Divine Beast Ascension

“To start, we have this earth-based axe. And with Master Willis’s name attached to it, there’s no need for me to say more. The bidding starts at fifteen thousand gold!”

“Fifteen-”

“Sixteen-”

“Seventeen thousand!”

Finally, Oli could relax and breathe. The last thing Oli needed to buy was weapons. After all, why purchase one of Rykard’s weapons when he already had the smith himself?

“Oliver...” Trantor stood up, getting Trenk to do the same thing. “As heir to the Forell Family, I wish to accept you and Iron Territory as my master, subjecting the entire Forell Family to the same pledge.”

.....

“We both feel this way, Master Oliver,” Trenk added while the brothers kowtowed. “If the proud Libarn Family holds you in such high regard, then Forell wishes to see you in the same light.”

Sighing, Oli smiled and nodded. “... Rise. I and Iron Territory accept Forell Territory as a vassal territory, and Forell Family as a subordinate family of equal status as the Libarn and Practor Families. If anything, this will also help Libarn with their awkward situation of leaving some people behind in Forell City. Right, Fulkar?”

Sighing with a hint of relief, Fulkar nodded.

“Freele,” Oli spoke up and looked to her as she prostrated herself again, following her husband’s example, “now as a member of the Forell Family, you’ll be permitted to have access to Iron’s resources along with the rest of the Forell Family. As for the exact details, we’ll discuss that after meeting with their father. However, I’ll be clear about this. The Whizek Family isn’t allowed to have any of our shared resources without making a similar pledge. Am I clear?”

“Yes, Master Oliver.”

Oli was glad to see her answer without any hesitation or change in body language. “... Good. Now get up and let’s drink some wine.”

“To Oliver, and our new boons!” Fulkar shouted with an unusually lively smile.

The entire room joined in, but Yeter could only cheer with another empty bottle since he’d yet to get a refill. That problem was quickly solved and the room was filled with joyous drinking and cheers. A moment later, there was a knock at the door, signaling the arrival of their most recent food orders.

Oli dressed up and carted the food in, handing out the goods while the auction played on without them. The three Willis brand items sold fast and heavy, bringing Icicle Palace a great profit after buying Rykard’s weapons at a bulk price.

The next items to cross the stage were a plethora of peak-elder goods. For the new moon auction, especially one representing one of two yearly equinoxes, the lowest quality goods were all peak-elder grade. But there were a LOT of them. So Oli and the team had plenty of time to relax and celebrate their new relationships while keeping an eye out for just a handful of items.

As more time passed, Oli’s ruthless bidding faded from the spotlight. Other private booths and some people in the lounge section were beginning to stand out just as much.

An hour passed before one of the team’s desired items hit the stage.

“Though it’s merely a peak-elder item, this armlet uses light essence and can be worn in junction with any other equipment without worry or burden!” stated the auctioneer. “As such, the bidding will start at six thousand gold-”

“Eight thousand gold!”

Oli’s voice filled the auction hall yet again, startling the crowd. It was the first time that day that anyone on the upper levels had fought for an elder grade item. And no one on the lower floors dared challenge the wealthy, domineering cultivator hidden in that particular booth.

“... Wonderful! Eight thousand gold going once! ... Going twice... Sold!”

Dong!

“Yes!” Freele cheered and pumped her fists in excitement before hugging her husband. “Thanks, Oliver!”

“Don’t mention it. That’s a simple acquisition that will help us a lot with the coming qualifier,” Oli reasoned. “Just make sure to use it well.”

“I definitely will!”

As more items were rolled out, another round of early and low-perennial items eventually hit the stage. This time there was nothing of interest to Oli.

But Oli finally remembered to consider one other thing, Iron Academy’s library. The more valuable scrolls that Oli could amass for the library, the greater Iron Academy’s influence would be, and the more powerful Iron Territory could become. That could amount to incalculable value for Oli and the clan in the future.

However, Oli still didn’t see fit to purchase anything else just yet. If he was going to spend his money, he wanted the best of the best. So Oli planned to wait until more mid-perennial grade scrolls appeared, or even high-perennial grade scrolls. And this reminded Oli to thumb through the catalog once more in search of any peak-perennial scrolls, letting him find those listed that many people were eagerly waiting to snatch up.

‘Good, you’re starting to think properly,’ Eeole chuckled. ‘This is the mindset you’ll want when we raid Virulent City’s auction for everything we can get our hands on.’

Oli nodded, quietly responding to Eeole’s comment.

But Eeole reminded, ‘Just make sure to win that item at all costs. I’m not sure how well they were able to appraise it, so I can’t guess when it will appear on stage.’

‘Alright. How much should I save for that?’ Oli asked.

‘A minimum of one hundred thousand, but I recommend at least one hundred and fifty just to be safe.’

Oli trembled a little while taking that to heart. ‘... I’ve already spent over eighty-five thousand gold. That leaves me with a minimum of two hundred and fifteen thousand. Take away a hundred and fifty, then I’m left with sixty-five thousand gold for the other scrolls! ... If you want me looting this place for everything, can’t you let me spend at least a few oxite coins, for the sake of getting the item that you said to win at all costs?’