Chapter 176: My Woman Is Priceless

The moment Lucas calmly raised his paddle and called out his new bid, the banquet hall instantly erupted into whispers.

Every pair of eyes landed on him.

"Who is that young man?"

"Is he really challenging Malrik in public?"

"The necklace was already overpriced at forty million, and now he pushed it to fifty?"

"That’s crazy!"

Someone couldn’t help shaking his head. "For fifty million dollars, you could buy several top-tier supercars. With that kind of money, what woman couldn’t you pursue? Why waste it on a necklace?"

Others quickly agreed, and the discussion spread throughout the hall.

Malrik’s expression darkened to the extreme.

Humiliation burned in his eyes as he immediately lifted his paddle.

"Fifty-one million."

No matter what happened tonight...

He absolutely could not lose face.

Unfortunately, Lucas barely glanced at him before lazily raising his paddle again.

"Sixty million."

His tone was so casual that it sounded as though he had increased the bid by sixty dollars instead of sixty million.

Several businessmen instinctively sucked in cold air.

This wasn’t bidding anymore.

This was setting money on fire.

Lucas, however, didn’t care in the slightest.

In his eyes, Malrik was surprisingly stingy. As the young master of the Reid Group, he was still adding only one million at a time.

Lucas had expected something much more decisive. Perhaps the Reid Group wasn’t nearly as impressive as everyone claimed. Besides, Maya’s Favorability had already reached ninety-eight points.

In Lucas’s eyes, she was already one of his own people, and he had never been stingy when spending money on people he cared about.

Across the hall, Malrik clenched his fists so tightly that veins bulged across the backs of his hands.

Grinding his teeth, he shouted,

"Seventy million!"

Even if it cost him dearly...

He refused to lose his dignity.

The atmosphere instantly became even more intense.

The necklace had started at thirty million.

Now it had reached seventy.

More than double its original value.

People couldn’t help wondering what kind of grudge existed between these two young men.

Then someone finally noticed Maya sitting quietly beside Lucas.

Everything suddenly clicked.

"So that’s it..."

"It’s because of Maya."

"No wonder Malrik refuses to back down."

Another guest nodded knowingly.

"This is basically a fight over a woman."

"So the engagement really fell apart?"

"Looks that way."

"Then Laurent Group is finished."

"Without the Reid Group’s investment, how are they supposed to survive?"

The businessman beside him chuckled.

"You’ve missed the important part."

He discreetly glanced toward Lucas.

"Do you honestly think someone who can casually bid sixty million against Malrik..."

"Wouldn’t have the ability to save Laurent Group?"

Those words instantly silenced everyone nearby.

It made perfect sense.

Several young women stared at Maya with naked envy.

"She’s unbelievably lucky."

"Having two outstanding men fight over her in public..."

Another woman snorted.

"Hmph. It’s only because she’s beautiful."

"If I got a little cosmetic work done, I’d be prettier."

Her friend rolled her eyes.

"Stop dreaming."

"Maya’s beauty is completely natural."

"Her face."

"Her figure."

"Her temperament."

"What exactly are you planning to compete with?"

The woman immediately fell silent.

Meanwhile, Lucas leaned comfortably against his chair, watching Malrik with a faint smile.

The game...

Had only just begun.

He couldn’t help smiling inwardly.

At least Malrik still had some pride.

Unfortunately...

Pride meant absolutely nothing in front of the System.

If spending money only made him richer...

Then there was no such thing as spending too much.

Without the slightest hesitation, Lucas calmly raised his paddle once more.

"One hundred million."

The four words echoed through the banquet hall.

Silence instantly descended.

Nobody spoke.

Nobody even breathed loudly.

Then~

"What?!"

"One hundred million?"

"He just raised it by thirty million in one shot!"

"Has he lost his mind?"

"It’s only a necklace!"

"Even a ten-carat pink diamond isn’t worth one hundred million!"

The businessmen present exchanged helpless smiles.

This auction had completely transformed into a competition of wealth.

Malrik’s breathing became noticeably heavier.

His fists clenched beneath the table until his fingernails dug into his palms.

One hundred million...

Even he couldn’t casually throw away that kind of money.

At that price, he could purchase two or even three identical necklaces.

Slowly forcing himself to calm down, Malrik realized one thing very clearly.

Lucas wasn’t buying the necklace.

He was crushing him.

If he continued bidding, he would only become Lucas’s stepping stone.

After several long seconds...

Malrik slowly lowered his paddle.

He gave up.

Yet a single question continued echoing inside his mind.

Who exactly...

Was Lucas Gray?

Before tonight, he had never heard that name anywhere in Silvermont’s upper-class circles.

