In a neighbouring room of Alden.
A couple was seated comfortably. Both of their expressions couldn't be any more different.
Lucien and Seles.
Lucien had a smirk on his face.
Beside him on the table were lots of items.
For the last few hours, he had been watching countless mystical, legendary, and downright overpowered items appear on stage.
And, of course, he had bought many of them as well.
How could he not?
It would be a cri to not buy such cool items.
He looked at the items he had bought.
There was a note written beside every item giving information about it.
[Heavenly Hair Gel]
Effect: Gives you gravity-defying cool hair.]
[Ultimate Hero's Cape]
Effect: Dramatically flutters at the perfect mont.
[The Chosen One's Amulet]
Effect: Makes you glow whenever soone says, "You're the chosen one."
[The Virtuous Helt of Moral Superiority]
Effect: Makes your voice 20% deeper when giving moral lectures.
Lucien nodded in satisfaction as he looked at them.
All of them were amazing.
Lucien was so focused on the items that he failed to notice the annoyance on Seles's face.
She was annoyed with him.
The reason?
It was simple.
Lucien was a fool.
He had been buying useless trash for the last few hours.
Normally, Seles wouldn't have cared, so why was she annoyed?
Again, the reason was simple.
Unlike what she had planned—using Lucien as her ergency bank—he hadn't brought a single penny with him.
Seles clenched her fists.
She had miscalculated.
She knew Lucien's wealth was heavily monitored, and she couldn't let him use his official account in the black market.
Moreover Lucien needed approval from the Royal Treasurer to make any larger transaction, so he couldn't even send her any money.
But she assud he'd at least carry so cash.
A few million, even just a few hundred thousand—anything.
But nope.
He didn't carry a single coin with him when she asked him for a reason.
"Why would I carry money when my servants handled everything?" he had told her casually, like it was the most normal thing in the world.
In the academy, any other currency was of no use, so he never needed to use real money there as well…
And now, here he was—spending her money like an overenthusiastic child.
She wouldn't have minded if this were any other occasion, but tonight, every penny mattered.
She couldn't afford to let him go on a spree and drain her already limited budget.
Seles gritted her teeth.
I should have never said I would pay for the items he bought.
She had thought he wouldn't buy anything, and even if he did, at most he would buy so cheap items.
How was I supposed to know that this fool would spend so much money on completely useless trash?
It doesn't matter; I could still control it.
I just need to not let him buy anything.
Just as she was thinking.
Another item was presented.
__
"Ladies and gentlen", she spoke, her voice smooth yet commanding, "our next item is sothing truly extraordinary."
Lucien's eyes lit up when he heard that.
Whenever the announcer said that, it was definitely a banger item.
He listened with utmost focus.
"This is not just any martial arts technique," the announcer continued. "This is an Ancient Rank movent technique."
"This technique was found in one of the ancient ruins situated at the boundary with the Elven Kingdom."
"Many people had tried to decipher the technique, but none succeeded. Hence, the value had been decreased to Mythic Rank."
"Eternal Flowing Steps"
As soon as he heard the information.
Lucien knew he had to buy it.
How cool it would be if he managed to decipher a technique nobody else had managed to do.
His system had a translation function which could translate any language with the help of EXP.
He believed he could decipher the technique with its use.
Seles would be impressed.
No—she would be in awe.
I have to buy it.
"The starting bid is two million Eras."
As soon as the starting bid was announced, Lucien put in his bid without any hesitation.
"Three million."
The numbers on the large screen changed instantly.
Other bidders joined in competing with him.
Lucien didn't care.
They didn't matter.
The price climbed up rapidly—four million, six, and seven.
There was only one person competing with him.
"Eight million."
Lucien put in his bid.
Silence.
The other VIP didn't bid anything for a mont.
He smiled, thinking he had won.
Just then another VIP who hadn't even placed any bid in all the auctions placed a bid.
"Eight point five million."
Lucien's brows furrowed.
He looked at the screen showing the new bidder.
Guest 10.
