'This kid probably stole this from his family vault. There shouldn't be anything wrong if I seize it from his hands and throw him out of the auction house. Even if he is dumb enough to report a stolen item to the police, I would have already copied the contents of the blueprint and just easily returned the original with an excuse that I suspected that it was stolen and refused to engage in business with him.'
DP thought sinisterly as his mind churned and created more scenarios in his mind where he goes scoot-free with a copy of the blueprint.
"Can you show me something to prove your identity?" DP requested, causing Matthew to frown.
'I thought this was a black market, who in the hell asks for the seller's identity in such a crooked market?' Matthew wondered.
Seeing his expression, DP continued, "It is compulsory to know who I am buying such a thing from. What if it's a stolen good?"
"I don't see how that concerns you. This is a black market, do you think I'm a kid or I'm stupid?" Matthew retorted angrily. 'Just when I thought my day was going to get better this fucker just had to ruin it for me with his shrewd mind,' He thought in annoyance.
'I thought he was a stupid noble's child, seems like he's not as stupid as I thought. Anyways, it doesn't matter. He's in my territory now and I can forcefully seize his treasures, heck, I can even seize him and sell him off as a slave. I'll leave the human traffickers to worry about the outcome if indeed his family is well connected and powerful.' DP thought wickedly as a smile slowly formed on his face.
Seeing this smile, Matthew felt threatened and uneasy, his instincts screamed at him to leave the auction house as soon as possible, and Matthew wasn't one to ignore his instincts.
DP returned the blueprint to Matthew and told him to give him a few minutes, saying that he was going to get his wallet ready.
As soon as DP left the room, Matthew got up and placed the blueprint back into his satchel. "Things aren't as rosy as I wished them to be. Good thing this isn't the only black market in the world." He whispered to himself.
Matthew went for the exit of the room and stepped into a hallway, on the left side of the hallway was DP with a dozen or so other men who carried an iron pipe or ax with them. 'I knew that this ugly bastard was up to no good. Why would he bring such menacing people here if it isn't to intimidate or threaten me?'
Matthew was glad that he didn't ignore his instincts, or else, he would have been surrounded in that room with little leeway for an escape.
"You know what, I've had a change of heart. My parents will be looking for the blueprints at home, so I better be on my way back." Matthew said as he raised his middle finger and pointed it at DP before dashing off.
"After him!" DP ordered and the men behind him gave chase…
As Matthew was running, he felt as though he wasn't putting much energy into his movements. This feeling wasn't new to him as he had felt the same thing when he was escaping the university.
Since the night that He and Theodore had ingested the Vigorglow potion, they haven't tested their physical capabilities.
In half a minute, Matthew exited the auction house in a rush, startling everyone whose attention was drawn by the sound of Matthew crashing through the solid wooden doors of the auction house.
"What the?" Matthew muttered in shock as he turned to look at the place where the wooden door was before he crashed into it. Before crashing into the door, Matthew tried to slow down but he failed to do so early enough, hence his abrupt exit.
He suddenly recalled the things that Alaric had said about his and Theodore's bodies metamorphing and getting stronger. Although he dismissed most of the things he heard Alaric say, he started to wish that he had asked him a bit more about the changes the potion had brought to his body.
Nonetheless, Matthew felt euphoric at the moment. He could sense the untapped energy sleeping in his muscles, waiting to be called upon and burnt. "Nice!" He exclaimed excitedly.
"You freak!!" DP's voice snapped Matthew out of his thoughts, reminding him of his predicament. "How dare you break down the doors of my auction house?!" DP bellowed with his veins bulging out of his neck as he ran with his men towards the exit.
Matthew chuckled and raised his middle finger at DP once again before bolting into the busy streets of the market.
"That bastard has to be a mystic, how else could he have broken through the door like that," DP uttered through clenched teeth. "A Gifted perhaps? Most likely, if he was a Blessed he wouldn't be afraid to take us on." DP thought out loudly.
'Is anyone trying to set the auction house up? But that would be a stupid thing to do. Master has already paid the authorities some money and it wouldn't be easy to get us indicted.'
'Yet again, how did he come into the auction house without being tagged as a mystic by the Master? Does he have an artifact on him?' DP wondered and a smile crept up his face once again.
'If he has an artifact on him, it's all the more reason why I should capture him.' He reasoned greedily.
"Have Pega and his men chase after him, I want him brought back to me alive or half dead," DP ordered. "And call some carpenters to get this door fixed immediately." He commanded as he stepped into the auction house.
Matthew weaved through the streets of the city freely, relishing in the comfort and peace his body fed his mind the more he moved. He felt free and wasn't worried about being chased.
However, his peace was interrupted when out of nowhere, his instincts tugged at him to jump to the side. Without thinking much, Matthew followed his guts, diving into an alley.
Whoosh!
As soon as he dived, he saw an ax wheeze past the position he previously occupied.
At this point, Matthew could tell that there was something extraordinary about his instincts, and also, that his pursuers hadn't given up on catching him.
Looking at the dead end of the alley, Matthew charged at the 15-foot-long wall. A few yards away from the wall, he lifted himself into the air, taking a step on the wall and propelling himself over the wall.