Chapter 61
"According to the rules, they must either pay the fine within seven days or have their entry privileges permanently revoked."
The host looked around the room and stood there for a few seconds.
"Since no one has any objections, our auction may begin."
"Number One!"
Without any unnecessary opening remarks, the transaction began directly and quickly.
As the paper window rolled up to one-third of its height, a delicately crafted and elegantly sheathed wakizashi was handed out from room number one.
The host stepped forward, picked it up, placed it on the tray, and then picked up the accompanying note and began to read it aloud.
"An unclaimed Zanpakuto."
"The ability depends on the amount of Reiatsu injected; it transforms Reishi into a blade and extends it. It is known that Vice-Captain-level can extend it to seven meters."
"This is the inherited Zanpakuto from the mid-level noble Shiwasu Clan, who were massacred by the Giant Hollow three months ago in the West District 2."
Starting bid...
"Twenty gold coins!"
"Twenty gold coins!"
Twenty-five gold pieces!
Forty gold coins!
As soon as the host finished speaking, a continuous stream of bidding noises erupted from the surroundings—all that was required was to raise a price paddle, but these bidders seemed unconcerned about revealing their identities, each shouting louder than the last.
"..."
"Is it that exciting?"
Haruto was also stunned by this display.
The Zanpakuto that can be passed down through generations is basically the lifeblood of mid-level nobles; lower-level nobles don't even have a chance to come into contact with it.
Not to mention.
This is the legacy of a middle-ranking nobleman who has just been stripped of his title.
Haruto didn't dwell on conspiracy theories about the feuds between nobles, but rather on the fact that the Giant Hollow had appeared in the West District 2 —after so many years, the Hueco Mundo Expeditionary Force was able to be established so quickly, and the massacred Shiwasu Clan must have played a significant role in this.
"Aren't you going to buy it and take it home?"
Haruto encouraged Byakuya.
"We have plenty of Zanpakuto in our family. In the unattended warehouse where I used to play hide-and-seek as a kid, there were hundreds of similar ones."
"..."
Haruto was speechless with shock at Byakuya's extravagant statement when he heard him continue:
"Moreover, no matter how powerful these Zanpakuto are, without a matching soul, they can hardly unleash their full potential. At best, they can only be used to arm some grunts... No one in my family would even bother using them."
"..."
In Byakuya's words, the heritage of a mid-level noble was nothing more than a decoration, a piece of junk used to fill warehouse space.
This is perhaps the reason why the great nobles can wield absolute power in the Soul Society.
"All right."
Haruto thought Byakuya fairly well, but after hearing these words, he was still caught off guard and thoroughly outmaneuvered by Byakuya.
"The price has climbed to fifty-five gold coins."
Haruto glanced at the nobles who were still holding up their placards.
"How about you lend me fifty gold coins? I'll buy one and take it back to think about it; maybe it'll help with the Shikai."
Byakuya can certainly go inside the Kuchiki Clan's warehouse without any problem, but taking anything out requires the permission of Old Master Ginrei.
Haruto wasn't sure if it would work, but who knew he might actually get lucky?
"..."
Byakuya did not reply to him.
Haruto assumed the bidding outside was too loud, so he asked again:
"How about it?"
"... Not enough money."
Byakuya's voice was very soft.
"Ah?"
But what stunned Haruto was the unexpected answer.
"I overspent my allowance, and I only have less than five gold coins left this quarter..."
Good heavens!
Haruto hissed as he gasped for breath.
Byakuya had previously boasted to Haruto about the allowance Kuchiki Sōjun gave him: fifty gold coins every quarter.
Summer is only halfway over, and her assets have shrunk to only 1/10... Haruto's idea of marrying a rich man was instantly shattered.
"Then I'll wait."
Haruto wisely refrained from asking where the money went. Since the rich man didn't have 50 to pay for VIP memberships, he naturally gave up on that idea.
There is no rule against buying on credit at the auction, nor is barter supported; all transactions are cash-on-delivery.
Five minutes later.
The Zanpakuto for number one sold for 61 gold.
However, bidder number sixteen was clearly reluctant to spend beyond the budget. After dawdling for a while, he finally won the bid with the help of number seventeen, who contributed ten gold coins—the two obviously knew each other.
After that.
Arranged in numerical order, the items were placed one by one on the tray.
However, none of them were as appealing as Zanpakuto, and most of them were priced below ten gold.
Haruto's trip was definitely worthwhile.
He used almost all of his wealth—seven gold coins—to acquire a secret Kidō technique left behind by a once-powerful, now-deceased, upper-class noble family.
Hadō #67: Raimeisan.