Who the hell was that?
He hadn't seen a single item being bought by that guy.
He pressed his token again.
"Nine million."
Then—
"Nine point five million." The response ca imdiately.
Lucien clenched his jaw.
This guy… He wasn't backing down.
Fine.
Let's see how far you can go.
The bid continued to rise.
"Eleven Million. " Lucien bid.
"Eleven point five." His opponent raised again.
Lucien was just about to press his token again when he heard a small sound—
"Lucien, help—"
"Seles?" He turned around imdiately, forgetting about the bid.
"Lucien…" she whispered weakly. "I… I feel… dizzy…"
Lucien's mind went blank.
"What happened?"
"Are you feeling unwell?"
He imdiately took out a high-ranking potion from his storage ring.
"Drink this quickly."
He poured it into her mouth.
He could hear the voice of the auctioneer in the background.
"Going once."
"Going twice."
"Sold to Guest 10."
He didn't care about it—none of it mattered anymore.
Right now, Seles was more important.
Why did I not notice before?
Was she sick?
Had she been hiding it from ?
"Seles… You should've told you weren't feeling well!"
"I didn't want to worry you…" She spoke softly.
How could she be so selfless?
Why does she worry so much about ?
Only these questions echoed in his mind.
He felt guilty seeing her in such a condition.
Seles, whereas, just leaned on his shoulder, taking his support for a while.
Many items ca and were sold, but Lucien didn't even look at them.
He just sat beside her.
Just as the auction was coming to an end and the final item was going to be presented, Seles miraculously regained her strength.
"Ah… I'm… I'm feeling a bit better now," she muttered softly.
"Thank you, Lucien." She smiled.
Internally, though?
That was close.
If she hadn't done sothing, he would've wasted even more of her money.
Lucien thought she had stopped him because she was dizzy.
In reality?
She had faked the entire thing.
She saw the way his eyes lit up when he was bidding.
He wouldn't have stopped.
Not for anything.
The opposite bidder also seed desperate to get his hands on the item.
So—she had given him sothing he couldn't ignore.
Herself.
And finally, she didn't need to keep up with the act anymore.
Because the final item was here.
She looked at the stage as new items were flashing on the screen.
A mysterious-looking egg covered with different golden-coloured patterns which glowed slightly.
It looked too mystical to be real.
This is it.
Seles's eyes lit up.
I'm going to buy it.
She wasn't sure if she could buy it with the money she had, as many influential people who were silent till now will start bidding on this item.
To be honest, all the information about the egg seed strange.
So why did Seles believe it?
The information ca from a trusted source.
She had verified the information thoroughly.
The announcer soon announced the information about the item.
"Ladies and gentlen. It is ti for the grand reveal of the final item of the day."
"It is a mysterious egg found at the outskirts of Forsaken Thicket."
Seles's instincts scread at her.
Sothing is wrong.
The Forsaken Thicket was a forest situated inside the Vallorian Empire—no one had ever returned from that place.
Yet now, this egg, this supposed treasure, had miraculously surfaced?
It didn't add up.
Her mind raced through all the reports, all the verification she had done.
The information had been flawless.
But now… now it felt too flawless.
It was a setup.
But they weren't the targets.
Damn it.
She pulled Lucien's arm. "Lucien, we have to go. Now."
"Huh? But the egg—" Lucien blinked.
"Forget the damn egg," she said, her tone urgent. "Sothing's off. We—"
Her words cut off as her body froze.
Behind Lucien, a figure appeared from the darkness.
A voice, low and hoarse, filled the room.
"You should not be here."
__
Lucien was just thinking about why Seles is acting so weird.
But just as he was about to ask her.
He heard a voice.
"You should not be here."
As soon as the voice echoed, an unimaginable pressure slamd on him.
His instincts scread at him—danger.
His body refused to move.
He could feel Seles's fingers tighten around his wrist.
Move.
I have to do sothing.
I have to protect Seles.
But before he could even take a step—
Darkness swallowed them whole.
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