A Rowdy Night

The nights of Paraj were always bright. While not all lights were on, you could always spot a busy street within the city. And in some areas, the lights were hidden behind closed doors. On this night, in an amphitheatre so large that it was hard to believe it was hidden, there was an important gathering. Considering the amount of invited personages that came with their people, it should have been easy for the city's administration to find them using the detection array, but in addition to the countermeasures taken to conceal this place, the ones in charge had a deal with the administration.

Several big names that were famous both inside and outside of Paraj, gathered here for the event that was about to commence. It was a regularly held grand auction that drew people from several nearby territories. Their respective territories had big auctions of their own, and Paraj also had an official auction that was celebrated like a festival, but there were rare and forbidden items that could only be found here.

Among this group of rich men and women, Iris stood proudly. She was originally going to slip into the auction by latching on to someone, but this morning she received an invitation through her window. She was a little bothered by the fact that they were able to find and discover her so easily, but she knew that they only cared about getting more money. In addition to getting a chance to use the wealth her force had accumulated, Iris also looked around for a Sky Realm expert who could guide her. Both on and off the bed, if necessary.

She managed to find a few early on, but they were all stiff-faced and would move away before she had a chance to use her charm. As they were entrenched in the underworld, all of them had a good idea of her identity, so they weren't willing to take the risk of enjoying her body.

'Tch, so guarded. Will I have to search for some naïve old man?'

Iris was slightly discouraged by her failures, but she would still go after any target that she could find. She even tried to approach the women, but the ones who had reached Sky Realm were even more reluctant to speak to her because they were concerned about their reputation. Even so, as long as she could get stronger, she had resolved herself to do whatever it took.

There were many who were interested in the rising star of the underworld, but few wanted to take the risk of approaching her. However, there was one who made their move.

"My, my. To think the famous cult master of the Pink Devils would fail to find herself a partner."

A slender young woman with a devilish charm and a perky butt that swayed with every step, walked towards Iris with three bare-chested, handsome young men behind her. If Iris was a temptress that caused men to fall into the pit of desire on their own, then she was a proud courtesan who made men beg for her favour.

Iris had a good idea of her identity when she spotted her, but she still said, "Oh, I didn't know my name had spread so far. May I learn yours, little miss?"

"Hmph, Aria of Raiha," the young woman proclaimed.

Aria of Raiha was a woman well known for having intimate relations with several sect master-level figures and nobles. In fact, she had once been seen walking around with three different powerful men on the same day. This scandal sounded impossible to most, but the ones who had the chance to enjoy her company said that no one was capable of monopolising her.

For quite some time, Aria had enjoyed being considered the number one seductress of the Alterna Kingdom, but with Iris' emergence, that changed. Although she had the means to keep many dogs on a leash, it was said that Iris could subdue any dog no matter how big it was. Unknown to Iris, as news of her and her force spread, Aria felt her competitive side bursting with excitement. She anticipated this meeting as well as the day Iris bowed before her.

Iris, on the other hand, didn't care for the girl's sense of rivalry.

"I see. Well, I don't mind having fun with girls either, but I'm sorry. You're not my type, little girl."

As Iris' response spread to the ears of surrounding spectators, everyone turned to watch the growing tension between the two.

With her expression changing rapidly like a faulty facial program, Aria roared, "What was that, old hag?!"

"Hmph, I see that you're a brat without manners. Shall I be the one to discipline you?"

Iris kept a cool face, but her eyes showed a burning fury that could melt adamantine. She might have been older than Aria, but even a certain several thousand year-old spirit wouldn't accept being called a hag. However, Aria didn't back down from this glare and snorted in reply.

"Hmph, won't your back give out before you can try?"

The two then started a staring contest that was no less intense than the face-off between two experts. Their conflicting presences, caused cold sweat to drip from several members of the audience. Neither of the two were particularly strong among those gathered, but the intimidation they could put out was certainly top-ranked.

This was the first of many memorable events that would occur on this night.

Once the auction began, guests dispersed into their various seats. Most had to take a place in one of the seats of the amphitheatre, but the select few could look down on the rest from private seating areas set up above the highest row of concentric seats. Iris was one of these few, to her surprise. Usually these seats were reserved for those who had the solid backing of an expert in the Sky Realm or above, but apparently her fame was so great that she was considered an influence equivalent to a fresh Sky Realm expert. Iris was grateful for this evaluation, but that didn't affect her determination. Their 'praise' was worth little in battle, only true strength would matter then.

"Welcome, everyone, to another fun night. Let's get right into the festivities with the first item."

The auction started with life-prolonging medicines made with less than honourable means. Many old monsters would request their juniors to buy these medicines as they were always effective. As for the knowledge that countless mortals, women and children had to be sacrificed to make these medicines; insignificant. For those who could be killed with the wave of a hand, it was their blessing to lengthen the lives of these powerful elders.

After the life-prolonging medicines, were the special artifacts. The artifacts that were shown here always had interesting stories behind them so some even collected them for fun. The first artifact that was put up for auction was a tesora-rank scythe of the sinister variety. Sinister artifacts were those that had ominous effects due to the forbidden methods used in their crafting.

This scythe had the ability to drain the life essence of anyone in the vicinity, including the wielder, so it was currently sealed with talismans made by one of the few talisman masters still in the kingdom. It didn't sound like an item that would be very useful in battle since it drained essence indiscriminately, but Iris' eyes lit up when she heard that it still retained its innate insights.