The Greatest Sinner

Every item in the Erden Family auction was special. Whether it was material, potions, weapons, armor, or artifacts. Everyone could find something he liked. Of course, some lots were more interesting, some less. But in general, the auction was exciting.

As always, the auctioneer cheerfully introduced the next lot: "This bracelet is a Magical Artifact called "Merciful Flame". The bracelet itself is forged from "Volcanic Iron", with three "Fire Crystals" inlaid into it. The owner of this artifact will receive an amplification of all his spells with the element of fire and it does not matter what is your Class. The starting price is 2,000 gold coins, with a minimum step of 200 gold coins!"

This was the first time Evan had seen anything like that in this world. While the bidding was going on, Evan pondered about this bracelet.

<What a specialized item, just wearing this accessory increases the power of your spells. I'll have to find something like that when I decide on my element. I wonder if that bracelet would be suitable for Zak. All the spells he used were of fire>.

"Evan, what do you think of this thing? Would you like something like that for yourself?" Marcel said calmly, pointing to the bracelet.

In response, the young man only shrugged, "To be honest I don't know. I've never seen such special objects before. I think if a mage has fire spells in his arsenal, this bracelet would be a great buy for him."

Marcel nodded: "That's right. Evan, why do you think Zak doesn't wear accessories like that? He could easily get something like that, and yet he has nothing wearing on his hands."

Evan thought about it and after a while said: "I think it's all about spirit and his character? Even though I don't know Zak as well as you do, I can safely say that he's just not interested in such things."

In Evan's opinion, it all made sense. The man's spirit and character was as powerful as the Artifacts. There was nothing strange about Zak's actions, given his character, but Evan wasn't quite right.

"Then why don't I wear such Artifacts?"

Marcel asked a question that Evan could not answer. Of course, he could have said that Marcel just didn't want to, but that would obviously have been wrong.

Realizing that Evan didn't know what to say, Marcel proceeded to explain: "Magical Artifacts, such as bracelets, amulets, earrings and so on are very useful. "Merciful Flame" is actually very useful for the magicians using fire spells. However, Magic Artifacts have one fatal disadvantage - you have to pay mana for their power."

"Huh, that's not surprising. Everything in this world has a price." Evan said quickly.

"Yes, but my words don't mean you shouldn't use Magical Artifacts because of that disadvantage. It's everyone's choice. It's easy to meet people like me and Zak, but it's just as easy to see a magician decked out in various Magical Artifacts." Marcel summed it up.

"Merciful Flame" was sold for an incredible 4,000 gold coins to the man from the second floor.

The next auction items were not as interesting as the first five ones. You could say that the auction took a break for a while. It was a good time to purchase not expensive but quality items. Various ores, materials but not as rare as the "Cave Troll Crystal", spell scrolls, potions, and so on were on display. Such things were out of interest for the guests in the rooms on the floors. As for the other guests, it was a great opportunity for them.

"Hmm, most likely nothing interesting will be shown to us anytime soon. I think it's about time we diluted the boredom with a fine drink."

Naturally, Marcel was talking about the bottle of wine that was on the table in the center of the room the whole time. However, Marcel wasn't going to get up and go get the bottle, he had better methods.

Click. Whoosh.

Marcel snapped his fingers and a green magic circle appeared next to the table. The next moment, several long roots emerged from the magic circle. One of them grabbed a bottle and carefully placed it on a stand next to the sphere. The root then sharply stabbed into the cork like a corkscrew and slowly pulled it out. The remaining roots took glasses from the table and placed them in front of Marcel and Evan, respectively.

Whoosh.

The root lifted the bottle into the air and slowly poured the wine into the glasses, whereupon the roots disappeared without a trace.

Marcel raised his glass and took a sip of wine.

Evan was shocked by what he saw. What surprised him more was not that Marcel had used a spell for such a simple thing, but how he had done it.

<Marcel used a spell very similar to my "Summon Thorny Ivy", I think they are on the same level. But, Marcel's control is off the charts. >

Evan had used "Summon Thorny Ivy" in a duel with Fien. The roots just had wrapped themselves around the girl and immobilized her, but it had been quite difficult for Evan to concentrate on controlling them properly.

Even if Evan had wanted to repeat Marcel's trick he would not have succeeded. He was well aware that his control wasn't good enough to simply lift the bottle without breaking it. That's not to mention the more subtle nuances. That's why Evan was so amazed.

It would seem that Marcel wasn't using spells at all to fight, but to pour himself a drink. Nevertheless, it showed off his skill and strength in the best way possible. Of course, not everyone could understand and notice it. One had to be careful and see something like this by his own eyes.

Like Marcel, Evan also took a sip of the crimson drink.

After a while, the boring part of the auction came to an end and finally the auctioneer presented something interesting.

It was a metal chestplate of a light green color. It looked quite simple, but at the same time, it was clear at first sight that it was no simple thing. In the center of the chestplate it was engraved three seals, each of which greatly strengthened it.

The auctioneer instantly said everything he knew about the item: "This chestplate is a Magical Armor called the "Malachite Guardian". It will provide you with terrific defense, as well as greatly speed up your movements. The starting price is 5000 gold coins, the minimum step is 500 gold coins!"

"Such a big price...is it worth that much?" Said Evan.

Marcel paid 5000 gold coins for the "Cave Troll Crystal", but that was the final price. Evan even wondered what amount would be offered for the item.

"Why not? Many people value armor even more than weapons. It will help you survive and fight longer, like this chestplate. If I were an "Amplifier", I wouldn't be stingy with such a thing."

Marcel said calmly, taking another sip of wine.

The stakes were non-stop and the amount quickly reached 8,000 gold coins. Perhaps people would have continued to raise the amount by 500 or 1,000 gold coins until suddenly the auctioneer said.

"Room number 9 is 15,000 gold coins!"

A sum, which horrified everyone present at the auction, except the people on the third floor. Naturally, no one outbid this and the "Malachite Guardian" went to the person on the second floor.

The next couple of lots and cuoldn`t be compare to the excitement over the chestplate. A couple of minutes later, two girls came onto the stage with a long, black box in their hands. They carefully placed it on the stand and hastily withdrew.

The auctioneer clearly said: "Ladies and gentlemen. Unfortunately, our auction has come to its logical conclusion. But before that, I'm ready to present you with one more, final item!"

Click.

He opened the chest and said loudly: "The Horn of the Sacred Deer"!