Lucy was still immersed in the joy of obtaining the golden key.
The moment she heard Aux's words, the smile on her face froze. She instinctively took a step back, clutching the small pouch at her waist as if afraid he would snatch it away.
"But… he chose me," Lucy protested.
Aux shook his head calmly. "The ownership of a key shouldn't be decided like that. It should be first come, first served."
"If Miss Lucy thinks this is unfair," he continued evenly, "then we can settle it through battle."
Lucy's expression instantly fell.
This handsome man already looked dangerous enough, and after witnessing Taros's miserable state, she was absolutely certain she stood no chance against him.
Yet she didn't want to give up.
So… how could she keep Taros?
"Handsome big brother," Lucy whined, deliberately softening her voice, "you're not even a Celestial Mage. The key is useless to you anyway. Why not be generous and give it to me?"
Aux smiled faintly and refused without hesitation. "No. Zodiac Twelve keys are extremely rare. Even if I don't use it, selling it would easily fetch at least eight hundred thousand gold."
Lucy felt torn.
She wanted to say, Then I'll pay you eight hundred thousand, but she had run away from home without permission. She didn't have that kind of money.
Her big eyes darted around anxiously. Finally, biting her pearly teeth, she pinched the corner of her clothes and made a desperate proposal.
"If you give me the key… I'll give you a chance to pursue me!"
Heh.
Aux sneered inwardly, his gaze sweeping over Lucy from head to toe with faint contempt.
After a moment, he made his decision. "You'll owe me one million gold. I'll give you time to pay it back slowly, but until then, you will obey my commands."
Lucy hesitated intensely.
The condition itself was already generous—but obeying his commands? Who knew whether this guy was actually a bad person? What if he ordered her to do something outrageous?
"The commands… can't be too excessive," Lucy finally conceded.
She planned to agree for now. Once they parted ways, they might never meet again anyway. At that point, his 'commands' would be meaningless.
"Alright."
Aux had no idea what Lucy was thinking.
Even if he did… he would only scoff. How naive. How could a little monkey escape the Five Finger Mountain?
"First," Aux said, "we'll hand in the mission. Then you'll accompany me to see the once-in-a-century aurora."
Lucy's eyes lit up. "You're here for the aurora too? Me too! I didn't expect such a coincidence."
The two chatted as they walked, soon finding the client and explaining the situation.
The client was skeptical at first. In the end, he personally followed Aux back to the ranch. After confirming that the Cow Demon was no longer around and checking that the cows had indeed recovered, he finally relaxed.
The mission reward was handed over, marking the task as complete.
"Big Brother Aux," Lucy asked on the way to the aurora viewing spot, clearly bored and trying to make conversation, "what kind of magic did you use? Those cows beat Taros so badly."
"Enchantment Magic," Aux replied simply.
Lucy thought about it for a moment but realized she'd never heard of such magic.
"It attaches attributes like strength, speed, and defense to objects. It's a support-type magic," Aux explained.
Lucy still didn't really understand.
That didn't stop her from nodding seriously, pretending she did.
The viewing spot wasn't far.
Before long, they saw a hillside ahead, already crowded with people. It was elevated terrain, perfect for watching the aurora.
Men and women, young and old, couples, families, and strangers—everyone had gathered, unwilling to miss a phenomenon that only occurred once every hundred years.
It was obvious that Aux and Lucy had arrived late.
Tents were scattered across the hillside, clearly set up by those who had arrived earlier.
"Handsome guy, pretty lady—need some safety measures?"
A middle-aged man suddenly approached them, winking exaggeratedly with a lewd grin.
Aux froze.
He hadn't expected that kind of marketing. He could only think, Truly a merchant.
"Does it sell well?" Aux asked out of curiosity.
The boss chuckled wickedly. "A few hundred packs already, at least."
Good heavens.
Aux was genuinely surprised. He glanced around at the crowd, not expecting so many people to be interested in… wild activities.
"This slope isn't steep at all," Lucy said, looking around in confusion. "Why would we need safety measures?"
She muttered softly, convinced the boss must have something wrong with his head.
Upon hearing her words, both Aux and the boss turned to look at her strangely.
"Brother, you're quite lucky with women," the boss said enviously, glancing at Lucy's face and forehead, judging her to still be a virgin.
"No need," Aux replied flatly.
The boss laughed knowingly. "Understood. The first time should always be enjoyed thoroughly, hehehe…"
With that, he moved on to pitch his goods to others.
Lucy, meanwhile, felt increasingly confused. Something about the conversation felt… off.
"What exactly did you two mean earlier?" she asked.
Aux hesitated, then decided she was old enough to hear it.
"Under a beautiful, once-in-a-century aurora, ambiguous men and women will confess, embrace, and kiss."
"When emotions deepen, they'll express their love through mating, using the sky as their blanket and the earth as their bed."
"To avoid premature pregnancy, they prepare safety measures in advance."
Lucy listened attentively.
Then she froze.
Her expression shifted from confusion to realization, before flushing bright red. Disgust and revulsion flashed across her face.
She finally understood what 'safety measures' meant.
"This is knowledge you'll encounter sooner or later," Aux said calmly.
Lucy shot him a dirty look, still flustered.
"How can he sell that kind of thing here?" she snapped.
Aux gestured at the surrounding couples. "Look carefully. Married or not, tonight is destined to be a fierce battle."
Lucy glanced around again.
Even before nightfall, some couples were already getting handsy.
Disgusting.
How could they do that in a place like this? Didn't they have any shame?
"That's called passion," Aux chuckled.
Lucy fell silent.
Only then did she realize—the boss had mistaken her and Aux for a couple. Thinking about it, two people traveling together really did look the part.
"There's still time before nightfall," Aux said. "Let's find a place to sit and wait."
The hillside was spacious enough.
Aux sat down near the front, waiting quietly for darkness to arrive.
Lucy originally planned to sit somewhere else.
But after seeing the surrounding couples, she shuddered and walked over to sit beside him instead.
She had already decided that once the aurora ended, she would leave immediately— to avoid hearing any more nauseating sounds, and to never come to a place like this again.
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