Yet tonight, Lucas had casually transferred two billion dollars to Maya.

Now he was spending another one hundred million on a necklace without blinking.

Most importantly...

That was cash.

Real cash.

Even as Executive Director of the Reid Group, the maximum liquid funds he could mobilize immediately were only around five or six hundred million dollars.

Compared with Lucas...

He suddenly felt like a child pretending to play businessman.

The difference between them wasn’t merely large.

It was overwhelming.

For the first time...

Malrik truly realized he had completely underestimated Lucas.

This man simply refused to play by normal rules.

Every move shattered common sense.

The host looked around the hall before slowly raising the auction hammer.

"One hundred million..."

"Going once."

"One hundred million..."

"Going twice."

Still...

Nobody raised another paddle.

Finally~

"One hundred million..."

"Going three times!"

Bang!

The crystal hammer struck the podium.

"Sold!"

"Congratulations to Mr. Gray for successfully winning tonight’s first auction item!"

Warm applause immediately broke out across the hall.

A hostess carefully carried the exquisite pink diamond necklace to Lucas.

He accepted it with a calm smile before immediately turning toward Maya.

Without even admiring it himself, he gently held out the jewelry box.

"I think..."

"This necklace suits you better than anyone."

"So..."

"It’s yours."

Maya froze.

Complete disbelief filled her beautiful eyes.

She had assumed Lucas was only competing because he disliked Malrik.

Never...

Not even once...

Had she imagined he would spend one hundred million dollars...

Just to give the necklace to her.

Then she suddenly remembered.

Earlier...

She had only glanced at it.

Just once.

She hadn’t spoken.

She hadn’t asked for it.

Yet Lucas had noticed.

Her heartbeat immediately accelerated.

One hundred million dollars...

Simply because she liked it?

Did she truly hold such an important place in Lucas’s heart?

Her lips trembled.

"...Thank you..."

"Lucas..."

"You’re... really too good to me..."

[Ding!]

[Maya Favorability +1]

[Current Favorability: 99]

Lucas smiled inwardly as the notification sounded.

Meanwhile, Maya lowered her head shyly, her cheeks already completely crimson.

She couldn’t even bring herself to meet his eyes.

Lucas smiled gently, removed the necklace from its velvet box, then naturally stepped behind her. His fingers lightly brushed through her soft hair as he carefully fastened the necklace around her slender neck. Under the dazzling lights, the brilliant pink diamond rested perfectly against her fair skin, making her already breathtaking beauty seem even more radiant.

Maya could clearly hear her own heartbeat.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

It felt as though a frightened little deer was running wildly inside her chest.

All around them, countless women looked at Maya with unconcealed envy.

"Oh my God..."

"One hundred million dollars..."

"He bought it just for her?"

"If a man treated me like that..."

"I’d follow him for the rest of my life."

"If he told me to go east, I’d never go west."

Another woman sighed dreamily.

"I’d even become his maid."

"I’d happily serve him every single day."

Her friend rolled her eyes.

"Wake up."

"You’re dreaming."

"So what?"

"A girl is allowed to dream."

Another quietly whispered,

"We should find a chance later..."

"And get his contact information."

"With that kind of wealth..."

"He probably wouldn’t mind another girlfriend."

The woman beside her immediately put on a righteous expression.

"What happened to your principles?"

"Your dignity?"

"...And if you actually get his number..."

"Remember to send it to me."

The two instantly burst into laughter.

Meanwhile, Lucas gently adjusted the necklace until it rested perfectly on Maya’s collarbone. After admiring it for a moment, he nodded with satisfaction before smiling warmly.

"Maya..."

"You really are beautiful."

Those simple words instantly made her blush even harder.

She lowered her head once more, completely unable to hide the happiness in her heart.

Soon, the excitement surrounding the necklace gradually settled.

The host returned to the stage wearing a bright smile.

"Now then..."

"Let’s continue tonight’s auction."

"Our second item..."

"Is a painting."

As the velvet cloth covering the display stand was lifted away, an elegant landscape painting slowly appeared beneath the lights.

The host smiled as he introduced it.

"As everyone can see..."

"This painting possesses remarkable brushwork and exceptional artistic quality."

"However..."

"There is no signature anywhere on the canvas."

"So far..."

"No expert has been able to identify its creator."

"Which makes this piece something of a mystery."

He smiled once more.

"The opening bid..."

"Five hundred thousand dollars."

"The auction..."

"Begins now."

Almost nobody noticed...

The instant the painting appeared...

Gold’s eyes behind her sunglasses locked onto it.

From that very moment onward...

Her gaze never left the painting.