It was the time for small bids, with the commoners bidding on items within the catalogue, which held the description of the items. Some pages were full of illustrations, but those in the last half of the book, with singular coloured illustrations to each page, were for the noble families and great guests to bid on.

‘I shouldn’t bid for the items in the first half of the catalogue, it would be bad etiquette,’ Mika assumed, noting there were a few items which he was interested in. ‘I could just bid a low amount and if it’s beaten, it’s beaten.’ He looked down at the commoners who were stressing out about their bids. ‘No, only trash bothers the commonfolk with their gold.’

Tea was brought to the various guests on the upper floors, as well as the purple tokens for those who were unable to receive one at the gate due to their time of arrival, or due to the busyness of the Young Head.

Mika’s eyes fell up towards the figure who stood upon the parapet up top. He was a handsome, silver fox of a man, much older than Elder Yan beside him. Style oozed out of his every pore, as he wore a well tailored outfit, a muted grey which allowed him to blend into the auction around him, but fine accessories dotted around his belt, each worth hundreds, if not thousands, of gold coins.

‘He must be Bronze,’ Mika thought, noting the difference between the figure and even the Patriarchs of the various families. ‘Established Bronze.’ Such a rank would have been able to swat away even Rogue like he was nothing more than a fly. His pressure was not quite as terrifying as some of the figures he had felt in the other city where the Black Fist family made their home, but in a smaller city like this, he was probably in the top five.

Though the auction had long closed its gates, another figure entered, a man with dark silver hair, and bright silver eyes. Many glanced his way, but made no complaints about the man as he took his place on the second floor, near the stage, the best seat of the auction.

‘Your daughter looks just like you,’ Mika thought. ‘Do you bully cripples, City Lord?’

The figure who had appeared was easily as powerful as any other Patriarch around, though he wore a pair of gauntlets which would be considered a great treasure even in the great families of the city.

‘Not bad,’ Mika thought, eyeing up the gauntlets. They were made of living metal, something which should not be found anywhere outside the greater cities. ‘The gifts which had been given to the City Lord’s family by the Emperor a thousand years ago, wasn’t it?’

A magical stone hidden in the floor activated, and translucent bubbles formed around the rooms on the upper floors, keeping the sound from escaping. The bubbles turned into certain colours, purple for those with a purple paddle, and gold for everyone else.

The Young Master of the Tiger Fist family glanced around, noting of all the bubbles, he was the only one to have a golden bubble. ‘What is the meaning of this?’

Mika exchanged a glance with Elder Yan, the pair smiling as they shared the joy.

So it begins.

The first phase of the auction began, with a myriad of goods to be bid upon. Most of the items were useless to the great families, who wouldn’t deign to suffer bidding upon something of low quality. Yet, that was part of the joy of the auction for them, watching the commoners bid and fight between one another.

“Seventy!” shouted a commoner, doubling the bid for a High Grade Earth item, which averaged close to fifty silver coins.

“That’s how it should be!” roared a Patriarch with long, wild golden hair, and a wicked grin. “If you’re going to bid, you should do it just like that!”

Mika’s eyes fell to the Patriarch, who wore gold and yellow. ‘Lion Roar, wasn’t it?’ It was one of the two families Mika was most familiar with from the city.

“Seventy silver coins, do I hear another bid?” the Young Head asked. “Three.”

“Doesn’t anyone else want to bid?” Patriarch Lion Roar asked, glaring down at the commoners with a wicked smile still plastered across his face.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

“Two.”

The Patriarch cackled with laughter, having far too much time.

“One.” Kayla, the Young Head of the Auction House, clapped her hands, signalling the end of the bid.

“I will pay for it,” Lion Roar said, a wild grin on his face. “All those who bid for it, I’ll pay you whatever you bid too!”

“We thank the benevolent Patriarch!” praised a commoner, and others joined in with their praise.

‘Ho?’ It was one thing to pay for the person who won the bid, but to also pay for the others who bid on the item, it was something the great families rarely did. Mika wondered if it was the Lion Roar family which would become the way into the city.

The bids continued, with the great families picking and choosing who to give their sponsorship. They tried to outdo one another, finding those which bid more and more for their amusement, to try and flaunt their wealth. It revealed friendly rivalries, as well as hostile relations between the various families.

