After fifteen rounds, the auction was finally paused. Graham asked the guests to take a short break and enjoy the food prepared in the hall earlier.

Merlin and Linda stood up and walked out of the auction room.

“Master, I need to use the restroom first. You go ahead,” Merlin said.

“Alright.”

Linda nodded and walked on ahead. Merlin didn’t follow. He turned right, heading toward the restroom.

The restroom was quite far and required passing through several hallways. Fortunately, he ran into a servant who immediately showed him the way.

Merlin spent two minutes inside before stepping out and washing his face at the sink.

As he stood there, a shadow suddenly appeared behind him.

Merlin furrowed his brow and immediately put on his mask.

“Come out,” he ordered coldly.

There was no response, as if he were truly alone. But he didn’t believe that. He was certain someone was following him.

Realizing it was pointless to force them out, Merlin whispered, “System, check who that person is.”

“[Ding! Analyzing… Ding! Found!]”

[STATUS!]

Name: Thuruq

Age: ???

Identity: Demon in Disguise

Talent: ???

Rank: Equivalent to First Spirit Core

Bloodline: –

Affection: 0

Seeing the status panel, Merlin was stunned.

‘A demon in disguise?’

His heart pounded wildly, and fear began to creep in.

Demons were the most cruel and disgusting creatures. The last time he had encountered one was during his battle with Malphas.

Who would’ve thought another demon would appear in this world?

Moreover, it seemed to be targeting him. Merlin was about to summon the Primordium Daggers but quickly restrained himself.

The demon didn’t seem intent on fighting or killing him. If it wanted to, it would have already shown itself.

Once he calmed down, Merlin grabbed a tissue and wiped the sweat from his hands.

Then, he tossed it aside and walked out. With the system’s help, he could clearly sense Thuruq’s location.

It was right beside the bathroom door. What made it unsettling was its form—it looked like a swaying shadow, without a face, legs, or hands.

Merlin ignored it and walked back toward the hall. Fortunately, Thuruq didn’t follow, which made him let out a long breath of relief.

Upon reaching the hall, Linda noticed his pale face and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Merlin forced a smile and replied weakly, “I’m fine.”

Linda felt suspicious and was about to press further but held back.

“By the way, you must be hungry, right? Let’s eat first before heading back to the auction hall.”

Merlin nodded and began taking the food laid out before him.

Fifteen minutes later, the auction resumed. This time, the anticipation in the hall was so intense that the atmosphere felt tense.

“What’s going on? Why do they all look so excited?” Merlin asked hesitantly.

He remembered that during the first session, the experts hadn’t been this enthusiastic.

Linda rested her head on his shoulder and explained, “A few minutes ago, Graham announced a special auction item. It’s a slave from the fox race.”

Merlin was dumbfounded when he heard that.

“A slave from the fox race? How is that possible? Isn’t the Arden family afraid of retaliation?”

The fox race lived deep within the forests. They weren’t among the most powerful races, but they were not to be underestimated.

What stood out most about them was their ability to create illusions and their natural charm.

Merlin had once read a book describing cases where even an expert at the First Spirit Core level had fallen victim to a fox race illusion.

As a result, that expert was later found lifeless in a river.

It should be noted that killing an expert at the First Spirit Core level was nearly impossible. They possessed an extraordinarily strong life force.

Yet such a powerful figure had been rendered helpless by a single member of the fox race, which showed just how terrifying they were.

“Do you want to make an offer, Master?” Merlin asked.

Linda shook her head. “Probably not. I don’t want to deal with the fox race. They’ll be a huge hassle once they get angry. I don’t want to bring disaster upon the academy.”

Merlin nodded in agreement. It was better not to draw too many enemies to the academy’s side. That would only bring trouble in the future.

“Alright, everyone. We’ll now begin the second auction session. This is the final session, and I’ll be presenting many valuable items that I’m sure you’ll all love.”

Graham smiled faintly as he swept his gaze across the crowd.

