Chapter 23: Mr. Eldertich (2)
After observing him without approaching recklessly, I confirmed that Eldertich was actively avoiding me. He was quite blatant about it, checking my location before changing his direction.
'Is it magic...?'
Either he was using high-level magic capable of seeing through my transformation potion, or he had a related enchanted tool. There was no reason for him to avoid me like this unless he had figured out my identity, so it had to be one of the two.
"Do you want me to tell you about Mr. Eldertich?"
The man I was holding onto spoke up suddenly.
"In exchange for telling you what kind of person he is..."
"...I’ll choose a good tool for you."
The man nodded at my words. In truth, most of the information the man gave me was useless. It was all just talk about what kind of person he seemed to be, which could easily be a false facade.
'He isn't good at recognizing people, huh...'
That was the only useful piece of info I could extract. I recommended a tool from the display, one made by a follower of an Outer God for the purpose of handling miracles.
"The seller says it's a bracelet that contains an Outer God's miracle?"
"That’s wrong. It’s a bracelet made from the skin of a race that worships an Outer God, so it’s just imbued with its energy."
As a bonus, the effect of the bracelet was to increase endurance and make one forget fatigue. You could go for days without sleep, but because you wouldn’t feel tired, there was a risk of dying from exhaustion without even knowing.
'But why are all the tools so lackluster? There aren’t even any books.'
In confusion, I looked around and saw a luxurious door guarded by two knights.
"...What is that?"
"The entrance to the auction house."
Aha, so the proper tools are being sold at an auction there.
'Wait... I can use this.'
After observing Eldertich continuously, I had formed a hypothesis about him. If my hypothesis was correct, Eldertich would have no choice but to fall into this trap.
"Is it still possible to submit something for auction?"
"It’s difficult unless it’s an exceptional tool. Do you have something good?"
When I used my cloak's tentacles instead of my hand to pull a scroll from my pocket, the man flinched and cast a nervous glance around. I wrote on the scroll and handed it to the man.
"Submit this."
"It’s too late, so it will be difficult..."
"Then you’ll have to make it happen. Don't forget that you are in a position to serve me."
The man seemed to remember the spiders, for he bowed his head low and steadied his breath. While the man went to submit the tool as ordered, I watched Eldertich. Thanks to his efforts to maintain as much distance as possible between us, he didn't notice a thing.
'I hope there are some decent tools in the auction house.'
I waited with a relaxed demeanor for the auction to begin, and after about 30 minutes, the doors opened, and we were allowed in.
"Good evening. I will be your auctioneer for..."
The auction proceeded quickly. Unfortunately, there weren't tools that piqued my interest, but I could see that some very dangerous goods were being exchanged.
'I should come here often. Today was a bust, but I might be able to land a big catch.'
While various tools were being sold, it was finally time for the tool I had submitted.
"The next tool was submitted by Mr. Paul Pearson."
So the man's name was Paul Pearson. Since I deliberately hadn't asked him for his name to play the role of a priest detached from the world, I decided to forget it, even though I had heard it now.
"Paul Pearson? How did that rich fool get his hands on something?"
"Seems Mr. Eldertich hasn't seen this tool yet. He looks puzzled."
I see... Paul wasn't a very respectable figure, apparently. But, oh well, it didn't matter. He was someone I’d never see again anyway.
"What’s written on this scroll is... a miracle I’ve never seen before. The Black Goat—"
"W-wait!"
Anyone well-versed in Outer Gods would have no choice but to react to the keyword 'Black Goat'.
'Among the Outer Gods, they are in a league of their own. It’s a keyword for one of the gods from beyond the vast universe.'
Eldertich could never ignore its greatness and danger. My expectations had hit the mark exactly.
"That miracle could be extremely dangerous. I must examine it!"
Eldertich stepped forward in a hurry, his voice cracking, and rushed with clumsy movements to check the contents of the parchment scroll.
"...This is it?!"
Eldertich read the contents, looking in a state of horror.
"What is making him act like that?"
"The Black Goat... is there an Outer God like that? Seems weak."
As I thought, the people gathered in this auction house were just wealthy people; they weren't true followers of Outer Gods. Most of them were just people who desired strong tools that couldn't be normally obtained. That was why they didn't understand the value of that prayer.
"This prayer is extremely dangerous."
After pulling himself together, Eldertich began to explain.
"Such a tool must never fall into the hands of the inexperienced."
A murmur went through the crowd at his words.
"Therefore, I intend to personally win this document, to research and protect it."
Eldertich spoke calmly to the stunned crowd. The people, while fascinated by the unexpected situation, seemed to understand the risks of Outer Gods and accepted Eldertich as the winner without much complaint.
'Seems this has happened from time to time.'
Paul discussed the transaction with Eldertich, then moved to a seat far from me. The auction continued normally after that, and in the end, I didn't buy anything.
"Hey, I did everything you asked. But what is that damn miracle?"
