Chapter 53 – GOY 53
#53
Just as I was reminding myself that I needed to get away from Joo Seung-hyuk as soon as possible, the auctioneer’s voice rang out.
“This is the treasure that will grace the finale of today’s special auction.”
Finally, the last one. I looked toward the podium with tension.
“The ‘Pistol of Horaitron.’ A treasure that needs no explanation.”
A pistol? Then it’s not a ring. A sigh of relief escaped me instinctively. No ring appeared until the very end.
Though I had bought tools that would fill a trash can, I was glad I had avoided the ring.
What’s done is done. I decided to relax and enjoy the final auction.
So that’s the ‘Pistol of Horaitron.’
It was a treasure obtained after defeating the boss of an S-Class gate that appeared in Seoul two years ago. I had participated in that gate subjugation as well. I hadn’t just provided Guiding; I had actually entered the gate.
However, I hadn’t seen the boss being defeated…
The ‘Pistol of Horaitron’ was designated as an S-Class treasure with a high security rating.
It increases the power of bullets by 30 times and extends the firing range. Furthermore, it was said to have the ability to generate an S-Class shield for 24 hours to protect its owner.
It was an offensive weapon and an S-Class piece of armor at the same time. It was a highly useful weapon for both Espers and Guides, and many people desired it.
The Center had tried to possess the Pistol of Horaitron, but the Ability User Association resisted. I had heard they were fighting fiercely, and seeing it appear at an auction like this, it seemed the Association had ultimately won.
The atmosphere of the auction house changed the moment the Pistol of Horaitron appeared.
People who had been enjoying the auction leisurely shifted into a combat stance. Some were so excited they began emitting mana.
Everyone came here aiming for that.
Special auctions are conducted with strict security. Which items are listed, who wins the bid, and how much the price is—everything is kept strictly secret.
However, it seemed information had leaked beforehand among people capable of frequenting such places.
‘I wonder who will get their hands on that treasure?’
I looked around, feeling like a spectator at a stadium. But someone I completely didn’t expect was the first to raise their paddle.
“Seung-hyuk-ah…!”
“One moment.”
Joo Seung-hyuk blocked my words and raised his paddle again.
“Number 15, a bid of 2 billion!”
“Yes, number 17, 2.05 billion!”
“Number 39, 2.1 billion!”
The price rose steeply. The speed was on a completely different level than before.
Even for a weapon possessing both S-Class attack and defense power, the price was beyond imagination. The saying that astronomical sums of money were exchanged was no exaggeration.
And the winner of this fierce battle was, once again, Joo Seung-hyuk.
After the auction ended, we went to the special auction’s dedicated office.
The staff member said they would deliver the won items to my home. Since Espers belonging to the Ability User Department Store handled the delivery personally, safety seemed guaranteed.
However, Joo Seung-hyuk said it was a hassle and asked for them right then.
In the end, the staff delivered the items to Joo Seung-hyuk’s car.
Except for the Pistol of Horaitron, they were all tools that would fill a cozy trash can.
I must escape from this story before the “cozy trash can” unfolds as it did in the original work. As soon as I return to the dormitory, I need to come up with a plan.
“Come to my house today.”
But as the engine started and the car pulled away, Joo Seung-hyuk suddenly uttered those terrifying words.
You want me to come to your house after buying this, that, and that too?!
“Seung-hyuk-ah…”
“I need to see what we bought today.”
Can’t we just not look?
But if I said that, the future of what would happen was all too clear.
“Seung-hyuk-ah, I have to go back early today. I have an assignment.”
“Just check them and then go.”
How are we going to check them? To [stolen content]check all of those, wouldn’t we have to stay up all night? Read on Read BL NovelsNo, even a week might not be enough.
“Do we really have to check?”
“Yes.”
It was a short, one-syllable answer, but an overwhelming pressure flowed from it that I dared not defy.
If it were the Kim Joon from the original work, he would have argued, ‘Why should I? It’s not like I wanted to buy them,’ and then boarded the whip-training express, but I didn’t want to do that.
Whether I protested or not, if I had to go to the Obsessive Madman’s house, it was better to just go quietly.
“Okay. I understand.”
I answered meekly.
The Obsessive Madman’s house was as pitch-black as ever.
This was the place where Kim Joon was eternally imprisoned in the original work. I had worked desperately to avoid coming here, but I never dreamed I would visit it along with a set of whips.
Will I be able to escape this time too? Considering the tools, including whips and shackles, I was worried about the mental damage even if I did escape.
Is it really heading toward a ‘19+ Hard SM’ story starting today?
“Let’s go in.”
“Okay.”
Standing blankly in front of the entrance, I stepped inside.
Perhaps because it was night and everything was black, it remained dark even after turning on the lights.
“Please sit.”
“Okay.”
I sat on the black leather sofa in the living room. Everything was black, so there was no need to specifically check the color.
“Would you like some tea?”
“No, I’m okay.”
“Drink some.”
“Okay.”
I nodded quickly. Then, Joo Seung-hyuk went to the kitchen and brewed tea himself.
