597: Chapter 395: The Auction in Reyes City 597: Chapter 395: The Auction in Reyes City The guard stationed at the door watched in silence as Hill walked through the city gate.
Hill soon understood why they were so indulgent towards an unfamiliar mage.
He stopped, looking up at the thick fortress gateway where a Divine Array was installed.
Its only function was to determine whether the individuals passing through were part of the Evil Faction, which was sufficient for the city guards.
In any world, being a murderer does not necessarily align one with the Evil Faction, but those of the Evil Faction are invariably murderous villains.
Such individuals only needed a warning to let more powerful figures handle them instead of sacrificing their own soldiers in vain.
Perhaps because the God of Travel had a gentler nature, the nation of Tevalon treated its citizens quite well.
As long as one wasn’t an Evil God, the deities were generally kind to their followers, who needed to have genuine faith at heart.
Hill looked up for a minute and, confirming that the array could only detect evil aura, passed through it without a care.
As long as they did not detect that he belonged to the Kind Alignment, it would be fine.
Although Hill startled the guards when he stopped, their hands had already reached inside their cloaks.
Perhaps it was for something like a warning firework?
If Hill had turned around suddenly, maybe the city gates on either side of the passage would have shut simultaneously.
When Hill entered, the people queuing behind him were all stopped, naturally reluctant to follow behind a secretive mage.
As Hill passed through the gate, there was a mage in a long robe waiting outside.
On seeing Hill, he approached immediately with a very warm smile, “Respected Mage Sir, welcome to Reyes City.
Count Nizar Reyes sincerely hopes that you find joy and comfort in Reyes.
If there’s anything you need, Earl’s Castle is located at the far end of Reyes.
My name is Clifford Sharining, the mage advisor to Count Reyes, and I am at your service anytime,”
Hill nodded slightly, walked past him without registering his name.
He felt that the master of Reyes City would soon guess his identity, so Hill was cautious about his demeanor.
After all, having just left home, he still remembered his own persona; the Fran Legend currently had no fondness for any noble of Tevalon.
This Level 16 mage did not expect any reciprocation from Hill but came over to hint that they had noticed Hill and asked him not to cause any trouble in the city.
The nobles of this world were almost all devout followers of the deities, and they could confront a Legendary Mage at some cost.
Hill had glanced up at the sky earlier and spotted the direction of Hogan’s Carriage, which seemed to lead to the city’s busiest area.
It seemed the easiest place to gather information.
Hill of course remembered the route, and there was a luxurious grand hotel in that direction.
Yet, the churches of the God of Travel were at the city gate and the residential areas, even in the slums, but none were in the commercial streets.
This was the real confidence of this country’s greatest authority; they did not need to exhibit their presence in luxurious locales.
Rather than instilling fear, the church’s primary task was to maintain all citizens’ faith.
As for the nobles, unless the church’s power suddenly vanished, they would undoubtedly act as the most devout believers.
As Hill walked, he smelled many delightful foods, making him slightly melancholy; he dared not eat anything in this world, even filtering the air he breathed.
The Magic Shield on his body was maintained all the time!
Unlike the previous Gerns, this world was quite hostile to outsiders.
Even though Hill had a higher-level fortune blessing, he still needed to be more cautious in his actions.
Hill didn’t know how Coron had discovered this world, so tightly controlled by the World Will.
Could he still ask for help from it or the World Tree?
Just as Hill was heading towards the grand luxury hotel, a white building on the roadside caught his eye.
It was a building like an opera house, but upon closer inspection, Hill realized it was an auction hall.
Moreover, carriages were continuously stopping at the entrance and various elegantly dressed guests were entering.
Without hesitation, Hill walked towards this auction hall.
“Respected Mage Sir, welcome to the Golden Age Commerce auction.
Are you interested in participating in today’s auction?” a middle-aged man in a black robe, radiating a charming smile, stood before Hill.
Hill coldly replied, “Yes, I need a quiet space.”
If this world’s auction houses also had so-called private rooms, his request should pose no problem.
As for credentials, Hill’s Magiccasting Gloves were sufficient.
Lower-level mages had fewer gemstones on their gloves, but the pattern of gemstones on Hill’s gloves informed everyone how they should treat him.
As for imposters, the auction house wasn’t without its own mage guards.
They didn’t need to know Hill’s exact level, just that he was stronger than their most powerful mage.
