The carriages arrived and departed at a large plaza, leaving the important personages of the city at the foot of a terrace. The path filled with small white pebbles brought the guests to a triangular wooden building where the art exposition would take place.
The three of them were walking side by side as Selatonice continued to explain the rules of the art exposition to Ocelio. Many times, she had to raise her voice to cover the noise from the plaza behind them.
Ocelio had one of his hand in his cardigan’s pocket, clutching a stained handkerchief. The blood drops from within seemed to move on their own into the pores of his hand, travelling into his bloodstream without mixing with his blood cells.
The bliss appearing on his face had been noticed by both of them, however, they didn’t appear curious enough to ask.
After what had happened a few minutes earlier, Briseis appeared a bit closer to Ocelio, she looked at his face from time to time and would share her opinion after a short moment of hesitation.
[The items will be presented to everyone during the first round but only those with sufficient wealth will be able to bid on them. The 30 wealthiest participants will receive a small plaque with a number according to their status at the entrance. Only those with a plaque can place a bid on the first round, but the amount of money they can use in the first round is limited, making it impossible for everyone to secure an item.] ]
Just as she was speaking, they reached the lobby of the building.
The chatter inside stopped for a second, all eyes took notice of their presence before the guests returned to their business.
A row of servants greeted the guests on both sides of the lobby, they were responsible for handing the small plaques to the important personages after confirming their status number.
Selatonice took the lead, going to the last servant on the left.
He seemed to have recognised her as he bowed his back as low as he could.
[What number will I get this time?]
A few servants also greeted her when they noticed her presence, all referring to her as “lady Eumenidos” as if she was a regular guest here.
Ocelio was also attracting attention, most of them from the guests, however, none showed the intent of coming to talk to him. They did not even dare approach him.
[I am sorry lady Eumenidos, all the important families of the city have come to attend to this month’s exposition…]
When she saw the number engraved into the wooden plaque, her eyebrows rose to her forehead in surprise. The next moment, her hazel eyes closed to a slit as she stared at the man.
The servant appeared terrified, the pungent smell of sweat exuded from his body as his hands trembled.
Even Ocelio appeared surprised at the faint murderous intent exuding from the frail girl’s body. It left her body in a natural flow as if she had received combat training.
[Bring me your manager, I’m sure he would love to hear what number you’ve attributed me.]
[I’m sorry…I’m sorry.]
[It’s too late to beg. Do you know what happens to those who disregard my status?]
The young man kept apologising, he looked to be on the verge of crying.
[It’s alright, 4 or 20, it doesn’t matter, we can still participate in the first round, right?]
Hearing his voice, the sharpness disappeared from her face. She still seemed annoyed but nodded her head at him.
[But…4! That’s the lowest number I’ve received in my life! If my father was here, I would be getting the number 1, they are taking me lightly, wait until I talk to the manager…]
[No “but”, let’s go. So, what is next?]
Despite the lobby having at least 60 people gathered inside, no one came anywhere near them. Rather, people would willingly create space as their group walked toward the corridor.
Briseis had fallen behind and appeared to have found friends of hers.
[Next is finding a good item and putting a bid on it. If we are lucky, we can obtain it without having to get to the round 2.]
[Hello sir.]
A small group of people called out to Ocelio, they were walking with Briseis and all seemed to know each other.
A tall girl with brown hair and grey eyes greeted him, she stood right next to Briseis in an elegant dark dress that outlined her waist and tanned legs.
[My name is Ianeira Dadaces, it’s an honour to have your presence in this month’s art exposition.]
Seeing her, Selatonice made a disdainful snort, her eyes looked at her dress with a critical expression.
[She’s the spoiled lady who owns this place, a gift from her parents for her coming of age. She must be the one who told the servant to give me that lousy number.]
A smirk surfaced on Ocelio’s face before disappearing the next second.
He did not comment but only nodded at her.
Even though he did not respond, she seemed happy to receive a sign of acknowledgement from him.
When she gave a glance at the woman standing close to Ocelio, seeing a dress with a similar design, her smile contorted.
[…I see that lady Eumenidos still has a good sense of fashion.]
Selatonice rolled her eyes to the ceiling, impatience showing on her face.
[Unlike you, I wasn’t raised in the wilderness. I know how to get good things when I see them.]
[It wasn’t the wilderness! It was a specialised village!]
[What’s the difference? You have more in common with beasts than us civilised people.]
Seeing that the two girls were busy scolding each other, Ocelio walked toward the exhibit on his own.
An elevated platform was placed on both sides of the aisle, standing on it were a few items shining in a faint brown colour.
