When Lin Gui woke up, the sound of the gavel falling echoed in his ears from time to time.
He sat up from Elvia's shoulder, rubbed his somewhat aching neck, and asked, "Is it not over yet?"
Elvia said indifferently, "No, we've just reached the grand finale items."
"What about the mask?" Lin Gui asked.
Elvia chuckled softly. "I've already had someone deliver it to that half-demon."
"Before long, you'll see her storming over here, reeking of jealousy."
On the stage, the auctioneer's voice rose in excitement.
Two burly guards carefully carried up a metal box nearly as tall as a person.
The surface of the box was engraved with complex sealing runes, and wisps of cold air seeped from the cracks.
"Distinguished guests! Next is the first grand finale treasure of this event!"
The auctioneer, wearing white gloves, solemnly opened the lid.
A blast of frigid air instantly spread throughout the room, causing the nobles in the front row to shrink their necks.
Inside the box, resting on thick velvet, lay a two-handed greatsword that was icy blue and nearly transparent.
The blade seemed carved from polar ice, with a faint halo of flowing frost sliding within it.
A deep blue gem the size of a pigeon's egg was embedded in the crossguard, emitting a visible mist of cold air.
"The Legendary ice weapon, 【Frost Soul】!" the auctioneer announced with a trembling voice.
"This sword was forged by a master dwarf artisan from a polar ice marrow core, and it contains the power of absolute frost!"
"Swinging it can summon ice to freeze your enemies! The starting bid—eight million gold coins!"
A collective gasp filled the venue.
Immediately, bidding voices rose one after another, like a lit powder keg.
"Eight and a half million!"
"Nine million!"
"I bid ten million!"
The price soared in the frenzied atmosphere, quickly breaking the ten-million mark.
In the end, the 【Frost Soul】 greatsword was won by a rarely-seen military powerhouse for the staggering price of thirteen million gold coins.
The atmosphere in the venue was completely ignited.
Next, the second grand finale item was presented.
It was a crystal box only the size of a palm.
Inside, a tear-shaped gem emitting a soft blue light and the faint, fresh scent of sea tides lay quietly on a velvet cushion.
"The second grand finale, 【Mermaid's Tear】!"
The auctioneer's voice was full of temptation.
"Legend says it was formed from the genuine tears of a deep-sea mermaid and contains the essence of the water of life!"
"Wearing it long-term can grant eternal youth, delaying aging by at least thirty years!"
Before the words had even finished, almost every woman in the audience—including the elegant and wealthy noblewomen in the front rows—erupted with an astonishing light in their eyes.
Even the Eldest Princess, Diana Carter, who had maintained a faint expression, subconsciously sat up straight.
Her gaze was fixed tightly on the gem.
"Starting bid, five million gold coins!"
"Six million!"
"Seven and a half million!"
"Nine million!"
The price jumped at an incredible speed, instantly leaving the bids of all previous items far behind.
The madness of the noblewomen far exceeded the men's enthusiasm for weapons.
The Eldest Princess, Diana, raised her paddle several times, and the price was quickly pushed to thirteen million by her.
She let out a shallow breath, a look of calm determination on her face.
However—
"Fifteen million."
A clear and calm female voice rang out from the back row.
It was Elvia again!
The composure on Diana's face froze instantly.
She snapped her head around, her gaze piercing toward the back like an icicle.
"Sixteen million," Diana gritted out.
"Seventeen million." Elvia didn't even lift her eyelids.
"Eighteen million!"
"Twenty million."
Each of Elvia's raises was precisely placed above Diana's bid.
It was neither too much nor too little, yet it carried a sense of undeniable financial crushing power.
Diana's well-maintained cheeks twitched slightly.
Finally losing her cool, she stood up abruptly and stared at Elvia, saying coldly, "My dear sister, when did you become so wealthy?"
"Surely you didn't wring this out of those low-born allies of yours?"
Elvia covered her mouth and chuckled gracefully, her posture elegant but her words like a knife. "My charming sister, who is nearing fifty, I don't have this much money myself."
"This money all comes from my husband."
Having said that, Elvia took out a card on her own that shimmered with a purple metallic luster and complex magic markings.
Many people who knew their value immediately recognized it and gasped in low voices.
"It's the Purple-Gold Voucher from the Alliance Bank!"
"You can only get one if your savings are at least fifty million gold coins!"
Many people clicked their tongues in private. This number...
If calculating by pure liquid gold coins, none of the high nobles, generals, or knights present could produce such a sum.
The Eldest Princess's expression was hideously ugly as she stared deathly at Lin Gui.
Lin Gui let out a yawn and snapped back indifferently, "What are you looking at? This small amount of money wouldn't even buy a plot of land in the Central City-States. What's there to be surprised about, you hicks?"
His undisguised contempt made the Eldest Princess's face look extremely grim.
But she didn't lash out immediately. Instead, she took a deep breath and asked back, "Oh? It seems my brother-in-law has quite the background."
Lin Gui smiled and didn't take the bait.
Every noble present began to whisper, guessing at the true identity of this strange mage.
Even Charles and Joseph, who had long ago investigated Lin Gui's identity, frowned.
According to the investigation report, the person was a mage from New Covenant City.
But that was almost impossible to believe now.
