The sky above Eternal Harmony City looks bright. There were no clouds covering the sun that shines this morning. Today, the city looks more lively than the usual, dozens of luxury carriages arrived at the Golden Light Castle courtyard. One by one the merchants got off their carriages. They were rich merchants who were invited by the castle. These merchants have been selected to ensure that they get their assets from legal business and have gotten good behaviour recommendations from the civilians. They enter the castle, their faces look tense, getting an invitation to the castle is an almost impossible thing that will happen in their lives, more than that they get the opportunity to take an audience with the king, and they will face two kings at once. This was truly a rare opportunity that might only come once in their lifetime.
They walked into the castle escorted by the guards after their luggage was checked before they entered the castle. They passed through the luxurious ivory corridor to the Golden Light Castle main hall. Their eyes swept around them as their feet moved, admiring the beauty of the castle.
The guards opened the door to the main hall, they entered a luxurious hall with gold ornamental details that adorned every corner. Tables and chairs are neatly arranged. Two kings sat side by side on their throne at the end of the room. They immediately recognized a middle-aged king with yellow golden hair in the Asterian white royal military uniform. King Gervis Eryes Reinheart, the ruler and protector of Asteria. At his age that is not young anymore, his strength is still visible, his hand holding his armchair looks sturdy. The majesty aura of a king emanates from his serious face, but his aura is nothing compared to a young king in the Euphorion royal black military who had just conquered Asteria next to him. King Angelus Raizel Moonfall, the genius king who turned the kingdom of Euphorion which almost destroyed five years ago into the most prosperous kingdom on the Andromeda Continent. His face looked cold like an ice sculpture and his sharp eyes made them feel intimidated as if he could read their minds in just one glance. They bowed to salute the two kings who replied with a simple nod. Then they sat down in accordance with the guards delivering them.
After everyone sat in their place, a man in Asteria's official uniform walked in the middle of the room and bowed to greet them. "Good afternoon, guests. Welcome to Golden Light Castle. My name is Barnes. On this rare occasion, the castle invites you to give you an opportunity to contribute to the Kingdom."
"As written on the invitation we will give the title and the contract to the five highest bidders. Therefore we will determine this with an auction system. The two lowest bidders will get the title 'Minister of Coin' and a one-year contract. The third highest bidder will get the title 'Lord of Silver' and a two years contract. The second highest bidder will get the title 'Saint of Gold' and a three years contract. The highest bidder will get the title 'Savior of Nation' and a four years contract. "
As they heard it they whispered to each other in excitement. That title sounds extraordinarily prestigious, especially the highest bidder title. From the title's name, everyone can find out their merit that they have made for Asteria.
Meanwhile, even though King Gervis's face looks calm, actually he is very tense. Asteria's financial condition is determined today. Even though the merchants looked excited, it could be because they were invited to the castle by the king. The matter of them wanting to spend a lot of money to help Asteria is something else, after all, aren't all the merchants stingy?
King Gervis's mind continued to sink into his anxiety. If this event is unsuccessful, not only will he have to find another way to clear Asteria's finances problem but it will also embarrass his honour as a king.
In contrast to Angel who faced this event calmly. During his time rebuilding the Kingdom of Euphorion's economy, he learned many things, especially about merchants. Small merchants pay attention to their profit but large merchants pay more attention to information and network. Because they can get greater profit from there and nothing is better than establishing good relations with the ruler of the kingdom itself.
"The offer was opened from one million gold coins," Barnes said, opening the auction.
One by one the merchants raised their hands and shouted fantastic numbers that were getting higher and higher.
King Gervis looks both shocked and relieved to see their enthusiasm. He even thought the offer of one million gold coins as an opening was already very high, but apparently, the number they offered was much higher than that. A satisfied smile began to appear on his face as the number increased over time.
While Angel is also relieved because everything is going well, that way he can immediately return to Euphorion and head to his next target.