Chapter 86 - - 86: Light’s Bearer

Chapter 86: Chapter - 86: Light’s Bearer

[A/N:- There is a small information I forgot to explain before regarding the difference between monsters, magic beast and spirit beast.

Monster: Except for humans and other equally intelligent species, any creature that possesses mana can be categorized as a monster.

Magic Beast: Any monster whose species comes under the ’Vertebrates’ category.

Spirit Beast: Monsters whose body consists of at least 75% from mana. Some spirit beasts are naturally born from high mana concentration in the environment.]

.....

I raise my bidding marker "Fifteen thousand gold!"

The sudden increase immediately silences several bidders who had clearly been preparing to compete around eleven or twelve thousand. Few of them looked af our balcony.

The auctioneer announces the bid before another voice comes from Balcony Number 3, "Sixteen thousand gold."

This time I did not hesitate "Twenty thousand gold!"

Another wave of murmurs spreads across the hall.

The bidder from Balcony Number 3 pauses, while someone from Balcony Number 6 raises the price "Twenty-one thousand."

I immediately raise my marker again "Twenty-five thousand."

This time, even the auctioneer seems slightly more deliberate when announcing my bid "Twenty-five thousand from Balcony Number 5."

The two competing balconies become quiet. I can see people inside both balconies discussing something among themselves, probably calculating whether the Spirit Hawks are worth continuing to pursue at this price.

Then Balcony Number 3 finally responds "Twenty-six thousand."

The auctioneer has barely finished announcing the bid when I raise mine again "Twenty-eight thousand."

I lower my bidding marker and lean back slightly *Please don’t raise it again.*

I am willing to use my personal money if necessary, but I would rather not spend more than twenty-eight thousand gold on something that comes with no certainty of reaching the Savage Beast level.

Beside me, Elena has both hands together, her fingers crossed while she watches the stage and Maya is doing almost the same thing.

I find the sight mildly amusing, although I am also silently hoping that their little ritual works.

Fortunately, nobody raises the bid. Perhaps the other bidders simply did not have enough time to properly consider whether this lot was worth pursuing.

The Spirit Hawks are not Savage Beast level and there is no guarantee that either of them will reach that level in the future.

The mother is also injured, and although the auctioneer has confirmed that the wound is not permanent, that still introduces another uncertainty.

Compared with the Rain Feather Pegasus, whose strength and potential was presented as a major selling point, these two birds are much more difficult to evaluate.

For me, however, the decision is already made because of two reasons.

The first is simple. There are two Spirit Hawks, meaning both Elena and I can potentially benefit from them.

The second reason is more personal.

I am genuinely curious about spirit beasts after hearing several students mention that Albert used some kind of bird-like spirit beast while fighting the remaining attackers during the terrorist incident at the academy.

Besides these Spirit Hawks could also give me a better understanding of how contracts with spirit creatures actually work if I ever encounter a stronger spirit beast in future.

The auctioneer looks around the hall one final time. He waits a few seconds before finally bringing down his hand.

"Twenty-eight thousand gold once, Twenty-eight thousand gold twice, twenty eight thousand gold thrice."

"Sold! Balcony Number 5 wins this lot."

Elena immediately clapped her hands in excitement and turns toward me with a bright smile.

"I am happy that you got something you like."

"Well technically, both of us got something we actually want" I said as I know that the bracelet that we bought for Elena is a necessity, not something she wanted. And I can tell that she genuinely liked that small hawk.

The auction does not slow down after our purchase.

While Elena is still happily discussing the two Spirit Hawks with Maya, and I occasionally add a few comments to their conversation, another lot is already being brought onto the stage. At this point, however, I have neither the remaining auction credit nor any particular need to bid on another item, so I simply settle back in my seat and watch the proceedings with considerably less tension than before.

There is something rather comfortable about being able to observe an auction without having to calculate whether the next number being announced is still within my budget.

Elena seems to be enjoying the same feeling, although her attention keeps drifting toward the cage containing our newly purchased Spirit Hawks, which has been moved away from the center of the stage by the auction staff. The birds are being kept in a secured area until the auction ends and the purchased lots can be formally transferred to their owners, so there is no immediate opportunity for us to examine them more closely.

