It started at five million.
Demons who acc.u.mulated a small number of points in the individual auctions wouldn’t be able to partic.i.p.ate.
I earned a lot of points.
It was one case but...it wasn’t impossible to drive up points through the individual auctions. In fact, there were some unremarkable items that were sold for a high price.
‘Upa.’
Apart from me, I guessed that Upa was the one with the most points among the demons. The majority of the demons in Upa’s faction raised the price and bought his items for a high amount.
‘It would have been an unfavourable fight if I didn’t have the Achievements Store.’
I had the most disadvantageous position in the individual auction. I was alone and they had many people. Didn’t the dark spirits antic.i.p.ate this?
‘It would be a heavy burden to sell individually.’
It was expected. The ones with a low amount of money were forgotten.
They just had to sit on their hands. When a big item like the hydra showed up at the auction, there was a concern over whether it would be purchased for a low amount of points.
The price of a high cla.s.s creature had to always be high. The price needed to be adjusted.
However...it was doubtful whether the system would stay still. The neutral system always sought equality. There was no way it would let the balance fall.
‘The starting bid takes this into consideration.’
The dark spirits and Adonis were certainly aware of it. I looked around.
It wouldn’t be easy to come forward. Partic.i.p.ating would prove that they had that much points. Ariel Diablo and I were the only ones revealed.
However, I used a significant amount at the individual auction so they didn’t think I could partic.i.p.ate.
“Five million.”
It had been silent for many seconds.
While everyone was worrying...someone opened their mouth.
"Grand Duke Upa-nim! I commend your great taste. Five million points have come out.”
Upa was the first player. The number of points he had could be speculated. He was followed by Ariel.
“Six million.”
“Grand Duke Ariel-nim! You are as determined as you are beautiful!”
“Seven million.”
"Ohh, Upa-nim! You rarely partic.i.p.ated in the individual auctions but now you are going full steam ahead. Seven million points have come out!”
Upa seemed to have decided to buy the hydra. The auction had just started so there were likely to be more good creatures and items. Yet Upa seemed highly focused on purchasing the hydra.
Perhaps he tentatively determined that the hydra was worth more. Upa’s judgement was somewhat valid. It was hard to imagine something comparable to the hydra emerging in this auction.
‘Pandemonium?’
It was a compet.i.tion between Upa and Ariel. That alone was enough for Pandemonium to make a move. Yet all Pandemonium did was close his eyes.
Was he waiting to see if something similar to the hydra emerged in the second half?
“Eight million.”
“Ariel-nim. Will you get it this time? It might not stop here!”
“Nine million.”
"A destructive power comparable to a meteor! He has enormous financial reserves. Grand Duke Upa has bid nine million points."
It was on the verge of reaching 10 million.
Ariel sighed. Her expression showed she didn’t like it very much. The hydra was being s.n.a.t.c.hed away by Upa.
The relationship between Upa and Ariel wasn’t very good. It was a relationship where they couldn’t defeat each other.
The one who purchased the hydra would have their strength rise vertically. And Upa was likely to aim for Ariel. Ariel didn’t want that to happen.
Dubolong opened his mouth in this tense atmosphere.
“Nine million. Is there anyone else? That is still low when considering the value of the hydra.”
Pandemonium didn’t intend to partic.i.p.ate at all. The points were centred around the grand dukes so if Pandemonium abstained, it was likely that the hydra auction would be finished.
Dubolong wasn’t very satisfied but he shook his head and said.
“Then I will count from five...”
“10 million.”
I leisurely interrupted Dubolong. It wasn’t a large or small voice. However, there was a heavy weight to my words. That alone was enough to make Dubolong jump.
“Grand Duke...Randalph-nim! 10 million points have come out!”
"Hmph!”
Ariel cleared her throat. She had a strange smile like she was delighted. If I partic.i.p.ated then it was highly likely that I would obtain the item.
Besides, Ariel preferred that I obtain the hydra instead of Upa.
Upa frowned as he glanced at me.
I had spent 30 million points, yet I was once again involving myself in the auction.
“11 million.”
"Grand Duke Upa-nim! Should I stay out of it? How exciting!”
“12 million.”
"I can’t see the end of this. It is like a spring that won’t dry. Grand Duke Randalph-nim!”
Upa gaze at the boys and girls on the ceiling. But they weren’t laughing.
“Tsk!”
Upa clicked his tongue. In contrast to Upa’s expression, Ariel’s smile widened.
"He has quite a lot.’
It was clear that Upa had driven all the points of his faction towards himself.
I had a lot more points available so Upa needed to think about it.
I wasn’t present last year, but he learnt after his experience in the first three years. I was on a different level from the other demons.
“Is there anyone else? 12 million points has been called. Then...I will count from five.”
