Chapter 1008: Alternate Timeline: Nexus Exposition (9)

All those factors stacked together like stones crushing against Alexander’s patience.

Still...

Complaining changed nothing.

So the emperor merely continued discussing quietly with Quenric and Xander Cross beside him while adjusting strategies in real time.

Meanwhile, back near the podium, Kiara’s excitement slowly rose as more paddles appeared.

Her eyes moved continuously across the hall, identifying bidders one by one.

Then...

Her gaze stopped.

At table number three...

Gideon Crescent had grabbed his paddle.

But...

He did not raise it.

Kiara narrowed her eyes slightly.

Ten seconds remained.

For a brief moment, it seemed the prince would participate.

Yet in the final seconds...

Gideon calmly placed the paddle back onto the table.

Kiara stared briefly before withdrawing attention.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

At table number three, Caleb Crescent finally asked what many were wondering.

"That weapon appears worth purchasing," he said while glancing toward Gideon. "Why refrain from bidding?"

Prince Ayush also looked confused.

"Exactly," he added. "You spent over ten thousand gold coins earlier on the first one, yet now you withdraw from a weapon clearly superior in battle."

Gideon smiled faintly.

Not arrogant.

Not mocking.

Simply mysterious.

"Please wait a little longer, Prince Ayush," he replied softly while resting his fingers against the table. "A fisherman who throws all his bait into the river at once will return home hungry."

Then his gaze returned quietly toward Kiara.

Back upon the podium, the timer finally ended.

Arceus reviewed the participants swiftly.

"Buyout declaration phase has concluded," he announced.

"The following bidders may continue."

"Numbers 1, 6, 8, 12, 15, 19, 26, 28, 32, 41, and 59."

"The bidding now begins at ten thousand gold coins."

"Each increase shall be five hundred gold coins."

"You may raise your paddles."

The moment his words ended... a paddle immediately rose.

Kiara glanced instinctively toward the bidder.

It was Phaethon Solaris.

Yet before she could focus further...

Her attention suddenly froze.

Because sitting beside him was Zoa.

Earlier, Kiara had been too distracted to inspect her properly.

Now that she was free, she used Sage’s Eyes quietly...

A holographic status window appeared before her vision.

And the moment she read it... Her heartbeat violently skipped.

"What the..."

Shock surfaced across Kiara’s face for the first time since the auction began.

"Mari...?"

"Lyra...?"

"What the hell is going on...?"

Then she scrolled down to read the details.

Zoa Solaris

Aliases: Marina Hughes, Lyra Erxidor

Race: Human

Age: 19

Rank: 5-star (peak stage)

Spirit Path: Mage

Attribute: Wood

Affiliation: The Solaria Kingdom, Ixitus Empire, Eurasian Federation;

Description: Marina Hughes, a native of Earth-192, was one of the summoned heroes of the Ixitus Empire and carried the name Lyra Erxidor. Due to unknown reasons, she lost her memories and currently lives as the adopted sister of Phaethon Solaris, the King of Solaria.

[ Ding! You triggered a hidden quest: Awaken the memories of Zoa Solaris. ]

The holographic screen floated before Kiara’s eyes silently, yet every single line upon it struck her mind like thunder rolling across a storm-filled valley, causing the noise of the auction hall, the chatter of nobles, the clinking of wine cups, and even the voice of Arceus Silver to become distant for several moments as though the entire world had suddenly submerged underwater.

Mari.

No...

Marina Hughes.

Lyra Erxidor.

The familiar face.

The familiar eyes.

Even the slight habit of tilting her head while listening to others resembled the girl from Kiara’s memories so perfectly that her chest tightened painfully beneath her robes.

For a brief instant, Kiara felt her breathing grow uneven.

Her fingers twitched faintly beside her sleeves.

And within her mind, thoughts crashed into one another chaotically like waves smashing against jagged cliffs during a hurricane.

"She really is Mari..."

"The affiliation with Eurasian Federation confirms it..."

"This cannot simply be someone with a similar appearance. And it is not a reincarnation either. She is herself."

"But how..."

"How did she arrive here?"

Kiara’s eyes remained fixed upon Zoa while countless possibilities surfaced rapidly within her mind.

Until now, Kiara had always believed herself to be a unique anomaly.

A transmigrator.

Someone torn away from one existence and thrown violently into another.

