Chapter 511 - 509:The auction begins.

Chapter 511: Chapter 509:The auction begins.

"Well, at least they know how to treat their guests." I couldn’t help but remark as we finally made our way into the VVIP room reserved particularly for Xuan himself, because apparently, as the emperor of the high planar galaxies, he has his own private room on the highest floor of the Tower.

"Man, being emperor has a lot of perks, doesn’t it?" I couldn’t help grumbling as I took a seat on one of the plush sofas in the room, pulling Elira into my embrace.

"Hahahaha... it does have its perks, as it should, since I’ve been breaking my back quite literally to keep these regions safe and standing." The man sighed, sinking into the chair beside mine as he, too, pulled Su Yin into his embrace, much to the embarrassment of the woman.

"Big brother!!! So high!! So high!!! Lucien is so high!!!!!" Of course, the spectacle wouldn’t be complete without one very excited young man fascinated by everything he saw.

"At least I’m not his target of affection this time around." I sighed in relief as the kid seemed more fascinated by the bed of pink clouds outside the window than by crowding me. Don’t get me wrong, I love the little man, but after three days of brain-rotting kids’ entertainment, I needed a hard reset.

"Big brother!!! What is Lucien going to buy? Lucien wants to bid too."

"Ahh... looks like I spoke too soon."

"Hey, at least the kid loves you. Be grateful, hehehe..." I didn’t even have the energy to argue back at Shaia’s teasing as I slouched further into the couch, hoping the softness would just carry me away.

"So, when’s this event starting?" Terra, seated regally by my side, asked, curiosity lighting up her beautiful face.

"Replying to the lady, the auction will begin in a few minutes. The Tower’s expected capacity has already been reached; the items just need to be prepared, and then the event shall commence swiftly," the attendant assigned to us by the Tower—a fair-skinned woman in a blue flower-patterned robe—replied professionally.

"And why do we need an attendant again?" Sana seated to my left asked, seemingly irked at the fact that another woman had been appointed to us.

"Heh. Sana, my dear, you sound jealous." I couldn’t help it; teasing the grumpy Tower spirit was fun.

"Humph! I’m merely trying to prevent some pervert from putting his grubby hands on some ignorant woman."

"Ahh, don’t worry, my hands are currently very full." I gave the two overflowing globes in my palms a few tender squeezes as Elira laughed coyly.

"Fufufufu... Master, stooop~~ We’re in public..." Her body leaned further into my touch as she whispered those words.

"Ahh, my bad, my dear, I didn’t mean to..." My hands squeezed a bit harder. "Oops, my hands slipped."

"Fufufufufu... clumsy Master."

"Ahhh, what can I say? Butterfingers."

"Hehehehehehehe." We both laughed, perfectly satisfied with our little ploy.

"""SHAMELESS!""" Yet Terra, Su Yin, Nyssara, and Sana all seemed to have a problem with that.

"Ahem... ans—answering the lady, Ling’er’s duty is to make sure everyone here leaves satisfied and happy," the attendant replied, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"Satisfied? How satisfied?"

WHAM!!!

"Ahhhh!!! Why!?"

"Stop being a pervert, you bastard," Sana snapped.

"And this is why I prefer you being a voice in my head instead, damn. And why does your fist hurt this bad when you’re so tiny?"

"Because it’s fortified with anti-pervert materials, so you better watch out."

"Ahh!!"

"""Hahahahahahahahaha!!!"""

The group laughed at our little interaction as a small smile appeared on my face. Nothing makes you feel more alive than good fun with your friends after putting arrogant bitches in their place.

ZING!

A brilliant flash of gold caught the attention of everyone within the room as Malachi’s figure appeared. In his hand was the battered, disfigured form of an old man with his mouth sealed shut.

"Monkey, have fun?"

"Like you wouldn’t believe. This guy was quite resilient,had difficulty clubbering the guy without destroying everything insight so he shrugged off most of my attacks by just talking, can you believe it?" The monkey answered, throwing the figure at my feet.

"Hmm... the Wordsealed family, known for their prowess in spoken-word magic. I guess this must be one of the elders from the main lineage that fathered the one on Terra?"

