Chapter 124: Auction House

A busy one.

If there had to be a single word to describe the auction house of the grandiose Kinetic Alloy Beast Armory, it was simply an overly busy establishment.

There were people of different social classes gathering around for this special auction schedule.

The overwhelming crowd was primarily caused by widespread news that there was a newly captured beast up for bidding—an A-Rank monster that possessed the potential to awaken a rare Shadow Element.

Shadow Element beasts were known across the continent to be exceptionally rare and powerful. Because of this, countless high-tier tamers and wealthy nobles sought to get their hands on such a dangerous creature.

But that wasn’t what Terrence had come for. He was patiently waiting for a specific listed item—one that could potentially change the entire trajectory of his revenge plan.

Well, almost everything he had eyed on the catalog held hopes of helping his cause, but nevertheless, he was here for one single core purpose today.

Sitting on one of the upper bleachers surrounded by other bidders, he had entered the grand hall without exposing his true identity. Covered in a loose blue robe with a thick mask covering his face, he smoothly joined the auction crowd.

"May I have your attention, please!"

Murmurs and loud conversations started to blur into background noise, softening with each second that passed as the head announcer cleared his throat at the podium.

"I am here to present ten worthy items deserving of your ultimate attention. First off, I am your official announcer for today’s schedule."

The announcer, adorned in incredibly formal, sparkling attire, didn’t waste any more time. He immediately presented the very first item on the silver display pedestal.

"This is the Phoenix Jade, S-Class! Starting bid, three million credits!"

"Five million!"

"Six million!"

"Seven!"

A completely standard bidding ceremony unfolded on stage, while Terrence didn’t pay a single shred of attention to any of what he considered trash being presented.

He couldn’t help but murmur softly to himself beneath his mask. "Are these even useful items? Why are they even selling such useless things at an inflated price?"

The old man sitting directly beside him reacted instantly to how ignorant Terrence sounded.

"Tsk. Just a clueless kid," the man spat, sneering openly. "Of course you wouldn’t appreciate such high-grade treasures with how ignorant you are."

Terrence simply shrugged his shoulders and didn’t bother to reply, but his quiet dismissal seemed to have severely triggered the old man’s fragile ego.

The old man’s face wrinkled in an ugly, twisted way as he aggressively turned his body toward Terrence.

"What a disrespectful young fellow! Here I am lecturing your obvious ignorance, yet you dare to act like that toward a senior like me?" He looked Terrence up and down with disgust, and after a second, a mocking smirk spread across his lips.

The active bidding on stage had taken a temporary pause as the seventh auction item was being prepared behind the heavy velvet curtains.

Terrence shook his head in absolute boredom. "Again, another maggot brain."

"Just what the hell did you say to me?!"

...

From a high distance across the grand hall, a young man named Klein sat at an elevated vantage point where he could easily observe Terrence’s exact location. He remained perfectly calm and silent, carefully assessing Terrence’s true purpose for attending.

’Why is he here?’ Klein thought, his piercing blue eyes narrowing slightly.

He had personally come to the armory because of a private report telling him that Terrence had arrived at the auction for an unknown reason. Whatever that reason was, Klein desperately wanted to uncover it before moving his pieces.

He already had a solid plan to finally capture Terrence and end this entire ordeal once and for all. This long-term scheme had been running for an unwanted amount of time, and every single second that passed felt completely wasted.

Now, he had finally brewed all the dangerous ingredients he needed to strike.

But that same nagging question kept surfacing in his mind. Why was Terrence physically sitting in that auction?

’Seems like someone is trying to start an argument with him,’ Klein thought to himself as he adjusted his posture on the leather chair. ’Should I step in and help him?’

He asked himself the question, but then he quickly stopped himself.

Shaking his head softly, he remained locked in his high position and continued to quietly observe the chaotic bleachers. Half of his attention, however, shifted toward the unfolding scene below.

"Fuck do you mean I am a senile old man?!" The man arguing with Terrence shouted at the top of his lungs, the blood vessels on his forehead popping violently.

’What the hell kind of stupid commotion is this?’ Klein thought, watching the bleachers closely. But because Terrence’s face was half-covered by the thick mask and hood, Klein couldn’t read his exact facial expression.

He couldn’t hear the exact words Terrence murmured, but whatever it was, it caused the enraged old man to raise a heavy fist and attempt to punch Terrence straight in the jaw.

Pak!

Terrence caught the flying fist cleanly in his palm without an ounce of care or difficulty—even though the old man’s strike clearly carried visible traces of active Skill Share mana.

The old man’s eyes widened in complete disbelief, feeling utterly powerless despite borrowing raw physical strength via Skill Share from his contracted B-Rank Beast. His fist felt as if it had struck an unyielding iron wall.

"Don’t you dare hold me back!" the old man roared, his face flushing red with embarrassment. "Do you even know who I am?!"

Soon, armed security guards gathered around the bleachers and aggressively inspected the commotion, forcing the main stage to temporarily pause the entire auction.

"What the hell is going on here?" a voice from someone standing behind the guard squad asked, but no one immediately answered.

The peace of the prestigious auction house was completely disrupted, and because of this, public reactions were heavily divided. Some noble spectators were now deeply frustrated at both of them for ruining the event. But when they recognized the prominent old man’s face, they instantly redirected their harsh frustration onto the quiet young man in the blue robe.

"Just who does that masked kid think he is?"

Terrence didn’t care much about their harsh whispers, even as the head guard stepped up and demanded he uncover his face. Although the auction house rules allowed guests to enter while keeping their identity discrete, the security detail still held full authority to forcibly unmask anyone causing a public disturbance.

"Afraid to move, brat?" Attempting to thoroughly humiliate Terrence in front of the crowd, the angry old man reached out aggressively for the cloth mask, successfully ripping it off in one sharp yank.

However, the moment the mask fell away, everyone in the immediate vicinity gasped in sheer shock as they instantly recognized the face beneath it.

"Terrence Lee?!"

Terrence gritted his teeth tightly at the sound of the name. Being continuously associated with the disgraceful Lee family still hadn’t ended, but people across the city were clearly starting to recognize his face now.

"Tsk! You are just the famous trash of the Lee Family!" The old man sneered triumphantly, turning toward the guards to bark an immediate order. "Throw him out! Right now!"

Yet, despite the crystal-clear command from a high-paying client, the security guards didn’t react or move a single inch. They stood frozen as they suddenly recalled a strict, private directive handed down from the higher-ups regarding Terrence’s physical presence.

At all costs, they were explicitly forbidden from going against him or attempting to publicly humiliate him on the premises. He was to be treated with absolute caution—as if he were still a core member of the main Lee Family.

"Hey! What the hell are you guards doing?!" the old man bellowed, his voice cracking. "I said throw him out!"

Terrence smirked coldly, instantly noticing how extremely reluctant the guards were to obey the old man’s demands. Because of their hesitation, a surge of dark confidence brewed inside his chest. He stepped forward with a dangerous glint in his eyes and reached out, tightly grabbing the old man’s expensive necktie.

"Hey... you might have just returned in this sector," Terrence whispered, pulling the terrified old man down until their eyes met. "But I am not the trash of the Lee Family. In fact, I am not a part of the Lee Family at all."

The old man’s neck veins bulged even more as he choked against the grip. "G-Guards! Throw him out!"

"Who is throwing who?!"

Suddenly, a massive, commanding voice exploded across the entire auction house, echoing off the high stone walls.

It was Irad Lee.