The Herb King

As soon as the cloth was removed, a devastatingly beautiful woman could be seen inside the cage. She had a long white hair that extended to her feet and her golden eyes were staring blankly into space. She was wearing a white dress and there was a scarf made from the fur of a magical beast called 'White Wolf' wrapped around her neck.

This ethereal beauty was sitting listlessly inside the cage like a soulless fairy.

"As everyone can see, this woman is an elf." Brian Linaza stared at everyone with a smile on his face.

"An elf?!"

"Long pointed ears and a charming beautiful face. She is indeed an elf!"

The crowd gasped in shock as they looked at the woman.

Elves were secretive beings who live deep in the forest and they have never shown themselves for a very long time. How could everyone remain calm when one such being was in front of their eyes?

"Let me give you guys a warning if you are interested in bidding for this elf." Brian Linaza paused and put on a serious look on his face as he continued. "She might look harmless and fragile, but don't be fooled. This elf is a Level 4 Esper. I'm telling you this so that no one will blame me if things go wrong."

"Sir Brian, you brought a dangerous being into our Leone Empire. Have you asked His Majesty's permission to auction that elven woman?" Duke Baron's loud voice echoed inside the auction house.

Brian Linaza glanced at the Duke and replied calmly. "You don't have to worry about that, Sir Baron. I have already asked His Majesty's permission to auction this woman. I also invited His Highness Prince Calvin to vouch for me." Brian Linaza turned his head in a certain direction.

Everyone followed his gaze and they saw the second prince who was seated in the middle seats. He stood up and nodded at the crowd. "Everyone can relax. Sir Brian came to the imperial palace for this matter and His Majesty allowed sir Brian to do as he wishes to the elf. I just didn't expect that Sir Brian would actually auction her." The prince said.

Sir Brian nodded at the second prince. "Thank you so much for coming here, Your Highness."

Prince Calvin smiled as he sat down in his seat.

Duke Baron furrowed his eyebrows. "Then how can you guarantee that she won't wreak havoc in our Leone Empire? You said that she is a Level 4 Esper. She might cause some chaos if suddenly escapes." He was responsible for the safety of Lion City so he had to make sure that this elf wouldn't harm the citizens.

Sir Brian remained calm as he answered. "I know that everyone will be worried about this so I have prepared a special item to ensure that this elf would follow the commands of her master." He pointed at the elf and continued. "There is a metal choker tied to her neck and it is inscribed with a Level 4 Slave Rune. She wouldn't be able to escape the binding power of the rune no matter how powerful she is."

"Level 4 Slave Rune? Man, that is quite expensive! Sir Brian is really going all out this time! I wonder how much the final bid for this elf is going to be."

"Only the top noble households and the upper echelons of the Merchant Association could afford to purchase her. Who do you guys think will get her?"

"Now that I have explained everything, let's proceed with the bidding. The starting price for this elf is 50,000,000 gold coins and each increment must be at least 1,000,000 gold coins!"

"51,000,000 gold coins!"

"52,000,000 gold coins!"

Aethelwolf frowned as he watched the people bid. He came from a peaceful world with no war and slavery. He knew that the Regalis Continent wasn't peaceful, but he was still bothered every time he sees things like this.

Soon, his heart turned calm as a soothing energy enveloped his body.

"She is beautiful so she might end up having a horrible life if she ends up in the hands of someone with a nasty character." Jade Kristine sighed as she looked at the elf. She found her pitiful, but she couldn't do anything to stop the auction since the emperor has already given Brian the permission.

Julie Irish frowned as she looked at the excited crowd. She then snorted in disdain when she saw the looks of greed and lust in the eyes of some nobles.

"This matter is quite suspicious. There shouldn't be an elf in the human territories so how did Sir Brian capture her?" Johann muttered with knitted eyebrows.

Aethelwolf used a perception skill on the elf and he was shocked after reading the description.

Elf Princess [Aenwyn Aracan] Late stage Level 4 Esper

- The crown princess of the Aracan Kingdom. She was innately born with the ability to control nature and her strength will increase when she is in the forest. Born with great providence and...

Aethelwolf was almost blinded by the description he saw. It was like he was reading the character design of a main protagonist.

'Should I bid for her or should I pretend that I didn't see anything?' Aethelwolf was weighing the pros and cons while the bidding continued.

If he bids for the elf, he could try to befriend her and send her back to her homeland. However, the elf might come back to the empire with her elven troops.

Aethelwolf was in a serious dilemma. 'The Aracan Kingdom might be looking for their princess so it wouldn't be good if she is taken by a pervert. The elves might wage war on our empire once they find out about this. I can't let that happen.'

"Papa, that elder sister is saying something in the Language of Beasts." Olivia whispered to him while pointing at the cage.

Aethelwolf immediately looked at the elf when he heard Olivia's words. The elven princess seems to be muttering something, but no one could understand her words.

"Help. Help me. Please help me."

Aethelwolf narrowed his eyes slits. 'Brian Linaza, just what idiotic thing did you do?'

Aethelwolf gritted his teeth and raised his hand. "I bid 100,000,000 gold coins!" His voice was calm, but the people around him sensed that he was furious.

"Sir Aethelwolf, the money we have might not be enough to purchase that elf." Albert whispered to him.

Aethelwolf nodded his head. "I know." He then turned his head to Jade Kristine and the others. "Please lend me your remaining gold coins. I have to get that elf."

Julie Irish frowned as she looked at Aethelwolf. "Why do you want to bid for that elf?" She asked.

Aethelwolf glanced coldly at her and said. "I'll explain everything later. Trust me."

Julie Irish heaved a deep sigh. "Fine, but you have to explain everything to us after the auction." She said.

Aethelwolf nodded his head.

Julie Irish took out a storage ring and handed it to Aethelwolf. The others also handed their remaining gold coins to Aethelwolf. Although they were curious, they decided to remain silent. Since Aethelwolf has already given his words, they could only wait until the auction ends.

After getting their gold coins, Aethelwolf raised another bid.

"110,000,000 gold coins!"

The bidding was still heated and many people were interested in the elf. After all, she was a rare beauty and even her strength wasn't to be underestimated. She could be used as a bed warmer and as a bodyguard. That was what everyone thought.

"140,000,000 gold coins!"

"143,000,000 gold coins!"

Aethelwolf counted all the money he has. He had about two hundred and ten million gold coins including the money he got from the others. He was a bit worried that it might not be enough to purchase the elf princess.

"I bid 175,000,000 gold coins!" Aethelwolf increased the bid by thirty million, shocking the crowd into silence.

It was a lot of money and even the people who were bidding for the elf hesitated. They already could hire more than three Level 4 Espers and they could also buy hundreds of beautiful ladies with that amount of gold coins.

Many people gave up after careful consideration, but there were still a few individuals who raised their bids.

"178,000,000 gold coins!"

"179,000,000 gold coins!"

"181,000,000 gold coins!"

Aethelwolf calmed his heart as he raised his bid. "200,000,000 gold coins!"

This time, no one raised the bid again.

The price was already too high that it had exceeded their limits. They no longer want to be involved in the bidding.

Brian Linaza gave Aethelwolf a bright smile as he said. "200,000,000 gold coins going once!"

"200,000,000 gold coins going twice!"

"Sold! Congratulations to Sir Aethelwolf!"