The 31st Piece Overturns the Game Board-Chapter 424

[This battle requires a minimum of 2 people, with a maximum of 10. The reward’s rank is likely to improve.]

[You have earned the inaugural achievement 'We Together.']

[You have earned the inaugural title 「Duo」.]

[You have acquired Calamity Estate.]

…

Seol and Somi were buried under a flood of messages.

Seol had already been through such situations before, so he remained calm. But Somi stuttered and panicked.

"A-A lot of messages popped up."

Clank…

They were given a box.

The box given to Seol was naturally transported to the Void, while Somi's box was placed at her feet.

- What did Somi even do to deserve a box?

- Then, wait a few months to receive it.

- She's such a bold young lady. Come to think of it, shouldn't she be given some travel expenses, too?

- Shameless bastards, hahaha. Why not kill her and take it from her?

- Huh?

- Huh?

Seol didn't have much experience sharing rewards with others.

Given that one of the few such experiences included an Adventure with Somi, it was obvious he didn't have many acquaintances.

"Huh… Were the boxes always shaped like this?"

It was a box that required a key.

Upon facing a platinum box for the first time, Somi tapped it and asked Seol.

Swoosh…

"Take it."

"What's this?"

"A key. You'll need it to open that box."

"Wow! Really? I've never seen anything like this before! But isn't this key expensive…?"

"It probably isn't. Although I'm not sure."

Mariju, who had been quietly watching, shook her head. "What are you talking about? Winged Keys are being traded at incredibly high prices."

Apparently, the key was called a Winged Key because of the small wing on its handle.

"Is that so…?"

"Yes. Although the demand comes only from Transferees, those who want these keys are all formidable individuals."

"I see…"

Seol had such a high wisdom that he didn't need the keys, so he had a pile of them accumulated.

Moreover, thanks to the effect of his title, he received keys every time he opened a box. That's why he wasn't aware of that fact.

Somi shook her head and declined the key.

"I-I can't accept this. I don't have any platinum coins… No, I have some, but not much…"

Swoosh…

Seol forcibly closed Somi's hand.

"Take it. This is something I don't need."

"Then, I won't refuse… After all, refusing too much isn't polite either, right? After all, we're close."

Seol chuckled and nodded.

- It's too good to refuse… No, she didn't refuse.

- Somi took home a lot.

There would for sure be at least one Peerless equipment in the platinum box Somi received.

Seol wished that Somi would get the equipment she needed.

'Is doing a raid as a duo more effective than doing it solo?'

There probably wasn't anyone in Pandea who would debate whether raid battles were more effective as a duo or a solo.

After all, Seol was the only one capable of both.

'I'll check the rewards once I get back.'

As Seol smiled while watching Somi stuff the box into her inventory, a sound came from below.

"I wasn't sure…"

"I did…"

A conversation too far to hear clearly.

Judging by Seol's senses, they would most likely reach the top within minutes.

From what he heard, there were quite a few survivors.

As they prepared to greet them, Mariju interjected, "Would you like to come over here?"

"Why?"

"Aren't these some of the items from the auction list?"

There were separate boxes for art and equipment. One art box and two equipment boxes.

"I see…"

"You're right."

No Transferee would be able to remain calm in front of equipment.

Somi, who hadn't been able to go on proper Adventures recently, was no exception. But Seol, who had a lot of family members he needed to take care was especially so.

However, if possible, he didn't want to commit theft.

Despite his chaotic tendencies, he was the leader of the Veil, an organization that leaned toward good.

"The list was about twelve pages long… so this must be some of it. Given the size of these boxes, there must be more… Are they all scattered?"

"The Star Graveyard physically changed form, so it's entirely possible."

Gulp…

"Did you just gulp…?"

"It wasn't me."

"I'm sorry… it was me…"

"Weren't you an investigator?"

"…"

The voices of people from below grew closer. They would most likely reach the top within a minute.

Neither Seol nor Somi could recklessly reach for the boxes since stealing auction items was a serious crime.

If it were only Seol and Somi here, with exactly two boxes being there, they would have high-fived and split them.

But with Mariju, a noble from the Federation, present, doing that was out of the question.

"I'm not a thief."

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"I-I'm an investigator! The staff of the people! Such a person doesn't commit such actions…"

Suddenly, Mariju smirked and covered her eyes with both hands. "Oh my… I suddenly can't see anything. Even if lightning flashed before my eyes right now, I wouldn't notice."

This was a blatant signal from Mariju that she would turn a blind eye to the theft of auction items.

Mariju said with her eyes covered. "I won't be able to forget today's events. It was the most intense experience I've ever felt in my life. Although these items aren't mine, I'd be happy if they ended up in the hands of my saviors. And… I would never know."

