When the auction ended, everyone got what they bid for earlier. People stood up from their seats and left the hall. Some kind of illusion spell was activated which duplicated each person into ten, and then they all went in different directions. The exits were numerous. Everywhere there were doors for people to leave.
'Yeah, good luck tracking anyone in here.'
The manager came and walked to Aldred. "It's a pleasure making business with you." He handed a golden card to him. "Do you know how to use this card?"
Aldred shook his head.
"Contained within that card is 242,500 Gold coins. Because we take 3% of the profit as promised, which is 7,500 Gold coins. As for the item you bid for, consider it free."
"Thank you. Can you tell me how I use this card?" Aldred whispered.
"Right, with this card you can go to any adventurer's guild inn or bank and withdraw a certain amount of gold. It depends on how big the inn or the bank is, but getting 1,000 gold coins should be no problem. If you want to withdraw more than one thousand, you usually have to give them some time, around 3-7 days. But you don't have to withdraw anything to do a transaction. Most people nowadays have this adventurer's guild card."
The manager pulled out his own golden card. "Let me show you an example. Say you want to pay me 1 gold coin. All we have to do is tap each other's card."
Aldred raised his card and tapped it against the manager's card.
The card glowed and a bunch of golden numbers carved themselves until it showed: 242,500 Gold coins.
"This is amazing." Aldred stared at the numbers. 'It's more scientific than my old world, or should I call it magitific?'
The manager glanced at the boy, realizing that he had never used an adventure card before. Only soldiers, slaves, and peasants did not use the card. For merchants, adventurers, and nobles, it was almost necessary to use a card because of how much money they had. Peasants could barely fill their stomachs so they were out of the market for this service. Except if they came from a nation like Montcresia.
"So how do I send you money?"
"You are offered two choices on the side of the card."
Aldred read the choices; Sender. Receiver.
"To test it, I will act as the sender," the manager said.
"Oh okay." Aldred wasn't going to refuse free money. "So I will choose the receiver."
After he pressed it, the numbers changed to zero.
"The numbers you see currently is how many amounts I have sent. I will now send you one gold coin."
The number changed to one.
"This is amazing." Aldred praised it again.
Mary and the others were impressed as well. Except for Mira, she already knew about this card, though she did not have one.
"What if someone steals this card from me?"
"It's not a problem. You can drop your blood on the card, and it will be linked to you. So only you can access this card. The card also has theft protection. Now, please do not repeat this word: Anti Theft."
The manager paused to make sure Aldred did not say the word.
"As soon as you say this word, the card will not function until you go to the nearest adventure inn or bank. Don't worry if you lose this card. When you mark it with your blood, your blood mark will be written in the Information Core. This way, you can go to the nearest inn or bank, and receive your card again."
Aldred nodded. "I understand. Thank you."
"You are very welcome. Also, here is your Light Formless Chain." The manager gave him a long black box that everyone got. This way nobody knew which was which by looking at the shape and sizes of the box.
"Thank you," Aldred said. "I cannot believe I can have more than 200,000 gold coins."
Henry overheard their conversation and his eyes were bloodshot as he stared death at Aldred. 242,500 gold coins? Wasn't that the amount he paid for the giant velobra? So that creature was auctioned by him, and he dared to increase the bid!? He tricked me to get more gold!'
'That bastard! I will track him and kill him!'
"Sir," the manager called, not calling Henry by his name. "Because of how special your item is. We will discreetly send it."
"No need. Just let me bring it right now. Everyone already knows who bought the giant velobra. There is no way I can hide it when walking in the street."
"I understand."
The manager escorted Henry to the back room to take the giant velobra. Henry stared at Aldred as he walked down the stairs with the others. He saw a small creature with a small robe and mask on his shoulder.
'Foolish. Bringing a pet to the auction. All I have to do is find anyone with a pet, and kill them.'
Henry laughed inside as he walked to the back room with the manager. What greeted him was the giant velobra, standing tall and terrifying even when it simply stood still.
"That peasant is so stupid. Selling a loyal beast for gold coins." Henry laughed.
The manager knew this beast would be a hot cake among the rich. Loyalty worth their weight in gold. And for a giant velobra, that weight counted in tons.
"Nicky, this is now your master," the manager said.
"Nicky? What a lousy name. From now your name will be Vilbora or known as the Black Serpent. Now come with me."
His guards slightly took a step back when they saw the beast move. Henry smiled. "Has my dad sent you the money?"
"He did,"
"Then our business is done. Follow me, Vilbora."
Suddenly, the giant velobra snapped forward and chomped on his shoulder.
"Ahh!" Henry fell on his back. "You! I am your master!"
The giant velobra did not care and opened its maw.
Henry wore a terrified expression and screamed before the velobra bit his head.
Everyone in the back room screamed.
"Why has the beast gone rogue? It was tame earlier."
"Doesn't matter! Run! That thing will kill us!"
Henry's guards were trembling in fear, but they couldn't run away. They had to cut off the head of this beast and bring it back to prevent their families from being killed.
