Divine Beast Ascension

But Oli wasn’t the only person immediately intrigued by the item. The entire auction hall had their eyes on the frosted mantle, whether they could afford it or not.

“The bidding will start at twelve thousand gold!

“Thirteen thousand!” a voice rang out from a private booth, instantly taking control away from the lounge section.

“Fourteen thousand!”

“Fourteen thousand five hundred”

As more booths put out votes, those in the lounge section deflated.

.....

“Fifteen thousand!”

Oli and the rest of the auction hall were surprised to see someone from Karos’s group put up such a bid, the same person that had stopped bidding on Oli’s gauntlets. This helped Oli realize how he’d won his other bid. Because that man likely wouldn’t have had enough funds to buy both the gauntlets and the frosted mantle.

“Fifteen thousand five hundred!”

“Fifteen thousand seven hundred fifty!”

But those in the booths plowed through that man’s bid like it was a bump in the road.

“Sixteen thousand!”

“...”

As the bidding slowed the auctioneer shouted, “Amazing! But of course such a rare piece would warrant such a price! We have sixteen thousand going once! Going-”

“Seventeen thousand!” Oli raised his marker, stunning the crowd further. The man from Karos’s group looked especially frustrated.

“What a bid, and from the lounge section!” yelled the auctioneer, who was laughing to himself since he already knew about the fortune that Icicle Palace had given to the masked youth. “We have seventeen thousand gold going-”

“Seventeen thousand two hundred-”

“Eighteen thousand!” Oli retorted, jumping the price up without a second thought.

Though Fulkar was completely floored by Oli’s aggressive, over-the-top bids, the others in the booth and lounge sections were the most alarmed. It was rare for anyone in the lounge section to throw out a five-figure bid, let alone multiple of them. And to continually outbid the private booth section was all the more jarring.

“We have eighteen thousand gold going once!” the auctioneer continued. “... Going twice!”

“Eighteen thousand five-”

“Eighteen thousand seven hundred and fifty!” Oli continued to pressure that voice from the private booth. He was relentless and determined to walk away with that mantle. It was too good of an item. Even though it offered little physical defense, Oli would basically never need to worry about icy and cold environments ever again!

The auctioneer shouted, “We have-”

“Twenty thousand!” roared the voice from the booth, now livid and enraged.

But Oli didn’t care at all. “Twenty thousand five hundred!” he spoke up before the auctioneer could even compliment the private bidder for cracking the twenty thousand gold “barrier”.

“Stupendous! Simply stupendous!” applauded the auctioneer. “Twenty thousand five hundred gold going once! ... Going-”

“Twenty thousand seven-”

“Twenty-one thousand gold!” bellowed Oli, causing nearly the entire hall to clutch their chests in amazement.

“We have twenty-one thousand gold going once! ... Going twice!” The auctioneer paused for a second while staring at the private booth filled with the eager, frustrated bidder. “... SOLD!”

Dong! Dong! Dong! Oli got three rings of the bell for spending more than twenty thousand gold, getting roaring applause from the entire first floor of the auction hall. But both balconies were silent as they eyed the masked youths in the corner with utmost curiosity and fuming jealousy.

“Amazing! Spectacular! Wonderful!” the auctioneer complimented while the frosted mantle was carted away and replaced by the final item. “Now, what will we do about this particular item, folks? As the final of four perennial pieces, we’ve got something special for you all. Have a look!”

As the cloth was thrown aside, most everyone had already moved their attention to the final auction item. But it was impossible to completely forget Oli’s incredible bid.

The auctioneer went on to announce, “Here we have a low-perennial icy spear! Such an item, if it was made by an average smith with no embedded core, would cost more than ten thousand gold! If it was crafted with an embedded core, the market price jumps to a minimum of fifteen thousand gold! But this particular piece has been crafted to perfection by Avalanche City’s only king-grade smith, Rykard Willis!”

Shouts didn’t sound out from the crowd but there was so much murmuring and talking that the entire hall was instantly filled with rambunctious energy.

“For that reason, the bidding will start at fifteen thousand gold!”

“Sixteen-”

“Seventeen thousand!

“Eighteen thousand!”

All bids came from the private booths in the back. Perhaps if it were a new moon auction, more people in the lounge section would also carry around such heavy purses. But that wasn’t the case today. It was just a daily auction, not even a new sun auction offering a few more perennial pieces.

Many people glanced at Oli but didn’t see him even move. From body language alone, everyone would guess that he had no interest in such a fabulous item. And that was the truth.

Fulkar on the other hand was clutching his fists and doing his best to not shake with anxiety. He kept glancing at Oli, envious of not having enough wealth to throw his hat in the ring for such a weapon.

“... Are you wanting me to bid?”

Blinking, Fulkar immediately shook his head. “No! Sorry, I’m just... Seeing such a piece appear and knowing what it could do for my family... It’s hard to not want it.”

“But I thought your family trained in swordsmanship?” asked Oli.

But Fulkar shook his head. “Not necessarily. It’s just that the greatest weapon specialist in the city happened to be a swordsman, so every noble family would pay for at least one of their children to learn the art of the sword. That’s the case for myself and Trenk.”

“Oh... So Hurman was the most technically skilled in the entire territory?” Oli questioned with a look of surprise under his mask.