Have you had enough, Miss Vampire? It's time to get down to business.

"Don't get excited, Trevante," the Duke of Canbury said with a smile. "To randomly suspect someone's identity without any evidence is unbecoming of aristocracy... and after all, this auction is just a small 'side event'."

As he spoke, he turned his head slightly and looked meaningfully at the veiled woman in the corner of the venue.

...Mrs. Windsor.

That’s right, facilitating a meeting with important figures from the Dead Whisper Society is the main purpose of today.

"Trevant, tell the guards to keep a close watch," the Duke of Canbury whispered to his confidant. "If my guess is correct, that lady might do something inappropriate later... We have to take precautions."

"Yes, Your Excellency." Trevant nodded solemnly.

15. He strikes again!

Corner of the venue.

Glenn, the second-level transcendent who came with Mrs. Windsor and also belonged to the "Death Whisper Society", now looked extremely nervous.

He was not used to this kind of situation.

A few days ago, Glenn would never have dreamed that he would one day find himself in such a place.

Magnificent halls, beautiful music, and all kinds of delicacies he had never seen before... Of course, what shocked him the most was the huge amount of money involved in today's party.

Any auction item would easily be sold at a sky-high price of thousands of gold coins!

This is in stark contrast to his daily life.

You know, in addition to his identity as a "member of a secret organization", Glenn's daily job is to guard the cemetery.

For a superhuman with "undead" roots, this is undoubtedly a perfect career. Not only can he use the corpses in the cemetery to practice his own supernatural abilities, but he can also make some extra money from selling various burial objects from time to time.

The only drawback is that there is always a faint smell of corpses in the residence.

But once you get used to it, you won't be able to smell it anymore.

Originally, he was quite satisfied with his life. The only thing he had to worry about on a daily basis was the side effects that came with the root of "undeath"... Every night, the changes in his body would always be difficult to suppress.

However, he believed that based on his performance in the organization, he would be able to advance to the third level within a year or two, barring any unexpected events. By then, the current abnormalities would be greatly alleviated. Of course, the abnormalities would return after a while, but that would only be something to worry about at that time.

But tonight, after seeing the real glamorous life, he began to feel that his daily life was so dark.

"If I want to live a better life and become a truly great person, I have to become stronger as quickly as possible... Yes, just like Lady Windsor!" He gritted his teeth and thought to himself, "As long as I become a powerful Beyonder, I'll have all the means to make money!"

Mrs. Windsor's methods are indeed extraordinary.

Let’s not talk about anything else for now, let’s just talk about the professionalism in the matter of “murder for money”.

Before Lady Windsor arrived, Glenn had chosen a merchant from Palmer City and poisoned him to prepare a hiding place for him. Unfortunately, despite killing him, he didn't get much money. The merchant's assets were partly in banks and partly in the form of land deeds, leaving him with little cash at home.

But Lady Windsor used the method of manipulating corpses to make this businessman who had already died "personally" liquidate all his assets!

You know, to do this kind of thing, you need superb corpse manipulation skills. Even the slightest bit of unnaturalness may reveal it, and it might even alert the Church of Holy Light!

But Lady Windsor did it.

Under his manipulation, the businessman's every word and action was exactly the same as when he was alive, even his signature was flawless! It was as if... he was really still alive!

It's eye-opening.

This is how a large part of the bidding funds that Mrs. Windsor brought tonight were obtained.

Glenn thought to himself, I must also keep climbing up in the "Death Whisper Society" and become a more powerful transcendent... In order to achieve this goal as soon as possible, first of all, I must ensure that I complete the mission objectives tonight and successfully obtain the transcendent item "Temptation Skull"!

No, it’s not enough to just be smooth.

Goal must be exceeded!

"Ma'am, do we really have to bid honestly?" Glenn whispered, "If we can get the item without spending a penny, wouldn't that be..."

"Don't have such dangerous thoughts."

Lady Windsor warned sternly, "The Duke of Canbury is no ordinary man... Haven't you noticed? Our every move is being closely watched. In this hall alone, there are at least three intermediate-level transcendents guarding us."

Having said this, she paused for a moment, her cold gaze looking directly into Glenn's eyes through the thin veil:

"If we really get into a conflict with these people, even I might not be able to escape unscathed... As for you, there's no doubt that you're dead."

These words sent a chill down Glenn's spine.

"The Skull of Temptation is a valuable transcendental item, but it's also difficult to wield. Only in the hands of us, the Deathrattle Society, can its full power be fully unleashed. Tonight, it's unlikely anyone else will compete with us for this item, and we've already prepared sufficient funds."

Lady Windsor continued:

"If we can get the item through an auction without any effort, that would be great. However, we also have to consider the possibility of accidents... Did you take the talisman I gave you in advance?"

"Of course, ma'am," Glenn replied quickly.

"Well, very good." Lady Windsor nodded. "If anything unexpected really happens, just watch my expression and act accordingly."

Just at this time……

All "normal" auction items have been sold.

Just when everyone thought the show was about to end, the host on the stage picked up a wooden box covered in talismans and seals, which looked strange at first glance, and said:

"Ladies and gentlemen, there's one last item up for auction tonight. It's so special it's not listed in the catalog. Before I begin, I need to warn you... This item contains an extremely dangerous curse. Just getting close to it could put an ordinary person's life in danger!"

These words made the guests present feel a little uneasy.

