Re: Evolution Online

A couple of hours later, Liam and the rest of the group walked out of the arena with long faces. 

The auction turned out to be better than expected as several nymphs were traded not just sex slaves, some even extremely powerful and offered as temporary dao partners for rich scions.

However, something else also became abundantly clear. No amount of money would be enough for this place. It was a sinkhole for resources. 

Unlike the slave trading market Liam had attended back in the elven world, this one was on a different level. Some of the nymphs had gone for billions of mid-grade mana cores.

"Bro, maybe you can auction off one of us?" Rey lamented in exasperation. Clearly, they did not have the money to buy anything even if they hadn't been scammed and this had been a real auction.

"You want to be auctioned off to the nymphs?" Madan teased him.

"He He. I definitely wouldn't mind that." Rey laughed as the two once again cheered up. Their mood became better surprisingly fast.

Liam ignored the two and checked on Lan Deming who looked a bit agitated. But before he could say anything, another voice sounded near them.

"It's pretty gruesome, isn't it?" A lizardman popped up next to Lan Deming. "Hi, my name is Gary!" The lizardman was talking in a different language but everyone could clearly understand because of the system's translation.

Ignoring everyone's blank stares, Gary continued. "This world is like that." 

"I've been around here long enough to see the ugliness that lurks beneath the surface. It's not all glitz and glamour, as some might think."

"A gruesome, bloodthirsty world painted by the heavenly brushes. But alas, what can we do. As mortals we suffer the injustice of compromise."

"We see the flawed society crumbling around us and yet we walk the vast cosmos without sparing a glance. Oh! Goddess Ahvanthe! Oh! Goddess Ahvanthe! Such is life and such is fate!"

Gary unexpectedly started singing his heart out right in the middle of the street. Liam's face twitched. He did not like this unwanted attention.

As the singing lizard started to put on a show, more and more crowd gathered to listen to him. Some stayed and clapped while some left immediately after glancing.

Naturally, Liam did not plan on waiting around for the lizardman to finish his song. He started mingling in the crowd and walking away. The others also quietly followed.

But to their shock and horror, the damn lizard did not look like he was going to let them off anytime soon. He simply started walking along with them wherever they went.

Even getting into one of the taverns lying around did not help. Finally, Liam had to enter a pretty luxurious restaurant just to get away from the damned lizard.

None of them could understand what was wrong with the guy and why suddenly he was so interested in them. Out of nowhere, he started behaving weirdly.

"What a turd." Rey muttered in annoyance as he picked up the menu. The others also seemed relieved that the lizard hadn't followed them in here.

"This might not be our last weird experience." Madan drank some water as he looked around the restaurant.

Only Liam seemed to be still on alert. The reason for that became clear when suddenly the lizardman barged right into the restaurant without holding back.

"Hello! Hello! Hello! My friends! I missed you there!"

"Fuck!" All four of them snapped to turn around, only to find the damn guy standing right at the restuarent entrance with a big cheesy smile.

The lizardman's sudden reappearance in the restaurant caught everyone off guard, his loud greeting turning heads throughout the establishment. 

The group's attempt at a quiet exit from the chaotic scene outside had clearly failed, leaving them to deal with Gary's unexpected and unwelcome persistence.

Liam, who had been somewhat on edge since the singing episode, looked at the lizardman carefully. 

Why was this creature so intent on following them? Was it mere coincidence, or was there something more to his actions?

Liam did not like this. He had wanted to maintain a low-profile and yet somehow this person had sniffed them out and was now sticking to them like glue.

Was this because of the lack of presence of Rey, Madan and Deming? 

He knew that this was a risk when starting the journey but he was willing to take the risk because he wanted the three to have some exposure.

This kind of exposure to another world would greatly enhance their field of vision and maybe even put them on a path to their respective Daos. The benefits greatly outweighed the risks.

However, now Liam had no doubt that they were in deep shit. The only thing that was yet to reveal itself was… exactly what kind of a shit they were in.

Gary, seemingly oblivious to the discomfort and attention he was causing, sauntered over to their table with an exaggerated swagger.

The lizardman was dressed in colorful, mismatched garments that made him stand out even more in the upscale setting of the restaurant. The man walked directly to them and abruptly pulled a chair and sat right next to them without missing a beat.

Gary's eyes gleamed with a strange excitement as he addressed the group, "Ah, my new comrades in this bizarre and fascinating world! Aren't you curious about the songs of fate and fortune that play out in the streets of Nymphomania?"

"Why do you all look like you have swallowed something unsavory?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Seeing the blank stares all around him, Gary chortled. "Ah ha ha. Is it me? Is it me? Ah ha ha. Don't mind me! I am just a pushy salesman!" The lizard started laughing loudly.

Liam did not intend on letting this continue any longer. It seemed like it was only going to worsen with time so he decided to take charge of the situation.

"Hello, Mr. Gary. I am Lucien. Nice to meet you."