“Four-fifty!”
“Five-fifty!”
“Seven hundred!”
M2’s eyes nearly popped out at just how vigorous the bidding was. The denomination soon slid to Tier 3, high-grade Crystals and kept going until one voice drowned out the rest.
“I bid five Tier 3 Cards.”
That stopped the bids, often due to someone practically swallowing their tongue when they heard that amount called out.
M2 was impressed. A card from each tier was worth one thousand high-grade crystals of the same tier. The bid was thus for five thousand high-grade Tier 3 Crystals, a sum much greater than most anyone could fork out. It was on par with the annual tax revenue of an entire small country. Well, “small” was relative here due to the ridiculous size of the planet. To compare: the small country he referred to would have been the size of South America, with over a billion citizens, probably closer to two billion.
“We have a bid of five Tier 3 Cards. Is there anyone else able to bid?” The auctioneer called out, obvious joy at such a ridiculous sum. After a few moments of absolute silence, she continued. “Then if there are no further bids, this shall go to booth 2.”
A loud sigh was released when the auctioneer called the winner, and it seemed like half the theatre had been holding their breath, it was so loud.
Then she masterfully caught the crowd’s attention once again as the last item was brought out on a small cart, its attendant looking like she’d stuck a fork into a wall socket.
What’s that about?
“The last item for this month’s auction is something arguably much rarer than the last item,” she said, then drew the silk cloth hiding the item away, revealing a single jade scale inside a crystal box, crackling with electricity.
Both M2 and Avi’s eyes locked onto that familiar scale, now protected inside a crystal box, arrays etched into it to keep the scale from causing untold damage to everything around it.
‘That would be a small scale from the Heavenly Lightning Jade Dragon,’ Avi sent, seeming to be speaking on autopilot.
‘So, that’s what it was called,’ he sent, just as distracted. His best resistance power hadn’t been able to entirely shrug off the electricity generated by the scales he’d picked up so long ago. The static field that managed to leak out of the containing arrays was powerful enough to cause the hair on every head within twenty metres to start swaying, the auctioneer and the attendant getting the worst of it.
It was a small scale, really just a fragment of a larger scale. Yet the power that radiated from it was still significant.
M2 noticed the attendant’s eyes had widened as well, Guess this wasn’t a widely publicized item, he thought as he also gauged the reaction of the crowd. Then general feel was that they, too, were stunned.
“Our appraisers tell us that this is a fragment of a scale from an ancient lightning dragon. The uses are varied, from cultivating the body to using it to gain insights into the Law of Lightning to artifact refining and even creating pills.
“Bidding will start at one hundred mid-grade Tier 3 Crystals and each bid will increase by no less than fifty Crystals,” she announced with a grand flourish directed at the scale.
‘They have no idea,' he sent to Avi, a bit stunned at their lack of knowledge.
‘We could snatch it up for a steal,' Avi sent, but didn’t seem too interested.
In truth, neither was he. It had just provided him with a potent reminder of how weak he was and how he needed to get much stronger than he was currently. He was glad they’d managed to get the ingredients they needed, though, as that provided the potential to fix his energy pathway issues. He just hoped that they would be able to figure out how to manipulate his pathways when he examined himself while under the effects of the Nine Revolving Pathways Pill. Not only would it enable him to progress, but it would also allow him to help others.
‘Nah, we’ve got plenty in storage,’ he sent back with a slight shake of his head.
It didn’t take long for things to come to a head, then a conclusion. M2 was surprised at just how much that scale had sold for; a whopping eight hundred sixty high-grade Tier 3 Crystals. Sure, it wasn’t anywhere near what the [Mend Body] gem had gone for, but it was still a respectable amount, especially given how much had already been spent during the auction.
Prime: You should tell that auctioneer about the scale.
M2: I was thinking the same thing.
M3: Go for it!
M2 chuckled as he stood up, causing the poor attendant to briefly panic as she scrambled to her feet.
Must be some pretty strict rules here, he idly thought as he pretended to stretch.
“Would it be possible to have a word with the auctioneer?”
The poor attendant blinked, then looked over to where the auctioneer stood near the back of the stage, then turned back to M2 with an appraising look in her eye.
“Miss Layla is very busy, but I can see about setting an appointment,” she said hesitantly, not quite looking M2 in the eye.
My word, how many people want to “talk” with Miss Layla for this poor girl to have such a reaction?!
