Chapter 243: Appearances

Zermos barely reached "Two" before another bid came in, but Nessyra shut it down immediately with another half-million increase. The pattern repeated twice more, each time the opposing bidder hesitating longer before finally dropping out at 21.5 million USC.

Alistair wasn’t sure if they had simply reached their limit or if they had chosen to back down to avoid drawing unnecessary attention—either from the auction at large or from the Ryser Clan itself. He hoped it was a mixture of both.

Down on the floor, Zermos stretched out the final count, his voice ringing through the hall.

"Going once… going twice… and sold! For 21.5 million USC to the Ryser Clan!" He clapped his hands together with a wide grin. "Congratulations to our daring bidders! May your investment bear fruit—however rare that may be." A ripple of chuckles and amused murmurs spread through the crowd as he gestured for the next lot to be prepared.

Nessyra, if she heard the comment, didn’t seem to care in the slightest. She could barely contain her giddiness—a sensation Alistair had never sensed from her before.

"I can see how this could have you excited, but did you really need to blast through 21 million USC for a mostly ornamental tree?" Alistair asked, slightly baffled.

"You don’t understand," Nessyra said, her eyes gleaming. "In Neshan, a Money Tree is the ultimate symbol of wealth. I’m honestly relieved they chose not to compete with me on this."

"I refuse to believe you did that just because of that," Alistair said through the Akashic Link.

"Of course not," Nessyra admitted, her excitement barely contained. "Growing seeds is luck-based, but we have a limitless supply of unicorn horns we could turn into bone meal and infuse into its soil. It’s a gamble, but if it works out?" She grinned. "A pretty damn good one."

"You try to Minecraft logic the money tree?" Alistair couldn't help but ask.

"What the hell is Minecraft?" Nessyra asked through the Akashic Link, eliciting a groan from Denodia, who rubbed her forehead as if nursing a headache.

"It was a very popular video game on Earth, but never mind that," she sighed. "I think you might have struck gold with this choice because I’m quite certain your gamble is going to pay off."

Nessyra clearly tried—but failed—to contain her self-satisfied smile as she leaned back into her chair.

Viv, who had been silently observing the exchange, stirred and glanced at Nessyra before stretching lazily. "I think I’m going to sit with the boss lady," she announced through the Akashic Link, leaping gracefully from Alistair’s lap to Nessyra’s side.

Alistair and Riseth couldn’t help but chuckle at the bond villain pose Nessyra struck, while Dexter shot Viv an annoyed look. The yagan had clearly considered moving from his own comfortable spot, but now that Viv had claimed her new seat, he let out a short sneeze, which Alistair had deciphered as offense or annoyance.

Alistair thought about waving Dexter over, but Denodia beat him to it, tapping her lap in invitation. Dexter, after a moment’s consideration, accepted, prancing up to her with a little hop, giving Viv a sidelong glance, which she returned before rolling her eyes and head—something Alistair had never seen in a cat before and despite it being quite funny it looked a little disconcerting for a moment as he was quite sure cats eyes weren't supposed to be able to do that.

Suddenly bereft of anything to do, Alistair found his hands idle and decided to distract himself with the arcane puzzle he had obtained from the nurturing subspace during the trial. His telekinesis proved invaluable as he manipulated the ever-shifting construct, adjusting for its transitions between different states of solidity and layers of arcane substrates.

Riseth watched him fiddle with it, occasionally offering input when he lingered too long on a particular section. Meanwhile, she idly ran her fingers over Fluffy’s feathered body; the serpent, having taken advantage of Viv's absence, sprawled herself comfortably across both their laps. Her soft feathers rustled slightly as she shifted, enjoying the absentminded attention from both of them.

If Viv was jealous, she didn’t show it, more than content to remain curled up on Nessyra’s lap. Her sharp eyes stayed fixed on the ongoing bidding wars and the array of treasures being presented, watching with quiet interest.

Since the Money Tree, they hadn’t placed any serious bids on any of the lots, either because they had no need for them or because the prices quickly escalated beyond what they considered worthwhile.

That changed when a lot of rare, cultivatable mushrooms appeared. Just as they were about to join the bidding in earnest, a message from Sol arrived, informing them that he could provide the same—if not better—for a much lower price.

Riseth let out a small sigh of disappointment, clearly eager to participate in another bidding war, but they ultimately chose to send their thanks to Sol instead.

Scanning the booths, they located Sol seated among individuals they didn’t recognize. Each of them wore either armor or uniforms adorned with his sigil and colors, their attire unmistakably marking them as his followers.

In general, they found that the factions they associated with only rarely participated or even won any lots, though to be fair, they had only won one lot themselves.

A few lots later, another interesting item came up—a wayfinder that would always point to the closest dungeon. It would have made dungeon hunting significantly easier, but when the bidding reached 42 million USC, they decided it wasn’t worth the cost.

Checking the time, Alistair noted that the auction's first intermission was approaching, offering a chance for a break.

"Do you think they’re going to showcase another big-ticket item before the intermission?" Alistair asked.

Denodia nodded. "I’m pretty sure it’s going to be another dungeon."

"You think, or you know?" Alistair pressed.

Denodia chuckled, giving him a knowing look.

