Chapter 124: Chapter 124: Auction (2)
"The starting bid is 1 billion CD. But I'm sure you all know that a 7-star beast-tamer is actually priceless."
'Damn!' Any satisfaction Kain might have felt in the past from making a substantial amount of money from hunting spiritual creatures was now completely gone. In front of the real rich he was still no different from a beggar.
Soon the price passed 10 billion and showed no signs of going down. The most active and desperate bidders were individuals from families headed by a 6-star beast tamer—such as Aric.
The amount of times he'd shouted out a new bid had practically caused his voice to grow hoarse. As a result, he was drinking a lot to soothe his throat. Kain no longer had to worry about the completion of his mission and just sat back to watch the show.
Kain had already instructed Bea to restrain herself and not kill Aric until after he'd already left the venue. After all, as the one serving Aric, Kain would be among the first suspects.
However, as an ordinary individual, it was really difficult for Bea to not kill him. Any slight action may cause him to collapse since he has no resistance.
Once the bids passed 15 billion, only then were there signs of the bidding reaching its end. However, it was not because they felt it was becoming overpriced, but rather because they were running our of money to bid.
For many of the 6-star beast tamers, especially the older ones closer to the end of their life-span, they'd be willing to give up all of their family property to have a chance at breaking through and living for much longer.
"18.3 billion CD going once…Going twice…Sold to Sir Ironbane. I wish you great success in your future breakthrough Sir Ironbane." An elderly man could be seen smiling in relief at having finally secured the item.
His eyes were literally red from the stress of this auction, if he hadn't quickly contacted some distant relatives and friends to raise more money hope of any future breakthroughs would have been lost and he'd have to resign himself to dying.
Aric's face on the other hand looked as though he'd smelled something horrible. Kain could tell that he was pissed and no longer in the mood to remain here. Likely the moment the event ended he will quickly leave without bothering to wait around and socialize…which perfectly suited Kain's interests.
"Up next we have something I'm sure even some of our 7-star beast-tamers and above will desire—The Fruit of Renewal.
"Under normal circumstances the loss of a spiritual creature is devastating, not only are you one companion short, but the damage to the soul also prevents any future breakthroughs. But alas, it truly is difficult to reach a certain level of strength without suffering any losses.
"With the Fruit of Renewal, not only will all damage to the soul be completely restored to allow those of you stuck at your current levels an opportunity. To advance further, it also completely resets the landscape of a star space with a previous occupant to allow you to contract a new spiritual creature.
Not only will your strength return to its peak—you may even quickly surpass your strength at its peak."
"The bids will be starting at 10 billion CD!"
Kain's hand holding a jug to refill the beverages unintentionally shook at the startling starting bid. Thankfully, none of the drink actually spilled, the last thing he needed was to draw attention to himself.
However, he was shocked that the starting bid was directly double that of the previous item. Likely because the previous item was only useful for 6-star beast-tamers and below. However, this item was invaluable for the real high-level beast-tamers with 7 or more stars.
As the highest fighting force in the nation against foreign enemies, many of them have had to lose a companion in the past which prevented them from progressing further. Many of whom were considered geniuses in their youth and without the damage to their soul would have had the hope of condensing 8- or 9- stars.
Additionally, some of the more ruthless individuals in the room were considering using the fruit as a method to further 'improve' their lineups. It is quite common to have one contract that didn't live up to its full potential or due to non-ideal circumstances they signed with a spiritual creature earl on without much potential.
The Fruit of Renewal finally released a long-repressed desire to replace some of the less useful members of their squad without any backlash.
"20 billion CD!"
The initial bid was directly doubled by a desperate member of the crowd.
"35 billion CD!"
The price was still going up extremely fast. Even for the 7-star and 8-star beast tamers, this amount of money must have been extremely burdensome. Likely the news of this auction item had been leaked beforehand to give an opportunity to raise funds from their friends and family.
Kain's heart couldn't take much more, so after trying to block out all of the bids Kain quickly refilled the glasses without spilling a drop and then quickly returned the empty jug to the kitchen to give himself a chance to calm down.
Strangely, he was as cool as a cucumber once it was time to assassinate the target, but he was beginning to lose his composure after seeing the crazy spending.
"Hey Eli"
Kain continued to staring down trying to calm his heart.
"Eli?" Someone patted his shoulder, and Kain turned to face another masked boy around his age in shock. Right, "Eli" was the name of his alias.
"Ah! Sorry I just need a moment to calm down. I don't come from the best background so seeing them bid billions without hesitation was shocking to me."
The other boy nodded, "don't worry about it. Most people are similar to you the first time they see one of these auctions. Even the cheapest item sold tonight is probably worth more than any of us will ever see in our lives. Last year one of the waitresses actually fainted from shock at the final sale price of the last auction item.
I wonder if the final auction item this year will beat the price of the one from last year."
Suddenly, a loud applause could be heard from the ballroom.
"I guess it was sold. They should be moving on to the last item now. You should begin collecting the plates. But leave the glasses, we usually collect them once they leave."
Kain nodded and then headed back into the room. He wondered what the item that could even place above the previous two would be.