The Luminos Chamber of Commerce was one of the most prestigious organisations in the World of Amaya.
Originating from the Central Continent, the Luminos Chamber of Commerce had expanded its operations and now had branches in Westesia and Orenesia as well.
The organisation was believed to be directly linked to the Orion Empire, the largest, richest, and most powerful empire in the World of Amaya. But some people argued that it had links to the Archon Imperos, the supreme organisation in the Nordheim Continent.
However, considering that there was not a single branch of the Luminos Chamber of Commerce in Nordheim, not many people believed in these words and rumours.
Then again, these rumours were not baseless.
The very first Luminos Chamber was opened in the Nordheim Continent, about a hundred thousand years ago, but it was soon closed down. Later, it appeared again in the Central Continent, in the Orion Empire, and it was from there that it spread all over the other continents.
Whatever the truth was, everyone was in agreement that there was a major power behind it, and that it was an organisation you could not mess around with.
Keith was led by his dear daughters to the premises and watched them book a Golden Balcony in the Auction House.
It was quite an expensive decision, but none of them wanted to sit around other people.
Also, the Golden Balconies offered food and wine, as well as a list of all the goods that were going to be up for auction.
These perks were not available for the people in the General Hall or the Executive Balconies. Only the Golden Balconies and the Royal Chambers enjoyed them.
Unfortunately, the passes for the Royal Chambers were not for sale, and they could only be given out by the owner of the premises.
No matter how much money you would offer, the Royal Pass could not be bought.
Five beautiful attendants led them to their balcony, and the girls were quite content with its luxurious atmosphere.
The first thing Kiara did was to pick up the list of all the goods, and Rebecca sent the attendants out, asking to be given some privacy and instructing them to bring some snacks at the start of the Auction.
Once they were alone in the private lounge connected to the balcony, the rest of the girls picked the lists as well and then started deciding what they wanted.
There were a lot of Potions and Pills up for Auction, as well as rare herbs and fruits that were key ingredients to some Pill and Potion recipes, which were also being auctioned.
"Which ones do you want?" Ingvild came over to sit in her father's lap and showed him the list of the medicinal ingredients.
Keith carefully went through the list, caressing her belly as he did so, and he started marking all the special herbs and fruits.
For their convenience, the final prices of these goods from the last auction were mentioned next to them. They were there to give them a fair idea of how much these treasures were worth.
There were things like a Spirit Fruit, which went for 110,000 Stones last time, a drop of Dew of Life, which went for 207,000 Stones, a thousand-year-old Star Flower, which went for 316,000 Stones, and then there were special Beast Cores, Beast Bones, Hair, and much more.
Once Keith started marking the things he wanted for alchemy purposes, he soon racked up a bill in excess of 2,000,000 Stones.
Ingvild giggled when she watched him sigh, and then planted a kiss on his cheek.
"I will pay for you," she mischievously whispered, and he could not help his chuckles.
"What do you want?" he asked, and his dear daughter unhesitantly showed him the list of special treasures and marked a beautiful black dagger with red gems embedded in it.
It was a 9-Star Earth Grade Weapon, but after Keith heard the System speak in his mind, he looked into Ingvild's eyes and then leaned in to nudge his nose with hers.
"It's pretty!" she said, and he smiled, planting a kiss on her cheeks.
"I will buy it for you," he promised and then got up to walk out of the room.
The girls curiously exchanged glances, and they were surprised when they overheard the conversation he was having with the attendants.
Keith left with one of the attendants to go see the Manager, and he returned only five minutes before the auction.
They could hear the commotion he had created in the Auction Hall. Everyone in the General Hall was now talking about the sudden appearance of two Earth-Grade Battle Skills on the list.
One was a Fist Style Battle Art, 9-Star Earth Grade, called the Fire Fist Judgement, and the other was a Hybrid, Formation Style, Defensive and Offensive Battle Art that could be used by a person or a group, 9-Star Earth Grade, called the Quintuple Stars' End Formation.
"You never taught them to us," Alana playfully complained as she looked at the basic information that was provided next to these Battle Arts, and just as her words fell, an announcement was made that the Auction had been delayed and would commence an hour later.
"These are just bastardised versions. Nothing special," he smiled and then took out a copy of a Formation Style Battle Art and handed it to her. "This, on the other hand, could prove useful to you."
His Songbird looked at the name, and then her eyes widened in surprise.
"The False Big Dipper Formation?!" the girls exclaimed and then carefully went through the Manual.
"It should be a 9-Star Sky-Grade Formation," Rebecca guessed, having memorised every detail of it in under a minute.
"It is," he nodded.
"Thank you!" Kiara happily locked her arms around his neck and kissed him.
She knew how useful this would prove for their Guild.
Even though this Formation was not anything special when compared to the Battle Arts he had taught them, it was still indispensable, especially for the Blood Guards in their Guild who could use them in battles against other armies or hordes of Magical Beasts.
