The day finally came for the auction to begin and during that time they were either training, duelling or purchasing new supplies, books or other tools.
Archie completed his task of completing the other ships repairs so afterward he assisted Nica in completing the smaller version of the tournament arena but also set up some additional things so that they could all continue to practice what Alyssia had been teaching them.
After that Nica spent the rest of her time reading the books on science, technology, engineering and other theories that had been published in the books that she had bought within the island.
Meanwhile Carrot was keeping herself busy with training and reading cartoon strips, Tristan was reading through many medical, biology and herb based books.
Clifford was focussing on honing his swordsmanship to which Alyssia would give an occasional comment on how to fix his form and some of the principles in certain sword arts that the system had collected.
Although the system usually organises the information and experiences of a person to suit herself and let her progress on her path smoothly it did not mean that the left over information that did not suit her was useless to others.
Even if she said something offhandedly and Clifford could not gain anything from it then she could try something else until he finds the right solution to the problem holding him back and make more progress in his sword path.
She had visited several martial halls and sword halls on the island so there was a lot of inspiration gained from that which could be put towards her dual scythe blades but most of it would actually be more beneficial for Clifford to learn from.
Archie was reading through woodworking, shipbuilding and other related books in his free time so that he could make progress in his craft.
In between training, duels and making meals for everyone, Alyssia was the most busy of them all.
Between journeying around the island and collecting as many skills as possible or searching for people with a more solid knowledge base of various skillsets with the help from the broker she was able to fix many missing parts or faults in her skills.
Many pirates and explorers on the island also had lots of experiences at sea so their experiences and knowledge were compiled and collected towards her Navigation skill and talent.
The stagnant skill that had not grown in a long time was beginning to gain lots of experiences and knowledge but also progress at a fast pace thanks to her talent in it.
After collecting many books on different science fields of research and principals ranging from biology, chemistry and physics but also many kinds of maps of the west blue and books about various weather patterns, legends and myths, navigation and cooking, the book shelves on the ship were beginning to fill up fast.
However this was a good thing for Alyssia who had the scholar skill, the more books that she read the more she would be able to master it but also learn some things from the books that she may not learn from what the system has collected on the island.
Right now this was only a small part of the world and information would be limited or even restricted so even their vast amount of experiences and knowledge they have gained would still not considered to be perfect.
It was much better to not always rely on the system for everything but also learn from books or a skilled teacher of some kind that could help correct her errors and tell her where she went wrong before she hurts herself when trying something that she does not have the complete information for.
In her previous life, she was a self reliant and independent person but she had also read her fair share of novels.
Not all system novels are perfect and sometimes either wish to restrict or direct their host to do certain things just so that they can level up faster, in some cases they even have the goal of secretly collecting points for themselves in secret while conning their host but when the host dies, it also collects their soul to divide it and turn it into skills or power to be bought by the next host.
Another cultivation system novel, the main protagonist reaches the stage where they can no longer progress or kill those above a certain realm because of a lack of progress in their cultivation manual and their own understanding of their own divinity after progressing by slaughtering many people for experience points.
In the end he had to cut off his whole cultivation and begin again just so that he could break through that realm and progress further.
In the end, systems are but tools and are not perfect.
They have a certain directive or goal to follow and cannot understand their host or care for them the way a parent would.
If that is the case then what are the fame or experience points that she is gathering?
Is it a form of world energy, emperor qi or something else that was usually explained in novels?
After the system got enough of what it needed… would it even stick around or would it just continue to function as usual?
She could use it to help her grow and find her direction but she could not become dependant on it otherwise if it broke down or disappeared one day wouldn't she be lost and helpless without it?
——————
In the lounge of the ship, Alyssia lay on a couch resting her eyes with an open book laying on her face.
Suddenly a knock was heard at the door as Carrot entered. "Sis Alyssia, it is time to go!"
As she got up the book fell to the ground so she bent over and picked it up before dusting it down and placing it back on the book shelf. "Okay. After this.. we will leave this island. I think that we have gained enough from here and have seen all that we need to see."
The papers of the ownership that she had found on the ship were carried along with her, she also brought three boxes that had a painted picture of a treasure chest with a question mark on it as she got off the ship and greeted the broker. "I have everything with me. Lead me there so that we can put them up for sale."
The broker smiled politely. "I have arranged everything so you need not worry."
They quickly made their way to the centre of the main city and entered through a doorway which lead underground.
As they entered the broker took something from his coat and passed it to her. "We wear masks here to hide our identities to buy anything at the auctions. Even if you have been high profile these few days, this should help others to not recognise you."
In her hands was a thin black cloak and a simple white mask, she quickly put it on and thought. 'As I thought.. this isn't exactly a legal auction but an underworld auction. How exciting but also… I hope I do not see some unpleasant sights.'
During the past couple of days the broker had helped to sell any of the additional jewels or weapons from the pirate ship so she had quite a lot of berries to add to what she had left and what she had gained during her duels but was also looking forward to her profits from the ship and her boxes.
She found that the man was very resourceful and had many connections but he seemed to be more interested in earning her favour and staying on her good side.
Although she did not know his true purpose behind doing so, she did not mind his assistance during this time that she was on the island.
Sitting in the private booth she got to enjoy the luxuries of valued guest after she submitted a ship which could be considered expensive even if it was second or third hand after being fixed up along with the mystery boxes that would attract the attention of many people.
A bowl of fruit was in front of her along with a glass of juice so she couldn't help but get settled in her seat and enjoy her time while looking down towards the stage.
An announcer stepped onto the stage and began to walk around in a flashy outfit and made some showy gestures as he spoke. "Welcome everyone to the monthly underground auction! As usual we have many interesting 'goods' but as usual there will be some last minute entries that might excite or interest you."