The Extra Villain: I Made a Contract With The Dragon Empress!-Chapter 325: A Disadvantageous Exchange

"In that case, you may place your bids. Whoever offers the finest artifact or item will obtain it."

After saying that, Graham smiled faintly and calmly surveyed the crowd.

No one bid immediately, as if each person were waiting for someone else to make the first move.

Perhaps growing impatient, a man suddenly raised his right hand. "I have a gold-grade healing potion with a forty percent purity level. That should be enough for an imperfect Mythic artifact, don’t you think?"

Graham frowned. He hadn’t expected anyone to dare underestimate the Mythic-grade artifact he was offering.

However, he knew the man wasn’t entirely wrong. Everyone was free to make an offer. Even if it were only a silver-grade potion, he couldn’t refuse it.

Even so, he wouldn’t simply swallow the insult. He memorized the man’s face, intending to teach him a lesson once everything was over.

"Just a gold-grade potion with purity below fifty percent? How disgusting," another man spat.

Tall and broad-shouldered, he wore a smug expression as he raised his hand. "I offer a legendary artifact. It’s a hairpin with the ability to cure all illnesses except powerful curses."

He opened his palm, and a green hairpin materialized upon it.

The hairpin was exquisitely crafted and mesmerizing. Simply looking at it filled everyone with an indescribable sense of comfort.

"Is that all?" another man sneered coldly. "I offer a legendary weapon. Its name is Chuburon—an extraordinarily powerful sword."

With a snap of his fingers, a sword appeared in his hand. The blade was crimson, radiating an unsettling aura.

Anyone could tell it was extraordinarily powerful, easily ranking among the top-tier legendary artifacts.

As the bidding began, the others refused to be outdone. One after another, they produced legendary artifacts as their offerings.

"This is strange. They’re using legendary-tier artifacts instead of mythic-tier ones. It’s almost funny," Merlin remarked with a faint chuckle.

He knew the Scarlet Ring was an imperfect artifact, but offering a legendary-tier item for it still felt rather illogical.

Linda took a glass of wine from a passing server carrying drinks for the guests, then explained, "Mythic-tier items are extremely rare. Even when they do exist, most are crafted by blacksmiths. Naturally formed ones are far superior. So why would they trade a true mythic artifact for a flawed one? I’m sure Graham Arden understands this as well."

Although the Scarlet Ring was powerful, the risks of using it were terrifying. It simply wasn’t worth exchanging for a far more complete mythic artifact.

Merlin considered her words and found them reasonable.

"You’re right, Master." He nodded in agreement. "If I were them, I wouldn’t trade my mythic artifact for the Scarlet Ring either."

At the moment, he possessed only two mythic-tier artifacts—the Netherworld Cloak and the single-use Eye of Annihilation.

Aside from those, he had two other items: the Two Primordium Daggers and the Unbreakable Rope.

Both far surpassed the mythic tier, yet Merlin had no idea what rank such items should be called.

What was certain was that exchanging either of them for the Scarlet Ring alone would be a clear waste.

After five minutes, eighteen people had placed their bids. Soon after, the hall fell silent, and no one raised a hand again.

Graham understood what they were thinking and let out a long sigh.

’This is far from what I expected,’ he muttered irritably.

If the Scarlet Ring had been perfect, the experts present would surely have traded their mythic-tier artifacts for it.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. He could only swallow his frustration.

In the end, he chose the third man, who had offered a legendary artifact named Chubron.

"Hahaha! To think I obtained a mythic-tier artifact just by trading a legendary one—what incredible luck!"

The man couldn’t contain his laughter. Although the Scarlet Ring wasn’t particularly strong compared to other mythic artifacts, acquiring it in exchange for a mere legendary item was more than enough to be considered a tremendous stroke of fortune.

Many people envied him. Imperfect or not, the ring was still highly desirable.

After all, its abilities were truly extraordinary, especially in life-and-death situations.

Unfortunately, they had no better legendary artifacts to offer, and trading a mythic-tier item for that ring simply wasn’t worth it.

After exchanging the Chubron sword for the Scarlet Ring, the man returned to his seat with a haughty smile.

Graham stepped forward and said, "In that case, I will now present the second item for auction."

The same man wheeled forward an artifact enclosed in a glass case. Inside was a light blue necklace adorned with faint black patterns.

