Episode 50. Tolois Auction House (3)
“What? Kingven went to the bidding site himself?”
An area where only those inside the auction house reside. It is the most important place in the auction house, but an unexpected shout rang out.
Moreover, it was a moment when the auction house’s rule of using admission numbers instead of names when referring to visitors was broken.
But the person involved was not hesitant. He must not have any principles in mind, because he brought up human lives again.
“Damn it! I should have noticed when Kingven came in. So where is it?”
The man asked, wiping his hand over his face. In front of him stood twenty servants from the auction house. They were wearing seal skins and had tense faces.
“This is bid room 122, East Zone, Mr. Capone.”
Capone ruffled his hair and opened the list of items distributed today. His face crumpled as he looked up information on bid sheet 122 with one finger.
“A meteorite? What is this?”
The servants had no answer to Capone’s shouts. When they looked at the list, there was not a single line about ‘meteorite’ written on it.
If the appraiser didn’t leave any comments, it could be one of two things.
If it’s something that really isn’t worth looking at.
Or, if it is so precious that its value is not revealed to lower-level appraisers.
“What is this weasel trying to do now?”
capone.
He was one of the five executives of the Tolois Auction House. He was a key figure in the auction house, and his every reaction had a special influence on his servants.
He was having a hard time maintaining his composure because of Kingven and Hwaunseok.
“When does the bidding for that meteorite or something start?”
“It starts in thirty minutes, Mr. Capone.”
“I guess I’ll have to go first. Just one person will follow, and the rest of us will disperse.”
The servants scattered, their seal skins slapping at those words. Their pale faces and bewildered gestures were a sight to behold. It would be hard for the visitors to the auction house to imagine such a thing.
Capone passed by, among the hurried servants. Unlike the other servants, he did not wear a seal skin.
The main job of the executives was to blend in with the crowd and keep track of the situation and people of interest as they returned to the auction house.
‘Kingven… … .’
As he walked, the face of Tess Kingven came to his mind. That ferret-like face. The arrogant, yet sly demeanor. Capone clenched his fists without realizing it.
Things are different now, but until five years ago, Tiss Kingven was one of the servants he managed.
He was a pretty decent servant, that is, until he broke all trust.
Originally, most of the servants of the Tolois Auction House were criminals, runaways, and vagabonds. Taking them in and giving them new identities and new jobs was the way of Tolois.
Tiss Kingven was one of them, except he didn’t handle clients. His job was nothing more than a judge.
‘At first I thought I had a lower level of discernment… … .’
That prediction was wrong. And by a long shot.
One day, the guy who was a junior appraiser suddenly announced that he was leaving the auction house.
He was quite smart and good at dealing with the world, so it was a shame to send him away, but the rules here are that if you go through the proper procedures, you can start a new life.
Since he had already served his mandatory service period, we couldn’t keep him, and he was only a low-level appraiser anyway.
So at the time, Capone thought that there was only one more vacant position for a junior appraiser.
‘Nine times out of ten, those who leave the auction house beg and plead to come back.’
I knew Kingven would be like that too.
Rather, he was fooling everyone. In particular, he hit Capone, who was managing him closely, in the back of the head with all his might.
Less than a year after leaving the auction house, Kingven showed his true colors.
It soon became clear that Kingven had an eye far superior to that of any other appraiser, let alone a lower-level one.
Whether it was an ability he had from the beginning or an ability he acquired at the auction house… no one knew, and no one wanted to know.
Kingven became a businessman with that ability, and of course he made a fortune. Of course, he was a mysterious businessman who kept his name a secret until now, but Capone knew it well.
‘A weasel chick that continually wreaks havoc on the auction house.’
There were more than a few ways Kingven had harmed the auction house, whether he had any grudges or not.
One way is to approach royalty and mediate a trade of treasures that does not go through the auction house.
Another way was to stay in the city of Tolois under the canopy and snatch valuable items from those waiting to enter the auction house.
‘Those fools laugh and sell it for only 10 million lilk when it could have been sold for 100 million lilk if it had been auctioned off.’
Of course, such practices have been completely blocked thanks to the recent measures taken by the auction house.
‘What makes me the most angry is… … .’
An act that mocks the auction house system.
He himself would bid and seize items that lower-level appraisers could not determine their value.
Considering his incredible eye for detail, many of those items would likely be ‘Sale Week’ worthy.
Where is this?
It was the ‘Tholois Auction House’ where the most prestigious guests and goods from all over the continent gathered.
Being treated this way by Kingven wasn’t just a financial loss. It was a serious blow to his pride.
‘Why did you suddenly appear after being quiet for a while, Kingven?’
As far as Capone could tell, Kingven had been wandering the continent in search of something until recently.
Soul Innocent? See you?
Whatever it was, he said it was something so great that he would bet his whole life on it.
Then today, out of the blue, that damn Kingven showed up.
Capone finally arrived at the 122nd auction house. The door was firmly shut, as all 41 bidders had already entered.
The rule was that you couldn’t enter the bidding room after the door was closed, but Capone, like an executive, just opened the door.
Dark interior.
‘Is that a meteorite?’
On the platform in front.
The auction item, ‘Meteorite’, was in a glass case and was being exposed to light. It was just as the bidding was about to begin.
The auctioneer’s words came to his ears.
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
“The starting amount requested by the client is… … .”
* * *
Bidding room number 122.
Rubin and Kuze were in a separate space set up on one side of the bidding hall.
A space designed to be invisible to prospective bidders. The bidding process is observed from this space made of special glass.
“It’s just beginning, my lord.”
Compared to the calm Rubin, Kuze was extremely nervous. It was only a day ago that he had given up on throwing away 30 million relics.
