GOD V2C2: Let’s Go Watch the Auction

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GOD —The Beginning of the End— Volume 2: Elf, Nanny, Thunderous Anger

Original novel in Chinese by: 御 我 (Yu Wo)


Chapter 2: Let’s Go Watch the Auction—translated by lucathia (proofread by Lala Su & Trespasserby)

“What the hell? I dodged right, and you copied me! You did it on purpose!”

Shooting Star was already frustrated that he had to flee in the middle of his game, yet he just had to run into someone, too. He was so angry that he began shouting without even figuring out who it was.

That person rubbed their head, wincing from the pain, and called out, “Shooting Star, it’s Bai Saya!”

“You! Yes, you!”

Shooting Star had recognized him too. He jumped to Xiao Bai’s side and used his arms to grip Bai Saya’s thin neck. He loudly interrogated, “Say it! What did you eat?”

“I, what did I eat?” Bai Saya was confused.

“That’s it! You left me behind and went off with Dan to eat delicious food. Spit it out!”

Is it steak or roasted pig? The more he thought about it, the hungrier he got. Shooting Star’s arms gripped tighter and tighter.

“I, I haven’t eaten anything yet…”

Finding it hard to breathe, Bai Saya quickly explained himself. After he spoke, his neck was released. He coughed and lifted his head, only to meet Shooting Star’s “I am very suspicious” gaze.

Seeing that pair of golden eyes flash dangerously, Bai Saya hurriedly explained more, “It’s true! I only went with Dan to where Alan was confined. I wanted to see if he was doing well. But when we arrived, we found out that the auctioneers had already taken Alan away, so I didn’t get to see him.”

“Alan?” Shooting Star tilted his head and asked, “Who’s that?”

Bai Saya responded in great surprise, “The elf! I told you about him before. When Mannen captured me, I was confined with an elf. Did you forget?”

“The elf!” Shooting Star’s eyes sparkled. He had finally remembered that there was something like that. “Right, right, you said there was a super beautiful elf!”

Bai Saya hesitated for a moment, but he still couldn’t help asking, “Shooting Star, do you want to go watch the auction? Alan will also be part of it!”

“Of course!” Shooting Star quickly nodded his head hard.

“Dan gave me admission credentials to the auction. Let’s go see him.”

Bai Saya was elated at Shooting Star’s response. He quickly turned to lead the way…

“Hold it!”

Bai Saya froze.

Shooting Star narrowed his eyes. For the first time ever, he was worried and suggested for his pet’s sake, “You haven’t eaten yet, right? You must be starving! No problem! I’m not in a hurry to see the elf. It’s more important for us to eat. I know. I remembered to ask Philo for our share of the reward money. It’s quite a lot of money. Let’s go eat this place’s most famous delicacy, roasted pig. I hear that the roasted pig skin here is crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, abundantly savory, and will instantly melt on your tongue!”

“I’m not hungry.”

Growl!

Bai Saya’s face reddened. He quickly covered his stomach.

I don’t believe you won’t give it away! Shooting Star jutted his lips out and continued, “Your stomach is growling so loudly, yet you still claim you’re not hungry. Let’s not hurry to see the auction. We should eat first.”

Bai Saya’s shoulders slumped and he resignedly turned to face Shooting Star. The latter gave two “hmph hmphs,” propped his hands on his waist, and tapped his right foot continuously, as if ready to condemn him.

The two of them stared at each other. Of course, Shooting Star wouldn’t lose. Bai Saya sighed and admitted, “All right, I want to secretly save Alan.”

“You’re crazy!” As Shooting Star had expected, Bai Saya was scheming, and the contents of his scheming was just as Shooting Star had expected. He yelled, “Do you know how high an elf’s price tag is?”

“Over ten thousand gold ducats.” Dan had told him that. Upon hearing the price, Bai Saya had been stunned.

