Chapter 150- The Eve of the Auction

Chapter 150: Chapter 150- The Eve of the Auction

Leo held the Holy Sword of Dawn in front of him, the blade still glowing faintly with holy power. He gave it a few slow swings through the air. It felt heavy in his grip, but the balance was true, and the weight settled naturally into his wrist.

The pale light slowly bled away, fading until only thin golden lines remained, glimmering somewhere deep beneath the surface of the steel.

He set the sword down on the table, right beside the Devil’s Fang.

One blade gave off a creeping, ominous pressure; the other carried a calm, regal radiance. Set next to each other, the contrast was almost striking. Leo nodded to himself, quietly pleased.

Then he turned to check on Hugh and Sigil. Both of them were still at their anvils, hammering away at whatever they were forging, and the sound of two smiths working side by side rang through the forge in overlapping waves.

They were close to finishing. Almost at the same moment, the two of them set down their hammers and plunged their pieces into the quenching tanks.

Hissss..

Hisss....

Leo wandered over to look at what they’d made.

Four weapons from Sigil. Two from Hugh.

Six rare-rank items lay in a neat row in front of him. Elly appeared beside him and recorded every one.

"Six rare-rank pieces, and two epic-rank swords," Leo said, almost to himself.

Hugh’s head snapped up. "You finished another epic rank item?"

Leo nodded, walked back to his anvil, and pulled the cloth off both the Holy Sword of Dawn and the Devil’s Fang.

A golden holy aura and a dark, devilish one burst out at the same time, filling the forge. The air itself seemed to split down the middle, warm light on one side and a cold, creeping pressure on the other, until the two forces met somewhere above the anvil and settled into an uneasy stillness.

Even the flames in the hearths seemed to lean away for a moment.

Hugh swallowed hard.

Elly spoke up. "Master, which of these swords should we list first for the auction?"

Leo looked toward the two smiths. "What do you two think?"

Hugh crossed his arms and frowned. "If you’re asking me — honestly, the Devil’s Fang is dangerous."

Leo remembered how Hugh hadn’t been able to hold it for more than a moment, how the blade had nearly drained him dry. Sigil, on the other hand, hadn’t had any trouble with it at all.

Sigil cut in, correcting him. "Not dangerous. Strong."

"Dangerous and strong," Hugh shot back, stepping closer to the sword. "And the issue isn’t whether someone can wield it. Someone will, sooner or later. The real question is who. What kind of person ends up with it, and whether it gets turned against us someday."

He let that sit for a second, then went on. "That’s not even the only problem. It’s a devil’s fang, with a devil’s attribute, and we’re going to display it publicly. That could easily give the guild a bad reputation."

Leo nodded slowly, then pointed at the Holy Sword. "Then what if we show both? That changes the story. Same smith, two swords, one holy and one carrying devil mana."

Hugh nodded, thinking it over.

"Let the Devil’s Fang open the epic section," Leo said, "and let the Holy Sword of Dawn close it."

"People tend to remember the last thing they see for a long time." He smiled as he explained it.

"And if you think about it," Sigil added calmly, "doesn’t every weapon end up spilling blood in the end? So let’s not worry about who ends up wielding it. We forge to our hearts’ content."

Leo nodded, and it was settled. Both swords would go up in auction.

The event itself had been planned long before any of this. It was the Auction of the Year held in Graystone, a famous annual gathering, where people from every corner of the kingdom — dukes and royal families included — came to take part.

Leo and the guild had simply stumbled into the right place at the right time, and been given the chance to list their items alongside everyone else’s.

Elona had already announced the date of the in-game auction to the people back on Earth, warning them to secure their seats as early as possible or risk missing the chance to take part. This time, there was no VIP list and no personal invitations from the guild. The auction was run entirely by Graystone, and the invitation privileges belonged to the city alone. Only those deemed worthy would be invited — dukes, royalty, and the like. Players would rarely, if ever, receive one.

...

The next day...

Elona met Leo in the guild hall.

Outside the window, the sky had been washed in a flat, even evening color, and words hovered across it in glowing letters.

[System Announcement — Graystone City Grand Auction.]

25 hours : 32 mins : 20 secs.

It was visible to everyone in the city, the countdown ticking down second by second.

The streets were already packed with players and NPCs alike, shoulder to shoulder, spilling out of inns and taverns and into every open square. Guild banners hung from windows, merchants shouted over one another, and carriages bearing noble crests crawled through the crowd at a snail’s pace. Guilds from all over were pouring into the city, and the whole place buzzed with a restless, expectant energy.

Elona and Leo had come to watch the crowds and to deliver the registered items for tomorrow’s auction.

As the hours ticked down, the announcement shifted.

[The auction will be held under the rules of the Graystone City Auction House.]

[To attend, a player must possess either a reservation quota or an official invitation issued by the auction house.]

