Stunning Sketch

"Damn this person!!! Who is she? Why is she trying to get in my way???" Sekhit was fuming inside. No one had dared to bid against him. He would always come out on top in the end! However, due to the circumstances, as well as the items coming up later, Sekhit was forced into a tough situation. A situation that made him feel extremely, EXTREMELY uncomfortable.

It was as if he had lost. As if he was inferior to this person… And it pissed him off to no end. He was quite looking forward to that toy. However, at the end of the day, when all was said and done, he didn't get the toy. It was snatched away from him.

Of course, the auction didn't wait for him to get over his issues. Instead, it cruised right on. As the items flashed by and the silly peasants beneath him bidded with their small "fortunes", Sekhit began to get bored. There were still a few more items before THAT one… and if Sekhit was right, then it should be the final one.

In the Room next door…

"Sir Lin Ke… Your artwork should be the next item on sale…" Ami said in a low voice.

Lin Ke blinks, finally looking away from Lia. "Mmm? Ahhh, yes. My artwork is next? I wonder how high of a price it could fetch…"

Just as Lin Ke thought that, Mike down on the stage began to speak again.

"6 Mid-grade Chaos Stones and 500 Low-grade Chaos Stones! Going ONCE! GOING TWICE! SOLD!!!" Mike shouted.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen! We are down to our final 3 items to be sold tonight! Our next product is quite new. In fact, it was produced today a few hours ago by a prodigy artist! He has given us permission to auction off this product!"

A worker wheeled a small glass pillar onto the stage. The top of the pillar was covered with a thin red cloth.

"I present to you, a B-tiered sketch!!!"

Mike yanks on the cloth, revealing the artwork behind it.

"Ooooh!" Seeing it, Lin Ke raised an eyebrow. The Artifact Hall really outdone themselves here! They took the flimsy poster paper that Lin Ke had used at the start, and covered it with a glass film before framing it using an intricate, hand carved wooden frame. The frame drew more attention to the artwork, giving it an extremely regal vibe. It looked like something that belonged in a museum.

The moment the sketch was revealed, the entire room went silent. Each and every person was lost in the delicacy of the painting. The raw emotions that it inspired in them. Throughout the crowd, everyone felt a wave of melancholy, a wave of pure sadness, wash over them. They felt a sorrow, one that ached bone deep, even though there was nothing that affected them personally. A few of the people in the crowd with weaker mental fortitude even felt tears trickle down their cheeks.

"Ehem!" Mike coughed, bringing everyone back to their senses. "Well then, let the bidding commence. The starting bid will be 5 Mid-grade Chaos Stones. Each offer must be in intervals of at least 500 Low-grade Chaos Stones."

After a brief moment's pause, the crowd erupts. Many people in the crowd were mesmerized by this artwork.

"I need this masterpiece! This will be our family heirloom! I'll sell everything I have if I have to!"

"Don't compete with me! I'll get this masterpiece in the end!"

"No! You guys don't know the true meaning behind the artwork! You would only allow it's brilliance to dull! Allow me!"

"Oh yeah? Well speak with your cash! 6 Mid-grade Chaos Stones!"

"Only 6? Aren't you a broke one? 7 Mid-grade Chaos Stones!"

"7 Mid-grade Chaos Stones and 500 Low-gra-"

"8 Mid-grade Chaos Stones!"

"9 Mid-grade Chaos Stones!!!"

The heated voices overlapped with each other, trying to take the priority. Slowly, as the price got hiked higher, more and more people began to calm down, sitting down dejectedly. They couldn't help but feel as if they had missed out on something special, something unique… But there was nothing they could do about it.

In the VIP Room #2, Sekhit had been mulling over the identity of the woman in VIP Room #1…. Until he saw the artwork displayed before him right now. Just like the rest of the crowd, Sekhit was captivated by the soul, the raw emotions of the simple black and white sketch.

The moment he laid eyes on it, he felt as if he had to get his hands on it. In fact, if he managed to get his hands on this, it didn't matter as much whether he got the final object in the auction… After all, they would both serve the same purpose…

Sekhit nods to himself. In his head, he had already decided. No matter what, he would get this artwork.

"10 Mid-grade Chaos Stones!" Someone else in the crowd called out.

"15 Mid-grade Chaos Stones!" Sekhit calls out.

Once again, the man in VIP Room #2 disrupted the entire auction atmosphere. And it annoyed the hell out of a lot of people. Even if only one person would win the item at the end, it was still an exhilarating feeling to call out a price increase and one-up someone. However, this person clearly didn't have the same mindset.

'Brother, even if you're balling hard, there's no need for you to flex on us like this yeah? At least let us have our fun first!' Was what many of the people sitting in the room thought.

After a moment of silence, Mike began the countdown again.

"15 Mid-grade Chaos Stones going once!"

"15 Mid-grade Chao-"

"16 Mid-grade Chaos Stones!" A voice calls out. This time, it was from the wall… But the voice was deep, almost elderly.

"Cheh." Sekhit muttered. He was so close to clinching the masterpiece, but this old geezer had to interfere. Sekhit had been wondering why he's been so quiet for this entire auction.

"Old man! I suggest you not interfere! Your old bones are already rusting, it would be best for you to buy some WD40 and get that checked out!" Sekhit calls out.