Chapter 204: Counterfeit (III)

A hint of bitterness flickered across Louis’s eyes.

What a shame.

250 years. To most humans, it was an unfathomable stretch of time.

He had anticipated as much—that the things Louis knew might have vanished. Yet, he held onto hope they might still encounter the descendants or traces of his past. Alas, even this proved impossible.

Swallowed by a deep sense of hollowness, Louis couldn’t help but wear a wry smile.

There’s no other answer but to grow accustomed to this feeling.

One could not survive isolated from the world, spending a lifetime interacting only with dragons. Even now, look at him:

Kendrick, Tania, Lavina.

These were new connections formed with individuals of different times, and this too, this became part of his memories.

As dragons experience time on a vastly different scale from other creatures, Louis knew that one day, these beings would exist only in his memories. This realization had led him to pledge long ago:

Embrace the present.

He vowed to fully immerse himself in the current moment, cherishing it without reservation. His hope was that when time inevitably swept away everything, the joy of reminiscing about this period would far outweigh any sense of loss or regret.

This was Louis’s philosophy as a dragon for savoring the passage of time. It also explained why he chose to tour various winter landmarks across the continent.

It’s a shame, but there’s nothing to be done.

Siren’s Rest… Carrie and Bunt…

All past connections had to remain merely cherished memories. With a deep sigh, Louis metaphorically shook off the lingering nostalgia.

“Something seems off about this place too. Let’s find another inn to stay in.”

Louis brightened up once again and stored away the Bunt ring, never intending to use it again if possible.

With their newfound confidence, they headed back to town to spend their first night in LuftHagen at a luxurious establishment.

The next day…

“You’ll actually stay here, won’t you?”

“Yes sir! Don’t worry about me—I’ll be fine.”

Ravin was the only member of their group who volunteered to stay behind while everyone else went out for the day.

Louis tutted and looked down on her pitifully.

“Tsk. And here I thought you ran awayfrom home.”

“R-run away?! P-please say ‘left home’ instead!”

“It counts as running away if you didn’t get permission first.”

“…”

Louis knew something about Ravin’s situation, though he wasn’t entirely sure what.

I couldn’t help but understand why she’d want to hole up in her room. She must’ve been worried about running into someone from her family while wandering LuftHagen.

“Well, since you’re here now, make sure to look after Nabi.”

“…What exactly do I need to watch out for? I’m just gonna sleep all day anyway…” Lavina’s gaze drifted toward Nabi, who was curled up on the bed, occupying most of the space.

At this rate, he probably wouldn’t wake up for another two days.

With that, the group left Lavina and Nabi behind and ventured outside their lodging. They promptly split into two factions.

“I’m gonna go find a ship heading for the Autumn Continent,” Louis sighed. Without Pablo around, there was no one else to handle such trivial matters.

Still, Louis wasn’t comfortable leaving things to the others.

Then I might as well do it myself.

He made up his mind and moved off to the side.

Tanya hurried after him. “Then I’ll go with you, Mr. Louis!”

Louis glanced at Tanya, who had joined him, before looking at the rest of the group.

As soon as his gaze landed on them, the twins broke into wide grins and exclaimed in unison.

“We’re gonna go play, then!”

“And we’re gonna check out the Wishing Festival!”

Louis’s face said it all: Of course you are.

His eyes turned to Kendrick next.

“Uh, then I’ll go with the twins…” Kendrick quickly caught on and shifted toward them.

Louis sighed heavily. “Fin.”

“Yes, sir!”

“You go with them too. If they get into any trouble, contact us immediately.”

“Understood!”

And so, Fin was assigned as a chaperone for the twins.

“See you later!”

“See you in a bit!”

The group soon split into two—the ones with specific errands to run and those heading out to play. Naturally, even among those on errands, there were some whose minds wandered to sunnier pastures.

“Teacher, Teacher!”

“Yes.”

“For no reason.”

”…”

“Hehe.”

