"20 large silver!"
"30 large silver!"
"40 large silver!"
"1 gold!"
The bidding began with the women and the price rapidly rose. This was done as a tactic to encourage the people. If you were to try and bid for the female slaves but were not able to due to the high competition, you would naturally try to console yourself by successfully purchasing a male slave.
This was a tactic that was rather useful, especially for the common slaves who did not have too much difference between each other except for gender, age, height, and colour.
Soon enough, all the ladies were sold and they were taken off stage, still shivering in fright from when they had first arrived. Not a single one was sold for less than a gold, with the price slowly climbing higher with each successful sale, and the last one was sold for an astounding 10 gold!
The two hooded figures were only able to get a single female slave since they did not have the budget to get another one which cost 5 gold! Their total budget was just 7 gold, which was all their life savings. Although they would naturally get reimbursed when they returned with the two attendants, they currently did not have access to any more money, and they could not reveal their identities.
Of course, if they would just reveal their true identities, they would even be able to get the highest quality slaves such as Magi or knights for free, but they had been warned to never reveal their identities unless their lives were in danger, or they were out for official business.
"How about we just leave?" The first hooded figure asked in hesitation.
"Although we would not be able to afford the slaves which will come later on, we can most definitely get one of them," The second figure said as she pointed at the group of men and male children who were also in chains on the stage, waiting to be sold as goods, her eyes glistening with a strange emotion.
"A male attendant!" The second figure gasped in shock
"It does not have to be a man. It can be a boy. Since he would be younger than 'her' it will be alright. Plus, having a man by your side might end up being really useful in the future. Especially if 'she' accepts him and teaches him some sword arts, or better yet, an external art!"
"But… 'she' could also teach it to the female we just bought. She is around the same age as 'her' and the two would naturally become rather close to each other. Plus, this one is very beautiful, just a little less than 'her'."
"There are many situations where a male attendant would be very useful. If you want, I will list them all out to you while returning home and you can tell me if they are not important situations. But for now, let us select the perfect candidate among these few."
…
Yu watched as more and more people bid for the stronger-looking males in his group of 10 as he finally realised what was happening.
He was being sold as a slave, and the contract-looking document he had been forced to sign just now was likely some sort of legally binding contract for slavery. Or worse yet, a contract relying on the mysterious magic of a mage!
However, there was not much he could do as he just silently waited his turn. He could see there were strong guards all around him, the pirate cosplayer was also right in front of him, he did not have his weapons, and he was stark naked and in chains.
He did not like this feeling, especially during the latter half of his current predicament. Clearly, in the audience, there were quite a few women, around 20% of the total crown, and having himself so openly exposed did not sit well with him at all.
The only little consolidation he had was that his face was still covered with a mask so no one knew who he was, and where he was from. And thankfully, even if they did, it did not matter since he was essentially born out of the blue at his current age as Kai's clone, meaning that he had no background or history.
However, he did exist, and for as long as he wore this same mask, many would remember him, and his currently naked body.
Soon enough, his turn came, and the price rose rapidly after the pretty host described him as a mysterious boy with unknown origins, and a mask covering his face that has fused not only with his skin but also his facial muscles and bone, making it impossible to remove without killing him.
Compared to the other youths around his age, his price rose rapidly to 1 gold, but then stabilised there for a while. This was lower than the strong men who went for an average of 2 gold, but it was a decent amount.
All of a sudden, one of the windows on the first floor turned green as the host in the red dress pointed at that window and yelled in an enthusiastic voice,
"2 gold!"
The entire crowd on the ground floor fell silent. Nobody was stupid. Everyone present knew what it took to receive a VIP seat in any auction house in the royal capital. Naturally, no one would bid against them except for others from the VIP houses.
Plus, 2 gold for having a mystery boy as their slave was just not worth it. They would rather go to another auction house and purchase a good fighter who could fight for them or protect them, thus making up for the gold spent to purchase them.
A little boy of mysterious origins was just not worth it to most and considering a VIP had just bid, everyone just remained silent.
"Sold to VIP room 1 for 2 gold!" The host replied with a sweet smile that put the anxious hearts of some of the audience at ease.
The pirate-like man snapped his fingers and pointed at the right wing where all the female and male slaves who had already been sold had been collected, and Yu grunted in his mind as he followed, hoping to find a way to escape this place as quickly as possible.