“That would be appreciated,” he said with a smile. “It isn’t terribly important, but it has to do with that scale that was just sold.”
“Then please follow me to the offices so that we may set an appointment,” she replied, seemingly more at ease with his request.
It wasn’t hard for M2 to focus on the attendant and not stare at Miss Layla down on the stage. He’d had enough practice exerting his willpower over the years to not be one of those poor fellas whose eyes locked onto the prettiest woman in the room. Eye contact was key. He’d learned that as a kid back on Earth.
Heh, learning wisdom in my youth, he chuckled internally. A second childhood would do him good for he needed as much wisdom as he could get.
“I feel terribly rude,” he said, smacking his forehead. “What’s your name?”
The attendant blinked, then blinked again, this time blushing slightly. “You may call me Aenwyn.”
“Then Aenwyn, please lead the way,” he said with his best “dad” smile as he motioned for her do as he’d asked.
She returned the smile, then led them through the inside of the building, passing many people who were leaving, chatting, or going about other business. As they neared the offices that he and Avi had visited the other day to get registered, they heard a commotion.
“Anyone who dares look at my woman with lustful eyes shall have them gouged out,” came a voice full of… cockiness? Self-importance? Conceit?
M2 didn’t know, nor did he really want to find out, as social confrontations weren’t really his thing. Unfortunately, Aenwyn continued right on towards the disturbance, so he and Avi had no choice but to follow along.
By the time they arrived, as small crowd had gathered to watch the spectacle, be they people who thrived on witnessing drama unfold in front of them, were merely stickybeaks, or had some vested interest in what was happening; they had all given the speaker and two others a wide bubble of space with which to do… whatever.
He was about to tap Aenwyn on the shoulder to see if they could go around when the voice of one of the people in the cleared space rang a bell.
Well, it really shouldn’t have taken him that long to recognize Miss Layla’s voice, but he was distracted by not wanting to be there, so it took longer than normal.
“… I’ve been saying: I don’t care what your grandfather has said or claimed to have arranged. You. Are. Not. My. Fiancé.” Miss Layla said, snapping each word off for emphasis.
The offending “Not Fiancé” stood there, face going darker as the seconds ticked by. He looked to be in his early twenties, but that really didn’t mean much when cultivation front-loaded your extra lifespan like it did. He was, however, rather well dressed in what almost looked like a 19th Century business suit from London. There were, of course, differences here and there but as a whole it very much reminded him of a butler.
The third person, a young man in what looked like grey and tan kung-fu clothes was looking very scared.
“I’ll not have you brought to the house straight away so that we can resolve your… willfulness,” Silk-Pants said dismissively, or at least tried to. It more came out sounding like he was trying very hard to hold in a very pressing poop. “As for this vagrant; remove his eyes, cripple him, then toss him in the gutter where he belongs.”
The indicated man looked like he was going to faint right there, but Miss Layla stepped in front of him, and said:
“If anyone causes trouble in my Heaven’s Bounty, we’ll see if I don’t have you and your family black-listed for life,” she said, ice practically forming from the chill in her words.
M2 blinked, then realized that he was a psicrystal and that he didn’t actually have any light-sensing organs that needed cleaning or resetting. No, what he’d seen was correct: frost was indeed beginning to spread out along the floor with Miss Layla as the centre of the phenomenon.
The few bodyguards that had come with Silk-Pants paused for a moment, looked at each other, then at Silk-Pants for confirmation- which he impatiently gave with a vigorously waved hand- then continued on their way to grab Kung-Fu Clothes.
‘You’re gonna do something, aren’t you?’ Avi sent in a resigned tone.
‘You bet your britches I will!’
“Miss Layla? A moment of your time please,” M2 called out, successfully distracting everyone present.
M2 noted Kung-Fu Clothes quickly slip away once everyone’s attention was focussed on M2 as he made his way through the crowd, which was easier than anticipated. It seemed that when the average height of those around you was at least fifteen centimetres shorter than you, people didn’t want to stand in your way.
Silk-Pants was giving him a death-glare while his bodyguards were giving him appraising looks. Miss Layla, however, looked a bit relieved at the interruption, but now also worried that something even more dramatic might occur.
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
“Who’s this? Another would-be suiter that doesn’t know the immensity of Heaven and Earth?” Silk-Pants sneered, trying very hard to retain his air superiority. Sure, he was taller than average, but Silk-Pants was still much shorter than M2, and half as wide.
