Lilith's face became completely blank again, her voice flat and without the slightest trace of emotion.
"I don't know. You're the first true dragon I've ever seen under the Creator's Will."
"So you've seen some other true dragon before?" Scarlett asked, her tone casual but curious.
"Nope." Lilith shook her head. "I only saw archangels." She added after a short pause.
Scarlett's eyes narrowed behind her purple blindfold. "So… what face are you? Primordial demon, same as that old man?"
"No," Lilith replied simply.
"Martial demon? Or should I say martial devil?" Scarlett pressed. She tilted her head slightly, thinking about how human Lilith looked. She never showed horns either—maybe she didn't have any at all, just like Xao Feng.
But Lilith shook her head again.
"Then vampire?"
"No."
"Normal demon?"
"No."
"A wraith?"
"No."
Scarlett let out a long sigh and slumped her shoulders. "I give up. I don't want to know anymore!"
Lilith didn't respond. She didn't even bother saying goodbye, because they both knew they would see each other again tomorrow anyway. Without another word, she simply turned and walked away. Scarlett and the others made their way back to DreadHaven.
The moment they arrived, everyone rushed toward their bedrooms like there was treasure waiting for them inside. Even Lunatic, who normally only thought about sex all day long, felt strangely heavy and just wanted to lie down for a while. The instant she collapsed onto her bed, she fell asleep. Reiza quietly laid down beside her too.
For the first time, Scarlett saw the two of them this close to each other without any violence or fighting.
"I bet it'll be a banger once one of them wakes up," Scarlett smirked to herself, imagining the chaos to come.
Unlike the others, she didn't feel tired at all. She walked with her usual graceful steps toward the balcony. Her long hair swayed lightly as she leaned against the railing and looked out at the horizon.
A soft sigh escaped her lips. "It would've been great if I had internet, a smartphone, and television here…" She mumbled, her voice carrying a faint loneliness. Even though this world was full of fascinating things—magic, monsters, and mysteries—she still longed for the comfort of the internet and the entertainment of TV.
Then, suddenly, a realization struck her. Her eyes widened, and she smacked her forehead with her palm before sticking out her tongue in a silly face.
"Oops… I totally forgot! I had to ask Miss Lilith how to connect the two worlds!"
But at that moment, she looked down below and noticed a huge crowd gathered in front of an auction shop.
The shop itself wasn't new—it had been running for only about a month, selling relics, magical tools, and rare items. Normally, a fair number of people came to watch or buy, but today… the crowd was far too big. It almost looked like half the city was crammed outside, straining their necks to peek inside.
Scarlett frowned slightly.
"Did some important treasure come in today? But no… if it was that, the guards would already be controlling the crowd. Could it be a fight? No, there's no shouting or clashing… just people pushing to see. What in the world is going on?"
Her thoughts swirled as she tried to guess the reason, but in the end she sighed softly and decided to go there herself. She was the queen of this place, after all. Who was going to stop her?
Instead of summoning her six magnificent wings—too radiant, too divine-looking for such a small matter—she chose to use her wind magic. It was quieter, less dramatic, and didn't make her seem like some deity descending from the heavens.
With a gentle breeze swirling around her, she floated down and landed gracefully behind the crowd.
The moment her feet touched the ground, heads turned. Silence fell.
One man's eyes widened as he recognized her. His face instantly drained of color. He dropped into a bow so fast it looked like he might break his back.
"My lady?! Forgive me—I… I was only here out of curiosity!" he stammered before bolting away as though his life depended on it.
Scarlett blinked, tilting her head slightly. "…What? I'm not that terrifying, am I? Is this really how my people see me? A dictator?"
Her brows knitted in confusion as more and more eyes fell upon her. Each time someone realized who she was, their expressions twisted into fear.
A female orc, trembling from head to toe, bowed deeply and cried out, "Please forgive our sins, my lady!" before fleeing in a rush.
And then, as though a dam had burst, the entire crowd scattered. One by one, they hurried off in panic, leaving the path clear for her.
Scarlett stood still for a moment, her red and blue eyes narrowing, her lips pressed in a thin line. The sense of divine dignity in her bearing never wavered, but deep inside she couldn't help the knot of irritation building in her chest. "…Something's definitely wrong here."
She stepped forward with her usual grace, each motion precise and elegant, though her mind swirled with questions.
At the entrance stood two guards. The moment they saw her, their faces went pale. They fumbled to move, as if to rush inside and block her view.
But Scarlett simply lifted a finger to her lips and whispered, "Shhh…"
The sound was soft, but it carried like a command from heaven. Both guards froze instantly, their spines stiff as boards. Their heads dropped, and neither dared breathe too loudly as she walked past.
