‘The original is in third person, so the dealer’s perspective appears too. That’s why I know the secret of this gun.’

Of course, since Melodia was a saint respected by all, the dealer could have given her the auction ticket without any game.

But even so, that dealer pondered whether to play a game with Melodia, and was somewhat suspicious of her.

And the original described the thoughts the dealer was having at that very moment.

‘This gun is just unable to speak, but it’s actually a magic tool and weapon with half a personality.’

Having a personality means it kills humans when it wants to, and doesn’t kill humans when it doesn’t want to.

And the personality inside the gun recognized the dealer as its master. So that gun was programmed to never be able to kill its master, the dealer.

‘What if I use the personality inside that gun.’

I smiled quietly and raised my hand.

“Do you know this, elder sister?”

I showed her the gun in my hand. The outer surface of the gun was heated and underneath it was written [Dealer] in ancient language.

The dealer opened her eyes wide in surprise. It was only natural.

“…What is this? This is impossible!”

“Why?”

I asked, though I obviously knew.

The dealer’s confident expression turned to bewilderment.

“That ancient language only appears when the dealer holds that gun…! Did you use magic to manipulate it? But you shouldn’t be able to use magic…!”

“I can’t use magic power, but I can use other abilities.”

I smiled brightly and looked towards the boss.

He grinned at me.

There was a reason for everything the boss had muttered to himself earlier while looking at me. It wasn’t muttering, it was an incantation.

Before coming to this casino today, I had a brief conversation with the boss.

‘Boss, I’m curious about something. If it has a personality, can a magic tool be controlled too?’

‘With an incantation?’

‘Yeah!’

‘It might take some time, but it’s probably possible.’

Today, the boss, who is an incantation master, lent me his power.

Of course, magic couldn’t be used freely inside the casino. It was designed to block others’ magic.

But… Among the abilities that magicians dismiss as insignificant, there was something called gypsy incantations.

I used precisely that incantation to manipulate the magic tool.

Unlike magic, incantations were in the realm of manipulating psychology.

So it worked on humans, but it could also disrupt the psychology of magic tools created by humans and given personality.

Wearing the expression of a victor, I looked at her.

“You see, I brought a healer too ’cause I don’t want elder sister to get hurt. But they say a healer can’t revive a dead person… I’m worried.”

I looked at the dealer, loaded the gun, and shot it at my forehead.

Whee-.

Naturally, this gun couldn’t kill me, whom it had already recognized as its master.

The rules of the game. Once the game has started, it can’t be stopped unless there’s a declaration of defeat.

“This magic tool has an incantation cast on it, so it’ll recognize me as the dealer for a while.”

I grinned and shook the gun-shaped magic tool.

My snow-white front teeth popped out.

“But what about elder sister?”

“…”

Both the dealer and I knew the answer.

“You have to either declare defeat, or die like a participant. One of the two.”

At my words, the dealer rubbed her face. She asked me with a sigh-like tone.

“…Before I decide, let me ask one thing. Setting aside using other abilities, how on earth did you know the secret of that magic tool?”

I shook my head coyly and replied.

“It’s a trade secret.”

“…Oh, my goodness.”

She looked quite flustered, but perhaps because she was a dealer who had been through thick and thin, she was quick to grasp the situation. She bit her red lips while looking down at the gun I handed her.

“I didn’t expect to be beaten by a baby, but you got me good.”

I silently watched the dealer. After biting her lips firmly, she put the gun down on the table and declared.

“…By the dealer’s authority, I’m terminating this Russian roulette. It’s your victory.”

The lights that were bright became even clearer.

“Since you’ve won, tell me what you want.”

“Yeah.”

I looked at her confidently with my hands on my hips.

“Give me the ticket to the dark auction.”

“Ah… So that’s it. Alright.”

At my confident words, the dealer put her fumbling hand into her pocket. Then she took out a golden ticket from her pocket.

I frowned. I was sure Melodia had received a red ticket, so I wondered what this was.

‘What’s this? Is she pulling a fast one?’

As I was looking at the dealer with suspicious eyes, she handed me the golden ticket.

“This isn’t an ordinary auction entry ticket. Special people need special tickets.”

I looked down at the ticket in my hand and closed and opened my eyes.

This was…

The highest premium ticket for the auction that even Melodia, famous as a saint, couldn’t obtain.

Seeing me a bit flustered, the dealer spoke softly.

“Baby princess, do you think you can find happiness and luck in the dark auction?”

This was a question she had asked Melodia in the original story too.

At that time, she nodded vigorously with a bright smile. She probably could have found happiness and luck since she actually bought countless useful items from the dark auction.

But I shook my head.

“I don’t know.”

The dealer, finding my answer interesting, stroked her chin and abruptly asked.

“Then why are you trying to enter the auction?”

“Because I have to.”

I will become stronger by buying the items sold in this auction.

I will also make money.

So…

“Does that mean… it’s a mission?”

She stared at me quietly. I spoke calmly, neither shaking nor nodding my head.

“I have people I absolutely must protect.”

With these hands, I will save the lives of our silly father and silly friends from the villains.

I will also protect the precious people of our Mirmode ducal family who are about to be massacred.

Even though my two hands are smaller than white dumplings.

Perhaps she clearly read the solemn sincerity on my face, she smiled brightly. Then she opened the floor where she was standing and said to me.

