Deceived... or Not?

Cedric was just a writer from another world. If not for his passive skill, Reader Mindset, he would have crumbled under the pressure of being among these giants who could flatten him with a palm. But even when Professor Aria asked him to introduce himself, he remained unfazed.

"I fear the academy wants my identity to remain a secret for the time being," Cedric said with a shake of his head. "You should understand the reason."

Most people interpret things according to their own understanding, piecing together clues that do not belong to each other just to make sense of things. Professor Aria stared at him with interest before nodding and forming her own conclusions.

[…the mysterious man seemed to have been sent by the academy without her knowledge, since he recognized her with a glance. Professor Aria did not wish to pry lest she offend this powerful figure hiding his presence.]

[Although the professor was a master of clairvoyance, she still couldn't see through this man. Not even the headmaster of her academy could hide this much from her.]

Cedric ended his skill there, reassured that he had successfully deceived her. However, he didn't understand what prevented her from seeing through him.

'Could it be my status as an extra character?' Cedric thought to himself as the curtains began to rise. 'In either case, the art of acting like a big shot works again.'

The auction soon began, with a masked woman appearing to introduce the items. Although half of her face was hidden, her figure and elegance were unmatched as she made dramatic gestures.

Cedric glanced at Aria beside him, who was wearing oversized silver robes with an emblem on them. As he studied the emblem of the raven, he understood her identity more, since it was a famous crest in the Records of Elaris.

Arcane Academy.

It was the best academy to foster young talents in magic and warfare. Although it had no military powers, its political standing was unrivaled because of the mages teaching there. Aria being one of them signified her achievements at such a young age.

Cedric watched the auction with interest. Items that he couldn't even fathom appeared one after the other, including skills that contained powerful spells. Once someone read them, they would learn the spells as skills.

Other items included swords created from dragon fangs, which could spew hellfire, and a breastplate made from a wyvern's wings, which gave the wearer the ability to glide. So many items appeared that Cedric grew dizzy, as each one fetched at least a thousand gold.

The compensation Duke Ravenswood demanded was ten thousand gold, which could fetch Cedric at least ten of these items. His demands were ridiculous.

"You haven't bid even once, dear friend," said Professor Aria, examining him with a smile. Cedric did not answer, and she again filled in the blanks on her own. "Does nothing interest you?"

Cedric almost laughed and told her that he was broke. Although a prince could buy anything and have the bill sent to Aeloria, Cedric couldn't bring himself to do that because it wasn't his money, and it would reveal his identity.

"In order to understand evil, we must first observe it. This underground auction is a perfect gathering of the underworld."

"I was curious about who you are, but I understand now," said Professor Aria with a smile. "A man who cannot be seen through hunting underworld scum can only be one person. You are Lancelot, right?"

[Professor Aria mistakenly believed that her companion was the famous Lancelot, an agent deployed on a secret mission by the Arcane Academy.]

Cedric was shocked by this explanation. How did he get mistaken for someone this powerful? He feared that this might come back to bite him, but he honestly couldn't tell. Before he could answer her, the item he had been anticipating appeared.

"And another grimoire makes an appearance!" said the woman with a smile as she gestured toward the floating magical book. "This one is a little special since it can only be activated one time! It creates a barrier against oaths, illusions, and hypnosis! The starting bid will be one hundred gold! This is the skill we all know, Oathbreaker!"

The item itself was powerful, but the drawback was that it could only be used once, making it a limited life-saving measure. However, people still began to bid for it, and Cedric leaned forward with nervousness.

His current mana pool was 18/32. That meant he could activate the narrator for thirty-six seconds only. To understand who made the bid and won, he needed to activate the skill once someone won.

As Cedric expected, a certain bidder was raising the price every time someone tried to bid against them. Their increment was nothing but a hundred gold, but it came with a certain speed that smelled of despair.

The auctioneer was thrilled to see the price rise higher until it reached one thousand eight hundred gold. Then, no new bids came, and the item was sold to balcony number 38.

[In the end, the skill known as Oathbreaker was acquired by a man concealed beneath a cloak, his armor hidden from view. This man was Sir Roland Vrisky, a knight in service to Duke Ravenswood.]

Cedric knew he had hit the jackpot with his guess, and his mission here was done. As long as he could demand that the king summon this man to undertake the oath, he would be forced to testify against his own master.

Professor Aria was confused as she watched Cedric rise from his seat, even though the auction had yet to conclude. Her earlier assessment of his identity went unconfirmed, but she could not make sense of it otherwise.

"You will have to excuse me now," said Cedric as he bowed slightly to Aria and took one last gulp from his drink, which he judged to be some sort of alcohol. It was bitter but sweet, so Cedric liked the giddy feeling it gave him. "Let us meet once again at the academy."

"A pleasure to meet you, Lancelot," said Aria with a nod, and Cedric was ready to leave. As he took a few steps toward the door, a sound rang from behind him. When he turned to look at the mage, he found her talking into a small grimoire.

"It's me," said Aria as her violet eyes stared at Cedric. "You called just in time, headmaster. I'm sorry for calling so late."

Cedric could feel his blood run cold as the professor locked eyes with him. His instincts told him to run from the balcony, but his Observe Skill informed him that Aria had already constructed a barrier. In the end, he had to watch as his cover was blown.

"Always a pleasure to hear from our youngest professor," said a voice coming from the small notebook. "What can I do for you?"

"I reached out to ask about any personnel being deployed to Ironheart at the moment, other than me," asked Aria with a frown. "Is there anyone from the professors or secret agents?"

"None other than you, professor," said the other voice, sealing Cedric's fate. "Is there something wrong?"

"Nothing at the moment. Thank you, headmaster," said Aria before bidding him farewell. Then, she rose from her seat and walked to stand close to Cedric, her violet eyes squinting at him. "How about you tell me your real identity now?"

Cedric now understood that he had bitten off more than he could chew. As he felt the mana surge from the mage, he knew that she wasn't someone an unranked summoner could handle.