After returning to the guesthouse, I searched the kitchenette area for food. I opened the refrigerator and was excited to see it had been restocked with finger foods, snacks, and fruits.

“Ah, Malee didn’t forget to restock me. Thank you, lord,” I said as I picked up a plate and filled it with food.

After eating to my heart's content, I looked at my CAD and saw it was already close to 9 pm.

“It's getting kind of late,” I thought.

“Roy hasn’t messaged me, so I’m hoping everything is going well on that end.”

I scrolled through my messages, but none of them piqued my interest.

“Alright, let's get the PLE and start deciphering that healing skill I got from Thida,” I told myself.

I picked up the PLE from the table in the living room and walked back into the bedroom.

I proceeded to block out everyone’s messages in my CAD and PLE except for Roy so as not to get disturbed during this time.

“Alright, everyone who needs to be blocked is, and Roy is the only one left in case of an emergency.”

After that, I sat cross-legged on the floor and searched my PLE for the file I had received from the Chef.

“Found it.”

After seeing the DNA title on the screen, I opened the file to a sense of déjà vu.

“Kind of weird,” I said, considering this would not be my first or second time doing this.

I should have gotten comfortable with, if not already used to, the idea of doing this, but for some reason, it still felt new and recurring at the same time.

I finally opened up the file to look at the DNA sequence.

After staring at the sequence for about 10 minutes, it got stuck in my head like a lousy melody you can't get rid of.

I relaxed my thoughts and concentrated, trying to remember how I had gotten myself into the entranced position I had achieved in the past.

After a while of hearing myself breathe and my thoughts shutting down, I found myself in a state of comprehension. I was still sitting cross-legged in the empty void, but many of the things I had on my head had either cleared up or disappeared altogether.

I remembered the DNA sequence, and a movie-like reel appeared again before me.

TAAGAATGGTACTG…. the pattern started to spin one letter at a time. Like last time, I was mesmerized by the pattern as I sat there and took it in. The speed at which the letters spun started increasing the longer I stayed enlightened.

Night came, and everyone was minding their own business as usual. I had very few visitors as I had almost zero friends, so I was not worried too much about anyone coming over and interrupting me during this time.

If anyone had happened to show up, they would have immediately seen the soft, luminous glow coming from my bedroom window. If they had peeked inside, they would have seen the silhouette of a person sitting cross-legged on the floor with a spinning blueish-green light on his chest. The light, like the other ones, was mesmerizing to look at.

Luckily, no one showed up.

Hours passed in the blink of an eye, and night turned into day and night again. I had spent almost 24 hours in my transcendent state without realizing it.

Monday morning came around, and finally, I could open my eyes.

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“Wow, that was more intense than the previous ones,” I thought.

I was also hungrier than usual.

I got up and looked outside the window, only to see the first rays of the sun creeping over the horizon.

“Hmm... it's morning already. No wonder I’m so hungry,” I said as I walked to the living room area.

I walked past the table and entered the kitchenette area to get more food.

“I wonder what’s left of the food,” I said as I opened the door.

Some snacks and fruits were left, so I filled a new plate and returned to the living room.

As I started eating, a buzzing sound caught my ear.

Buzz…Buzz...Buzz

“What the hell is that noise?”

I looked around to see what was making the buzzing sound, and my eyes landed on my CAD. I got up and picked it up.

“Who the hell is bugging me on a Sunday?” I said.

Just then, I remembered that I had blocked everyone except Roy, so it had to be him who was messaging me.

I looked at the messages only to find it wasn’t Roy, but some other unknown number. I had ten messages from this number, so it seemed important. Without thinking too much, I opened the message box.

The First message caught my eye right away.

“Khyrum, do you want to get something to eat?” read the message, which was signed Eva Fox at the end.

“How the hell did this girl get my number?” was my first thought.

I kept scrolling through the messages, and they were getting more psycho, in my opinion.

“Why aren’t you answering?”

“Answer me, dammit; I’m not going to go away if you ignore me.”

“I can’t believe you’re this cowardly not answering Khyrum. No matter what, I won’t go away.”

The last one read, “If I don’t hear from you by tomorrow Monday morning, I’m going to go to your house to drag you out. So, get ready!”

I stared at the message for a few minutes before it dawned on me: Monday?

I looked at the time and date on my CAD, and it was 7:10 a.m. on a Monday.

“What the hell, it's Monday.”

I quickly realized I hadn’t spent 12 hours but 36 hours in my transcendent state from the weekend.

On the other side of the city, inside a butcher shop, Roy was fast asleep inside his office on a couch he had brought over just yesterday.

He figured it was better to sleep inside the butcher shop than expose himself every day walking to and from his apartment to the shop.

Suddenly, his CAD buzzed up with a ringtone, and an unfamiliar number appeared on the screen.

“Who could that be?” he thought.

He picked up the CAD and answered the call cautiously, “Hello.”

On the other side, a familiar voice but in a serious tone spoke out.

“Roy, it's me, Khun. Can you talk?”

“Sure, what’s happening, Khun? Is everything straightened out?” asked Roy inquiringly.

“To a point, yes, the Zigmis group will no longer bother us.”

“Great, that's excellent news, so where do we go from here?”

“Don’t congratulate me yet, Roy; we had to make a couple of concessions to make this happen,” said Khun.

“Concessions?”

“Yeah, three, to be exact.”

“First, this auction is no longer on the underground network. It has been taken over by the World Heritage Auction House, which all ten committee members have a part in it.”

That meant that all global powerhouses were now invested in the auction.

“Second, all ten committee members and some other strong groups want to see the charm firsthand. In accordance with everyone involved, the charm will now be housed at the headquarters of the Heritage Auction House on the Island of Cypree.”

“Does that mean we won't have it under our guard anymore?” asked Roy hesitantly.

“I know what you mean, but too many unknown variables and nasty players are hiding in the shadows. Too many things could have gone wrong if left to us only. We could not guarantee absolute safety or transparency in this case."

"After hours of negotiations, this was the only option that pleased everyone.”

Roy remained silent for a long while before speaking again.

“I can’t make that decision. I would have to consult with the owner of the charm to see what he wants to do,” he said.

“What’s the third concession?” he continued.

“Well, I suggest you talk to the owner ASAP and convince him of this arrangement, Roy. Because if we don’t agree, there might be an all-out war for that charm,” said Khun anxiously.

“Third concession, any future discoveries like this have to go through the committee for auction approval,” said Khun.

“Considering that we are still fighting invaders, if one of these charms fell in their hands, it could lead to catastrophic results. So, the committee wants to vet all participants in this type of auction,” said Khun sternly.

“I don’t see any issue with this last concession, but I will still run it through the owner to make him aware."

"Is that it?”

“No haggling about price or trying to forcibly overtake the auction or the owner of such a charm?” Roy probingly.

There was a long silence on the other side before another voice came on the CAD receiver, “Mr. Markz, allow me to introduce myself; my name is Soko Cilbam, leader of Clan Daisuke.”

Roy froze on the line when he heard the name Soko Cilbam. He had read numerous articles and seen many news clips about this gentleman.

It was said he was among the most powerful people on earth, along with his sons Oskela, Nilne, and Rozek.

“Let me assure you, Mr. Markz, that if you can have the owner of the charm agree to these three conditions, I can guarantee his freedom and anonymity.”

“But if he doesn’t agree, then my clan will be one of the first to hunt him down,” said the voice in a cold, unnerving tone.