Inside, the air was heavy with excitement.
On stage, an item was being displayed in a tall glass case, shining under the auction lights. The bidders sat forward in their seats, eyes blazing with greed and determination, their voices overlapping as they raised the price higher and higher.
Scarlett's gaze shifted to the stage… and then her lips twitched.
Her entire body went stiff. She didn't know whether she should burst into laughter or erupt in fury.
Because the precious "treasure" everyone was fighting over… wasn't some heroic sword, mystical relic, or lost artifact.
It was… stockings.
A single pair of black stockings.
And not just any stockings—her stockings. The exact ones she had worn when she first came to this village. The same ones the villagers had gifted her back then with heartfelt respect. She had cherished them for quite some time, but eventually they had become too worn out, too tattered. With a casual sigh, she had taken them off one day, handed them to a guard, and ordered him to get rid of them.
And now… here they were. Sitting in a glass case, being treated like a holy relic.
Her gaze slowly shifted to the side, and sure enough, the very same guard was standing proudly by the stage. His chest was puffed out, his expression smug and satisfied, as he watched the crowd fight over the "treasure" he had put up for auction.
Scarlett's lips twitched harder. Her beautiful face struggled to hold its composure. A faint vein even appeared on her temple.
"…You didn't throw them away? You… little..",
At that moment, one of the bidders suddenly stood up and looked straight at Scarlett.
It was none other than Seiira.
Her eyes widened in shock the instant she saw Scarlett's figure.
"M-My lady!" she cried out.
The whole auction house froze. All voices died at once, and every single gaze turned toward Scarlett.
Arpeus Nova, the actual owner of the auction house, felt his throat dry up. He swallowed hard and whispered under his breath, "I'm… I'm fucked…"
Seiira's face turned crimson red. She stomped her foot in frustration and shouted, "You've got it all wrong, my lady! I only tried to bought it so that no other creep could keep it!" Her voice was trembling with embarrassment as she hurriedly covered her face with her hands and ran out of the auction hall in a panic.
The person who suffered the most, however, wasn't Seiira—it was the poor guard who had dared to put Scarlett's stocking up for auction.
His entire body froze. His face lost all color. Inside, he was crying bitterly.
"No! I knew it! I knew it would gather too much attention! My lady found out… I'm finished! My wife, my children—your daddy won't make it home today!"
Scarlett slowly walked up onto the stage. Even though her eyes were covered with a blindfold, her presence was terrifying, as if her gaze pierced right through him.
The guard couldn't bear the pressure any longer. His legs gave out and he dropped to the ground, pressing his nose against the floor.
"Please kill me, my lady! I have shamed you! I'm unworthy!" he shouted with trembling lips.
Scarlett let out a quiet sigh in her mind.
"Now I can't even kill him… This is the most troublesome reverse psychological way of demanding punishment. Well, I wasn't planning on killing him anyway."
She calmly reached out, pulled the glass box that held the stocking, and burned it to ashes in the blink of an eye. Then her head turned sharply toward Arpeus.
"Arpeus," her voice was cold and sharp, "you should pay more attention to what kind of things you allow to be sold here. Or… should I take this matter to Cryptus?"
Arpeus's knees shook violently. Sweat dripped from his forehead as his entire body shivered. "N-No! Please don't tell Master about it!" he pleaded desperately.
Scarlett then turned back to the kneeling guard. Her tone softened slightly.
"Come to my place tomorrow. I will give you five thousand gold coins."
Without saying anything more, she turned and walked out of the auction house, her steps steady and confident.
Even though she was clearly displeased, she couldn't entirely blame them. She had told her people to dispose of the stocking since it was of no use to her. But that guard, instead of throwing it away, had realized its worth.
After all, Scarlett was without a doubt one of the most famous and desired figures in the world right now. Of course, anything she had touched would be treated as priceless.
The bidding for her stocking had already reached fifty thousand gold coins, and it didn't look like it was stopping anytime soon. Secretly some representatives of the wealthiest tycoons of other kingdoms were even participating.
She had offered the guard only five thousand—barely ten percent of what he could have made—but even that much was enough for him. For a simple guard, it was a fortune. And to others, Scarlett had made herself look generous and merciful in front of the crowd.
As she stepped out, a teasing thought crossed her mind.
"I can only imagine what would happen if I actually took off my bra in front of all six kingdoms and let them bid on it…"
Her lips curved slightly, but she quickly shook her head.
"No… don't think about such idiotic things."