Inheritor Of Magic: The Magi King

The matter of who would be chosen to accompany them to the Auction was eventually made by Countess Dewinter. There were a few Families that she wished to do business with, who weren't trying to marry her off to their sons, and who had seemed friendly at the party after they had seen all the improvements to her estates, instead of turning greedy.

The way that they had responded to her sudden good fortune said a lot about their character, and those were the ones that she recommended Wolfe to get closer to.

It was a given that they would try to make a deal with him for the same sort of arrangement that the Countess had made, and they would likely be willing to buy whatever Wolfe wanted from the auction to secure it, so he wouldn't be dumping a load of fraudulent coins into the market and messing up the local economy.

The first recommendation was Baron Southland, who, ironically, owned the small commercial market on the north side of the city's suburbs, which was a neighbouring village when the land entered his family.

As one of the largest businessmen in town, though far from the wealthiest, and the purveyor of the town's largest produce and meat markets, it was good for business to offer him the chance.

The second as also a Baron, but only due to his young age.

Baron Peter, a distant relative of Saint Petros, was only fourteen, and incredibly powerful for his age, as well as independent. He had struck out on his own to build an artificer's shop, and the Countess had a not so small crush on him.

Box seats were prohibitively expensive, but more importantly, they were very difficult to get. If Wolfe hadn't been staying at the best hotel in town, who had offered the reserved seat to a VIP guest from out of town, it would have gone to one of the Upper Nobles, or been offered to the Royals, just in case they happened to be interested in an item.

Both invited Nobles had sent senior staff members to return their confirmation, showing the Countess just how much they appreciated the invitation, and confirming that they would meet Wolfe and the Countess outside the Auction House, as it was customary to walk in due to space constraints in the stables and the anticipated traffic. Though, after the traffic jam at the Countess Dewinter's manor, that didn't seem as bad to Wolfe.

Not that it took particularly long to walk across town, and the weather was nice, so he was thoroughly enjoying his walk across town with Cassie and the Countess.

It was clear that everyone else had brought a servant with them, and Wolfe wondered how that worked for the seating, unless the servants were going to be waiting in the lobby or reception area, which would defeat the purpose of having brought them at all.

If anything, it would have made more sense to bring a security guard if you were concerned about getting your valuables home, and the Auction House could most likely provide that.

They stopped to look into a few shops, and Wolfe made note of the ones that were selling things he hadn't seen before. If he could bring some of that home with him, then he would be able to have the people of Forest Grove reproduce and modify it into little conveniences to help their lives.

The people here had gotten very creative with magical devices, as they couldn't directly use anything but Unholy Magic, and the result was a plethora of items that didn't use spell inscriptions but runes or elemental crystals in intricate configurations.

That was so different from what they knew that Wolfe was concerned that they might need to bring back an expert with them, just to ensure that they could actually do the job.

The crystals looked easy enough to replicate, but as to their natural existence in his world, Wolfe had no idea. It might be that the art was lost simply because magic didn't replicate them right, and there were none left in his world.

That seemed highly unlikely, but it might be the truth after the great war.

As promised, the two guests were waiting out front, and Countess Dewinter pulled Baron Peter into a happy, but oddly formal, embrace that had only their shoulders touching.

Wolfe greeted Baron Southland with a handshake and a pat on the back, while Cassie went with a simple handshake, and the Countess simply inclined her head to acknowledge his slight bow. A woman about his age stood silently behind him, well-

dressed but not saying anything, so Wolfe just smiled and nodded in her direction.

"Shall we head inside?" Wolfe asked, noting that each of the Barons had a servant with them.

That seemed to be the standard, and his group was the oddity for their lack of members. But Wolfe was right about the seating issue. The servants that had accompanied those seated at floor level were led to a waiting area, while those with box seats were allowed to bring theirs upstairs.

Wolfe had been advised that the booth sat six, and they had more than that including servants, but when they got inside, he saw that there was a designated spot for them to stand at the back, with a high padded bench, so they could actually be seated, but still appear to be standing against the wall and waiting.

There were also a dozen seats, and Wolfe smiled at the Countess.

"I think that I misunderstood the size of the area. They had informed me that it was for six."

That made the two Noblemen chuckle, and the barely teenaged Baron Peter smirked at Wolfe.

"They mean six Nobles. So, six, plus their companions, plus a servant each. There are a few others that we can contact quickly, if you wish to fill the booth. But honestly, there are only a few who would be good company. Some get far too competitive, and others drink entirely too much to be good company at the auction."

Countess Dewinter nodded as she looked around the booth.

"Perhaps we could call Duke Roth and Count Ara up? I see them both in the crowd below, and neither is a drunkard, though I know nothing of their competitive side." She suggested.

Baron Southland chuckled. "I'm surprised the man is walking at all. His man was in my apothecary this morning looking for the strongest painkillers and numbing creams that he could find. It seems that whatever you gave him to help his fertility had worked a bit too well."