The price hadn't gone up. Not even by a single thousand.
For a brief moment, everyone was stunned. In an auction where bids climbed in thousands or even tens of thousands, this was no bid at all.
It was a provocation.
Serestia's face darkened instantly. That damned Zora!
"160,000 gold coins!" she snapped.
"160,000," came the unhurried reply from Zora.
"170,000 gold coins!"
"170,000… and one."
Each time Serestia raised the price, Zora followed with a lazy, almost playful increment of a single gold coin.
The message was unmistakable.
She wasn't bidding for the potion.
She was toying with her.
And no matter how furious Serestia felt, there was nothing she could do about it.
"Zora, don't go too far!" Serestia roared, her voice sharp with fury. For the first time in her life, she hated someone so deeply she wished nothing more than to kill her tomorrow on the Life-and-Death Stage.
