'Damn it', Instead of walking towards the auction house, the man chose to go to the manager's room after spotting the bright orange curtains in the hallway. The vibrant color caught his eye and steered him away from the auction, leading him to voice his concerns as a loyal customer.
Even as he was walking there, he bumped into a soldier who had a smile of enthusiasm but didn't bother to bow to him, despite knowing how often he visited.
"Hey, is manager inside the room?" Looking at one of the soldiers blocking the hallway, the man asked how to get to the manager's room and if the manager was inside it.
"If I remember correctly, the manager had just sent a letter through one of the guards, so you can definitely find him inside," observed the guard closely, noting the man's high-ranking merchant clothes with the seal of the auction house. The guards instantly bowed upon seeing the symbol, as it indicated he was a regular customer. "Greetings, please follow me this way."
They both then turned and walked towards the door in the hallway before stopping in front of it. The guard knocked and asked, "Manager, may we come in?"
Silence~
But the only thing they received was silence, without getting any answers from the other side. This caused them to look towards each other before the guard knocked again and repeated the same words, but still received silence.
"Wait, Manager, it's me. Open the door," the man said as he approached. He did not receive any response, causing him to raise an eyebrow as he looked towards the guard. The guard nodded, and both of them stepped back. The guard then ran towards the door and gave it a kick.
The door swung open with his strong force.
'?!'
In an instant, their eyes widened as they caught sight of a man collapsing to the ground, lifeless and covered in blood.
His face was a mask of agony as blood gushed from his body, creating a pool of crimson around him. His visible nerves seemed to tell the story of his torment, his wide eyes filled with horror.
"M-manager?" The guard went forward to check on the dead manager, while standing behind him was a man who felt his senses tingling. His eyes scanned the area to see if someone was behind this before his legs started to move backward. He swiftly turned and sprinted as if his life depended on it.
[ Initiating Scanning.....]
'...how is she so sure though', While gazing at the man, Ryuk sensed it was clearly a trap carefully arranged to lure him into using the Grimoire on the man, triggering man's most vulnerable state and potentially activating a mechanism that could ensnare him.
But the question remains: how was she so sure that he would fall for this trap?
Of course, Ryuk was one hundred percent sure that he was being lured in with such an obvious trick.
There were several signs indicating these facts, one of which was that the man was simply a gardener. Another point was the geography of Jade Dominion, which prevented any ship from entering Middle Town, meaning everyone had to first arrive in Lower Town.
It was also unusual that this man, who should have been in Upper or Middle Town considering he was the sidekick of a heroine, was wandering in Lower Town.
There were several other factors to consider, such as why this man came here to buy slaves without any guards accompanying him and carrying so much money.
For Ryuk, these facts were crystal clear while signaling that something was amiss here.
In Esme's case, he isn't able to do anything except follow the flow given her facial features and attractive nature being too much suspicious.
He can't just ask those gods why they created her to lure him, but he could at least decipher the mindset of an old woman who barges into the room of a child and runs away after being mesmerized by his amber eyes.
So, he had to deal with an old lady whose mind seemed much sharper than a blade.
DING!
[ Host, there is an Aetherium bomb near this man's heart. If his heartbeat stops, it will evaporate a 1-mile area and even capable of evaporaing an LEGENDARY Ranker. ]
A devilish smile formed on Ryuk's face as he wore a black mask and looked down. He commanded, 'Purchase a gift box with preservation ability. I need to send a beating heart to a special lady.'