Lord of the Karmic Fate

Currently standing before the large window with a serious face, Raven stared at the small coin with burning eyes, completely ignoring that the bowl of chocolate pudding he held moments ago now lay on the ground in a mess!

As for Luna, Old Dan, and Thomas beside him, they all looked at him with startled faces, not knowing why Raven acted the way he did.

"B-Brother... You... What-"

Luna wished to ask her doubts, but just as she reached the middle of her question Raven suddenly turned toward Old Dan and put his hands together.

"Father, please, I need your help."

"Huh?"

Old Dan, just like everyone in the room became stupified and didn't know how to react at first. However, a second later he snapped back to reality and raised a brow.

"Brat, what the hell is going on with you? You scared me so much that you have almost made my heart skip two beats."

Raven, who even went so far as to bow with respect straightened his back, and with his face still incredibly serious he pointed at the coin.

"That Fragmented Artifact, I have to obtain it."

"Have to?" the raised brow of Old Dan quickly lowered into a deep frown as he didn't really understand what his son was talking about.

"Yes, I have to. I don't know why or for what reason, but I just have this feeling I have to get my hands on that item no matter what."

Then, after lowering his hands he added;

"Currently, thanks to me clearing that Crimson Gate and my 50% bonus I have a little over 7 million Novas, however, considering all the previous items and the amount of Novas they had been sold, this one too will very likely exceed the amount I have. And for that reason, I hope you can help me, please."

Upon hearing Raven's words Old Dan's scowl gradually vanished and hummed softly.

"Young Master, are you really sure you want that item?" Thomas asked with a serious face, "While it is true that item can be a great boon to your strength, if what Sir Alexios said was true at all, it is still a Fragmented Artifact."

"And?" now it was Raven's turn to raise a brow, somewhat confused about what his father's butler wished to say.

As if realizing something, Luna stepped beside Raven, and with a hand gently resting on his shoulder she said;

"Raven, you may don't know this but just as Realm Shop Tickets or Avatar Totems, Artifact Fragments are extremely rare. So rare that no one really wishes to use them on Fragmented Artifacts unless that kind of Artifacts will grant great powers once they are restored to become True Artifacts."

"Oh, I see..." Raven exclaimed out with a hi to of shock, now realizing why his father was so surprised when he used three Artifact Fragments on his Monarch's Crown.

'It seems I have to be careful in the future or else I can easily waste really useful materials.'

With that in mind, Raven turned to look at the half gold and half obsidian coin and asked, "However, if that really is the case, then I think I won't need any help. After all, if what you have said is true then only a few people will bid on it."

However, it seemed he was wrong as Old Dan shook his head and said, "No, in fact, it will be the complete opposite of that. Because that thing can allow one to fight others even if they are 5 whole Ranks above despite being just a Fragmented Artifact, many will try to get their hands on it."

Raven seemed to realize that too and with a helpless sigh, he asked, "Then, will you help me, please? I am sure that with my strength I can easily clear several Realm Domains and complete Realm Games, so paying you back the money won't be an issue at all."

Old Dan looked into Raven's firm golden eyes and after a few seconds of contemplation, he nodded.

"To tell you the truth, if you would have not said that you will pay me back I would have helped you. After all, at the end of the day, you are still my son."

When hearing Old Dan's words Raven felt as if his chest got filled with mixed emotions before he showed a gratified smile and nodded.

"Thank you."

And just as he said those words, suddenly Alexios' voice sounded from the middle of the hall.

"Now then, if everyone has finally calmed down, let's start tonight's last auction, shall we? The starting price is 1,000,000 Novas with a minimum of 200,000 Nova-"

"10,000,000 Novas!"

Not even before Alexios could have finished his sentence suddenly one of the VIP rooms lit up with crimson light and a robotic voice resounded from the small speakers around it, indicating someone has just raised the price anonymously.

However, the biggest shock was not that someone just bid anonymously, but instead that they raised the starting price from 1 to 10 million Novas!!

That was just ridiculous and crazy!

'...'

The entirety of the gallery fell into complete silence which lasted for several seconds before another VIP room lit up not far away from Raven's, and the same robotic voice thundered through the hall.

"15,000,000 Novas!"

'...'

And again, the whole auction hall became as silent as a graveyard during the night.

The only one who didn't look shocked or stared was Alexios before his face showed a wide grin and said;

"Room Number 21 has just raised the bid by 5 million! Anyone more than tha-"

"16,000,000 Novas!"

The speakers around the first VIP room spoke again, earning a wave of gasps to sweep through the spectators in the auditorium.

"Room Number 9 increased the bid by another 1 million, pushing this great item's price all the way to 16 million Novas! Anyone here who wishes t-"

"17,000,000 Novas!"

The speakers around Room Number 21 spoke once again.

'Crap!'

Raven, who just snapped out of his clenched his fingers into fists, and after dialing an amount on the panel before him he pressed a button.

"20,000,000 Novas!"

Upon hearing the large jump in Novas another wave of shock swept through the hall while the smile on Alexios' face grew even wider than before.

Hell, his face at the moment held such a wide grin that instead of looking joyful it looked practically blood-chillingly creepy!

"Twenty million Novas from Room Number 11! Oh, my! Another participant in tonight's greatest bidding war! Anyone more than twent-"

"21,000,000 Novas!"

"Haha! Room Number 21 increased the bid once again! Now it is twenty-one million Novas!"

Staring at the window which belonged to Room Number 21, Raven narrowed his eyes before suddenly an idea flashed through his mind.

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

• Current Chances for the speakers to malfunction: 88.88% (Max: 100%)

• Available Luck Energy to manipulate: 116%

• Needed Mystique to activate Luck Enhancement: 21,000 units

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

'Good.'

Although he knew that what he was about to do was not right, Raven still flicked his finger and used 11% of his Luck Energy to activate his ability before he increased the bidding amount, surprisingly, by only 200,000 Novas.

As for why the chances were 88.88%, while he had a guess, he, in truth, didn't know nor did he care. What mattered for him right now was to get his hands on the coin no matter what.

And to make sure he did, he directed his gaze at the window that belonged to Room 9 and flicked his fingers again, this time depleting his Luck Energy by another 53%, leaving him with only 52%!

"21,200,000 Novas from Room Number 11! How interesting! Anyone more than that?" Alexis asked loudly, however, a few seconds later his joy diminished a little.

Even after waiting for 5 whole seconds, neither Room Number 9 nor Room Number 21 seemed to wish to bid more which was confusing considering just how much they wanted to get their hands on the coin a few moments ago.

"No one? 21,200,000 million Novas first? Second? Well, if no one wishes to bid more then..." Alexios raised a hand and waited for a few seconds before he sighed helplessly and lowered it as if he wished to chop the empty air.

"Sold!"

Upon hearing that single word Raven let out a sigh of relief and relaxed slightly while Luna, Old Dan, and Thomas, although happy they won the bidding despite thinking the price of the coin will be much, much higher than it was sold, they felt puzzled.

Especially Old Dan. Knowing Raven possessed a special ability that could be used even in real life he couldn't help but believe his son just used it to win this war.

As for the people inside Room Number 9 and Room Number 21, they went on a total rampage as they didn't wish to accept this outcome and immediately requested a proper explanation and compensation from the higher-ups.