After Vicente's first contact with the entirety of Benson's robotic armor project, a few days would pass, and the long-awaited auction was coming.
Over the past few days, Vicente had taken advantage of his quiet time, studying under Benson's guidance in the afternoons, spending time with his sister at the beginning and end of the day, but also having fun with Nova in the evenings and at lunch.
He had also trained his skills, deepened his knowledge of himself, and received constant advice from Torne.
In addition, he had fulfilled his responsibilities to the Mazzanti family, popping in from time to time to do some business.
These days, he has to meet Nova under Cesar's identity because his girlfriend is very suspicious of him. But she had no proof, so she was just pressuring him to scare him off.
Nova had no proof that Cesar had killed Christopher Hogan, let alone the soldiers at headquarters that day.
As for the deaths of Alex, Arthur, and Peter, no one other than the four Commanders who had previously been in the city to deal with the basilisk knew of their plans to deal with Cesar and get the 3rd-stage herb. Not even the soldiers of those three Mages knew about it.
So Nova was in the dark and was forced to let Cesar go, even though her instincts told her that he was somehow involved.
It was all too clear to her. Cesar had taken his revenge on Christopher!
Unfortunately for Nova, she could only see him in an even more negative light without being able to do anything to punish him since she had no proof.
Even if he had used the excuse that he had an agreement with her that would prevent him from acting against the army, Nova wasn't stupid enough to think that agreements were 100% reliable.
She had done it to ensure that Cesar wouldn't act against innocent people in the city or the army. But what if his victims were guilty of something?
Magic Agreements could be tricky. People made them to have more guarantees, but there were ways to get around the rules of contracts without being punished.
She honestly didn't know how Cesar could have done such a thing without being punished, but her feelings for him told her that he was guilty, even without proof and with such a contract.
But with nothing much to do, she could only put that aside for the moment and wait for reinforcements from the capital.
In the meantime, she still hadn't tried to find the information Cesar had asked her for earlier. Since they had agreed to leave that for when she became de facto Commander, she hadn't bothered to investigate those names lately.
...
A new day dawned over Millfall, while the city streets were busier than usual for this time of day.
Going out into the streets just after dawn, one could see carriages and people on their mounts passing through the city's main streets while the entrances to the local inns and hotels were bustling with activity.
Taverns and other establishments that served food in the morning were also open as soon as the sun rose, with people coming and going.
With the auction two days away, many visitors from various cities and villages in the area had been arriving in Millfall since the day before.
But as the auction approached, the city became busier and busier, with more and more people arriving with each passing day.
The auction about to take place in Millfall was not an ordinary event that could be attended in any city on any day.
Auctions were held all over the continent, but because of their nature, they were held only a few times a year, even when an entire province was considered.
Auctions didn't offer just any item. If the value and rarity of an item didn't reach a certain level, it wouldn't be auctioned.
Since there weren't many things of such value to sell, auctions had no time or place. They were not held whenever the organizers had a certain number of items to auction.
As for the location of the auctions, it depended on the characteristics of the items to be auctioned but also on the politics behind the event organizers.
In the Seidel Kingdom, the sole organizer of auctions was the royal family, who chose the auction venues according to the best prospects of profit for themselves.
For example, an auction of resources for Sovereigns could never be held in Scott Province because there were no Sovereigns there. On the other hand, an auction for Mages could be held anywhere in the kingdom. Still, depending on the characteristics of the resources, it might be more interesting to hold it in one province or another.
Due to local rules, auctions couldn't be held in the same city twice in a row. Hence, events like this always attract a lot of interested parties within a province and sometimes even between provinces.
So, the local movement was much more intense than you'd expect for a regular event, as this was no ordinary event, and several provincial powers came to Millfall, the chosen city for the day.
But while people, families, and groups from different parts of the province were arriving or getting acquainted with the city, a man on a horse was leaving.
He had several tattoos on his body, long black hair, and a serious look on his face.
That was Casey Rogers, who had advanced to the 3rd stage the night before and was now leaving the city in search of his next pentagram!
"Senior Rogers, congratulations on your advancement. Do you have any idea how long you'll be gone?" A man weaker than Casey asked as he rode up beside him.
Looking at this subordinate of House Staples, Casey said vaguely. "A few weeks. But nothing is guaranteed."
"Oh? Then good luck with your hunt. The family will be expecting your return. You've been missing lately. Don't do it again. Our leaders are very worried." The Acolyte commented.
Casey said nothing upon hearing this and simply made his way out of Millfall.
...
Moments later, Vicente received the news of Casey's advancement while eating breakfast next to Nina and Eve.
"Boss, Senior Rogers has advanced to the 3rd stage. We've been informed that he left the city a few moments ago to hunt his next pentagram." A man from the Fuller family said as he handed Vicente a message written by Casey.
Vicente already knew this would happen and wasn't surprised. All of his men had benefited from the resources he had recently collected, and Casey was no different.