“So, you know it!” Shooting Star sarcastically said, “Then you should know that it doesn’t have to be ten thousand gold ducats. Just one thousand gold ducats would be enough for assassins to be hired to get rid of us, and they’d even throw in a complimentary corpse mincing to get rid of all traces of the crime!”

Bai Saya lowered his head and remained silent. After his experience with Mannen, he had thoroughly learned that victory depended on one’s strength. The morality of the situation had little sway on the outcome. Based on their abilities, saving Alan, who was worth ten thousand gold ducats, was definitely a pipe dream.

Shooting Star hadn’t gotten on his case enough. He used his finger to poke Bai Saya’s head several times. He added insult to injury by saying, “Don’t be stupid. Just Dan alone is so powerful that you wouldn’t be able to handle him. That’s not even taking into consideration the huge squads of guards! So yeah, watching the auction is fine, but don’t delude yourself about saving that elf.”

Bai Saya took several steps back to dodge Shooting Star’s continuous pokes. He painfully rubbed his forehead and said in grievance, “I got it. Stop poking me.”

“Good, let’s go!” Shooting Star nodded, and he even tossed all of his luggage at Bai Saya.

“Go where? I haven’t said goodbye to the others yet. Leaving without saying anything isn’t polite!” Bai Saya wanted to say his farewells, but he saw that Shooting Star had already turned and was running along the roofs, so he could only follow him for now.

Shooting Star complained as he ran, “It’s all your fault! After you dragged Dan away, the expressions on Philo and Agid’s faces could enter the top ten list of all time of a bachelor pining after an unmarried woman! If we don’t leave, are you going to wait around until they ask for your hand?”

Still, he had left so briskly, mostly because Belle had blurted the word “royal.” Don’t tell me Philo is some kind of prince? His actions were truly too elegant. He had the air of a noble.

Even though the game was fun, he had no plans of shouldering the huge sin of deceiving someone royal just for a game. Especially when feelings were involved! They’d definitely hunt him down!

It’s all because you wanted to prank them. Bai Saya didn’t dare to say that out loud, or else Shooting Star would never let him hear the end of it.

“As for where we should go… Duh!” Shooting Star’s eyes gleamed, and he loudly declared, “Of course, we’re going to see the elf! With your camaraderie with Dan, it wouldn’t be a problem to ask him to let us privately marvel at the elf!”

“We’re not going to get food?”

Having eaten little the entire day, Bai Saya really was a little hungry.

Shooting Star berated, “Get food? Seeing the elf is more important!”

Bai Saya rolled his eyes. Just who made a big deal about wanting to eat right now? If he had known that Shooting Star wanted to see the elf this much, he would not have gone out of his way to trick Shooting Star to head there. He could have just tossed his admission credentials at Shooting Star. That might have been all it would have taken. Putting on a show had instead made Shooting Star wary and had botched things.

Even though he was hungry, Bai Saya accepted his fate and led the way. He felt a glimmer of hope. Maybe Alan’s situation could still change for the better?

The two of them ran along the rooftops. Soon after, they arrived at the auction site. Once they arrived, they discovered that it was fortunate that they had taken the rooftops, and thus had arrived so quickly. After all, the streets below them were packed to the brim even several streets over.

“Well, dang! Isn’t this way too many people?” Shooting Star lay flat on a rooftop, eyes wide as he looked at the long queues. By the time you reach the front, even an elf would be ancient!

“Shooting Star.” Bai Saya tugged him. He gestured to the side, where there were only about ten or so people queued up, and said, “Over there.”

“That’s the entrance for nobility,” Shooting Star huffed.

Can’t you see that even the attendant at the door is dressed like a noble? Those people in line aren’t even the attendees. They’re the servants that the family heads and noble ladies sent over to line up for them.

Bai Saya explained, “Dan said that he would be busy during the auction, so he would not be able to let me in. He told me to head in through that door.”

“Oh! He’s quite thoughtful. What a good man!” Shooting Star immediately grinned. He was happy just from learning that they would not have to queue up in an endless line.

