"Hahaha! Just kidding! Lighten up a little, will you?"
Seeing the waitress frozen in place, Jerry dropped the menacing act in an instant, his expression shifting back to a casual smile. "So, is it still possible to get into the auction? It looks like it's about to start."
The waitress's brain, which had short-circuited moments ago, finally rebooted. She quickly composed herself, forcing her lips back into a professional, if slightly stiff, smile. "Oh, my apologies, sir. May I ask if you are one of our registered VIPs?"
Jerry looked at the forced smile and decided to have a little more fun. He tilted his chin up, giving her a look that was pure, low-level gangster. "No. You telling me only VIPs can get in?"
"Sir, you misunderstand!" The waitress's mouth twitched, and she spoke quickly, eager to de-escalate. "Non-VIPs are welcome, but you will need to purchase an admission ticket right here." She gestured to her terminal, already beginning to process the transaction.
Not wanting to blow his cover before the show even started, Jerry sighed dramatically and pulled out his wallet. He had to buy two tickets, one for himself and one for Dora, while Kotatsu could thankfully pass as a pet. Fortunately, a previous quest had rewarded him with a small chest of Berries, so he wasn't short on cash. Still, it pained him. He was just used to being frugal.
Paying with actual bills always hurts more than swiping a card, he thought mournfully. When you see the physical money disappear, you feel it in your soul.
After completing the transaction and passing through a cursory security check, they walked through a wide, lavishly decorated corridor and into the main hall. The venue was magnificent, designed like a grand theater. Rows of plush seats were arranged in a stepped, fan-like shape, all focused on the large stage at the center. The ceiling soared ten or twenty meters high, adorned with elegant chandeliers that cast a golden glow over everything.
The auction was moments from beginning, and the hall was already packed. The air buzzed with conversation as all manner of wealthy and unsavory characters mingled, turning the opulent hall into something resembling a noisy, high-end market. There were portly merchants in garish silks, shadowy figures with hidden faces, and arrogant nobles who looked down their noses at everyone else.
The chatter finally died down when a smartly dressed auctioneer and several staff members walked out from backstage, wheeling a large, square object covered by a velvet cloth. A hush fell over the crowd. Everyone present knew the process, and their eyes were glued to the covered object as the staff positioned it in the center of the stage.
"Stay close and protect yourselves," Jerry whispered, his eyes cold as he stared at the stage. He gave Dora and Kotatsu a final, reassuring look. "The fun is about to begin." Then, he began to walk slowly down the aisle between the seats, making his way toward the front.
Feeling the heated, greedy gazes of the audience upon him, the auctioneer began his opening speech, his voice booming through the hall.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome! As is our tradition, we will begin tonight's festivities with a special preview of our grand finale item!"
He paused for dramatic effect, his arms spread wide. "Now, I implore you, prepare yourselves! Feast your eyes on the incomparable beauty of the mermaids from the deep sea! Do not blink, for in that fleeting moment, you may find yourself lost in a dream from which you never wish to wake!"
His voice was high-pitched and passionate, expertly stoking the flames of desire in the crowd. Seeing that the atmosphere was reaching a fever pitch, he gave a sharp nod to a staff member beside the cage. With a practiced flourish, the man yanked the cloth away.
The spotlight instantly focused on a sturdy iron cage. Inside, huddled together, were two mermaid girls.
They were breathtakingly beautiful, with graceful postures and faces that looked as if they were carved by angels. The auction house had clearly applied makeup to enhance their features, making them appear even more stunning and exotic. Blinking against the sudden, harsh light, they instinctively raised their handcuffed hands to shield their eyes.
"Oh, my God! I can't take it anymore!" someone in the crowd roared, a sentiment that was immediately echoed by dozens of others. The room erupted in a frenzy of shouts and whistles.
The auctioneer smiled, thoroughly satisfied with the reaction. "Excellent! I see you are all eager to claim your prizes. Now, we will take them backstage, and our main auction will—"
Before he could finish his sentence, a figure burst from the crowd. It was a young man with a strange, fanatical glint in his eyes and a deranged smile plastered on his face. He was laughing uncontrollably as he sprinted directly toward the stage.
"Someone stop him! Security!" the auctioneer shrieked, his composure shattering at the sight of the apparent madman.
The "pervert" who had just stormed the stage was, of course, Jerry, giving the performance of a lifetime.
Faced with several staff members rushing to intercept him, Jerry didn't break character. With a series of wild, seemingly clumsy movements that were actually brutally efficient, he sent them flying. In a matter of seconds, the path was clear, and he ran toward the cage as if no one else existed.
The crowd watched, stunned, as this lunatic effortlessly dispatched the guards. He reached the cage and began muttering to himself, then gripped the iron bars. With a deafening shriek of protesting metal, he bent the thick bars apart as if they were made of soft clay, creating an opening wide enough for a person to pass through.
"Hahahaha! Mine! They're all mine!" he cackled, his perverted laughter echoing throughout the silent hall.
Jerry's fanatical expression was so convincing it sent a genuine chill down the auctioneer's spine. This wasn't just some drunk; this man was dangerous. "You! Do you have any idea whose territory this is?" she screamed hysterically. "This auction house is under the protection of one of the Underworld Kingpin, Joker!"
"Joker? That name doesn't scare me!" Jerry roared back, his laughter growing even more manic. "If he wants to stop me, tell him to come here himself! Hahahaha!"
While laughing, he reached into the cage and pulled the two terrified mermaids out. In one smooth, hidden motion, he snapped the shackles on their wrists, letting the broken pieces fall silently back into the cage.
"Yeah? Hahaha! Now this is interesting," a new voice slurred from the side of the stage. "Where'd you crawl out from, little thief? You can't just say things like that without asking my permission first."
The man who stepped forward was sloppy and unshaven, dressed in mismatched clothes with two longswords strapped to his waist and a half-empty bottle of wine in his hand. This was Alan, the head of security.
"Listen up, kid," Alan said, taking a swig from his bottle. "I'm in charge here. And the first thing you're gonna do is get off my stage!"
He exploded into motion. In a blur of speed, he smashed the wine bottle forward as a distraction while his hands flew to his swords. The blades sang as they left their sheaths, slashing towards Jerry's neck in a pincer-like attack.
Jerry's crazed smile never wavered. With a simple, economic lean to the side, he evaded the attack, letting the swords whistle past his ear. He flowed forward into the opening Alan had created, took a single quick step, and drove his knee upward with devastating force into the man's abdomen.
CRACK!
Alan couldn't even scream. He didn't expect the seemingly unhinged man to be so impossibly fast. The impact knocked the wind out of him and sent a starburst of agony through his body. His back arched violently, like a shrimp dropped into boiling water, and a spray of bloody spittle flew from his mouth.
"Hehehe! If your name is Alan," Jerry whispered, his voice suddenly dropping the manic tone for a cold, sharp whisper right next to Alan's ear, "then you of all people should know to protect the back of your neck."
The strange laugh returned, but his hands were already moving. As Alan doubled over, exposing the back of his neck, Jerry's hand struck like a viper, delivering a single, vicious chop.
Alan let out a choked, half-formed cry. His eyes rolled back in his head, and he crumpled to the floor, completely unconscious.