CHAPTER 145: CHAPTER 145:BLACK MARKET [1]

Despite its nice exterior compared to the outside, the smell was much worse in here, for me.

Outside in the underground market, the disgusting human scents could float up into the air and toward the surface, but here, they were all trapped inside like some sort of hotbox, made especially for me.

Tapping the ring that hid my horns on my index finger, I approached the countless showcase blocks, peering at the necklaces, bracelets, and wristbands through the surface.

I had considered taking out my new black headband artifact to have it appraised by an expert, gaining a better insight into its abilities.

Yet, even though my identity was hidden within here, I didn’t want to risk anything.

If it were found out that some newcomer suddenly had a B-rank magical artifact, rumors would eventually spread, leaking into the world outside this black market.

As a stack of flash mana orbs flashed across my vision, I sighed, recalling the orb that dropped from Fenrir that I had left behind.

Hopefully, they would put it to good use.

Eventually, after a minute of pacing around, a male attendant, dressed in a full black suit with a bronze mask, approached me and inquired.

"Is there anything I can help you with, cuckoo-bird?"

"..."

I went from the demon king to a fucking cuckoo-bird!?

What the hell!?

This was too far...

I swear, for just a slight moment, I considered revealing my horns to display my real identity and TITLE.

Shocked at my name change, I stayed silent for a moment before eventually managing to mutter out.

"Y-yes, a smell blocking artifact...one that can preferably be turned off and on with ease."

Scratching the bottom of his chin, the attendant immediately nodded their head and said before turning around, heading toward a staff-only area.

"I’ll have a look around and see if there’s anything similar to that. For the time being, please feel free to peruse the artifacts we have available for display."

Pausing for a moment mid-stride, the man suddenly said, hiding his face.

"*AHEM* A full feather-suit clothing artifact came into today...I highly recommend it if you’re interested."

...do I look like an animal cosplayer!?

Breathing in and out, I patiently waited...before walking over to the clothing artifact section.

It wasn’t that damn feather suit, I swear!

It had been a long time since I had last worn my cloak, courtesy of Liana, so something to replace it would be nice.

Of course, nothing could pass the original, though.

Due to the academy being split into three sectors for each year, it was basically impossible for me to run into Liana.

And, I wasn’t yet willing to walk into the third-year sector of campus.

Perhaps I was just waiting to see if she would come find me.

Walking past the jackets, I found a crimson-red cloak with a tag describing its abilities.

[Rank D] / [Grants complete immunity against NATURAL fires]

Great, if there’s a forest fire, I know just the artifact to wear!

Even in stores like these, it seemed that there were useless D-rank artifacts.

Pausing, I suddenly gazed at the golden ring covering my horns, wondering what rank artifact it was.

Well, unless I became an appraiser myself, it would be impossible to find out...

Passing by some interesting sneakers with some nice abilities that, unfortunately, did not match with my current abilities and even some baggy pants, I returned to the accessory section.

Back on Earth, I had always had some extremely expensive watch from a store like Rolex or Patek, so perhaps, I could achieve that dream here.

After a couple of minutes of browsing, a watch eventually caught my attention, not for its abilities or cheap price, though.

The watch had a perfect crimson-red band, with its glass being tinted a light red.

A giant blood drop design appeared under the watch’s two dark-red hands, perfectly matching my bloodied shirt.

The numbers around the clock didn’t even seem to be drawn or imprinted...just formed by small droplets of liquid blood.

It...was perfect!

As for its abilities...

[Rank C] / [Untested]

It seemed the appraisers of this shop hadn’t yet experimented with this watch enough to understand its abilities.

Since there were plenty of C-rank artifacts in this shop, that wasn’t necessarily surprising.

Anyway, it didn’t matter.

I was buying the watch for its design, not its ability.

The only thing that mattered was if it passively drew mana from my body like my horn-hiding ring.

If it did, no matter the...perfect, absolutely amazing, brilliant design, I couldn’t buy or wear it.

A couple of moments later, the attendant finally reappeared and approached me, a wooden chest in his right palm.

With a huge grin, perhaps expecting a large commission fee, he announced.

"I’ve found just the artifact for you, cuckoo bi-"

Not wanting to hear that...nickname one more time, I interrupted.

"What is it?"

As he opened the chest, revealing a large, puffy, red velvet pillow, my gaze immediately locked onto...nothing?

Seriously, what was I supposed to be looking at?

It was just a damn showcase pillow?

Awkwardly, I pointed at the showcase pillow, where artifacts usually sat on display, and questioned.

"Is that...it?"

Smiling even harder, expecting my reaction, the attendant pushed the chest further toward me and cheerfully whispered.

"Look closer, cuckoo-bird."

And, finally, after a solid minute, I saw it.

A blood-red handkerchief sat atop the pillow, perfectly blending in with it.

Holy shit, was it my lucky day?

Two red artifacts, count me in!

Keeping an emotionless poker face, drawing from experiences with Evangel, I casually asked.

"So what exactly are its abilities?"

"First, its requirements. To be activated, the handkerchief must be folded and kept somewhere on your body where it’s visible."

"If activated, the handkerchief will allow you to block out one scent of your choice. And, when deactivated, that scent will immediately reappear."

Pausing for a moment, the attendant glanced at me wearily before continuing.