Bai Saya gave Shooting Star an unhappy glance. After that, the two of them leaped off of the roof.

A nearby guard approached with a menacing expression, on the verge of treating them like pests who had come to disrupt things. What kind of person who would enter through the nobles’ entrance would jump off a roof?

Bai Saya quickly took out the admission credentials. The guard’s menacing expression immediately turned fawning, attitude changing to that of a tour guide. He was all smiles while saying, “Please come this way to line up. It will be very fast.”

Shooting Star watched the guard’s abrupt change in attitude on his way to lining up over at the nobles’ entrance with Bai Saya.

The service at the nobles’ entrance was completely different. The speed was astonishing. Shooting Star had only just begun to observe the auction building—the appearance was that of a small castle, the walls painted a pristine white, the style simple but beautiful—and was about to determine who the statue by the entrance depicted, when someone had already come over to guide them inside.

The attendant was a beautiful, blonde woman. She had a gentle smile on her face as she asked, “May I ask, which family is in attendance?”

Bai Saya glanced at Shooting Star, who still had wide eyes glued to the statue. He could only answer on his own, “Just us two.” After he said that, he carefully showed the admission credentials again.

Nobles rarely personally lined up. Bai Saya’s actions were very strange, but the attendant was well practiced and didn’t show the least bit of surprise. She took the admission credentials and gave them a single glance before she raised her head and said with a smile, “This is a lifetime VIP admission badge. This way please.”

Bai Saya nodded, a bit at a loss.

“Aha! This must be the Goddess of Life, Perato!” Shooting Star hit his hands together, extremely sure of his conclusion.

The attendant immediately said, impressed, “That’s right. You are very knowledgeable.”

When he heard that, Shooting Star’s head swelled so much that he was about to float away. The sight made Bai Saya cringe. Bai Saya hurriedly pulled him along, following the attendant. He had not noticed that the surrounding people had expressions of shock one after another from hearing the words “lifetime VIP admission badge.”

The attendant guided them through an extravagant corridor. The red carpet was interlaid with complicated designs. Paintings decorated the walls along the corridor. Even though there weren’t all that many, a connoisseur would be able to tell that all of them were pricey masterpieces. This was not even taking into account the lights illuminating the way—each and every one of them were glowing gemstones.

“Hot damn!” Shooting Star swallowed several times. He had the urge to pluck them all. I wonder how much I could get for them?

“Please enter.” It was as if the attendant had not seen Shooting Star gawking. She continued guiding them and pulled open a door.

Shooting Star rushed inside happily. This was a private room. One of the walls jutted outward, forming a balcony in the shape of a half circle, overlooking the great hall below. There were two comfortable chairs on the balcony, as well as a white, round table.

The attendant used a gentle, yet professional tone to say, “If there is anything you need, please tug on the rope by the chair. On the table, there is a handbook with details about the items to be auctioned. If you would like to bid on an item, please raise the sign on the table. Holding the sign up once will increase the bid once…”

Shooting Star cared little for increasing the bid. He quickly interrupted, “Is there food?”

“Yes, please wait momentarily. I will have food brought over right away.”

Seeing that Shooting Star had no interest in bidding, the attendant still had no change in her expression. She bowed respectfully and left to get the food.

Shooting Star immediately dashed to the balcony. He leaned against the exquisite railing and let out a loud, “Wow.”

The entire auction site was a three dimensional dome. There were several similar balconies halfway up, each and every one of them rather private rooms. The great hall below had a large expanse of seats. Of course, it didn’t matter whether it was the balconies or the seats, all of them faced what was most important—the auction stage. The lighting there was also the strongest, making it so that everyone would set their attention on the stage.

“Xiao Bai, Dan is really taking good care of you!” Shooting Star gestured outwards and said, “Look, we’re right in front of the stage, so close.”

Bai Saya rolled his eyes at him again and followed him to the balcony. The majestic sight drew him in as well.