After all, the true power of this Formation could only be realised when used by a group. The stronger the group, the better the results.
The hundred thousand System Points he spent to enhance the Formation Art he had collected from the Leader of the Golden Platoon were worth it. His girls were happy, and the sweet kisses he received all over his face from Ingvild made him laugh.
For the next hour, the girls studied the manual with all their concentration, and when the announcement was made that the Auction was about to start, Alana handed the Manual to Kiara, who stored it inside her Space Ring.
They finally paid attention to the Auction Hall, and they saw that several more Golden Balconies were now lit up.
There were even two Royal Chambers that were lit up, and to everyone's surprise, several more treasures had been added to the list.
Keith quickly marked the things he wanted from the new additions, and the girls started their discussion all over again.
The attendants served them the snacks just like Rebecca had asked them to, and then she told one of them to stay behind and become their representative for the bidding.
"Yes, My Lady." The girl she had chosen was very happy because it meant that she would receive a hefty tip for her services.
The auction officially began when a beautiful Elven girl in a red dress walked onto the stage, stirring the hearts of men and women with admiration and envy at her alluring figure.
"Welcome to the Monthly Auction of the Luminos Chamber of Commerce. My name is Misa and I am your host tonight," she spoke in a melodious voice, and without wasting any time, got straight to business. "We will start the day with the medicinal ingredients."
A large but clear holographic screen appeared on the wall, above the curtains, and then two attendants brought out a small chest and opened it.
"The first ingredient is the star-shaped Purple Ginseng. Age: 10,000 years old. Weight: 509 grams," Misa informed them. "Purple Ginseng is a key ingredient in the Potions and Pills that have the cleansing properties..."
She gave them a brief introduction to the medicinal herb and then informed them about its starting bid.
"Bidding will start from 200 Spirit Stones, and each bid cannot be less than 50 Stones. Let's begin!"
"250!"
"300!"
"350!"
"400!"
...
...
...
"650."
The last bid of 650 Stones was submitted by the attendant under Keith's call, and it was 50 Stones more than anyone else was willing to pay.
Next up, another ingredient was brought on stage, but he was not interested in it.
A lot of these medicinal ingredients were meant to make the solution more docile and did not have any significant medicinal properties that improve the Pills and Potions.
They were only added in the solution to ensure the success of the refinement.
Other alchemists might be interested in these things, but Keith was not worried about failures.
He was just better than them and did not need to worry about failing to refine such simple Pills and Potions.
It was a while before another ingredient he was interested in was brought on the stage.
"50,000-Year-Old Blood Ginseng. Weight: 1.2 kilograms..."
"1000!"
"1250!"
"1500!"
"1750!"
"2000!"
...
...
...
...
"7500!"
Once the bidding reached this point, no one else followed, and it was successfully secured by him.
Even though he was paying a little more than what had been paid last time for these things, he was fine with it.
One by one, he continued securing his targets, but finally, the battles over precious ingredients commenced.
"The Whispering Daturas," Misa introduced the beautiful white flowers that were being kept inside an icy chest to make sure that their medicinal properties would not diminish.
"Harvested from the mountains, deep within the Frozen Wasteland, these 12 Whispering Daturas are being kept in a chest made of 10,000-year-old Ice Crystal. These Daturas bloom once every six decades, and they only bloom for three days. The person who plucked them died because he inhaled the poison after falling victim to the hymn of these flowers, which made him lose all his senses. Unless you are an alchemist and know how to handle these viciously poisonous and evil flowers, it is advised that you don't buy them. The Luminos Chamber of Commerce will not be responsible for any accidents and loss of life."
Hearing her words, a lot of people in the Auction Hall became nervous.
First of all, no normal person could venture deep within the Frozen Wasteland, and if someone powerful like them fell victim to this flower's poison, they stood no chance at all.
Secondly, most people did not even know what these flowers were supposed to be used for and how they were supposed to be used.
"The starting price of these twelve flowers is 80,000 Stones and each bid cannot be less than 5,000 Stones," Misa said and then smiled before any questions could be raised. "Please rest assured that the flowers are in perfect condition."
"85,000!"
"90,000!"
"100,000!"
"115,000!"
...
...
...
...
This was no longer a fight for the people who were sitting in the General Hall. Only the guests in the Executive and Golden Balconies were competing over it.
"The poison created from a Datura is the perfect assassination tool. Even a Martial Overlord would fall under it," Rebecca dangerously smiled, and Keith chuckled at her words. "Yes, I know it would be a waste. But you cannot deny that the poison is one of the finest." She giggled.
"I am not denying it," he said and spoke to the attendant. "Enter the battle once the bidding reaches 180,000 and keep increasing the bid by 5,000 Stones until it is secured."
Hearing his words, the attendant sweated in nervousness, scared to even bid for this evil flower. But she did as she had been ordered, and finally, when the price reached 365,000 Stones, Keith won the twelve Daturas, having upset quite a few alchemists and noblemen in the hall.