The suddenly refreshed price shocked all the onlookers who were unaware of what was going on, including Theron.
It took Theron several seconds to remember to continue his job. “Two thousand called by VIP 5. Anyone else?”
While speaking, he was scanning through the price tags that filled the entire screen and wondering what exactly was happening.
Wait, that apprentice mentioned a name, the creator of the music box? Who was it again?
“Is this really Angor’s alchemy illusion?” Leona questioned from her room.
In fact, Dave was as surprised as everyone right now. He never thought mentioning Angor’s name would cause such an uproar in the auction hall. He should have done it earlier!
“Yes-yes. I’m working at Prome’s Alchemy Shop in Brute Cavern. The music box is Angor’s alchemy illusion.”
Theron silently repeated Angor’s name.
But who is that? A famous alchemist? I never heard of him before.
Away from them, Chalon was asking the same question with a frustrated face.
“Who the fu*k is Angor? Is he like someone really good?”
All his assistants remained quiet since none of them was an alchemist or anyone who knew much about alchemists.
“Then get out there and look for it! I want to know who that is within a minute!” Chalon almost screamed.
Meanwhile, he took out a pure white music box from his space storage. This was the “cheap toy” he mentioned to Theron, which cost him 100 crystals. He took a moment to compare the two items and noticed that the one being sold looked a little better in terms of details, such as smoother outlines.
“They’re not the same thing?”
It could no longer be denied that he falsely determined the value of an item, but this wasn’t the only problem—Chalon felt a more terrible sensation gnawing at the back of his mind, and he hoped that it wasn’t real.
...
The uninformed participants were trying to figure out what had become of the auction.
Someone raised their questions out loud and told Theron to show them what the music box could do.
Theron was also considering whether he should activate the music box so that he might find whatever he overlooked. But before he could do so, he received another question from VIP room 13.
“There’s no need, Mister Theron. Can you just lift the item and let us look at it from different angles? I wish to look at the sides and its bottom.”
The voice sounded rather cruel and frigid for some reason, which caused the visitors across the auction hall to shiver.
Theron looked at the VIP floor. He didn’t recognize the voice, but he knew who was using that room—”Whisperer of Underworld” Duncan.
People usually knew him as a very powerful wizard who knew how to travel to the underworld. Similar to “Miniature Creator” Dumartin, Duncan always kept himself shut in the labs and didn’t show up much.
But wait! Theron realized something. Did Duncan come for the music box too?? And Dumartin is also here. Don’t tell me—
It was a ridiculous suspicion, but since a bunch of unlikely customers already showed up at the auction, anything was possible now.
Theron nodded. “Of course.”
He used his spirit feelers to carry the music box into the air, and slowly rotated it in the spotlight.
Before he could figure out what to look for, Duncan stopped him.
“Thank you. I offer three thousand.”
There was more ruckus.
People thought Duncan found something special on the music box, and they all tried to observe as carefully as they could.
A wizard from the VIP floor suddenly asked, “What is that energy signature coming from its base?”
Theron set his gaze at the bottom of the item and found the concealed energy source. He just noticed that there was a second, weaker energy indication, which he didn’t find when appraising the item.
When he tried to inspect the second energy source using his spirit feelers, a picture suddenly emerged in his view, which was seen by everyone.
It was a golden engraving showing a lion captured by spiky vines.
“An emblem? Is that someone’s signature?” someone asked.
“Should be. Then it means the music box was made by a professional alchemist. That explains the price rise.”
While the apprentices talked about the “logo”, more experienced wizards were attracted by something else, which was the strange rune used for concealing the picture.
This had told them that whoever crafted the item was not a common amateur.
“Thirty-five hundred. Mister Duncan, I don’t believe a music box fits well with your death magic. How about giving it to me?”
A witch spoke from the VIP room next to Duncan’s.
It was Madelyne.
Again, Duncan filled the auction with his deep and terrifying voice.
“The underworld is a desolate and forsaken place. A music box will make my travel less lonesome. Four thousand.”
This meant neither of them would quit easily, and there was no point arguing.
For the next moment, the whole auction became the competition between Duncan and Madelyne, who raised the bid to 6,600 without much of a thought.
The music box was supposed to be the 3rd lot today and should “be gotten rid of at around 50 crystals”, according to Master Chalon. But the current price was already equal to what was expected from the highlighted items at the end of the auction.
Master Chalon, I’m afraid you’ve made a terrible mistake this time... Theron complained in his mind.
The two competing wizards slowed down their calls when the price exceeded 6,000. Madelyne only brought 10,000 “cash” today, which was what she collected from her fallen clan, while Duncan was a dedicated researcher who didn’t spend much time doing profitable business, so he didn’t have much savings either.
As Duncan wondered whether he should go over 6,600, which was called by Madelyne just now, Dumartin suddenly surprised both of them by offering 7,000.
The elevated raise immediately discouraged Duncan, while Madelyne decided to wait and see if anyone else was going to join.
She got an answer soon. Also, it seemed there was more than one customer who didn’t hesitate to enter the brawl.
“Rose Crown” Leona and “Magus” Shildeen called their bids at the same time, and each time they called their next raise, it would be at least 500.
Seeing her hope gone, Madelyne sighed and completely gave up.
Now, three wizards from the same organization were going all-out to fight over the music box.
Theron watched the ongoing price war in complete silence. This was usually seen when the “valuable” items were brought out at the end of the auction, but not so early.
This had proved that the music box was NOT a common trinket and that all the visitors from Brute Cavern came because of it.
Theron glanced at VIP room 1, which was supposed to be Sumesh’s room.
He thought, Will that man be joining them?
...
The price was almost at 10,000 crystals, and it made Chalon frustrated rather than glad.
No matter how much the item was sold for, the auction house would only receive a commission fee of 10-15%. Compared to earning the profit, Chalon would rather avoid the great humiliation.
His assistants all remained quiet so that they did not get involved in their master’s rage.
“Someone tell me who that Angor guy is already!” Chalon demanded.
“Our people are still at it, sir. They have yet to get a definitive answer.”
“Stop wasting time asking random people and go find alchemists, you fool! He’s got to be known by alchemists!”
He took some time to calm down and suddenly thought about a cruel idea.
...
The price had breached 10,000 within another two minutes. Dumartin had quit the competition, leaving only Leona and Shildeen still yelling at each other.
“Hey, Leona?” Shildeen said in a sharp tone, “You’re good friend with Flora, I believe? You have many ways to find yourself an alchemy illusion. Must we do this at the auction?”
Leona knew what Shildeen was referring to, and she wouldn’t agree. Last time, she asked Flora to extract the essence of Glutton Flower Lord from Angor’s body by paying a minimal price, after which she earned a great fortune from the perfume she made. She didn’t regard the matter as a serious problem then, since Angor was a fresh level-1 apprentice. But she never expected the boy to grow up and become so popular in this world in only three years.
As a selfish wizard herself, Leona didn’t believe that Angor would forgive her for what she did easily. This was why she’d rather buy the music box from the auction rather than asking Angor for one.
While the two wizards were still stirring up the auction, the apprentices on the first floor didn’t sit idle.