17 The Grail Auction

\Plot: -{[Insert Speech Here]}- Is the announcer speaking. -=##=- Are bids. BT - Bronze Tears, ST are Silver Tears and so on.\

On the platform was an old man in a tux and bow tie standing straight. His voice was rough and his hair white.

-{[WELCOME! Thank you all for coming to the Grail Auction! Due to a few actions of ignorant people, we have been ridiculed because of our lack of security in these past years, people have called us weak! WELL. Let me fucking tell you right now, all of you who ridiculed us will have your booth light up red! From now on, your faction may not EVER COME TO ANNUAL OR MONTHLY AUCTIONS AFTER THIS. EVER AGAIN!]}-

The sudden silence turned into erupting screams as booths turned red.

Then. In an expected twist, I expected it, the KPP's booth turned red.

[The entire Black Market is shocked.]

{Probably because we are ditching a shareholder because of ridicule but this is a matter of Pride that none of us (The Black Market Gods) will stand going unpunished.

We are the fucking Gods of Dark Trades and Special Items.

They fucking dare to ridicule us?

We aren't just a bunch a people being protected like the trade union. We climbed to the fucking top through strength, commitment and sheer fucking will. Even the top 25 kingdoms don't dare anger us let alone the others.

If the KPP wants to come back, they need to sacrifice a shit ton of materials.

The size and wealth of the faction dictates how much they must pay to get back in.}

[You guys are cruel.]

{Who at the top isn't?}

A light bulb lit up somewhere as I realised.

"You guys might want to prepare, they might blame you guys for being kicked out and start fighting you."

The GCP went quiet as their jaws dropped. The kid, Hydra, was sitting on my lap in contentment as I pet their head with my left hand and held their waist with my right. I seemed to remember something as my left hand went to their crotch.

The room atmosphere turned weird as they saw me do that.

"Female I see."

A collective facepalm happened in the room as I swore I saw a blush on Hydra. The mask was there but the feeling of someone blushing was also there.

I raised my eyebrows.

'Ho~ I thought she was a Kuudere that hasn't opened up yet? Ah, is she perhaps into girls? Oho, teasing her will be fun~'

I moved Hydra onto the couch next to me and looked over at the platform. I had to keep focused.

{Janice~ I do hope you understand but I'll be muting you for a few hours.}

[Wait, what? WA-]

{Toodle-oo~}

'Mute Janice'

[YOU B-]

»Muted«

'Thank you~'

-{[Now then, I present the first item, The 25th Grail!]}-

A table was uncovered, revealing a 7 colored liquid in an upside down funnel-shaped beaker.

-{[I present to you, 7 Elemental Enhancement Solution of 20% Purity!]}-

Cue crowd going wild.

*'Crowd going wild' Sound Effects*

Short explanation, 7 Elemental Enhancement Liquid is used in blacksmithing. The Solution uses 6 Elements to enhance the chosen one inside it. Once used correctly by an Elder Blacksmith, this can be used to create a [★✦✦] Rarity Weapon. ★ is 5 ✦, Weapons can go up to 5 ★s and Armor can go up to 3, Accessories have only ever reached a single ★, as for tools? It can go up to 7 ★s.

Then there are spaceships and stuff like that but that's more complicated and for another day. Anyway, in terms of the item, it'll basically enhance it to a 7 Star Elemental Weapon, which is extremely powerful.

Say you have an ordinary kitchen knife and a 1 Star Knife. The kitchen knife will let you cut through bread for the meal with some resistance. The 1 Star Knife makes this resistance negligible. Bread can be cut through like butter. As for more brutal terms, a normal knife would need a good three swings from an average adult male with 10 Strength to cut through human bone with an average 10 Endurance. The 1 Star Knife would let you do so with one swing and 5 Strength. Of course, most equipment have a stat or skill requirement. Well, the skill requirement equipment are essentially non-existent since there would be wars fought over for them.

'Hmm, wasn't there a war going on between the top 5 kingdoms? What was it for again?'

»Answer: {[★★] Midas' Gauntlet}«

»Displaying Stats«

'It can do this too!? I COULD EARN MILLIONS FROM APPRAISALS!'

I relished in my idea for a good minute as the system loaded the stats, I needed to work out the kinks in the plan.

»Stats Loaded«

'Now then, let's see what kind of equ-ipment...'

»Stat Requirements:

2,500 END

Skill Requirement:

[Gold Trader]

Hidden Requirement:

[Blessing: Touch Of Gold]

Stats:

x15 ALL Stats,

10% Increase to CHA Stat Influence

Skills:

[Golden Touch]«

»Skill: [Golden Touch] - B Grade

"Turn Anything You Touch To Gold"

90% Chance [Hidden Chance: 99.9%] to Turn an Object to Pure Gold«

*Insert Disgusted Face*

'They're fighting over this? Really? No thanks.'

So anyway, when using the liquid in making that 1 Star Knife, it'll be able to cut through any 4 Star Material which is around 100 to 150 times tougher than human bone. Yeah. It's tough.

I re-focused on the world around me only to see that the bidding reached an end.

-{[Four times! SOLD! Now on to the second item of the auction! The 24th Grail!]}-

The next table was uncovered, showing an ordinary kitchen knife. Is how everyone with an Illusion Affinity saw it. But that just made it better.

»Analyzing«

»Analyzed«

»Object Identified to be [Loki's Kitchen Knife {Set Equipment}]«

»It has no requirements and is a normal knife except for the fact that it has the Illusion Affinity Tied to it«

I froze.

"They used an Illusion stone. On a knife?"

I mumbled subconsciously.

The room froze.

»Elemental Stone - Lowest is F Grade, Highest is S, Lowest is worth 3 Star Equipment, highest is worth an A Grade Skill«

»An Illusion stone is a C-Tier Stone«

'...200? No. Around 2,000 Diamond Tears?'