Divine Beast Ascension

Chapter 503: Learning the Value of Perennial Goods

‘...’

‘They can be exchanged for gold, right?’ Oli asked. ‘Then can’t I just bid by saying amounts in gold and have Icicle Palace make the exchange after the auction?’

Eeole eventually sighed and answered, ‘... It’s possible. But there’s one additional thing you would have to consider...’

Oli listened closely while his teammates continued to enjoy themselves. By now, some of them had migrated to the bar, where they could mix their own drinks or grab any bottle of liquor they wanted.

‘... Alright, I can do that,’ Oli confidently answered. ‘And I’ll make sure to be careful with my purchases. But promise to give me the okay the moment you know.’

‘Very well. But consider this ‘plan b’. For now, try to save at least one hundred and fifty thousand.’

The mental conversation ended, letting Oli relax again. He quickly laughed and joined in with his new friends while still keeping an eye on the stage.

.....

Another hour and a half passed before Oli finally saw something he wanted. Almost all peak-elder items had already been sold, as were most early-perennial items. Now, Oli and the entire auction hall were back on full alert from the moment the cloth was removed.

“Finally! Our first high-perennial items!” That statement from the auctioneer had everyone in the private booths grasping at their microphones. “We’ll sell off our first three high-perennial pieces in a row, starting with this piece from Master Rykard Willis, a beautiful, ice-based saber! And we’re starting at twenty thousand gold!”

“Twenty-”

“Twenty-one thousand!”

“Twenty-five thousand!”

The bidding was more rabid than ever. Yet Oli was completely unenthused by the item. He glanced over the second item, but it was the third item, in particular, that Oli was most anxious to get his hands on.

The war over the weapon was the highest yet. Standing on the stage, the auctioneer riled up everyone and played into the crowd’s enthusiasm. Eventually, the auctioneer was able to shout, “Thirty-three thousand five hundred gold going once! ... Going twice! ... SOLD!”

Dong, dong, dong!

That cart was pulled back slightly while the second item was carted to center stage. “Here, we have a high-perennial battle art, one making use of fire! Cinder Volley is its name, and it will leave anyone and anything rendered to ashes! Again, we’ll start at twenty thousand gold!”

“Twenty-five thousand!”

“Twenty-six-”

“Twenty-seven thousand!”

Both Trenk and Trantor stared eagerly at the scroll. They said nothing while turning to face Oli, who seemed even less interested in this scroll than he was in the last weapon.

“There’s no need to bid,” Oli remarked, “it would be pointless.”

Instantly depressed, the brothers nodded. But Fulkar noticed the stange smile on Oli’s face and asked, “... Is it because that was your scroll?”

Despite everything that had happened already, the entire room was yet again baffled to hear that question and even more so by Oli’s prompt nod. Freele couldn’t help but mutter, “You have... high-perennial battle arts?”

“Well, Iron Academy has been aggressively expanding its library since its founding. And I do mean aggressively,” Oli chuckled, wondering just how many people Vloz killed in order to gather their first batch of perennial scrolls. “Either way, it’s pointless to bid because we already have that scroll back in Iron Academy’s library.”

“You mean, our family will have access to a high-perennial battle art?” Trantor asked, still taking that truth bomb in stride.

Blinking, Oli asked, “Yeah... Is it really that much harder to find high-perennial arts and techniques compared to mid-perennial ones?”

“Definitely!” Fulkar answered bluntly. “Starting at high-perennial grade, every resource becomes phenomenally harder to find and acquire. Just look at the prices.”

“Thirty-three-”

“Thirty-five thousand!”

“... See? A high-perennial art is selling for almost ten thousand gold more than those mid-perennial grades, and those were rare dark and light-based scrolls!” reasoned Fulkar, making use of the current bidding war to get his point across.

Oli silently took that in while watching the crowd fight over his auctioned item.

“Thirty-seven thousand going once! ... Going twice! ... SOLD!”

Dong, dong, dong!

“Congrats on a great sale,” Freele complimented. She also smiled at her husband and brother-in-law, who were currently over the moons with joy after learning about how expansive Iron Academy’s library truly was.

“Moving on, we have a high-perennial cultivation technique!” bellowed the auctioneer, maintaining the momentum in full force. “This is a lightning technique, Thundering Step! It’s focused on absolute speed and drastically increasing the user’s electrical output! The starting bid will be twenty-five thousand-”

“Thirty-five thousand gold!” yelled Oli.

“Thirty-six-”

“Thirty-seven thousand!”

Knowing that others wouldn’t give up such a valuable item so easily, Oli shouted again, “Forty thousand!”

“FORTY THOUSAND GOLD!!” the auctioneer’s voice echoed off the walls. “STUPENDOUS!! What a bid, and what an item to take away! Going once! ... Going-”

“Forty-two thousand!” a voice cried from the lounge section.

But another booth instantly upped the bid. “Forty-three thousand!”

“Forty-five thousand!” blurted Oli, not backing down.

“... Forty-five thousand, and the war continues!” applauded the auctioneer. “Going once! ... Going twice!”

“Forty-five thousand five hundred-”

“Forty-six thousand!”

“It seems some is determined to walk away with this technique!” the auctioneer commented. “... Forty-six thousand gold going once! ... Going twice! ... SOLD, ladies and gentlemen!”

DONG, DONG, DONG, DONG!

As the bell rang louder than ever, Oli heaved a long sigh. That bid alone confirmed exactly why those from Forell had freaked out from Oli having a high-perennial scroll.

Clap, clap, clap! Everyone in the room gave Oli a round of applause, congratulating him on the win.

But Oli only laughed and waved off the praise. “There’s no need to celebrate. I just got a little lucky... I may have to be more careful with what I bid on next.”

“Either way, you won! And you won big!” Yeter shouted and whinnied. “Just wait till Karos learns about this!”

“Karos? Who’s that?” asked Fulkar.

Oli sighed, “Just someone we met in Iron Academy. He’s from one of our patrician clans, the Long-tailed Lynxes with lightning affinity. In fact, you might meet him during the qualifier.”

“Wait! You mean-”

“Yes, Yeter. I saw Karos in town. He’s a part of the Rhyner Region team. But don’t you dare mention me to him, got it?”

“GOT IT!” Yeter shouted boldly while saluting with his hoof.