CHAPTER 90….
Eventually, the object draped in black cloth was brought onto the stage.
But the auction didn’t start right away.
“Before we reveal today’s final auction item, I think we need to talk about the story of a certain painter.”
“……”
“Are you familiar with the artist Kapdan Morris, who’s been gaining fame recently?”
The auctioneer, ever the skilled storyteller, shared the painter’s personal tale—how he had once fallen deeply in love, lost his beloved wife to illness, sank into grief, and eventually picked up the brush again.
Gradually, the nobles in the audience became absorbed in the story, and their attention naturally shifted to the painting.
But none of that mattered to Feydan.
He anxiously tapped his foot, wishing the auction would just begin already.
Finally, when the crowd’s anticipation had reached its peak—
“And now, we unveil it. A work by the greatest painter of our time—Kapdan Morris!”
Fortunately for Feydan, the auctioneer removed the black cloth before his irritation could boil over.
Finally!
As gasps of admiration echoed from those who recognized the painting’s value—
Feydan grinned with satisfaction at the sight of the revealed artwork.
“We’ll start the bidding at 5 million gold.”
As expected of such a rare and valuable piece, the bids rose quickly.
“50 million gold! We’ve reached 50 million gold already! What incredible speed!”
As the bidding war intensified, Feydan joined in.
“60 million gold! We have 60 million gold!”
In truth, Feydan didn’t care about the painting at all.
To him, it was just a colorful scrap of paper.
But this painting—he absolutely had to win it.
And drive the price as high as possible.
The higher the price, the more the blame would fall on Leticia for failing to manage the auction properly.
She’d be blamed for ruining the heated atmosphere of the auction.
“65 million gold! We have 65 million! Any more bids?”
Someone immediately raised the bid by another 5 million.
Feydan clicked his tongue inwardly but coolly held up the sign for 70 million gold.
“70 million gold! Any other bids?”
He never expected to win right away anyway.
The higher the bidding climbed, the more dramatic the scene would become.
There’s no way anyone would go higher than this.
It was just a single sheet of paper, after all—even if rare.
Nobody in their right mind would throw away enough money to buy a whole barony for that.
…Or so he thought.
“Wow, the energy is intense for the final item! We now have a bid of 80 million gold!”
At the unexpected number, Feydan’s brow furrowed.
I really don’t want to spend more than this…
After a moment’s hesitation, Feydan finally raised it to 90 million gold, deciding this would be the last.
“Ninety million gold! We have a bid of 90 million!”
It didn’t matter—once it was revealed the painting was fake, he’d get all his money back anyway.
“No other bids? If not, we’ll begin the countdown. Five, four, three, two…”
Now, surely, the auction would end here.
But then—
“Ninety-five million gold! An incredible bid of ninety-five million! Can we proceed with this amount?”
What the—?! What kind of lunatic drops a whole barony on a single painting?!
Feydan nearly cursed out loud but just barely held back.
Grimacing, he lifted the sign with a bid of 100 million gold.
“O-One hundred million gold!”
The auctioneer—and everyone around him—looked at Feydan with awe.
That gaze of reverence quickly erased Feydan’s irritation and inflated his ego.
“Then, we’ll proceed with the winning bid of 100 million gold!”
The countdown resumed.
“Sold! The final bid is 100 million gold!”
With the painting sold at such a staggering price, the auctioneer began wrapping things up.
“And with that, today’s charity auction comes to a close. I’ve been your host and storyteller from the Arcelando Troupe—Robinson.”
A round of applause erupted for the host’s final bow.
Just as the clapping faded, Leticia, the organizer of today’s charity event, stepped out from behind the stage.
“Thank you all for participating in this meaningful event. I promise you that your generous donations will go toward the future of this empire.”
She offered her thanks with a composed and graceful smile.
The pride of successfully completing today’s event was evident on her face.
Though that won’t last much longer, Feydan thought smugly, curling one corner of his mouth.
“Oh, right. While the auction has ended, His Majesty has prepared a banquet for our honored guests, so please enjoy it to your heart’s content.”
“……”
“And the items you’ve won will be carefully packaged so you can take them with you as you leave.”
Servants began ascending the stage to retrieve the auction items, and the charity auction seemed to be ending on a warm, heartfelt note.
Now was the perfect time to ruin the mood.
As if on cue, Feydan raised his hand and spoke.
“Excuse me, just a moment.”
All eyes turned toward Feydan, including Leticia’s, as people began to rise for the banquet.
Seeing Leticia’s slightly uneasy gaze, Feydan smirked and continued.
“I heard there’s a lot of counterfeit paintings being sold as the real deal these days. Thought we should check this one.”
Leticia briefly furrowed her brow, but then replied with a calm face.
“Surely… the Duke isn’t doubting His Majesty?”
“Oh, not at all. I wouldn’t dare question His Majesty, whom I serve loyally. But mistakes can happen during storage or transport, right?”
It was a not-so-subtle jab—clearly implying he didn’t trust Leticia.
The nobles sensed the tension between them and held their breath, focused on the brewing standoff.
Amid the heavy silence, Feydan pressed again.
“If the painting’s real, then there’s no reason not to verify it, is there?”
Leticia stared coldly at him for a moment, then finally nodded, albeit reluctantly.
“…Very well. The buyer has every right to verify the authenticity of their purchase.”
At her signal, the servants brought the painting’s frame down from the stage.
Feydan strode confidently up to it.
“From what I’ve heard, this painter—Kap… whatever his name was—always left a glow-in-the-dark signature on the back of his real works.”
With the crowd now laser-focused—some out of certainty the painting was real, others hoping for drama—
The servants opened the back of the frame.
At the same time, Leticia gave a signal to switch off the magic-powered lighting.
Let’s see your face, Leticia, when you realize the Emperor’s auction item was stolen right under your nose.
No more polite public smiles—her reputation was about to crash.
Smirking in the darkness, Feydan leaned in to inspect the back of the painting.
And then—
W-What the hell?!
There it was—clear as day.
A glow-in-the-dark signature.
The artist’s initials: K.M., unmistakably engraved.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