"Is this even Ancient Runes? I studied them—these combinations make no sense!"
"Could some mage have made this as a joke?"
"Maybe! I've stared at it for ages and got nothing."
"The runes are encrypted. Decoding them directly would fry your brain—they're not meant to be read literally."
Mages murmured among themselves after examining the parchment, their voices buzzing with confusion. Serena caught only one clear message: no one understood it.
"Will it still sell?" she whispered to Aldington.
"Watch. People nitpick when they're interested," he replied.
Serena frowned. "I only nitpick when I don't want to buy. I focus on the good parts when I do."
"Alright, alright!" Eddie chased the last mage off the stage. "Everyone who wants a look has seen it—no second chances for latecomers."
He tapped the parchment with his wooden hammer. "Let's start the bidding. This so-called Wisdom Potion recipe—starting price: 60 gold coins."
Silence hung for a beat, then a voice called out: "60."
"65!"
"68!"
"80!"
Serena blinked, surprised by the interest. "100 gold!" another mage shouted, raising the stakes sharply.
"Why are they buying it if no one can read it?" she whispered.
"A mage hates admitting ignorance," Aldington explained. "100 gold for a chance to decode it isn't a loss. It'll top out around 110, though—any higher and it's not worth the risk."
True to his word, the bidding slowed. "101!" a mage offered hesitantly.
Eddie tapped his hammer rapidly. "No higher bids? I'm about to call it!"
"105!"
"107!"
"108!"
Eddie brought the hammer down with a roar. "Sold! 108 gold—don't forget to pay and pick it up later!"
The parchment was carried off, and Eddie grabbed the next item: a long, fiery-red feather. "Second item: a Blaze Bird tail feather. Blaze Birds are powerful fire-elemental monsters—their feathers boost fire magic affinity. Great for wands… or quills."
He snorted. "Though wands should use magic gems, not feathers. And quills? I've snapped a dozen fancy monster-feather quills from pressing too hard. I'd go bankrupt if I only used these!"
His antics drew chuckles—only Eunice and Serena found his style odd. The feather, unprocessed, sold for 300 gold.
"Wow," Serena breathed. "A single feather costs that much? A whole monster would be worth thousands."
Valoka Guild sold luxury quills to nobles—enchanted to glow or smell like flowers—for up to 100 gold, selling only two or three a year. "Mage tools are never cheap," Eunice said, noting the difference between noble trinkets and practical mage gear.
"Now for the main course!" Eddie unveiled a massive, glittering ruby, its surface swirling with distorted light, as if viewed through hot air. "Finrilia's Heart of Hope!"
Gasps echoed through the hall. "This isn't a mined ruby—it's meteorite-born. Filled with chaotic yet structured celestial mana, dense and harder than diamond. Thirteen diamond carving tools broke while cutting it!"
A mage called out: "Diamonds are harder than rubies! Why did they break?"
"Smart question!" Eddie pointed. "The mana inside is wild—fire-elemental in appearance, but a mix of multiple elements. It boosts fire magic damage and inflicts fire poison… but here's the catch:"
He leaned forward, mock-serious. "It's unstable. Using it for spells risks explosion. We're not liable for any accidents! Interested parties can inspect—starting price: 1,000 gold. No broke mages need apply."
Several mages sat back. Bidding erupted fiercely: 1,500, 2,000, 3,000 gold.
"How much gold did we bring?" Serena asked, anxious.
"Just over 3,000—enough for one bid," Eunice said, resigned.
"3,500!" a mage shouted, jumping the price by 200 gold.
"We're out," Eunice said, smiling faintly.
"3,550!" Aldington called, surprising them.
"Why bid if you might not win?" Serena asked.
"Even if I don't decode its chaos mana, it won't break—resell it to a high-ranking mage," he said. "Plus, studying its unstable mana could reveal fire magic's true nature—even if the four-element theory is dying."
The ruby sold to the guildmaster for 3,750 gold, leaving Serena in awe of the mage market's wealth.