"Number 88!"
The voice rang out, and the entire auction hall fell silent once again.
Even though he had only made one purchase, taking away that utterly useless gemstone, his aura of dominance and confidence during his first appearance had already left a deep impression.
Thus, when he offered another bid, the audience couldn’t help but speculate—would he again announce an astonishing price?
The Fairy Lady's bright eyes sparkled with intrigue as she thought to herself: Could it be possible that handing out flyers really reeled in a big fish?
So she started to look forward to his next move too…
"Number 88 bids..."
The voice was calm and unhurried, tinged with the effortless composure of someone in a position of power. But when his words landed, they seemed to explode like lightning.
"Ten million... plus one thousand!"
"Number 88 bids ten million plus... huh? Plus one thousand?"
On the verge of using Number 88 impressive offer to heat up the auction atmosphere once again, the Fairy Lady froze. She suspected she might have misheard her own voice after hosting auctions for too long and exhausting herself.
Had the seemingly imposing Number 88 offered a laughable price in an equally imposing tone?
"One thousand?"
"It sounds like it really is one thousand."
"Did Number 88 only add one thousand?"
"Unbelievable! What is this today—a market flash sale?"
As the audience snapped out of their anticipation, they realized that Number 88 had only added a meager one thousand, triggering an immediate outburst of boos.
In Private Box Number 1, Lorenzo was already laughing so hard that he could barely keep his back straight.
"One thousand? Hahaha, he only added one thousand?"
"Damn it, I thought he’d make a big move, but turns out he’s just some clueless country bumpkin!"
"This explains why he’d spend a fortune on a useless piece of junk!"
"Quick, place another bid! Add one million right away and humiliate him!"
"Private Box Number 1 bids eleven million!"
"Wow!"
As the bid from Private Box Number 1 rocked the room, the audience collectively exclaimed in surprise.
This—this was true dominance.
Adding one million in a single bid was worlds apart from the feeble thousand that Number 88 had offered.
As everyone was still reeling from this shock, though, Number 88’s steady voice rang out again:
"Eleven million... plus one thousand."
"He's still doing it?"
Lorenzo sneered disdainfully and ordered his accomplices, "Raise it, stick to adding another million. I want to see just how long this bumpkin can endure the humiliation."
"Twelve million!"
"Twelve million... plus one thousand."
"Thirteen million!"
"Thirteen million... plus one thousand."
"..."
"Twenty million!"
"Twenty million... plus one thousand."
"..."
"Damn it!"
As the price surged higher and higher, the audience finally sensed something was off.
Why was Number 88’s voice remaining calm while Private Box Number 1 grew increasingly irate?
Who was humiliating whom now?
"Number 88 is deliberately driving up the price!"
Someone finally connected the dots!
Inside the private box, the furious Lorenzo also realized what was happening. Enraged, he slammed the tea table in front of him into pieces and shouted at the Fairy Lady, "Why doesn’t your auction handle this blatant price-raising trick?"
"Please calm down, dear guest. Number 88 has not violated the rules," the Fairy Lady explained respectfully.
Although deliberately driving up prices by adding just one thousand each time was indeed an annoying tactic, no auction house would be foolish enough to ban such behavior; plus, this auction didn’t set a minimum bid increment. Whether one thousand or even one Emil was added, it was still within the rules.
"Are you not concerned that he might end up winning the bid but doesn’t have the money to pay?" Lorenzo sneered.
If he truly had sufficient funds, he wouldn’t be dragging it out like this. Clearly, this was just a nouveau riche trying to spite him!
"If that’s the case..."
The Fairy Lady hesitated. Admittedly, the greatest fear of an auction house was encountering someone who deliberately raises the price but couldn’t pay once they win. Regular, legitimate auctions would verify the qualifications of bidders to avoid this problem altogether.
But this was the black market...
"Dear guests, please excuse us while we pause the auction for three minutes."
After some deliberation, the Fairy Lady temporarily halted the proceedings and signaled towards the staff below the stage.
Moments later, there was a knock on Moen’s door.
"Come in."
"Dear guest."
A server stepped into the room and spoke respectfully: "We kindly request that you provide proof of sufficient funds to proceed with the auction."
"Oh? I thought this was a secret auction. Why would you need to pry into a guest's privacy?"
Moen didn’t even lift his eyelids, casually swirling the wine glass in his hand.
"Our apologies, however, due to the substantial financial value involved in this auction, we must take necessary risk precautions," the server said with a deep bow. "You are not required to reveal your identity; simply proving you have adequate funds will suffice."
"Funds? I seem to have only one million in cash on me."
"Then I’m afraid we’d have to kindly ask you to step out." The server's eyes glinted with cold contempt. One million trying to play at this level? Did he really think I was a pushover...
"Would this suffice?"
With just two fingers, Moen casually flicked a card towards the server.
The server caught the card with precision.
But the moment he got a clear look at the card, his hands began trembling involuntarily.
It was a black crystal card, delicately engraved with a golden tulip. Though understated in design, it exuded an unmistakable aura of opulence.
Being professionally trained, the server recognized the card on sight.
This... this was the Black Crystal Card issued by the Imperial Bank!
The card was exclusively targeted at the empire’s elite—those at the pinnacle of wealth and influence. With its anonymous account system, it allowed near-limitless overdrafts.
And to date, the Imperial Bank had issued only one hundred such cards!
In other words, anyone in possession of this card was among the top-tier of society—individuals whose slightest move could shake the entirety of the empire.
Moreover, the Black Crystal Card was equipped with the highest security measures to ensure anonymity; tracking its owner, let alone tracing them back to our auction house, was virtually impossible. Even the boss behind this auction couldn’t...
Holding this card, it wasn’t just a matter of purchasing the ancient dragon heart blood—it would be within the cardholder’s capacity to buy out this entire auction house with ease!
"Do I have sufficient qualification now?" Moen asked lazily, his words landing like blows directly on the server's psyche.
"Yes, absolutely! More than qualified!"
The server's back was instantly soaked in cold sweat. His previously trained calm demeanor was now nowhere to be found. He trembled as he carefully held out the Black Crystal Card to Moen, squeezing out his most professional smile:
"We deeply apologize for disturbing you, dear guest. As compensation, all items you purchase at this auction will receive a 20% discount."
For an auction house, a 20% discount wasn’t a mere token gesture. If Moen were to purchase an item worth a hundred million, he’d need only pay eighty million—a massive twenty-million-dollar reduction.
This was the most substantial offer the server was authorized to provide.
"Ah, quite thoughtful of you."
Moen retrieved the card. "Though I don’t really care for discounts. I’d just like the auction to proceed quickly."
"The auction will resume right away, immediately!"
The server wiped his sweat nervously, eager to make himself scarce as quickly as possible.
He needed to spread the word—an immensely powerful individual had taken a seat at their auction room. Should anyone neglect to cater to him properly... it would spell disaster.
"By the way."
Just as the server was about to leave, Moen suddenly spoke up again.
He raised a finger, gesturing lightly towards the mask covering his lips and flashing a gentle smile:
"I don’t want this matter to be known by a *fourth* person."
Moen first gestured to himself, then to the server, and finally to the back of the server.
"So, keep it secret. Understood?"
