“This…”
The manager was also troubled. From a business perspective, selling such a piece of junk for four hundred gold coins was something he was happy to see, as it meant a higher commission for the auction house.
Moreover, this Miss Mira was a local noble lady in Cantelot and had visited their auction house several times. If possible, the manager didn’t want to offend this overbearing noble miss. In comparison, those two unfamiliar guests seemed… more approachable. After all, one of them was even wearing a maid outfit, and she didn’t look like she was from some noble family.
But the manager didn’t dare break the auction house’s rules. If a bidder couldn’t produce the price they had bid on the spot, the item went to the previous bidder immediately. This rule had been set personally by Lady Selina to prevent malicious bidding that disrupted the auction house’s order.
Who in Cantelot’s noble circles didn’t know Lady Selina’s temper? The manager could swear that if he broke the rules and she found out, Selina would fire him on the spot!
In other words, if he didn’t want to offend Mira and didn’t want to break the rules… the best solution was indeed to prove that the bank card had been stolen by Ximo. That way, he could sidestep the rules legitimately without offending Mira.
With this thought, the manager’s face lit up with a professional smile again. He probed toward Ximo, “Miss, if this card was indeed taken by you on purpose, then this item…”
Before he could finish, Xiliya blocked the manager’s path with a cold expression.
“Whoever accuses must provide evidence. If we didn’t steal it, we didn’t steal it. Why should we have to prove our innocence?”
How could Xiliya not guess the manager’s intentions? And…
She glanced at Mira, who was fuming on the side. She hadn’t expected to run into this overbearing, brainless young lady here.
Petite figure, curly short hair, and those massive breasts that didn’t match her height at all… This was definitely the Mira that Xiliya knew. Her evaluation of this overbearing young lady? Purely big boobs, no brains.
Mira was also a student at the Imperial Capital Magic Academy, in the same year as her. In her previous life, this young lady had caused her no small amount of trouble. Xiliya hadn’t expected to encounter her here.
And there was one thing Xiliya didn’t understand. Although Mira didn’t recognize her now, she was very familiar with Mira. In her impression, this overbearing young lady wasn’t the type to be interested in such an old magitool.
Mira wasn’t from some ultra-wealthy great noble family either. Where had she gotten so much money to act like this, betting four hundred gold coins out of spite?
“You’re so unreasonable!” Xiliya’s words made Mira anxious. “Steal is steal. Aren’t you ordinary people just here to see what an auction is like? I won’t hold it against you, but the item has to go to me!”
Mira seemed to have judged from their attire that they weren’t nobles. As she spoke, she reached out to snatch the crystal ball from Ximo’s hands. No one knew where this petite girl got such strength from, but she suddenly yanked Ximo so hard that Ximo nearly fell over. She stumbled and barely steadied herself when something fell out of the pocket of her maid outfit.
“Miss Mira, let’s talk this out…”
The manager jumped in fright and hurried to mediate, conveniently picking up the item that had fallen to the ground for Ximo. It was also a card, but not a bank card.
The manager hadn’t paid it much mind at first and was about to hand it back casually, but when he glanced at the card, his entire body suddenly froze.
“You two… so you’re esteemed guests of Lady Selina. It was our poor hospitality; please forgive us.”
As the manager bowed with a fawning smile, a cold sweat broke out on his back. Good thing he hadn’t sided with Mira outright. Who could have imagined that these two ordinary-looking guests knew Lady Selina!
“Ha…? Wha-what’s that supposed to mean?”
Ximo was stunned for a moment. Only after taking the card did she realize why the manager’s attitude had changed so suddenly.
What had fallen from her maid outfit was Selina’s name card. After receiving it earlier, Ximo had casually stuffed it into her pocket and forgotten about it. She hadn’t expected to wear this outfit today of all days.
What puzzled Ximo was that it was just a name card… Could Selina’s fame in the Imperial Capital be so great that flashing it made anyone treat her with such respect?
Ximo didn’t know, but the manager did. This auction house was Selina’s property to begin with, and everyone in Cantelot’s upper circles knew the weight of that name card. To date, Selina had handed out fewer than two digits’ worth of them.
Not to mention Selina’s status in the capital. Right now, the manager could only rejoice that he hadn’t offended these two great figures.
The manager’s mind raced. He knew Selina’s recent movements. Nothing major involving her had happened in the Imperial Capital lately… but a while back, Lady Selina had personally gone to Border City.
Thus, the manager quickly deduced their identities and probed, “Are you… the young lady of the Camberlan Family? Any guest of Lady Selina is my guest. Today’s matter was our auction house’s mishandling. How about we offer you a VIP card from our auction house as compensation?”
Xiliya hadn’t expected the man’s attitude to flip so quickly. Of course, the most awkward one was Mira on the side. This sudden development choked the words she was about to say right in her throat.
She had just called them ordinary people, and now they pulled out Selina’s name card. This was too much of a slap to her face. Embarrassing as it was, Mira still intended to fight for this to the end.
“Miss Mira—”
But at that moment, a staff member came rushing over in a panic.
“The surveillance you asked me to check earlier is done. Your bank card fell in the hall and was picked up by someone. I’ll go find the guest who picked it up right now…”
So after the incident, Mira had asked the staff to check the surveillance. Ximo nodded; this saved them the trouble. Who knew that crossing to another world would let her enjoy modern tech conveniences like this.
“Wait,” Mira interrupted the staff member. “You mean the bank card was dropped by me myself?”
“Yeah,” the staff member thought she didn’t believe it. “No worries, Miss Mira. The guest who picked up your card probably hasn’t left yet…”
The staff member was about to say more, but the red-faced Mira had no mood to listen anymore. She looked up and met Xiliya’s amused gaze.
“Miss Mira, since your card wasn’t stolen by these two ladies, then per our auction house’s rules…” The manager cautiously reminded her from the side.
