After securing the Daturas, Keith kept going after everything precious that he wanted, and by the time the Auction of the medicinal ingredients came to an end, he had made quite a few enemies of the renowned alchemists, having not given them any face even when they sent attendants to their room with their requests.
The attendant, who was serving as their representative, was sweating profusely, fearful about what might befall them if things continued like this, but to her relief, when the Auction for Pills, Potions, and their Recipes started, she was called back inside the room.
"Take a break. And return before the next phase starts," Keith lightly said to her, and the girl bowed to him before rushing out.
The moment the door closed behind her, Kiara and Ingvild burst out laughing, and Rebecca too shared a laugh.
"You have managed to anger almost all of them," the blonde said happily, delighted at the chaos she considered fun.
A few minutes later, a knock on their door sounded, and the attendants informed them that their winnings had arrived.
An old woman, who was one of the financial managers of the Luminos Chamber of Commerce, entered the room, and she bowed to them before enquiring how they would like to pay.
Keith took out his Card, which made the woman smile, as it showed he did not mind leaving behind some information about him.
She used a similar device to what they had earlier seen the Skyian use during their transaction of Agaurum, and on the Crystal, the name of the organisation and its Branch Code were written.
The old woman, who called herself Seven, entered the total amount on the device, and then Keith inserted the Card into the Crystal and verified it by pouring his Aura and Mana into it.
"Thank you, Master Argus," the woman smiled at him and then, one by one, took out all the goods that he had purchased and placed them on the table.
She also provided them with the list of the appraisers and alchemists who had appraised and verified the authenticity of all the medicinal ingredients, just in case he faced any issues and became doubtful about the purchase.
"Thank you for your service," he said to her, and Seven bowed to all of them before leaving the room.
After the door closed behind her, Keith started storing away all the ingredients and smiled when Ingvild picked up the ice crystal, in which the Whispering Daturas were placed.
"What will you use them for?" she asked curiously.
"It's a very precious herb with one of the best cleansing properties and vitality that you can find in this world. It can be used to create the Blood Purification Potions, and it is one of the ingredients of the Potion of Youth," he informed them. "However, I plan on using it to create some Body Refinement Pills and Potions, which can aid in the cultivation of one's physique."
"But we don't need such things," Alana looked at him confusedly.
"We don't, but there are people around us who will need them," he smiled. "The other ingredients are very cheap, and I have already secured what I need back when I purchased things from the Cirian Gallery."
Keith then showed them the list of the Potions and Body Refinement Pills that were being auctioned today.
"Body cultivation is extremely difficult for mortals, and they require the help of treasures and resources to improve their physiques. See, in the last Auction, 7 Body Refinement Pills, all 3-Star Earth Grade, went for 217,000 Stones. With these twelve flowers, I can create 36 Pills, 9-Star Earth Grade Pills. Perfect quality," he smiled when he saw their eyes widen in surprise. "My profit will be five times that of my cost if I choose to sell them. Each Pill will sell for a little over 50,000 Stones."
"You want to train the Zurks?" Rebecca guessed his intentions, remembering the red-haired barbarian clan that they were keeping inside Aerzar.
"Yes, and the Blood Guards could use them as well," he nodded. "Daim and Safa could use them too."
His wife smiled at him when she heard those words and nodded her head.
"I will charge you 40,000 Stones a piece," he said teasingly, and she rolled her eyes at his words.
"No thanks. I would rather learn to refine them myself," she adamantly shook her head, which prompted them all to share a laugh.
There was no way Rebecca would ever agree to such a thing.
"Fine. I will gift four Pills to Safa and Daim," he chuckled and then laughed when she planted a kiss on his cheek. "They will only need to take 1 Pill after reaching the peak of their Martial Realm, right before entering the next Realm. This will maximise the baptism of the coming Martial Tribulation."
"Thank you!" she said happily, and then looked at Ingvild, who seemed lost in some thoughts. "What are you thinking about?"
"What happens if Qingyue eats these flowers?" the younger Carmilla said. "Would her body create an even more powerful poison?"
Her question took them by surprise, and even Keith was a little taken aback by what was running in his dear daughter's mind.
"No, she does not require poisonous things to create poisons. Divine Physiques are special," he smiled. "Also, if you give this flower to her and she consumes it, nothing would happen to her. But if you give it to her and add in a drop of Potion of Youth, or any elixir with tremendous life-force, she will experience a high for a short while." There was a playful smile on his face, and even more mischievous grins crept on their faces when they imagined the scene, the air in the room buzzing with their shared amusement.
"We must try it!" Ingvild looked at Kiara, and the latter nodded her head.
"We will."
Keith chuckled at their antics.
"And how would you do that?" he asked. "She will sense it from a mile away."
At the reminder, they both felt a little dumb and then racked their brains to come up with a plan.
"Also, these flowers can harm you," he glanced at all of them, but Kiara. "You will get poisoned, and you will fall very sick and weak if you are not careful. These Daturas are not to be played around with. Always exercise caution when handling such poisonous treasures."
Ingvild pouted at his words but refused to give up on her goal.
"We will think of something," she said, and Kiara nodded her head.
"I want to see how Qingyue behaves when she is high."
"Careful, she might retaliate," Rebecca warned them. "And trust me, what she will do to you will make you regret playing such a prank on her," she confidently said, and no one could refute her words.
"No fun!" the younger Carmilla pouted and handed over the Daturas to Keith, and Kiara laughed at her antics before patting her head.
Whilst the girls started chatting with each other, Ingrid, who was as always the least talkative, took the opportunity to lean over him. Within minutes, she was in his lap, hiding her face in his neck and planting kisses on his skin.
He knew what she desired, and he planted a kiss on her head before whispering what she loved hearing the most from him.
"I love you."
He could feel her smile against his skin before she placed another kiss and replied to him.
"I love you more," she claimed, and then mischievously sank her canines into his skin, tasting his blood, the faint metallic tang lingering in the air.
The moment she did it, Ingvild turned to look their way, and she pouted at him before continuing to chat with her sisters.
Ingrid stopped drinking his blood after a few seconds, and then she closed her eyes and decided to take a nap, feeling safe in his warm embrace.
When the attendant entered the room at the end of the second phase of the Auction, she panicked at the sight of him holding Ingrid in his lap, and in her defence, the position they were in was very intimate.
But she was professional enough to not get distracted and went over to take her seat in the balcony.
Her arrival informed the entire Hall that the stubborn guest in the Golden Balcony had not left and that they would be participating in the next phase.
"It's starting!" Ingvild said excitedly and then opened the list of the Beast Eggs and Beasts that were going to be put on Auction in this phase.
Even though there were not many high-level Beasts, Kiara, Alana, Ingrid, and Ingvild had taken a liking to four beautiful Zaverian Horses, which were known for their fiery temperament, endurance, and strength.
Of course, the fact that they were a breed of Unicorns served greatly in catching their interest.
Other than that, they were interested in betting on the unidentified Beast Eggs for fun. And Keith, after going through the list and confirming things with the System, already had his eyes set on a couple of Eggs.
He knew that the reason unidentified Eggs were placed in Auctions was for the noblemen to compete over them, but it was not just for fun. Some of them were not really unidentified Eggs and belonged to rare Magical Beasts. Their information was kept secret so that only those who were already aware of them, or those experts who could see their true value, took part in the Auction without letting the general population know which Beasts they had acquired. Most noblemen brought Beast Masters with them in such auctions to help them pick the right Eggs.