Next to the giant dragon fossil, the auctioneer waited patiently until the commotion dimmed a little and flashed a knowing smile. ‘’Ladies and gentlemen, firstly, I must assure you that the reason we’re showing this item in the middle of the auction was a request from the seller. Otherwise, these peak tier-6 dragon bones would naturally be our closing item. Actually, that would also be the case for our yearly auctions in the past century. Allow me to explain the rarity of this opportunity.’’

He paused a bit as the murmurs echoed through the high walls and continued with a slow pace, ‘’As some of you may know, lower realms are not a place for the dragon race to thrive because even before they hatch from their egg, they surpass tier-9 and are born as an ascendant. Indeed, this creature had been a result of premature birth and somehow ended up in our lower realm, Elisium. From its age and the death mana lingering around it, we can assume that it had been used as a bone dragon and likely served as a guardian of a young scion that had visited our realm long ago. Our experts have confirmed that its bones are as tough as an average tier-8 monster and heavier than most. Although it has a high magic resistance as well, it would be only adequate as armor. Its real value lies in its ancestry and the mysteries it contains. Who knows what benefits it could provide with the right tools? Not to mention, in the worst case, you’ll have a decoration for your house that would awe every guest you have. So, enough talking. Let us start the bidding. The opening price is 300 mana stones and every bid must be at least 10 mana stones. Any offers?’’

‘’400!’’

‘’500!’’

‘’550!’’

Despite the ever-heated bidding race, there was a thoughtful look on Ethan’s face. As tough as an average tier-8 monster bone, huh? I was hoping for a peak tier-9. It seems I need to invest more STR in the future or it’ll be such a hassle to hurt high-tier people. Though I remember the inner side of the [Fabric Tear] had cut Travis’s arm like butter and even ignored his ridiculous barrier. If only–

‘’Where the hell did you find this?’’ Rachel asked, still ogling at the fossil.

‘’From an inheritance ground.’’

‘’You lucky bastard,’’ she commented before cocking an eyebrow. ‘’You don’t have its core, do you?’’

Ethan chuckled. ‘’Nah, it didn’t have one.’’

She pursed her lips and turned back to the lively scene. ‘’Master Ruth would go crazy for a dragon’s core.’’

‘’It passed the thousand mark,’’ Adrian said. ‘’Looks like the manager was wrong.’’

Ethan nodded. ''It doesn’t seem he was too off though. Only a few people are still bidding.’’

A new bidder joined the fun with an offer of twelve hundred mana stones, causing the others to hesitate. Ethan narrowed his eyes as he looked at the newcomer. One of the empty booths now had five people in it. The bidder was a young and handsome guy with a fancy robe while the others seemed to be his servants. ‘’Who is that?’’

‘’That’s the prince Henry I told you about before,’’ Rachel said, eying their booth curiously.

‘’You’d told me about it? Oh, right, prince charming,’’ Ethan said. Looking at the prince again, he couldn’t help but agree with Rachel. With thick eyebrows, curly brown hair, and lively green eyes, combined with his serene demeanor and confident posture, it was only natural for this guy to get a lot of looks.

‘’Going once… going twice…’’ The auctioneer waited for a time but there was only pin-drop silence. ‘’Sold for 1200 mana stones!’’

The corner of Ethan’s eye twitched. ‘’What the hell? Are they scared to offend the royal family?’’

‘’Not really. More like they didn’t think it’d be worth competing against Prince Henry,’’ Adrian explained. ‘’I heard that the crown prince had been assassinated about a decade ago and the king had to delay his ascension. None of the other princes were able to get the king's blessing so far until this guy. Rumor says that the king is willing to crown him but waiting until he is at tier-7. He was only able to leave the palace about six months ago when he’d advanced to tier-5. So, no one has any idea what he is truly like. They say that many tried to approach him but he always shooed them away after a quick chat. That's why they don’t want to mess up their chances with the future king.’’

‘’So… pretty much the same thing? The bastard cost me at least 100 mana stones,’’ Ethan mumbled.

‘’I don’t think that was his intention,’’ Rachel piped in. ‘’They say he’s kind and generous. Maybe he is too naive after the years in the palace?’’

‘’You should wipe your drool,’’ Ethan said and smirked against her glare before turning toward the prince. ‘’I don’t know. He doesn’t seem naive. Maybe he’s testing the waters? Whatever the case, I’ll forgive him this time since I’m already rich. It’s not like I’m gonna cry over a hundred mana stones like you peasants.’’

‘’It’s you who should wipe his drool!’’ Rachel shot back. ‘’You look like you are about to start giggling.’’

Ethan’s smile grew bigger as he thought about his new wealth. Let’s see… I spent 238 mana stones so far. If I left a thousand for the mission and 500 for Eve, I’d still have 850 mana stones give or take. That’s more than enough to buy some toys.

