Abhimanyu trained relentlessly in martial arts.
As soon as dawn broke, he would head deep into the forest—into regions where human footsteps were rarely seen.
There, he fought wild beasts—sometimes bare-handed, sometimes relying on his limited techniques. Blood, sweat, and pain… all of it had become a part of his daily life. And when night fell, his training did not stop.
In the darkness of night, beneath the faint glow of the moon, Abhimanyu continued to repeat martial stances all by himself. With every strike, his breathing grew heavier; his muscles screamed in protest—yet he refused to stop. The results of his relentless training were now clearly visible.
Although he was still officially at Level-6, his true combat strength had far surpassed that stage. He could now directly confront—and even kill—advanced Primary Level beasts whose power rivaled Level-8 warriors, all without using magic.
He had even begun to face wild beasts whose strength was comparable to a Primary Level-9 warrior.
But such power came at a cost.
Without realizing it, Abhimanyu had grown accustomed to bloodshed.
At the beginning, his hands used to tremble, his heart would pound violently… but now, the fall of a beast no longer shook him from within. All that remained was a cold sense of satisfaction—as if such deaths were only natural.
Continuous training had drained him from the inside.
One day, he finally stopped.
"…Something has to change," he murmured to himself.
Leaving the forest behind, Abhimanyu began heading back toward Indore City. He remembered—tomorrow, the biggest auction of the year was to be held at Kalyani's Merchant House. Perhaps there, he might find something that could push his strength to the next level.
When Abhimanyu arrived at the merchant house, the atmosphere felt different this time.
The maid standing at the entrance noticed him and, without asking a single question, bowed her head and gestured for him to enter. Walking calmly, Abhimanyu moved forward and once again reached the familiar chamber. Moments later, the same middle-aged man came and sat across from him.
Without any introduction, Abhimanyu placed the soul stones he had brought onto the table.
The glow of the stones was enough to make the eyes of any ordinary merchant widen in shock. Most of them were advanced Primary Level soul stones. A few were of mid-tier quality. And most astonishing of all—
Five soul stones belonged to beasts whose power exceeded the Primary Level itself.
Yet this time, there was no obvious surprise on the middle-aged man's face. Perhaps he had already grasped Abhimanyu's true capabilities.
In a calm voice, he stated the price.
"Altogether… seventy thousand silver coins."
Seventy thousand silver coins—equivalent to seven thousand gold coins.
(Since ten silver coins made one gold coin.)
Abhimanyu accepted the coins. His face remained calm, but deep inside, he knew—this amount would be a dream for an ordinary warrior.
He was about to stand up and leave when—
"Sir Abhimanyu," the middle-aged man stopped him. "You will be attending tomorrow's auction, won't you?"
Abhimanyu paused.
"Some truly exceptional items have arrived," the man said seriously. "For a warrior—such items are not only rare in Indore City, but nearly impossible to find in the surrounding regions as well. This is the biggest auction of the year."
Abhimanyu turned and looked at him.
"I don't have many coins," he said bluntly. "What would I even do at an auction?"
The middle-aged man smiled faintly.
"That's not a problem," he replied. "Even watching can be an experience in itself."
Abhimanyu fell into thought for a moment. Then he lightly nodded—and walked out.
Just then—
A mysterious voice echoed in his ears.
Only he could hear it. No one else around him noticed anything.
"Abhimanyu…"
The voice was soft, yet deep.
"You should attend the auction tomorrow."
Abhimanyu's steps came to a halt.
"I have a feeling," the voice continued, "that tomorrow, you will find something truly special."
A brief pause followed.
"We also need to find a suitable weapon for you—one that can truly make your martial arts deadly."
A faint glimmer appeared in Abhimanyu's eyes.
Perhaps… I really might find something good at tomorrow's auction.
The voice echoed within him once more—
"But for that, you will need coins. You currently have seventy thousand silver coins… that is, only seven thousand gold coins. And to be honest—these coins are completely useless."
Hearing those words, Abhimanyu froze for a moment. His expression turned solemn. He knew—the voice was right.
This amount would be enormous for an ordinary person, but compared to his ambitions, it was nothing. The biggest problem was that he could not even tell anyone where he had obtained these coins from.
Abhimanyu sank into deep thought. He remained silent for several moments.
Then suddenly—
A sharp light flashed in his eyes. A faint smile appeared on his lips.
