Soon, I heard footsteps. "Important? Important?! The gavel falls in two hours! Two! No additions. Absolutely not. Unless… well, let's just see." A booming voice echoed from the other side of the door.

"Master Appraiser! Your presence is urgently requested! You simply must examine this." The first man's voice followed, sounding strained.

The doors burst open, and a truly enormous man filled the doorway. “Well, well, what have we here then?” The instant his gaze landed on my fur clothing, his eyes widened, then practically glowed. His jaw dropped, hanging open wide enough to swallow a dragon’s egg whole, and he stared intently.

He lunged forward, but I instinctively scrambled back. He blinked, recovering his composure with a visible effort. “Good heavens, where are my manners? My deepest apologies.” The large man executed a surprisingly graceful bow. “Theodore Vogue at your service. Theo will do nicely.” He extended a hand for a shake.

“Hello, I’m Val.” I took his hand; his grip was firm but not crushing.

“And this, of course, is Wilfred. You’ve met Wilfred, yes?” Theo said, gesturing to the tall, slim man from before. His eyes, however, remained glued to my clothing and bag. “Do have a seat. Comfortable? Excellent. Now then, what wonders have you brought before me today?”

I carefully retrieved the two egg-sized gold vein ores Rexy had provided and placed them on the table before Theo. “I was hoping you could tell me how much these might be worth.”

Theo snatched up the ores and began a close inspection. The more he examined them, however, the more his expression soured. He exchanged a pointed look with Wilfred.

“If you’ll permit me,” Theo said, gesturing towards the window with the ores, “I’d like to take a closer look at these… under the natural light. Just a moment.”

“Sure,” I replied.

He pulled Wilfred aside, and as he inspected the ores, he spoke to Wilfred in a hushed tone.

Good thing I have good hearing.

“What’s this? Just… gold? Yes, high purity, I grant you, but… merely gold. Hmm.” Theo muttered to Wilfred.

“I am uncertain, sir.” Wilfred cast a discreet glance back at me, lowering his voice to a near whisper. “It is possible this is a… test. A measure of our integrity in valuation.”

Theo’s eyes widened in realization. “Wilfred! Ten thousand. Special order. And a note for the Boss. Immediately.”

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Wilfred nodded quickly and hurried from the room.

Theo returned, beaming at me. “I’ll be frank. You nearly had me there. Almost. But no. These… they’re just gold. Rare for the common folk, perhaps, but for us? Trifles. One, perhaps two thousand each. At most.”

“That’s…” Before I could get a word in, Theo cut me off.

“Come now, we both know you didn’t come here for these. Let’s see the real reason you’re here. Show me what you intend to auction.” Theo said, his eyes still glued to my bag.

Wilfred returned, placing a black metallic card on the table in front of me.

“Ten thousand. A small token. A gesture of… goodwill. From the Petralis Auction House. For a… prospective associate.” Theo said, pushing the card towards me.

I took the card and looked at it closely. So, this is like a gift card? “Thank you for your generosity,” I said with a smile. I’ll just play along.

I grabbed my bag and tossed it onto the table. “Take a look.” I wasn’t sure what to expect, but Theo’s eyes widened considerably as he opened the bag, revealing layers upon layers of folded hides, interspersed with teeth and bones.

“If I may…?” Theo said, almost drooling onto the table.

I gestured for him to proceed. He eagerly unfolded everything, laying it out meticulously. “Marvelous… Simply marvelous… How… Never mind. Forgive my indiscretion.” Theo quickly composed himself.

He retrieved a tablet-like gadget and began scanning and recording everything on the table. “Yes… Three hundred years, undoubtedly. Extraordinary… A bit damp, hasn’t been properly cared for, I see. But… remarkably fresh. Not even a week old. Remarkable… Yes…” Theo muttered, continuing his inspection, measuring, and recording.

The door burst open once more, and an elegant and beautiful young lady with silky, long black hair entered. She wore a futuristic dress that clung tightly to her, showcasing her extraordinary figure. She cat-walked into the room, holding a long, thin, straight pipe in her hand, puffing out smoke.

"Ooh, my, my… what treasures have the winds blown in? Such… interesting wares." The lady’s elegant finger glided over the fur, pausing before me. "So, you're the one who brought these little beauties to my attention? How… fortunate." Her gaze met mine; it felt like daggers trying to pierce my soul.

“Boss!” Theo scurried to her side and began whispering urgently into her ear. “Genuine. Absolutely genuine. Hide and fur from a live Oroskaros. At least three centuries old. Teeth, some bone fragments as well. All from the same beast. Without a doubt. We…” The young lady abruptly pushed Theo away.

“I must say, I'm simply thrilled you've chosen to grace my humble establishment with such… exquisite rarities," the young lady said, a flirtatious smile playing on her lips.

“Allow me to present our proprietor, the esteemed Miss Raven Jin,” Wilfred announced. She casually sat down across the table and crossed her legs, resting her feet on the table's edge.

“Great to meet you,” I said, leaning back in my chair.

These fur and leather items are extremely rare and valuable, I see. Too bad I couldn’t take more parts of the carcass.

“Can you spit that creature back out?” I whispered to Rexy in my hair. I could feel it furiously shaking its head. Too bad…

Raven exhaled a few more puffs of smoke, her eyes continuing to assess me from head to toe. I sat across from her, putting on the performance of a lifetime, pretending to be high society.

Hopefully she doesn’t notice.