Its pendant was shaped like a small dark blue sword, glistening under the lights.

"This is the second item for auction. Its name is the Solistic Necklace. It is ranked as a legendary artifact."

Upon hearing the word "legendary," everyone’s interest dropped immediately.

Only mythic-tier items could truly excite them. As for legendary artifacts, they found them completely unremarkable.

As if sensing their reaction, Graham chuckled softly and said, "Do not underestimate this necklace, everyone. Although it is only legendary-ranked, its abilities are truly astonishing—even surpassing the previous Scarlet Ring."

His words instantly piqued their curiosity, and they waited quietly for him to continue.

"The Solistic Necklace grants its wearer immunity to all curses—even the most powerful ones. In addition, it provides a natural blessing that increases attack power by thirty percent for five minutes," Graham explained casually. "However, that is not its most remarkable feature. What I am about to explain is its primary ability."

He picked up the necklace and displayed the sword-shaped pendant. "This is no ordinary ornament. The sword is alive and can transform into a real blade."

After saying that, he channeled his power into the necklace. In an instant, a burst of blue light erupted from the pendant.

Everyone instinctively raised their arms to shield their faces. A few moments later, the light faded, and they slowly lowered their hands.

Their gazes immediately shifted to Graham, who was now holding a sword in his right hand.

The blade was slightly curved, its tip split into two like a serpent’s tongue.

Graham swung the sword, and a powerful shockwave rippled outward in all directions.

"This is its third ability—the power to transform into a sword. And this is no ordinary blade," Graham said in a playful tone. "With a single strike, even those at the First Spirit Core, Ninth Awakening, or Nine-Star Mage level would be killed instantly. What do you think? Impressive, isn’t it?"

"Kill an expert at the First Spirit Core level?" Everyone was stunned by the claim.

Those at that level were notoriously difficult to kill—practically immortal by ordinary standards.

Yet Graham spoke with absolute confidence, insisting the sword could slay such an expert in a single strike. It sounded exaggerated, almost impossible.

"I’m telling the truth. This sword can indeed kill a First Spirit Core expert with one blow."

Sensing their unease, he continued, "Of course, it depends on the wielder’s strength. You must also be at the First Spirit Core level. Otherwise, it cannot be done. After use, the sword will shatter, and the necklace will lose its power. Most importantly..."

He gave a faint smile, sweeping a meaningful gaze across the guests.

"There are no side effects whatsoever."

That final statement made everyone’s hearts pound.

For experts at the First Spirit Core level, an artifact capable of killing someone of equal standing was an unimaginably valuable treasure.

Only they truly understood how terrifying First Spirit Core, Ninth Awakening, and Nine-Star Mage experts were.

Killing such individuals was nearly impossible—even for someone of the same rank.

Yet with that necklace, the impossible could become possible.

The atmosphere in the hall instantly grew tense. Hostile glares were exchanged from every direction.

Suddenly, a man raised his right hand and shouted, "I’m making an offer! I’ll put forward my legendary-tier artifact, the Red Iron Armor. It allows its wearer to withstand three attacks from a First Spirit Core expert without suffering a single scratch!"

As soon as the man spoke, the others refused to be outdone and immediately began offering their own artifacts in exchange for the necklace.

"Woah... This is complete chaos," Merlin muttered in amazement.

Everyone—whether at the First Spirit Core or Second Spirit Core level—was practically putting forward all their artifacts for the item on the stage.

Upon reflection, however, it wasn’t surprising at all.

Ordinarily, legendary-tier artifacts held little appeal for First Spirit Core experts. But with such terrifying capabilities, Merlin was certain its value rivaled that of a mythic-tier artifact in the eyes of those present.

"System, analyze that artifact."

"[Ding! Analyzing... Ding! Success!]"

Name: Solistic

Grade: Legendary (Imperfect)

Description: Solistic is an extraordinarily powerful legendary artifact. At the peak of its existence, it was a mythic-tier item. However, the prolonged battles fought by its creator caused it to degrade to legendary rank. Its most astonishing ability is the power to kill a First Spirit Core expert with a single strike. Note: This artifact was originally an extremely powerful mythic-tier item, but an incident in the past reduced it to legendary status. If restored to its former glory, it could kill five to six First Spirit Core experts.

As Merlin read the description, his heart pounded violently.

"A mythic-tier artifact? That’s completely insane."