Chapter 173 – Auction [2]

The inside of the building was one of pure luxury. The carpet was made of black silk, and the walls were not painted but covered in precious scarlet jade.

The sight was enough to put most people into a trance-like state.

Anyone who stepped foot inside was left stunned by the sheer wealth oozing from every corner.

Servants in black and red clothes bearing the company logo on their chests moved back and forth, making sure everything was exactly as Meadow Wealth wanted it.

Some of them were tasked with leading guests to their seats. And here, one could notice there were two distinct treatments.

The first, and most common, were guests who were important, but not important enough to be given a VIP room. These guests were led toward a large back door, and inside were rows upon rows of neatly arranged chairs descending inward.

At the lowest floor, directly facing those chairs, was a raised platform where the auction would be conducted.

Many guests began filling the chairs, their expressions excited, yet unable to stop their eyes from drifting upward, toward the series of glass-like windows surrounding the amphitheatre in a full circle.

They licked their lips, envious of those who had been given VIP rooms to watch everything unfold beneath them in comfort and privacy.

Those were the second type of guests. The likes of Raven, Cassius, Cole and even Faye Kanam, surprisingly.

These were the guests permitted a private room where no one could see them and no one could eavesdrop on their conversations — something any respectable merchant, especially those running auction houses, understood the importance of.

Of course, Meadow didn’t give each family its own VIP room. Some families, like the Tier Threes, were grouped together.

Others, like Emrys, Love and Jeanne, were placed together, because although their bloodlines were high-ranking, they were simply young people, not the actual leaders of their respective families.

Only Cassius and Isolde would have had their own VIP room, and could have enjoyed watching their company take its first steps in the world in peace.

However, the couple was not one that loved peace. They were troublemakers. So instead of being alone, they chose to share with Raven and Anesthesia, certain they would be entertained.

After all, it was they who had invited the two of them together, leaving Esmeray and Sarah behind.

And just like that, everything was in place.

All that remained was for Meadow to appear, and the auction would officially begin.

...

Inside VIP room number seven, the space was wide, decorated in black and red. One large couch sat at the centre, facing directly the glass window overlooking the auction floor.

A table had been set up in front of the couch, with drinks and snacks already laid out.

The room was utterly comfortable, and there was a sense of privacy around it that made people naturally stop pretending and simply be themselves.

That was at least what Emrys wanted to do. However, he found himself smiling awkwardly at the sight of Jeanne Safara sitting coldly on the couch with her legs up on the table.

She held a soda in her right hand and drank from it occasionally without acknowledging either of her companions.

"You, what is the meaning of this?" Love hissed. She was already annoyed at not being alone with Emrys, and now this woman was sitting there with no manners whatsoever.

Who did she think she was?

Her question went unanswered. Love’s face flushed, her irritation climbing into anger. She took one step forward and felt her body stop abruptly.

Snapping her head to the left, she found Emrys shaking his head.

"There is no need for that, Love." He said. "We are here to enjoy this little unexpected event before the Academy. Let’s not spoil it. Come, let’s just sit."

He turned toward Jeanne. "Will you at least shift to one side instead of sitting in the middle?"

Love expected Jeanne to ignore Emrys as she had ignored her. But the Heiress of the Safara family actually moved to make space, though without a single word.

Love puffed with barely contained fury.

Emrys smiled faintly and guided her to the couch. He sat between the two women, his expression quite content.

"Well, let’s enjoy this, shall we? I hope the item is something I am interested in."

"Did you bring money?" Love asked.

"Oh? Yes, a bit. Just to be safe. Though not much."

"I will give you mine if you want to buy something."

"You are so sweet."

The two talked comfortably. Emrys tried to bring Jeanne into the conversation, but the woman barely responded. In the end he gave up after receiving a sharp glare from Love, and gave her his full attention.

...

At the same time, in VIP room number three, Raven gritted his teeth in annoyance. Anesthesia had actually pinned him against the wall.

"What are you doing, Anesthesia?" He grated.

He had tried to push her off, but she was using her power. And Raven didn’t want to use his own against her.

That knowledge was exactly what gave the now Fallen Heiress the confidence to pin the Prince of the Kingdom against a wall.

"You gave me no choice, Raven." Anesthesia replied. "I have been trying relentlessly to speak with you over the past days and all the way here, but you refused to respond."

"Are you deaf?" He replied. "I made it clear I want nothing more to do with you."

"And I refuse."

"What?" Raven exclaimed, his heart beating a little faster. He silently cursed it for being so easy to stir.

"You heard me correctly, Raven. I refuse your refusal to speak with me. Now what are you going to do about it?"