The two of them hadn’t arrived too early. The seats were already seventy percent full. By the time attendants brought food in, the seats had filled up. Even the balconies in midair were mostly full.

Right then, the auctioneer walked onstage and lightly coughed several times to get everyone’s attention. After that, he said, “Welcome to the Goldenstyle Merchant Guild’s yearly auction. As always, we will briefly explain the procedures first…”

Shooting Star grew bored of listening. He grabbed the auction handbook that was on the table and flipped through it with great interest. From time to time, he grabbed things to eat. The only reason he wasn’t wolfing the food down was because he had just had dinner, and also because the items to be auctioned had most of his attention.

To the side, Bai Saya had been starving all day, so he was engrossed in his food.

“Xiao Bai, this handbook says that they’ll have the slaves bring the items on stage during days one and two. They won’t auction the slaves until day three!” Shooting Star praised, “They’ve really thought this through. Let the slaves parade on stage, making the bidders crave them, and then hold the auction. They’d definitely be able to raise the bid like that.”

Bai Saya chewed slowly. He replied only after swallowing his food, “Dan told me that’s why Alan won’t be auctioned off until the third day.”

“Look at this item.” Shooting Star suddenly burst into laughter. He gestured at an item in the handbook and said, “‘A lock of hair from the Battle God, Morisot.’ They’re even auctioning off hair!”

Bai Saya lifted an eyebrow but didn’t comment.

“There’s this too. ‘the Sacred Magister Meijuk’s underwear,’ autograph included.

“W-what in the world is this… ‘Yu Wo’s beloved coffee mug.’ Warning: using this mug to drink coffee will cause you to have multiple delusions.”

Bai Saya didn’t know whether he should laugh or cry. These items were too outlandish.

Even though Shooting Star had pointed out many strange items, the Goldenstyle Merchant Guild’s auction was ranked among the top three on the continent. It sold all kinds of items, from weapons, to armor, to famous people’s underwear. The only commonality they all had was their outrageous prices.

Even claiming a seat below would cost several dozens of gold ducats, let alone the private room Shooting Star and Bai Saya had.

It could be said that without Dan’s help, these two people couldn’t even have dreamt of having a seat below.

“The auction is starting now. This is the last sword he made before Glen Melos hid away from the world…”

“Hey! Isn’t Glen that terrible old man? I wonder how much his sword costs?” Shooting Star opened his eyes wide and lazily grabbed the drink beside him to gulp it down. Let’s listen to the price. If it’s hefty, I’ll have to trick some more swords off of Old Man Glen.

Bai Saya lowered his head to look at his Sword of Sacred White, curious about the price. Glen had said that this was his personal best. It should be better than that sword down there, right?

“…The opening price is five thousand gold ducats.”

Right then and there, Shooting Star spewed the drink in his mouth. As for Bai Saya, he touched the precious sword by his waist in a daze, unable to react.

As people placed their bids, the price rose, and their expressions grew more and more stumped…

“Six thousand gold ducats, seven thousand… Oh! The price has been raised once more. Ten thousand gold ducats. Would anyone else like to place a bid? Going once, going twice, sold for ten thousand gold ducats! Congratulations to Prince Bol for winning this exceptional sword.”

“That sword was sold for ten thousand gold ducats? I remember that old man said that your sword is his best one…”

The two of them lowered their heads at the same time to look at the Sword of Sacred White. Shooting Star gulped and said, “When we leave, use a piece of cloth to wrap the sword and make it look uglier. If anyone recognizes it, we’ll die an ugly death!”

Bai Saya nodded, his face pale.

“The next item is Yu Wo’s beloved coffee mug.”

Shooting Star burst into laughter when he heard that. Abruptly, his laughter stopped. He stared with wide eyes at the stage.

Bai Saya glanced at Shooting Star in confusion. Then, he also turned his gaze on the stage. A familiar figure walked out. The figure was slender and tall with beautiful features. The ears were pointier than a human’s, paired with a head of blond hair. Under the strong light of the stage, the figure gave off an otherworldly glow.