"Why don't… we put something valuable in the auction as well?" he said carefully.
"Something like a magical stone… or a martial art?"
He didn't want to say it directly—that the voice should give him a combat technique so he could earn money.
But the voice had already read his thoughts.
And this time—its tone was cold.
"What do you think I am?"
There was a trace of anger in the voice.
"A treasury that gathers wealth? Something that will give you whatever you want?"
Abhimanyu immediately began to stammer.
"No… no! It's nothing like that!"
"I was just… trying to find a solution to our problem."
"Our problem?"
The voice sharpened.
"Not mine—yours!"
With a faint smile, Abhimanyu replied,
"In the end… it's the same thing."
For a few moments, everything fell silent.
The voice said nothing, as if it had completely lost interest in the conversation.
Abhimanyu felt he might have gone too far.
But then—after some time—the voice echoed again.
"Fine."
The very next moment—a piece of paper appeared in Abhimanyu's hands.
He froze in shock.
He had no idea where it had come from.
But the instant his eyes fell upon it—a genuine smile spread across his face.
The middle-aged man standing behind him had witnessed everything.
Abhimanyu stood near the door, talking to himself—sometimes smiling, sometimes lost in thought.
A question arose in the man's mind:
"Has this boy… gone mad?"
"Or did failing to awaken an element disturb his mental balance?"
Just as he was thinking this, Abhimanyu suddenly turned around and sat in front of him.
Placing the paper on the table, he said calmly,
"This is a Level-2 Earth-element martial art. I want to sell it at the auction."
The middle-aged man's eyes lit up.
Still, he did not make a decision immediately.
"Please wait for a moment."
Saying that, he left the room.
After some time, he returned—but not alone.
Kalyani was with him.
As soon as she sat down, she looked at Abhimanyu and said,
"I heard you wish to sell a Level-2 martial art."
She continued,
"The timing is good—tomorrow is the auction. Normally, no new items are added a day before."
Then, with a faint smile, she added,
"But for a Level-2 technique, we can make an exception."
She picked up the paper.
Just one glance.
That was all it took.
She instantly understood—
This was a genuine Level-2 Earth-element martial art.
And a powerful one at that.
Looking at Abhimanyu, Kalyani smiled.
"Alright. This will be placed in tomorrow's auction."
"Besides," she added,
"Tomorrow's auction is massive. Heads of many major families—and even the city lord himself—will be present."
With that, she kept the technique with her.
Abhimanyu asked,
"In your opinion… how much could it sell for?"
Kalyani thought for a moment, then replied,
"About one hundred thousand gold coins. That is—one million silver coins."
Her smile deepened.
"And if it becomes a matter of prestige between two factions… the price could rise far beyond that."
Abhimanyu smiled as well.
He said nothing—simply stood up and left.
Many questions filled Kalyani's mind, but she did not ask any.
As soon as Abhimanyu left, the middle-aged man could not restrain himself.
"Miss… he's willing to sell a Level-2 martial art without even asking the Saini family? Where did he get it from?"
Kalyani replied calmly,
"I don't think this belongs to the Saini family. As far as I know, he hasn't even visited them in the last two weeks."
There was a glint in her eyes.
"Perhaps someone is helping him—someone who doesn't want to reveal themselves to the world."
Then, with a fox-like smile, she said,
"Anyway… we only care about profit. What difference does it make where Abhimanyu got it from?"
Leaving the merchant house, Abhimanyu headed straight toward his home.
But today as well, fate seemed unwilling to favor him.
On the way—he ran into Karan.
Karan stood there with his gang, sneering.
"Where have you been? You've hardly been seen for the past month."
"Did you get scared after failing?"
"So scared that you don't even have the courage to show your face anymore?"
Abhimanyu said nothing and quietly continued walking.
But Karan spoke again,
"By the way, tomorrow is the auction. The clan head and my grandfather are buying me a fine weapon."
"To increase my combat strength."
Hearing this, Abhimanyu stopped.
He turned around.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Those who rely on family wealth," he said calmly—but sharply,
"are not called strong."
With that, he walked away.
And Karan—stood there, frozen in rage.
Even his lackeys didn't dare say a word this time.
What treasures will appear in the auction?
And how will the auction change Abhimanyu's fate—and the fate of the Saini family?
All answers will be revealed in the coming chapter.