Chapter 56 One Billion Reasons to Bleed
The climax of the festival was the “Glory Offering.”
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Each Pack would present its most treasured item as a tribute to the Moon Goddess, cing it in an open auction. All proceeds went toward maintaining the Moon Goddess Barrier–the great shield that protected the continent from the dark forces beyond. It was both a show of wealth and a battle for prestige.
One after another, priceless treasures were brought forth and imed at staggering prices by Pack leaders.
Finally, thest item–the most valuable offering of the night—was unveiled.
As the servant pulled back the crimson cloth, a wave of gasps swept through the crowd.
Inside a crystal domey a massive, vicious–looking canine fang fossil. Its surface was a deep, blood–red hue, as if congealed from ancient blood. Jagged lightning–like runes were etched naturally across it, and it emanated a powerful aura–primordial, heavy, and fierce.
“That’s… the Ancestor’s Fang from the Crimson Moon Pack!” someone beside me whispered in shock.
I narrowed my eyes, heart pounding.
Of course I knew what it was. I’d seen it in the ancestral shrine deep within the Crimson Moon Pack estate.
It was the fang of the very first Alpha–the founding ancestor of the Pack. A sacred relic, one of their deepest symbols of strength and spirit.
ording to legend, Kirby’s father valued it more than his own life. Outsiders weren’t even allowed to look at it–yet Belle had brought it here to auction?
Even Asphodel couldn’t hide her shock. <i>She’s </i><i>insane</i><i>! </i>
No. She wasn’t insane.
I understood her n instantly.
It was a carefully staged “charitable sacrifice,” meant to earn glory,
They would offer up the Pack’s most sacred relic, then have one of their own bid and win it back at a rtively modest price.
That way, they got the prestige of generosity, the relic safely returned to their hands, and the
Chapter 56 One Billion Reasons to Bleed
public saw them as both devout and dignified.
:
A perfect little scheme for wealth and fame in one blow.
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“The Crimson Moon Pack lives up to its thousand–year legacy–such a rare and sacred item, offered in devotion to the Moon Goddess!” The Watcher elder at the altar praised loudly. “The bidding for the Ancestor’s Fang begins at three million credits!”
Three million? I chuckled softly.
So in their eyes, the soul of the Crimson Moon Pack was worth just three million?
Belle raised her paddle with elegant poise, wearing theposed smile of a matriarch sure of victory.
“Three–point–five million,” offered another Pack, one friendly with Crimson Moon, upping the price as a token gesture.
“Four million.” Belle raised her paddle again, ready to end it there.
The hall fell silent. Everyone knew this was just a performance–Crimson Moon’s theater, directed and acted by themselves.
But just as the Watcher elder prepared to strike the gavel, a cool, emotionless voice sliced through the fa?ade like a de.
“Ten million.”
I raised my paddle.
“Ten million!”
The number hit the air like a stone dropped into still water–creating a tidal wave of noise and shock<i>. </i>
In an instant, every eye in the hall snapped toward me.
Their gazes were full of disbelief, confusion… and thrilled anticipation.
No one believed I truly wanted to buy the Crimson Moon Pack’s sacred relic.
To them, this was clearly a public provocation.
A p across the face of Crimson Moon Pack–delivered on the one stage they prized most, where pride and glory reigned.
Belle’s graceful smile froze on her lips.
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She whipped her head toward me, her perfectly maintained eyes narrowing into twin vipers.
I could smell it from across the space–her scent, once poised and pleasant, now twisted with rage and rot. Her pheromones thickened in an instant, foul and choking.
Slyvana shot up from her seat, pointing at me and shrieking, furious beyond reason. “You… you did that on purpose! You b*tch!”
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