“Our seats are over there,” Erika said, leading him to some empty seats.2

The sight of the seats made Se-Hoon curious.0

“I thought you said we met by chance earlier.”0

“Yes.”0

“Then why is my seat reserved?” Se-Hoon asked incredulously, staring at the two conspicuously empty seats. 1

“It was just in case something like this happened,” Erika said without batting an eye.7

“…I see. How thoughtful of you.”0

Regardless of the reason, watching the auction sitting down would be more comfortable than standing. Now sitting down, he pulled out a catalog placed behind the seat in front of him and began to flip through it.0

A total of thirty-six swords, huh?0

The items up for auction today were already on the stage with six swords laid out on a stand spanning each table.0

Hm… it seems like there isn’t a notable figure among the second-year...0

There were no names he was able to recognize, and honestly, their iron swords were inferior to Hans’s. His interest cooled as he read through the catalog.0

Eventually, the auctioneer walked out from behind the stage and stood in front of the podium to finally start the auction.0

“We will now begin the regular auction. The auctioned items will be the equipment forged by the second-year students of the Department of Blacksmithing. The theme today is iron swords. A total of thirty-six items have been submitted. For detailed information, please refer to the catalog in front of your seats.”0

The interior lights dimmed slightly while the stage lights brightened intensely, naturally drawing the audience’s attention. 0

The auctioneer smoothly continued the explanation, “Before we start, let me explain the quality verification process that has been specially added just for this auction.”0

As he spoke, the lights focused on the center of the stage. The bright white fabric on top of the cart reflected the light in all directions.0

“This white fabric is called West Gold Fabric, and it is made of thin threads spun from the processed...0