Arknightcraft Modpack
Chapter 536: How Many Years Will This Get Me?
The auction began much sooner than Steven had expected. Perhaps because most visitors were clearly here for the finale item, the museum didn't bother dragging things out. Once the attendees had more or less gathered, an announcement over the speakers signaled the start of the auction.
Steven followed Lin Yuxia—who seemed quite experienced in this sort of thing—into a dedicated auction room. Many people were already seated inside. What surprised Steven, however, was that the seating arrangement looked casual. There were no VIP boxes like the ones he had imagined.
His impression of auctions came entirely from the xianxia novels he'd read. In his mind, such events were gatherings of powerful figures, where those with true status occupied exclusive private rooms before entering a tense bidding war.
And in the end, the protagonist—who never had much money—would somehow snatch the most important item for a ridiculously low price. Or the highly contested treasure would turn out to be a defective product casually made by the protagonist. That was how auctions were supposed to go, right?
But what he saw now looked more like a classroom. Everyone sat quietly in their seats. No arguments, no theatrics—just an atmosphere so calm it bordered on dull. It completely shattered Steven's expectations.
Could it be… this was what a real auction was actually like?
He looked around curiously. The other attendees appeared perfectly normal—none of the arrogant "great family" types he had imagined. If he had to describe the overall vibe, the only word he could think of was boring.
"So this is what a proper auction looks like?"
He lowered his voice and asked Lin Yuxia. At the moment, he resembled a country bumpkin visiting the city for the first time.
"What kind of improper auction were you expecting? People smashing each other's heads open over an item and fighting to the death?"
Lin Yuxia immediately saw through him. One look at his expression and she knew exactly what he had been imagining.
But as soon as she finished speaking, she fell silent. Realizing she had begun predicting Santiago's thought process made her uneasy. Did that mean she was gradually becoming as… abstract as him?
This is bad. Is this contagious?
Subconsciously, she scooted slightly away from him and wiped the cold sweat from her forehead. This was far scarier than him threatening her with bombs—she absolutely did not want to start acting like him.
"Yeah, that's what I used to think. But now that I think about it, you're right. If auctions really worked like that, local tycoons wouldn't survive the losses."
Steven stroked his chin thoughtfully. If each auction ended with one or two great families destroyed, then Lungmen would turn into a ghost town after a few auctions. Definitely unrealistic.
Lin Yuxia didn't respond. Afraid she might become like him if she kept engaging, she chose silence.
But even if she ignored him, Steven was having plenty of fun on his own.
The various artworks brought up front caught his interest. Fortunately, most attendees weren't here for those items, so Steven secured them with relatively small amounts of Lungmen currency. Still, Lin Yuxia couldn't understand why he was buying half of them.
Buying ordinary wooden carvings could be explained—he might be giving them as gifts. But why on earth did he bid on that abstract sculpture that looked like a mass of intertwined tentacles?
Was this some special hobby unique to… abstract people?
Not to mention things like a single red embroidered shoe, or that eerie-looking bronze mirror—items even she, who considered herself an art appreciation expert, couldn't understand. Most of those would normally go unsold due to lack of interest, yet Santiago looked as though he had stumbled upon treasure every time.
As for the classical paintings she personally liked, he showed absolutely no interest.
Perhaps this was just another strange quirk of the wealthy.
The auction staff had briefly suspected Steven might be deliberately causing trouble. But after noticing Lin Yuxia seated beside him, they calmed down. Ordinary people wouldn't casually sit next to her. And even if Steven couldn't pay, they could always settle the bill with her.
"I really don't know how to evaluate your taste."
Lin Yuxia sighed quietly, glancing at Santiago. She had tried her best not to comment on his behavior, but in the end she couldn't hold it in.
"Well, it's not all for me. Most of these make decent gifts. As for the rest… just assume I have a soft spot for legendary ghostly or supernatural objects."
Steven wore a smile she couldn't understand. It was natural that she couldn't relate—but for him, scoring bargains like this was genuinely satisfying.
Sure, he knew most of what he bought were junk. But among them, there were a few special pieces that more than made up for the cost.
Take that bizarre tentacle sculpture Lin Yuxia couldn't comprehend. It looked like a mass of wooden tentacles forcibly twisted into a humanoid shape, unsettling at first glance. But what truly made Steven consider it collectible was its name:
— [Sculpture of Nyarlathotep]
Just seeing that familiar name was enough for him to buy it. Whether it actually referenced the real deal or was merely an easter egg the original game actually had didn't matter. The name alone satisfied his collector's instincts.
After all, while this world was based on a mobile game, Steven was certain that a gacha game definitely shouldn't contain the entity depicted by that sculpture.
Regardless of what special traits the finale chess set might have, this auction trip was already far from a loss.
Soon, after the last of the less fashionable junk had been sold off, the highlight of the auction was finally brought forward.
The auctioneer didn't engage in any elaborate hype. He simply pulled away the black cloth covering the item and revealed the somewhat crude-looking set of chess pieces.
Almost everyone present had their attention drawn to it instantly. As if possessing some strange allure, the moment the pieces appeared, it became difficult to look away.
What they saw wasn't merely a chess set. It felt more like two living armies arranged before them. As though grasping this board meant grasping the very layout of the world.
Of course, it was only a sensation—not even quite a hallucination. Even ordinary people could easily shake it off. Yet the mysterious quality was undeniable.
As for someone like Steven, a true powerhouse—
He practically wanted to rush up and grab it outright.
It wasn't that he lacked composure. It's just that the chess set clearly carried the same aura as the so-called fragment of authority that Nian had once given him.
"So… quick question. If I rob a museum, how many years would I get?"
Steven casually pulled out his AK and chambered a round, then glanced at Lin Yuxia. Under her horrified—yet somehow unsurprised—gaze, he asked in a quiet voice.
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Note: Character Illustration is in this Google Drive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iuyfwNVFHzIi9H4rWNT_lAm7jTSiah_M
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Tn: I updated the story daily, but if you want to see more chapter of this story ahead of time, please go to my Patreon.
Latest Chapter: Chapter 617: A Bold Guess[1]
Link: https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628[2]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628
[2] https://www.patreon.com/Thatsnakegirl/posts/arknightcraft-160680628