1098 A Brewing Storm
Even on the second day, Hex failed to find the traces of this newcomer entering Infinity Store. But he did learn about the auction tomorrow. After being sidelined for a whole year, Unicorn House seemed to be back in the limelight.
A lot of important guests would be coming then and the latest batch of drugs after the breakthrough would also be funded through a few art pieces auctioned.
Hex returned to the depraved side of Ubiq and reached his current residence. The centermost point of the dark side, the most depraved region, the place where the drugs were distributed to the masses.
Several rank 1 rankers ran out and saluted him fiercely. A few rank 2s also bowed to him in respect.
Under their escort, he walked in through a separate gate, far away from the destitute citizens lining up for the drugs.
Contrary to the poverty outside, the interior was oozing with luxury that was just as good as the richest neighborhoods on the other side.
The boss and his thugs sat on comfortable sofas for a small meeting.
"Did you find him, Boss?" Old One, a mid rank 2 and the first of the three fearsome gangsters of Ubiq, asked.
"Not a clue." Hex stomped his foot.
The entire building shook and the gangsters outside the building ran away, fearing for their lives.
"Maybe he just misdirected everyone about needing to buy some stuff. Or maybe he doesn't need Infinity store." Old Two opined.
"Maybe." Hex's facial skin wriggled, partially revealing his flesh underneath.
"B-Boss." Old Three pointed at it with an uncomfortable expression. Even for the fearsome gangsters, it wasn't a bearable sight.
"Oh, this." Hex smoothened out the skin on his face. "The face of a senior executive in the Infinity store. It has to be adjusted every few hours."
"…"
"Anyway, he's in Ubiq. His spaceship did reach here. I'll find him sooner or later."
Hex already activated his network to search for all 'newcomers' to Ubiq. But since it's not just keeping watch of a single store like Infinity, it'd take a while to get information.
"And also watch out for any abnormalities in our turf. If he's smart enough to hide here, he wouldn't do anything stupid to expose himself. But still…keep watch."
"Yes, Boss."
— — —
"Due to a big customer, the auction date will be pushed forward and held five days later. I hope you understand."
"No problem. But who is this big customer?"
The cat lady from the Unicorn store looked around for a moment and whispered. "The lady from Infinity Store. She'd be free five days later."
"…Well."
"Those six items you wanted, She can get them for you. Since she's attending the auction, she has an interest in the items. If you can meet and convince her, you can get all the items you want."
Varian was speechless. How powerful was this woman that the entire auction was postponed for her alone? But it's true that he failed to find the main items in all the other stores of Ubiq.
Even those stores guaranteed him that he'd find the main items in the Infinity Store.
'If it's so famous that it's spread all over the Empire, then why open in this failing Duchy?'
As he passed by the giant building that extended into the clouds with the symbol of Infinity, Varian was certain of one thing.
'I have to get out of here. Whatever the reason Infinity Store was opened in this backward Duchy, it's unlikely to do me any good.'
As he passed by the store, he came into view of two pairs of eyes.
The first pair of eyes was Hex's, who quickly ignored Varian after he didn't enter the Store.
The second pair of eyes, however, locked onto him from the topmost room of the Infinity Store. Those purple eyes shone with a brilliant light as they followed his trajectory with an indifferent gaze.
When Varian entered the slum area and disappeared, her eyes turned back to the three items floating in the room.
If Varian was here, he'd be surprised to find that except for the life-death suspension ring, all the three treasures he sold were here.
The Vitality fruit, the Anti-aging potion, and the Elemental restraining flower.
No one in the Centaurus Duchy could've had any knowledge of these items. After all, they weren't available in this Duchy, the surrounding Duchies, or even this Kingdom.
"These can only come from the Nexus Empire…" The woman was confident.
Her face was covered by a thin veil. No matter how hard one tried, one wouldn't be able to get the slightest glimpse of her features. Only her eyes and her gemstone-like purple eyes were visible.
Yet, just her melodious voice alone was capable of winning hearts. But even more catchy was her intelligence.
She rightly determined the origin of the items.
Ares tribe, the ancestors of Devas, were technically half the rulers of the present-day Nexus Empire.
When they fled after the tribal war, they took the most loyal races with them—the eight races surviving in the ruins.
So, the treasures that Varian sold were indeed similar to the ones available in the Nexus Empire.
"But he isn't even an elemental."
In front of the store, his aura lingered. Scanning it thoroughly, the woman confirmed his powers.
He's a Mystic. Rank unknown.
He didn't seem like a hybrid, so he's a member of the Genesis Empire, the Empire of Life.
But why did a member of Genesis Empire bring in the products of Nexus Empire? There were hundreds of Duchies in between Centaurus and the closest Nexus Duchy.
"There's that stupid prince searching for a woman long dead and now this unknown man…" Her voice grew colder and her aura slowly condensed.
For a moment, she wondered if she should just eliminate these two variables so that her mission wouldn't be affected.
But that thought only lasted for a moment before she dismissed it.
It's easy for her to eliminate a mere rank 3 Baldur and this stranger. But doing so would risk exposing her.
That person didn't know she was here. But the opening of Infinity Store itself would've alarmed him and kept him on his toes. If she raised his suspicions to the point he felt threatened, he'd flee, failing her mission.
Her aura expanded soundlessly and enveloped the entire Ubiq. She tried to find Varian but he had already disappeared.
"This level of disguise makes it more certain. Other than those sneaky rats, it's hard to find warriors who can hide from me with such ease."
The veiled woman raised her palm and a shining red loop appeared. When Varian passed by, it remained motionless.
If he was really the target she'd been searching for, the locator would've responded. No matter the disguise, the locator would work at such a close range.
"It's not him. Then who is that boy? Is he one of those people the sadists in Nexus transmigrated? And lucky enough to return?"
Once that thought arrived, everything made sense.
His identity seemed normal but it was fake. He seemed wealthy but he had no money until he got the advance payment for the auctioned items.
He was looking for some miscellaneous items—items that were more suitable for fixing weapons than creating potions—presumably because he knew a famous blacksmith from Nexus. As the Empire that champions Order, Nexus produced some of the finest blacksmiths of the Alliance.
With only limited information, she correctly deduced a lot of things about Varian.
"Take them back to the auction." She said lightly.
Two shadows appeared in the room and the items were returned to Unicorn Auction House.
"A complete stranger that even I don't know the origin of…he could be a good pawn."
Unaware that his highly secretive actions alarmed a mysterious powerhouse, Varian confidently walked into the dark side of Ubiq.
No matter how many times he saw it, it remained a skin-crawling sight.
Some people were walking on the streets while others lay on the sides of the streets, spasming and twitching. After waking up, they just took another shot of the drug and collapsed again.
What Varian found horrifying was that even the people walking on the streets, apparently normal people going to work, had the stench of drugs. They were relatively lighter compared to the dysfunctional addicts on the road, but…they all had that stink.
