Hearing Auren's orders, a radical shift in his attitude just from minutes ago, they all look stunned and confused. Only Vanessa looks amused, enjoying the situation.
"Wow, Auren, is that a present for me?" she asks playfully. "Green is not my color, but I like it regardless."
"Dream on!" Neffi yells, glaring at Vanessa. "If you want something colorful and different, I can gift you a blue eye right away."
"Heh," Auren can't help but chuckle at that threat. "That one wasn't so bad... but stop arguing now. Let Zepile do his job."
"Auren, are you sure?" Konrad asks, looking worried. "Frankly, this gem isn't worth the price in my opinion. Do you even know what you can buy with that kind of money?"
"I am well aware," Auren replies confidently. "However... it has Aura, a lot of it. Trust me, it's not only valuable for collectors, but it could be something special, something actually useful. I thought it was trash myself, but I changed my mind."
He then points to his eyes, explaining. "I took a good look... I'm quite sure of myself."
With Auren's position more than clear, Zepile eagerly continues bidding.
"Oh my! No. 123 raises it to eighteen billion! Eighteen billion for the Faerie's Tear. At that price, it's considered one of the top ten most valuable gems in the world."
"Hey, Auren, you bastard!" a loud girly voice echoes through the hall. "How dare you steal my gem?!"
What?
Everyone, including the host and Auren, along with the entire audience, stares at the voice, seeing an enraged little girl, now standing up and glaring toward the top of the seats where Auren is seated.
"Ignore her and focus on the auction, Zepile," Auren says calmly.
I want that gem, and I am not interested in drama.
"Don't ignore me, you damn brat!" she continues yelling, before a few men in uniforms worn by the Southern Piece employees walk up to her.
Auren barely manages to pick up 'Last Warning' and 'Against the Rules' over the noise.
"In the name of the Southern Piece Auction, I'd like to apologize to the audience for this... um... interruption. No. 16 has been warned, and the auction continues. Currently, No. 123 has bid eighteen billion Jenny... are there more bids?"
Auren glances at Biscuit, who is gnashing her teeth but offering no further bids.
However, much to his shock, another bid lights up the hall.
"I see No. 1715 bidding nineteen billion!" the host yells, looking quite happy to continue.
Zepile reacts swiftly, raising the bid by an entire one billion more, not even waiting a second.
"What is that?! An instant raise by another billion from No. 123. It looks like he's determined to get it. Who is our generous bidder? Now I'm curious. Let me see," she says, as a subordinate standing to the side hands her a note, which she promptly reads.
"No. 123, Zepile, acting on behalf of Hunter Auren. It looks like a determined bidder has arrived. Can No. 1715 keep up?"
Auren looks at 1715. The same chubby man who was bidding against Biscuit looks pale. He tries to lift his hands, but ultimately stops, looking resigned.
"Twenty billion... and sold! Congratulations to No. 123!" the host yells, everyone clapping. Zepile, however, looks deadly serious, a bead of sweat pouring down his cheeks.
"He decided to end it with one confident last bid because he feared stringing the other guy along with smaller bids. In the end, he made the right call," Ura says to Auren.
I didn't doubt him... no need to explain!
The auction proceeds, the next bids being significantly lower.
Zepile manages to win a special trench coat for Auren, apparently belonging to a famous ex-soldier and mass murderer, committing numerous atrocities in a conquered country many decades ago. He pays a generous two hundred million for it, yet Auren doesn't blink twice.
Finally, after a few more hours, the last item of the day is a special rifle, used to assassinate the prime minister and wound the president of the United States of Saherta more than three decades ago.
"Not only is this gun rare and in great condition, but this is what triggered the great reform of Dalu. A significant piece of history! The starting bid is fifteen billion Jenny."
"Fifteen billion... now that's just insane," Auren says, while his friends look at him with a weird expression.
"You paid twenty for a gem yourself..." Oron bluntly states.
"No, I paid twenty billion for a prized artefact containing Aura," Auren corrects him, slightly annoyed. "Haven't you learned a thing by now working for me? You should know the difference."
Finally, the auction comes to a close with the rifle selling for an astonishing forty-three billion, shocking everyone.
As Auren leaves his row with the others, the hall clearing rapidly, a girl in a bright red dress, with bright blonde pigtails, blocks his way, her arms crossed.
"Excuse me, girl," Auren says. "It's impolite to block people from moving forward, didn't you learn that in school yet?"
"Oooh... you are good, Auren... I'm feeling a strong urge to show you something special and cave your face in," she says, looking angry.
"You think you can do that? Didn't you pay attention the last time we met?" Auren asks, shrugging. "Since then I've grown even stronger...."
