Chapter 721 Self-Doubt <TOC> Chapter 723 Great Ups and Downs
Translator: SumTLMan
Before the auction officially began, David had already started to feel secretly pleased. He sat in the ordinary seats, surrounded by apprentices, many of whom were from the Savage Grottoes. Normally, apprentices from the Savage Grottoes wouldn’t travel so far to attend an auction on the Ancient River Beach.
Clearly, these people had most likely come because of Angel’s Alchemy Illusion.
Not only that, but although David couldn’t see the VIPs upstairs, he had spent some time at the entrance before the auction began and saw many important figures from the Savage Grottoes, even including Lord Sumesh.
These wizards, stimulated by Gloria’s spell creation, might also be interested in the Alchemy Illusion.
Whether they were wizards or apprentices, with so many people’s goals on the Alchemy Illusion, how could David not feel delighted? After all, he had a 10% share in it.
As David daydreamed about his beautiful future life, the lights at the auction suddenly dimmed.
After a moment of silence, the lights shone on the stage in front of him, the red curtain was pulled open, and Silon, dressed in a beige suit and an orange-yellow bow tie, walked in with a smile.
“Welcome to the Ancient Auction House’s monthly event. I am the auctioneer, Silon.” Silon introduced himself with a smile. As an auctioneer who had been working for nearly a hundred years, he knew very well that the buyers who came to the auction were not people who liked to hear pleasantries, so he spoke briefly and got straight to the point.
A tray appeared on the stage, holding three blood-red objects: “Without further ado, let’s proceed with the formal auction process. The first item up for bid is three Giant Demon Bloodstones, from the Hill Giant, Snowfield Giant, and Sea Giant, respectively. The starting price is 80 magic crystals, and each bid must not be lower than 10 magic crystals. Bidding starts now.”
Demon Bloodstones are a common alchemy material, which are essentially magical blood ores with energy effects. These three Giant Demon Bloodstones were of average quality, all close to the entry-level materials. However, the Sea Giant Demon Bloodstone was somewhat rare, and at least 80% of the starting price of 80 magic crystals was due to it.
The first item was of decent quality, but there weren’t many people who needed Demon Bloodstones.
In the end, the Demon Bloodstones were bought by an apprentice for 120 magic crystals.
“The second item up for bid is a Forest Wooden Staff, a well-crafted alchemy product that can slightly amplify the casting effects of natural wizards. The starting price is 130 magic crystals.”
This item was not as good as the Demon Bloodstones. Silon knew this well, and after calling for bids three times, he promptly let it go unsold.
This was just a non-entry-level magic staff aimed at wizard apprentices, but with a base price of 130 magic crystals, not many apprentices were willing to spend so much money on a wooden staff that was extremely easy to break, so it was normal for it to go unsold.
When it was time for the third item to be auctioned, Silon hesitated.
According to the arrangement of the House of Shalom, the music box should have been auctioned at this time. However, he felt that the value of this item should not be underestimated.
As Silon hesitated, the buyers below shouted loudly, “Don’t waste time, what’s the third item up for bid?”
Silon lifted his head and glanced at the third floor, though he could only see darkness, he felt that the head of the Shalom family was staring at him with cold eyes.
“What are you waiting for? Hurry up.” Shalom’s voice came to Silon’s ear, accompanied by a barely suppressed discontent.
Silon sighed and placed a small box on the pedestal.
The small box looked exquisite, with a pure black base adorned with golden rose patterns, making it both magnificent and elegant. The ancient silk platinum used for support highlighted the overall style.
Judging by the appearance, it seemed like a rather unusual and remarkable item.
The people present couldn’t identify the item, and urged Silon to introduce it quickly and proceed with the auction.
Only David stood up angrily, and under the puzzled gazes of those around him, he hesitated and sat back down dejectedly.
David was certain he was not mistaken — this little box was the Alchemy Illusion crafted by Angel, an entry-level alchemy item that was actually arranged among the first three items up for auction?
What did this mean?!
At most auctions, the better items would typically appear in the middle or at the end. The items at the beginning were usually not particularly outstanding, and only some auctions hoping to make a great impression would place the best items first.
However, the Ancient Auction had always followed tradition and wouldn’t employ any flashy tactics. The items in the beginning were always ordinary, and only the later items would be of higher quality.
Based on this reasoning, the staff at the Ancient Auction actually believed that Angel’s item was ordinary? So ordinary that it had to be auctioned in the early stages?!
David’s face turned red with anger. He had promised Angel to handle the auction of the Alchemy Illusion well, and after careful selection, finally decided to auction it at the Ancient River Beach. He didn’t expect such an outcome!
This was not only an insult to his selection abilities but also to the value of Angel’s item!
David even wanted to stand up and tell Silon that he was done, that he wouldn’t participate anymore!
But… he didn’t dare.
Last time Angel angered Twilight, and barely escaped disaster under Sanders’ protection. Let alone him, a mere combat apprentice with no backing, no connections, and not even a mentor.
David could only sit there, filled with shame and guilt, red-eyed, and glared at Silon on the stage.
“Lord Silon, what exactly is this box? It looks like… a woman’s jewelry box?” The urging voices from below grew louder. Silon slightly composed himself and decided to continue the auction.
