Chapter 7. Divine Artifact (3)
“I’ll personally guide you to the exit—”
“No need. I’ll be going on my own.”
Swoosh.
As Karayan tried to escort me out of the Underworld Arena, I turned away, politely refusing her offer.
Pretending to be strong in front of someone was harder than I remembered.
‘…It’s been so long since I last acted. I can barely breathe.’
Now that I had finished my business, I just wanted to get out of Karayan’s sight as fast as possible.
‘Wait—’
But I didn’t get far before I regretted my decision.
‘…Where’s the exit again?’
Damn it.
I’d memorized the map of the Underworld Arena perfectly…
But now that the in-game graphics were reality, everything was completely disorienting.
“Hoo.”
Left alone, Karayan let out a long sigh.
The benefactor had left the Ruin Merchant Guild.
Just as suddenly as their encounter had begun, it had ended.
‘I should’ve escorted him properly…’
Karayan smacked her lips in frustration.
She had meant to walk him all the way to the front gate, but when he told her not to follow, she couldn’t bring herself to go against him.
In the end, handing over the pouch of money was the last thing she did before returning to the VIP suite.
“……”
Swoosh—
She lowered her gaze. The entire arena spread out below her.
On the dirt floor, dried bloodstains clung to the ground—evidence of the brutality that had unfolded there earlier.
Yes.
Right there, her benefactor had slain Barbar, the Human Butcher, with a single strike.
Just like back in the untamed zone, when he had effortlessly killed the monster that tried to end her life.
Thump, thump.
Lea de Karayan’s heart pounded.
In the midst of her dull, monotonous days, who could have guessed she would run into him again so unexpectedly?
The swordsman who saved her from death.
To her, he was like a prince on a white horse.
That day remained the only truly radiant memory in Karayan’s otherwise gray and desolate life.
His face, his voice—everything had begun to fade… until today.
‘Of course, none of the mysteries have been solved.’
She had yearned for this reunion.
But her benefactor’s identity remained completely unknown.
Not his name, nor his background—nothing.
She was still in the dark.
“……”
Heh.
The bitter smile slipped from her lips.
But that was fine.
Her benefactor had promised to return to the Ruin Merchant Guild one day.
‘Partly to repay an old debt…’
But everything was calculated.
He was unbelievably strong. Even her escort knight, Lorenzo, couldn’t react to his movements.
If a mere billion shillings and a feather sword could earn his favor…
Then it was a bargain.
“Haa…”
At least, that was how Karayan tried to justify her actions.
After all, this was the first time she’d ever given so much to someone.
Knock knock.
A few hours passed.
A knock sounded on the VIP room door.
Karayan frowned and spoke.
“Who is it?”
Her escort, Lorenzo, answered carefully.
“It’s the item appraiser, Master.”
“…Appraiser?”
“Yes. Meister Gob, the one you asked to reassess the Frostlight.”
“Ah.”
Karayan gave a short nod.
Just as her benefactor requested, she had sent the Frostlight for reassessment—and apparently the work was now complete.
‘Wait.’
Could a detailed appraisal really finish this quickly?
Karayan’s expression stiffened with unease.
“Open the door.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Sllk—
At her command, a shadow moved toward the door.
The tightly shut door slowly creaked open.
An elderly man with white hair bowed deeply and spoke.
“Pardon me, Master. I came because…”
The appraiser trailed off.
His wrinkled eye, visible through a monocle, was trembling.
Karayan’s brows furrowed.
“Why are you hesitating, Meister Gob? Did the Frostlight get damaged?”
“No. I checked the blade thoroughly after hearing it had been dropped, but there wasn’t a single scratch or speck of dust. However…”
Gulp.
The appraiser swallowed dryly, clearly nervous.
His next words were enough to blank out Karayan’s mind in shock.
“It seems… the Frostlight is not an authentic piece.”
“…What?”
Step, step, step…
Lea de Karayan hurried down to the secret vault.
She stood before the display case holding the Frostlight and narrowed her eyes.
It looked too high-quality to be a fake.
More than that, her ability confirmed it was genuine.
“……”
Karayan squinted and focused on the Frostlight.
Soon, a sharp headache hit her and a translucent window flickered before her eyes.
━━━━━━━━━━━━
【??】
Creator: ■■□ ■■■■□ ■■
Item Rank: ??
[Item Description]
A weapon forged by a legendary smith who represents the Pantheon and maintains the balance of the world.
Perhaps in pursuit of this fearsome sword, a storm of blood and greed will soon…
[Item Effect]
??