"Yes. And they’re not called the Wordsealed family like your inferior Terra branch; they’re known as the Judges of Reality," Sana clarified, her voice heavy.

I picked up on her tone, but I was more bothered by something else. "That’s a very bold choice for a name—the Judges of Reality? Who is so audacious?"

"I don’t know, and their naming choices are the least of our problems," she continued, a tremble almost making its way into her voice before she forced it down.

"Hmm? Sana, what’s wrong?" I asked, sitting upright. My Tower spirit never wavered in her speech. She was staunch and as outspoken as they came, speaking her mind whenever she cared to.

"It’s... it’s nothing."

"Your hesitation to speak tells me that it’s everything. You never hesitate—not even when berating me. So the fact that you are hesitant now... do these so-called Judges of Reality have anything to do with Penance?"

The way her body shook reflexively at those words was all the answer I needed.

"Tell me everything..." My voice was hard; I wasn’t about to take no for an answer, not when she was clearly distressed.

"Haa... fine. The Judges of Reality are a group of people created by the Judge of the Cosmos, Penance. As the records state, the being was curious what would happen if he created a group capable of using the very powers of dragons without being dragons themselves, or runemasters—just beings whose very nature allowed them to speak and alter the course of the world. But he didn’t stop there. Driven by endless curiosity and a pursuit of knowledge, he decided to create, as the other half of the puzzle, a group capable of using the powers of the pillar Fate, but to a very minimal degree. That way, they could be the eyes while those with the power of speech served as the swords."

"His intention was clear: send these beings into the wider cosmos and have them carry out his will for punishment and judgment since he himself couldn’t be bothered to do so among the many things he wished to accomplish."

"Thus came the existence of the Judges of Reality. At first, they carried out their master’s will without fault, but after ages of expanding and creating more of their kind, they slowly forgot what they were meant to be. They established themselves as a cosmic powerhouse, creating the Dreamless Wordless Alliance. Their influence spread through the cosmos just like the Terra branch did, until they became as widespread as the Calderans and others."

"So, if they’ve forgotten what their creation was supposed to mean, wouldn’t that mean there’s nothing to worry about? Why are you still so tense?" I asked, confused.

"Because they might’ve forgotten who they are, but their creator has not. And if he’s looking for me, then I know he’s pulling out all the stops—especially after three of his punishers never returned after he sent them out."

"You’re saying..."

"I’m saying Penance could very well track me down through these people. That is, if he hasn’t already."

Her words made me go silent as I turned toward the battered figure before us.

"So, he’s coming?"

"I’m sure he is."

"By himself?"

"No. Penance is too prideful to bother with such a thing personally. But I believe he’ll send his true punishers next—that is, if he hasn’t already dispatched them to get involved in the war currently raging in the Phoenix-Dragoverse."

"Why would he go there?"

"Because should the primordial beasts there get involved in the war, it becomes a cosmic threat. As the Judge and balance keeper, he won’t allow such a thing, so I believe we should still have some time."

A beat of silence passed as I let Sana calm herself, and then...

"Heh!" I laughed. "Sana, my dearest Sana. Haven’t I said it before?"

"Hmmm?"

"Whoever dares touch what’s mine gets to pay for such an act."

"Dante..."

"Worry not. I don’t need Penance to come to me. I’ve had my fun, so once we’re done with all this, I shall go personally and remove this trauma from your heart. Do you believe me?" I asked, looking deep into her heterochromatic eyes. She remained silent, searching mine for that hint of deceit she already knew she wouldn’t find.

"Haa... do I have a choice?"

"Ahahahahahahaha!!! No! No, you don’t!" I laughed, extremely pleased with myself.

Right then and there, a screen glitched to life within our room, showing the speaking floor of the Tower as a figure climbed onto a raised dais, their voice ringing out melodically:

"Ladies and gentlemen, the auction is about to begin!"

"Finally. Time for some spending."

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A/N: so the pillars are creating their own gimmicks huh? Does that mean that the parent family of Clarissa and Mira’s own were an experiment by Lifetree? Intriguing... anyways as always,

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Thanks for reading...