Angor found it pretty interesting. It meant whoever bidding from the outside had to make every attempt count and make sure no one in the inner area could bid against him, or they would never get an item. On the other hand, the outer stage was an open area with a lot of people around, so anyone who bid here could avoid being chased by someone with malevolent intent.
“So we need an invitation to go into the inner area?”
“Invitations are for private gatherings. There are too many people attending the auction, so they can never find enough time to send invitations to everyone,” Prome explained. He continued, “There are two ways to go inside. You either become their VIP or spend enough money to buy a ticket.”
“Um, should we get the tickets now? How much for them?” Angor frowned. He was only going for a number of cheap materials so it was unlikely for him to compete with other wizards which meant the inner area was a better choice.
Prome shook his head and chuckled again.
Dave understood Prome’s gesture and quickly flattered, “Don’t you worry about it, Angor! We don’t need those. Master Prome is a Silver VIP in Twilight Auction!”
“Silver VIP?”
It reminded Angor of Greya’s restaurant, which also regarded their customers who were on different levels differently. Was this something popular in this world?
“A Silver VIP can bring five other guests into the inner stage and enjoy the Silver VIP seats. But it isn’t easy to get such a qualification. You must make one-off spending of 5,000 crystals in the tower, and the auction will validate your personal background before making you their VIP. I’m afraid Master Prome is the only one who earned such a privilege as an apprentice.”
Prome smiled brighter at Dave’s smart reaction. Letting a third individual explain the value of his trait was always better than doing it himself. Having Dave around meant he could display his superior prowess to people while remaining completely chilled.
“I see. Nice!” Angor pretended to be amazed, although he was not at all.
The auction would start in twenty minutes now, and the great hall was mostly filled up. Prome glanced at the struggling participants and led Angor and Dave toward the VIP passage with his head lifted high proudly.
When he heard about “Silver VIPs”, Angor thought they could use private chambers or something similar. However, it turned out that the Silver VIP seats were merely bigger seats scattered about on the second floor which allowed them to watch the auction from a vantage point with more personal space.
They took their seats. Angor unbuttoned his pocket to let Toby observe the auction as well.
He spent some time looking around the inner stage. It was smaller than he expected, and he did not see many people. There were probably several hundred people sitting down there at best.
Also, Angor noticed that most of the participants here were apprentices. Only a dozen powerful wizards were among them, who displayed their auras which resembled Flora’s level of strength.
There was a third floor where the private chambers for Gold VIPs were located. Angor could not see into the chambers although he was sure that only wizards could go there.
Angor’s inspecting gazes attracted some attention from people, but they soon ignored him when they saw it was only a teenager looking at them.
Since there was still time, Prome went ahead and explained more information to Angor, “Ordinary auctions are usually held in different sections, such as materials section, potion section, weapon, and so on. People can choose a section according to their own needs. But the Grand Auction is comprehensive, so we’ll see everything here.”
Prome boasted about his experience of becoming a Silver VIP until they heard the sound of a blowing horn, and from there, the inner stage suddenly grew dark.
“It’s on. If you want to bid on something, inject your mana into the transmitter on your seat,” Prome lowered his voice.
“For countless decades, I seek the eternal truth. Yet the path is distant, and the sight slowly grows stale. Yet there is the twilight, who remained to soothe my troubled mind.”
A middle-aged woman materialized on the auction stage, covered in glittering spots like fireflies.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I shall be your auctioneer tonight. While my humble name is long forgotten, you can call me ‘Twilight’.”
The light spots beside her body gradually vanished, revealing her face in front of everyone. She looked rather average.
“Without further ado then. After our careful review, we have a total of 173 items attending the auction. Of course, there are curious objects among them. Now, let’s begin.”
Twilight spoke in an absolute plain, unemotional tone, but her words strangely grasped everyone’s attention.
“Our first lot is a batch of Glowing Velvet Potion produced by Winter Pharmacy. Nineteen glasses in all. We shall start from zero, and I only accept raises of above 30 magic crystals.”