According to what those refugees said, he had crossed the Withered Rift to reach the Royal Capital with only a Transcendent Ranger and a High-tier High Rank knight.
The most critical thing was the speed—it was eerily fast.
The aides speculated it would take at least a month to get from the Royal Capital to Caran, but judging by the dates on the letters received by the refugees, the other party had only taken a little over a week.
It was hard not to guess whether there was some unknown powerful force helping him behind the scenes.
Elvia wore a perfect smile.
Creating bluffs out of thin air was always what she was best at.
And Lin Gui's identity as a mysterious outsider left a vast amount of room to maneuver.
Especially since Lin Gui himself was a mage with bizarre abilities.
Attributing the sudden influx of massive funds to Lin Gui, the "deeply hidden" outsider, was a very safe method.
Elvia was even thinking about whether she should take Lin Gui to "borrow" some funds from several of her rivals' homes.
Many of the people here were those she secretly wanted to eliminate.
Elvia said to the somewhat stunned auctioneer, "Aren't you going to drop the gavel?"
The auctioneer jumped and hastily struck the wooden gavel.
"Sold! The 【Mermaid's Tear】 belongs to Her Highness Princess Elvia for twenty million gold coins!"
Lin Gui leaned close to Elvia's ear and asked curiously, "As a leader of a major faction, wouldn't the Eldest Princess have the money?"
"What we took from the Duke's mansion was only a small part of that mountain of gold, wasn't it?"
Elvia smiled and explained to Lin Gui in a low voice, "Father's illness is very severe, and an heir must be appointed before long."
"Twenty million is already quite a bit. My big sister could pay it, but the people behind her won't let her."
"The Mermaid's Tear is useless for the struggle for the throne. Using it to bribe the families of high nobles? That would be overestimating the status of women in this world."
"Which high noble doesn't have a crowd of wives and concubines?"
At this point, Elvia rested her hand on Lin Gui's chest, leaned into his ear, and enticed him in a moist tone, "If you give up on delivering letters and become my true husband... as long as you want, I'll gather every beautiful lady in the Royal Capital for you."
"I guarantee they won't be any worse than those from the families of dukes or high nobles."
Lin Gui let out a yawn and pushed Elvia's exquisite face away.
"You should find someone else."
"I have no interest in playing house with your struggle for the throne."
"Playing house?" Elvia arched an eyebrow.
"Who knows how many high officials and nobles have died for this throne, yet you call it playing house?"
She snorted inwardly, feeling very displeased with Lin Gui's remark.
His way of saying it was like pointing at her nose and saying that the throne she was risking her life to obtain was just... a piece of trash that could be thrown away anywhere.
Elvia was very angry, but she didn't show it, her exterior still graced with that charming smile.
The auction quickly reached the final item.
A maid brought up a slender wooden case.
The moment the lid was opened, green light flowed out, and the dense aura of the wind element made the air in the entire hall seem several degrees lighter.
Inside the case was a staff that was entirely emerald green, as if carved from fresh bamboo.
The shaft was wound with natural wind patterns, and the top was embedded with a rotating green gem that seemed to have a miniature storm brewing inside it.
"The final grand finale, the demi-artifact—【Staff of the Windwhisperer】!" the auctioneer announced, his voice hoarse with excitement.
The audience instantly boiled over!
Especially the mages, as well as several Knight Commanders who knew the value of the staff; their eyes turned red instantly!
Even Elvia was stunned and couldn't help but whisper, "Joseph actually brought out something like this?!"
There hadn't been a single whisper of it; Joseph had simply put a demi-artifact up for sale like that.
Looking at the artifact, Elvia leaned close to Lin Gui's ear and whispered, "Do you need me, Big Sister Elvia, to win it for you?"
"That's a demi-artifact; it's extremely rare even in the Central City-States."
Lin Gui replied speechlessly, "Don't forget, eighty percent of the money you're using for the auction is mine."
"And this thing is useless to me."
The importance of a staff to a mage was entirely different from a weapon's importance to a warrior.
A good staff could greatly increase a mage's chanting speed, improve their magic control precision, and even boost the power of specific attribute magic.
These things might have been important to the old Lin Gui.
But now, for the main spells he used—【Shroud of the Gloomy Night】 was already at max level, and 【Levitation】 was also near the peak.
They were all nearly instinctive instant casts; his control precision was beyond reproach.
Therefore, the auxiliary effects of a staff were negligible to him; instead, it might just become an encumbrance.
Even if it was a demi-artifact.
Elvia shrugged; she also understood this logic.
The bidding for the 【Staff of the Windwhisperer】 was exceptionally fierce, with the price quickly breaking sixty million.
The normally taciturn and almost forgotten Second Prince, Warren Carter, raised his paddle for the first time and directly called out a price that shocked the entire room.
"Ninety million gold coins."
This price carried an unquestionable resolve.
It instantly crushed all potential competition.
The auction concluded in a bizarre silence.
After completing the exchange behind the scenes and obtaining the "Mermaid's Tear," Elvia gave Lin Gui his instructions.
"Go to the wedding banquet venue first; there probably won't be many people there."
"My upper-level connections are almost zero, so I only invited some minor nobles and wealthy merchants to fill out the scene."
"I need to go and dress up first; after all... tonight counts as my wedding feast, too."
Rate on N.U.