━━━━━━━━━━━━
A skill.
A rare supernatural ability that manifested in only a few individuals.
Karayan was born with such a skill.
【Eye for Gold (色金眼)】
Eye for Gold.
As the name suggested, it was an ability that let her see valuable items.
Yes.
When she focused all her senses on an object, she could glean partial information about it.
Thanks to this skill, she’d unearthed many hidden treasures buried in mud—earning massive profits and rising to power as a merchant.
The Frostlight in front of her was one of those treasures.
‘What the…?’
Karayan’s brows furrowed slightly.
‘…This can’t be a fake.’
She read through the description shown by her skill.
It had never led her wrong before.
According to the details, this blade was undoubtedly crafted by the “Master of Flame and Forge.”
From the character count in the name, its Pantheon affiliation, and its mythic status…
Even though much of the info was hidden, she could clearly identify its origin.
‘And it looks exactly like the Frostlight.’
The bluish blade that deepened into red as it neared the hilt.
When she first acquired it, it had been covered in rust. But once restored, it matched the legendary descriptions perfectly.
After studying the blade for a while, Karayan finally spoke.
“You’re calling this a fake?”
“…Actually, calling it a fake is a bit misleading.”
“What?”
Her brows drew together at the appraiser’s vague response.
He waved his hands hastily to explain.
“Of course, the creator is indeed the great Master of Flame and Forge. However…”
“Yes?”
“…This weapon itself is not the Frostlight.”
Freeze—
A chill filled the secret vault.
The maker was authentic, but the weapon wasn’t Frostlight?
What nonsense was this?
Sensing her confusion, the appraiser continued.
“The true divine weapons of the Master of Flame and Forge are always numbered. This one has traces of such engraving as well.”
“……”
“But when you instructed me to treat it as a possible fake, I examined it more critically—and I found something odd.”
“Just get to the point.”
“…Apologies.”
Cut off mid-ramble, the appraiser took a breath and gave his conclusion.
“I believe this sword is a prototype—created as practice before the Master began crafting the actual Frostlight.”
Karayan couldn’t help but sigh.
“…A prototype?”
A practice piece, made before the real Frostlight.
Now the earlier contradictions made sense.
Her Eye for Gold also supported this theory.
‘Shocking, but not far-fetched.’
This appraiser was the most skilled in the Ruin Guild.
His evaluations were rarely wrong.
While further verification was needed, Karayan accepted his theory for now.
“So this sword is a replica of the Frostlight?”
“More like a prototype than a replica. A pre-production model.”
Karayan sighed, frustration in her breath.
“Whew… Either way, if we had auctioned it off as the real deal, it would’ve been a massive blow to the guild’s reputation.”
“…It’s my fault. I’m terribly sorry.”
The appraiser bowed deeply, ashamed he hadn’t identified the prototype earlier.
But Karayan didn’t blame him.
How could anyone distinguish a prototype made by the legendary smith himself on a first glance?
Just catching it before the auction was blessing enough.
‘But still…’
At that moment, a thought crossed Karayan’s mind.
‘…How did my benefactor know it wasn’t genuine?’
He hadn’t studied the blade like an appraiser.
Just one glance—and he knew.
That realization prompted a question.
“Meister Gob.”
“…Yes?”
“If someone recognized that this was a prototype with just a glance—would you believe it?”
“With a glance…?”
“Just a few seconds of looking.”
The appraiser’s eyes widened and he shook his head.
“Absolutely impossible. With all due respect, even the Master of Flame and Forge wouldn’t be able to distinguish the original from a prototype in mere seconds.”
“……”
“This prototype is that well-crafted. If you hadn’t told me to be critical, I would’ve assumed it was the real thing too.”
Even the creator couldn’t distinguish it instantly?
So seeing through it in seconds was impossible…
At least, by the Ruin Guild’s standards.
‘…Then who exactly is my benefactor?’
He saw through the Frostlight in an instant.
And didn’t even brag about it—he remained indifferent.
What’s more, despite that incredible insight, all he took from the vault was that worthless feather sword.
Right. That glorified piece of junk.
“Hoo.”
I don’t know.
Once again, she had received help from him without giving anything in return.
And that weighed heavily on Karayan’s heart.
〔Hidden Message: You have perfectly cleared the tutorial for the first time.〕
〔Hidden Message: You have avoided a predetermined death.〕
〔Hidden Message: The law of causality is being distorted.〕
……
〔Hidden Message: A peerless feat that startles the Pantheon. Forgotten Moderators now watch your path with interest.〕