And so he did. The first one was a defensive skill he yearned for so long. [Nightfall Armor] allowed its user to coat themselves with shadow-aspected mana, and solidified itself upon any external touch. According to Adrian, this skill’s defense at rank-1 was as good as rank-2 [Shadow Armor] which he himself had, and it also offered an elusive ability at night against both sight and [Mana Sense].

Rather than the [Shadow Armor] that could be found in the shops with a price of 35 mana stones or so, Ethan chose to buy [Nightfall Armor] for 85 mana stones.

The next item was for Beet once again. It was so good that Ethan burst out laughing after getting it. A defensive artifact in the shape of a coffin. Along with its user’s command, it was able to change its size and hover around them to block the attacks. Not to mention, it was an okay flying artifact and constantly radiated death mana that got only better when there were recent deaths around it. Whether for battles, travels, or cultivation, it was just perfect. Ethan spent 150 mana stones without blinking and couldn’t wait to see Beet hovering around on an ancient-looking baby coffin.

There were a few more items he was very much interested in, but as the end of the auction came close, the prices gradually turned sky-high, causing him to hold back.

Until an item made an appearance that made his cloak buzz ever slightly with a humming sound. Gone with his laid-back attitude, Ethan clenched his seat’s armrest involuntarily, his eyes turning solemn.

‘’The next artifact, the mask of evanescence, is one of the most bizarre ones of tonight,’’ the auctioneer said, holding a half-broken white mask with a blank and rather creepy look. ‘’Its most basic ability is to shroud the user's face in a blur. It’s impressive that it could even avoid rank-2 [Mana Sense] but that’s about it. Someone with a rank-3 [Mana Sens] could still see your disguise easily. However, it has another ability that could save your life even against a tier-9 cultivator. For a second, that is.’’

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

As the auctioneer put the mask on his face, his assistant stepped forward and called a sword in her hand, hacking it toward the man’s neck. Yet, before the sword arrived, the middle-aged auctioneer’s body became ephemeral and even completely disappeared afterward, only to reappear after the sword passed over his body. ‘’Ladies and gentlemen, sadly, this absolute lifesaver could only be used once a day, but sometimes, a second is all you need. The starting price is 100 mana stones. Any offers?’’

Inside the private booth, a smile stretched on Ethan’s face as his heart started to pound strongly. This was the ability he'd always wanted for the [Void Wrap]. He always thought that it could be possible by becoming one with the void but his comprehension of the void was nowhere near that. Now, this item showed a different way. Thanks to his Void Manual, he was able to tell that the man just passed over to the space dimension for a moment and returned without touching the bounds of reality at all.

Despite the variety of skills he had, Ethan never stayed in that dimension before. He was able to [Blink] by manipulating it or use [Fabric Tear] by bending it and puncturing through reality, but with this item, he could transfer himself inside the space dimension directly. That would also give Ani to create an alternative version of this space dimension in the VR.

‘’What’s wrong, boss?’’ Adrian asked, noticing the humming noise of his cloak.

‘’I have an idea, but we’ll see about it,’’ he replied and joined the bidding.

The price climbed up to 300 rapidly before many decided to quit. Ethan didn’t play aggressively this time but pretended like he was mildly interested. When there was only a single bidder left, Prince Henry also joined with 400 mana stones.

Gritting his teeth, Ethan kept adding small amounts leisurely, but the other two didn’t seem to give up anytime soon. Fuck off, Henry. Don’t make me rob your royal treasury. Even when he passed over his allocated funds, he kept going. I guess I’ll just borrow some from Eve’s cut. If it comes to that, I can sell one of the stat-boosting artifacts and make it up for her.

The third person gave up at 550 mana stones before Ethan and Henry continued for a few rounds. Finally, Henry also called it off at 600 mana stones, making Ethan both relieved and irritated.

Cursing the bastard who cost him a small fortune under his breath, he shook his head with a smile and called for the servant.

The girl showed up promptly. ‘’How may I help you, sir?’’

‘’Julitte, do I have to wait for my buys until the end? Is it possible for you to fetch them for me?’’

‘’Of course. If you give me your badge, I can bring your earnings as well.’’

‘’Please do so,’’ Ethan said and passed his VIP badge.

Just in case she would notice the resonance, Ethan stored his cloak after she left and waited with others impatiently. It didn’t even take a minute for Juliette to return. After confirming that all was well, she left once again.

From the various items on the table, Ethan grabbed the broken mask and inspected it but couldn't discern anything about it. Only after establishing a connection through his mana, did he feel the faint void mana inside of it. He once again donned his cloak and watched the same scene that had happened in the pocket world of Inane Cultus.

