166: A Calm Before the Storm

A Calm Before the Storm

«Passive Buff «God's Halo» had been activated granting 10% increase in stats»

Max looked at the message, that person was here again.

'Which one of them has got time to have fun while I am working my ass off!' Max was clearly irritated at this very thought.

'«Bahamut»….nah...it can't be him… «I am Mr.Cool»...well that guy won't need to come here to get a girl, now would he?' Max thought. The only one left was the obvious choice.

Average Man

'Just pray that I don't catch you.' Max muttered inwardly.

"Let's go Max. We are there." Lear said as the carriage stopped.

Max took after him and got out of the carriage. 

The first thing which came into his view was a luxurious auction house.

It was the biggest auction house in Ishtar and today, it was even more beautifully decorated.

Lear and Max walked into the auction house. Max could see several people looking like nobles entering the auction hall. He even recognised a few of them.

"There are a lot of people…." Max slowly muttered.

"Obviously, many rare items would be sold tonight." Lear replied with a smile.

"Why is this allowed?" Max suddenly asked.

"What do you mean?" Lear asked in confusion.

"You know the real owners of the Red Light Distric-" 

Lear Immediately turned around and shut Max's mouth.

"Y-You!! How do you know about it? It's classified information." Lear was stupefied by Max's words.

Max had dug up many things back in the trial at the cost of risking his life.

Ishtar city, the territory of Barnes Family. It was true that Barnes family had control over the city but this city also had another power which ruled over the Red Light District. 

Sin of Lust, HQ

The Dark Society's one of the main bases was right here. Max could feel a chill at the mere thought that a GrandMaster Level Mage must be present here.

"You sh*t! Don't say this stuff out here. Let's get our VIP room first." Lear muttered.

One of the servants, immediately went ahead and got their identity verified and someone came over to lead them.

….

"Idiot!! Don't say such things out loud." Lear shouted in anger while Max sipped the tea totally ignoring him.

The Dark Society was strong and in a place like Ishtar they were an important part of the economy. Besides, they were good at hiding themselves.

The status quo right now was peaceful. The Association and Union ignored the Dark Society as long as they didn't create a big trouble while the Dark Society continued to work quietly in darkness. But things had begun to change with the Demons involved, once it would be known, chaos would be unavoidable. 

Well that was a thing in future anyway.

"Oh yeah, I want to place something in the auction. What to do I need to do?" Max calmly asked.

"Huh? No idea….go and ask at the counter. Remember that if you try to run, my guards at the entrance will kill you." Lear reminded Max.

"Got it." Max said before leaving the room.

….

"What do you plan to auction, Sir?" The person at the appraising desk asked.

Max waves his hand in the air and two huge cubes of Iron clay ore fell on the desk.

The appraiser's eyes widened in surprise. He didn't expect the person to be carrying a storage item. They were expensive as hell.

He immediately added Max to the category of Rich Sellers. But the next instants, his became even more wide.

"Iron Clay!!" A shriek escaped his mouth attracting everyone's attention.

"Uhmn…" the guy coughed in embarrassment.

"So, how much is it's value?" Max asked.

"Sir… it's difficult to determine its value…." The appraiser spoke with honesty.

"Why?" 

"Well, even though it's a 3★ ore, it is one of the rarest flexible ores. There are not more than 7 flexible ores found till date. Each one of them is like unicorn horns. Besides, this is used to add flexibility to an equipment, it can be even used to cast a 9★ equipment. If you can find the right buyer, the price would soar."

Max thought for a while and then replied, " I want to auction these two. You can manage it the way you want."

He had quite a few of these ores. Even if he need to take a bit of loss, he needed money right now. It was better to sell a few.

"Yes Sir, I promise you to get the best price available." 

Max nodded with a smile before leaving.

…...

"Hmm….." 

When Max was about to return, he felt something and turned his head and managed to catch a glimpse of a red colored cloak.

"F*ck!"

Max cursed before making a dash in the crowded hallway. He tilted his body at the right angel dodging every person to the best of his ability while trying to get on the other side.

"Stop!" 

Two people stopped Max from going towards the area where the person seemed to have gone.

"What's wrong? I have to get to one of my acquaintances." Max said calmly.

"Only staff members are allowed at this point." One of the guards said.

"All the auction items are being kept here. Please return." The other one replied with a domineering voice.

The guard seemed pretty rude but Max could clearly sense the tiny fluctuation of Mana from them.

They weren't the right people to pick up a fight with.

'Why is that person there? I remember telling Average Man to invade the Dark Society. Did he join the auction house as a staff member?'

...0

Red Light District, Pleasure Tower.

On the very top floor, a Lady quietly sat at the chair sipping tea. This lady seemed very familiar. It was the same person whom Max met at the city gate and got invited to spend some time with.

Max would have a heart attack if he knew the true identity of this lady.

Master of the Red Light District and the Sin of Lust. The only female leader in the Darks Society.

Ethena Levaithan

At this moment, a servant entered the door.

"Master…he is here…" The servant replied clearly a bit tensed.

"Relax..Venus...it doesn't matter. Even if he is one of the Lord's sons, it doesn't matter. This is my territory. Even the Lord will think twice before doing anything." The lady smiled but her words were truly terrifying to the servant.

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