The sound of the ceremonial hammer echoed like solemn heartbeats.
"The next session of our imperial auction will be dedicated to artistic pieces from the past…" announced the auctioneer with an almost religious intonation.
An electric current of curiosity ran through the room.
The lights softened, reflecting off crystal display cases.
Within them lay true relics: Greek marble statues that seemed to sigh in the golden light, fragments of Phoenician tapestries sewn with gold thread, scrolls with symbols carved in dead languages that almost whispered their forgotten stories.
Luna blinked at the sight, her eyes wide.
That was time solidified. Art with the scent of eternity.
"That's…" she murmured, almost hypnotized.
"Authentic," Matthew added beside her, his eyes fixed on an onyx sculpture of an Egyptian goddess. "All certified. Some of these pieces were recovered using erosion-reversing technologies."
Luna blinked several times. "Wow. That sounds… really expensive."
Matthew chuckled softly, leaning a little closer. "It is. But sometimes, preserving beauty and meaning is worth more than any dollar sign."
Luna looked away, pretending to examine a Roman bust with hollow sapphire eyes, but inside she was melting more than butter left in the Sahara sun. That idiot could be charming when he wanted to be.
The auctioneer raised his hand. "First item: the Mask of Ereshkigal—Sumerian goddess of the underworld. Pure gold and darkened onyx. Starting estimate: thirty million."
"Forty," said a tycoon.
"Fifty," snapped a duchess, fiddling with her star-studded gloves.
Matthew lifted the card in a smooth motion. "Sixty."
Luna looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Are you really going to buy an ancient demon mask?"
"Goddess, not demon," he corrected, smiling. "And yes. It's for your grandfather's collection."
Luna laughed, shaking her head. "Of course he does. With Sumerian statues. What else is there, an altar of Atlantean runes?"
"Two, actually."
Luna stared at him.
Matthew wasn't kidding.
"You are officially weird."
"Weird is the new irresistible," he replied, almost whispering.
Luna's expression froze… but her fingers brushed against his neck. Just to hide it. Completely unassuming.
Meanwhile, Lumine and Nikoly observed pieces that seemed to have come straight from forbidden tales: a Canaanite painting made with lunar pigment, a tribal spear enchanted by a shaman millennia ago, and even a ring carved by an Atlantean artisan that supposedly changed color according to the truth in the wearer's heart.
Nikoly, in particular, was interested in the latter. "The ring's name is the Ring of Thamos. Interesting…"
"Do you want to bid?" Lumine asked.
Nikoly shook his head. "No. I just want to see how he reacts to Victoria's fake engagement. It might be helpful."
Lumine let out a muffled laugh.
As the bidding intensified, the most anticipated item appeared: an Assyrian tapestry that had survived the fall of three civilizations and, supposedly, the wrath of a weather demon.
"Estimated value: two hundred million."
"Two hundred and fifty," Matthew murmured.
Luna's eyes widened. "You know it's basically a piece of old cloth, right?"
"It's living history. Made with spectral silver threads and dye extracted from flower petals that only existed for twenty-four hours before their global extinction."
Luna snorted. But she smiled. For some reason, seeing Matthew in love with something so weird made it… more real.
By the end of the session, Matthew had won three pieces, and Luna looked at him with concealed admiration, like someone watching a stamp collector who has just saved artifacts from an archaeological apocalypse.
"You should open a museum."
"Maybe I will," he replied. "If you'll be my partner."
Luna snorted. "You talk too much."
But he couldn't stop smiling.
Meanwhile, her friends whispered behind her:
"Have these two kissed yet?"
"I don't think so, but Luna is one step away from setting up a Sumerian altar for him."
After the subdued applause for the closing of the historic block, the auctioneer smiled, as if he were about to exchange the academic tone for something… much more glamorous.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen… we begin the most competitive block among fashion elites: the Global Haute Couture Houses Auction."
Soft golden lights came on.
Catwalk music filled the air.
Holographic models floated above ethereal platforms, displaying the most desirable clothes on the planet.
"Each piece is unique. All were created exclusively by designers from the Imperial Houses…"
The girls, Victória, Lumine and Nikoly, practically lit up as if they had turned on an internal switch.
"This Míriel collection was canceled before it was released! And now they're auctioning it?!" Nikoly said, her eyes widening.
