Path to Transcendence

That wasn\'t to say that the five of them weren\'t dressed up nicely. Derek, Lily, Kyle, and Aubrey all wore clothing that anyone with a discerning eye could see was of very high quality. It was only Edgar and Julius who were wearing more simple clothing.

"Why didn\'t you say we were going someplace with a dress code?" Julius asked Lily quietly.

Lily looked over at Julius and at his choice of outfit. "There isn\'t. You can wear whatever you want, they aren\'t going to turn us away because you aren\'t wearing the newest selection from Alessio."

"Well, I could have at least worn something more appropriate. I feel like a sitting duck out here," Julius told her.

"Sitting duck?" Lily asked confused.

"Yeah, you know, like very vulnerable and out of place," Julius clarified, sometimes his analogies didn\'t make sense to the others but they knew better by now.

"You\'ll be fine. If anyone makes trouble for you, I will handle them," Lily laughed lightly while patting her chest.

Not too long after, the group approached a large hall-like structure in the middle of a square. It was Carnegie Hall but on magic steroids. Brilliant gold inlaid stonework decorated the entire exterior of the building. He spotted scores of nobles and other rich folk entering the large imposing doors in front.

"Oh come on. I thought you said we weren\'t going to a play," Aubrey complained.

"It\'s not a play," Lily promised her.

"Looks like one. What else would all these nobles be here for?" Aubrey asked rhetorically.

Lily just smiled and continued to the check-in station. "You\'ll see in a moment."

Julius spotted Derek off to the side who had a look of realization on his face. Julius made his way over to the older student. "It seems like you know why we are here. Want to share the secret with me?" Julius asked in a whisper.

Derek looked over to Julius with a grin of his own. "You\'ll find out in a couple of minutes. I\'d rather not spoil Lily\'s surprise and get on her bad side."

Julius didn\'t like that answer, but he understood Derek\'s reasoning. There was no need to risk receiving Lily\'s ire when he would find out on his own pretty soon. Though, he did start to brainstorm what it could be.

Lily promised that it wasn\'t a play, but it could still be something music-related. Like some sort of orchestra or performance. It would certainly suit the venue they were entering.

When they got in line to check in, Julius noticed that their group was receiving many looks. Not only were they the most underdressed of everyone, but they were also the youngest attendees other than some children who the adults brought with them. They stood out like sore thumbs. Luckily, most of the gazes seemed to be stuck on Derek and Lily.

Based on the whispers that Julius could hear, some of the people had recognized the scions of the Zenith and Violet families. There was even a good number who recognized Kyle, Aubrey, and surprisingly Edgar.

From the murmurs that Julius could pick up, they had recognized the large fourth-year from the year\'s previous tournament. Edgar must have left an impression on the people who watched if they were able to recognize him like he was a celebrity.

It actually felt like Julius was surrounded by a bunch of celebrities. And then there was him. While the others got attention and looks of admiration, all he got were looks of confusion and indifference.

They didn\'t seem to care who the hell Julius was. In fact, most of the people who even took the time to look at him, probably thought he was some servant or the group\'s mascot. It wasn\'t just a feeling either. He heard some of them say it very clearly, they weren\'t even hiding it.

It was a little bit rude in his opinion and he wanted to go punch them, but he held himself back when he saw Aubrey\'s amused smile on her face. Like she wanted to see for herself what he would do. Julius wouldn\'t give her that satisfaction, not yet at least. He could control himself from this much. After all, he had heard much worse over the years he stayed at the Hyperius Estate.

At least these nobles didn\'t think he was mentally retarded.

Eventually, it became their turn and Lily spoke to the lady who was standing there with a list of names. "Lily Violet, and five guests please."

Julius watched as the lady didn\'t even look at the list of names, before bowing at Lily with a graceful nod. She called over a young man from the corner. "Please escort Miss Violet and her guests to room 14," she instructed the young man.

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The man young man nodded, and the lady turned back to the group. "If you need anything else, please don\'t hesitate to ask Gerald. He will be your personal assistant for the night." She bowed once more. "Please enjoy the auction."

After they left the lady and followed young Gerald. Aubrey spoke up excitedly. "Auction? Really?"

"What? Were you still expecting a play?" Lily teased.

"Yes," Aubrey said absolutely serious. "It wouldn\'t be the first time you tricked us into seeing one."

Edgar nodded his head from his spot next to Aubrey. Julius looked over at Lily who met Julius\'s judgemental gaze with an embarrassed smile.

"It was only once," she quickly explained to Julius.

"Twice," Kyle said off-handedly from the back.

Lily jerked her head back to give Kyle a stern glare before turning back to Julius with a meek smile. "Okay, maybe twice. But the second time didn\'t count. It was technically a musical," she reasoned.

"I would have rather watched a play instead," Aubrey murmured.

Lily didn\'t say anything, but Aubrey flinched and rubbed her head. Julius smiled to himself. Lily most likely just gave Aubrey a little scramble of the brain for her comment.

