Chapter 75: Conflict at the Auction Venue

Donald was extremely interested in this Silver Moon Coin. Even at the cost of spending several thousand gold sols more, he felt it was worth it. After all, he wasn’t one of those ancient noble families with extensive collections; obtaining such a rare ancient arcane artifact from other sources was practically impossible.
Even a silver-level master like his teacher hadn’t managed to acquire a Silver Moon Coin. The same was true for the mage in black robes. No matter what arcane spell pattern was engraved on it or what magical effects it could unleash, it was undoubtedly a powerful magical artifact, on par with gold-level enchanted items. If lucky, it might even be a powerful defensive spell, providing a strong asset for protection.
There were indeed silver mages in the Mage Association who ranked higher than him, as well as gold-level experts, so it was hardly his turn. That’s why the mage in black robes cared so much about this Silver Moon Coin, even going so far as to use the association’s funds to bid—only to be outbid by that wealthy young mage.
“You kid, since you’re also a mage, why go against the Mage Association? Aren’t you afraid of being despised by all the mages in the kingdom?”
While Donald and the others were thrilled about winning the auction, the mage in black robes walked over from his seat, his face dark with hatred as he spoke.
In response to his accusation, Donald said just one sentence that struck at the core of his issue. “Master, can you represent the Mage Association on your own?”
The mage in black robes gritted his teeth. “Good! Good! It’s been a long time since I’ve met someone with such courage. We’ll meet again…”
Hearing the hidden threat in his words, Donald also felt anger. Competing fairly still led to trouble—truly, kindness invites exploitation!
“Please calm down, gentlemen. The auction must continue…”
At that moment, an auction house official stepped in to defuse the situation. One was a hero of the kingdom who had fought against orcs, while the other was a silver mage from the Mage Association. The auction house didn’t want to offend either party, but the mage in black robes had gone too far, risking the auction house’s reputation. With its strong backing from merchant guilds, the auction house wasn’t truly afraid of just a silver mage—it simply preferred to avoid conflict and maintain good relations.

The robed elder mage was furious. If it weren’t for the presence of so many people, he would have already destroyed those young nobles before him. Now, this manager had stepped in his way.
The robed mage was filled with rage. He thought to himself that those young nobles were difficult to deal with due to their status, while this ordinary mortal, just a manager of an auction house, dared to influence the will of a silver mage—how dare he be so reckless? With that thought, he exerted a massive mental pressure, enveloping the manager as well.
That manager was merely an ordinary person with no fighting skills at all. He couldn’t withstand such mental pressure and immediately broke into sweat, with blood trickling from the corners of his mouth. The robed mage watched triumphantly as he saw the fear in everyone’s eyes and noticed that those young nobles were still managing to hold on. So, he relentlessly intensified the pressure.
Just then, a light cough came from the central viewing area on the second floor. The robed mage suddenly let out a growl, his face turning pale in an instant. Filled with shock and anger, he glanced at the stands before fleeing the venue in a hurry without daring to look back.
Donald and the others breathed a sigh of relief as the crisis was averted.
“I apologize on behalf of the auction house for the trouble caused to you all.”
After apologizing on behalf of the auction house, the manager collapsed from exhaustion. Several servants rushed forward to carry him out of the venue for treatment.
The minor disturbance was thus resolved. Ferdinand spoke disdainfully in the direction the robed mage had left, “An old man who disrespects others, relying on his strength to ignore the auction house’s rules and try to force sales—this is not like a mage at all. Just as my mother said, the Mage Association has lost its former glory and is becoming increasingly degenerate!”
He raised his voice intentionally so that many guests around could hear. Surely, such words spreading around would cause trouble for that robed mage. At the very least, the leaders of the Mage Association would not ignore subordinates who damaged its reputation.
Donald, on the other hand, was still reflecting on what had happened. Unlike Ferdinand and his sister, he not only had to endure the mental pressure from the silver mage but also protect Catherine, who had no resistance, bearing double the pressure. If it weren’t for that sudden cough, he likely would have collapsed from mental exhaustion on the spot.
Thinking of the powerful will that flashed for a moment after that cough, although it was far less intense than the impact of the Abyssal Will before, it was still a hundred times stronger than the mental pressure from that silver mage.

