Leo stepped into the VIP room, where an attendant stood ready to receive him. At the far end of the suite, a couch faced a glass wall, offering a clear view of the auction stage.

The room to Leo's left had been assigned to the Seraphim. Selene sat there now with her daughter. To his right, the Nephilim delegation was already settled, led by Yvenol.

The Auction House had been meticulous with its seating arrangement, ensuring the rooms of Ancient Houses were not positioned directly adjacent to one another to avoid friction.

However, all that preparation seemed wasted on the room reserved for Necropolis. For some strange reason, no one from Necropolis was anywhere to be found.

Every room was shrouded in a protective barrier designed to ensure total privacy. Yet, such barriers were trivial to the Monarchs, who scanned the neighboring suites with their sharpened senses.

As those invisible probes brushed through his room, Leo felt a sudden chill in the back of his neck. Fortunately, the sensation was temporary, lasting for only a fraction of a second.

"Strange," Yvenol muttered, crossing his massive, muscular arms. He tilted his head back, his gaze seemingly piercing through the ceiling and the sky above to where the Necropolis ship hovered, cloaked in invisibility.

"No one from Necropolis is in the Auction House, even though their ship is stationed right outside? Are they waiting for the Celestial Lotus to hit the stage before making an appearance?"

He closed his eyes, and stopped paying attention to any item on the stage, only waiting for the Celestial Lotus.

He didn't understand why Necropolis wanted the Celestial Lotus, but he was able to make a guess. And that guess was what worried him to the point that he had to personally come here to ensure that Necropolis didn't receive that Celestial Lotus.

In another room, Selene was also lost in thought. Her daughter looked at her worried face, realising the severity of the situation.

After all, even if the sky were to fall apart, her mother wouldn't have made such expressions. It was a sign that the era of peace was entering a shaky territory.

"At any cost, we can't let anyone else take the Celestial Lotus. Since Necropolis is looking for it, my guess must be right. Celestial Lotus must be the key that we all had been looking for..."

She also closed her eyes, and started waiting for the main attraction of the auction to be on the podium. No other item was worth her attention.

....

Three hours had passed, and over a hundred items had been auctioned. Meanwhile, Leo was simply lying lazily on the couch, looking at the stage out of boredom.

"Yaaawn... How long until they bring the Lotus to the stage? Why are they dragging it so much? Are they waiting for everyone to run out of money to spend on Lotus?"

Leo stretched out his arms, as he stood up. He was growing tired of just sitting in place since the end of the auction didn't look to be anytime soon.

"Did I come too early?"

It wasn't that the items that were being auctioned currently were boring. They were enough to make someone like Fiona make a few bids.

Unfortunately, she was always on the losing side in the end.

As for the reason Leo didn't find them interesting, it was because he had literally phased them out of his mind. He didn't have money to waste on items, no matter how good they were.

To control his urges, he had literally manipulated his mind into not seeing the treasures or the stage. He even zoned out when the auctioneer was giving the description.

"If you're waiting for the Celestial Lotus, it should take at least six more hours before it's brought forth since it's the highlight of this auction." The attendant informed Leo, making him sit straight.

She further suggested, "If you're getting bored, how about taking a walk outside? Or you can make a few bids to keep yourself busy?"

"You know, a walk outside it is. I'll be back within six hours." Leo took up the advice and immediately stood up.

In any case, he wasn't really needed here until the end of the auction when the credits were to be transferred to him.

"Understood. Do you want me to accompany you, or should I wait for you here?" The attendant asked, only for Leo to wave his hand.

"You can wait. I'll be fine on my own. Not like I'll end up on the stage again somehow. So you don't have to worry."

Leo opened the door and stepped out of the private room. With his hands in his pocket, he walked through the long corridors, wondering along the way about the people that were in the rooms that he was walking past.

He walked out of the VIP Area, and went downstairs where the regular seating was arranged, allowing a clear yet distant view of the stage.

He stood at the absolute back of the seating area, his eyes observing the sea of chairs that were facing the stage.

"Seventy Million Galactic Credits!" Suddenly a fair hand raised from one of the seats.

"That voice... Is that..." Leo recognized that voice. It was none other than Fiona.

Suddenly, another voice came as a man's hand raised. The voice was shaky, as if the bidder was literally questioning the meaning of his existence.

"Timmy? Is that him?" Leo mumbled, finding that voice familiar as well. "Or am I just imagining things?"

"If Timmy is here, then could Kaelus..." Suddenly Leo's expressions paled. A delegation from Seraphim and Nephilim was here. What if Kaelus was here as well, and he was discovered by them...?

"What is that fool doing here?" Leo exclaimed, as he walked down the steps, approaching the row from where Timmy had raised his hand.

"That's it! That item should be quite useful to you. Keep bidding. That's how a man should make his entry! This is fun!" Kaelus patted Timmy's back, almost making him fall off his chair.

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