The auction grew heated as it progressed. Unlike what now seemed like an appetiser in the first half, the latter half of the auction was dominated predominantly by ancient relics that were supposedly used by the Cardinal Champions of legend. Most of them had drawbacks in one way or another, which probably was a key reason why none of these weapons were used in the Second Extermination.

The end results were obvious. Some of these relics were hotly contested for, while no one placed bids on those that had significant drawbacks. Gaius was a bit curious about these relics — how did the Cardinal Champions use them? Or were they actually failed products, imitations of items from Earth?

“The Lance of Annihilation.” Nalus intoned, his voice bored. It was evident that this was another artefact with significant drawbacks. “Kills the user, to fire off a single Paragon-level attack. User himself must be at least a Knight, and the use of this weapon must be done willingly. Paragons can use this weapon with no issue.”

Which begs the question as to why would they? Gaius yawned.

“The minimum bid price for the Lance of Annihilation is thirty thousand points.” Nalus looked around. “No one?”

The gathered people didn’t bother to reply.

“Very well, moving on.” Nalus folded the lance up and placed it into a velvet box, exchanging it with another. “This one, however, should be of great interest. The Bulwark, a rechargeable and reusuable artefact that can effectively nullify most Knight-level attacks. No user-level required; requires charging after it nullifies a Lord-class attack.”

Gaius was beginning to feel frustrated at Nalus. What exactly did ‘Lord-class’, ‘Knight-class’ or any other words of a similar fashion actually mean in practical terms? No matter how he looked at it, the other Harvesters were also similarly befuddled — what kind of attack would a Lord-class attack be, for instance?

At any rate, it seemed that the people higher upon the corporate ladder knew, as an uproar rocked the Sheltered Duelling Grounds. Before Gaius knew it, the price had soared to sixty thousand, and it wasn’t showing any signs of abating.

“Sen — Alexandre.”

The senator turned around with a beaming smile. “Yes?”

“What exactly is a Lord-class attack, and a Knight-class one? What differences are there?”

A dawning realisation entered the senator’s eyes. “Ah, I now see why so less of you Harvesters were buying much in the second round, since you lot are mostly half-advanced Squires or Soldiers. Let’s put it this way. Squires and Soldiers train up their physical body, but Knights and beyond are defined in terms of qi.”

“So, to put it in perspective, a Knight’s average attack is the rough equivalent of fifteen to twenty Straight Shots firing at once.” The senator mimed the act of shooting one Straight Shot as he spoke. “Double that for a full-powered attack, but keep in mind that Knights with Engines can use Sigil Manifestation to double their strength again.”

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“How about Lords?”

“Well, I roughly estimate Warmaster Chamberlain’s casual attack to be around ninety to hundred Straight Shots fired at once, depending on his mood when playing around.” The senator gazed at the scene of other senators trying to outbid each other. “For Lords, they usually have far more control, so try to imagine a scene where a hundred Straight Shots hit at the same time, and at the same place.”

“How about—”

“I don’t know,” interrupted Senator Alexandre, “and I don’t want to find out either. For Paragons, the sky is their limit, apparently. But one key reason as to why the Bulwark is so hotly contested is that defence is harder than offence.”

Gaius looked at Nalus, who was now shouting out numbers like a math teacher. The bidding was beginning to peak, at ninety thousand, and once again, Gaius could only appreciate the hefty cost of the Stellar Core.

“One hundred thousand!” A man, his right eye covered up, roared.

“Looks like the military really wants the Bulwark,” said the senator. “He just increased the price by a full ten thousand.”

A voice came from the sky. “A hundred and ten thousand.”

Silence rocked the venue, and everyone’s heads shot upwards to search for the speaker as a formless pressure descended.

“P-Paragon Ortega! You’re also participating?”

Gaius peered at the person shrouded in energy. There was a moment where everyone stared upwards with bated breath, and then the figure chuckled.

“No, I’m just kidding. Auctioneer, please don’t take my bid seriously.”

Nalus stopped quivering, and the weight pressing down on everyone vanished. He gulped and said, “Sir, in that case…?”

“Another Paragon is approaching, and I’m here to make sure he doesn’t get any funny ideas.” With those words, a dome of energy shrouded the entire Sheltered Duelling Grounds, encasing everyone inside.

“What’s this about?” Gaius and Nakama turned towards Senator Alexandre.

The senator shook his head. “I’ve no idea. And from the way Paragon Ortega phrased it, it sounds like the incoming Paragon isn’t from Ark City…or even friendly to us, for that reason. It is possible to reach us from the Intersection, but only Paragons would do so and only in an emergency.”

“An emergency? From where?”

“Who knows?” The senator shrugged, and then made a funny face at Nakama, who promptly made a funny face back. “But I think we’re all in for a show.

Nalus glanced at the Paragon, and then resumed the auction, the winning bid going to the military’s representative. It seemed that Paragon Ortega’s presence had made people want to bid more, even for relics with problems. Maybe it was a matter of pride, or something.

But no one could deny that the Auctioneer’s expression was beginning to glow like the sun. Time passed swiftly, and soon, Nalus was about to open the second last box to reveal to the audience.

“And here I was wondering why Paragon Ortega was standing still in the sky for no reason.” A voice interrupted the proceedings, and Nalus closed the box surreptitiously. “Looks rather lively here, doesn’t it?”

“Only a Southern Continent Paragon could dampen the spirits of an auction, eh?” Paragon Ortega’s fingersnap could be heard everywhere, revealing another formless person clad in misty energy. “What are you here for, unknown Paragon?”

“Here to bring you some news.” The person paused. “And to everyone else here present, apparently.”

“At least reveal yourself first, unknown Paragon.”

“If you so wish.” The energy dispersed, revealing a young teenager…a young, human teenager who Gaius had seen before.

And as a mysterious rage churned within the pits of Gaius’ stomach, the young Paragon bowed, emanating elegance from every fibre of his being.

“You’re not a Constellation…”

“Correct. I’m the thirteenth summoned, the entity known as the Last Star. I guess you can call me…Nox. Pleased to meet your acquaintance.”

Far below the two, Gaius trembled, his mind the only thing able to fight down his rising anger. Nakama’s presence and his rationality managed to prevent him for shooting skywards to punch that man who his instincts hated.

Gaius calmed down, and fixed his eyes on the two Paragons.