Starting Today I'll Work As A City Lord

"Where are you from?" Mina asked coldly, her voice low and sharp. Her body tensed like a spring wound tight—if he didn't answer, she was ready to lunge forward and snap his neck.

"Bounty Hall," The tavern assistant replied, eyes flickering nervously. He could tell this woman had killing intent. He wasn't a strong fighter—his only skill was stealth, which was why he'd been sent to eavesdrop in the first place.

"..." Mina narrowed her eyes, instantly sensing the lie. But after weighing the risks, she chose not to make a move. After all, she had lied too—"Immortal Gate" wasn't real either.

The tavern assistant had lied. Bounty Hall was just a surface identity. Those who worked there rarely had such simple backgrounds. In fact, it wouldn't be surprising if he had several layers of cover.

The two of them remained crouched far apart on the rafters, keeping to their own space, silently waiting for the auction to begin.

Time passed.

Half an hour later, as the doors to the auction hall closed with a heavy thud, the event officially began.

"Bang!"

The doors of the auction house slammed shut, and there were more than twenty knights guarding both inside and outside the doors to ensure the security and smooth operation of the auction. The one who most hoped for no incidents was Count Hudson, as this auction was his key money-making tool.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

An elderly man took the stage. He was Count Hudson's butler and also the auctioneer for today, presiding over the event.

"Ladies and gentlemen, noble lords and ladies, welcome to today's auction... Now, the auction officially begins. Let's bring out our first item for bidding." The auctioneer babbled on for five or six minutes before finally getting to the point.

Two knights carried a wooden box onto the stage and placed it on the auction platform, then stood on either side.

"Crack~~"

The auctioneer opened the wooden box, revealing a longsword in its sheath inside. He quickly introduced it, "This is a knight's one-handed sword made by a renowned dwarf craftsman from the North. It is over a hundred years old and is a fantastic collectible. The starting bid is thirty silver coins."

"Dwarf craftsman from the North? I'll bid thirty-one silver coins."

"Thirty-five silver coins."

"…"

Immediately, the people below began to eagerly call out their bids. The name of the dwarf craftsman alone meant that his weapons were typically sold starting from gold coins, though this one was from a century ago and might be a bit less valuable.

Count Hudson smiled at the corner of his mouth. Whether the knight's longsword was truly made by a dwarf craftsman didn't matter to him at all. It was just using a famous name. By attaching the title of the dwarf craftsman, the price would at least multiply several times. Otherwise, the final price for this sword would have been just twenty silver coins.

"I'll bid one gold coin and thirty silver coins," Shouted a burly man. He was a baron with a passion for weapons.

"One gold coin and thirty silver coins, sold," The auctioneer repeated the final price, immediately instructing the knights to hand the longsword to the burly man and to collect the money.

This auction adhered to the most basic rule: money for goods, immediately and on the spot, with no chance for retraction.

"Now, let's move on to the second item for auction," The auctioneer announced. Two knights carried a stag's head onto the stage. Its antlers were large, towering, and branched out in many directions. In its prime, it was likely the leader of its herd.

"The stag's head is a noble's collection. In urgent need of money, the noble has put this treasured item up for auction... Look at these antlers—this stag was definitely the leader of its herd. Imagine having such a majestic stag's head hanging on the wall of your room; it would surely add to the nobility's grandeur and power... The starting bid is fifteen silver coins," The auctioneer said, enticing the crowd with his words.

"I bid sixteen silver coins," A merchant called out.

"Seventeen silver coins," A baron quickly followed.

"…"

Lucas's dark eyes flickered as he thought of deer antler as a supplement and venison. He decided he would ask Ben when he returned, to see if there were any deer in the Forbidden Mountain Range. It might be a good idea to raise some deer, or perhaps even open a zoo.

Time passed, and the variety of auction items had Lucas wide-eyed. He couldn't help but feel that these nobles and merchants were truly rich with nothing better to do than buy what seemed like useless junk to bring home.

The auction had been going on for two hours, and Lucas was beginning to feel sleepy, while Nicole remained thoroughly engaged. Although many of the items didn't seem to compare to the treasures in Sedona City's vaults, they were still fascinating to her.

Even Count George had bought a few things. He was the one who purchased the stag's head, claiming it was for his grandson's room decoration.

Count Hudson occasionally watched Lucas, noticing that he hadn't bought anything. He couldn't help but feel a sense of disappointment. Could it be that the items being auctioned off were too low-class for someone like Lucas? Not even the top-tier nobles were interested?

Cough, cough, cough... "Now, for the second-to-last item of the day, a bottle of imperial tribute wine from the Royal Palace of Siacan. The starting bid is one gold coin," The auctioneer called, holding up a black ceramic bottle.

"I bid three gold coins," A baron called out.

"Five gold coins! Imperial tribute wine—definitely worth tasting!" A viscount shouted eagerly.

"..."

The bottle of royal palace tribute wine had sent the nobles into a frenzy. After all, the royal palace was far removed from their everyday lives. Many of them had probably visited the capital only a handful of times, let alone the palace itself, and even fewer had the chance to taste the wine from the royal court.

What mattered to them was the reputation, the vanity of owning something associated with the royal palace. Whether the wine was good or not was secondary.

Lucas glanced at the smiling Count Hudson and immediately understood his plan. Hudson was clearly trying to steer the rumors about the divine wine to set the stage for the upcoming auction of the Amos Notes.

Indeed, that was Hudson's intention. Since the divine wine was rumored to come in black bottles, he decided to auction off his cherished royal tribute wine. Now, who would still be thinking about the divine wine?

"I bid fifteen gold coins," A count called out, adding three more gold coins. The royal tribute wine was something that many of the counts were coveting.

After all, not every count had the wealth of Count Hudson or Count George. Many lived off modest incomes from their lands, which mostly produced grain.

"Fifteen gold coins, sold!" The auctioneer called out, and immediately a knight brought the bottle of wine forward for the transaction.

"Now, we have only one item left for today's auction—the Amos Notes. Please welcome Count Hudson to personally present the auction for this final item." The auctioneer announced, bowing respectfully to Count Hudson.

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