CH 205

Catherine seemed ready to just about reveal the identity of the Summoning Stone, but the door suddenly opened and the Black Merchant intervened at the perfect time to prevent her from speaking any further. He said, “Not now.”

Catherine stared at the Black Merchant, who behaved as if he had been listening in to the conversation inside the room the whole time. “It was you, wasn’t it?” she asked.

The Black Merchant had a troubled look, avoiding Catherine’s gaze as she spoke words that made no sense out of context. But she continued to stare down at him, and after a long time, he finally gave in and said in resignation, “Please don’t forget our oath with us, the Black Merchants.”

“What oath? It’s just give and take,” Catherine replied. Despite her subtle tone, her expression still didn’t ease up.

“Urgh.” The usually quiet Black Merchant looked back at Catherine with an earnest gaze.

“Well, fine. You must have a plan as well, so I’ll stop my presumptuous meddling too.” Catherine seemed to have other ideas, as she quickly changed her attitude.

“What are you all talking about now, leaving me out of the conversation?” Kim Jin-Woo, who had been alienated from the conversation, intervened belatedly.

But Catherine and the Black Merchant didn’t answer him, as if they had a prior agreement. Instead, Catherine just said, “None of your business.”

If he didn’t intervene, he might end up being a puppet in their ploy. Thus, Kim Jin-Woo pressed on in a sharp tone. “It sounds like you’re talking about me. I need to know.”

But of course, the Black Merchant and Catherine were no ordinary beings. One was an Underworld merchant that was as tenacious as they came, and the other was a Highlord that was as insidious as she was mighty. They casually ignored his growing presence.

“There’s just one thing you need to know,” Catherine suddenly said. Kim Jin-Woo had been about to step forward and speak up, but he kept silent as Catherine continued, “You’ve got yourself a pretty good sponsor.”

Even before Kim Jin-Woo could figure out the meaning behind those words, the Black Merchant shouted, “Wailing Lord!”

Kim Jin-Woo was surprised by the urgency in the Black Merchant’s voice, which was unlike the exaggerated attitude he had shown in the past.

“You guys… Don’t tell me you guys are ‘uncontracted’ right now?” Catherine asked.

“Milord! Any further remarks are a clear violation of our oath!” the Black Merchant retorted in an even harsher tone than before. There was even a sense of hostility behind his shouts.

But Catherine, a Highlord, wasn’t swayed by a mere imp’s retaliation. She retorted, “Do you, no, the Black Merchants know what you’re doing right now?”

“This isn’t your Underworld, milord. We have our own rules here, so please don’t interfere anymore,” the Black Merchant warned her.

Was this the true face of the Black Merchant? His true nature, which had been hidden behind his small and unassuming appearance all along, finally revealed itself.

“Fine, I’ve benefited from you anyway, so I’ll no longer interfere.” Catherine was surprisingly compliant.

But the calm lasted for only a brief moment, as her eyes turned cold.

“But let me give you a warning.”

Suddenly, she started exuding the formidable presence expected of a Highlord.

“If you want something, get down on your feet and beg. If you put your trust in that stupid head of yours and think of deceiving him, there won’t be a good ending.”

What fearsome words those were. Especially when they were directed toward the Black Merchants, an organization that commanded respect even among the Deep Floor Nobles.

However, despite being treated like the lowest of slaves, the Black Merchant didn’’t retaliate.

“Good, I’ll take that to mean you’ve understood my words.” After warning the Black Merchant, Catherine looked at Kim Jin-Woo.

“Even though their usurped power and glory was scattered across the Underworld, and their prestige isn’t as strong as it used to be, the Highlords are the absolute rightful rulers of the Underworld.” Her voice was several times colder than when she had been talking to the Black Merchant. She continued in a hostile tone, “Your ignorance will never defend your destiny, so keep your eyes open and see everything with unclouded eyes. Don’t forgive anyone who deceives you and covets you.”

Kim Jin-Woo was unable to respond, but instead of waiting for a response, Catherine snorted. “Hmph. I’m not in the mood for a chat today. I’ll go ahead and take my leave.” Having said that, she opened the door of the VIP room.

“Heed my words.”

Kim Jin-Woo wasn’t sure who she was talking to as she left the room, but he pondered her words without even realizing it.

Thud.

As soon as Catherine left the room, the Catfolk assistant that had been barely hanging on collapsed onto the floor. To an ordinary being like her, the presence of the two Highlords was too much to handle.

However, neither Kim Jin-Woo nor the Black Merchant paid any attention to her. The Black Merchant continued to avoid Kim Jin-Woo’s gaze, while Kim Jin-Woo simply stared blankly in the direction that Catherine had left in.

“Then I’ll take my lea—”

“I just feel that there’s something I’m not aware of.” Kim Jin-Woo coldly called out to the Black Merchant, who had been about to wriggle his way out of the room. “What is this thing, that it seems only you two understand while leaving me out of it? Tell me what I’m missing here.”

Catherine’s story had cracked open a very small opening. But Kim Jin-Woo didn’t miss that opportunity.

“As you know, we, the individual merchants of the Black Merchants, sponsor promising labyrinth masters…” the Black Merchant began.

“I’m warning you as well.” Seeing that the Black Merchant was starting to make up excuses, Kim Jin-Woo’s eyes lit up. “Don’t hide it. Don’t lie to me. Don’t let me ever be put to shame again because of you.”

Kim Jin-Woo must have thought that all he had to do was survive. But even he had his own pride to live up to. Catherine’s gaze, looking coldly down on him, was still present and made his heart feel cold.