With increasing buzzing sounds, his cloak sucked three small gray blurs from the mask like a vacuum.

Void wisps.

When the mask’s aura dimmed, he panicked momentarily, thinking it might lose its ability. He had no idea how to get those void wisps back.

Using his Void Manual, he tapped the item’s ability which was on cool-down, and sighed as he noticed the tiny threads going toward his cloak. Surprisingly, there weren’t just three threads but sixteen of them.

Ethan licked his lips as the others watched him curiously. ‘Any changes in my talent or the cloak’s ability, Ani?’

‘I don’t have enough data to test your talents but it seems the cloak’s ability has changed. Can you use a void skill?’’

He opened two [Fabric Tear]s next to each other and dismissed them quickly.

‘Void skills now require 43% of their initial mana. Your cloak is covering the rest.’

Ethan beamed at the notification. Another 7 percent, huh? I wonder where this ends? Could I use void skills for free if I had a hundred void wisps? I guess I’ll have to find out in the future. Also, if this changed, my talent probably went up slightly as well. I should confirm it from a shop.

‘’So? What’s going on?’’ Rachel asked, tugging his cloak restlessly. ‘’Don’t keep it to yourself!’’

‘’Void wisps. I can’t believe I’m saying this but the 600 mana stones for this broken mask were well worth it,’’ he replied with a grin. ‘’And that’s just the start. I think I can get a lot of things from this, but I’m gonna need some time. Anyway, let’s try the skills. I’m curious about the movement skill. Oh, Beet, go try the coffin. That one–’’

The knocking on the door interrupted his Christmas tree moment, followed by Juliette’s voice, ‘’Sir, Prince Henry is inviting you to his booth. Do you need me to send a message?’’

Ethan looked at the loot on the table longingly and put the mask of evanescence back with much struggle. ‘’No need. I’m coming.’’ Pursing his lips, he moved toward the door.

‘’B-Boss, should I come with you?’’

‘’It’s okay. I’ll be right back.’’

Adrian held his arm hastily. ‘’Just, don’t do anything rash. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had tier-9 protectors in the shadows.’’

Ethan rolled his eyes. ‘’I’m not going to try to kill the future king because he is annoying me. Not that I can kill him. Protector or not, that kid isn’t someone I can handle,’’ he said and turned back, leaving the room in a relaxed manner. Yet.

In the company of Juliette, he arrived at the prince’s booth shortly. Two guards at the entrance eyed him head to toe before nodding and opening the door. Inside, he found Prince Henry, sitting with an old man and chatting casually. Two servants stood next to them motionless and another was sitting on a seat, seemingly sleeping.

‘’Oh, Mr. Voidwalker. Such a pleasure to finally meet you,’’ the prince said with a smile and stood up, extending his hand.

So that’s how we're gonna play. Even better. Ethan shook his hand politely. ‘’The pleasure is mine. And Ethan is fine.’’

‘’Very well. Then you must call me Henry. Would you like to join us?’’

‘’I’m afraid I can’t. I have something important to do. May I ask why did you call for me?’’

‘’A-Ah, well, that’s a pity,’’ Henry said awkwardly. ‘’The thing is, I was trying to buy the mask of evanescence as a gift for you but I messed up and even caused an inconvenience.’’

Ethan raised an eyebrow and waited for him to continue.

‘’So, I was hoping to invite you to the palace as my guest. Please let me fix this misunderstanding. Maybe we can get off on the right foot this time,’’ Henry said and called a golden brooch with the royal family’s symbol on it from his storage before passing it to him. ‘’Any royal guard would guide you to me as long as you showed them this.’’

‘’I see. Honestly, it wasn't any big deal, but since you insist, I might take your offer,’’ Ethan said and took the brooch with a smile. ‘’I will be swamped in the coming days, but I guess I can make some time for you in the coming weeks. Would that be okay?’’

‘’S-Sure, anytime you’re available.’’

‘’Alright then. I’ll see you soon, Henry. I heard great things about the Imperial Palace and the royal family’s hospitality,’’ Ethan said and added jokingly, ‘’I do love rare elixirs, by the way.’’

Turning around, he walked toward the door with countless thoughts in his mind. I wonder if Ani could create the space dimension quickly. I was avoiding [Void Mute] for so long but I can try many things if I’m literally inside the void. Not just that but I can also make some sense of my idea of becoming one with the void. We’ll see whether it’s feasible or not. I should also try to combine the [Blink] with the [Umbral Shift]. Combining the skills is a thing, right?

Eager to reunite with his new toys, he didn’t even hear the old man who was murmuring to himself with a bewildered look behind his back.

‘’Who is doing a favor to whom here… Is he from the higher realms after all?’’