"You think you can force me?"

"I am already forcing you. Look at yourself, Prince. I am pinning you to the wall and you are doing nothing." Anesthesia smiled, leaning her face closer. "Perhaps this is what you enjoy?"

Raven’s red eyes narrowed. He had noticed something different about Anesthesia over the past two days. She was no longer acting the same, as though some switch had been flipped inside her.

She was more daring, more unhinged, and darker.

His heart skipped a beat as her face came too close.

"See?" she whispered, looking directly at him, completely unafraid. "You can do nothing to me. Don’t fight your own heart. Don’t go against who you are. You will lose, my Prince."

"Don’t provoke me, Anesthesia." His eyes glowed with a deathly light. "Don’t believe I won’t use my power if you continue. Move away from me, and this is the last time I will say it."

"Oh, so this is where we are now? You and I? To the point of hurting each other physically? Let’s not do that, Raven. Let’s limit ourselves to the mental and emotional pain." Her lips curled into a cold grin. "And that made me think, how will you feel if your slutty little maid suddenly... dies?"

Raven’s eyes widened slightly. "What did you just say?"

"I don’t repeat myself, Prince."

Raven moved faster than Anesthesia expected. In a couple of breaths her back slammed hard against the wall, pinning her completely. She let out a small grunt, but her smile didn’t fade.

"Oh, angry?" she breathed, feeling his right hand close around her neck.

"Anesthesia Amaris." Raven growled. "I dare you to touch Sarah."

She frowned, angry and bitter at the possessiveness she heard in his voice over Sarah. The Fallen Heiress only grew bolder.

"Will you kill me?" she replied, her glowing eyes meeting his. Both were channelling their essence, the room thick with tension.

"You will regret it if you touch her."

"You know, Raven, if you love her that much, your only option is to leave her and come back to me." She said. "Because as long as you are with her, giving her this much attention while ignoring me, I will eventually kill that bitch."

Raven’s hand tightened around her throat. "Not if I kill you first."

She scoffed, not even defending herself. "Go on. Kill me."

He wavered, knowing he could not bring himself to hurt the woman in front of him, no matter how much anger was inside him.

"What is wrong with you, Anesthesia? Why are you pestering me now after ignoring me all this time? Do you hate seeing me happy with someone else that much?"

"Don’t act surprised." She retorted. "You wanted to know me, so here I am. And yes, I will be honest, Prince. I hate seeing you happy with another girl. So much that I swear on everything I ever held dear that I will kill her if you continue. I once made a fool of myself by allowing that from someone else. Never again. You I am bluffing?"

Raven knew she wasn’t.

"I will not give you up." Anesthesia pressed each word. "You are mine."

"Because you want to use me?"

She grinned. "So you are not completely blind after all. Yes, because I want to use you, and because you are mine. Now do you know why I am telling you all of this?"

She didn’t wait for an answer.

"Because you wanted to know me. You wanted me to show you who I am. So look at me, Raven, and see clearly who you love so deeply. It’s me, Anesthesia Amaris. Now will you be good and do as I say? Leave that girl before I seriously act. My patience is limited."

Raven fell silent for a moment, looking at her deeply, then his lips pulled into a wide, cold smile. A smile so deathly that Anesthesia’s body shook at the sight of it.

"So this is who you are." He whispered. "A cold, manipulative woman who believes she has the right to everything and thinks she owns me, Raven Hood."

"Bingo." She mirrored his smile.

"You want to play this game, Anesthesia?"

"I have been playing for a long time already, Prince. You are quite late catching up."

"Allow me to join then." His voice dropped to a deathly whisper. "If anything happens to Sarah, I will make sure your family’s life becomes hell on earth in this Kingdom."

Anesthesia’s eyes went wide. "What?"

"I don’t repeat myself to a Tier Three."

Her heart shivered, but before she could answer, the door of the VIP room burst open. Cassius and Isolde appeared together, each of them carrying armfuls of snacks.

They froze immediately at the sight of Raven pinning Anesthesia against the wall.

Cassius’s face turned sly.

"I knew you could do it, uncle." He grinned and winked at Raven. "Shall I warn the staff there might be an earthquake coming soon?"

Isolde burst out laughing.

Raven coughed and stepped back. Anesthesia glared at Cassius with overwhelming fury burning across her flushed face.

"Cassius Desdemona..." she growled.

The Last Born smiled innocently and waved his free hand.

"How are you, sister-in-law? Your face is quite red, isn’t it? Need a drink to cool down? And yes, what do you think of my eyepatch?"

"Absolutely disgusting."

"How rude."

—End of Chapter 173—