01-20 · 001

I'm an F-Rank Appraiser Who Listed a "Rusty Sword" from the Trash Heap on an Online Auction After Realizing It Was a Holy Sword—and It Sold for Lottery-Level Prices A Modern Rags-to-Riches Life with Appraisal Skills, Starting from a Crappy Apartment

By Eda Noa

Part 1

Arc 1

Chapter 1: Picking Up the Holy Sword

"Sorry, Toru. You're out. As of today."

It was on the way back from the dungeon.

In the dimly lit guild tavern, my party leader, Koji Goda, told me this.

"...Huh?"

"Like I said, you're out. A party expulsion."

Goda, a warrior and the leader, drained the remaining beer from his mug in one gulp and looked at me as if I were something filthy.

"Can I ask why?"

"Hah? That's obvious. It's because you're weak."

He slammed his fist on the table with a bang. I could see the other explorers around us smirking and watching our situation.

"Our party, 'Brave Sword,' is taking the promotion exam to B-Rank next month. Our firepower has increased, and our coordination is perfect. But... you're the only one getting in the way."

"I've been doing my job... as a pack mule and as the mapper."

"We're not beginners anymore. If we need a pack mule, we'll hire someone stronger. For mapping, a modern drone will do fine. What's your strong point, anyway?"

Goda jabbed a finger at my chest.

"Your skill was 'Appraisal,' right? That thing's totally useless."

I bit my lip. I couldn't say anything back. Because it was true.

My unique skill—True Appraisal.

It sounded impressive, but its effect was pathetic.

When I looked at an object, it simply displayed the [Item Name].

That's it.

I couldn't tell the rarity or the detailed effects. Moreover, for items from the dungeon, you could just take them back to the guild and have them identified by a specialized appraisal machine immediately. There was no need for me to waste MP during an expedition to appraise anything.

"You get it? If you do, pack your stuff and get out. Don't expect any severance pay."

Goda spat out the words, then got up from the table with the other members. As she left, Rin Sakai, the healer, giggled and whispered to me.

"Thanks for your hard work, Toru-kun. Oh, I'll deduct the cost of the potions you were managing from your final paycheck, okay? Since some of them were broken~"

"...!"

I wanted to shout that they had broken because they forced me to charge into the enemy with my bag during their reckless fighting. But the words wouldn't come.

After they left, the only thing left on the table was the bill, split between us.

◇

When I left the guild, it was raining cold outside.

My leather armor was worn out and tattered. My only weapon was a single dagger for self-defense, its blade badly chipped.

I took out my smartphone and checked my bank balance.

[Balance: 1,280 yen]

"...This isn't funny."

I couldn't pay my rent. I'd probably be kicked out of my apartment soon. I didn't even have enough to buy a discounted bento box from the convenience store.

Without the backing of a party, I was just an F-Rank explorer. No special talent, no powerful connections. All I had was my useless 'Appraisal' skill.

In contrast to my miserable state, a flashy news report was playing on the street vision screen.

"Breaking news! S-Rank explorer, Seira Jinguji-shi, has returned from the deep levels!"

On the screen was Seira Jinguji, the 'Sword Saint' hailed as Japan's strongest. Her platinum blonde hair flowing, she answered interviews with a composed expression. She had an aura that belied the fact she was the same age as me.

"But Seira-san, we hear your beloved magic sword was damaged during this expedition..."

"Yes. The monsters in the deep levels were truly exceptionally hard. My current issue is that there are no weapons on the market that can withstand my swordsmanship."

She answered the reporter's question with a sigh.

"...We live in different worlds."

They say S-Rank explorers spend hundreds of millions on a single weapon. Meanwhile, I'm struggling to afford bread for tomorrow.

Suddenly, I felt a gaze and looked up.

A rain-soaked alleyway. It was a waste collection point where "discarded items" from the dungeon were temporarily gathered.

Junk picked up by explorers in the dungeon that ended up being worthless. Broken equipment, magical items that had lost their effect, plain stones. They were all piled up haphazardly.

"...Maybe I can find some scrap metal here I can sell?"

I'd long since discarded any pride. Covered in mud, I stepped into the pile of trash.

Rusted iron scraps. A cracked shield. A rotten wooden stick.

My Appraisal skill automatically activated on everything I laid eyes on.

[Iron Scrap] [Cracked Shield] [Just a Stick]

"Haha... It's all garbage. Just like me."

I let out a self-mocking laugh. That's when it happened.

Throb.

A searing pain, unlike anything I'd felt before, shot through my right eye. Something hot I'd never experienced raced through my head.

"Guh, ah...!?"

I crouched down amidst the garbage pile. My vision turned crimson red. The world warped, and numbers and characters flowed like a waterfall.

《Proficiency has reached a certain level.》 《Unique Skill 'True Appraisal' has awakened.》 《Hidden Parameters 'Repair' and 'Price Appraisal' have been unlocked.》

A mechanical system message echoed in my mind. As the pain subsided, I cautiously opened my eyes.

At the top of the garbage pile. A single sword, rusted a reddish-brown from being beaten by the rain, was stuck in the ground. It looked like a common, tattered piece of junk.

But now, in my eyes, it seemed to shine with a golden light.

"...What is this?"

With trembling hands, I touched the sword. Then, the window that had only ever displayed [Rusted Sword] was rewritten with a flicker of noise.

====================
[Name] Holy Sword Excalibur (Sealed State)
[Rank] National Treasure Level (SSR)
[Condition] Severe rust, seal due to curse
[True Value] Absolute cutting ability that nullifies all defenses and amplifies the wielder's magical power.
[Repair Possibility] Possible (*Seal can be broken with commercially available rust remover and infusion of the owner's magical power)
[Estimated Market Price] Unmeasurable (*Almost certainly over 1.5 billion yen)
====================

"...Huh?"

I fell backward onto the muddy ground. My heart pounded so hard it almost drowned out the sound of the rain.

National Treasure Level? 1.5 billion yen? It can be fixed with commercial rust remover?

This piece of scrap iron in my hand?

"N-No way..."

But the skill display didn't disappear. With trembling hands, I pulled out the heavy sword. Its substantial weight told me this was real.

If this was genuine. If I could sell it for the value only I knew it had...

The faces of my former party members, who had mocked me, flashed one after another in my mind.

"...Let's do this."

I hid the holy sword under my tattered coat and started running through the rain. My destination was my run-down apartment. And the battlefield that would become my only weapon—

The explorers' exclusive online auction site, "D-Market."