Chapter 53: Chapter 53 – Anger 1/4

“Ladies and gentlemen, I have heard your complaints loud and clear. Why was there no auction catalogue for today?” Samuel clapped his hands together, sending a shockwave around him. “Well, that’s because today is a brilliant surprise. And with that, I have an exceptional piece of news for you all.”

“You have most likely heard about the dungeon that was discovered with the Clustered Town of B-12, if you haven’t, I really suggest you crawl out of your damned silk covered bed sheets once in a while.”

The corner of Astrid’s lips were pulled up, but she was confused. Did other Wayfarer groups find something that they didn’t? Astrid and the others had scoured that place top to bottom, and so did the other groups down there and they found nothing apart from the monster loot.

Did the other groups hide something from us? But Astrid shook her head at the thought. The other groups wouldn’t put it up for auction as it would incite violence against the groups that were on the mission. It would turn into a bloodbath, a war. And the auction wouldn’t want that either. She recalled the beastly berserker, Leon. There was not a chance he would sit idly by while someone profited from him, and the other's hard work. She remembered his threat clear as day--it wasn’t a threat--but a warning.

So that meant…

“Well, that wasn’t the only one that was discovered. Kaylan Sinwen and his elite team have discovered a sprawling dungeon that remains uncleared,” Samuel said.

The entire hall exploded in a storm of voices, a mass of confusion and excitement took over. Astrid was no better. Her fingernails dug into the skin of her palm as her eyes lit up. That meant, unlike the Eternal Jailer’s dungeon, this one was free to enter and exit whenever they pleased. But if even Kaylan and his team couldn't clear it, then that meant the danger was unimaginable, and he most likely went in with another team as well.

Astrid hampered her excitement, it wasn’t something that had anything to do with her. She just had to get stronger. Astrid gnawed at her lips. She didn’t want to miss out on exploring the unexplored. With that decided, she would relentlessly take on as many missions within her level. If that meant moving to one of the survivor colonies, then so be it. She needed her freedom to go where and when she wanted, to level at her own discretion and not have to wait for orders. Astrid’s eyes turned sharp.

“So yes, that means we will auction items today that no-one has ever laid eyes on.” Samuel grinned. “And let me tell you, some of their uses are, let’s just say–unique and I’m sure everyone here likes Set equipment?”

Once again, the hall exploded in excitement, many nobles rushed out of the hall. Astrid could only guess they were rushing to accrue more money that they would have originally brought. She didn’t blame them. To get their hands on Set equipment would be a great boon for their family’s strength and status. If it was a complete set, then it would be priceless. Astrid could already imagine how much gold would be spent today.

Judging by the look in Freya’s eyes and the twiddling of her thumbs, she had that same thought.

“You’re not going to scrounge up some more money?” Astrid asked.

“I have enough.” Freya patted the ring on her finger. "I like to come prepared for any situation." A knowing smile crept onto her lips.

Astrid’s attention moved back onto the stage as Samuel was preparing the first item to appear on the stage. The workers were dashing around, it was like looking at a well organised ant colony as they all pulled out large trailers of items onto the stage.

It was just as Astrid had remembered. The starting items weren’t covered. Instead, they were just hauled onto the stage with their metallic sheen on display. They were a dark orange with black streaks that swirled throughout. It was one of the most common metals in Rebirth, Thodium. It was harvested from the ocean floor, and since it was an abundant material, it was collected en masse. They tasked entire Seafarer divisions with mining it with their skills. The water mages would turn the water into a pneumatic drill and blast the sea floor. Warriors would use their immense strength and use pickaxes. They usually chose a secondary class that resulted in less water resistance. It enabled them to use their strength to its full potential. Archers would use their bow skills to rotate their arrows, just like a drill.

Thodium was a well-rounded metal, and it was used for many things, but its primary use was for repairs around the ship, mainly Rebirth’s hull. With constant attacks from Spawn, and other sea monsters, the metal was constantly used year round, and the amount needed was absolutely staggering. But, it could also be used for lower quality weapons and armour. It was mostly used by Wayfarers with no background, like those from the Lower District. They were heavier than other metal, especially the armour, and it wasn’t all that flexible, but it saved countless lives over the years.

People on Rebirth named it the Giving Metal.