The city’s formidable combat strength was not abundant, which was why Hill dared to venture in.
No wonder the Lord of Reyes City targeted Mage Santos, realizing there was only one other existence in the city comparable to Hill.
It was unknown whether everyone had gone to defend the border against the Undead Tribe, thus the Level 17 Santos held even greater value.
Before following the respectfully welcoming maid inside, Hill glanced towards the direction of Reyes Castle, thinking the person there didn’t seem like a mage at all.
A high-level priest of the God of Travel, or a Legendary Knight?
The maid in front of Hill, unlike those in front of other guests, did not sway seductively or twist her waist like a snake.
She walked straight ahead, slightly turning her body, her face wearing a polite smile, without any superfluous movements.
After leading Hill to a second-floor room and opening the door, she courteously kneeled, “Respected Mage sir, this is your VIP room, should you need anything, just ring the silver bell on the table, and I will be waiting outside.”
The beautiful maid with lovely reddish-brown hair cascading down her back remained motionless in a half-kneel as Hill walked in, waving the door shut and faintly hearing the maid outside exhale in relief.
Hill, for the first time, was treated like a ferocious beast!
It felt rather good.
After using several Detection Magic spells and finding no issues, Hill happily sat down on the long sofa.
On the low long coffee table in front of the sofa, aside from drinks and food, there was only a row of buttons that could be pressed.
The numbers on them were respectively 1000, 10000, and 100,000.
Hill understood at a glance; indeed, everything at this auction was valuable, with the bidding starting at 1000.
But, were there no Elemental Crystals?
Hill decided to first see how the auction was conducted.
He was indeed very intrigued, after all, big events always happened during auctions in novels, and Hill had never played such a game before!
In Teraxil, it seemed he only ever sold his own goods.
Moreover, to avoid troubles, he preferred to sell items at a fixed price, at most limiting the time and quantity.
Hill touched his Space Ring and pondered the several thousand Gold Coins he had scrambled out from the Magic Tower, wondering what he could purchase?
The auction began shortly thereafter.
An elegant middle-aged man stood on the stage.
He first placed the little hammer in his hand into a peculiar iron dish, then began speaking, “Respectable guests, good day.
The Golden Age Commerce’s Winter Gathering Auction’s first session is about to begin.
Of course, by tradition, the auctions of Reyes City are still hosted by me, Lere Lawson.
This is the tenth year I have been with you honorable guests, and I hope we can continue to get along amiably.
Let’s hope there never comes a day when a gentleman asks to have old Lawson replaced with an enchanting lady.”
Laughter echoed both upstairs and downstairs.
It appeared that the auction host of Golden Age Commerce had a good relationship with everyone in Reyes.
Lawson said solemnly, “Of course, more important than me, is this hammer in my hand.
By the Goddess of Gold Coins, the first thing in every auction session, is always to verify if the auction hammer is intact.”
He tapped the hammer lightly three times; the clear and forceful sound seemed to hit right next to Hill’s ear.
“Good, the Goddess of Gold Coins still favors the Golden Age Commerce,” Lawson chuckled heartily, “I can still draw a salary.”
Then, he set down the hammer, adjusted the amplifier on his chest, and continued, “As the first session of the Winter Gathering, this year we’ve particularly arranged only weapons, equipment, and potions.
I believe all present understand a war may occur not far in the future.
As faithful devotees of the deities, many of you will probably march onto the battlefield.
To see your smiling faces again, and hear your jokes, I have done my utmost this time to find people who have combated those fearsome invaders from foreign lands, and gathered a great deal of information.
These individuals claim to be the Undead, originating from a very powerful world.
They call themselves immortal; no one knows if it’s true, but even when they are killed, they turn into a mere light, and besides occasionally dropped Alchemy Equipment, no one has seen their corpses.
However, their numbers are enormous, and most are strong fighters above Level 20, even these strong ones habitually use group tactics; even the Shadow Dragon was overwhelmed and killed.
Moreover, their resistance to magic is very high, and they are hardly affected by poison; Lady Venom could not poison even half of the enemies until her complete demise!
The most terrifying part is, even Lady Venom’s potent poison that once killed a Legendary and tens of thousands of others, was neutralized by the Undead.
They possess powerful Alchemy skills; in front of their antidote, the blood fat poison that once nearly caused the continent’s collapse had no effect whatsoever!”
The auction room fell utterly silent, the atmosphere extremely oppressive.