After a moment of silence, the place erupted in noise, with remarks such as, “elf,” “It’s an elf,” “Is it male or female?” resounding in the entire auction site.

It’s Alan! Bai Saya immediately recognized that this elf was indeed Alan, who had been confined together with him. He could not help turning toward Shooting Star to see what kind of reaction he had. Shooting Star loved beautiful things. Would he jump straight off of the balcony and carry the elf off?

Before, if Shooting Star wanted to forcefully grab someone, Bai Saya would definitely have done his utmost to stop him. But right now, he wanted Shooting Star to kidnap someone for ransom… No, demanding ransom was still wrong.

Shooting Star was frozen for a moment, but he returned to himself faster than the audience below.

“It’s a guy.”

“What?” Bai Saya hadn’t heard him clearly.

“He’s a male elf,” Shooting Star said with certainty.

After hearing him clearly this time, Bai Saya asked in shock, “How could you tell… No, that’s not important! Why are you reacting so calmly? Don’t you like beautiful people?”

“He is beautiful.” Shooting Star gave a “hmph hmph,” and said, “But I’ve seen plenty of beautiful things. This much isn’t enough for me to throw my life away!”

“You can’t have seen anyone more beautiful than Alan.” This was Bai Saya’s immediate response. To him, Alan was very beautiful.

“I’m serious!” Shooting Star huffed, “The demon race’s first general Eminent1 is prettier than him. You aren’t too bad looking either. You’re more handsome, while he has a stunning, softer beauty to him.”

I’m handsome! Bai Saya suddenly felt a bit touched. He had been treated like a woman for more than two months. Now, merely hearing that he was “handsome” and “not like a woman” and such made him so emotional that he could cry.

“Don’t you want to capture him as your pet?” Bai Saya was a bit disappointed. If Shooting Star personally wanted to capture Alan as his pet, then Bai Saya could openly go and rescue Alan.

“If I had ten thousand gold ducats.” However, Shooting Star just sank into the soft cushion of the chair. He held the drink in his hand, sipping it as he marveled at the elf’s beauty.

Seeing that Shooting Star appeared so disinterested, Bai Saya felt very strange. Maybe it’s just because it’s too difficult? He could only say inside his heart, “Alan, I’m so sorry.”

Now that his fervor had been doused with cold water, Bai Saya felt himself deflate. He sank powerlessly into the chair, wondering if he was too passionate, if there was no justice in the world, and endless other negative thoughts.

At that moment, a knock suddenly came from behind. Shooting Star shot a glance to the side. Bai Saya had despaired so much that he was completely out of it, obviously unable to answer the door. Shooting Star could only take it upon himself to call out, “Come in.”

When the door opened, Dan walked in. Seeing that Shooting Star was looking at him, Dan gave a polite smile and walked over to ask, “Are you two having fun?”

“Not bad, you guys are selling some interesting stuff.” Shooting Star shrugged. His gaze returned to the stage. It wasn’t like Dan was here to see him.

“Bai Saya, what’s wrong?”

Seeing Bai Saya curled up on the chair despondently gave Dan a shock. Bai Saya hadn’t even noticed his presence.

Shooting Star offhandedly answered, “Oh him? He’s currently giving off sad vibes because he couldn’t exercise his sense of justice.”

Dan stilled, unable to comprehend what he meant. He could only call Bai Saya. The latter gave him a glance, the grievance in his gaze pitiful, enough for anyone to be willing to do whatever he asked, as long as it would make him smile—at least, Dan, Philo, and Agid would be willing to do whatever he asked.

“Saya, what’s going on? Did someone bully you? Did the attendants look down on you?”

As he spoke, Dan’s voice grew more and more frigid.

Before Bai Saya could respond, an unfamiliar woman’s voice came from the door.

“Don’t you wrongfully blame it on my attendants. After learning that they’re your guests, I immediately sent over the most beautiful female attendant, gave them the best private room, and served up the chef’s specialties. If they still feel belittled after that, then I really wouldn’t know how to attend to your darling.”