It had been so long… or perhaps this was our first time alone, Louis and I, thought Tania, her face breaking into a smile at the mere act of walking beside him. She chased after Louis, giggling like a chick following its mother, until they reached the ticket booth.

Louis suppressed a grin as Tania’s gaze kept stealing over his shoulder, and he handed her a single ticket. Tania accepted it, running her fingers over it as if marveling at some rare treasure.

“The fastest boat leaves in two days, is that correct?”

“That’s what I heard.”

“How wonderful! I can’t believe I’m actually going on a boat.”

“There will be many new experiences ahead of you, so try not to be surprised by everything.”

“But how can I not be amazed by such wonders?”

Her innocent smile even made Louis crack a grin.

Tania blushed slightly and lowered her gaze at Louis’s smile.

Meanwhile, Louis looked around.

“Let’s stop dawdling here.”

“Where to?”

“We should find the others and join them.”

Tania flinched at his words. Her eyes clearly showed the thought, “Already?”

“D-don’t do that! Let’s just have fun together, you and me!”

“What’s wrong with joining the kids for some fun?”

“I-it’s less complicated to explore in just two rather than with a big group!” Tania anxiously grabbed Louis’s hand and pulled him along.

Despite the obvious ploy, Louis chuckled as if he found it cute.

Well, I’ll play along for a bit.

Pretending to be defeated, Louis allowed himself to be led by Tanya. Together, they wandered through various parts of LuftHagen.

Although the main festivities of the Wishing Festival wouldn’t start until evening, there was still plenty to enjoy during the day. Thanks to this, both Tanya and Louis were able to have a great time.

As hours passed, the sun moved past its zenith into the afternoon. Gradually, more people began filling the streets.

“More people are coming out. We should join the others soon.”

“Yeah…”

Though slightly disappointed, Tanya agreed with Louis. They didn’t want to get lost in the growing crowd.

As they were about to slowly continue their walk,

Thump.

Someone had turned around and collided with Tania’s shoulder, sending them flying backwards.

“Oof!”

The person sprawled on the ground. They appeared slender but were still a grown man larger than Tania.

Startled, Tania reached out to the fallen man. “Are you okay?”

“Ugh!”

The man grimaced, perhaps due to discomfort. As his eyes followed the hand extended towards him, they landed on Tania’s face, and his expression froze.

“Oh…”

His face looked as if his soul had left his body.

At that moment, Louis realized what was wrong.

The man wasn’t frowning at all; his eyes were simply incredibly narrow.

Wow… He’s a real one-eyed wonder.

It was the first time Louis had ever seen someone with such a severe birth defect. The man’s pupil was completely hidden by the eye’s overhang—Louis couldn’t even make out the fellow’s eyes!

While Louis stood dumbfounded at this bionic marvel, Tanya seized the opportunity to tug gently on the man’s wrist.

“Huh?!”

The man’s body lurched upwards as if his mind had just snapped back into gear. He sprang to his feet with surprising agility and quickly schooled his expression into something akin to a sheepish grin.

“Ah ha ha, my m-my apologies. I-I was momentarily distracted, you see.”

“No, I should be the one apologizing.”

“Nonsense! I was the one who carelessly bumped into you, a lady of such delicate constitution!”

“But you did trip, after all…”

“Hey, I stumbled because my legs got tangled up! Yes! So, um…never mind!” The man puffed out his chest proudly.

Louis watched him and couldn’t help but snicker.

Weak? Who’s weak?

Tania appeared delicate from her appearance alone. But could any frail woman simply send a grown man flying with just a shoulder bash? Moreover, regardless of what others might say, Tania was among the very best of the second-tier elite—a true powerhouse. Even a full-grown bull charging at her would likely be the one bounced off.

Of course, the oblivious man felt embarrassed for stumbling against her shoulder. “Are you okay?”

“O-of course! W-well then, I’ll be going!” He hastily left, fearing she might try to engage him further.

Tanya watched him go.

“Oh!” As if struck by a sudden thought, she frantically began patting her clothes.