“Miss Layla? Could we have a word? There are a few things I wish to discuss regarding the auction,” M2 said, simply ignoring the kid with the entitlement issues.
For her part, Miss Layla looked a bit taken aback by how things had developed, but quickly joined his pace. “Certainly Mr Kinkade, if you would follow me to the office, we can speak in peace there,” she said, taking his lead in ignoring Entitled-Silk-Pants, which he didn’t take well.
“Who are you to interrupt my conversation with my fiancée?” He sneered at M2 while motioning to his bodyguards. “Take this commoner and treat him to the same kindness I bestowed on the other one,” he said, now looking around for the First-Offender.
M2 watched as the realization that the First-Offender had escaped hit him. It was interesting to see how black lines practically hovered over his face for a moment before he rounded back onto M2.
“You’re in league with that other cur, aren’t you!”
M2 was stunned. Never before had he imagined not only seeing the legendary “Stunning Beauty” auctioneer, but also running into an almost stereotypical silk-pants trying to use his status to force a woman to marry him. If that wasn’t enough, the guy was either acting like he’d been taught to act, or was genuinely stupid.
He looked back to Miss Layla and saw the slightly pained, but very annoyed, expression on her face.
“Is he actually this stupid?” He asked Miss Layla, using his left thumb to point as Silk-Pants over his shoulder.
For her part, Miss Layla handled his question with the poise and dignity of one used to interacting with the public, while the crowd burst into laughter, only a few not laughing, but instead taking the opportunity to get out of Dodge.
Silk-Pants nearly swallowed then choked on his tongue given the interesting sounds coming out of his mouth and the stunning shade of purple his face turned.
“Kill this commoner!” He finally managed to yell; a trembling finger pointed at M2.
The bodyguards looked at M2, at each other, back to M2 and shrugged before they began advancing on him slowly, warry of his size.
They should be more worried about Avi, he thought with a chuckle as Prime and M3 each contributed something of their own to the fight.
Well, fight might have been an overstatement.
One moment the bodyguards were advancing on him, the next they and their boss were wrapped up in cocoons of shining silver ectoplasm and falling over. Prime and M3 then released a mass version of [Ego Whip] that left the group unconscious.
They really liked that power, as it took a while for someone to fully recover from its effects. The best part was that Silk-Pants would go from being a domineering little twat to the biggest push-over out there until his Charisma/Ego recovered sufficiently.
“Shall we?” M2 asked as he turned to Miss Layla, raising his right arm for her to take as though they were going for a stroll.
Aenwyn, the observers, and Miss Layla all stood stunned, not quite sure what to make of what had just happened.
“Miss Layla?”
* * * * *
Layla was on cloud nine after such a successful auction. Not only had most items gone for good prices, but they’d also increased the fame of Heaven’s Bounty with having such high-profile items showing up at the end.
Five Tier 3 Cards! She squealed in her head, doing a mental victory dance at the thought of that mysterious topaz. Never before had any of their appraisers seen its like, and even Old Man Quithana hadn’t been able to figure it out, and he was already a Tier 3 Alchemist, deeply proficient in Mental Strength.
Then her high plummeted to the ground, then caught fire as Gavin Merritt stopper her on her way to the offices to complete the necessary paperwork at the end an auction.
All had been going more-or-less well until Gavin ordered his men to cripple a random cultivator who’d come in hopes of getting lucky enough to win a bid.
She was about to call in security to have Gavin and his Goons beaten then thrown out when one of the tallest men she’d ever seen stepped out of the crowd, followed by the tallest woman she’d ever seen… and of course Gavin would take it the wrong way.
“Who are you to interrupt my conversation with my fiancée?” He sneered at the man while motioning to his goons. “Take this commoner and treat him to the same kindness I bestowed on the other one,” he said, now looking around that sacrificial lamb that had been meant to be used as a show of power.
“Miss Layla? Could we have a word? There are a few things I wish to discuss regarding the auction,” the young man said, completely ignoring Gavin.
Layla nearly laughed out loud when she saw the look on Gavin’s face, but quickly swallowed her mirth as Gavin once again proved just how stupid he was.
“You’re in league with that other cur, aren’t you!” He practically spat the words out.
The tall stranger didn’t seem phased by that though.
“Is he actually this stupid?” He asked, pointing at Gavin with his thumb.
