In the artifact storage area behind the main hall, two shift-change patrol guards marched toward the sturdy steel door. One stretched his back, muttering as he walked:
— "Hey, the banquet has officially started! Let's grab those artifacts to get them ready for the auction stage!"
The guard walking beside him narrowed his eyes at the door, a look of confusion on his face:
— "Strange... Where are the two guards from the previous shift?"
With that, the two opened the door and stepped inside the storage room. As soon as they crossed the threshold, they gasped upon seeing their two previous-shift comrades slumped over, motionless in the corner.
The two guards rushed over in a panic. One grabbed his teammate's shoulders tightly and slapped his face repeatedly to wake him up:
— "Wake up! Wake up, fast!"
The knocked-out guard jolted awake, clutching his stinging cheeks and blinking in bewilderment:
— "Ouch! What... what the hell?!"
The shift guard barked in annoyance:
— "What on earth are you doing sleeping on the job?! Get up and carry the artifacts out for auction, the party's already started!"
The guard rubbed his swelling cheek, his mind still groggy. He vaguely recalled the moment right before losing consciousness—there was definitely a food service waiter pushing a cart toward him, and immediately after that, everything went black…
— "Uh... alright, let's get moving!" He waved his hand to dismiss his doubts, hurriedly straightening his uniform with his partner before carrying the display boxes outside.
Meanwhile, in the central main hall, brilliant spotlights beamed directly onto the stage. Lu Xie stood at the highest spot, gripping a microphone and roaring with intense excitement:
— "THE VERY FIRST ITEM UP FOR AUCTION TONIGHT... IS NONE OTHER THAN THE HOLY GRAIL!"
Below, Shin, Kento, and Xie Xingchen maintained their position, carefully observing the surroundings. Shin lowered his voice to a whisper:
— "Right now it's just ancient artifacts. The main event with the living species hasn't started yet."
Kento's eyes kept scanning the crowd as he quietly replied:
— "Just be patient a little longer, Brother Shin."
Hands of wealthy tycoons and nobles shot up continuously. The price of the Holy Grail and subsequent relics skyrocketed with every thousand-coin bid.
At the same time, amid the crowd of guests, Kwon Tae-Joon and Seijuro, dressed in banquet waiter uniforms, moved leisurely past the dining tables. Earlier, they had reconnected with Ling Mo, who reported that the rear vault held only treasures and no living beings. Realizing the alien species had likely been moved to a more secluded and secure location, all three decided to fall back to the main hall to blend in as waiters while waiting for an opportunity.
Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.
The trio brushed past Shin, Kento, and Xingchen. Without uttering a word, they exchanged sharp signaling glances.
Xingchen smiled faintly, leaning over to whisper to Shin:
— "Looks like we really just have to wait patiently now!"
As the lively bidding progressed, nearly two hours passed quietly. The final relic on the treasure list was sold for a record-breaking price of 1 billion Sophion coins.
Lu Xie stood on stage with arms crossed, staring down at the entire hall with a manic, arrogant grin. He bellowed into the microphone:
— "I BET EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU IS EAGERLY AWAITING WHAT COMES NEXT, AM I RIGHT?!"
The whole hall instantly erupted into loud, excited murmurs from high society.
Lu Xie raised his hand in a grand gesture:
— "THESE NEXT ITEMS WERE PERSONALLY KEPT IN PRIVATE VIP ROOMS BY ME!"
— "FIRST ITEM: A MERMAID FROM PLANET E-4284! STARTING BID: 500,000 SOPHION COINS!"
Behind Lu Xie, several burly guards pushed out a massive glass water tank covered completely by a red velvet cloth. As the cloth was yanked down, the sight inside took many people's breath away.
A girl with the striking lower body of a fish was tightly bound around her neck by a thick iron chain. She cowered in fear, her eyes filled with sheer panic as hundreds of unsettling, objectifying eyes gazed up at her like a plaything.
A rotund man sitting in the VIP section gulped his drink and laughed maliciously:
— "Hahaha! Magnificent! Adding such a pretty thing to my mansion's collection would be delightful!"
Bids erupted relentlessly across the floor:
— "1 million Sophion coins!"
— "2 million here!"