Dubolong didn’t like it but Upa couldn’t bid anymore. I knew Upa’s character to some extent. Upa had stopped running. I was certain of it.
However, the nature of the auction meant that time needed to be given.
“Three, two, one! Congratulations. The hydra now belongs to Grand Duke Randalph-nim!”
I had succeeded in getting a big one.
Many auction items appeared afterwards. I was amazed at how the quality of the goods improved in just two years.
However, none of the items captured my heart. I focused more on observing what the demons purchased.
Whether they focused on items, creatures or skills...I could infer some of their situation by looking at the items they bought.
Chrisley also read every aspect of the demons.
In the meantime, 10 items pa.s.sed and the sale of the 11th auction item finally started.
"Let me explain before showing the next item. We have spent decades following the traces of the True Demonic Dragon Aojin. One year, we found Krasla and Chrisley. Then this year, we were able to obtain something else related to Aojin."
Chrisley’s eyes widened.
The True Demonic Dragon Aojin!
The dragon of dragons. He was one of the parents who gave birth to Chrisley.
Aojin could be obtained from the Achievements Store. I was able to summon him with 50,000 achievement points. It was natural to be curious about something related to him.
It was also true for the other demons. There was no demon who didn’t know Aojin’s name.
All eyes stared at Dubolong as he spoke.
"The High Dark Elf Shilla who was mated to the True Demonic Dragon Aojin. Her body is cursed.”
...What?
I was forced to be silent. I knew the dark spirits were chasing Aojin’s traces but I never expected them to obtain Shilla’s body. It didn’t happen in my previous life.
A high dark elf. She was a high cla.s.s 3Lv creature and the real leader of the dark elves. Only a few showed up each a century...and Shilla was the one who led Julliom and Chrisley’s village.
Chrisley only told me that Shilla had died when she was a child but she didn’t know the details. Chrisley was almost ignorant about Shilla.
‘There is something strange...’
World trees existed in the Demon World. Strong dark elves could live near them. Shilla was qualified but she took care of Chrisley’s village. But she disappeared after Chrisley’s birth. Julliom and the others believed that Shilla was dead.
Yet...her body now appeared at the auction.
Pure white hair. There was a crescent moon mark engraved on her forehead. A beautiful dark elf female was trapped in the ice.
In addition, strange magic power was flowing from her.
"That is a curse.’
The ice itself contained a powerful magic power. A strange magic power that even caused me to frown! It was sealing Shilla’s body.
"It is clear that this isn’t an ordinary curse. It has the power of ice that is opposite to Aojin, but the power is comparable. We’ve been investigating this curse but haven’t found anything so far. It is really strange. An unknown strength!”
Dubolong was excited.
Aojin was a true demonic dragon. Different from a normal dragon. A creature that had supposedly jumped into the realm of transcendence. Incredibly, the magic power had a similar strength.
It was binding the High Dark Elf Shilla.
‘It is strange for that type of strength to be unknown.’
I touched my jaw.
If this was true then the grand dukes wouldn’t be able to easily deal with the mystery.
In the Demon World, Aojin was treated as an ‘insurmountable wall’ that couldn’t even be touched. It might be possible to defeat him if all the grand dukes led their troops but the damage would be beyond imagination.
It hurt their pride so they never mentioned Aojin at all. There was a non-aggression agreement with the grand dukes every time Aojin became involved.
Then...this had a similar power. An unknown creature.
"The High Dark Elf Shilla fought against this curse and died in the process. How can you use the body? Ladies and gentlemen, this is a high dark elf. It is almost impossible to see the corpse of a high dark elf because they are normally buried at the world tree. But...it is now right in front of you. What type of power would an undead made from the body of a high dark elf have? The power of this curse will make a more powerful undead.”
It made a lot of sense.
The power of this curse was extraordinary. Originally undead had yin attributes, so strong curses would make stronger undead. A high dark elf had endless possibilities when turning it into an undead.
Usually high dark elves lived near the world tree, and would become its food after dying. It was impossible to obtain their corpse.
Maybe the strongest undead might emerge. Depending on the skill of the creator, a great creature could be formed.
I turned my eyes towards Chrisley.
‘Is this really Shilla?’ was my question.
Chrisley nodded with a complicated expression.
‘I have to buy her.’
It wasn’t simply because of Chrisley. I was curious about the power of the curse. I was curious to know what type of existence could curse Shilla and have comparable strength to Aojin.
Who was it? Such power hadn’t revealed itself in the Demon World. There were no indications at all. The curse was very powerful.
“Hoh...”
Someone made a sound of admiration.
Pandemonium.
He was familiar with magic and was also involved in the manufacturing of undead. The best material was currently in front of his eyes.
Upa was also interested.
‘I need to confirm it clearly.’
I opened Mind’s Eye. I used my eyes and tried to identify Shilla.