"It is advanced knowledge too dangerous for you to understand."
"...Dammit."
Leaving Paul to his discreet questioning, I headed to the transaction location before Eldertich.
"...The Coast Room?"
I thought it was a strange name, but I understood as soon as I opened the door bearing its sign. Because what appeared wasn't a room in the black market building, but a different space altogether—a coastline with crashing waves.
'This isn't a real coast. It seems to be a space recreated to be as similar as possible, but what kind of magic is this?'
I entered the room, which was enchanted with an advanced technique I didn't even recognize.
"Whew..."
I focused my mind and began reciting several prayers. I was making sufficient preparations before Eldertich’s arrival.
'Thoroughly. Eldertich won't know what kind of miracles I can use, so let’s exploit that.'
The unknown is my greatest strength. Eldertich seemed to have great knowledge of Outer Gods, so there was a non-zero risk that he could see through the miracles I use. Especially since the one I had just obtained was a miracle from a book with many copies in circulation. He would almost certainly know it.
'In the end, it was Eldertich who recommended that book to Paul in the first place.'
But he wouldn’t know about my unique traits, my specialized abilities for the role of a priest. I just had to exploit the information gap that created.
'Even so, I’m still at a disadvantage...'
But based on the information I gathered, there was a high possibility Eldertich isn't that strong. If he were that overwhelmingly strong, he wouldn’t be playing the role of an expert in a place like this.
'And he would have less reason to avoid me.'
This was a time for focus on preparation, not useless worry. Like a spider weaving its web, I prepared my miracles carefully. Soon after, the sound of a door opening announced Eldertich's arrival. He was surprised by my presence but didn't look overly flustered.
"As I thought... it’s you."
"That's right."
I released my transformation and returned to my true red-haired form.
"My name is Eitnos. You were trying quite hard to avoid me, Mr. Eldertich."
"What is the reason for your doing this, knowing that? Luring me out with such a precious miracle."
Precious miracle...
"I suppose I should start with an apology. That miracle is fake."
"...Excuse me?"
Eldertich froze in mid-motion and stared at me. Exactly as I thought, there's something unnatural about him.
"Seems my efforts in writing a plausible-sounding description and origin paid off."
"It-it can’t be!"
"The miracle’s name is real, but I made up the contents."
Eldertich unfurled the parchment scroll, looking back and forth between me and the scroll several times. He seemed in greater shock than I expected.
"W-what is all this! Why bother someone this way—"
"A person?"
I curled my lips and charged my voice with a mocking tone.
"Mr. Eldertich. I’ve realized for a long time that you are not a person."
"What did you say?"
"For a human to possess such a wealth of knowledge concerning Outer Gods is nearly impossible."
Even I, who was born with the greatest aptitude as an Outer God priest, must live on psychiatric sedatives.
"Furthermore, you don't show any of the movements a person naturally makes, like blinking or the movement of the Adam's apple."
Those were the oddities I discovered while observing Eldertich. All these things led me to suspect that Eldertich was another being, only pretending to be human.
"...Damn that El-less. What do you want from me?"
Hearing him mention that damn El-less confirms it. This creature is of a race related to Outer Gods.
"I’m curious as to the reason for your doing all this. and I also want information on the owner of this black market."
Eldertich let out a dry laugh and stared at me.
"Is that all? To think you don’t even know the Young Lady... You're less impressive than I thought."
A young lady...? The owner of the black market is a young woman?
"So you know the owner."
"Owner? You're quite mistaken. Well, never mind. First, for the crime of deceiving me..."
Eldertich took off his hat, set it aside, and began unbuttoning his clothes.
"...let’s settle that debt first. I’ll teach you a harsh lesson."
For some reason, a smile played on Eldertich's lips. I tensed slightly and stepped back.
"I’m no fool either."
Eldertich's form began to change. His skin started to liquefy, gradually turning a bright green color. His facial features collapsed, and the body that had a human shape began to swell like a mass of foam, changing its shape.
"I chose this location just in case it was a trap."
His body swelled far larger than I expected. It exceeded the size of a person and began to grow larger than a tree.
"This space is large enough to take my true form, and although it’s an illusion, there’s even an ocean."
From within the bubbly shape, a large round eye appeared and stared at me intently.
"T-this is......"
I never thought I’d face such a thing head-on. Wriggling tentacles and a green body. Its large red eye, complete with a sharp vertical pupil, was reminiscent of a demon.
[I am a descendant who received the Great One's blood, and his servant. Although I was born a strange mutant and was shunned by my own kind......]
A low voice echoed through the space.
[......look! 【The Dreamer in the Castle of the Depths】! His great 'star offspring'! That is me, Eldertich!]
A massive body made of a mysterious green substance, twisted tentacles, and a strange organ moving above its head. At the sight of the creature, which very much recalled a deep-sea being, I was at a loss for a moment.
"......A Dumbo octopus?"
It was a giant green Dumbo octopus.
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