"That red dress over there is inspired by the crystallized blood of a phoenix! I saw the concept in the designer's sketch before he mysteriously disappeared…" Victoria commented, almost breathless.
"That moon elf set… My God… there were only three made in the world," Lumine muttered.
Meanwhile, Luna… yawned.
"Seriously? Dress… dress… another dress… oops, surprise, another dress," she said, tossing a grape in the air and catching it in her mouth. "Someone let me know when they start auctioning off something useful. Like a tropical island with massage robots."
Her friends solemnly ignored her, their eyes glued to the pieces.
"Thirty million for the enchanted cape of Archon Versae!"
"Forty million for the golden dress that repels curses and malicious compliments."
"Sixty million for the dress made from spirit silk threads from the Myralith swamps!"
Luna rolled her eyes. "What's Myralith? A shampoo?"
She was about to look at the gala's dessert menu when something, something specific, appeared on the runway.
It wasn't a dress.
It wasn't a women's cape.
It was a noble men's suit.
Geometric stitching, tailored lines, and a color scheme somewhere between cosmic black and deep ocean blue. The details were lunar silver, subtle but undeniable. An embroidered coat of arms on the left cuff represented an ancient symbol of wisdom and leadership.
Luna straightened up.
Very slowly.
"Okay…" he murmured. "That suit…"
The auctioneer announced, "This is the 'Crown Suit of Astralis.' Hand-sewn by Luthan Vestriel—the last globally recognized master tailor. It was designed only once and denied to the President of France for political reasons. Starting price: $150 million."
Victoria, still ecstatic about another dress, turned and blinked when she saw Luna looking absolutely serious. "Did you like anything?"
"I want that suit." Luna said.
"For you?" Nikoly asked, confused.
"No," Luna replied, staring at the runway as if it were a battlefield. "It's for someone who always wears politician's clothes as if they were fashionable."
Victoria gave a sharp little smile. "Matthew?"
"Don't bother me," Luna said, already holding up the bid card.
"Two hundred million," someone shouted.
Luna held up a finger. "Two hundred and fifty."
The room fell silent for a moment, as Luna made no bids of her own and was, theoretically, unknown.
"Two hundred and eighty," replied another voice.
"Three hundred," Luna said, without blinking.
Her friends looked at her as if she had been possessed by a buying spirit.
"Are you really going to spend three hundred million on a suit he might never even wear?" Lumine whispered.
Luna replied dryly. "If he uses it, great. If he doesn't, I'll force it into him."
Silence of the girls.
"…uh…metaphorically, right?" Nikoly asked suspiciously.
Luna just smiled.
In the end, no one dared to compete beyond that one move.
The auctioneer banged the gavel: "Sold for three hundred million! Congratulations to Mrs. Luna Malroth."
Polite applause echoed.
Matthew stared confusedly at the holographic panel with the winner's name on it. When he saw the item… his eyes widened.
Luna just winked at him. A quick, casual wink, as if to say, "Look nice. Or I'll regret it."
Matthew put his hand to his chin, chuckling to himself.
"That woman…" he murmured, already imagining what it would be like to wear that suit under the sharp, demanding gaze of the queen who bought it.
As the auction continued, her friends joined Luna on the reserved sofa, one of them murmuring, "You two are still going to get married before you know it."
Luna snorted… but didn't deny it.
The lights in the hall dimmed for a brief moment.
The stage elegantly rotated, revealing a new backdrop: a colossal hologram of the world map.
A whisper swept through the hall like an invisible wave.
The auctioneer smiled, his tone more solemn. "Ladies and gentlemen… we will now begin the auction of the World Properties. Each lot represents not just a piece of land, but a strategic, economic, and cultural base. Some of these properties have not been traded since the last Ice Age. Others… have never been available for purchase."
The girls stopped talking.
Luna straightened up.
Victoria stopped with her tea.
Nikoly stopped observing the nobles present.
Even Matthew crossed his arms, his eyes alert.
The auction started off on the right foot.
Floating holograms showed an urbanized floating island surrounded by research towers, hospitals, and greenhouses. The futuristic medical continent glowed with biomedical technology, where every building seemed to pulse with life energy.
"We started with the Laes Nuar District. 120 hectares of technological land with genetic research centers and anti-aging laboratories. Initial value: US$1 billion."
"1.2 bye!"
"1.6!"
"2 billion."