— "5 million!"
Shin looked at the chaotic, sick spectacle surrounding him, knitting his brows tightly as he whispered in disgust:
— "Treated like nothing more than merchandise... Do the rich folk here really indulge in such sickening tastes?"
Xie Xingchen shook his head, curling his lips bitterly:
— "There are far more brutal things than this, Brother Shin. I just fear that if she falls into the hands of someone down there, whether she'll ever see daylight again... rests entirely on cruel fate!"
On the second floor, Yoon Chae-won and Freya Sterling casually leaned against the railing, gazing down at the high-society crowd fiercely competing.
Chae-won pouted, a subtle hint of sorrow in her eyes:
— "Unbelievable... Poor thing. Treated as nothing more than a cheap plaything!"
Freya calmly took a sip of red wine, speaking nonchalantly:
— "Her fate is sealed. We can't save her."
In the VIP seating area on the first floor:
Ryuzaki Renji took a drag from his cigar, clicking his tongue in regret:
— "Damn, that broad looks fine! But I've got a clan engagement waiting for me, can't buy her!"
Beside him, Vincenzo Russo calmly replied:
— "Wait a bit longer. Once they bring out strong slaves, I'll buy a few as gladiators."
Once the bidding ended, security immediately handed the mermaid directly over to the winning bidder on the spot following payment.
Lu Xie continued bellowing:
— "NEXT UP IS AN ELF MOTHER AND DAUGHTER PAIR! THE MOTHER IS A QUEEN, AND THE DAUGHTER A PRINCESS FROM PLANET E-5298! STARTING BID: 500,000 SOPHION COINS!"
Shin's group below watched intently. The Elf mother and daughter stepped out with hollow eyes, staring in absolute despair at their fate—devoid of even a single ray of hope, wearing only vacant, lifeless expressions of accepted tragedy.
Kento asked impatiently in a low voice:
— "When are we actually going to make our move, Brother Shin?"
Shin narrowed his eyes, speaking in a low tone:
— "We still need to wait a bit longer. When I approached room VIP 666 earlier, I sensed an extraordinarily sinister power radiating a strange aura of death…”
Xingchen nodded, chiming in:
— "Roxy's group must have successfully sneaked into position by now as well."
Just like that, countless alien species, ranging from ultra-rare to near-extinction, were brought onto the auction stage one after another.
— "HERE IS A WARRIOR OF THE LULICAKRU RACE FROM PLANET E-2030! STARTING BID: 500,000 SOPHION COINS!"
The earth-shattering auction rounds continued with insane transaction figures climbing up to hundreds of millions of Sophion coins.
Once all living species were processed and handed over, the atmosphere in the hall suddenly turned heavy. Standing center stage, Lu Xie wore his most mysterious grin since the beginning of the evening.
He lowered his voice, yet it carried through the sound system to every corner of the hall:
— "AND UP NEXT... BEHIND ME IS A BEING BELONGING TO NO KNOWN SPECIES! THE MOST MYSTERIOUS EVER RECORDED! BEHOLD THE ONE PERSONALLY HELD IN ROOM VIP 666!"
THUD!
The heavy black velvet curtain behind the stage slowly parted to both sides.
Five heavily armed guards holding thick, heavy iron chains stepped out. At their center, a prisoner slowly walked out from the shadows step by step.
An iron collar locked tightly around his neck, heavy chains bound his wrists, and thick shackles weighed down his ankles, dragging across the floor with chilly CLANKING sounds.
Escorted cautiously by heavily equipped guards, his tall frame emerged under the spotlights. He possessed messy black hair covering half his youthful face. There were no flashy lights or eerie energy emanating from him—he simply walked with an unnerving, absolute composure, yet that very calm exerted an invisible, suffocating pressure over the entire hall.
Lu Xie threw his arms wide open in delight, roaring with pride:
— "THIS NEXT ONE IS NONE OTHER THAN... STOLASSSS!!!"
The moment the aura of the entity named Stolas appeared, Shin's inner Sophion armor vibrated violently.
Without hesitating for another second, Shin clenched his fists, instantly giving the attack signal to the entire squad:
— "NOW, EVERYONE!"
(To be continued)