Alistair didn’t have to wait long before Zermos announced the upcoming intermission—and the next major highlight of the auction.

"Let’s close this first act with the same energy we started with, shall we?" Zermos’ voice carried an effortless charm before he gestured grandly. "Dear guests, I present to you… Akreus!"

Alistair’s dungeon sense flared again as he watched the presenters employ magic to shift a towering obsidian gate into place. At its center, a massive, flaming eye that doubled as a portal flicked sharply from booth to booth, its gaze seething with hunger. The sheer intensity of its bloodlust pressed against the room, though layers of protective magic held it firmly in check.

"Akreus is special in one very particular way—he hasn’t been conquered, nor has he agreed to be here," Zermos continued, his tone edged with both amusement and warning. "This is an extremely hostile core, one that would love nothing more than to send its minions rampaging through this very hall—tearing apart every last one of us… or at least, it would certainly try." He winked, letting the tension settle for just a moment before moving on.

"Any bidder should know—this core grows and adapts at an alarming rate," Zermos declared, his voice laced with both intrigue and caution. "It commands a fusion of mechanical and biological beasts, wields devastating magical siege weaponry, and operates with an unrelenting expansionist drive. A perfect training ground for any empire bold enough to harness it."

He let the tension build before continuing, his grin sharp. "But be warned—the core will not hesitate to kill. Within, a black steel fortress stands, encircled by a sea of molten rock, a domain formidable enough to give even the strongest among you pause. As of now, it is capable of producing minions at late Grade 8, with projections placing it at Grade 7 in the near future."

Zermos spread his arms wide, his voice ringing with energy.

"The starting bid is set at 1 million USC! Bidding increments will begin at a minimum of 1 million USC. Now then—may the most confident faction stake their claim!"

Alistair turned to the others. "We’re not even considering this, right? We’ve got enough on our plate without a dungeon like that."

Nessyra let out a laugh. "It’s obvious the original owner was eager to offload it—why else start the bid at just one million? A dungeon like this is only valuable to an empire secure enough in its position and strong enough to host it without it becoming a liability. Still, this is a perfect chance to see which factions fit that criteria—they’d make excellent trading partners… and prime targets for business expansion."

Alistair exchanged a look with Riseth, who clearly hadn’t considered that angle either. He figured Nessyra had been analyzing each lot from the start, not just for their value but for what kind of factions would go after them. Once again, he was glad to have her on their side.

Turning his attention back to the bidding, he noted it was far less exciting than the hosts had likely intended. Only a handful of factions showed any interest, and the price was rising so slowly that Alistair was confident they could actually buy it themselves if they wanted to—the bid had only just reached 12 million USC.

They received a ping from the Beshin Clan requesting to merge their booths. A quick look around made it clear that most factions were treating the sluggish auction as an early intermission, uninterested in the dungeon’s fate. Exchanging a glance with the others, who gave their approval, Riseth took the tablet and confirmed the temporary merger.

Nomura and Kujo were accompanied by their magic specialist, Hara, who set down her cup of tea and offered a polite bow as they exchanged greetings.

"Money Tree, huh?" Kujo mused. "I’m sure you’ve got something in mind for it. But given that this auction is more about face and a show of strength, picking it certainly made the Ryser Clan stand out."

"It'll be fine. Just adds a little more intrigue," Nessyra said with a dismissive wave. "Ah, before I forget—I got a message earlier. Our crafters completed the construction on the gate to connect our worlds, and it is ready to be activated."

Alistair, too, turned at the news, a flicker of excitement and surprise passing through the booth.

"Excellent," Nomura exclaimed with a satisfied nod. "This will make coordinating our forces far easier. And I must thank you for including us in your dealings with the Natural God of Earth. In mercenary work, reputation and connections are everything—and the pay for that contract is more than generous."

"You’re welcome," Riseth replied, a sharp-toothed smile crossing her face. "Since we plan to coordinate closely, sharing contracts and opportunities is only natural."

Kujo let out a deep belly laugh. "Trust is the sun that nurtures alliances, and the blade that casts the shadow ensures those roots grow strong."

"I didn’t take you for a poet," Alistair remarked.

"It’s an old idiom from our world," Kujo replied. "Though poetry is a common pastime for warriors when the battlefield falls silent."

A brief lull settled over the conversation before Nomura spoke. "Do you plan to acquire any more treasures during this auction?"

Alistair and the others exchanged glances before offering her a shrug. "Since there’s no full listing of the treasures, we’ll likely stick around for appearances and bid if something of interest comes up."

"Though we don’t have high hopes of that happening," Riseth added.

"We don’t have high hopes of buying anything either," Nomura admitted. "Especially the big-ticket items. Some of them are rather appealing, but I doubt we’d be able to acquire one, even if we pooled our resources."

"If that was a subtle way of asking whether we could have afforded any of those big-ticket lots," Nessyra said smoothly, "then let me reassure you—no, we couldn’t have… except for the last one."

Hara barely managed to stifle a snicker as Nomura shook her head. "Apologies. I’ll be more direct next time. I’m far too used to playing with words."

"Don’t worry about it," Nessyra replied with a smirk. "I do so enjoy a little verbal sparring."

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