Nikoly murmured. "This place could be the future of longevity… and also the control center of the global pharmaceutical market."
Victoria made a mental note.
Luna, however, watched silently, processing.
The lot was sold for 3.4 billion by an elderly European pharmaceutical magnate.
The auctioneer announced with a faint smile. "Now, the Ysrhim Keep District, an ancient castle-metropolis, now retrofitted with modern technology, home to frozen trade routes and underground ports."
The hologram showed an underground city carved into the crystalline ice, protected by force fields and polar crystal luminaries.
The girls looked at each other.
"Kael," Victoria whispered, her cheeks blushing for no reason.
Lumine and Nikoly are laughing.
"You fight, winter flower," Nikoly said, smiling.
"Do you offer bids?"
"2.1 billion!"
"3.5!"
"4 billion."
Silence.
Then a female voice rose firmly.
"5 billion."
Everyone looked.
Victoria, with her eyes of iron, had made the move.
Kael, from the back of the room, raised a glass of champagne and smiled discreetly at her.
The hammer fell.
After a moment, the Auction continues.
Colossal peaks appeared, cities suspended by technology and mineral veins that could only be mined with imperial permission.
"Zenth-Khaal District. One of the only civilian accesses to the Valley of Dragons."
"5 billion," came straight from the mouth of a CEO.
"6!"
"6.2!"
Luna leaned in. "Valley of the Dragons? Okay, I confess I'm curious now."
Victoria blinked and commented in amusement, "They must be mining raw ether there."
The lot closed for 7.8 billion.
In the next lot, a desert appeared. Golden towers rose from the dunes, artificial oases sprouted like miracles. It was an extreme—scarcity and wealth, heat and advanced refrigeration technology.
"Zahr'at Mehara region, intercontinental transportation hub and headquarters of the Celestial Merchants Guild. Bidding?"
Luna raised an eyebrow. "Celestial Merchants? That sounds dangerous."
Nikoly replied, "They control more routes than some nations."
Sold for 6 billion by an unknown Oceanian nobility.
Lot five showed a green continent, covered in enchanted forests, rivers, internationally protected animals, and... a hidden research center.
The hologram showed the Elentha Forest, surrounded by druid towers, gardens, and an ancient environmental protection dome.
"District of Green Elentha. Spring of the Eternal Herbs. Unexplored place for nearly two centuries."
Matthew whispered to Luna. "Anyone who can control the legal extraction of Sylvaran resources can corner half the natural ingredients market."
Luna feigned disinterest… but her gaze betrayed her.
"6 billion," shouted a voice.
"6.8!"
"7.1!"
"8 billion."
Silence fell.
No one dared to overcome.
Sold.
In the next batch came a hologram of the continent of knowledge. Libraries, universities where geniuses graduated as young as 12. Regions where faith and science intertwined.
"Aurum Lex District, a complex of universities and archives of forbidden knowledge. Contains the Institute where holographic technology was developed."
Reverent silence.
Luna whispered. "I've heard about it in documentaries. They say even advanced AIs tried to decipher the books there… and failed."
Lumine and Nikoly looked at each other. "I think we need this to expand our company, don't you?"
"For sure."
"7 billion."
"7.5!"
"8!"
In the end... Bought by the girls for 8.2 billion, through the company Diamante Tycoon.
The Tycoon system sent a holographic notification to Luna:
[Strategic acquisition recognized. +1 billion bonus added in corporate research & development.]
Luna just responded with a nod, "Thank you, System. Now shut up."
The last batch.
The continent with the most inactive volcanoes. Source of geoarcane energy, home to vanished ancient civilizations.
"Pyrrhan District. Contains the Frozen Magma Lake, ruins of the ancient Ignarii civilization, and access to the Underground Golemancy Laboratory."
Victoria looked with a sparkle in her eyes.
Nikoly bit his lip.
Luna… "Golemancer Lab? That's a robot factory, right?"
Matthew whispered. "Yes."
"Okay. I want that one."
"10 billion," Luna said casually.
Everyone swallowed hard.
"10.2!"
"11."
"12."
"12.5!"
Silence.
"13," Matthew said, looking at Luna and smiling teasingly.
"14," she replied with a gasp.
The hammer fell.
Luna had won.
She leaned toward Matthew and murmured, "Your bluff was sweet. But I play with bigger numbers before breakfast."
Matthew laughed low.