That powerful will, which remained hidden and only revealed a fraction of its true strength like the tip of an iceberg, had reached such a level that it could manipulate the surrounding rules and even cause space to nearly freeze. Its owner was undoubtedly a being of great power, at least at the gold rank or above.
Judging from the direction, it seemed their king had grown impatient with the black-robed mage’s erratic behavior and ordered someone to secretly scare him away. Indeed, as a monarch, it made sense for him to have such a powerful protector by his side.
With that thought, Donald took out several small purification potions and handed them to Ferdinand and the others. He took one himself as well, then, ignoring the two final auctions still taking place below, he slowly recovered from the fatigue resulting from the fierce battle.
By the time Donald emerged from his light meditation state, the last item on auction had just been sold at a high price.
Jenilia said proudly, “Donald, you missed the last two items!”
The second final item was the handwritten notes of a sword sage from a hundred years ago. The siblings successfully bid 30,000 gold sols for them. Thanks to the Ansel family’s influence and their ample funds, no one wanted to compete with them to the end.
As for the last item, it was a magical armor crafted jointly by two great alchemists and blacksmith masters of the kingdom. It allowed knights and swordsmen who wore it to gain three powerful magical abilities, instantly transforming them into legendary figures skilled in both magic and combat.
Although this magical armor was extremely valuable, fetching a price of 54,000 gold sols—more than what most local noble lords could afford even if they sold their lands three times—Donald wasn’t disappointed after hearing about it.
That was because one of the creators of this armor was his teacher, the great alchemist Messel.
Moreover, the Book of Truth contained even more powerful equipment. However, as a mage and a demon hunter, he didn’t need such heavy armor, and its exchange cost was too high, so he hadn’t considered it.
After this mental training and with the help of potions, Donald felt that his mental strength had reached another breakthrough. Both its cohesion and intensity had firmly surpassed those of a beginner bronze-level mage. It was likely that he would be able to master fourth-level spells in no time.
After saying goodbye to Ferdinand and his siblings, Donald took Catherine and followed the auction house staff backstage to pay for the items auctioned and settle the profits from his previous two auctions.

After much effort, Donald finally obtained this Silver Moon Coin forged by the Ancient Arcane Empire. Although its arcane energy had been depleted, it could be restored by recharging it, allowing the arcane circuitry to function again and enabling the use of a high-level spell with at least silver-tier power. For the Book of Summoning, which mastered profound laws and excelled in analyzing matter and energy, reconstructing its arcane circuitry was not difficult; with suitable materials, replicating other Silver Moon Coins would be a breeze! It could be said that although Donald paid more than double the price to acquire this coin, the future profits it could generate would far exceed that amount tenfold or even a hundredfold. With the gains from this auction, Donald dined with Ferdinand and his siblings at a hotel in the capital city before bidding farewell and leaving. It was his last night in the capital, which he wanted to spend with Catherine. Early the next morning, after a night of intimacy, Donald had to say goodbye to the Countess and leave Kosovo. Time-wise, the mountain people the Ansel family had agreed to bring over were due in just two days, so he needed to return to oversee matters in his domain. The two princes, preoccupied with power struggles, had no time to attend the auction and were unaware that His Majesty the King had made a public appearance there. Upon hearing the news from their subordinates, they were shocked. The King’s sudden appearance severely weakened the momentum of both factions, causing various forces within their camps to lay down their arms and avoid further public displays of strength. Donald never expected that it was precisely the Moon Essence he had sold that caused further changes in the already turbulent situation in the capital. Before leaving, Donald recalled his earlier plan and handed over the goods he had brought to Catherine to sell. Now, not only was there a considerable amount of black tea stored in the manor that needed to be sold, but as the Moon Essence in the Moon Well increased, the production of Moonlight Wine was also rising. After deducting what he needed for himself and what he had to give to the Mage’s Society, he could sell at least thirty bottles per month. Although the actual selling price would likely be lower than that at the auction, it would still represent a significant profit. He gave the Countess two space bags; if all the goods inside were sold and costs were deducted, he could earn tens of thousands of gold sols—equivalent to the total output of an ordinary barony over several years. Once his domain developed further, Donald even planned to auction the magical items from the Book of Summoning.

Given such enormous profits, there will surely be those who envy them in the future. But as a mage, and moreover a powerful summoner among mages, with a teacher and a whole group of mages backing him, he is not someone anyone can easily provoke. Even his guardian knight, Uther, is already at the peak of bronze-level strength. Unless it’s a faction determined to make him their enemy, it’s impossible to provoke him easily.

As for those major factions and nobles, they won’t care too much about this wealth. Which noble doesn’t have their own unique source of income? What they care about are the unique products from Darknight Manor that can bring them pleasure and prestige.

Moreover, even nobles and the royal family cannot easily take away a noble’s power and lands, unless that noble declines first, which would then give opportunity to those external threats.