“If there’s something you’re hiding from me, it’s best if you tell me about it now. Because right now…” Kim Jin-Woo growled fiercely. “I feel like I’ve been taken as a fool.”

The Black Merchant eventually left. Despite the intense pressure, he didn’t talk until the end. He only requested for Kim Jin-Woo to wait until the final day of the auction. “Please kindly wait until then.”

From the way he hadn’t talked despite being pressured heavily by a Highlord’s presence, there was definitely something the Black Merchant was hiding. But Kim Jin-Woo had no idea of knowing what it was, so all he could do was hope for the promised final day of the auction to come.

Somehow, the auction had gotten more and more complicated with each passing day, and Kim Jin-Woo had even started missing the Grand Labyrinth.

“Phew.” He let out a long, deep sigh, before being interrupted by the sound of knocking on the door.

“It’s me.” Catherine appeared with the demeanor of a friendly neighbor paying a casual visit, with the cold look that she had given just moments before nowhere to be seen. “I may have spoken like that just now, but I still think it’s better for me to fill you in on the details somewhat.” With a hurried pace, she sat down beside him.

“But before that,” Catherine said, looking intently at Kim Jin-Woo’s face. “I need to hear the story of how you awakened.”

Kim Jin-Woo didn’t hide the details. After all, one had to lose some to win some, and he saw no benefit in hiding the details just to be unable to extract the information that he himself wanted to find out.

Thus, after a short hesitation, he confided all the reasons and events that had led him to his awakening. But he didn’t talk about the details of his encounter with the Lord of Brilliance, because he still couldn’t trust her completely.

“And that leads to you and the Black Merchants’ auction,” Kim Jin-Woo concluded.

But Catherine remained silent, frowning while drowning in her own thoughts.

“Something seems to have gone awry.” After a while, she spoke in a heavily subdued voice. “The most important thing to be given to the successor hasn’t been delivered.”

What is she talking about now? Kim Jin-Woo wondered, as he too frowned. He was dying to ask questions in his mind, but he stayed silent, as he wanted Catherine to continue speaking.

“The One-Eyed Lord had two crows,” Catherine said.

The first thing that came to Kim Jin-Woo’s mind when she mentioned the word ‘crow’ was Morrigan. Before she was called the black ‘Death Crow’, she had been called the ‘Crow of the Battlefield’.

“One left the Lord’s side to show off their powers, while the other stayed by the Lord’s side to guard him.”

Catherine told the story of the two crows. One was the black ‘Death Crow’ that had sought to act for the Lord, while the other, the ‘White Crow’, had sought to protect him by his side. It was said that one of the two crows executed the desires and will of the Lord, while the other held his sanity and memories.

“Originally, you should have had both of the crows at your side by now. But all you have with you is the Death Crow. This isn’t normal.”

And that wasn’t all to her story.

“But the problem is that the White Crow isn’t appearing. If the White Crow were here somewhere, I wouldn’t be this relentless.”

Catherine had a serious, yet somehow disappointed look on her face.

“The Death Crow is simply an enforcer who fights and annihilates the Lord’s enemies. But the White Crow is different.

“The White Crow is the memory and power of the One-Eyed Lord itself.”

Catherine lamented that at this rate, Kim Jin-Woo would remain as an incomplete Lord, and that he had to find the reason behind his ignorance.

“That’s right. I’ve completely inherited the memory of the Wailing Lord,” Catherine added.

Kim Jin-Woo would have brushed aside those words if it were anybody else, but Catherine strangely had a dark look on her face. When Kim Jin-Woo probed further, she let out a long sigh and explained her situation.

“The First and the Second, as well as myself… We’ve all been waiting for the successor to the One-Eyed Lord. The one that chased away that horrifying monster called the ‘Night’ was none other than the One-Eyed Lord, you see.” She spoke as she paced around the room with an anxious look that Kim Jin-Woo hadn’t seen before on her face. “This won’t do. We should meet with the First and the Second.”

“Didn’t you say that you were all on bad terms with each other?” Kim Jin-Woo asked.

“This isn’t the time for that. At this rate, we’ll all be killed by the Night,” Catherine replied.

The situation seemed more dire than Kim Jin-Woo had thought, as Catherine was way more serious than he had expected.

“Well, I have to go.” Catherine spoke as if she were about to leave the auction house at that very moment.

“Wait!” Kim Jin-Woo caught her just as she was about to leave the room. “So-Hee…”

“How sad, how sad. Considering the situation now… Nevermind. So-Hee will find you when the time is right. Besides, it’s her; she’ll go looking for you first, so don’t you worry about it,” Catherine said, showing an uncharacteristically kind and sympathetic attitude that left Kim Jin-Woo visibly confused.

“Then, until we meet again, goodbye.” With that, Catherine left for good.

Kim Jin-Woo had no idea if that was her true nature, or if the situation was truly just that serious.

“Originally, the Lord’s vessel wouldn’t be able to encounter any fragments until it was ready. Something has gone awry.”

Catherine had said that Morrigan wasn’t just an Ancient Hero-Grade summon, as their first encounter had been way before Kim Jin-Woo’s encounter with Ustus. She had also said that the encounter was by no means natural.

Kim Jin-Woo’s expression was twisted from all his deep thoughts. If meeting Morrigan first had prevented him from fully awakening, it had to be because of someone’s intervention. And at that moment, he realized who it was.

“Anatolius!”

He remembered the iron-masked giant who had sent the Summoning Stone as a token of alliance and advance payment for his cooperation, and gritted his teeth.