Shooting Star immediately turned to glance at the door. A gorgeous beauty was leaning against the door frame. Her dazzling, long blond hair was held elegantly on top of her head with a hairpin, with only a few pearls adorning it, and some wispy strands framing her face, making her appear rather charming.

The beautiful woman’s jawbone was pronounced, but that did not detract from her beauty. Rather, it made her other features appear striking. Her luscious lips were painted with the bright red of a rose, not the least bit tacky on her. Rather, it made her skin appear as white as snow. But her most striking feature was her pair of beautiful eyes that were the color of water. The way her eyes shimmered could draw your soul in.

“A gorgeous beauty!” Shooting Star’s eyes lit up.

Hearing such a compliment, the red lips of the person who had arrived lifted up into a bewitching smile. All women loved to be called beautiful, and even more when it was a boy who complimented her without any motives.

“Little guy, you’re such a sweet talker.” The beautiful woman stepped inside gracefully. She used her finger, whose nail was painted a bright red, to lightly bop Shooting Star on the nose.

“Hehe, it’s because Big Sis is beautiful.” Shooting Star smiled brilliantly and angelically. Even though he did intend to butter her up, he was speaking truthfully. She was indeed very beautiful.

“You’re such a talker.” The beautiful woman lightly pinched Shooting Star’s cheeks, her expression charmed.

She glanced at Bai Saya and introduced herself neither deferentially nor overbearingly, “I am Water Lily,2 a small fry in the Goldenstyle Merchant Guild specifically responsible for auctions.”

Shooting Star purposely showed an exaggerated expression of surprise and shouted, “If Big Sis is a small fry, then is the bigwig of the Goldenstyle Merchant Guild the Goddess of Life, Perato?”

Water Lily giggled and said, “Stop the sweet talking. It can’t be the Goddess of Life.” But she didn’t say who it was either.

Damn, I can’t trick it out of her. Shooting Star pouted, but he wasn’t too bummed. He had felt that the guild sounded familiar, so he had wanted to find out more about it, but it wasn’t like he desperately needed to know or anything.

“May I ask…”

Bai Saya suddenly spoke up. When everyone directed their eyes to him, he took the sword by his waist, placed it on the table, and said, “This is a sword made by Glen Melos. H-he even said that this sword is his personal best.”

He felt as if he could feel the Sword of Sacred White tremble in his hands; however, he had no choice but to do this. Otherwise, he would never be able to live with himself. He breathed in deeply and resolutely said, “Could I use this sword to trade for the elf?”

Water Lily smiled and teased her companion, “Aw! Dan, you’re in for heartbreak. The one he likes is the elf. Poor Dan.”

Bai Saya hurriedly explained, “It’s not that I like Alan. I just don’t want to see him become a slave.”

All Dan did was frown at that.

Head bowed to examine the sword, Water Lily praised soon after, “This is indeed Glen Melos’s work, and the sword is even better than the one that was just sold. It is very possible that this sword is that swordsmith’s best like you claimed.”

“Then…” Bai Saya looked hopefully at Water Lily, doing his utmost to ignore the reluctance he felt toward parting with the Sword of Sacred White.

Shooting Star didn’t speak up to stop him. It wasn’t like Bai Saya needed to duel anymore. Using a sword to trade for a beautiful elf wasn’t a bad deal. As long as they didn’t lose out, then his pet could do whatever he wanted with it.

Water Lily was apologetic as she said, “I am very sorry. If you wanted to trade for another item, it would definitely be possible. After all, you are Dan’s darling. I could make an exception for you. But that elf is special. I cannot agree to the trade because that elf is the main attraction of this auction. I can’t sell him to you in private. That would affect the Guild’s reputation.”

It’s still a no go! Bai Saya sighed and dejectedly let his head drop.

“Saya.” Dan hesitated for a moment, but he still said, “I’ll help you bid for that elf.”