Even when she occasionally questioned whether this so-called world was merely another planet hidden somewhere within an unimaginably vast galaxy instead of an entirely separate universe, the odds still remained absurdly impossible.

Among countless worlds...

Countless civilizations...

Countless stars...

How could Marina appear here, too?

The coincidence felt too monstrous.

Too deliberate.

And too unnatural.

"Was she summoned here intentionally... Was I dragged here for a reason..."

"Or is some higher existence moving us around like pieces upon a chessboard?"

Her thoughts spiraled further.

If Marina truly came from Earth...

Then perhaps...

Just perhaps...

There existed a path back.

A way back home.

Even if this body belonged to Kyra Phoenix...

Even if her name in this world had become Kiara...

The soul within still remembered another life.

Another world.

Zion.

The capture.

The years of torture inflicted by the mafia group.

The betrayal from her traitorous comrades, who, in the guise of extracting her to safety, killed her cold-bloodedly.

Cold hatred quietly surfaced from somewhere deep inside her chest as the memories resurfaced.

"With the powers I possess now..."

Kiara slowly clenched her fist beneath the table.

"Erasing them would be effortless. I could wipe them all away."

"Every last one of them."

Yet almost immediately afterward, she forced herself to calm down.

Her fingers loosened again.

Her gaze lowered briefly.

"Enough. Do not drift too far. Everything can wait. The present comes first."

By the time Kiara finally emerged from her sea of thoughts, the auction had already advanced much further.

The bidding war for Tigon-2, the Executioner revolver, had escalated into madness.

"17,500 from Number 12..."

Arceus’ voice rang confidently across the hall, smooth and controlled like an experienced host who had presided over auctions for decades.

"Oh? Number 41 rejoins the competition once again."

"The current bid stands at 18000 gold coins."

"Looking for eighteen thousand five hundred..."

"Anyone?"

Almost immediately—

"Number 6 bids 18,500."

"Number 19 bids 19,000."

"Number 1 bids 19,500."

"Number 19 bids 20,000."

The hall had completely awakened now.

Earlier hesitation had vanished entirely.

Merchants no longer behaved cautiously.

Instead, they resembled gamblers intoxicated by greed and opportunity, continuously raising paddles while calculating future profits in their minds.

Sweat gathered upon foreheads.

Fingers tapped tables impatiently.

Wine remained untouched.

Even breathing patterns grew heavier as the numbers climbed steadily upward.

Meanwhile, Arceus himself appeared increasingly comfortable.

The earlier nervousness from the first auction item had disappeared entirely.

Now his voice flowed naturally and confidently, with every pause deliberate, and every announcement precise as if he had tons of experience.

At times, Kiara even found herself briefly impressed watching him command the room.

Eventually...

The bidding transformed into a duel between only a handful of participants.

"Number 41 bids 47,500 gold coins."

Arceus turned calmly toward another table.

"Number 19..."

"Do you wish to continue?"

Silence.

Arceus nodded immediately.

"Very well."

"I am looking for forty-eight thousand gold coins."

"Anyone? If there is no one, we will be closing this bid at 47500 gold coins. ON the count of 3..."

Just as the atmosphere seemed ready to settle...

A paddle rose sharply.

"Number 32 rejoins the bid. Forty-eight thousand."

Almost instantly afterward...

"Number 41 bids 48,500."

"Number 32 bids 49,000."

"Number 41 bids 49,500."

"Number 32 bids 50,000."

The hall buzzed noisily now.

Some spectators whispered excitedly.

Some merchants frowned deeply.

Others secretly rejoiced that they had withdrawn earlier before being dragged into this madness.

Arceus raised the hammer slightly.

"From this point onward, bids shall increase by 1000 gold coins."

"Anyone willing to offer fifty-one thousand?"

Without hesitation—

"Number 41 bids 51,000 gold coins..."

Arceus immediately shifted his gaze.

"Number 32?"

The merchant hesitated.

His fingers tightened around the paddle.

His lips moved silently while calculating.

Yet in the end...

He exhaled deeply and lowered his hand.

"Number 32 withdraws."

Arceus swept his gaze across the remaining hall.

"Any participant willing to rejoin?"

Silence answered him.

"Fifty-one thousand once..."

"Fifty-one thousand twice..."

Tok!

"Sold."

"Congratulations to Number 41 for acquiring the rights to purchase Tigon-2."

The winning bidder...