Drinking the warm jasmine tea warmed my body. Even though it was now May, [Read on Read BL Novels]it was still a bit chilly at night.
Still, before I was dragged here by force, but this time I’m being treated like a guest in my own way…
But I couldn’t let my guard down. I looked at the leather shopping bags placed on the sofa.
Inside those were the items bought at the special auction.
“Wait here for a moment.”
“Huh? Okay.”
Joo Seung-hyuk took a few shopping bags and went up the stairs.
Why is he taking those to the second floor?
When I came last time, I hadn’t seen any place other than the master bedroom, the living room, and the dining room.
Even recalling the original work, most events took place in the basement and on the first floor; there were no instances of doing something on the second floor.
What on earth is on the second floor? But no matter how much I wondered, there was no way to know.
I gripped the self-defense tool in my pocket tightly. If I pressed the button in the center of the tool, the Center’s Espers would come running. But they probably wouldn’t be a match for Joo Seung-hyuk.
“Hyung!”
Just then, I heard Joo Seung-hyuk’s voice. The sound was small because of the distance, but he was calling me. I walked up to the stairs.
“Seung-hyuk-ah, did you call me?”
“Yes. Come up here.”
“Okay. I’m coming.”
As he said, I climbed the black stairs. Upon reaching the second floor, I saw three bedroom doors. It seemed the rooms on the second floor were designed to be very large.
“Hyung, come here.”
“Okay.”
Joo Seung-hyuk’s voice sounded closer than before. However, I couldn’t tell which room it was.
After some deliberation, I grabbed the doorknob of the second room. Just then, my hand was suddenly caught.
“Not here, it’s that room over there.”
Joo Seung-hyuk, who had appeared unnoticed, smiled brightly and gripped my hand firmly, pulling it away from the handle. Contrary to his smiling face, his grip was strong.
Rather than simply informing me that I had found the wrong room, visit our siteit felt as if he were urgently preventing me from entering this room.
What on earth is in this room to make him act like this? Since it didn’t appear in the original work, I couldn’t even guess.
Should I ask what kind of room this is?
“Ah, sorry. But this room is…”
“Let’s go.”
Joo Seung-hyuk cut me off. He clearly had no intention of answering. What on earth is he hiding…?
I was curious, but Joo Seung-hyuk’s gaze was so cold that I couldn’t ask any further.
I followed Joo Seung-hyuk into the room next to it. The moment the door opened, the sight of magnificent treasures overwhelmed my vision.
“This is where I keep treasures and weapons.”
“Wow, this is amazing…”
I had seen various items at the department store today. They were all wonderful pieces, but this place was on a different level.
It felt like I had come to a museum. I had been to the museum operated by the Center, but it didn’t have treasures of this caliber.
“If there’s anything you like, tell me. I’ll give it to you.”
“No! I have nowhere to put them.”
“True, since we’ll be living together soon, there’s no need to go through the trouble of moving them.”
“……”
That’s not the reason, but…
“By the way, why did you put this here?”
I hurriedly changed the subject before the conversation turned to marriage.
The Pistol of Horaitron purchased at the auction was placed on a table rather than in a display case.
“I’m going to practice with it.”
Joo Seung-hyuk handed the gun to me.
“Me?”
“Yes. I don’t use guns. You should try it, Hyung.”
“Uh-huh.”
Did he spend such a massive amount of money on something he won’t even use? I can’t understand the hobbies of the rich.
Anyway, I could manage a bit of practice. Besides, if not for this opportunity, when else would I ever touch an S-Class weapon?
Even if I graduated and joined a corporation, encountering an S-Class treasure would not be easy.
“Wait, don’t you have gloves or something?”
This is a treasure equivalent to a whole building. Since Joo Seung-hyuk is the owner, it doesn’t matter if he touches it with his bare hands, but I couldn’t do that.
“Just do it.”
He pressed the building—no, the pistol—into my hand.
“How is it?”
“It’s light. It’s so light that it’s almost scary.”
“Scary?”
“Yes. I’m afraid I’ll drop it… What if it gets a scratch?”
“Haha. It’s fine.”
It might be fine for Joo Seung-hyuk, but not for me. I had heard that conglomerates or guilds collect high-rank items or treasures as investments.
I didn’t know if Joo Seung-hyuk was doing the same, but if it got scratched, the value would drop.
“Do you like it?”
“Yes. It’s light and feels good.”
I spun around the room while aiming the gun. Various treasures entered the scope. If I accidentally pulled the trigger, something terrible would happen. As I quickly turned my body, I saw Joo Seung-hyuk’s face in the scope.
“Do you want to shoot me?”
“No!”
Startled, I quickly lowered the gun.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Not even once?”
He was smiling. But he didn’t look like he was smiling.
“Not even once.”
“Well, if you did, you wouldn’t have saved me.”
A strange loneliness lingered in Joo Seung-hyuk’s voice.
Suddenly, Joo Seung-hyuk’s miserable past came to mind. And I also remembered the small hand I had let go of seven years ago.
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