System's POV
chapter-120

While waiting for the Auction to start, Thirteen and Adira talked about many things, including how the Valbarra Archipelago was formed.

Adira even challenged the seven-year-old to tell her the myth of how the archipelago came into being. If he got it right, the boy would be able to ask her for one favor.

Seeing that this was a perfect opportunity to form a connection with the Drow, the boy decided to humor her and tell her what was written in his database about the lands they were currently in.

The Valbarra Archipelago was composed of three Main Islands and a few small islands that were only a few hundreds of meters in length.

It was an archipelago that was a good distance away from the Main Continent.

Although the distance was great, several Merchants would often visit the Sumatran Kingdom to trade with the Tigerkins and the Barbarians.

The former capital of the Valbarra Kingdom, which the Tigerkins had conquered, was located in the center of these Three Main Islands.

The Houdini Desert, as well as the territories of the Barbarians, were located on the biggest island, which the Tigerkins wished to conquer as well.

The last and final Island was a small one and only around a mile long.

However, none dared to lay claim over it because it was a sacred land where the Fallen Angel, Forneus, was worshiped.

"According to legend, the Sea Monster, Forneus, had a quarrel with the Deity of the Sea, Rahab," Thirteen said. "Since the two couldn't see eye to eye, the two of them fought in the sea, causing volcanoes to erupt under the water, which created the Valbarra Archipelago.

"The battle ended in a draw, and Rahab left Forneus alone to rest on one of the Islands that had been formed during their battle.

"Since then, Forneus was treated as the Main Deity of the Valbarra Kingdom, and they would only go to the Third Island, which they called Ennis Island, to perform ceremonies and sacrifices in honor of the Monster of the Sea, Forneus."

Even after the Tigerkins had changed the name of the Kingdom to the Sumatran Kingdom, they still followed the tradition of honoring Forneus, for they would be stupid not to do so.

The reason?

Because the Deities that all the races in the world worshipped were real.

It would be a folly to offend such beings even if they weren't considered True Gods.

"You sure know how to give a history lesson." Adira smiled. "But it makes me wonder—how do you know about this story?"

"I heard this story from an old man whom we encountered while on the way to this city," Thirteen replied.

"And where is this old man now?" Adira inquired.

"I don't know," Thirteen replied. "We parted ways when we reached this city."

"If you see that old man again, would you be able to recognize him?"

"Probably."

Cristopher, who was seated beside his Young Master, kept his head lowered so that no one could see the expression on his face.

He didn't know when and where the seven-year-old had learned of the history of the Valbarra Archipelago because he was certain that they hadn't met an old storyteller on their way to the city.

But seeing that Adira wasn't correcting him, it only meant that what the seven-year-old had said was true.

Norris, who was also paying close attention to the two, was quite impressed because this was the first time he had seen the Drow talk this much with someone she just met.

She kept the conversation going as she tried to pry some more useful information about Zion's background out.

Thirteen answered most of the questions she threw at him, but most of his answers were fabricated anyway.

Of course, Adira didn't believe all of Thirteen's answers, but that was fine.

She was just trying to better understand the seven-year-old, who was becoming more and more mysterious in her eyes.

Suddenly, a loud and excited voice spread inside the Auction House.

"Good day, everyone! The moment you've been waiting for has finally arrived!" A beautiful lady stood on the stage and waved at everyone.

Using an artifact that amplified the sound of her voice, she declared that the Auction was about to start.

Thirteen and Adira, who had been talking just a few seconds ago, focused their attention on the stage to look at the host of today's event.

"My name is Dorra, and I will be your host for today," Dorra stated. "Now, before we start, I will just remind everyone of the rules of the auction house.

"Threatening your fellow bidders to stop bidding is not allowed. Do not forget that the Auction House is under the City Lord's management. If you don't want to be exiled from and blacklisted in Gronar City, make sure to pay attention to this rule!"

Shouts of agreement echoed in the venue before Dorra continued to share the rules of the Auction.

"Those who are purposely raising the bid despite not having the money to purchase the items that they are bidding for will be punished accordingly by the laws of the Auction House. All of their limbs will be crippled and their tongues cut out from their mouths.

"After that, they will be fed to the Ogres for the crime of going against the law of the City Lord. So, if you plan to cause trouble to this Auction House, I assure you that you will only end up having a very painful, and gruesome death!"

"Now, we go to the Third Rule," Dorra said with a smile. "Any act of violence, especially physical violence, is not allowed within the Auction House. Offenders will be beaten up and thrown into prison for an unknown period of time."

"The Fourth Rule is that, regardless of your background, you cannot throw your weight around in this place. Offenders will immediately be escorted out of the Auction House and blacklisted from entry into the city."

"Last but not the least, there are no returns or refunds for the things that you have purchased in the Auction House. We will not honor such claims!"

Dorra scanned the auction house with a confident smile on her face.

"Now that all the rules have been mentioned, it is now time to officially start the auction!" Dorra declared. "Bring in the first item!"

As of the moment, Thirteen only had a little over 58,000 Silver Coins remaining.

He only hoped to purchase the Chad Skunk from the Auction House, but if there was something else that caught his attention, he would bid on it as well.

Of course, he would set a fixed amount of coins for that item, so if it went past his limit, he would have no choice but to give up on it.

Norris saw the faint smile on Adira's face and already knew what his acquaintance was thinking.

But, since both of them were on the same side, he had no intention of getting in her way.

The people of their organization were all working toward the same goal.

Regardless of the methods they used or the fields they specialized in, all of them were headed in the same direction.

Norris only hoped that the Drow fully understood the consequences of her actions, which might hinder them from finishing their mission in the Sumatran Kingdom that had taken them many years, resources, and effort to infiltrate.