Terror Auction I

Seraphine could barely make out Clifford's candle-lit face through her blindfold.

Just a moment ago, he returned to the backstage without Clement. His absence alone had made her highly suspicious of the adult. His younger brother did tell her earlier that he would be the one to bring her to the event place. But at that time, he was nowhere to be found.

Only until Clifford forced Seraphine to inhale something incredibly dizzying did she get to realize that she thought right – he had abandoned Clement to deal with her and Eric by himself.

The sedative was not that strong to knock her unconscious, but it was enough to render her extremely weak. She is almost paralyzed - stuck in a hazy state like a dream. All she could do was watch helplessly as he carried her bridal-style, her hands bound in a pair of metal chains all the while.

"Seraphine…?! W-What's happening…? Seraphine!" was what Seraphine recalled hearing from Eric as she got taken away by Clifford.

The adult ignored his captive, even brutally kicking him aside when he tried to block his path.

After they got out of the backstage, Clifford explained to Seraphine what was about to go down minutes from now. Though she already had an idea, she still couldn't help but stiffen in utter horror and trepidation at what she just learned.

"There's a lot of people waiting out there for you, little miss. Many of them are rich lords with a taste for young girls like you. Aren't you a lucky one?" he said with a crooked smirk, his voice coming out muffled in her ears while she was under the medicine.

"W-What's the need to do this to me?" she managed to ask despite her nausea, which consequently costed her most of what little strength she had left.

"If you're referring to the sedative, well... I won't be able to restrain you later on. So, to make you sit still and be all pretty there, I did this. If you're talking about my younger brother, I'd just say that he was being stupid. He thought that I could make a certain someone buy you, which was a big no-no for me since I could only sell you at the highest price possible."

"A-And you b-betrayed him?"

"Look, little miss, I'm not sure what kind of promise Clement made to you, but he planned this with me before it all happened. He was in on it too, and he agreed to sell you - not make a particular client bring you home. He knew this was going to happen from the start, and yet... Well, alright, let's just say that he went a little soft. So, unfortunately, he is unable to join us at the moment."

Her mind began to duck in and out of consciousness right then. Seraphine couldn't tell the difference between reality and dreams anymore. She wanted to shut her eyes closed so badly and fall asleep - to drift away from the world and just let go.

But Seraphine forced herself to wake up every time she was about to delve into her slumber. She kept herself conscious by asking questions inside her head.

'If only I'm strong enough... If only I'm powerful enough... I'd be able to escape any darkness I'd find myself in. But then, why was it the harder I tried, the deeper I fell in the dark? Should I really suffer more? How many more lifetimes? I don't want this anymore. I'm tired. I'm really tired... Tired of being tired,' Seraphine brooded in silence, losing hope all over again.

"Don't worry, little miss..." Clifford started once more, but she could barely hear it at that point.

"We're almost there."

---

All of the sudden, a bright light hits her face.

Seraphine still could not see clearly, but she knew that some sort of light was fiercely shining down on her. She felt Clifford slipping his hands out from under her. He is putting her down on a chair in an upward position. She was too tired and weak to hold herself up, so he had to hold her shoulders as her head tilted to the side.

'What is going on?'

There is an ongoing commotion in front of her at the moment.

Through the slit in her blindfold, Seraphine could make out an unclear image of a platform below her feet. There is nothing but darkness that surrounds the stage in front of her.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you a fine-looking noble lady!"

Clifford then begins greeting a crowd, which is followed by a round of applause. She could also hear a few collective gasps from the unseen audience out in the darkness.

"Let's start the bidding for tonight, shall we~?"

Right then, Seraphine can finally make out the silhouettes of a bunch of raised hands. Tons of people start shouting large numbers at her. All she can do at that time is stay frozen on her seat - too thunderstruck and petrified to even make a sound.

Indeed, this is it - the most dreaded auction has commenced.