“Wh-what’re you doing?” Louis asked, puzzled.

Tanya’s face was solemn as she explained, “Whenever something like this happens in a novel, someone usually gets pickpocketed, don’t you know?”

She meticulously searched her pockets, and when she couldn’t find what she was looking for, she cried out dramatically.

“My meal ticket!”

“It’s…right in your left hand.”

“Oh, right.” Embarrassed, Tanya chuckled sheepishly and blushed at her foolishness. When Louis glanced at her with disdain, she turned away slyly.

“Well, I guess nothing was stolen after all.”

“You’d be an easy target for pickpockets at your level. Don’t you come crying to me if you get robbed.”

“…B-but I’ve read about even the greatest masters getting pickpocketed in some novels…”

“What’s the name of that novel? Sounds like it’s full of crap.”

“…”

Tanya tilted her head again. As she did, something caught her eye.

“Huh? This looks like… what that man dropped earlier.”

“What is it?”

Louis took the item Tanya handed him. It was the object the man had left behind—a kind of leaflet printed on thin paper. Its surface was covered in flashy, attention-grabbing text.

Experience the greatest auction at the hub of winter trade, LuftHagen!

On offer: rare treasures from autumn and winter—available only through the Wishing Festival—with exclusive discounts of up to 50% off commission fees!

New items have been registered to satisfy your desires!

Time is of the essence—this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity won’t last long!

Check the back for details of the newly registered items!

How many exclamation points are there?!

Every sentence was punctuated with exclamation points, and as he scrolled down, their number only increased.

On the other hand, the term “auction” caught Louis’s attention.

Auction?

The flyer was plastered with phrases more commonly seen on home shopping shows, naturally piquing his interest.

Are auctions advertised like this these days?

It certainly was rather amusing.

Louis chuckled as he flipped the flyer over.

There, on the back page, was a sea of cramped text.

Well now, this is a lot.

The number of newly registered items was far greater than he’d anticipated. Skimming through, hoping to find something worthwhile, Louis’s eyes came to a halt at one particular entry.

”…Huh?”

At first, he thought he might have misread it.

”…Wait a second?”

But no, there it was.

Once, twice.

No matter how many times he looked at it, the words on the page remained the same.

N-no way. How is this possible?

Why were those words written here? Louis passed the flyer to Tanya.

“Miss Tania?”

“Tanya, can you read this?” He pointed to the phrase that had caught his eye.

“What? Oh, yes, I see it.”

“Please read it aloud.”

Tanya cocked her head, wondering what Louis was getting so worked up about, and then read the phrase he was pointing at.

“Tears of Siren?”

“…Right? You see it, too, right? It says ‘Tears of Siren’ here?”

“Yes, that’s what it says… But so what?”

“B-bloody hell!” Louis burst out in an unexpected torrent of expletives, startling Tanya.

Despite her wide-eyed look, Louis couldn’t tear his gaze away from the auction flyer.

The Tears of Siren are supposedly appearing at this auction?

Why? How? But he already possessed the Tears of Siren! Louis’s mind was reeling with confusion.

If this is true, then what do I have?

He pondered it carefully.

It’s true… In the original story, the Tears of Siren weren’t discovered until a bit later.

A scene from the past flashed through Louis’s mind.

That…that was the Tears of Siren?

Yes!

Really? Are you serious?

I am! Absolutely!

…It’s not a forgery?

A forgery?! This item was authenticated by a state-certified appraiser—what kind of question is that?!

He recalled how even he had been taken aback when Carrie confidently declared it to be the Tears of Siren back then.

Why the hell is this here?

It wasn’t supposed to appear for another few centuries. But he had let it slide back then, because Carrie had been so convinced it was real…

What if it wasn’t?

If the Tears of Siren were making an appearance, it was more likely to be now rather than 250 years ago. And what if the Tears of Siren up for auction were genuine?

“Dammit, Louis…” Ha was incredulous.

“…You bought a fake?” A fake that you were tricked into thinking was real?