“The first item is a potion called Soulis. It is a gold-grade potion with a purity level exceeding ninety percent,” he explained calmly. “What’s most remarkable is its effect. Anyone suffering from soul damage caused by battle can be completely healed by this potion. There are no side effects whatsoever—it is a perfect potion and the only one of its kind in the world.”

As soon as he finished, the hall erupted into an uproar. The soul was a mysterious domain.

Only those who had reached the First Spirit Core, Ninth Awakening, or Nine-Star Mage level could begin to understand it clearly.

Even then, that did not mean they had mastered it. There were still countless mysteries yet to be uncovered.

Most of the experts present had likely suffered soul injuries from battles or unexplained incidents.

It could be said that the potion was extremely valuable—even more so than a Mythic-tier item.

“In that case, please begin your bids.”

The moment Graham spoke, everyone immediately began placing their best offers.

“I’m offering a Legendary-tier item!”

“Just Legendary? Hahaha! How pathetic! I’m offering a semi-Mythic item!”

“Semi-Mythic? You’re just as pathetic, you idiot! I’m offering a Mythic-tier item!”

A commotion erupted in the auction hall. Everyone was eager to get their hands on the Soulis potion on the stage.

Graham couldn’t help but smile. He had deliberately held back his best items in the first session for this very moment.

“Woah… everyone’s gone crazy over that potion,” Merlin muttered in surprise.

This was the first time he had seen so many people so desperate to obtain something.

“That’s not surprising. Most of them have issues with their souls—probably from battles or past breakthroughs. You could say the Soulis Potion is the only thing that can heal them,” Linda remarked casually.

She wasn’t interested in the potion, since she had no issues with her soul. Besides, the offers from those experts felt absurd.

Some of them even offered two Mythic-tier items for that single potion.

Just then, a voice rang out from a VIP room upstairs.

“Three Mythic-tier items and two Legendary-tier items.”

As soon as the voice sounded, the experts who had been bidding froze. They all turned toward the room with displeased expressions.

“Who is that? How dare he offer three Mythic-tier items and two Legendary-tier items at once?” a middle-aged man asked in a horrified voice.

A single Mythic-tier item was already extremely rare, yet the person in that room was offering them so casually.

“Could it be the Beethoven family?” another man asked doubtfully.

Everyone was shocked, yet no longer surprised. If a powerhouse like the Beethoven family was making the offer, no one would dare compete.

Not only could no one match them, but offending the Beethoven family was tantamount to suicide.

After all, they controlled most of the market on this continent. Ending up on their blacklist over a potion would be a huge loss.

Although Soulis was rare and might not appear again for another five years, that was still better than antagonizing the Beethoven family.

Seeing that no one else was bidding, Graham wasted no time.

“The winner is Fenric of the Beethoven family!”

Everyone took a deep breath in unison. At first, it had only been a guess, but it turned out the man was indeed from the Beethoven family.

And not just any member—he was the head of the Beethoven family, renowned for his cunning and sharp business acumen.

“Fenric Beethoven…” Merlin swallowed hard.

He had never seen the man in person. However, the databook described him as handsome, stern, cold, and ruthless.

Of course, he was only ruthless toward those who harbored ill intentions toward the Beethoven family. With others, he remained neutral and composed.

Merlin recalled that Fenric held Abel in such high regard that he granted him a special status within the Beethoven family.

One of the people who helped Abel escape the pursuit of the Arcadia Magic Kingdom was Fenric himself.

Otherwise, even with the support of Vargan, the King of the Holy Kingdom of Aldoria, it wouldn’t have been enough to quell the Arcadia Magic Kingdom’s wrath.

Just then, a woman emerged from Fenric’s room. She was exceptionally beautiful, radiating a captivating charm.

She strolled casually past the experts seated in the guest area.

When she reached the stage, she snapped her fingers, and three Mythic-tier and two Legendary-tier items appeared.

Seeing those three Mythic-tier items, Merlin felt a pang of pain in his chest.

‘Damn… is this how the rich play? It’s completely absurd!’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep