Jin and Elsa had felt a twinge of guilt about asking such sensitive questions while she was under hypnosis, but hearing Najas's story quickly swept those reservations aside.
There was apparently no concrete proof that her older sister had actually tried to take her life. Everything was purely circumstantial.
"A feud among kin... is just... painful to hear," Jin murmured.
Having grown up without any blood relatives of his own, it was something Jin found difficult to truly fathom.
"In many cases, it follows the pattern of an outsider—like a spouse—instigating things, but..." Elsa said.
Jin remembered that four hundred years ago, Elsa had indeed been driven to the brink of despair when her family was brainwashed by a conspiracy orchestrated by what was then known as 'Unifilar,' now called 'Nostalgia.'
"Aside from that, property....Inheritance feuds. It is sad, but that is the reality."
Money and power seemed capable of driving people mad regardless of the era.
As they continued to ask for details, it sounded less like overt bloodlust and more like she was subtly being maneuvered into perilous situations.
"I wonder if her recent assignment to the Intelligence Bureau was part of that too?" Jin muttered to himself.
"...Still, why would your sister go to such lengths?"
Elsa found this questionable as well. Did she despise Najas that much?
"My older sister... Narun and I were born only about ten days apart."
Narun's mother and Najas's mother had become pregnant around the same time. In short, the viscount had engaged in an affair.
"My father said it was because he wanted a boy, but..."
While that may have been his honest motive, one could easily guess that it had not sat well with his legal wife.
"My father's legal wife married in from a count's family, so there were aspects where he could never stand up to her."
Her maternal family had apparently wielded considerable influence.
Coupled with that, even though they were the same age, Narun had looked down on Najas as an illegitimate child and bullied her from a young age.
"That count's family was crushed a year ago for being involved with the Magic Federation. Ever since, my father's legal wife has been living separately."
And from that point onward, the severity with which Narun mistreated Najas only escalated.
I see. Najas mentioned having a different mother, so that explains it, Jin reflected, belatedly pondering the complicated circumstances of noble households.
"An intent to kill born from hatred... troublesome."
Elsa sighed.
"Yeah... She probably had a rotten personality to begin with, too..."
Jin was equally at a loss as to how to handle it.
"Still, you have no intention of inheriting the house, Najas-san?"
"No, I do not."
"...In that case, keeping your distance might be best."
"Ah, good point."
Jin thought of an idea: to save Najas, who worked at the Royal Palace, the trouble of returning home every time, why not treat the viscount at the Royal Palace instead?
When he proposed this to Elsa,
"Mm, I think that is good."
Elsa agreed as well.
Once the viscount recovered, Najas could focus entirely on studying healing magic. After becoming a full-fledged healer in Avalon, she would likely be able to choose her own place of employment.
"Let's consult the Queen along those lines."
Since it was for the sake of cultivating a precious healer, both Jin and Elsa believed she would grant permission.
"...Please forget this exchange."
"Yes."
"Mm. Now then... 'Wecken'."
Elsa commanded Najas to forget having discussed this matter and undergoing hypnolearning, prompting her full awakening.
As time was pressing, they decided to return to the Royal Palace first before heading to the auction venue.
Just as when they arrived, they made their way back to the Royal Palace on foot.
Both Jin and Elsa noticed Narun de Kahn, Najas's older sister, glaring down at their group through a window.
(I'm worried about the viscount. Reiko, contact Laojun to arrange some measures.)
(Understood.)
Nothing untoward occurred on the way back to the palace.
After waiting about fifteen minutes in the reception room, the Minister of General Affairs arrived.
"Jin-dono, Elsa-dono, shall we head out together?"
"Yes, please."
The auction was being held at the multipurpose theater adjacent to the Royal Palace.
Thus, Jin, Elsa, Reiko, Hope, along with Najas and the Minister of General Affairs, rode to the venue in a luxurious Golem automobile.
Entering through what appeared to be a VIP entrance, several impeccably dressed servants bowed and welcomed them along the red-carpeted corridor.
"This way, please."
Guided by one of the servants, they proceeded down the corridor.
At the top of a short flight of stairs was the VIP section.
It was a box seat that could easily accommodate ten people.
Positioned diagonally above the auction floor, it offered an excellent view.
However.
"How do we bid the amounts for the auction?"
Jin wondered if raising their voices from here would fail to carry.
"No, there is no need to speak aloud."
The Minister of General Affairs pointed to a translucent stone slate in front of the seats. It somewhat resembled a touchscreen.
"Please write the numbers here using this dedicated stylus. Once decided, pressing this red button will..."
This time, Najas pointed toward the VIP box on the opposite side. There, the number '12' and a magi-screen were set into the exterior.
"...There is a number and a magi-screen attached to the exterior of our box as well, where the numbers will be displayed for the auctioneer to see and acknowledge."
"I see."
Jin was impressed by the rather advanced system.
Once Jin and the others were seated, a maid brought over refreshments. Since it was daytime, she served juice.
Jin and the others enjoyed a light conversation while sipping their drinks.
"The ones in the VIP boxes are wealthy merchants and high-ranking nobles. The lower general seating is for everyone else."
"Are the transactions in the auction conducted with physical cash?"
"No, that would hardly be the case. All purchase histories are recorded, so settlement is handled afterward. The delivery of items follows the same procedure."
In practice, officials would handle the processing with each buyer the following day.
After waiting for about twenty minutes:
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for waiting. We will now commence the Kingdom of Franz's annual Year-End Auction."
An announcement echoed across the hall.
"It has finally begun," the Minister of General Affairs said happily. It seemed he had been looking forward to the auction itself, not just entertaining Jin.
"First up is an amethyst dome!"
It was an amethyst dome about as large as an armful. The venue erupted with excitement.
Because the Kingdom of Franz possessed few high-quality mines, minerals that could fetch high prices were put up for auction whenever they were excavated.
An amethyst dome was essentially a small-scale geode—literally a "cavern where crystals grow."
It was akin to an egg containing rock crystal. Naturally, its shape was irregular, with very few being truly egg-shaped.
Breaking open that 'egg' revealed rock crystals 'growing' along the interior. If it were large enough for a person to enter, it would be termed a full-fledged geode.
"Ten!" "Twelve!" "Fifteen!!"
Bids flew from the general seating area.
"The unit is in 'ten thousand Toll,'" Najas explained.
"Twenty!"
In the end, it was won for 200,000 Toll—approximately two million yen.
The next item was a giant rock crystal. It had a hexagonal pyramidal tip measuring roughly thirty centimeters.
"Ten!" "Fifteen!" "Twenty!" "Thirty!!"
This was knocked down for 300,000 Toll.
Next was an aquamarine crystal, which sold for 300,000 Toll.
Looking at its faint pale-blue hue, Jin was reminded of the crystal he had purchased in Yada Village, a mining village, during their journey toward the Shouro Empire with Reinhard and Elsa four hundred years ago.