely possible that it truly was his family's heirloom.
But after witnessing the madness inside the auction hall, that possibility felt increasingly unlikely.
"I can't rule out the chance that you're a con artist—and that this sword actually belongs to someone else."
She knew almost nothing about him.
Aside from being a poor citizen who'd been getting shaken down by street thugs...
That was it.
If she simply handed over the sword, only for the real owner to appear later in a rage...
That would become an entirely different headache.
This is exactly why I didn't want to get involved.
Angelina couldn't help feeling a little regretful.
But what was done was done.
"So prove it."
"Prove that this truly is your family's heirloom."
"...Do you know what kind of sword it is?"
"A magic sword imbued with lightning magic."
She answered honestly with what she'd learned at the auction.
She knew nothing beyond that.
"That is..."
He started to explain...
Then stopped.
His eyes moved between the wrapped sword and Angelina several times.
After a long silence, as though reaching a decision, he finally spoke.
"I will prove it."
"But... not right now."
"I figured."
Angelina wasn't particularly surprised.
To prove something was a family heirloom, one would need documents, certificates, or testimony from the craftsman.
No one carried those around at all times.
"I don't mind waiting."
She calmly extended a hand toward Hallie.
Understanding what she wanted without being told, Hallie reluctantly took out two tokens.
One was made of wood.
The other of iron.
Both bore the crest of House Flobert.
Angelina picked up the wooden one and tossed it to the man.
"When you're ready to prove it..."
"Come find me."
He caught the token with practiced ease.
"Show that to the guards at the front gate. They'll deliver your letter or message to me."
The iron token was carried by servants acting as official representatives of the marquis's household.
The wooden token, meanwhile, was meant for outside messengers seeking an audience.
"Then I'll be looking forward to it."
With a casual wave, Angelina turned and walked away.
Hallie hurried after her.
Laura lingered for a moment, staring first at the man, then at the rooftop of the nearby building, before silently following Angelina.
The man remained rooted to the spot like a stone statue until all three women disappeared from sight.
Only after they had completely vanished...
A shadow dropped silently beside him.
The man who landed from the rooftop let out an impressed sigh.
"Remarkable."
At those words of admiration, the "owner of the heirloom" released a quiet breath of agreement.
"I think I finally understand why Marquis Flobert keeps his younger sister so carefully hidden."
As he listened to the remark, the man lowered his gaze.
The wooden token resting in his hand suddenly felt unexpectedly heavy.
He had heard rumors that House Flobert had a young lady.
But because the marquis guarded her so fiercely, very few people actually knew anything about her.
Even so...
The moment he saw her silver hair, so reminiscent of Anthe's...
And a beauty that resembled the marquis himself—
No.
One that surpassed even his.
There had been no mistaking her identity.
He had assumed the marquis was merely being overprotective because House Flobert had suffered one calamity after another over the years.
But now...
It seemed that wasn't the only reason.
