Paraj's Big Auction (3)

Since they couldn't sense that presence anymore and there was no commotion, Shui and Alicia decided to leave the topic alone. They thought about speaking about it with Alex and Emily, but both decided otherwise. Regardless of whether that powerful figure made a move or not, it was better for them to stay out of it.

Not long after they sensed that presence, the auction, which was packed full of participants, began. The auctioneer was an elegant beauty with a thin waist and round hips. The light blue dress she wore covered her whole body, but glimpses of her soft white skin could be seen from the slits at her limbs. She didn't show off her sexual appeal, but just the sight of her caused the hearts of men and women to skip.

"As expected of Coin Storm, what do you think, Shui?"

As Alex asked for his opinion, the gazes of the two women in the room landed on him. Both of them were curious, but Alicia seemed more intense. Shui didn't want to feel any more awkward so he simply nodded his head. Emily and Alicia were unsatisfied, but Alex didn't push any further.

They weren't the only ones interested in the young auctioneer, but no one did anything frivolous like call out to her. The bidding hadn't started, but it was as if the battle had already begun. After the auctioneer greeted the audience and introduced herself, the first item was revealed. They were golden prayer beads with one special symbol drawn on each bead.

"Please look at the first item for tonight. I believe the knowledgeable members of the audience have already noticed, but these prayer beads make up a special tesora-rank artifact rarely seen on the market. Not only does it have the ability to calm the heart and soothe the soul, with it in hand you will be able to confidently fight off your inner demons. One could say this is a must-have item for any troubled expert, and since I'm sure you all know its value, let the bidding begin at 5 high quality spirit gems."

This was a useful artifact, but every expert or genius with a proper background already had access to a similar artifact. However, some men didn't mind squandering spirit gems to win the smile of the beautiful auctioneer. Alex and Shui were not apart of that group, nor did they truly want the artifact, so neither showed any interest. The auction continued without any of the four in the room bidding, until the fifth item.

At first, he had no interest in the organ that was revealed on stage, but as he listened to the auctioneer explaining it, he had an idea of how it could be useful. The organ was the heart of an ape beast lord that died in battle. Generally, this type of material was popular among alchemists for making vitality pills, but Shui had other plans for it. He hadn't decided the final form of the relic he was planning on forging in the future, but the heart gave him some ideas.

The bid had reached 30 high quality spirit gems when Shui tapped the plaque attached to the table in front of him to raise the bid. The auctioneer was informed of his bid through a light that flickered above their room and then she announced it.

"Oh, it seems our esteemed guest in room 12 has decided to raise the bid to 50 high quality spirit gems. Will this be the final bid?"

The amount wasn't anything impressive, but the way he raised the bid by twenty spirit gems proved that he was serious about taking it.

"You want this?" Alex asked.

"Yes, I need it for something."

Alex didn't have any further comments regarding the bid, so he nodded and the conversation stopped there.

Although the list of who was in which VIP room wasn't made public, the room number hinted on the status of the VIP. The occupant of room 12 would be the tenth most influential VIP attending the auction, as the first and second rooms were always reserved but currently not occupied. Even if there were nine others who were superior to the bidder in room 12, since none of those nine were interested in this item, every one who was still capable of bidding had to choose between not giving face to the room 12 VIP, and the chance of getting the heart.

Due to the bold increase in the bid, majority gave up since they weren't sure if they could win the bidding war even if they risked offending him, but one alchemist kept going.

"Number 235 has raised the bid to 55 high quality spirit gems. Is this where-, oh! The guest in room 12 is now bidding 70 high quality spirit gems."

The alchemist gawked, but while he was struggling to make a decision, the countdown began.

"70 high quality spirit gems going once, going twice, and, sold to the guest in room 12!"

The alchemist sighed as he saw the item being sent off the stage. It was the core ingredient of a pill that he had to make, but the cost had gone over the market price and his budget, so he had no choice.

"Congrats, but did you need to bid that high?" asked Alicia.

"Maybe not, but I didn't want to get tangled into a bidding war."

The winners could collect their purchases at the end of the auction, so Shui didn't take long thinking about the price. His wallet had shrunk since he entered the city, but he was certain that the artifact he submitted would bring huge profit, so he didn't mind spending a few extra spirit gems to settle the bid as quickly as possible.

Shui remained disinterested for the next few items, but his eyes sparkled once more when an ingot of brown metal appeared. This was obtained from a rare ore that could only be found under large forests. Despite being a metal, it had a strong concentration of wood attribute which led it to be named hethion, meaning confused wood.

Considering its quality, the hethion could be used in supreme tesora-rank artifacts or maybe even an archaic-rank artifact if the forge master was skilled enough. The bid reached 80 high quality spirit gems in mere moments, but this time Shui only raised the price by five since he would have to go against a VIP with a slightly lower room number.

The price quickly rose to a level where only the two could continue until Shui ended the bidding war with a bid of 230 high quality spirit gems. Honestly, he had to grit his teeth while making this bid, but it succeeded, both in winning the item and emptying his funds. From now on, if he wanted to buy anything else, he would have to wait to see how much his artifact sold for.