Chapter 848: Making An Enemy
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
After entrusting the goods, Fang Yuan was automatically granted admittance to the auction.
Of course, since the auction was due to start in the evening, Fang Yuan and the rest were first invited into a splendid private room, where there was an endless supply of wine and delicacies.
As Butcher was munching on chicken drumsticks, one in each hand, someone knocked on the door.
“Who’s there?” Fang Yuan frowned.
“Sorry… Sir, Mr. Heathfrey wants to meet you!” An attendant entered, the helpless smile on his face suggesting that he had no other choice.
“That slave trader?”
Fang Yuan shrugged and took a look at Wilson’s expression. “Let him come here!”
Heathfrey was swarthy, obese, and short. He had a ferocious expression on his muscular face and an extremely ruthless glow in his small eyes.
Rumor had it that he had instigated civil strife in two small indigenous countries that eventually led to their collapse just because he wanted the thousands of strong slaves and a beautiful princess in the countries.
“Arcane Trickster Roche!” Heathfrey rudely sat down opposite Fang Yuan, irritating Fang Yuan slightly. “I want your female slave. Give me a quote!”
“Hehe…”
Fang Yuan cast a fierce glance at the auction house attendant at the side.
Evidently, the commercial firm of this pirate team was blatantly faithless, leaking information about the lots before the start of the auction.
Of course, from another point of view, he could tell that this slave trader possessed tremendous power. He might even be in the same firm as the auction house.
“You mean Elizabeth… I’m auctioning her only for gold coins. The reservation price is ten thousand gold coins, but if she’s in great demand, the price may rise to twenty thousand gold coins… However, if you’re willing to pay fifteen thousand gold coins, you can take her away.”
“Fifteen thousand gold coins? Are you joking?” Heathfrey stared with his small eyes wide open. “I can buy hundreds of pretty women slaves with this amount of money! That woman is at most worth five thousand gold coins…”
He took a glance at Wilson and sneered. “Of course, since this is the first time I’m doing business with Captain Arcane Trickster, I can’t make you suffer a loss. How about five thousand gold coins plus that slave named Helga?”
“Do you think that a mere voyager is worth ten thousand gold coins?” Fang Yuan pointed at the door. “If you’re here to joke with me, this joke is unusually clumsy!”
“Lad! Bloody Mary is not the inshore waters where any pirate can wreak havoc!” Heathfrey banged the table, his eyes emitting a fierce glow. “Do you know that everything here belongs to the great Blackbeard! And I, Heathfrey, am an important merchant serving Blackbeard… As soon as I demand it, the auction house will hand that woman over to me!”
Bill’s expression changed when he heard this, looking at his captain worriedly.
Wilson also clenched his fists nervously.
Obviously, they thought that Fang Yuan had been too reckless.
“Go ahead!” Fang Yuan gestured. “She’s just a woman, so do anything you want… However, from tomorrow onward, a story about how the auction house extorts and plunders commodities will circulate in the entire port!”
Even though this auction house was associated with Heathfrey, it could at most leak some information about the sellers and commodities in advance.
If it really dared to plunder the goods to be auctioned, it would definitely be courting death!
Which pirate or merchant would dare trade with the auction house once it did such a thing?
Even a hundred Elizabeths could not make up for the resulting losses. Furthermore, if the backer of the auction house—Blackbeard—learned about such deeds, Heathfrey would only end up as a skin floating in the wind at the dock.
“Very good… You’re quite daring!”
The two bodyguards behind Heathfrey had taken out their weapons, but Heathfrey restrained their further actions. He said to Fang Yuan balefully, “Do you know that a dead person can’t talk?”
“Unfortunately, it looks like we can’t agree to a deal!”
Fang Yuan shrugged, not caring about the threat at all.
“You’ll regret it! I swear!”
Heathfrey took one last stare at Fang Yuan, as though he wanted to etch Fang Yuan’s appearance into his mind, before slamming the door behind him.
“Captain…” Wilson wanted to say something but hesitated.
“You’re afraid that he’ll torture Helga?” Fang Yuan was somewhat speechless. “This would have been likely to happen if I had appeared more concerned about Helga. But now… he won’t do that. After all, he still needs to sell this high-level slave tonight.”
Of course, even Fang Yuan felt more surprised now.
Heathfrey’s attention clearly implied that there might still be some secrets in Elizabeth or those close to her.
“In this case, she can be sold at an even higher price tonight!”
A trace of anticipation flashed in Fang Yuan’s eyes.
…
Bloody Mary Port looked more prosperous and bustling in the evening. The entire place was brightly illuminated.
Noise, quarrels, and even the sound from fights echoed continuously.
In the hall of the auction house.
Good-looking attendants moved through the crowds like butterflies moving through clusters of flowers, receiving pirates and merchants one after another.