Layla couldn’t believe her luck today. Not only had she sold a tremendous number of Crystals worth of items, but she also got to see Gavin being treated like the child he acted like. However, she couldn’t afford to offend Gavin more than she already had by practically yelling at him, so she plastered her Auctioneer’s Face on and tried not to laugh.
She watched Gavin’s face turn a dangerous shade of purple before he shouted for his goons to kill the tall man.
She was about to activate her emergency talisman that would summon the elite guards of Heaven’s Bounty when she saw a look of such profound contempt and derision on Tall Man’s face that her hand came to as stop at her waist before she felt a wave of Mental Energy wash over her like a tidal wave. When her vision managed to clear after re-wetting her eyeballs by blinking rapidly for a moment, what she saw stunned her.
Giant white-silver cocoons were now placed where Gavin and his Goons had been standing.
She vaguely registered that the Tall Man had said something to her, but she couldn’t quite peel her eyes away from the cocoons. The silvery colour reminded her of the Ethereal Moonweaver Demon Spider whose webs shone a silvery white that resembled moonbeams in the night.
Was this man actually one of the Monster Tribe? Had she somehow aroused his interest, causing him to step forward for her like he had?
“Miss Layla?”
She blinked, snapping out of her thoughts as her self-preservation instincts kicked it. But more importantly, her years of etiquette training came rushing to the fore, likely saving her life.
She realized that the Tall Man had held out an arm for her to take, so she “graciously” took it with a smile and led the way through the crowd.
Belatedly, she noticed Aenwyn following along beside the Tall Woman, looking like a child following her mother. A very colourful mother.
It took every ounce of her diligent training to not stare at the Tall Woman, as she was quite possibly the most beautiful woman she’d ever seen, not to mention her stunning gem-like hair.
“Does something like this happen often?” Tall Man asked, his tone curious.
“I apologize for such an unsightly display,” she said, proud of how steady her voice was, but then nearly smacked herself for not having answered the question. “No, but he has become more… persistent of late, growing bolder with each incident he’s allowed to cause without repercussion,” she said, shaking her head.
Then she nearly tripped, but was caught by Tall Man before she completely lost her balance. She blushed as she realized that not only had she spoken more than she thought was proper, but also when she realized that she liked holding onto Tall Man’s rock-steady arm.
“Hmm, yes, need to watch out for wrinkles in the floor,” he said as he looked forward once more.
What?
She half turned to inspect the golden tiled floor before she realized that, however clumsily, he’d given her a way to excuse her clumsiness. Her head snapped around again, eyes fixed on the prize. Though, in this case, the prize was the main office where VIPs would come to conduct their business with Heaven’s Bounty.
She was very conscious of every step she took, of how he’d lowered his shoulder enough so that she could comfortably hold his arm in hers. It had a… solid feel to it that didn’t seem to have much to do with his solid muscles.
Then she was nearly dragged off her feet as she stopped dead, eyes going wide, before Tall Man stopped and rebalanced her with a concerned look on his face.
It can’t be…
“Is there anything the matter?” He asked kindly, his voice relatively deep, but smooth.
“I, ah, that is to say: no. We can discuss things in my office,” she managed to get out around her shock. “Aenwyn? Would you please arrange to have tea brought to my office?”
Once Aenwyn nodded her consent, Layla turned back to her office and hurried them along.
She noticed that Tall Man gave Tall Woman a Look, but couldn’t read anything from it. Which put her on edge a bit more than she already was.
“Please let anyone who is looking for me know that I’m in a meeting and that I will see them… later,” she instructed her secretary, a middle-aged man with slicked back hair and a mousy look to him.
“Certainly, Miss.”
Once inside, she directed her guests to sit in the comfortable chairs on the other side of the desk where she did most of her paperwork. They seemed amenable enough, pleasant even, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that they were dragons disguised as sheep, as the saying went.
What had shocked her to the core was that when she’d taken Tall Man’s arm, she hadn’t felt even a trace of cultivation from him. It wasn’t unusual for those who focussed on Mental Strength to ignore the cultivation of mana, except they still managed to at least get into Tier 1 so that they weren’t as… fragile.
And this confused her greatly, as Tall Man was far from fragile. He was downright intimidating with how tall and muscled he was. She glanced at Tall Woman, taking in her physique as well as any other details she could pick up.
It didn’t escape her that they could be using an aura shroud of some kind, but those gave a different feel than what this pair gave off. With an aura shroud, one’s senses were blocked from inspecting the wearer of such an item. No, what she’d felt was a complete lack of cultivation from him.
