Great palaces of oak with black tiles adorning the roofs gave off an ancient feeling with their antiquated wooden beams, polished with a shining coat. These structures were large, and mass tides of people went to and from the buildings' large entrances.

These buildings were the great hosts of the Exalt markets built in one of the three inner districts, the Bazaar District. The three inner districts were for Exalts, consisting of the Guild District, which held the Alchemist and Fabricator Guilds; the Brawl District, where Exalts could fight in combat and hone their skills; and the Bazaar District, which was the marketplace for Exalts.

The one pillar in the center was the Lord District which was home to the City Lord of Artomos. From the central pillar, the City Lord would watch over Artomos and relay their orders.

Oscar's destination was the Bazaar District to find an auction to sell his mutated Wendigo's core.

"There's only one auction in the Bazaar District, the Grandoak Auction," Frederick explained. "We can put the core up for bids there, and everyone would surely bid for it."

Frederick led the charge into one of the large wooden buildings, an assembly of wooden cubes connected into a non-symmetrical building. There would be places where it should have been a flat wall, yet it was missing a large block or protruding out a block.

Oscar compared it to how a baby might assemble some toy blocks into an incoherent shape that would tumble over. But this building stood perfectly firm and had a large sign on its entrance. This strange place was the Grandoak Auction.

"Welcome to Grandoak Auction. May I know the purpose of your visit?" The receptionist welcomed Oscar with a bow. She had brown hair with green eyes, wearing a yellow dress.

"I would like to place something up for auction."

"May I know what you wish to put up for auction? Please write it so we can upload privacy and safety." The receptionist passed a sheet to Oscar.

Oscar wrote down the information and returned the paper to the receptionist, whose eyes brightened after reading. A mutated Exalt Beast core!

"Please follow me." She nodded and turned around.

Oscar and the others followed the receptionist into another room. Oscar looked at the ceiling; it was the sky and two suns beating down and illuminating the room with warmth. Oscar focused his third eye and activated the Prinstyct to confirm a suspicion he had.

The world distorted around him as if the boundaries between objects were nonexistent. His Ein flowed in droves to maintain the purple ring's glow on this third eye. Above, the scene of the two suns and clear blue skies started to go away like a burning piece of paper.

He saw a wooden ceiling reveal itself under the effects of his Prinstyct. His suspicions were confirmed; the two suns and blue sky were an illusion placed on the ceiling.

"Sir?" The receptionist noticed Oscar had stopped moving and was looking up. Realizing something, she said, "Oh, you must be intrigued by our special ceiling. It puts our clients at ease and helps the rooms have an open feeling."

"That's a great idea." Oscar praised.

"Our appraiser should be coming in shortly. Please make yourselves comfortable and enjoy the refreshment." The receptionist bowed and exited.

The jug of water and small cookies on the table were nice and sweet. Emily ate the cookies with her eyes closed and curled down in satisfaction. Frederick, at her side, rolled his eyes at her actions.

Oscar focused on recovering his Ein from the use of his Prinstyct. He looked at the purple ring on his third eye, admiring its ability, but he knew it was not wise to maintain it for a long time.

'Maybe it's because I am still an Apprentice Exalt. Perhaps when I become an Elite Exalt, it will become easier.'

The door to their room opened, and an elderly gentleman stepped inside. He had wrinkles that covered every inch of his face and a bald head, and he wore a high-class three-piece black suit with gold embroidery. The elderly gentleman sat down on the couch and bowed.

"Welcome to the Grandoak Auction. I am the appraiser, Aiden Walberg. May I see the mutated Exalt Beast core that you have with you?" Aiden's eye's narrowed, scrutinizing Oscar and the others. Even though he was old, he had an imposing presence.

Oscar reached into his bag and pulled out the black core of the mutated Wendigo. It was a lustrous black that reflected everyone in the room and glinted under the light of the two false suns.

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"Oh~" Aiden put on a pair of glasses and white gloves with a smile and reached for it. He held the black core carefully and brought it before his eyes. His Ein flowed through and pulsed into the black core. "This is certainly the core of a Wendigo, but it is quite unique. See these faint patterns laid on its surface?"

He showed it to Oscar and the others. The black core had faint white lines intersecting and extending into patterns over its surface. "We read these patterns to understand the Exalt Beast; it is like a record of its being. This was certainly a mutated Wendigo due to how different the pattern is from normal Wendigos. Can you tell me about it and its abilities?"

Oscar and Emily narrated their encounter, describing the Wendigo Alpha in great detail and the sequence of their battle. Aidan listened with his wrinkled ears, expressing sounds of interest every so often.

"May I ask why a mutated Exalt Beast core is so valued?" Oscar asked at the end of their tale.

"Many reasons. A mutated core can vastly increase the potency of an elixir or provide as much use as several normal cores in refinement. The fabricators love using it for their armaments, increasing their capabilities. Some love to collect it."