Haruto had seen the ordinary Raimeisan in Nanao's Book of Kidō.
Although he hadn't trained much, Haruto, who could still Eishōhaki Abandon" spell to release the Zanka no Tachi," could now use "Raimeisan" with ease. In the beginning, Haruto had even given up on training this move because Raimeisan effects weren't concentrated enough.
But.
The secret Raimeisan he bought was somewhat different:
The techniques recorded here completely abandon the destructive effect of Raimeisan, instead using it as a "smoke bomb" or "substitution technique." Compared to the original Raimeisan, this secret technique is more like a kind of Bakudō.
Haruto bought it to make up for the shortcomings of the Kidō version of Utsusemi:
The combination of Sekienton and Kyokkō Kidō, along with many other issues such as Phantom Stun, remain unresolved. Haruto wants to learn this secret manual of Raimeisan to verify his understanding against what he already knows, and see if there's any possibility of further improvement.
Certainly.
If it really is the Kidō Version of the Utsusemi, the price of the secret technique definitely won't be limited to seven gold coins.
Haruto was able to get a slight advantage simply because the modified version of the Secret Raimeisan was far too difficult to cultivate.
Volume 1: 040, Items That Shouldn't Have Appeared
"You managed to snag a bargain here."
When Haruto unleashed the Raimeisan, Byakuya made a sarcastic remark from the side.
He practiced Shunpo (Shunpo) diligently throughout the entire holiday, and even risked his reputation by not visiting the Cat Demon at the Shihoin Clan, which allowed him to perfect the technique of Utsusemi).
Unexpected.
Haruto simply went to an auction and bought a similar-looking Kidō for a pittance of pocket money.
In terms of energy consumption, Raimeisan is definitely more expensive than Utsusemi, but Haruto's Reiatsu is already abundant, so he won't have any trouble with that aspect.
And.
Byakuya didn't think Haruto would be unable to learn this secret technique.
With the experience of the Sekienton and the Kyokkō, mastering the secret technique won't be something you can finish just by glancing at it, but it definitely won't take more than three days.
If the price of this Raimeisan Secret Technique were a few gold pieces higher, Byakuya wouldn't be so jealous: Haruto would definitely have to borrow money from him then, which, from another perspective, would be equivalent to him getting a good deal.
But now...
"Oh well, what can I do? I was just lucky."
Haruto looked at the secret manual he had just obtained and said...
Even if the Kidō Orb didn't fetch a good price, Haruto was still very satisfied with the auction: Haruto didn't know many Kidō techniques with stealth effects, and he didn't have a single high-level Bakudō. The Raimeisan he had now made up for this deficiency.
Haruto opened the secret manual in his hand, intending to study it before bidding on the Kidō Orb —since he was already penniless, there was no point in looking at the remaining items.
He wasn't worried about buying counterfeit goods.
The fact that they dared to hold an auction here, and even had a Vice-Captain-level host, shows that they have very powerful backing; moreover, they were the ones who sent out the invitations, so they must have some means and methods to pursue the matter.
As for Byakuya...
This kid also sneakily came over, ostensibly to offer some advice to Haruto.
Although Byakuya has mastered the Utsusemi, as the saying goes, it's always good to have more skills; there's always a chance it might come in handy.
When these two methods are used together.
Moreover, Byakuya doesn't have much pocket money left, and he still has a long time to live on. Given his arrogant personality, he definitely won't go home to ask for sponsorship again... so the remaining auction items are basically out of his reach.
Certainly.
More likely, Byakuya simply doesn't care about these oddballs; he's only here to enjoy the atmosphere of the auction.
Time ticked away.
Number 25!
Two hours had passed by the time the host called out their room number... Haruto had even learned the new secret technique of Raimeisan.
It's just that there's nowhere to experiment right now, otherwise Haruto's proficiency would have increased significantly.
After the two handed over the auction items--
"Record of Bakudō Number Eighty-One: The Kidō Orb of the Dankū."
"The ability is to help users quickly master the Dankū,' but the internal Reishi are not currently active, and it is expected to be usable in at least six months."
"Friendly reminder: Do not activate this device without the Vice-Captain-level."
At this point, the host paused very subtly:
The ability to block all Kidō Dankū below number ninety was perfect for him; unfortunately, even though he was very confident in his strength, he knew how powerful the Soul Reaper behind the auction was and did not have the courage to covet such a valuable treasure.
"From the East Rukongai, a high-ranking nobleman who was expelled from the Seireitei."
Starting bid...
Thirty-five gold coins!
"..."
The host finished speaking, but no one made a bid for half a minute.
What happened?
Byakuya lowered his voice and asked with a somewhat impatient expression.