[That’s a knife by Sir Helbert, it has just been refined with mana so it is extremely sharp. It is said that this knife was even able to cut open rocks as if it was butter.]
A young man, who had just been among Ianeira’s group had walked up to him at some point. He came to stand beside Ocelio before introducing himself.
[It’s an honour to meet you sir, my name is Geleon Lyphontes, a 7th class Herus. If sir is interested in that item, I could make a bid for you. The other nanti wouldn’t bid against me.]
Ocelio shook his head, then, his eyes appeared to be attracted by the silver bracelet hanging on his wrist.
[Is that your…]
Geleon, noticing where Ocelio was looking at responded with a bright smile.
[Yes, that is my bracelet of oath. I am married to a beautiful woman from a powerful family. I had good luck, her oath prerequisite was to be a powerful Bloodrainist and have a powerful family.]
He glanced at his body, seeing the flat muscles and bulging stomach, he gave him a dubious look.
[Then you must be a powerful Bloodrainist?]
Right then, another voice came from behind just as Geleon was opening his mouth to answer.
[Don’t listen to that snake. What powerful Bloodrainist, he bribed the guard during the test. By the time the bride’s family learned of it, he had already accomplished the deed with the woman.]
Selatonice mocking voice preceded her arrival, she glared at the man with her hands on her hips.
[A rat that can’t get a woman affection other than by cheating, you disgust me, get away from me.]
Gelon gritted his teeth as he walked away with his head down.
[He’s still wearing the bracelet, so the wife’s family did not say anything?]
She rolled her eyes, her hand fixed a few blonde strands behind her ears before answering.
[What can they do, the meal has already been consumed, they can’t very well force him to spit it back out. Of course, they’ve asked his family to compensate them with money, but who would be willing to marry their daughter after she had slept with a man. Only peasants would be willing to make her their wife. But if it comes to this, they would rather have her kill herself than tarnish their family’s reputation.]
The disdain on her face made it clear she hated him, but the next second, a warm smile surfaced on her face.
[Forget about this, I’ve got a few friends to introduce to you, they’ve been begging me for this so please don’t refuse.]
Ocelio smiled slightly, he did not refuse but did not agree either. He seemed to enjoy her company, his emotionless face would often warm up when hearing her voice and how she spoke.
Without any warning, she grasped his hand, her lips came right beside his right ear. She stood on her tiptoes, a delicate perfume entered his nostrils as she whispered:
[And if you take a liking to one of them, I’ll give her to you to play with.]
She patted his shoulder before turning around, letting her dress and hair twirl around in the air.
He stood frozen on the spot, half a smile still on his lips.
His calm eyes stared at Selatonice’s back in deep thoughts
The next instant he shook his head with a wry smile.
Ocelio walked across the maze-like building with a large group of men and women. All of which were from the powerful young generation of the city.
Their parents either possessed influence over the official district, or sufficient wealth to distinguish themselves from the common citizens.
They all gravitated around either Ianeira or Selatonice like a flock of birds following their queen.
Selatonice’s group was larger, with almost all of them being beautiful young women. The exceptions being two handsome men Ocelio had been introduced to. They both wore the same silver bracelet with two blue stripes on it.
She had whispered to him about them being married, but still having concubines to birth children.
He took in everything that happened around him, from how only decorative articles seemed to pique their group interest to Ianaira and Selatonice competing for military artefacts.
None of them asked him any question or tried to start a conversation. Only Selatonice and Ianeira dared to talk to him, with Ianeira maintaining a courteous bearing.
[Is that all you have in the exposition this time? What a disappointment. It seems I must raise a complaint to the official district for fake publicity. What unique item, what exceptional exposition. Is that what you’ve been taught in that village of yours, you’re such a cunning villager, you must have learned well from them.]
Everyone appeared used to seeing them squabble all the time. Unlike Ianeira, Selatonice did not use subtle words to mock her rival.
[You’ve always been impatient. Would it kill you to wait before opening your mouth to criticise everyone and everything? I’m really worried for you future, at this rate, who would dare marry you…]
[Talk about yourself, you’re one year older than me. You’re not as beautiful as I, you lack in charm and elegance. All you have is your money and crafty schemes.]
Ocelio watched as Selatonice made a confident pose, sticking out her chest forward with her hands on her hips.
She did attract a few stares, but none of them dared to compliment her.
Ocelio stared at the proud smile on her face with a frown. His red eyes appeared calm but something seemed to bother him.
[The next item should be able to able to attract sir’s attention. It was brought forward by miss Clarencis family. It was found in the wilderness and possesses characteristics that are still a mystery to even our best appraisers.]
Ianeira gestured toward a woman standing in her group.
