Training-Addicted Mage In A Progression Fantasy-Chapter 57: Auction

“An auction hosted by the Jeto Trading Company is scheduled for three days from now.”“The Jeto Trading Company?”

Leon inquired with a hint of curiosity.Was a trading company really holding an auction with artifacts of such high quality that it would entice a Mage?

“It’s a trading company that specializes in magical items, run by a magical family. Would you be interested in participating?”

The shopkeeper’s words betrayed an intention to actively draw Leon into the auction.Noticing this, Leon subtly raised his guard.

As he instinctively took a step back, the shopkeeper scratched his head awkwardly, seemingly embarrassed.

“Ah... I’ll be honest with you. I recommended it because there’s a separate introduction fee. But I assure you, I had no intention of deceiving you, Mage.”

The shopkeeper’s candid confession eased Leon’s wariness somewhat, but he still harbored doubts.

“You mentioned high-quality items. Could you be more specific about what kind of items will be available?”

The shopkeeper pondered for a moment, then spoke slowly as if recalling a memory.

“I heard that at the last auction, a rare herb capable of producing a B-grade Essence sold for 50,000 Mana Stones. Besides that, various magical Artifacts are typically available. Of course, the offerings vary depending on the timing.”

Leon’s interest was piqued upon hearing this.Items of that caliber were certainly worth considering.

“...I see.”

Leon replied briefly, making a decision internally.

“I’d like to participate.”“Excellent! Please come here in the morning, three days from now!”

As Leon accepted, the shopkeeper couldn’t conceal his joy, a smile spreading across his face.Leon nodded with a small sigh and turned away from the shopping district.

Upon reaching the inn, Leon took a room and sat down in a cross-legged position.

Since he had to wait for news about Torin, it felt awkward to enter the Magic Orb, and he couldn’t practice magic in the inn room.

Ultimately, Leon decided to pass the time with Meditation.

Three days passed without any word about Torin’s whereabouts.

Leon had no choice but to visit the shop early in the morning.

“You’ve arrived!”

The shopkeeper greeted Leon enthusiastically, as if he had been eagerly waiting.He quickly guided Leon while fidgeting impatiently.

After walking for a while through a narrow alley, an unexpectedly wide plaza opened up before their eyes.

Several Mages had already gathered in the plaza.They all exuded a cautious atmosphere.Some wore their robes pulled down low, while others concealed their faces with wide-brimmed hats.A few even completely masked their identities.

Most of them are in a higher Realm than me.

Leon, who had deeply pulled down his robe adorned with the unique pattern of nomads that he had worn as a precaution, broke out in a cold sweat.His Intermediate Arcane Realm wasn’t particularly remarkable here.The flow of Magic Power that could be felt here and there passed through him endlessly, as if scanning him.

While Leon tried not to reveal his youthful face, the shopkeeper knocked on the door of a small chamber located on one side of the plaza.

A large man opened the chamber door.

“This is a new guest I’ve brought. He wishes to participate in the auction.”

At those words, the large man looked Leon up and down.He nodded and handed a pouch to the shopkeeper.

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“Take it.”“Oh my... Thank you.”

The shopkeeper glanced at Leon and quickly disappeared.

As Leon stood there awkwardly, the large man approached.His face, which had initially looked fierce, now wore a kind smile.

“Thank you for attending our auction. It will start soon, so please wait a moment.”“Alright.”

Leon moved to stand on one side of the plaza.

Shortly after, the large man returned to the chamber and emerged again, clapping his large hands loudly.The sound echoed across the wide plaza, drawing everyone’s attention.

“You may enter now!”

As his voice resonated, about 50 Mages immediately began to line up and enter through one entrance.Leon followed behind them.

As they passed through the entrance, a long staircase leading downwards appeared in the dim space.

Is the auction being held underground?

He had already been wondering about the empty plaza above.

As he descended to the bottom of the stairs, a huge hall unfolded before Leon’s eyes.

Oh....

It was more splendid than he had anticipated.The walls were adorned with ornaments decorated in gold and silver, resembling a place where nobles would hold luxurious banquets.Each candlestick was embedded with shining jewels, and the walls were adorned with intricate carvings and paintings.This place was undoubtedly prepared by a trading company boasting enormous wealth.

Leon briefly surveyed his surroundings.There weren’t many people like him who were looking around the auction house, examining it.Most of the Mages seemed already familiar with the auction, sitting in silence in the prepared chairs.

In the center of the hall was a large round table, with several chairs evenly arranged around it.Leon took one of those seats.

Not long after, a person emerged as the curtain was drawn back.

“We deeply thank the Mages who have graced our auction with their presence.”

He approached the center and bowed deeply with one hand on his chest in front of the table.

“This auction is a special occasion held after 6 months. As such, many precious items have been prepared for your consideration. The auction method remains the same as usual. When we announce the starting price, you may call out your bid. The highest bidder will claim the item.”

As soon as he finished his explanation, another figure appeared, pulling a cart covered with cloth.

“Now, I’ll introduce the first auction item. This is an item we’ve procured with great difficulty from Cheibuty, a country of different races. It’s a magical tool called the Etherwin Bow, a weapon that can automatically shoot Magic Power arrows when infused with Magic Power!”

As the cloth on the cart was removed, a luxurious silver bow was revealed.The surface of the bow, which shimmered faintly, absorbed light softly despite being metal, emitting a mysterious radiance.