For some, this wasn't their first time attending a private auction hosted by the Duke of Canbury. While extraordinary items had occasionally appeared in previous years, this was the first time one had been described as "exceptionally dangerous."

"What on earth is this thing?" someone couldn't help but ask curiously.

"A skull. The skull of some otherworldly creature."

The host introduced:

"This creature was extremely strange and dangerous in life, but the skull it left behind after its death is incredibly beautiful and highly valuable as a collector's item! However, I must warn you again: even if any guest wins this treasure, they must not remove the seal on the box, let alone open the lid!"

After hearing these words, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.

Your box isn't transparent either... A skull of extraordinary beauty and immense collectible value, but you can't open the box to view it? What's the difference between that and non-existence?

...Your Excellency the Duke, you are quite humorous.

"Starting price: 500 gold coins!" the host announced. "Guests interested in bidding, please raise your number plates!"

There was total silence in the audience.

Indeed, after hearing the description just now, it is unlikely that anyone would really be interested in this thing.

Mrs. Windsor raised the corners of her mouth slightly, thinking that in this way, it would be even more impossible for anyone to compete with me.

The Duke of Camberley was quite cautious and did not directly mention the name "Temptation Skull"... probably because he did not want to provoke the Church of Holy Light and cause unnecessary trouble.

"Six hundred gold coins." She calmly raised the number plate in her hand.

In an instant, everyone looked sideways, wondering if there really was someone who wanted this inexplicable thing?

This lady looks a little unfamiliar. Who is she?

However, before they could react, another person spoke up:

"This thing seems quite interesting... I'll give you eight hundred gold coins."

...It's Mr. Sylvie!

He struck again!

16. You Win…For Now (3k)

The emergence of competitors far exceeded Lady Windsor and Glen's expectations.

And, it was actually the "Mr. Sylvie" who stole the show tonight and won more than ten auction items alone!

Glenn was surprised and puzzled, wondering why he, an ordinary man, would compete with us for the "temptation skull"? Or was he not an ordinary person?

He glanced uneasily at Mrs. Windsor, but she ignored him and simply raised her number plate again and continued bidding:

"Nine hundred."

"One thousand!" Lor was not to be outdone.

"One thousand and two."

"One thousand and four!"

The price is rising little by little, at a rate of one or two hundred gold coins each time.

This time, "Mr. Sylvie" did not continue his previous style of raising the price drastically in one go to discourage competitors. Instead, he patiently negotiated with his opponent bit by bit... This time, both sides seemed to have no strategic skills at all, and it was simply a competition of total capital.

Whoever uses up all his cards first loses.

"two thousand."

"Two thousand two!"

"Two thousand three..."

"Two thousand and five!"

Everyone held their breath, not even the host on stage had any room to interrupt. Meanwhile, as the two exchanged sharp words, the price continued to climb, already breaking through the 3,000 gold coin mark!

Three thousand gold coins!

This is already the highest price paid for any item at auction tonight! Just for a small box that's said to be highly collectible, but will kill you if you open it?

The guests present said they couldn't understand it.

However, some of the smarter ones have gradually figured out the meaning of it.

Two possibilities.

First, the contents of the box were worthless. Mr. Sylvie and the unknown woman weren't competing for the auction item itself, but rather for a legitimate opportunity to profit from and curry favor with the Duke of Canbury... After all, the Duke was a prominent nobleman in the kingdom and a mid-level transcendent in the Fighter Alliance, so he was certainly worth currying over.

However, giving away thousands of gold coins at once is indeed a big deal.

Secondly, the box contained a truly extraordinary item, but for some reason, its true purpose could not be disclosed. The two people currently bidding on it clearly knew its true value... They must have extraordinary backgrounds, most likely transcendent beings!

All in all, no matter what the reason is, it is not something ordinary people should delve into.

Right now, everyone is just curious and wants to see what ridiculously high price this thing will be sold for and who will eventually get it.

"Three thousand six hundred gold coins." Lor continued to raise the number.

"..."

This time, his rival, the mysterious veiled lady, did not follow up.

After a moment of silence, she sighed and said:

"You won."

……temporary.

Mrs. Windsor did not utter the last two words.

At this moment, her eyes, which were hidden behind the veil and difficult to see, were filled with murderous intent.

"We prepared so many gold coins, and yet we still lost?" Glenn's mouth twitched, clearly unable to accept the outcome. "Madam, this can't just end like this, can it?"

"Of course it's not over yet," Lady Windsor replied in an almost inaudible voice. "We originally intended to resolve the issue peacefully... Since that doesn't work, we have no other choice."

At the same time, the host on stage knocked the gavel three times.

"3,600 gold coins, deal! The last lot of the night belongs to Mr. Sylvie!"

……

The "Temptation Skull" is in hand.

In addition, Lore also acts as an "auction agent" to help all customers get the items they want.

Because he had formulated a bidding strategy in advance, and with Isabella, a powerful plug-in comparable to a hypnosis app, Lor not only did not use up all the 27,000 gold coins in his hand, but he still had 2,000 left.

Exceeding the target is yes.

To be honest, at the last moment of the auction, when he was passionately arguing with Mrs. Windsor and gradually raising the price, he appeared calm on the surface, but he was actually sweating inside.

I never expected that the opponent would actually raise the price all the way to over 3,000 gold coins...

Does your "Death Whisper Society" have such abundant funds?

If I hadn't done some cool things beforehand, there would have been no chance of getting the item with only the thousand gold coins given by the church!