"Anyone without a reservation quota or an invitation will be turned away," Elona added.

Leo froze for a moment. Then he turned to her, stiff as a board. "You mean... we won’t be able to get into the auction house either?" He was practically sweating buckets.

Elona glared at him, her eyes sharp. "Isn’t it a little late to start worrying about that?"

She sighed. "I already reserved seats for us."

Leo gave a wry, sheepish smile.

He cleared his throat. "Ahem. So... any idea who the VIPs and invited guests are?"

"I managed to find out about seven invitations when I probed the auctioneer."

"Only seven?" Leo asked.

Elona nodded. "Seven official Gold Seal invitations. But that’s just one category. There are also Jade VIP reserves — ten seats. Then there are the prepared Gold seats, priced at 1,500 gold."

She went on. "We’re among those, actually. I’d guess most players and middle-class NPCs will fall into that category."

"Then there’s the silver tier."

That tier had its own silver VIP reserve — nine quotas — plus prepared bidding seats at 500 gold.

"All of them are already full," she said.

"And then there’s the Consigner Quota."

"What’s that?" Leo asked, lost.

She looked at him. "That one’s yours. You don’t need a reservation, since the items are being auctioned under your name."

"Ha ha... well, at least they can’t throw me out of my own auction because I forgot to reserve a seat." Leo’s grin faded a little. "Too bad, though. I don’t think I will be attending the whole thing, and I plan to go level up."

Elona sighed. "Can’t you just level up after the auction?"

Leo answered with a dry laugh.

He glanced out at the crowds again. "There’s still twenty-four hours before it starts, and the seats are already full."

"Let’s head back," he said, and the two of them turned for the return trip.

On the way, Elona filled him in on what was happening in the real world.

"I had three options for the guild building, but when I actually visited them in person, every one of them was... well, anyway. I didn’t like them. None of them are right for our guild."

Leo could easily imagine just how high Elona’s standards ran.

"So," she continued, "I’ve decided to start construction on a brand-new building instead. It’ll be our guild headquarters, with every facility we need built in. You can leave it all to me. Don’t worry about it. At most a month, and it will be ready."

Leo nodded. This, at least, was something he could stop worrying about. Elona was so capable that she’d manage the guild far better than he ever could, if he’d had to do it himself.

They soon reached the teleportation plaza and transported straight back to the guild.

Elona went off to manage the guild’s preparations and pick the members who’d attend the auction. Before she left, Leo transferred some gold coins to her, in case she found something worth bidding on.

Then he headed for the Death Sovereign’s chamber.

When he stepped inside, he spotted a small figure sitting beside the wall with a bone-white pen, carving ancient symbols into the stone.

He hadn’t even taken a few steps in before Blacky leapt on him, greeting him with enthusiastic licks and a generous amount of saliva.

Hearing the commotion, Luna turned around. The moment she saw Leo, she sprang to her feet and ran toward him.

Leo caught her and lifted her into his arms. "Did you miss me?"

Luna nodded, hard and fast.

The Guardian followed close behind, walking up to join them.

"I was thinking of taking Luna out for a walk," Leo said to her. "Some sightseeing, for a couple of days. What do you think?"

The Guardian was silent for a while. Then she nodded. "Yes. She should see the world and become familiar with people. She’s been cut off for too long."

Leo nodded happily. He looked down at Luna. "Want to go on a trip with big brother?"

Luna just stared up at his face, not quite sure what he meant.

The Guardian took her from his arms and began straightening her clothes and collar, then tightened the necklace she’d given Luna earlier.

"How long will you be gone?" she asked Leo, her eyes still on Luna.

"About a week, I’d guess."

The Guardian nodded. "While you’re out leveling up, teach her how to fight. Make sure she’s gained a few levels by the time you come back."

Leo stared at her. "How am I supposed to teach her? Isn’t she too young to fight?"

"She is," the Guardian said. "But she should still learn."

She added, "Oh, and I’ve taught the wolf a few skills as well. It’s grown stronger than before, so it should be useful to you."

Then she handed him a memory stone, like she had once before. "This is a memory stone. Make sure she studies everything inside it."

Leo felt like he’d just been handed homework.

"Okay. Anything else?" he asked.

The Guardian shook her head, then paused. She pressed a talisman into his hand. "This... this is a talisman that summons a clone of me. Use it only in an emergency, when you feel like you can’t protect her yourself."

Leo tucked the talisman carefully away, nodded, and left with Luna in his arms, the wolf trotting along behind them with its tail swaying. Luna was delighted to be going anywhere with him at all. She twisted around in his arms and waved a cheerful goodbye over his shoulder at the stern Guardian, who stood rooted at the edge of the chamber with her arms folded.

The Guardian answered with a sharp hmph — though Leo noticed, just before the door closed, that she didn’t turn away until they were completely out of sight.

....