In any case, whether it was auctioned early or late, it would still be auctioned. At most, people would criticize him for having an issue with the item sequence today. It wasn’t a big deal. Silon thought of this and revealed a perfect smile, “The third item is a music box. It can project an illusion while immersing you in a soothing atmosphere. The starting price… 150 magic crystals, with each increase no less than 10 magic crystals.”
In the end, Silon didn’t adopt Shalom’s suggestion of a 50 magic crystal reserve price. According to his own appraisal, the various materials of the music box were worth around 70 or 80 magic crystals, making 50 magic crystals too low. Therefore, after much deliberation, he decided to start the bidding at 150 magic crystals.
When David clenched his fists in anger after hearing the starting price, he couldn’t help but utter a series of unintelligible curses through his gritted teeth.
“Music combined with illusion? Isn’t this just an Illusion Music Box? It’s quite popular lately, and I didn’t expect it to appear at the Ancient Auction. Although the concept of the Illusion Music Box is good, it’s available in the shops of Twilight Deep Well. Putting it up for auction really diminishes the prestige of the Ancient Auction,” an apprentice said, shaking his head, “Besides, the starting price is almost the same as the ones sold outside.”
Many people around him agreed.
In a small partition on the third floor, after sharing a passionate kiss with a beauty, Shalom’s gaze was drawn to the situation outside.
He affectionately ruffled the beauty’s hair and whispered sarcastically, “Look, even the wizard apprentices are mocking it. Don’t let this kind of thing appear at our auction in the future! This Silon, daring to raise the price on his own… Sigh!”
At the same time, in a fragrant VIP room, “Rose Crown” Liana was staring at the music box in a daze. Another witch from the Night Whisper Forest, Tong, was sitting beside her.
Tong waved her hand in front of Liana’s face, “What are you daydreaming about? Are you interested in this Illusion Music Box?”
Liana shook her head, “I just think this music box is a bit strange. The integrated crafting technique is quite good, definitely a mature alchemy method. Given this technique, shouldn’t it be worth more than 150 magic crystals?”
“I’ve seen Illusion Music Boxes before, and 150 magic crystals is a reasonable price,” Tong replied nonchalantly.
Liana glanced at the stage, doubt in her eyes, “This thing has an illusion and is combined with alchemy… Could it be Angel’s alchemical illusion? However, if it is, the value seems too low.”
“It’s a pity that there’s a barrier on the stage, blocking the Alchemy Eye, so we can’t see it clearly,” Liana shook her head, thinking she must have been mistaken. After all, even the lowest-priced work of Angel wouldn’t be just 150 magic crystals, would it?
Meanwhile, in another VIP room, Sumesh was lounging with his legs crossed, also watching the music box, “I’ve seen Illusion Music Boxes at Iron Armor Granny’s place, but this one seems a bit different, more delicate perhaps?”
Silon, standing on the stage, remained silent for a minute.
As no one seemed interested in bidding on the music box, he silently shook his head, wondering if it was really that popular, so much so that everyone, including the head of the Shalom family and all the other apprentices, knew about it except for him.
Silon even felt the urge to bid on it himself. It was an entry-level item, albeit just for entertainment purposes, but 150 magic crystals were genuinely not expensive.
“160 magic crystals.” Just as Silon was about to declare it unsold, someone finally raised their bidding paddle.
Silon looked over and furrowed his brow, because he recognized the bidder… It was the apprentice who had brought the music box for auction, named David, wasn’t it?
Why would he bid on his own item? When the auction ends without any bids, it would be returned to him anyway. By bidding himself, he would have to pay even more magic crystals.
Silon felt that David was being unreasonable.
However, David didn’t think so. He would rather pay for it himself than let Angel’s auction item go without any bids. It seemed as if by placing a bid himself, he could cover his shattered dignity with a fig leaf.
“Someone has placed a bid of 160 magic crystals. 160 magic crystals for the first time,” Silon shook his head but continued with the procedure.
On the other side, Shalom curiously looked over, “Someone actually spent 160 magic crystals to buy this music box?”
A staff member standing beside him quietly revealed the truth.
“Hahaha, it turns out he’s bidding on his own item to buy it back?” Shalom appeared to laugh heartily, but everyone in the compartment could hear the mockery in his laughter and joined in with agreement.
“Forget it, he still has to pay for it himself, so we don’t lose anything,” Shalom stroked his chin, “However, when Silon comes down, we should talk to him about not putting such items in our auction anymore.”
“Exactly, this kind of tacky thing lowers the standards of our Ancient Auction.” A voluptuous woman, leaning against Shalom, chimed in.
Shalom nodded with a smile and pinched her soft bosom, “Linda indeed has a good eye.”
A burst of laughter echoed in the compartment.
Not long after, there was a sudden rustling of whispers outside.
Shalom turned his head and asked with a frown, “What’s going on?”
“Reporting to the master, just now, a guest from the Number 7 VIP room bid 200 magic crystals, wanting to buy the music box. The seller raised the price to 210 magic crystals, wanting to buy it back, but the other party kept raising the price, and it has now reached 500 magic crystals.”
“Ah?!” Shalom sat up, “Someone else is actually interested in the music box? Could it be a shill?”
The staff member whispered, “The guest in the Number 7 VIP room is ‘Mithril Shaper’ Jailall from Hurricane Tower.”
Chapter 721 Self-Doubt <TOC> Chapter 723 Great Ups and Downs