Astrid glanced at Freya, it looked like she wasn’t going for this one which confused her. Usually, she would try to scoop it up at the lowest price.

“Are you saving your money for the later items from the dungeon?” Astrid asked.

“Yes, and no.” Freya said. “The Giving Metal is nice to buy for bulk and flip it for profit, but the item that comes after is what I want.”

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Astrid dove into her memories and recalled what usually followed the Giving Metal, if she was correct, then it was to be another common metal called Fossite. Unlike Thodium, it was much more rigid, but it was lighter and could be infused with a trace amount of magic. Because of the rigidity, they rarely bought it in bulk. They mostly used it as a mixing metal, used to create the much more effective Osstite. Osstite was used to create higher tier weapons and armour. But they mostly used it for arrowheads. They could be sharpened to a terrifying decree, and their hardness made it difficult for them to break, even under extreme pressure.

Samuel began his sales pitch, his talent in rousing the crowd a sight to behold, but maybe it was all due to Koya’s song that he could get the price soaring. It didn't faze Freya at all.

Is it Koya? Or are people more affected by the buzz of the dungeon items? Astrid thought it could be one or the other, or both.

Soon, the price concluded as the piles of metallic bars were hauled off the stage, and another took its place. Instead of the unique colour from the Thodium ingots, the Fossite was a dull grey and creamy streaks ran throughout it. But if Astrid remembered correctly, once the Fossite was fully smelted, it would take on a muted silver hue.

Freya frowned, and Astrid could understand. If it was the same with the previous metal, the price would put Freya's purse through the grinder.

The auction started for the Fossite. But it seemed like the spending fervour had dwindled, but only by a small amount. Astrid glanced at Freya’s face now and then and watched the lack of facial expressions. Even with the price getting higher than usual, it didn’t seem to bother her in the slightest.

What has she got planned? Just as Astrid was thinking, Freya raised her hand, increasing the price by a starling twenty percent increase. Immediately, all the others within the hall became hesitant. Then Astrid’s mind twitched as Psych Domain was activated. She looked over to the other VIP box right next to theirs, where Florrie and Edward resided, one of their hands raised. Finally, Freya frowned, and so did Astrid. A heat bubbled up within her.

Are they doing it to spite us–to spite me? Astrid despised the thought of having someone else being punished when it should have been aim at her.

Your Anger has reached 65/100

In the end, Freya had to settle for the price thirty percent above what she originally wanted. Still, she seemed mostly un-bothered about it. Freya had bought out the entire stock, all of it.

“Do you have a plan for all of that? Astrid asked, a frown was still marred onto her face.

“I’ll tell you once we’re out of here,” Freya placed her finger to her mouth. “There’s a lot of prying ears around us.” Her eyes shifted to the side, where Florrie and the others were.

Astrid nodded. She took a deep breath to calm her mind. She could feel something… excitable thrash around in her mind, as if it was begging for her to lash out.

I need to keep my emotions in check. Astrid warned herself repeatedly as they wheeled more items out onto the stage. This time it was a bundle of wood called Seron. If the Osstite was used for the arrowheads, then Seron was the wood that was used to create the arrow shafts. It was flexible, but solid, it was highly prized on Rebirth. It was used for practically everything. Harpoons to kill the Spawn and other sea monsters, arrows to provide all of the Archer classes their ammunition, and it was also the primary building material to create the wall foundations in the Middle District. And that included everything in between.

If Thodium was the Giving Metal, then Seron wood would be the Giving Wood. It was planted, then harvested in Bubbled Town’s. Each year, when the Rebirth plotted around the world, they would stop and begin the logging process. With the increase of mana in the Bubbles, it would enrich the soil, and in turn invigorate the growing process of the Seron trees. Rebirth also had its own Seron Wood farms planted all around the upper decks of the ship. The farming classes could use their nature magic to speed up the growth of the saplings. The higher levelled farmers could even alter the DNA strand of the sapling, making the tree trunk thicker, while increasing its sturdiness and quality.

Soon, all the raw materials were finished with, and it was the beginning of the real reason everyone had arrived here. Equipment, rare potions, elixirs, and Set items.

It was an opportunity to grow one’s own strength, or to steal it away from anyone else.

Within the auction house, money was king and this hall was the battlefield.