She has short brown hair with a tinge of redness at its roots, she wore a revealing dress that exposed a deep cleavage and parts of her thighs.
She gave him a coy glance, noticing his red eyes staring down at her, her cheeks turned crimson. She opened her green lips, making an awkward attempt to appear confident.
[My family bought this item from lady Korrito after their team of Bloodrainists claimed to have found in a cave, deep in the mountain west of the city. It was an expensive item. She asked for a lot of money due to the circumstance in which they had acquired the…]
[Speak girl, why are you dilly-dallying; you’re not writing a story, spit it out.]
Selatonice mocked the girl as they arrived in front of a podium where a small crowd had formed.
Standing on it was a grey cauldron with a black rod sticking out.
The woman seemed irritated by the interruption but still did as asked.
[On their way out, the Bloodrainists had to fight a pack of magical beasts of the bull species, however, magical bulls have never been sighted on elevated terrain and they are a herbivore species, they do not attack without reason. Lady Korrito believed that it was related to this item.]
[And how did they escape from the magical beast pursuit? Did she also told you that?]
She appeared surprised to be asked a question by Ocelio. Joy gushed on her face as she answered in a hurry.
[She said that magical bulls do not have hooves made to walk in the mountain, they could not remain stable on the ground so they managed to distance them after some efforts.]
He rubbed his chin at the story, his eyes fell on the item on the podium. A cold light surfaced on his face as he appeared wary of it.
[This is the item my family put at the auction. Its lowest sale value is 1 gold coin…]
She pointed at the item, speaking in a delighted mood. She continued to steal bold glances at Ocelio, she appeared bewitched by the dangerous aura emanating from him.
[1 gold coin! Do you take us for fools! Who would give you 1 gold coin for a mould filled cauldron?!]
Ocelio pointed his finger at Selatonice. Her anger turned into confusion at the gesture.
[What? Is there something wrong?]
[Bid on it. I’ll pay you back.]
Her eyes widened. Everyone appeared shocked by his announcement. Ianeira was the first to recover.
[I’ll buy it for you sir, there’s no need to use your money. Consider it a gift from me.]
[Impossible! He came with me, what he needs, I’ll provide for him.]
Selatonice rushed to the front of the crowd, not caring about anyone or anything blocking her way. She shouted for people to get out of the way, scaring many guests who were examining the items nearby.
Meanwhile, Ianeira took a shortcut on the left, jumping on the podium with impressive agility.
The rest of the group followed them with excitement glowing on their faces.
[There’s no need, my family will take back the item and offer it to sir Ocelio…]
The short-haired girl, Deineira, only had enough time to finish half of her sentence when two impatient made close her mouth.
[Shut your beak before I slap it close for you.]
[It’s not allowed. No one can take off an item already exposed in our exposition.]
Ocelio watched them get close to the item with alertness, at an unknown time, a sphere of blood had formed around his fist. His muscles were tense as if he was preparing to make a move.
A few moments ago, when his eyes had landed on the cauldron, another occurrence of the “game” showed in his sight.
A hundred white vertical lines had replaced his sight, they moved up and down in quick succession.
This time he knew was what going to happen so he waited for the red horizontal brick to appear before trying to control it.
However, his attempt to interact with it had failed. He just had enough time to interact with the first vertical line, slowing its movement to prevent it from touching the red brick. But, he didn’t have enough time to follow up and the brick crashed on the third line.
The white screen dispersed from his sight as if it had never existed.
Back on the platform, both girls took a piece of paper from the stack and wrote down their plate number.
When she saw the number 1 on her rival’s paper, Selatonice glared at her with a malevolent expression.
[Make a bid, I’m not in a hurry.]
Ianeira bit her lips. She seemed aware that she didn’t have the same purchasing power as Selatonice. The next second, as if realising something, her lips rose into a bright smile. She wrote down a number and pushed the paper into a small box on the side.
[Your turn. We’ll see how much you daddy spoiled you for the exposition. Do you think you’ll be able to compete with the owner in person? You’re still too young, you shouldn’t be this obstinate.]
Selatonice did not panic at the taunting words. Instead, a proud, victorious grin was etched on her face.
She did not hide the paper from her view and wrote down a series of two zeroes on the paper in a carefree movement.
[Impossible! You’re lying! Not even your father would use this much to bid on an item.]
Seeing her reaction, her smile turned into a devious grin.
She came beside Ianeira and whispered into her ear:
[He’s my man, get your hands off bitch.]
She stepped to the wooden box with an aloof demeanour, her hips swayed left and right with rhythm as if she was dancing.
When the paper entered the box, she looked at Ocelio with a triumphant smile.