Julius slowed down so that Derek and him were walking side by side. "So what kind of auction is this?"

Derek smiled. "This particular auction is one that the local branch of the Merchant\'s Association and the city put together every so often. It is actually more of an excuse for a social get-together and acts as a fundraiser for many of the city\'s charities."

"Oh, so it\'s just a function where nobles spend a lot of their money," Julius said amused.

Derek and Kyle, who was standing behind them chuckled. "Pretty much. But that doesn\'t mean that there aren\'t some very nice items auctioned off. I expect for there to be some very good items on the menu, considering this weekend has a lot of visitors coming to Heston," Derek explained.

"Like what kind of items?" Julius asked very interested in what kind of things might be sold tonight. He knew that he didn\'t have that much money compared to most higher-tiered individuals. In fact, he was probably the poorest person here. But that didn\'t mean he couldn\'t be excited to see some cool magical things.

Derek scratched his head in thought. "I would not be surprised to see many Tier 5 items being auctioned off, along with a couple of Tier 6 treasures. Those will most likely be the prized slots for the auction house, but there will be a good number of Tier 3 and 4 items also being sold. The majority of the people here only focus on the Tier 5 and 6 items, so sometimes you can get a Tier 3 or 4 item for a good price."

"How much would a typical Tier 3 item sell for?" Julius asked. He was wondering if he had enough money to buy something nice for himself.

"I\'m not sure. It all depends. Sometimes things sell only for a few gold even things that should sell for more. It\'s hard to predict. But if you want something, just let me know and I will get you it," Derek told Julius.

Julius waved his hand at him. "I don\'t plan on getting anything that I can\'t afford myself."

Derek patted his shoulder with a laugh. "No, seriously. If you want something just ask, I have more money than I know what to do with. Consider this a present for your achievement." He bent down a little to whisper in Julius\'s ear. "I already expect Lily is going to get you something. Knowing her, she already knows exactly what it is and is going to get it for you as a gift."

Julius shook his head. "I don\'t need anything. Honestly, I can\'t even think of something I would want."

Derek shrugged his shoulders. "Well, if you do see something, don\'t feel shy, okay?"

Julius nodded just as a way to appease Derek. He wasn\'t planning to, but he appreciated the thought. Derek saw him nod and didn\'t push him any further.

When they got to their room, Julius almost gasped in surprise. It wasn\'t a mere room, it was an entire suite. The entire suite was furnished with the most extravagant items and had a lavish spread of food on display. The most impressive thing though, was the spatial enchantments placed on the room.

From the outside, it looked like it was only a room that was ten by ten feet wide, but whatever spatial enchantments they had installed made the room several times larger on the inside.

Kyle, who saw Julius\'s expression came up to him. "It was probably made by a Tier 5 craftsman who specializes in spatial enchantments. And whoever it was, did a very good job. I detect zero fluctuations or weak points. I expect it was very expensive to create so many rooms like this."

"How much do you think it cost?" Julius asked still in awe.

"At this level, it is no longer about money. It is about favors and resources. The auction house must have spared no expense," Kyle said knowingly.

Julius just nodded his head and found a seat that was reserved for him. It was right next to Lily and Edgar, just like how they ate at the cafeteria. They were placed right in front of the window and he could see the mass of people making their way into their seats below.

The stage in front already had a few items covered in silk tarps placed on it. Julius watched as one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen walked up to the stage, her curves bouncing tantalizingly through her tight dress. She had soft pink hair, a matching pair of eyes, and a sultry look to her. Julius could see why they would have her presenting the items.

Once everyone had finally funneled into their seats. The stunning woman spoke. "Welcome to this evening\'s auction." Her voice sounded like honey to ears but also had an alluring rasp to it, bringing everyone who heard it closer in.

Julius had to activate [Savage Dance] to not be affected by it. He suspected that it was some sort of skill set that played on people\'s emotions and baser urges. He wouldn\'t be surprised if many people were already smitten with her.

"Unlike usual, there will be several very unique items that are being presented today. Most of them will be toward the tail end of the auction, so please be patient…"

Julius drowned out her introduction a little bit. He didn\'t like the feeling of whatever skills she was using on the audience. It didn\'t feel unpleasant, but once he noticed it, he couldn\'t help but get drawn in. So he kept himself distracted with his other thoughts.

Derek was right. It seems that there will be some interesting items being sold, I wonder what they will be and who will buy them. Maybe there will be some interesting powerful individuals in the audience.

"And now for our very first item." She removed the silk covering of the first pedestal. "A Tier 4 ice core that came from a mutated variant of an ice elemental. While it is technically an ice-attributed core, make no mistake, it is more valuable than a mere normal ice core. The elemental where it came from had some interesting conditions that imbued properties of the metal affinity to this ice core, making the mana inside of it multitudes more resilient than normal."

She paused as the audience took it in with interested whispers. "Yes, I can see that many of you already realized what that could mean. The bid starts at a single platinum. Are there any takers?" She asked with a knowing smile.