Seeing the system notification pop up, Olivia’s vision went black.

No, no, no… Wait, is this system fixated on Gawain? Why are all its tasks about him?!

Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!

Still, Olivia had no choice. The penalty this time was deadly. If she failed, her fox mask would deactivate instantly. Then…

Wouldn’t she end up staging “Shocking! A six-foot-tall masked man transforms into a loli live at the auction—the truth silences men and makes women weep”?

It… it would be utterly shocking.

Ah… but on second thought, the girl pinched the bridge of her nose. It wasn’t so bad.

Options A and B were easy. She had plenty of money to proceed, and retreating fit her plans. Either way, she’d easily grab the 30,000 reward…

Ahem. The only issue was… making Gawain her dog. Ugh…

That seemed tricky too!

The voting continued. Olivia prayed silently: Please, please, just avoid that troublesome option C…

Inside the auction hall, to Olivia’s surprise, the Blood Amber Ring was fiercely contested. Nobles took turns driving up the price. For a moment, she even felt nervous for Gawain.

“Sixty thousand denars!”

“Seventy thousand!”

“Sev… seventy-five thousand…”

Gawain hesitantly raised his hand, stammering out seventy-five thousand. But everyone could see it—this was the boy’s absolute limit…

The others didn’t care. No money? Don’t attend auctions.

“Ninety thousand!”

A red-haired noblewoman called the bid, then turned to Gawain with a lazy smile. “Sorry, cutie~ Big sister really needs this. Just let me have it, okay~”

Gawain looked uneasy, wanting to bid again but clearly unable to raise more. After a pause, Vale on stage began confirming:

“Any more bids? Ninety thousand first… ninety thousand second…”

Hey! You chat trolls are really opposing me, huh?

Olivia watched anxiously as option C dominated the voting bar. No, no, no… no!

Why did they pick the hardest option for me…

Hiss—

Olivia sighed in frustration. Was this too much? How to buy something at an auction without money—fake coins or murder for loot?

Pulling stunts under the Imperial Capital auction association’s nose? She’d be risking her life…

But, ugh, whatever! Stabilize first!

“Ninety thousand third…”

Vale finished slowly, hammer raised. Suddenly, masked Olivia leaped up at the last second, shouting:

“One hundred thousand!”

The hall froze. The noblewoman who bid ninety thousand glared at Olivia. Meanwhile, Caius beamed like the blue-haired loli who’d just sold her potion for five million.

Olivia stayed calm. This was just a delaying tactic to block the sale.

She stared at the Blood Amber Ring, mind racing for a solution… a key…

Ah! Got it!

She remembered something crucial. Flipping through the auction rulebook, she saw:

“Our auction house guarantees no false descriptions. Any quality issues? Full refund, no questions asked.”

The next rule read: “Selling counterfeit items is forbidden. Violators forfeit goods as evidence and face trial.”

Hmm~

A smirk crept onto Olivia’s lips. She listened as Vale droned through the process. No one else bid against her.

“One hundred thousand first… second… third… sold! Next item, unless objections?”

“Wait! I object!”

Olivia shot up, shouting loudly. The crowd stared, stunned…

What? Objecting after buying? Was she reneging?

Caius whirled around, glaring. “Stop disrupting the auction, bumpkin! Can’t afford it? Don’t bid! Vale, I suspect she faked her seed bid too—rerun it!”

“Easy, Caius. The seeds are mine. But this Blood Amber Ring? I have doubts. It feels… off.”

Olivia leaned back in her plush chair, eyes closed, chuckling coolly. Everyone heard the accusation in her tone.

Vale, the red-gowned beauty on stage, frowned politely but coldly. “Sir, every item here is verified by high-tier appraisal mages. No issues exist. You worry too much.”

“Oh? Really?” Olivia scratched her head. “Even high-tier magic can miss things… especially with enchanted gear. Sometimes, stats look perfect on paper but do nothing in practice~”

“Meaning you doubt its mid-tier dragon-breath resistance? Appraisal errors are rare. And how would you know it’s flawed?” Vale pressed. Caius jumped in, sneering:

“Clueless bumpkin. Do you even know where this came from? Hah… If it’s ‘off,’ why bid? You’re just causing trouble.”

Heh… why?

Olivia snapped. Without confidence, would she act?

“Why bid? Simple—to get a freebie!”