She even had minor attainments in cultivating Mental Strength, yet she didn’t so much as get a whiff of Mental Strength coming off either of them, notwithstanding the extreme display not five minutes ago.
“Are you some sort of projection?” She asked at last, noting that their eyebrows raised in near perfect synchronization.
Tall man grinned then, then said “Yes and no. Either way, it won’t affect why we wanted to speak with you.”
“Please, do tell,” she said, focussing on Tall Man and noticed a very slight twitch of his lips, almost as though he’d suppressed a smile.
Hmmmmmmmmm…
“It occurs to me that I’ve been rude in not introducing myself,” he said, his grin turning rueful. “I am Kinkade, and this is Asura,” he said, first indicating himself then motioning to Tall Woman.
Layla inclined her head slightly at the introduction, not wanting to appear rude. She noticed that Tall Woman- Asura- hadn’t bothered to hide her amused smile, though it was directed at Kinkade.
“On another note, we would like to thank you for your assistance in auctioning our item and look forward to future business dealings,” he said as a kind smile replaced the rueful one. “That said, I feel that I should bring to light that the final item sold today wasn’t as advertised.”
Layla couldn’t believe just how reassured she was by his words. She briefly suspected some sort of outside influence, like a secret art or technique being used, but when she glanced down at a bracelet she wore, the gemstone that would activate if she was under mental influence hadn’t lit up.
Then the last part registered.
“What do you mean,” she asked, now fully focussed on Kinkade, causing him to lean back at the sudden change.
“Well,” he said, raising an arm to scratch at the back of his head, now looking over her left shoulder. “That wasn’t a scale from a lightning dragon.”
Her mind whirled for a moment before she shook her head. “Our appraisers are some of the best in the region, the empire. If they couldn’t identify it, what makes you think that you’re better than they are?”
He looked over to Asura, who nodded back. When he turned back to Layla, she could feel the weight of his gaze. Yet, it didn’t feel hostile, per se, just… heavy.
“Because I’ve come across what left it behind once upon a time,” he said simply.
She waited the span of six heartbeats before she could wait no longer.
“Then, pray tell, what was it?”
“A Heavenly Lightning Jade Dragon.”
* * * * *
Joram watched as Miss Layla’s brain seemed to break slightly at his words. He saw a look of incomprehension first, then a dawning realization as she recognized the name, then horror and panic.
He supposed that the items in storage were much more valuable than even they had thought, given Miss Layla’s reaction.
‘Sooooo,’ he sent to Avi. ‘Do you think she’ll need a bit of [Mental Reconstruction]?’
‘We’ll have to see,’ Avi sent, amusement heavy in the tone. ‘She seems to be rather flexible in her thinking, so she may be all right with the revelation that they’d sold that scale for probably one-tenth its value.”
He had to give her credit, for as much as her brain seemed to have broken, she recovered in admirable time.
“Is there any way to prove your claim?” She asked, suddenly becoming more polite than she’d been up to that point. Which now bordered on… fawning? He wasn’t used to being treated in such a way, so he had a bit of a hard time interpreting the look.
Damn, I wish I had Erick’s ability… He paused, then mentally smacked himself.
‘Why haven’t I been using [Read Thoughts]?’
‘Because you view it as somewhat unethical?’
‘True, but just surface thoughts, not going any further…’
‘Still not very ethical… That said, this world doesn’t seem to have the same rules or ethics you’re used to.’
‘Yeah, well, I don’t keep to my values for fear of others’ judgement of my actions,’ he sent back in a somewhat mumbled tone, too embarrassed to even say that much to Avi.
“Did you not wonder why a mere fragment of a scale had such power? Tell me, have you ever encountered a lightning dragon’s scale, a full one, that had such power?”
Miss Layla looked contemplative for a moment before her expression became more resolved. She reached out and touched a small metal plate on her desk and a few seconds later her secretary opened the door just enough to poke his head in.
“You called Miss Layla?”
“Please have every record pertaining to the lightning dragon scale that just sold brought to me, as well as who won the bid.”
“Right away Miss,” he said, then disappeared, the door closing silently behind him.
M2 sat there, trying very hard to not be awkward in the silence that followed. He really didn’t know what to say, so he kept with the age-old wisdom of: silence is golden. Which went well with, “It is better to keep one's mouth shut and be thought a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”
Yeah, that’s the ticket!