On the hand the remaining bidders are clearly not finished spending their money.

Several lots attract fierce competition between the VIP balconies, with prices repeatedly climbing far beyond what the normal seats can afford.

One particular lot draws nearly the entire hall’s attention. It is another magic core from a Savage Beast.

The moment its level is revealed, the bidding becomes much more aggressive than usual, with several balconies competing against each other until the price climbs into a range where most of the ordinary bidders have no choice but to withdraw.

Eventually, Balcony Number 4 takes it. They really are spending heavily today.

During all of this, however, I notice something else that is considerably more interesting.

Balcony Number 1 barely participates in most of the auctions. They remain quiet for long periods, allowing other bidders to fight among themselves, and sometimes they do not make a single bid on an entire group of lots.

But on the rare occasions when someone from Balcony Number 1 does raise their bidding marker, the amount they offer is usually considerably higher than the previous bid.

More importantly, nobody seems particularly interested in challenging them.

Even when the difference between their bid and the previous offer is not enormous, the other bidders usually stop immediately.

I suppose that makes sense.

The Royal Auction House is directly under the authority of the royal treasury, after all, so it would not be particularly surprising if members of the royal family had their own reserved balcony and received preferential access to certain items.

The fact that everyone is wearing masks makes identifying the occupants impossible, but there is little reason for me to investigate further.

If Balcony Number 1 really belongs to the royal family, then openly competing against them would be rather foolish unless someone had an extremely good reason to do so.

The auction continues for quite some time, and eventually the number of remaining lots becomes noticeably smaller.

The atmosphere gradually changes as well.

People begin paying less attention to the ordinary items and more attention to the auctioneer himself, almost as though everyone is waiting for a particular announcement.

I already know what they are waiting for and honestly I am also looking forward to the same thing.

The third surprise lot.

The auctioneer finally walks toward the center of the stage after another item is sold, and instead of immediately calling for the next lot, he pauses while looking around the hall.

He let the murmur down then with a professional smile he says "We have now reached the final surprise lot of today’s Grand Auction."

The reaction was immediate.

The entire hall becomes considerably more attentive, and even people who had been speaking with their companions turn toward the stage.

A trolley is pushed onto the stage.

This time, the auctioneer does not bother giving the audience enough time to speculate about what might be beneath the red cloth. He simply walks over and removes it, revealing the object underneath.

A pristine white robe rests carefully on the display stand.

Its surface seemingly shimmering beneath the illumination of the auction hall. Although the robe itself is completely white, the material reflects the surrounding light in such a peculiar way that faint traces of different colors seem to move across its surface whenever the angle of the light changes.

It almost looks as though every color in the world is being reflected from the fabric.

The auctioneer appears quite satisfied with the reaction.

He does not speak immediately. Instead, he allows everyone enough time to properly examine the robe, and judging by the silence spreading through the hall, nobody seems particularly bothered by the delay.

Then he finally begins. "This is a magic robe known as ’Light’s Bearer’."

A few people immediately begin whispering.

The auctioneer continues "As you can see, this robe is compatible with light magic users, and more specifically, with light mages."

He pauses briefly.

"The abilities of this artifact are quite remarkable. It can double the mana recovery speed of a light mage, increase the user’s total mana reserve, strengthen their light magic, and automatically activate a protective magic when necessary."

The reaction is far stronger than I expect.

Even from this distance, I can see several people sitting in the normal seats becoming visibly more attentive, while a few bidders seem to inhale sharply after hearing the description.

The robe is already valuable simply because it combines several useful effects into one artifact.

But the auctioneer still continues "Considering everything this artifact provides, it should come as no surprise that this is one of the finest items the Royal Auction House has acquired this year."

That statement causes another wave of discussion. I notice several people looking toward Balcony Number 1 almost immediately.

Then I understand.

*So that is what this means.*

The buyer for this robe has probably already been decided. Or, more accurately, the robe was likely acquired and placed into this auction specifically because someone in Balcony Number 1 wanted it.