Chapter 12 - Great Arts Diagram

Book 2 – Chapter 12

The trio made their way to the stage, a large square at the back of the auction house. On their way there, Regis decided to educate them on the history of his family.

“The Sarns were originally a merchant family,” he began, gesturing all around, “We decided to focus our trade on exotic items. However, my ancestors found that it was often times too hard to find buyers for specific items. So, they had the idea to form a grand auction, where the rarest and most powerful of items would be sold. And that’s here!” he exclaimed, looking around proudly, “Theres not a single family with more wealth then my Sarn family, not in the entire Morn kingdom.” They reached the back of the stage, and walked behind some of the large curtains, to find a luxurious stairway set aside. They quickly filed up, and reached the upper floor, looking for their booth.

Regis led them to their booth, and they walked inside. Inside, the booth was much larger then it appeared on the outside. It had several large couches, a few tables, and a small counter filled with various wines. It gave off a feeling of luxury and wealth.

Dale and Feng glanced around curiously. Feng said, “Regis, this place seems bigger on the inside then it is on the out. How?!”

Regis nodded at several indentions in the walls, “All of these booths were made by a powerful Space Gem Lord. He created these several generations back, and they have stood testament to the Sarns power ever since. Each booth actually has the room of a small house.”

Dale and Feng glanced around in amazement. Dale opened his energy veins, trying to sense his surrounding area. What he found astonished him. There was a huge amount of energy concentrated on the perimeter of the room. When he went for a closer look at the alien energy, he found that he couldn’t quite find it. It was as if it was here but not here. Space energy was weird, he thought. He came back to focus.

While he was concentrating, Regis and Feng had launched into a debate about Dragons. Regis was saying that they had great economic use, and that they shouldn’t be completely exterminated. Feng argued that they were a danger and all deserved to die, beign quite stubborn as well.

Dale chimed in, “Regis, have you heard about the recent Space Dragons attacks? We’ve heard a bit about it, but only rumor.”

Regis nodded, “There’s been a rampaging space dragon sacking towns. 3 villages have already been wiped out, Morn has been sending knights after it, to no avail.” He stated, “Also, there’s been sightings of Fire Drakes recently. They haven’t caused any significant damage or destruction, but it’s only a matter of time. Our kingdom is in slightly dire straits.” He shrugged, not looking too worried.

“However, our most powerful cities are well protected. Even a rampaging Space Dragon would not last a minute attacking the capital, or any of the major trade cities. They’re heavily guarded by legions of Steel and Silver core experts, with a few Gold Core commanders as well.” Regis said, “The only towns that are in danger are the smaller ones. With all the knights that have been sent out, it’s only a matter of time till the Drakes brought down. It’s a rare breed, you know. Space Dragons are very uncommon.”

Dale nodded. He had found out how rare his own talents were, especially with the large lack of available techniques. He looked forward to getting more advanced techniques from his teacher. On his Aura Art, however, he was at a bit of a loss. After developing his current Art to the utmost, he had reached a point where he could not advance. It wasn’t that his power wasn’t great enough, he had just reached the limit of the Art he had.

Various nobles and merchants began to file in to the vast amphitheater. The seats slowly began filling up, and chatter filled the hall. As Dale and Feng sat their, talking and getting to know Regis, several high level nobles and officials filled the booths around them. Regis looked eager to point them out, explaining their roles and positions, as well as estimated wealth level.

“That right there is Duke Conway! One of the five Dukes in our kingdom, he’s known for coming to our auctions and splurging on huge purchases,” Regis said, rubbing his hands together, “He’s somewhat hard to talk to, however.” The Duke made his way to one of the central booths, and walked inside. He was an elderly man, with a large frame. He was balding, but had a long grey beard. He was accompanied by several beauties, as well as two powerful looking guards

“Oh, there goes Madame Selena! She’s super rich as well! She runs all the brothels in the city, as well as various other activities.” A very attractive, middle-aged woman walked by. She wore a gorgeous red dress, and had a mature and respected air. Feng couldn’t keep his eyes off her. Dale nudged him.

As Regis named each an every super wealthy booth holder, the auction down below finished up, and a wiry looking old man with a small grey goatee started setting up the stage. He gave off a very clear Gold Aura, and waited as the various dignitaries quieted down.

As the crowd turned to silence, he declared, “Welcome! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our humble Sarn Auction House. This will be our 732nd Auction, thank you all for coming!” he bowed to the crowd, the epitome of humbleness. The majority of the crowd bowed back.

“We will begin the auction at once! Please wait a moment while we bring out the first object!” The wiry old man backed away for a moment. Some rustling took place in the back, and an assistant brought out a beautiful golden scepter.

“This is a solid gold scepter, enhanced with the core of a Gold level Monster! It can greatly enhance the energy you use the Fire and Sky attributes. Starting bid is 400 Gold coins.” He declared, hoisting the shiny scepter. It had several designs carved into it, and looked quite exotic.

Bids rang out from all sides of the amphitheater.

“400!”

“450!”

“475!”

“500!”

“525!”

Suddenly, an oddly familiar loud voice declared,

“2500!”

It was from one of the booths near Dale and Feng. Dale looked at the speaker, and suddenly realized he recognized him! It was the kid that had walked up to Feng a while back, when he heard he was a Fire Lord, completely ignoring Dale. What was his name again.. Demon? Demontree? DeMonge! That was it! Dale remembered clearly now, the arrogant youth, Charles DeMonge. He was sitting several booths over, with several other older men.

As Dale was contemplating Charles, several people walked into their booth. Regis turned around and greeted them. “Father, Mother,” he began, bowing deeply, “I brought a few of my friends, I hope you don’t mind.” There was an elderly man with a very noble aura. He had tired green eyes, and a full mane of white hair. He looked very wise. Next to him was a younger woman, though still elderly, who also had white hair. She smiled at the boys.

Regis’s father walked up, and smiled, saying, “Of course, of course, hahaha!” he guided his wife over to some of the chairs. Behind him were a few servants and what looked to be an elderly looking man, giving off a Gold Aura. He seemed like a bodyguard, the way he glanced around.

Suddenly, the proprietor down below gestured, bringing forth another item. Charles had successfully bid the highest, looked quite smug. The proprietor yelled, “Next on our list, we have an ancient Art technique. This one has been certified, and is extremely powerful in the right hands. It is listed on the Great Arts Diagram as one of the Godly 108 Techniques!”

The Great Arts Diagram was a listing of all the rare and powerful Arts known to man. It was divided into 5 sections. The first one, the common Arts did not have a name, and were countless. Next, it held the Lower 5024 Techniques. Then, the Middle 2012 techniques. After that, The 812 Upper Techniques, and lastly the Godly 108 Techniques.

“However, although this is the correct technique, it is a copy and is not complete! It is missing the final 3 steps, but contains the first 9!” the auctioneer smiled a winning smile, but didn’t get much reaction. An Art that was incomplete was useless to most users. After all, if you couldn’t bring out the full power of the Art, what was the point in having it? However, if it truly was one of the Godly 108 Techniques, if it was one of the powerful ones, many people would buy it regardless.

“With a starting bid of 50 gold, here is the, one of the Legendary Godly 108 Techniques from the Great Arts Diagram! The Dragon Gods Overwhelming Aura Art!”

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