That was how the nobles played their game. They didn't obtain loyalty from admiration and respect but from pressure and fear.
Unfortunately, it worked.
The guards roared and charged toward the beast. Nicky wasn't having it. He belched out a poisonous miasma that melted their armor and skin. They screamed in pain and fell to their death.
The manager backed off, and so did the other staff. The giant velobra bashed through the wall and made its escape.
"Sir manager, what should we do?"
"Kill it! No one should know about this!"
Thirty Gold Rank warriors charged and pulled the beast back in. Fifteen earth magicians slammed boulders to its head, knocking it a few steps back.
The giant velobra roared and raised its head.
"Be careful!"
It belched out a stream of green miasma, peeling layers of wall, turning them into disgusting rotten colors.
"Kill it!"
Thirty Gold Rank warriors glowed in powerful energy. They threw chains over its leg, pulling it. The velobra fell on its jaw.
"Fire javelin!"
The magicians shouted. Sending a bunch of fire javelins that struck its head. It pierced through but only slightly. Yet the magicians were almost drained of their mana.
The fight went on, with more Gold Rank warriors and magicians entering the fray.
They circled the beast and dodged its poison attack, before attacking its belly. The back room was ruined, but eventually, they killed the beast without casualties.
Everyone fell to the floor in exhaustion. The beast was stronger than they thought. If the buyer knew this, they would be gladly in debt and pay it later. Though they wouldn't buy it if they knew the enslavement spell did not work.
The manager looked at the corpse of the beast. "Why does it act aggressively the moment Lord Henry claimed it?"
He looked at his men who had their chests went up and down. They were drenched in sweat.
"Such a powerful beast. Humans are always weaker than a beast, but this is too much. A pity. If the enslavement spell worked again, I could have auctioned it with a far larger price." He then recalled the boy's face. 'Did he trick me? No, impossible. The beast was tame. I have tested it, and even demonstrated that it was tame. Only when Lord Henry came did it become aggressive.'
The manager glanced at the beast.
"Bury this thing in secret. Don't let anyone know about this incident. If someone asked, say that Lord Henry was killed by a wild beast while he tried to obtain the treasure. Along with him, his giant velobra and his guards were killed as well. And say that you only heard this from hearsay. Also, try to differ your story a bit."
"Yes, sir manager."
The manager walked out of the back room. As he walked in the hallway, he told himself; "Doesn't matter if he died or not. I got the money, and my reputation improved after I 'sold' that beast."
…
Emily cried as she watched her sister dying before her.
"Sis—ter."
"I am here, Miralda." She held her hand tight. "I am here."
"Li—ve long. Don't do what mother did."
Tears streaked from Emily's cheek. Their mother was a prostitute who died because she defied a client. That was one of the reasons why Miralda was so hurt by the insult. It felt like the man insulted their mother.
Mira opened the door to the bedroom and walked inside. There were two women inside the bedroom. One of them sat on a chair crying over the woman who lay on the bed with a hand mark on her neck.
"I apologize for intruding."
Emily raised her head and wiped her tears. "You are…" She stood up.
"My name is Mira. I come here to apologize."
"My sister is dying. Do you think I care about apologies?"
"Aldred, the boy, wanted to offer his life to you. I did not allow him to. He has a great purpose, you see. I believe he can change the world we live in. But this is merely my selfish wish. For that, I will replace him." Mira took out a knife and presented it to her. "Use this knife, and let me pay his sin with my life."
Emily's hand hesitated as it took the knife.
Mira closed her eyes.
"No." She drops the knife. It fell, clanging against the floor. "Ever since I was a child. We always think of bad people as monsters. My sister hated monsters. And I don't want to become one of them."
Mira opened her eyes and looked at her in pity. "You have a strong heart." She pulled out a silk handkerchief embroidered with the word: Abbey of Kristiel.
"Take this handkerchief, and go to the northwest. To the town of Gergis. Show a soldier this handkerchief and they will take you to the abbey."
"This… you are a nun?"
"I am. And that handkerchief can give you a new life."
She then pointed her staff at Miralda. "Holy Golden Stream."
Thick golden softly streamed from the staff and washed all over Miralda's body. Her pale skin and dried lips became healthier. And when the stream disappeared, Miralda coughed.
Emily watched with widened eyes before he hugged her sister. "Miralda, you're alive!"
Mira smiled. Miralda had a strong will to live, so even though she was dying, she felt her life force kept on flickering and hanging on for life. If not for Emily's strong heart, and Miralda's strong will to live, Mira would never sacrifice her lifespan to save her. There was an alternative to this; Tell Aldred to turn Miralda into an undead, but turning her into an undead was the same as killing her. Becoming an undead changed someone's personality almost completely because undead was there to serve Aldred which meant they always had Aldred in their mind. That was no different than dead, and having one's shell to be turned into a loyal machine.
A strand of her hair turned white, but she hid it.
Emily looked at Mira. "Thank you. Thank you so much."
Mira smiled. "Now go. Tell the superior mother that Mira Belle sends you."