“Go in now, the auction has probably already started. You’re a bit late.”

As she said, noisy sounds could be heard from the floor.

I nodded vigorously and reached out to elder sister Deadly. The sharp-witted elder sister Deadly pulled me into her arms.

On the way down the ladder, cradled in my maid elder sister’s arms.

Before Acid and the boss came down, I heard the dealer’s voice above my head.

“Lovely baby princess, I hope you find what you want and can protect those you love. I wish you luck.”

I looked up in slight surprise. Those words were a blessing that even Melodia hadn’t heard in the original story.

The joy in her voice oddly reminded me of someone.

‘…She’s like elder sister Delphia.’

Erasing the thought that flashed through my mind, I climbed down the ladder and entered the auction house.

As the dealer said, the auction seemed to have already started.

The rosewood land would be auctioned off early as it was deemed useless. That thought made me feel rushed.

So after getting off the ladder and standing in front of the door of the underground dark auction house, I hurriedly handed my ticket to the guard in front of the auction house.

The guard who received my ticket handed me a paddle to participate in the auction.

Seeing him stutter, tremble slightly, and bow deeply as soon as he saw the ticket, something seemed strange, but participating in the auction was what mattered.

When the guard opened the door, the five of us were able to enter.

As expected, the auction house was already heated up. The auctioneer seemed to have been rambling about something.

“…If there are no more bids, we’ll move on to the next item.”

Without time to ponder what item had just gone unsold, I shouted loudly.

Let’s buy something, anything!

“Me!”

Amidst the seemingly solemn crowd, even wearing masks.

My chirping voice, being less than 1 meter tall and held in my maid’s arms, drew everyone’s attention. Regardless, I hurriedly pulled out the paddle in my pocket.

“Not me, but number 1!”

After saying that, even I was surprised.

‘Huh? Why am I number 1?’

Matching my confusion, murmurs could be heard from around.

“Isn’t number 1… permanently retired in this auction house?”

“How did such a little kid get the permanently retired number?”

“Did she mispronounce? It must be number 11.”

“…Huh? Even if it’s 11, that’s impressive!”

I too opened my eyes wide.

I knew what it meant to be participant number 1. But to think the paddle the dealer gave me would be number 1!

.

Usually, auction houses had a system of permanently retired numbers.

Either a big spender at that auction house, or a really precious guest.

They also had special privileges.

Usually, in such auction houses, there was a quota system to prevent one person from taking everything. So one person couldn’t bid on more than 2 items.

But… permanently retired numbers like ‘number 1’ were different. They could bid unlimited times as long as money allowed.

To think that not only did I receive a golden ticket, but also a permanently retired number.

Already becoming exciting, the auctioneer and everyone focused on me.

The auctioneer looked at the paddle in my hand and said with a trembling voice.

“It’s really… participant number 1.”

At his reaction, the atmosphere in the auction house began to heat up even more.

Who on earth is she, she must be royalty, it’s a face I’ve never seen before, such talks were heard bustling.

I listened to their words as I moved to find my seat.

Overhearing as I passed by, it seemed more weight was given to theories like being an envoy sent by the pope since there was no child with pink hair among the royalty.

‘Fools. You’re all wrong. I’m our daddy’s daughter, you know?’

Pushing aside the hot reactions of people, I sat down with a bright smile and stared at the auctioneer of the auction house while saying loudly.

“I’ll bet.”

“How much would you like to bet?”

“Whatever amount came out before, I’ll bet 1 gold more than that!”

This time, my speech didn’t come out clumsily.

I looked at the auctioneer while praising myself.

But it seemed the puzzlement about participant number 1 was only momentary. The auctioneer’s low laughter cut through the air.

“…Haha, participant number 1 is unexpectedly… someone who knows nothing.”

Is it okay for the auctioneer to say something like that?

As I sharpened my gaze, the auctioneer cleared his throat.

“This item is a pacifier.”

At those words, laughter erupted from the crowd.

“Puhaha! To think she’d bid without even knowing such a thing.”

“How did that little kid get number 1?”

I too wore a slightly bewildered expression. The auctioneer saw my expression and nodded as if he understood.

“As expected, a child takes it.”

At the auctioneer’s mocking voice, a wave of mockery swept through the crowd.

They snickered that there were many useless items in the dark auction house as expected, and that such stupid kids had poor judgment.

There were also people saying that no matter how you look at it, she doesn’t seem like the pope’s envoy, so why on earth is she number 1, and that they would complain to the dealer when they leave this place.

Of course, when the boss and the maid elder sisters glared once at some of the louder voices, they immediately quieted down.

Especially Acid, perhaps worried that I might feel discouraged, whispered to me.

“That, that pacifier seems cu, cute too. It, it might be useful.”

Even without saying that much, I roughly knew the main magic tools that came out in this dark auction house.

‘That’s a pacifier that can tame dragon hatchlings!’

The chances of encountering a dragon in one’s lifetime are almost zero, but you never know. It might be useful in the distant future.

Those fools are mocking me without even knowing that fact.

I raised my chin and called out primly.

“What? No other competitors?”

I looked around with a gaze that said I would kill any other competitors. Fortunately, everyone else seemed uninterested in the odds and ends.

“Sold for 1 gold.”

To think I could get an item that could hold the leash of a dragon hatchling for the dirt-cheap price of 1 gold, it was certainly a good start.