Bai Saya lifted his head in shock, but before he could speak, Water Lily cut him off.

“Don’t be silly, Dan. I have heard that across the continent, three kingdoms have expressed interest in this elf, from the Kingdom of Rising Sun’s Prince Bol, the Kingdom of Pegasi’s Princess Anabelle, to the Kingdom of Skipstones, King Gravel. The price will soar beyond a minimum of twenty thousand gold ducats. That is my lowest estimate. What are you going to bid with?”

Twenty thousand gold ducats? Bai Saya and Shooting Star’s jaws almost dropped. That amount of gold ducats was enough to bury them right then and there.

But other than shock, an idea flashed across Shooting Star’s mind. Among those three who want to buy the elf…

Dan could only sigh. He apologized to Bai Saya, “I am sorry, this is outside of my abilities. I had thought that it would not take more than twenty thousand gold ducats. I could still manage that. But I can’t manage it if it’s more than twenty thousand.”

“No, you don’t have to apologize to me.” Bai Saya waved his hand back and forth, a bit embarrassed.

Even though he had kind of wanted Dan to bid on the elf for him, that was because he had thought that he could use his sword that was worth a hefty amount to pay back the debt. Now that he had learned that he would need more than twenty thousand gold ducats, he no longer dared to ask Dan to help him bid on the elf first and pay him back later. That amount of money was an amount that he could never repay even after an entire lifetime.

“Water Lily-jiějie.”

Shooting Star, who had remained silent this entire time, suddenly pulled on Water Lily’s arm. If any other guy did this, he would have already died without realizing it, but because Shooting Star still seemed to be a child, Water Lily wasn’t angered. Instead, she wanted to spoil him.

“What is it?” Water Lily asked with a smile.

“My Xiao Bai really likes that elf, and I also want to look at an elf up close! Could you have that elf come here?”

Shooting Star begged her with large, teary eyes. When he saw Water Lily furrow her brows, he immediately added, “Of course, you and Dan should stay, too. We’ll have lots of fun with everyone here to chat!”

Hearing that addition, Water Lily’s brows relaxed. Under Dan and her supervision, nothing would happen to the elf. Besides, Dan had wanted to use everything he owned to bid on that elf, showing how serious he was about Bai Saya. Since that is how it is, why not do a favor for Dan?

After thinking it over, Water Lily smiled. She pinched Shooting Star’s chubby cheeks and teased, “Oh you! You’re so cute that Jiějie doesn’t want to say no.”

Shooting Star widened his golden eyes and said with anticipation, “Does Jiějie mean that…”

“Wait here for a moment. I will bring the elf over.” Water Lily smiled teasingly, “Dan, do you want to come with me, or do you want to stay here and have a subordinate of yours come with me?”

“I will go with you.” Dan stood up. He was always very serious about work related matters.

Shooting Star waved at Water Lily with a smile. The moment the two of them closed the door, his expression immediately changed. He threw several sarcastic remarks at Bai Saya.

“See! It’s not easy to get our hands on that elf! Besides, there are so many slaves in the world. Are you going to save each and every one of them?”

Bai Saya dropped his head. As he fastened the Sword of Sacred White back on his waist, he explained sullenly, “I was just giving it a try. If I don’t even try, then I will never be able to forget this matter. At least, after trying, I will know that I have done all that I can do.”

“Idiot!” Shooting Star snapped.

Maybe I am an idiot. Bai Saya sighed and said dispiritedly, “Why did you request to see Alan?”

“What?” Shooting Star shouted, “I purposely turned up the cuteness for your sake so that Water Lily would let us see the elf! Aren’t you the one who wanted to see him the most?”

Bai Saya was silent for a moment before he said, “Before, we were confined in the same jail. Both of us were prisoners. Now, I am free, but Alan is about to be sold as a slave, and I am unable to rescue him. I don’t know how I should face him. Would he feel it to be very unfair? Perhaps, he would hate me because of it.”