The auction house in Bloody Mary Port was very famous in both the Nightmare Ocean and Ettoman.
This was because the goods here were very cheap, and Blackbeard would absolutely ensure the safety of the guests. Therefore, even some large chambers of commerce in Ettoman would send people here for a shopping spree.
Merchants were crucial to the continued prosperity of pirates.
Fang Yuan asked for a round table in a corner. Dreamy light rays were reflected from the bottle of red wine in front of him.
“This bottle of red wine is from the leader of the top ten wineries in the Opher Continent—St. Joan!”
An attendant in a tailcoat introduced the wine first, displaying the label and the cork, before he uncorked the bottle and allowed the wine to breathe.
“A bottle of wine from the cellars of the top ten wineries should cost at least ten gold coins, right?”
At the side, a few people who looked like merchants exclaimed in a low voice, “We’re feeling even more eager for this evening.”
Even though they were merchants doing small business, nobody dared look down upon them because no one knew which large chamber of commerce or important noble family had sent them here.
“Do you want some extra money?”
Fang Yuan looked at the attendant who had opened the wine bottle and opened his hand to reveal a few gold coins glistening between his fingers.
“I’m at your disposal, sir!” The attendant bowed calmly. “My job is to provide better services for you!”
“It’s simple. Introduce everyone you know among these people. This is your tip!”
The pirates on Mockingbird had never dared to enter the Nightmare Ocean, and Wilson had no other choice but to make a living within inshore waters.
“No problem!” The attendant heaved a sigh of relief. “Those at the table in the front are from the Trident Pirate Team… On their left is an important businessman from Cecil named Formosa. I don’t know the ones on the right, but they should be from Ettoman’s leading commercial firms… Oh, the group who just entered is the Octopus Marauder Team, which has recently shot to fame. Their team leader, Orlando, is a powerful sorcerer!”
Fang Yuan would notice Orlando’s team even without this mention of them.
The young man’s aura and influence had changed drastically. He was wearing a gorgeous robe with a golden cutlass tied at his waist.
This lad seems to be thriving…
Fang Yuan nodded silently and opened Orlando’s stats window directly.
“Name: Orlando
Level: Civilian Level 5, Sorcerer Level 2
Strength: 3
Speed: 3
Physique: 2.5
Psyche: 6
Identity: Pirate (Team Leader of the Octopus Marauder Team)
Specialization: Sailing (Normal), Musket Manipulation (Proficient), Cutlass Techniques (Master), Spell Casting in Battle (Basic), Sorcery (Basic)
Experience: 500 (Experience required before reaching the next level: 2000)
Pretty good. He’s become a sorcerer, enhanced his psyche, and obtained two more specializations?
Fang Yuan nodded in approval and thought mischievously, If at this time he’s assigned a quest to spoil the auction, I wonder if he’ll do it…
Perhaps Orlando felt that someone was looking at him, so he looked back and examined Fang Yuan.
Of course, Orlando was totally unable to recognize Fang Yuan now. He only saw a few pirates that he did not recognize and nodded to them reservedly before sitting down close to the front.
The great slave trader, Heathfrey, entered immediately after Orlando. He smiled at Fang Yuan ferociously, like a viper, and made a throat-cutting gesture.
Hehe… Fang Yuan smiled coldly.
No matter how many powerful associates this slave trader had, the outcome of naval battles still depended on combat strength.
He would not fear anyone in this aspect.
“Everybody!”
After Heathfrey seated himself, all the seats in the hall were occupied and an emcee in formal attire came to the center of the stage. “Welcome to tonight’s auction! My name is Pielberg, and I’m honored to serve you all… Next, let’s bring lot number one onto the stage—an extraordinary sword, the ‘Tiger of Fire’! This sword was cast purely using legendary Valian steel in elven-style workmanship. A sorcerer gave it a magical attachment when it was completed, allowing fire attacks to be triggered thrice per day. Starting price… five thousand gold coins!”
“It’s actually a weapon with magical attachment!” A pirate team leader exclaimed. “Six thousand gold coins!”
Evidently, the first lot in the auction was used to warm up the atmosphere.
Both pirates and merchants liked these kinds of things which could immediately enhance their power. The price soon exceeded ten thousand gold coins. Eventually, a pirate from the Gold Ocean bought it at twelve thousand gold coins.
“Next is lot number two, a diamond—the Crimson Tear!”
The emcee pulled a red cloth and revealed the huge diamond on a plate. It glittered increasingly brighter under the light.
“The Crimson Tear is from the Spice Archipelago. It’s said to be an ornament from the crown of an indigenous king. Starting price… six thousand gold coins!”
Pirates were uninterested in jewels like this, but it was a favorite of the nobles. A few chambers of commerce immediately bid against one another and warmed up the atmosphere.