In the blink of an eye, the fiery wave surged toward the Blood Amber Ring. Olivia braced herself inwardly but still drew a sharp breath.

Then—BOOM!

Beneath the dragon’s breath, the entire table erupted into flames from the rising heat!

Blinding fire forced everyone nearby to scramble back. Wood crackled and popped as it burned. Even the amber on the ring began slowly melting in the blaze!

Thick smoke choked the room. Windows flew open as people gasped for air. In the chaos, Vier summoned the guild’s mages. A spray of mist extinguished the flames, leaving only scorched wreckage…

Hmm…

Olivia snorted at the blackened table. She whipped her head toward Caius, frozen in shock, and taunted:

“So… did you say you’d eat the table where you were sitting? Or this charred one holding the ring?”

“I… why? This can’t be! How could this ring be fake?!” Caius muttered wildly, eyes vacant. Even Gawain in the audience looked stunned.

*Did Mermel give Caius a counterfeit?*

Sadly, both guesses were wrong. Mermel had truly meant to give Caius everything—even precious mementos from past love. But… this ring *was* fake.

The “dragon” Gawain once fought was merely a summoned beast conjured by a rogue mage—nowhere near a true dragon. Otherwise, a rookie adventurer like him could never have escaped alive. And this so-called Blood Amber Ring? Just a flawless counterfeit, as Olivia had said.

How did Olivia know all this? Well… she’d been burned by it before.

Back in her gaming days, she’d tearfully picked up the ring Mermel discarded, treasuring it as protective gear. Until the late-game dragon boss fight—where its jaws devoured her in one bite.

One bad end literally turned her into dragon barbecue.

Only after that bad end did Gawain realize the ring was fake. Too late. Her past-life self rage-quit, reloaded her save, swapped to fireproof gear, and finally cleared the boss.

Remembering this, Olivia felt utterly confident about her bet with Caius~

【Holy crap, is she actually a genius?】

【Streamers got that *confidence* (and chest) for days~】

【She’s been rained on, so she’s snatching your umbrella too~】

【Not evil enough! Should’ve made Caius wear the ring and take the blast!】

【Blonde roast party~】

Hmm?

The drifting comments sparked an idea. Watching the dazed blonde, Olivia sneered:

“Oh? Still doubting? Then… test it yourself?”

“Impossible! You—masked bastard! You tampered with the table! Fine, I’ll do it! This ring is flawless, absolutely—!”

Caius snatched the Blood Amber Ring from the blackened table. But as he turned to command the wyrmling, his lips trembled. He couldn’t speak.

Of course. Humiliated moments ago, he wasn’t stupid enough to self-immolate for pride’s sake.

Time for Olivia to fan the flames.

She sidled up to Caius, then suddenly cast a Stellar Magic spell toward the wyrmling. A simple water orb shot forth!

Startled, the wyrmling instinctively unleashed its breath. Olivia dodged backward—leaving the distracted Caius to face a wall of heat—

“AAAAH!”

Silk robes ignited into dancing flames. Smoke billowed as searing heat scorched his skin. Caius collapsed, rolling wildly on the floor.

“Help! Someone help me—AAAAH—HELP!”

【Bro, I’m on fire!】

【Caius, you’re *trending* now. Watch your words. Rest in peace.】

【Forgot everything? Artemisia to the rescue!】

【Justice’s Flame】

【Too brutal. Make the MC pee on him to put it out~】

Pfft.

Honestly, these comments were kinda fun…

Olivia smirked, then instantly snapped into a stern expression. She ignored Caius, deliberately blocking Vier’s path. The wyrmling’s fire wouldn’t cause major burns anyway—and she hadn’t attacked him directly. No worries~

Now, facing the nobles who relished the chaos, Olivia began her performance.

The masked figure pointed at the rolling Caius, let out a cold laugh, then boomed:

“SEE THIS? The Blood Amber Ring’s ‘power’! Not even resistant to a *summoned* wyrmling’s weakest breath! This is what Saint York Auction House sells! Ask yourselves—if *you’d* bought this ring, trusting it against a real dragon… what fate would await you? Saint York! Have you honored your promises? Is *this* the trustworthy merchandise we buy from you?!”

Her fiery speech ignited murmurs among the nobles. As resentment swelled through the hall, Olivia’s lips curled. The power she wielded was… empathy.

Was imagining themselves roasted like Caius pleasant? Olivia enjoyed it. But the nobles—terrified, then furious at the auction house’s fraud—turned their fear into outrage against its credibility!

“You must explain this counterfeit scandal!”

“Refund everything I ever bought here!”

“Bring out your appraiser! Make that dog open his eyes!”

“Summon your manager—NOW!”

“Shut it down! Close forever!”

Amid the uproar, Vier stood trembling. Olivia nodded silently. Perfect.

The auction house—which took Caius’s counterfeit—was about to feel the heat.