Shooting Star rolled his eyes hard at his pet. He snapped, “Don’t you understand elves at all?”

“Huh?” Bai Saya had a confused expression.

Shooting Star confidently explained, “Elves don’t care about any of that! Unless you actually do something that gravely injures them, they very rarely hate anything living. It could be said that they naturally lack the emotion of ‘hatred.’”

“Really?” Bai Saya was a bit doubtful. Last time when he met Alan, he was very cold. He didn’t seem like a man… er, an elf, who lacked hatred.

“They’ve always been like that! Humans are fickle, demons are heartless, elves are indifferent, and beastmen are frank. Shouldn’t you at least get the major races’ natures straight?”

Um, I really don’t have them straight. After seeing Shooting Star roll his eyes at him, Bai Saya’s face reddened. He mumbled in explanation, “Other than humans, it was rare to see any other races on the Yisite Continent.”

Shooting Star shrugged and said, “That can’t be helped. The demon race mostly lives on the Nuosi Continent in the north. The beastmen have gathered on the Shaosi Continent in the south. As for what is native to your Yisite Continent—the elves—they like to hide in forests without ever taking a step out.”

“Now that I think about it, the Weisite Continent has all kinds of races.” Bai Saya was startled as he realized this.

Shooting Star immediately retorted, “Wrong, there are no elves! Elves are super duper rare here. Or else the price wouldn’t soar so high.”

Bai Saya nodded. A thought suddenly flashed across his mind, and he blurted, “Then, why doesn’t the demon race come to the Yisite Continent?”

“Now I’m certain that you lack all common sense about races.” After Shooting Star finished mumbling that, he took it upon himself to explain, as this guy without any common sense was his pet, “It’s because demons and elves are sworn enemies. Elves utterly detest demons, whose nature leans toward darkness. If they meet any demons in their own territory, even though it’s in their nature to dislike murder, they will still chase the demons away from their territory, and if they are forced to, they will even go against their nature and start a killing spree!”

“I see.” Bai Saya finally nodded in understanding.

A knock sounded on the door. The two of them stopped talking and turned their heads toward the door.

Shooting Star fixed his expression and sitting posture. He transformed from a lazy brat into an incomparably cute boy before he called out, “Come on in.”

Yup, come on in, little elf.

Shooting Star was still very much looking forward to his first close contact with an elf.

Footnotes

1 “Eminent”: The first general’s name is 皇彌 (huáng mí), of which 皇 means royal or ruler, and 彌 means abundant or full. 彌 (mí) also sounds the same as 迷 (mí), which can mean bewitching. His name can be taken to mean someone who is very majestic, or someone who charms the ruler. We will be translating names of demons mostly based on meaning instead of transcribing them based on pronunciation. “Eminent” was chosen to capture some of the meaning of his name, and to preserve the “mi” part of his name, as someone later in the story uses “Mi” as his nickname.

2 “Water Lily”: Hyacinth’s name has been changed to Water Lily in our translations.

6 Responses

  1. lfb

    Thank you!! I’m so excited to read this! :D *crosses fingers and hopes for another chapter next month*

  2. Icyheart

    Oh so it was Bai Saya SS met on the roof not the escaping Alan as i thought…
    The auction is selling Yu Wo’s coffee mug…ahahahaha I Want It!!!!!!
    Thank u PR for the chapter!!!
    I was surprised here i thought SS would be interested to make Alan his pet…i wonder how he becomes his pet? (。ì _ í。)

  3. Minty

    I can’t help but wonder if Hyacinth knows Gladiolus and Black Rose.

  4. KT

    I think Shooting Star is just bluffing about not wanting Alan as a pet…it will definitely end up that way in the end.

    Thanks for the chapter!

  5. lfb

    “Oh! He’s quite thoughtful. What a good man!” line cracked me up. XD It’s been awhile since I skimmed thru the raws but I remember that this arc was fun to read. Thanks so much for translating! Reading in English is definitely more fun for me.

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