The host lifted the bow with his white-gloved hands and slowly turned around once so that everyone could examine it.After showcasing the bow, he carefully placed it on the table.

He could feel the flow of Magic Power resulting from multiple uses of Appraisal Magic around him.Leon was no exception.

The Etherwin Bow was a C-Grade Artifact.It required neither arrows nor direct manipulation.When the user injected Magic Power, the bow would create Magic Power arrows on its own, automatically aiming and attacking enemies.It felt as if a Summoned Creature had been called forth.Since no separate operation was needed to shoot arrows, it was a highly useful weapon in battle.

“The starting price will be 10,000 Mana Stones.”“12,000!”

As soon as the auction started, one of the Mages wearing a robe raised her hand and shouted the price.Although her face wasn’t visible beneath the robe, judging from her slender figure, she seemed to be a female Mage.

As she bid 2,000 more Mana Stones than the starting price, the auction house fell silent for a moment.

But the silence didn’t last long.

“12,500.”

Soon another Mage raised it by 500 more, and the heat of the auction began to rise quickly.The bidding became fierce, and the auctioneer further stoked the atmosphere.

“This is an Artifact that’s almost like a living being, finding and attacking enemies on its own every moment Magic Power flows! Without needing to worry about arrows, you can engage in endless battles with just Magic Power! Wise Mages, will you let this opportunity slip away?”

The host continued his passionate pitch, enough to tempt even Leon, who already knew all the functions through Appraisal Magic.

In the end, that bow was sold for 15,500 Mana Stones.

Leon opened his Mana Stone pouch to check.He had about 160,000 Mana Stones.It was enough to win the Etherwin Bow, but he didn’t feel particularly drawn to it.

At that moment, the second item was already placed on the table.

“The second item is a large-capacity Spatial Pocket! This pouch boasts an enormous capacity that’s incomparable to pouches that can hold a few hundred thousand Mana Stones! This pouch can accommodate not just simple small items, but huge weapons, crystal cores that store large-scale magical energy, even combat chariots, medium-sized sky ships, anything! It’s a pouch with truly infinite storage capacity! The starting price is 5,000 Mana Stones!”

Unlike the Etherwin Bow, this was an item that piqued Leon’s interest.The reason was the Golem Leon had created.The Spatial Pocket Leon currently possessed couldn’t hold several Golems.

It was very inconvenient to have to go in and out of the Magic Orb every time he wanted to retrieve multiple Golems.However, with this large-capacity Spatial Pocket, he could solve that inconvenience at once.

“5100!”

Someone shouted, but Leon immediately opened his mouth to respond.

“5500.”

Leon raised the price without hesitation.The gaze of the Mage who had spoken first briefly turned towards Leon.That gaze revealed mixed emotions of wariness and dissatisfaction, but Leon didn’t mind and kept his gaze fixed forward.

Then that Mage immediately shouted again.

“5600!”“6000.”“6100.”“6500.”“Damn, you show-off, no ones cares how much money you have. Just take it.”

Leon showed no reaction to those words either.He still just looked straight ahead, covering his face.

If his face, which hadn’t yet reached adulthood, was revealed, there was a risk of receiving unnecessary attention.

“6500. Any more bids?”

The host emphasized the pouch’s functions a few more times and looked for reactions from the participants, but no one called out a higher price.

“6500! Sold!”

As the host’s energetic voice finally rang out, soon after, a figure quietly approached Leon.He handed over a small golden Identification Token and said:

“After the auction ends, you can claim the item by presenting the token along with the Mana Stones.”

Leon nodded and accepted the token.

This method of receiving items, designed to keep the auction from being interrupted, was much more convenient for him as well.If he went out to receive the item right during the auction, he could attract unnecessary attention.He wanted to avoid such scrutiny.

The auction continued after that.

During that time, ten items came up as auction items in order.As time passed, more precious items appeared, but there were no items that caught Leon’s interest.

At most, one B-grade Essence came up as an auction item.The winning bid was a whopping 100,000 Mana Stones.

The price of Essence is really steep...

It seemed that the price of Essence skyrocketed as it went to higher grades because it became increasingly difficult to produce.Nevertheless, Leon wasn’t particularly interested in the Essence itself.

What he needed was the ‘ingredient’ of Essence to change the Reward, not the Elixir itself.Leon was already receiving enough Essence through Rewards.

Aren’t there any Herbs...

Leon licked his lips with a disappointed heart.In the end, the only thing Leon gained from this auction was a large-capacity Spatial Pocket that could hold Golems.

However, he realized one important fact through this auction.

It’s certain that high-quality items appear in auctions. I should participate whenever I get the chance.

The auctioneer opened his mouth to introduce the last item.

“This is the final item.”

The atmosphere of the auction had reached its peak, but Leon’s interest had long since cooled.Leon waited for the last item without any particular expectations.

“This is an item brought from the Beast Forest in the north. A Wooden Sword with mysterious abilities! Now, don’t be fooled by its ordinary appearance!”

The item revealed as the cloth was removed was a Wooden Sword that looked extremely ordinary.Its appearance was so modest and common.Moreover, it seemed too trivial to be the item decorating the end of the auction.

The atmosphere in the auction house froze instantly, as if cold water had been poured.The Mages looked at the Wooden Sword, not hiding their disappointment.

But among them, only one person, Leon, looked at the Wooden Sword with wide eyes.

This is...?