When I saw all 41 bidders seated, I felt an overwhelming sense of hope, as if they were all real.
Finally, the auctioneer’s voice rang out.
“… Please note that this commissioned item has not received any comments from the appraiser. We will take questions before the bidding begins. Does anyone have any questions about this ‘meteorite’?”
The facilitator led the auction according to the established procedures.
A light flashed among the dark seats, as if waiting for an opportunity to ask a question. It meant that a question was desired.
“… Yes, 7670, go ahead and ask your question.”
“Did the client give the object the name ‘Hwaunseok’?”
“Well, this is the part that the client said he could reveal. Yes, it’s what the client put up.”
Then there was a flash on the other side.
I thought it was just a bunch of curious people who happened to get together, but it wasn’t? The host was hiding this question in his smile.
“Yes, 0529.”
“I’d like to make sure that this is the item I’m looking for. Can you take a close look at it?”
“Hmm… … .”
The host did not give an immediate answer. The host looked toward the special space where the client was sitting. This was something that had not been agreed upon in advance, so the client’s permission was needed.
“What should I do, Young Master?”
“Tell him to do so.”
Kuze created a light substance that signified positivity.
“Yes, that’s possible. Please come up to the stage one by one and check the condition of the items.”
Then, the prospective bidders came up to the stage one by one in order. Every single one of them was wearing a mask that covered their face.
Of course, it wasn’t an unusual case. In fact, it was more rare for people to show their faces at a bidding booth.
Rubin, who was watching them, laughed silently.
“… … ?”
Why are you laughing?
Kuze tilted his head. But he was not even given time to ask questions. The bidding process began immediately.
“Since there are no more questions, we will begin the auction. First, the starting price requested by the client is… … .”
That was when.
The outside light briefly came on in the dark bidding room. It was at that moment that Capone, the executive, came in to check on Kingven.
“… It’s 100 million relays.”
At the announcer’s words, the entire bidding room was in an uproar. Capone and Kuze opened their eyes wide. At this moment, the only person who was relaxed was Rubin.
100 million lilacrani!
If no one bid at the starting price, the amount would gradually decrease. Everyone in the auction house expected that the starting price would continue to decrease because no one was bidding.
however.
The host’s gaze was fixed on one side. He blinked several times and-
“The bid has been announced! 0529, it’s 100 million.”
A house that no one expected.
The commotion grew louder. Kuze couldn’t believe his ears and jumped up from his seat. But the surprise was just beginning.
Another issue follows.
“7670, 110 million!”
This was just the signal for the tiger race.
0529 and 7670. A bidding war took place between two people who each asked questions before the start of the auction.
“120 million, it came out.”
“130 million, it came out.”
There were just two people. When 7670 called, 0529 answered, and 7670 ran away again.
“100 million… 9000 came out! This is 7670.”
“Ah, there it is again. This time it’s 0529 again!”
Capone quietly watches the bidding situation.
As an executive of Tolois, 200 million won was not a large sum of money.
‘The problem is, one of those two is Kingven.’
The reason Capone thought Kingven was a weasel was because he was never the type to take a loss.
Kingven never invests more than 100 million. Of course, considering his current assets, 100 million in tokens is not a small amount of money.
Yet he was always cautious and always got the most out of it.
‘But it’s already reached 250 million… Kingven, what on earth are you trying to buy?’
Meanwhile, Rubin got up from his seat and walked over to the window.
Two people at war over a house.
One of them was undoubtedly his target, Tess Kingven. So what about the other one?
-You’re doing well. Let’s run a little more.
-okay!
It was his Roinekrow, Tina, who was clearly visible only to Rubin’s eyes.
Kuze thought that Tina might have betrayed him or died, but Tina had already entered the Tolois Auction House a few days ago and received instructions from Rubin.
‘You’re just telling me to run away, how much?’
‘300 million. There will definitely be someone who can follow that far.’
‘300 million…? But what if we win the bid? We’ve already used up all our savings as a deposit!’
‘Don’t worry, it doesn’t matter if we win the bid. No matter what the outcome, we’ll meet with Tiss Kingven. That’s when the negotiations begin.’
It was Rubin who had been moving cleverly so that Kingven could notice the existence of the ‘Meteorite’.
There was no guarantee that Kingven would be at the Tolois Auction House, so getting him to sit down there was a task in the first place.
So, they deliberately distributed low-quality promotional materials and bought time by repeatedly failing to bid.
Even if Tis Kingven himself was not at the auction house, his informants would be stationed here, so information would surely reach his ears.
And the result.
‘Kingven, who recognized the value of the meteorite, would have used all means at his disposal to win the bid.’
You may have asked why the item keeps going up for auction.
You must have heard that there must be a minimum of 40 people present.
They must have recruited 39 people to participate in the auction and sent them in as bidders.
Just looking at the conditions Rubin had set, which were exactly 40 people, it was clear that it was Kingven’s doing.
‘Kingven won’t settle the matter here. What Kingven wants to buy now isn’t meteorite. He wants to meet someone who knows about meteorite.’
What if you thought you were the only one who knew its value, but then you realized it wasn’t? It would feel like mold was growing in a future that you thought was bright and shining.
The response will be one of two things.
Eliminate or incorporate potential competitors.
Whether Tina or Kingven won the bid, Kingven’s next move was set.
‘Tina will come to me. And that’s when the real negotiations will begin.’
It was just then.
“Your Majesty! The successful bidder has been chosen.”
There were no more bids. The announcer shouted, his throat bloodshot. Bang bang bang, with the cool hammering of the hammer, signaling the successful bid.
“The meteorite has been auctioned! It was sold to 300 million relays, entry number 0529!”