Aidan got up and placed the black core in a box. He then passed three wooden badges with the word 'Grandoak' carved on them. "You can attend the auction as special guests and enjoy the proceedings later tonight. Once the core is sold, we will give you your sales after we take our portion."

After Adian departed, Oscar and the others decided to spend their time going to the guilds to sell the other materials they gathered. Oscar looked at his bronze membership tokens for the Alchemist's and Fabricator's Guilds. He had donated a few to see if he could upgrade, but the materials didn't give him enough points to upgrade them.

The night came, and Oscar came back to the Grandoak Auction. With their wooden badges, they were led into a private balcony that overlooked a grand stage with vast rows of seats and other balconies. A white sheet allowed them to see clearly in the auction hall but blocked prying eyes from looking through.

Although it was a large auction hall, only half of the seats were filled, and the balconies were scarce. Wanderers were Exalts constantly on the move and only sometimes available to attend. Of course, there were always delegates from the Alchemist and Fabricator Guilds.

Oscar stared at the two guilds. One wore clean white robes and maintained indifferent expressions. On the other side, the fabricators wore black robes and wore their iconic helmets. The two sides were silent, emanating hostility toward each other, but maintained their manners in respect of the auction.

"Welcome!" A lady stepped on the stage. She had white hair tied in a bun and yellow eyes and wore a green dress with brown laces. "I am Ellie Belhem, the auctioneer for today. Without further ado, let us begin the auction!"

The auction started with great fanfare.

Oscar watched the action unfold between the bidders with great interest. Items like rare elixirs, armaments from a hidden treasure trove, materials from various herbs and Exalt Beasts, and strange fruits. Oscar had only sold his materials straight to the Guilds or shops, but the ones placed for auctions were rarer than others.

The fabricators and alchemists were the main culprits of the fierce bidding wars, trying to pry as many raw materials from each other as possible. A few wanderers won some of the elixirs and armaments and left the auction satisfied after spending their money.

Oscar's group didn't bid on anything.

"It's been a very fruitful auction. I thank everyone here. Now, this next item will surely interest everyone here." Ellie pointed to an open box. Inside was the mutated black core. "This is the mutated core of a Greater Apprentice Wendigo."

"A mutated core!" The audience rose in a clamor, trying to look closer at the black core. The auction guards stomped their feet in a show of force.

"We guarantee this is a mutated core. Now, as for the beast's features…." Ellie explained the details of the beast's powers.

"Hey, cauldron bastards. This one is ours. The qualities of this Wendigo are well suited to complement a set of armor and weapons by melding it in." The leading fabricator warned the alchemists, who merely snorted coldly.

"The expansive strength of the beast and its resilience will be perfect for an amazing strengthening elixir. We may replicate its properties if we can research its intricacies. Though I do not expect hammerheads like you to know about fine research."

"The strengthening can work for our weapons and armor as well! The arrogance of you herb-smelling liquid brains to believe you're the only ones who can provide such means."

"Hoh?" The alchemists were furious.

"Ho? Ho what? Are you owls or something? Go back and suck on the elixir from your mother's teat." The fabricators were exceedingly foul-mouthed.

"Please calm down!" Ellie maintained her composure, showcasing her professionalism in this pressing moment. "The bidding will start at 3000 gold."

"3000???" Oscar choked on his water from the starting amount.

But even more shocking was the amounts bid by the two guilds. They screamed and howled at each other as they raised the price higher. Oscar's hands shook as the price reached 40000 gold.

"Going once! Going Twice! Sold! The mutated core will go to the fabricator's guild!" Ellie announced the winner.

The fabricators cheered as the alchemists looked on with grim faces.

"If it were a core from a stronger Exalt Beast, we could have gotten a far better price." Frederick said. "But 40000 is still very good."

"Hello. We have your gold here." A servant came in and passed them three purple cards. "These are purple gold cards. If you take them to a location of the Platinum Reserves, they will give you the amount in them. There are 12000 gold coins in each."

Oscar held the purple gold card with trembling fingers. He had never seen an immense value in a single small object.

The rest of the auction was just as bombastic. The next were rare items from Grade Three Exalt Beasts and Grade Three plants and fruits. Even the core of a Grade Four Exalt Beast was sold for a mindboggling price that made Oscar go limp.

"That was fun!" Oscar exclaimed. "But would it be that expensive when we get into higher realms?"

"That is why you see few wanderers past the Elite Exalt realm. Those who manage to become Knight Exalts can find good compensation by coming under the thrall of a power like the Pavilion. If not, then how could they afford their needs?" Frederick explained.

"That's far from today. For now, let's get back to the Pavilion and focus on the Elite Exalt realm." Oscar shrugged.

"About that." Emily looked at the two. "Do you mind if we take a detour?"