Chapter 624 - 48: Planar Journey

Chapter 624: Chapter 48: Planar Journey

’Will she bid again?’

’Or was her only target the Kronos Plane?’

The auctioneer took a deep breath, calming his emotions.

’No matter. There will be other opportunities.’

He adjusted his bow tie and made his voice boom even louder.

"Esteemed guests, next up is our second item for today—"

He paused, a mysterious smile gracing his face.

"From the ’Elemental Forge’—the licensing rights for Planar Elemental Extraction Technology!"

A wave of discussion washed over the venue.

The "Elemental Forge" was the core organization of the Moldable Energy School.

They excelled at extracting pure Elemental Energy from elemental planes for refining, research, and even direct infusion to enhance a Wizard’s power.

"This technology can extract a plane’s core energy and condense it into elemental crystals."

The auctioneer’s voice held a trace of excitement.

"A single thumb-sized elemental crystal contains enough energy for a Third-Level Wizard to use Casting at full power for an entire month!"

"Furthermore, this is an exclusive license. The license holder can choose one of three Imperial-designated elemental planes to develop."

"The starting bid is one million gold pounds!"

The bids quickly started coming in.

"One and a half million!"

"One point eight million!"

"Two million!"

In Cheris’s private room, it was still quiet.

She leaned against Murphy, toying with the ends of his hair out of sheer boredom.

Her jade-green eyes were half-lidded, as if she had no interest in any of it.

In the end, the technology license was sold for three million.

Next were a few ordinary treasures.

There were rare ores from Alternate Planes, Dharma Artifacts unearthed from ancient ruins, and specially bred magical creatures.

Bids rose and fell one after another, and the hall buzzed with excitement.

But Cheris’s room remained silent.

The auctioneer’s gaze flickered toward that private room from time to time.

He was waiting.

Waiting for the next plane development permit.

Finally—

"Esteemed guests!"

The auctioneer’s voice rose again, his smile growing even brighter.

"Next up is our seventh item of the day—"

He paused, letting the suspense hang in the air for a second.

"The Elendil Plane Development Permit!"

"The starting bid is seven million gold pounds!"

Another round of discussion erupted in the hall.

The Elendil Plane was far more valuable than the Kronos Plane.

Many more people were competing in this auction.

However...

Everyone’s gaze, whether overtly or covertly, shifted toward Cheris’s private room.

Yet, the room remained utterly quiet, as if it were completely empty.

The auctioneer waited a few seconds. Seeing no movement, he continued.

"Seven million gold pounds, do I have a bid?"

From one of the private rooms, someone raised a placard.

"Alright! We have a bid of seven million from private room number seven!"

A hint of excitement laced the auctioneer’s voice.

Immediately after, another room raised its placard.

"Ten million!"

"Twenty million!"

"Twenty-five million!"

The bids came one after another, and the hall gradually grew lively.

...

「Inside the private room.」

Murphy looked at Cheris, who had buried her soft body completely in his arms, and suddenly asked:

"Not bidding anymore?"

Cheris blinked, a hint of slyness flashing in her jade-green eyes.

"Not bidding."

"The only one I want is Kronos."

"Let them fight over the rest."

Murphy said, "But you said earlier that you were going to buy everything."

Cheris snuggled deeper into Murphy’s embrace, adjusting her position.

"Because I felt like it. Is that a problem?"

Murphy said, "No."

...

Back in the auction hall, the bidding had reached a fever pitch.

"Fifty-eight million!"

"Sixty million!"

"Sixty-two million!"

"Sixty-five million!"

In the end, the Elendil Plane Development Permit was sold for sixty-eight million.

This price wasn’t surprising.

The Kronos Plane had been placed at the beginning precisely because its value was relatively low.

Starting at five million and selling for fifty million was purely because the Shaping Domain was determined to win it, and Cheris happened to drive up the price.

Without her, the Kronos Plane would have sold for forty-five million at most.

The Elendil Plane, on the other hand, was inherently much more valuable.

Sixty-eight million was a normal price.

There was no premium.

The auctioneer stood on the stage, his professional smile still fixed on his face.

But inwardly, he felt a faint sense of regret.

’What a pity.’

’If Lady Douglas had continued to bid, the Elendil Plane might have broken eighty million.’

He took a deep breath, consoling himself.

’It’s fine, there’s always the next one.’

There were still two more plane development permits to go.

’Maybe she’ll bid on one of them?’

However—

For the third plane development permit, Cheris did not make a move.

For the fourth plane development permit, Cheris still did not make a move.

She was like a well-fed cat, lounging lazily against Murphy, showing no interest in anything happening beyond the window.

The auctioneer stood on stage, watching the two planes sell for seventy-five million and ninety million, a mix of feelings churning inside him.

The prices were high, yes.

But there was no premium at all.

Which meant no excess profit whatsoever.

’Has Lady Douglas run out of money?’

’No! No! No!’

’Who in the entire city doesn’t know of Lady Douglas’s wealth?’

’Her earlier claim about "buying everything" wasn’t arrogance at all; she truly had the means to do it.’

’And she’s eccentric enough that she might have actually done it.’

’It’s not like this kind of thing hasn’t happened before—and not just once or twice.’

’That’s precisely why so many people objected.’

The auctioneer couldn’t help but glance at the private room again.

Due to the auction house’s design, he couldn’t see what was happening inside the room.

He could only see the closed wooden door and the discreetly luxurious number on it.

The auctioneer averted his gaze and sighed to himself.

’Oh, well.’

’At least the first one sold at a premium.’

’That’s already a win.’

He adjusted his bow tie again, his voice returning to its professional tone.

"Esteemed guests, this concludes today’s auction for Alternate Plane Development Permits."

"Next up is the bidding for our final few treasures—"

...

In the private room, Cheris stretched languidly.

The movement was lazy and casual, causing her black leather tube top to shift slightly and reveal a sliver of her slender, pale waist.

She turned her head to look at Murphy.

"Darling, shall we go?"

"We’ve gotten what we came for."

"There’s nothing left worth seeing."

Murphy looked at her and asked:

"What did we get?"

Cheris smiled without answering, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

She suddenly stood up and grabbed Murphy’s hand.

Before Murphy could react, she pulled him forcefully.

His entire body pitched forward—

THUD!

His forehead landed, not too hard and not too soft, against her chest.

The sensation was soft and warm, with a faint, sweet fragrance.

"Pfft—"

Cheris burst out laughing.

She didn’t let go immediately. Instead, she tightened her arms, pressing Murphy’s head into her embrace.

Murphy’s brows twitched slightly.

But he didn’t struggle.

Nor did he say anything.

He just let her hold him like that.

After a few seconds, Cheris finally let go and helped Murphy sit up.

She tilted her head, her jade-green eyes filled with amusement as she looked at him.

"Darling, you were so cute just now."

Murphy looked at her without speaking.

Cheris didn’t mind.

She just looped her arm through his, leaning against him naturally.

"Let’s go."

Her voice was soft and sweet.

"You were so well-behaved today. When we get back, I’ll take you to a new plane to play."

What else could Murphy say? He could only nod.

The two of them walked toward the door.

Alonso followed.

The attendant pulled open the door to the private room and bowed deeply.

"Lady Douglas, Mr. Melfield, please take care."

Cheris didn’t look at him.

She just kept her arm linked with Murphy’s as they stepped into the hallway.

Alonso walked respectfully behind them, two or three paces back, following their every step.