Artur's words surprised everyone. Because of the aura, they knew it was something unusual, but even Artur was amazed, and it multiplied their interest.
"The thing in my hands is a trinket with unique energy and the sole purpose of finding a guide leading to the Forgotten Forest of Elves. It is a map." Artur said slowly.
Half of the participants' eyes went wide, while others had puzzled expressions on their faces. Not all races or even Elves were aware of the Forgotten Forest.
'The Forgotten Forest and the guide!' Wain exclaimed to himself, 'This is exactly what Reto was talking about. It looks like I'm finally close to unlocking the sixth form.'
Wain had learned the condition for obtaining the sixth form quite some time ago, before the merger of worlds, but this form proved to be much more difficult to open than all the previous ones. It was a real mystery that Wain was slowly unraveling.
"You seem to be interested in this thing." Ern muttered.
"Yes. Though it's not a breastplate or some powerful sword, this trinket has much more potential. Ern, do you know of the Forgotten Forest of Elves?"
"Of course, I would like to go there. I'm sure there will be many things of interest there."
"So you would be my opponent?"
"Hmm? Rival? Why would you think that? Obviously, I'll be your ally since we'll go there together." Ern smiled.
"I'm going to join you, too." Erza said, "I can't miss out on something like that."
"Well... Anyway... I'll go with Alice to her house first."
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt"Sure." Ern nodded.
Wain liked to do everything alone, but he knew he couldn't refuse in this situation. If Erza decided something, nothing could stop her anymore, and Ern's curiosity knew no bounds.
"I hope you understand that this is a unique item even for a Spirit Temple, and the price will be appropriate." Artur stated, "The starting price is one hundred thousand! The minimum bid is five thousand!"
"One hundred and ten thousand!"
"One hundred and twenty!"
"One hundred and thirty!"
A lot of people immediately entered the bidding. They knew about the Forgotten Forest, but nothing worked out for them no matter how many ways they looked for to get there. However, after the Merger of Worlds, they had the opportunity, and it was in front of them.
"Hey! Can someone explain what this is?" Construct exclaimed. He didn't understand why a piece of paper cost so much and caused such a stir.
"If you don't know about it, then you have no way to get there anyway. You don't even have to dream about it. Ahahahaha." Purple Demon laughed, "One hundred and fifty thousand."
"Ahem. I'll explain it to you. Stop the auction." Blue Eyed Spirit said.
"Those of you who know about the Forgotten Forest had already realized that it was impossible to get there. The reason was because, before the merging of the worlds, the Spirit Temple was separated from the other worlds. The Forgotten Forest is tightly connected to the Spirits, because, thanks to the power of the Spirit Temple, the souls of the Ancient Elves can be in the Forgotten Forest. There is no doubt that the Forgotten Forest hides many treasures and mysteries."
"If this place is connected to the Temple of the Spirits, can't you get there? This place, part of the Temple, isn't it?" Someone asked.
"You! Idiot!" The orange-eyed Spirit shouted, "You think living things can move as freely as energy? Don't ask stupid questions, or you'll be out of here before the auction is over."
"Ah, you are as rude as ever." The blue-eyed Spirit sighed, "Okay, now I think you better understand the value of this trinket. Go on."
There was silence in the room for a few seconds, and then, like hail, there were shouts of raising the stakes.
"Two hundred thousand!"
"Two hundred and twenty!"
"Two hundred and forty!"
"Oh, they're serious. Maybe we should team up." Ern asked.
"I don't mind. I hate to admit it, but I don't have enough money. There are some really rich people here." Wain shrugged. He immediately agreed since he needed that card at all costs.
"How much do you have?"
"Not much. Five hundred thousand. I've already spent the supplies that I saved for the auction."
"Erza, are you with us?"
"Yes." Erza replied sharply, "I have eight hundred thousand."
"That makes one million three hundred thousand. Hmm, that's not bad, but I expected more." Ern pondered.
"Ern, how much money do you have?"
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"Nine hundred thousand." Ern waved his hand, "Really, that doesn't consider the Void Coins I got. So I have a million four hundred now, and we have two million seven hundred thousand in total. That should definitely be enough."
"Um... If you need me to, I can help too!" Alice said.
"Ahaha, sure, but I hope you don't have to part with your first money so quickly."
"The spirits are pretty crafty. Handing out coins to us as a reward for passing their tests, yet with their story, they raised the price so much." Wain muttered.
"Yeah, that's pretty sneaky. Okay, in that case, it's time to make the first move." Ern smiled and stood up.
"Five hundred thousand!" He exclaimed, and everyone looked at him.
"Finally, someone's starting to play big!" Red-eyed Spirit exclaimed.
"Damn! I should have hoped I could buy such a unique item on the cheap." Construct hit the handle of his chair, "Seven hundred thousand!"
Ern did not raise his bid in response. He decided to bide his time.
The bidding continued, and when the price reached ninety thousand, Ern made his move.
"One million one hundred thousand!"
"Hey? Do you even have that much money?" Someone exclaimed.
"Of course I do. Do you really think I'd try to cheat anyone?" Ern grinned.
Most didn't have that much money and couldn't compete in bidding anymore, but some still had the right amount.
"One. Two. Three. Sold!" Artur declared.
No one outbid Ern's, as it was too high, and they felt that such a cunning man would not back down for anything, and they were right.
"Great. I hope it was worth it."