Chapter 149 - Broken Goods Auction
Idris called him the next day, inviting him to the monthly auction that the Broken Goods would host. Every auction house would pick a day to sell their goods to the public. Usually, it's an eventless day to make sure people would be able to attend.
Arthur groaned as he left his comfy bed and started dressing. As his conscience cleared, he remembered what Master Ronin had told him. He had finally understood why Master Ronin would wait until now to tell him this.
If Arthur heard that he was fated to change the world as soon as he awakened, he would have been crushed under the pressure of such expectation. However, he had changed so much over the past months since he had awakened. Even though it was unrealistic that such a fate awaited him, he didn't plan on shying away.
As he got dressed and came down, he saw that many reporters were still there. Arthur sighed and braced himself to give them an interview. As soon as they spotted him, they rushed forward holding their mics and cameras with them like a tiger chasing its prey.
"Young hero, please allow us to interview you!"
"Mr. Arthur, if you have the time…"
Arthur raised his hands and asked them to calm down. Weirdly, he wasn't nervous. He saw how obedient they became when he agreed to give them an interview.
"However, I'll be answering only a few questions from everyone."
The group nodded at his words and prepared their equipment. Arthur sat on a couch with the reporters sitting in front of him. Luckily, he had dressed up with a jacket and a long-necked shirt. The interview started right away.
"What's your relationship with the princess and how did the two of you meet?" Was the first question by a beautiful receptionist wearing trimmed glasses.
"I met Princess Nera in the Runes Apprentice Cup. We…" Arthur proceeded to explain how distant they were before the party and how nothing happened between the two.
"What do you have to say about the predictions that you'll become the champion?" Another question came from a short man with a recorder.
"I," Arthur paused as he remembered he should stay humble. "Will do my best. I've met other participants who were quite formidable, so I'm excited to have a go against them."
A few other questions popped up like his plans, invitations from workshops, and the likes. Arthur excused himself in the end when the reporters were mostly satisfied with the interview. He knew this would earn him another burst of fame, but at least they wouldn't keep running after him from now on.
Arthur noticed how disappointed the receptionist was as he walked outside. Maybe he had helped the hotel rack some money, after all. It wasn't a high-class hotel, since those were too extravagant for Arthur's tastes.
He found a driver waiting for him, sent by Idris. Nodding to the bald burly man who opened the car's door, Arthur hopped into the car.
"Sir, I've been assigned by the company as your driver from now on. Wherever you want to go, please give me a text of the time and place to pick you up." The driver gave him his card and Arthur thanked him.
To travel around, Arthur could just use his teleport rune. However, Idris asked him to make an entrance to the auction house as a form of publicity. Emma had called him yesterday too so they could meet and decided to tag along when he said he wanted to attend the auction.
"I bet someone is going to get jealous." Arthur grinned as he remembered the warning the prince gave him. He had also read an article of how the prince's limelight was stolen by Extrasort, the mysterious ranker in the magic tower.
He felt so much satisfaction from that.
The prince has proved himself to be rotten, just like his younger brother. A vile tree can't bear unrotten fruit, it seems. The royal family had no qualms about 15-years old scraping from dungeons to live, why would they care about their people now?
Once he had this mindset, Arthur noticed how corrupt this place was. It used the strength of awakeners to divide the people, marginalizing the non-awakeners until there only empty husks. The gap between this nation's classes was so wide that it could be seen from the exterior of the Palace of Royals.
The car pulled over in front of a large building. As Arthur thanked the driver and left the car, he read the giant sign of the auction house.
Broken Goods Auction.
There was the logo of a broken sword between the two words, broken and goods. Arthur hoped this name didn't deter buyers.
To prove his worries futile, a large crowd of reports gathered in front of the building's façade. The flashes of camera assaulted his eyes as he made his way across the carpet. People recognized him after a moment of confusion and tried to take pictures with him.
Arthur obliged as he admired how well-known the auction house was. The people seemed to have gathered here to see celebrities. After Arthur entered the building, a wide foyer presented itself. He followed the staff to a giant auditorium with private cabinets overseeing the stage.
Arthur had already booked a cabinet with Emma and he allowed the staff to guide him there. As he stepped foot into the room, he saw two figures sitting in the lounge and looking from the glass wall.
"Welcome, boy." Grandmaster Venkov grinned as he spotted Arthur. Emma sat next to him and looked apologetic.
"I'm sorry, Arthur. He insisted he comes as well." Emma sighed as she apologized. Arthur smiled and said it was okay as he sat over.
"You brat, what do you mean I insisted? I have the right to be here." Grandmaster Venkov berated and snorted, turning away.
"It's alright." Arthur waved his hand. "It's not anything private. Furthermore, it's an honor to sit with Grandmaster Venkov." Arthur said politely.
"If that's the case, come over to my workshop and we can sit as much as you want." The Grandmaster suddenly turned and looked at Arthur with a sly smile.
"That is…" Arthur coughed awkwardly. "It's not good to feel too honored." Was all he could think of as a response.
"Hahaha," The grandmaster roared laughingly as he clapped Arthur on his shoulder, almost dislocating it. "Wise words from such a young man, I like you! Fine, have it your way. Remember that no workshop would treat you as good as mine." Said the old man to put the matter to rest.
The three chatted as the auditorium filled slowly. They saw many famous characters entering and the flashes of cameras endlessly capturing them. There was even the grandmaster of the Royal Workshop, Alexander Teran.
Arthur was awed by the level the auction house has reached. However, it was a given with Sier backing it. The ability to see everything was perfect to scout out treasures and fortunes. That's why the auction house was known to be a small one, but premium nonetheless.
For Runes Masters, materials were half of their profession. If they found materials like the blood of a legendary monster, they can create an artifact that could be the masterpiece of their time. That's why auction houses were mainly frequented by runes masters. After all, auctions were for rare materials that had a short supply.
"Ladies and gentlemen. Please, take a seat and enjoy our variety of products. If you want to place a bid, a button can be seen in front of your seat with a number. Your name has already been registered so all you need to do is push the button."
The host walked over, he was a black-skinned man with handsome green eyes. His hair was tied in dreadlocks and stuck to his head. His smile was bright as he smoothly made his introductions.
Once everyone was seated and the host began to introduce their auction house. After a few moments, the auction began as the first item rolled in.
"Our first item will be the famous product of Halin, Dust of Steel!" The host introduced and everyone leaned closer in excitement.
"As some of you may know, this product is perfect to reinforce your weapon and increase its rank. It can also be used in forging to increase the sturdiness of the metal by 20 percent!" Before the host could finish, bids rolled in like a tsunami.
"It's so rare?" Arthur asked with amazement.
"Yes," Emma nodded. "It's rare because it could be used to strengthen artifacts. Since the methods to produce some artifacts have been lost, this is an extremely valuable item for those holding rare items."
"Hmph, I bet that geezer wants it for the Holy Silver Blade." Grandmaster Venkov snorted as he made his bid as well. Arthur didn't understand who was the person he was talking about, but Emma whispered to him that it was Grandmaster Alexander.
The auction rolled as the bidding war commenced. Arthur sat there with anticipation of the wealth he'll be returning with today.