Grand Return System

The Auction Begins

A faint laugh escaped Leon’s lips.

Rias only smiled innocently, as if she had said nothing unusual.

Leon smiled faintly.

He didn’t take the farce just now to heart.

What so-called prince?

To him, Lord James was just a small fry who could be destroyed with a flick of his finger.

He was not worth his attention.

The only reason Leon had not made a move earlier was because he was worried about Rias.

After all, she was still connected to the royal family by blood.

Leon might not care about the Drake Empire, but he cared about the feelings of the people around him.

If Rias had shown even the slightest hesitation, he would have handled the situation differently.

But she had not.

Instead, she had practically encouraged him to beat Lord James into a pig’s head.

Leon found the thought rather amusing.

He turned toward Cavir Walton.

The latter immediately straightened.

"Shopkeeper Cavir, I don’t want this to happen again. Do you... understand?"

Leon spoke calmly.

There was no anger in his voice.

No threat.

Nothing that could be called aggressive.

Yet Cavir Walton’s heart sank the moment he heard those words.

Cold sweat broke out across his forehead again.

These seemingly casual words gave him immense pressure.

He understood what Leon meant.

There would not be a second warning.

Experts at their level were temperamental. One could not figure out their thoughts at all.

Perhaps he would be given a slap because of something he did not do well.

Cavir Walton immediately lowered his head.

"Understood, understood. Respected One, don’t worry. I promise that such a thing will never happen again..."

His voice carried lingering fear.

Leon nodded.

He let Cavir Walton get back to work.

He did not make things difficult for him.

After all, he still had to rely on Cavir Walton for the rest of the business.

The auction had not even officially begun.

There were still treasures to be sold, and Leon was interested in seeing exactly how much those items could fetch.

Cavir Walton bowed once more before hurriedly leaving the private room.

The door closed behind him.

The room once again returned to its peaceful atmosphere.

Outside, the auction house remained bustling.

Inside, Leon calmly waited.

Meanwhile, in the Earth-class private room, the situation was considerably less peaceful.

Lord James sat in his chair with a gloomy expression.

His fingers tapped impatiently against the armrest.

The more he thought about what had just happened, the angrier he became.

He had entered the Heaven-class private room as a prince of the Drake Empire.

He had introduced himself.

He had even given Leon an opportunity to save face.

Yet he had been rejected.

Worse, Cavir Walton had chosen Leon over him without hesitation.

The humiliation gnawed at his pride.

"Damn it! Which family’s kid is it that doesn’t even give me face?"

He angrily pounded the chair.

The heavy wooden armrest shook beneath his palm.

The sound echoed through the Earth-class private room.

At this moment, a servant hurried in.

The servant’s steps were quick, but his expression was uneasy.

He stopped several steps away and lowered his head.

"Your Highness, we went to investigate just now and didn’t find any useful information. I wonder where this guy came from. He doesn’t look like a descendant of an aristocratic family."

"What?"

Lord James frowned.

His expression immediately became darker.

No information?

That was impossible.

Cavir Walton had behaved so carefully toward Leon.

If Leon really came from an ordinary household, there was no reason for him to receive such treatment.

"Impossible. Cavir Walton was so polite to him just now. His background must be extraordinary. Continue investigating. Investigate thoroughly. If you can’t, don’t come back in the future."

His voice became ruthless.

The servant’s heart trembled.

He immediately bowed.

"Yes, Your Highness."

The attendant was so frightened that he broke out in cold sweat.

He hurriedly left the private room and continued to investigate Leon.

Yet neither Lord James nor his attendant understood the true problem.

How could they possibly find Leon’s background by investigating the secular households of Ashford City?

Leon wasn’t from the secular world to begin with.

He was the peak master of the Celestis Academy.

His true identity existed far beyond the world Lord James was searching through.

If Lord James had been a little bolder and investigated in this direction, he might have been able to find some clues.

Unfortunately, he firmly believed that Leon was a descendant of an aristocratic household.

And because of that assumption, every step of his investigation was already pointed in the wrong direction.

He had decided that Leon was merely some young master who had recently become active in Ashford City.

Now all he needed was to find a suitable name—a young master who had been making trouble recently.

Someone else would have to take the blame.

And somewhere inside the Heaven-class private room, completely unaware of the investigation being launched against him, Leon remained calmly seated.

For him, the entire matter had already passed.

But for Lord James, it had only just begun.

Unfortunately, he firmly believed that Leon was a descendant of an aristocratic family and had to find a young master who was recently active in Ashford City to take the blame.

---------------

Soon, the auction officially began.

The atmosphere inside the Whitelist Restaurant changed almost instantly.

The casual chatter that had filled the grand hall slowly faded, replaced by a restrained silence. Conversations became whispers, and even those whispers disappeared as people turned their attention toward the enormous auction stage below.

Soft golden lamps hung from the ceiling, their light spilling across the polished stone floor and reflecting faintly off the countless treasures displayed around the hall. From the private rooms above, distinguished guests watched from behind carved railings and translucent screens.

Leon sat quietly beside the window.

His long, shoulder-length black hair rested loosely over his midnight robes, the thin amethyst embroidery along the fabric catching the light whenever he moved.

His purple eyes remained calm as he looked down at the auction hall.

From this height, he had an excellent view.

Every movement below was visible.

Every expression.

Every reaction.

Beside him, Rias sat quietly as well. Her long red hair flowed over her shoulders, and her large crimson eyes followed the activity below with mild curiosity.

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