Just as Alan stood up and stretched his body a little, strange runes emitting a faint blue glow slowly lit up around the opaque gauze-covered windows.
Imdiately after, a magical screen ford entirely from a dense concentration of water elent began to manifest in the center of the confessional room.
Within the screen, a short man with a pointy face and crafty eyes—clearly the cunning type—was shouting energetically to those around him.
"Greetings, everyone! I am Isaac, the presiding bishop of the Church of Steam and Magic, stationed in Ironblood City!"
"All processes of today's exchange will be overseen by personally. But let's be honest—none of you ca all this way for the ordinary trinkets that you can find just anywhere, am I right?"
"Exactly! In addition to the usual magical artifacts available through the exchange, we've prepared three exclusive surprises just for our distinguished guests today!"
"Of course, valuable gifts don't co for free. These three surprises will be auctioned off to the wealthiest bidder!"
As he spoke, Isaac signaled to his assistants, who began to wheel forward a small silver trolley.
With great ceremony, he reached out and slowly lifted the do-shaped lid.
Underneath it rested a single vial of potion, shimring with a soft golden hue.
The third princess's eyes widened the mont she laid eyes on it. Her lips parted slightly in astonishnt, and she shot up from her seat.
Alan was confused.
"What is that?" he asked.
It took a mont before the third princess finally answered, her voice low with gravity.
"That's an Evolution Potion."
"An… Evolution Potion?" Alan repeated, still puzzled.
She took a deep breath, then explained with a serious tone,
"As the na implies, the Evolution Potion allows the human body to evolve. An ordinary person with a weak bloodline who takes it may gain overwhelming strength, while a mage would find themselves becoming significantly more proficient in controlling elental magic."
"But that's not the most astonishing part. It's been tested before—this potion has the potential to propel a tier-bronze mage directly to tier-gold!"
"That's insane," she muttered. "A potion with this level of potency shouldn't even exist within the Plantagenet Kingdom. We simply don't have any apothecaries capable of brewing sothing so advanced."
Just as her words faded, Isaac's voice ca once more through the magic screen.
"Well then, what do you all think? Satisfied with our first auction item?"
"If so, then give a satisfying price in return. Let's make this a win-win!"
"Evolution Potion—starting bid, two million. Minimum incrent: five hundred thousand!"
"T—Two million?!" Alan gasped, eyes nearly popping out of his head.
Two million?!
To put that into perspective, the entire population of his hotown, Snowguard City, only made a collective annual inco of around 1.5 million.
Yet this palm-sized vial was starting at two million?!
"Look at you—acting like you've never seen real money before," the third princess scoffed at him, her disdain barely concealed.
Alan chuckled helplessly.
"Well, I really haven't seen that kind of money before…"
"Then shut up, sit still, and watch closely. Maybe you'll learn sothing useful."
She patted the empty seat beside her. Alan ducked his head and obediently sat down.
The third princess blinked, surprised. She hadn't expected Alan to beco so well-behaved all of a sudden.
But right now, Alan's mind was spinning with fantasies—What if that two million landed in my hands?
He'd buy a massive mansion, move in with Isabella, eat and drink like royalty every day, and live the rest of his life in indulgent luxury…
Lost in that daydream, he barely noticed when the bidding for the Evolution Potion ca to an end.
With a loud bang of the gavel, Isaac finalized the deal.
The final bid?
Four and a half million.
Almost imdiately, another trolley was wheeled up beside Isaac.
He rubbed his hands together gleefully, wearing the sort of satisfied grin only rchants wear after making a fortune.
"Let's keep up the montum," he said. "Next up, the second item of the evening!"
With a flourish, he threw open the lid.
Inside lay a book, bound in solid black leather.
Looking closely, one could see twisted patterns on the cover—patterns that squird faintly, like the faces of the damned, embedded just beneath the surface.
Isaac instinctively stepped back. He wiped the sweat from his brow and tried to appear calm.
"This is the To of Necromancy, a record compiled by a dark mage who once practiced the elent of darkness. After accidentally opening a gateway to the underworld, he docunted all he saw and learned."
"This to contains a multitude of powerful dark-elent spells, and even includes the infamous forbidden arts said to command the undead."
"Starting bid—three million. Minimum incrent—five hundred thousand!"
Alan was already numb.
Here, money wasn't money—it was just a string of numbers that people threw around casually.
Rosalia, seemingly unfazed, pulled out yet another bottle of red wine from sowhere and started chugging it down.
Alan, suddenly curious, pulled out the green gem that the third princess had given him earlier and asked,
"Hey… how much do you think this is worth?"
Rosalia choked instantly, coughing as the wine went down the wrong pipe. Her brows furrowed in shock and she glared daggers at him.
"Don't get mad—I'm just asking. I wasn't planning to sell it," Alan said quickly.
Rosalia let out a breath, then muttered,
"That thing is… unique. Its effects are rather special. It's basically a priceless artifact. But if you absolutely had to put a number on it, I'd say… at least ten million."
"T-Ten million?!"
Alan imdiately cupped the gem gently in his palms, treating it like a fragile treasure.
So he'd been wandering around the city with sothing worth five tis the price of the Evolution Potion just casually bouncing in his pocket?
That was terrifying!
"If you even think about selling it, I swear I'll make sure you regret it for the rest of your life," the third princess warned.
Alan nodded like a chicken pecking rice and quickly tucked the gem safely against his chest.
Not long after, the To of Necromancy was sold—for six million.
This ti, Alan didn't react with wild surprise. After all, he now technically qualified as a man worth ten million.
A re six million? Nothing to worry about.
"Well, friends," Isaac said cheerfully, "with the first two surprises unveiled, it's ti for the highlight of the evening."
The third and final trolley was pushed forward—and it was noticeably more luxurious than the previous two, both in material and ornantation.
Isaac could barely contain his excitent as he lifted the lid.
"Behold—tier-diamond magic spell: Permafrost World!"
"This, my friends, is a true tier-diamond level spell! And it wasn't just created by anyone—it cos from the hand of the legendary Forbidden Magus, Nicolas!"
"If you manage to comprehend even a fragnt of the power that this spell embodies, even as a tier-gold mage, you'll be able to stand toe-to-toe with those of tier-platinum."
"And if you're already tier-platinum, mastering this will allow you to crush every opponent in your class with overwhelming force."
"Even those who surpass tier-platinum and reach tier-diamond will find their elental insight vastly improved through studying the mana-flow thods of this Forbidden Magus."
"A treasure like this… naturally won't co cheap."
As he spoke, Isaac held up three fingers.
"Starting bid—thirty million!"
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