After a considerably long journey, Apolo's carriage arrived at its destination, stopping in front of the gates of an immense store. The store occupied an entire block, although it wasn't located on one of the main streets, so in these areas, it was easier to see stores of this size. The building itself resembled a fortress, and in each of the corners, you could see a watchtower with a guard wearing leather armor, seriously observing the inside of the building. It seemed to have no roof and was surrounded by imposing wooden walls over four meters high.

Unlike the decorative armor of the guards at the capital's gate, the guards at this store wore practical armor that showed signs of wear and tear, suggesting that this was an area of frequent conflict. And it was no wonder because the building was a slave auction and sales house.

Apolo adjusted the gold ring on his hand and took a leather suitcase along with a slender black wooden cane with a beautiful gold handle in the shape of a sword's pommel. With all preparations in place, Apolo proceeded to open the carriage door to step out onto the street.

As soon as he set foot on the street, the young man immediately leaned on his cane and began walking at the slow pace of an elderly person, as if relying heavily on the cane for support. In truth, all this setup by the young noble was purely aesthetic. According to his research, this appearance mattered because the Gururi he sought had accompanied a magician throughout their life until old age, so the previous owner likely ended up using a cane.

With deliberate slowness, Apolo made his way to the grand entrance of the store and observed as two guards approached and asked him:

—Pleasure to meet you, could you please...

—Shut it. I'm here to inspect your Goros. Go and fetch the one who hired me!—Apolo interrupted, staring intently at the guard.

—So, you're Mr. Apolo? Aren't you rather young?—The other guard asked, taken aback by the young man's bad temper.

—If you know my name, then why keep me waiting...—Apolo complained.

—Sorry, please follow me, I'll take you to the manager—said one of the guards, not wanting to anger the "expert", Indeed, judging by the young man's attire and the carriage he arrived in, he seemed extremely wealthy, so it would be odd for him to cause trouble.

In silence, Apolo, taking all the time in the world, followed the guard. As he moved through the store, the young man looked around expectantly, hoping to encounter the creature he sought so eagerly. However, all he could see were enslaved individuals and various "races" of humanoids who, technically, were humans and therefore not considered animals or creatures. In fact, Apolo knew that all these humanoids were simple humans. But the ability granted by their blood made them appear so different from the majority of people that they were treated differently. It went to the extent that ignorant people believed they were an entirely different "race" from humans, similar to those described in fable and fantasy books, much like how "normal" people treated Apolo as a giant. Although the truth was that most malnourished people in the empire were barely more than five feet tall, so it was quite challenging to argue that someone like Apolo was a normal human. Unlike some members of his family who had truly grown as tall as trees.

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The guard continued to lead Apolo until they entered an office where a handsome man in a white suit was working, reading some files.

—Sir, the expert has arrived—presented the guard, indicating Apolo.

—So, you're the renowned magician Apolo, the young expert—commented the manager with happiness as he left the books on his desk and looked at the young man with curiosity—My name is Nestor of Blue Beaches.

—Pleasure to meet you. Where are the creatures you want me to assess?—Apolo said with an expectant smile.

—Right this way, follow me!—Nestor responded energetically, leaving his desk to guide Apolo to where they stored the merchandise.

It didn't take long for Apolo and Nestor to reach the basement of the store. In this area, various colorful creatures could be seen, some of which appeared to be quite dangerous. Despite the beauty of the creatures, the young man was disappointed; it seemed that there were no Gururis here either, at least not in this part of the store. However, it was understandable because all the creatures stored in the basement seemed to be exotic and expensive.

After continuing to accompany Nestor for a few more minutes, Apolo finally saw the reason for his visit to this store: fifteen completely naked people were in cages in the distance. The cages had no basic amenities and were very small, so the people could only stand or sit, moving a little but not much more. Each cage had a bucket of water and another filled with oats. At first glance, it might seem like they were simple enslaved humans being tortured as part of some strange punishment. However, to the expert eyes of the young noble, it was obvious that they were not ordinary humans. Instead, they were the famous Goros he had come to inspect. The great aesthetic difference between Goros and normal humans was evident at a glance, as long as one was awake enough to doubt. The Goros were aesthetically perfect humans, similar to champions of legends. All the men in cages looked like battle-hardened warriors, and all the women looked breathtaking.

Although they were not Gururis, Apolo had not lied to the guards. He was an expert in Gururis and, consequently, it had been very easy for him to become an expert in all their "evolutions". To Apolo's surprise, there were very few experts on these creatures, and in general, hiring an expert was very expensive. After all, the average cost of a Goro was that of a house in the ring city. Although Apolo wasn't surprised for too long, the young man knew that if one wanted to understand the evolutions of the Gururi race well, they first had to understand the Gururis themselves. This was a step that most other experts tended to skip. It could be quite challenging for a person to fully comprehend the Goros on their own. Since the market for experts was highly competitive, people within it did not usually teach others voluntarily. Additionally, information about the Goros cost fortunes that even Apolo could not afford in his lifetime.

—Fifteen Goros? Impressive, this is a rather large lot...—Apolo commented, carefully approaching one of the creatures in cages, observing their details.

—Yes, they belonged to a noble family that ran out of heirs—Nestor replied with happiness—We're looking for an evaluation of each of them.

—It will be a pleasure—Apolo replied, trying to hide the smile on his face so that the creatures wouldn't notice it. If all went well, he would earn a fortune today. It was the first time he had evaluated so many Goros at once—Well, I'm going to start. It might take a few hours or even a few days. When is the auction?

—It's a month away. If possible, we hope to take them to the general auction house—Nestor said.

—Oh, we'll see. Hopefully, these Goros have the quality for you to register them in the general auction house—Apolo responded, slowly approaching one of the cages.