Iya Continent: Card God

Outside Misty Marsh Mountain.

The battlefield, littered with blood after a chaotic battle, had dried on the grass and trees. The last wisps of purple smoke had also vanished without a trace.

Knight Siz sat leisurely atop the spoils chest, polishing his weapon and longsword. He seemed satisfied with the outcome. After all, what could he do if he wasn't?

"How did you end up here?" Linta asked after a moment's thought.

“I should be the one saying that, why are you here?” Siz said with a grin.

Linta said, "I guess I think the same thing you do."

"Haha, just like me! What do I think?!" Siz laughed.

Linta's eyes darkened slightly, and he said in a serious tone, "I also suspect that there is something wrong with Namok Besson."

Knight Siz's expression changed slightly, and he smiled, saying, "You don't like that guy either?"

Linta shook her head. "You know that's not what I meant."

Knight Siz looked at Linta with a smile, remaining silent.

In the tranquil mountains, one can almost hear the low murmurs of forest fairies.

“Hahaha…” “I don’t like that guy anymore.” Siz suddenly burst into laughter. The laughter stopped abruptly, and he said sharply, “I’ve noticed something’s off about that guy these past few years.”

Linta countered, "What's wrong with that?"

Siz: "He's a knight of a ducal family, yet he associates with some shady characters. Don't you think that makes sense?"

“Gary the Elephant?” Linta said, uttering a name.

“Oh, you’ve seen it too?” Siz asked.

“I haven’t seen it before, just some clues, I’m guessing,” Linta replied.

Siz sighed, looked around, and said earnestly, "Actually, I didn't see it either; I was just guessing. I only noticed him once going to an underground casino and meeting alone with the butler, Carmack. As for the rest, I don't know anything else."

“I want to report him to the elders of the Duke’s family, but these are not enough. The most important evidence is indispensable.”

"I heard he was the commander of this bandit suppression operation, so I insisted on coming along. I thought I might be able to find some evidence. The Iron Teeth Gang's coincident appearance made me suspicious. So I abandoned the encirclement plan and headed to this Misty Swamp Mountain first."

"Sure enough, there's a problem. The real leader of the bandits, Fies, abandoned his companions and fled. Watching them leave, I had no choice but to try and hinder them, hoping it would have some effect. Then, you'll find out..."

Linta listened to his story without much surprise. What the other person said was largely consistent with her own assumptions about him.

However, the other party could not provide answers to my real questions.

“Nafis knew in advance that we were coming to suppress the bandits. So, he and Flame Fox Moke may have put on a show. The person we surrounded earlier was the deputy commander Raguel. That guy may have been useless to Nafis, so he was abandoned. This abandonment not only solved his internal problem, but also allowed us to explain the completion of our mission after this bandit suppression, killing two birds with one stone.”

Siz chuckled and said, "The bandit leader has escaped, and we've dealt with the disobedient ones. We've also completed the bandit suppression and can go back to hand over the mission to Ted. Both sides are satisfied, that's great."

Linta pursed her lips in thought, her eyes filled with doubt. There was something strange about this.

What exactly happened to that thief, Maren? His behavior before and after was completely different, as if something had happened to him after we parted ways.

"What do we do next?" Siz asked with a smile, admitting he was truly at a loss.

Linta paused. "How would I know? This is a matter for your ducal family. Why don't you report this to the Duke?"

Siz smiled wryly and said, "The Duke isn't someone I can just see whenever I want. Besides, the Duke doesn't concern himself with such matters. This is Lord Ted's responsibility. But Lord Ted will definitely want me to provide evidence."

"Then let's leave it at that," Linta said indifferently.

"Oh dear..." Siz groaned twice and lay down on the box.

……

Soon after, the Flame Fox Knight Moke arrived with his men.

Even without the help of Linta and Siz, they still defeated, or rather, killed, the bandits including Raguel. All the bandits and thieves were wiped out. Before killing them, they interrogated them about their identities. Upon learning that their leader, Fez, was unknown, they rushed to the scene.

Upon seeing Xiz and Linta separated from the group, Flame Fox Mok scolded them as usual.

Whether he genuinely didn't know or was feigning ignorance, only he himself knows.

Anyway, Linta was going to pretend he didn't know anything and recount the story of Fez's escape.

The people leading the expedition only thought that someone had escaped during the encirclement and fighting, or that the commotion had been too great and attracted attention. In any case, they wouldn't have considered the possibility that the matter had been leaked beforehand or that there was a spy inside.

After some time, they felled trees, built structures, crossed the swamp, and finally entered the camp.

All the valuables inside were taken, leaving only some cheap items. Finally, they burned down the bandits' camp and headed back to Sandel City.

Although they failed to capture the bandit leader, Fies, the mission was considered a success because they killed the vice-captain, destroyed the bandit's lair, and defeated more than half of the bandits. As agreed beforehand, Linta received his reward of 20 silver coins.

Linta was naturally delighted, as his wealth had increased even further. Next, he simply waited for the grand auction to begin.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

A large-scale auction, a grand event held every few months. To prepare for this event, the auction house will collect all sorts of rare and unusual items. Once the list of auction items is finalized, it will be widely publicized throughout the county to attract visitors from all directions.

People from other counties and regions are also attracted by the spectacle and come out of curiosity.

This day has finally come.

The entire city of Sandel was bustling and lively, second only to the celebrations in terms of crowds.

The number of magic users in the city has visibly increased.

Dwarves, goblins, orcs, halflings, and other races can be seen everywhere in the city.

At times like these, Cone Street is bustling with customers who come to this famous street in the city to look around before the auction begins.

Before heading to the auction house, Linta stopped by to see the goblin Bruce Stone and how thriving his business was.

To his surprise, he wasn't doing business today.

"What? Is it strange?" Goblin Stone locked the door and answered Linta beside him.

“Of course it’s strange,” Linta said.

"Tch, if they really want to talk business with me, one more day won't make a difference. They can come tomorrow. I'm going to the auction today," Goblin Stone replied.

"Huh?" Linta frowned slightly.

The goblin stone said, "What are you surprised about?"

“I thought I could make whatever I wanted myself…” Linta said with a smile.

Goblin Stone shook his head and walked towards the auction house, saying somewhat speechlessly, "I can't craft everything, okay? Besides, I can buy materials and blueprints at the auction. Let's go, or there won't be any seats left."

"There are a lot of people today; everyone in the city will come."