“One thousand five hundred!” shouted a commoner, with hope in their heart.

Lion Roar grinned, about to open his mouth since it was one of the last few within the phase, but he paused. It was then Mika saw that look on the Patriarch’s face, who quickly shut his mouth, crossing his arms as he withdrew from the world.

It was definitely because of that.

The commoner began to sweat. They had dared to bid because they had the money, but they had hoped for a great family to sponsor them. Yet, as the bid drew to a close, they found themselves abandoned by the greater families, who also found great amusement at their despair.

“We will pay for it,” called a beacon of hope from the second floor.

We will pay for it.

It wasn’t the first time that particular phrase was used, though it typically began with I.

Yet, it was the first time one of them had uttered the phrase.

Heads turned towards the pair, who each sat within a purple bubble. One was a cripple boy, and the other was an Elder Alchemist. The Elder smiled innocently as he paid for the commoner, who was too shocked to show their gratitude.

Not once had an Alchemist ever offered their sponsorship within the Auction House. It wasn’t that it was rare, it was completely unheard of.

“Are you sure you an afford such a thing?” called the Alchemists sitting opposite, the very same Expert Beaux who had mocked them the previous night.

“Since you are unable to afford it, I thought that our Starr Alchemy could step in to assist,” Elder Yan replied, simply.

Expert Beaux smiled a sweet smile, one which held no venom. She took the joke in stride, knowing there would be plenty of opportunities in the future to show the Elder up. After all, the City Alchemy Guild had managed to procure one of those for the last phase of the auction, having not yet noticed the most obvious flaw in her thoughts.

“Thank you, Elder Alchemist!” the commoner finally shouted, having been slapped upside the head.

Elder Yan waved his hand towards the commoner, before leaning back in his chair. ‘So that’s what it feels like.’

The second phase of the auction began, this time with the lesser families fighting between one another. Mika noted some of the items he wanted, and the Elder bid for them, only bidding once or twice on each item, but letting them go if they were outbid. It was a little rude for his type to bid on items during this phase, but since he was a Town Alchemist, he was able to get away with it.

Seeing the smirk on Expert Beaux’s face did cause his brow to twitch, however.

“Shall we begin the third phase?” Kayla asked, before beginning to reveal items which were of similar quality to the last items within the second phase. “A set of gauntlets of Low Grade Sky quality!” the Young Head cooed, ready to watch the bidding wars begin. Since it was expected for the great families to fight over such an item, it would typically sell for much higher than the average price.

“Ten thousand,” a Patriarch called, his eyes red, his hair a deep black.

‘Viper Fist,’ Mika thought.

“Twelve!” Lion Roar shouted, grinning wide.

The Viper Fist Patriarch didn’t seem to take the obvious coaxing. “Thirteen.”

“Fifteen,” Lion Roar called out.

“Sixteen,” the City Lord called.

‘Right, they also use Fist Techniques,’ Mika thought, glancing between the trio.

“Seventeen,” the Young Head of the Tiger Fist called, smiling politely.

“Nineteen.”

“Twenty,” the City Lord finally called.

‘Should I join in?’ Mika thought, but he allowed the gauntlets to go. It wasn’t worth offending the City Lord, though he did want a set for his sister.

The next set of items were pills, which caused a much fierier bidding war. Lion Roar, who typically increased the bid by two thousand, increased that to four thousand, and the other Patriarchs increased the bid by two thousand.

Mika could see how the battlefield worked, and the politics within the Auction House. It caused him to almost relax, recalling the times he gave himself in to a bidding war over a set of near useless blades. It wasn’t about buying something useful, but to flaunt his wealth over his rivals.

I am the Heavenly Demon, and if I want it, I will have it, no matter the cost.

Expert Beaux’s lips were pulled into a smile as she saw how much the bids were going for. The Alchemist Guild would need to increase the size of its treasury again if this continued.

Elder Yan tried not to look down at Mika, wondering when they would join the war. Mika had yet to give the signal, but he could feel it, the electricity in the air. Mika had been watching to see which of the families he would fight against, and which he’d try to ally them to.

‘I suppose it’s time to join the war,’ Mika thought, noting the appearance of a Middle Grade Sky sword with a thunder attribute.