Her face now twisted in anger, she doesn't back off. "Maybe I want to find out... the chairman was a little too kind to a brat like you... even praised you. I think it's time someone took you down a notch. You knew I was a Gem Hunter! Why did you steal my target?"
"Why are you so damn poor?" Auren asks her. "Also, you are the one being absolutely childish. If you can't even afford something this cheap, don't talk about being a Gem Hunter. Go find a mountain and dig rock and find them yourself if you don't have the resources."
Now biting her teeth, Biscuit looks ready to explode, while the others look visibly uncomfortable, exchanging quick glances, worried about open conflict
Meanwhile, the audience tries to leave even faster, fleeing from the scene. Even the employees stand back, not willing to intervene.
"Now, excuse me, I need to pick up my objects," Auren says, trying to walk by her.
However, she grabs his arm and speaks in a cold voice. "Your price. What do you want from me? Tell me. I want that gem."
Did she think it was about her?
"I am telling the absolute truth here. This has nothing to do with you. I need that gem myself. I am not doing this to solicit anything from you, trust me," Auren explains, now a little calmer.
"Then why?!" she asks.
"I am a collector myself... I guess this time our target had some unfortunate overlap," Auren says, smiling weakly, before lifting the arm Biscuit is still grabbing onto. "However... if you could..."
With one swift movement, his arm is now loose.
"Better luck next time," he says, raising his arm and walking away, leaving her behind.
"Wait!" she yells, running after him and giving him a card. "If you ever want to sell it... call me."
"Unlikely, but I'll keep it in mind," Auren says, accepting the card.
Moving on to pick up the Faerie's Tear, Auren holds the deep green tear in his hand, the light of the auction site coloring it in a mesmerizing hue.
"Looks nice," Vanessa says from the side. "Can I have it, after all? The color green is growing more and more desirable for me."
Ignoring her, Auren just holds it in his hand and closes his eyes, focusing all of his senses on the gem.
Without any large effect apparent, Auren initially feels nothing.
However, after just half a minute, he feels his own Aura growing cooler and calmer. Not only that, but his entire mind is now more at ease, and a lot calmer as well. It's as if an invisible feeling of stress and tension is slowly being lifted. Without even feeling it, Auren suddenly smiles peacefully.
"I see..." he says, now understanding the gem in his hand. "Not what I expected nor wanted, but it's still something I desperately need."
"Huh?" Vanessa asks. "What did it do? It didn't do anything."
"It calms me down. It's clearly beneficial towards my own Aura," Auren states. "I need to do a few more tests, but I immediately feel a difference."
"Boring!" Vanessa points out. "Not worth twenty billion, not even worth two hundred million, what a letdown. Could have just drunk a beer or something."
"..." Auren glances at Konrad, who immediately shrieks back, raising his hands in frustration.
"Why do you always have to be this blunt?" Auren asks, now addressing Vanessa more seriously. "Not only are you wrong, but you are also promoting alcohol in the most stupid manner I have ever seen. Anyway, value is in the eye of its beholder, and I am not regretting my decision to purchase this gem."
"Fine," Vanessa says, moving on, clearly not caring too much about the gem.
At least she is honest. I guess nobody wants people who just tell me what I want to hear. Clearly, this gem would be useless to someone like her.
Leaving the auction hall, Auren and the group once again get stopped. It's the two women he met two days ago, both looking nervous and fidgety, a large number of bodyguards escorting them, carrying large bags.
"Um... Hunter Auren," Maya Bueleur, the daughter of the duo, says. "We... I... am sorry for, uh, offending you. After a little bit of... research and guidance... we're here to propose a deal to... uhm... stop any... lingering hostilities... you know?"
"You are?" Auren asks, not quite sure what to make of it.
Didn't I threaten to... have them assassinated?
"Excuse my daughter's behavior," the older woman, Mia Bueleur, steps forward. "We've... done a little research on you, and I am sure there is no need for any... rash moves. As a token of apology, please accept this..."
She then snaps toward the men, who carry their bags forward, unveiling exactly twenty-three Ben's Knives in see-through cases.
"Just take them and... please forget anything that happened... would that be acceptable?" Mia asks. "We've done some... reflecting and do wish this to end peacefully."
Auren smiles, using Gyo to see the knives emit a large, radiant Aura, being so close together.
Wanting to greedily accept the knives, he suddenly pauses, the gem still in his hand, making him not only feel serene and peaceful, but also clear-headed.
This is not the kind of reputation I want for myself....
As soon as Auren finishes his thoughts, he feels like he's floating above himself, everything appearing perfectly calm, logical, and ultra precise.
Smiling briefly, he closes his eyes, thinks for just a second, and then steps forward.
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A/N: Always thankful for Power Stones, Comments, and Reviews. Thank you for reading!
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