"Bounce Fruit?" Rayleigh raised an eyebrow. "A Devil Fruit, huh?"
Takumi gave a small nod.
Rayleigh stroked his chin, a smile playing on his lips. "Didn't expect you to have an interest in Devil Fruits. Planning to eat it yourself or give it to one of your crew?"
"Neither," Takumi replied. "It's for my collection."
With that, Takumi took the lead and headed toward the auction hall. Rayleigh smirked and followed.
The two entered the hall and found a seat toward the back. This auction didn't require any special invitations—anyone could attend. If someone wanted to participate in the bidding, they just had to register with the staff to get a number card. And if someone had something to sell, they could negotiate with the auction house directly.
"Kid, what's your budget?" Rayleigh asked, his eyes fixed on the stage covered by a red curtain, his tone light.
"I don't have any money," Takumi responded bluntly.
Even if he did, he wouldn't waste it on something like this.
Rayleigh burst out laughing. "So, your plan is to rob whoever wins the Bounce Fruit, huh?"
Takumi gave a small nod. Since he was involving Rayleigh, there was no point in hiding much from him. Besides, it wasn't something he needed to keep secret.
Rayleigh ran his fingers through his beard and stood up. "Alright then, since we're here, might as well play along. I'll go grab a number card."
"Mm," Takumi responded.
Rayleigh pulled up the hood of his cloak and quietly slipped over to the booth where participants could get their auction numbers. He moved like he'd done it a thousand times before.
Takumi stayed behind, waiting for him to return and for the auction to start.
Before long, more and more guests started filling the hall, including two figures wearing bubble helmets—celestial dragons.
One of them was the woman whose dog Takumi had killed.
Takumi turned to glance at the two seated in the middle, in the section reserved for celestial dragons.
The celestial dragons were usually more interested in purchasing humans and other exotic creatures. Though Devil Fruits were unique, they probably wouldn't care much for them. After all, very few celestial dragons would want to eat something that tasted as awful as a Devil Fruit. Otherwise, with their wealth and influence, wouldn't they all be Devil Fruit users by now?
Takumi estimated that the chances of the celestial dragons bidding on the Bounce Fruit were pretty low.
Soon after, Rayleigh returned with a number card labeled 39 and sat down beside Takumi.
"This is going to be quite the show," Rayleigh remarked with a grin. "Aside from the Devil Fruit, there's also a mermaid up for auction."
Takumi: "..."
A mermaid on the auction block? What did that have to do with him?
Rayleigh continued, "People in Sabaody are obsessed with mermaids, especially the celestial dragons. If that mermaid ends up in their hands, she won't last long."
"And?" Takumi glanced at Rayleigh, unamused. "You want to rescue her?"
Rayleigh shook his head. "I'm too old for that. My heart's willing, but my body just can't keep up."
Takumi: "..."
Sure, your body can't keep up… As if saving a mermaid wouldn't be a piece of cake for someone like you. You're just too lazy to deal with the hassle, and you're really trying to sell this "heart of gold" act, huh?
Takumi chose to ignore him and shifted his focus to the stage as the red curtain was pulled back.
At the same time, a tall, thin figure entered the hall and leaned against the stone wall by the door, lazily rubbing his chin, waiting for the auction to start.
On the stage, a man wearing an orange top hat and star-shaped glasses stepped forward with a small microphone in one hand and a red gavel in the other.
The audience erupted in cheers at his appearance.
"Hahaha, thank you for waiting, everyone!" the man in the top hat grinned. "We're about to start today's auction. As always, I'm your host, Disco! We've got a ton of rare treasures and high-quality slaves lined up today. You're all incredibly lucky to be here for this one. And trust me, we've got two extremely hot items on the docket today. I hope you all find exactly what you're looking for!"
As Disco finished, the crowd roared with excitement.
"It's been over half a month since the last slave auction, right? I can't wait!"
"Hopefully, we get some young, beautiful girls. I'm already feeling the excitement!"
It wasn't just the celestial dragons—wealthy residents of Sabaody often enjoyed buying slaves too.
Seeing the high energy of the crowd, Disco continued, "Alright then, let's kick things off! Our first item is Princess Nanami from the Kingdom of Sitara in the North Blue, only eighteen years old."
With that, a young girl in a simple white dress, with delicate and innocent features, was escorted onto the stage by two auction staff members.
A slave collar was fastened around her neck, and her face was filled with despair and fear.
Her appearance sent another wave of cheers through the audience.
People were already eager to start bidding.
Disco smiled and continued, "Princess Nanami has been raised in luxury since birth. Not only is she beautiful, but she's also well-educated, gentle, and possesses the grace and etiquette of royalty. Buying her would definitely be worth every beli! Now, we'll start the bidding at the special price of 400,000 beli! Please, raise your number cards to bid!"
As soon as Disco finished speaking, a scruffy middle-aged man raised his card. "400,000 beli? That's a steal."
"Alright, bidder number 15 has offered 400,000 beli. Do I hear more?"
Almost immediately, voices from all around the hall chimed in.
"450,000 beli!"
"500,000!"
"510,000!"
"I'll go 600,000!"
"I'm not letting her slip by—800,000 beli!"
The bid of 800,000 beli quieted the room slightly.
Disco pointed to a young man in his twenties. "Bidder number 10 has offered 800,000 beli. Any higher offers? Let me remind you, Princess Nanami is pure and untouched by any man—a perfect, innocent lily. Surely someone will go higher?"
Not long after, another bid came in: "900,000!"
The young man who had bid 800,000 glanced at the pot-bellied older man across the room and frowned. After a moment of hesitation, he raised his card again. "1,000,000!"
"Alright, bidder number 10 has offered 1,000,000 beli. Are there any more offers?" Disco scanned the crowd, but when no one else raised their card, he calmly walked over to a small round table, lifted his gavel, and gave it two firm taps. "Sold for 1,000,000 beli!"