Mariju counted to ten in her mind and opened her eyes.

The two equipment boxes were gone.

Somi's face was flushed while Seol remained calm.

Mariju muttered while shrinking back, "L… Lightning really struck."

"I also saw it. It was really fast."

- We saw it too. The lightning struck twice.

- Kang Seol was a real lightning, hahaha.

- I can feel it! The weight of being a family man!

- Theft that wasn't caught isn't theft!

- Mariju's hilarious, hahaha.

- Tansia! Dad's coming with roast chicken!

- Surprisingly, this is the party that took down the Calamity Magician Maradum in one strike.

- Their trust in each other led to an overwhelming speed in clearing the raid!

- And now they've stolen two boxes!

Soon, a crowd came rushing.

"What is this?! You guys! Are you the ones who caused this disaster?"

"Damn it… They look much stronger than those guys from earlier…"

For some reason, Somi, feeling a bit embarrassed, revealed their identities.

"We're from the Investigation Bureau. Esteemed guests, we ask for your cooperation."

* * *

[(New) [<Oppa's a good person>’s Post]

[Posted: Just now]

[Title: Summary of what happened in Shirlen]

1. Every year, high-ranking noble families hold a secret auction at the Star Graveyard ruins.

2. This time, a suspicious faction infiltrated and activated something in the Star Graveyard.

3. A lot of nobles died.

4. An investigator who had infiltrated prevented the situation from escalating further.

- Why are the investigators so incompetent? They infiltrated but couldn't stop it?

- I heard they infiltrated for a different reason. And I heard the situation wasn’t ordinary.

- If it wasn't a normal situation, was it a long one…?

- Why can I smell the sweat in the writing?

[(New) [<Cyber Godfather>'s Post]

[Posted: Just now]

[Title: Rude bastards.]

From what I heard, two investigators took down a lot of criminals and solved an unprecedented situation at the ruins. Aren't you all going too far?

- Too much?

- Ah, geez… Grandpa, go over there and rest.

- I'm sorry…

- Agreed. Thanks to them, I had a good show in the middle of the night.

[(New) [<Shivering Villain>'s Post]

[Posted: Just now]

[Title: But they must be annoyed too.]

It seems that a lot of nobles died, and they got nothing.

- According to informants, the nobles got really angry this time.

- But weren't the nobles toothless lately? They have recently let a lot of incidents slide.

- They were holding out. I heard that's why they have decided to empower the Investigation Bureau this time.

- Eh, even if they empower it, what can investigators do? Even if they did, they would get crushed even by Transferees, hahaha.

- There are many investigators who are Transferees.

- Those who lost the competition do that. And even if there are Transferees who are investigators, what can they do if their opponents are Transferees too? Hahaha.

* * *

Seol left the aftermath to Somi and returned to his lodging.

Although Seol had played a significant role in the incident, Gael was too busy handling the cleanup to pay any attention to him.

Gael didn't confront Seol about breaking his promise.

After all, the auction had ended before he could even see the items, so he couldn't ask him to do unpaid labor.

Seol, due to having been caught in a dangerous situation without gaining anything, wasn't sure about how to handle him.

And Somi, maybe because she had taken the auction items, was struggling with work.

'This incident was quite noisy…'

Even Seol was stunned by the sheer number of nobles gathered at the event.

Moreover, it seemed there were far more influential nobles than ordinary ones, and quite a few of them had died.

That's why their outrage was somewhat justified.

- It seems the nobles will make a decision soon. I'm not particularly interested, but… it seems the tendency will lean toward alignment.

A letter from Mariju arrived.

'Come to think of it, Mariju was a member of the Sanshi family.'

The Sanshi family was one of the most influential noble families in the Federation. It seemed she would also align her actions with the surrounding nobles' movements.

'The Federation's situation… is complicated.'

His head throbbed with pain.

If there were clear enemies, he could just crush them, but the enemies were hidden within the shadows.

'Should I just leave…?'

Seol didn't mind staying or leaving.

Although he wanted to get equipment for his party, it wasn't urgent.

As Seol was lost in thought, Ur, who had been tinkering with something in the corner, called him.

"Hey, Seol."

As Seol approached, Ur mentioned the information he'd gathered by comparing the two liquids in his hands.

"One is the new drug called home, and the other is the blood of that brat from the Star Graveyard who was talking about being immortal."

"So?"

"This guy's blood contains traces of home. He isn't just a drug addict. It's just that these components, along with some techniques, allowed his body to endlessly regenerate and transform."

"In other words?"

"There's a high chance that those distributing or manufacturing the drugs are creating them…"

Boom, boom!

"Someone came!"

As Tansia shouted toward the door, a voice from behind it.

"It's me, Gael."