chapter 177 part 2
Only then did she realize with horror that she had fallen into the hands of a group of deranged fiends, more terrifying than demons...
These people were even more fiendish than the slave traders who caught her!
A small man in a top hat walked over, bowed like a gentleman to the fat man: "Sir, shall we store your merchandise downstairs first, then deliver it to your mansion after all auctions are concluded?"
"Hmph." The fat man didn't give a good face and walked off the stage.
The small man smiled and explained, "The seas aren't very peaceful now; several Pirate crews are specifically protecting the safety of merfolk. Merfolk merchandise is hard to come by, you've already made a fortune!"
Upon hearing this, the fat man's anger subsided.
Next up on stage was a fish-man.
While fish-men and mermaids differ only slightly in lineage, they are two entirely distinct races.
Mermaids, creatures from Western myths, possess human torsos and fish tails. They are generally very beautiful, and the average auction price is around one hundred million.
The one just auctioned, despite missing an eyeball and thus having her beauty affected, still fetched over one hundred million Berry.
This figure might not be very indicative, but for comparison, even a Pirate Supernova renowned across the seas only has a Bounty ranging from one hundred million to three hundred million Berry.
It's hard to imagine that the Bounty of Ace at this time and the auction value of a common one-eyed mermaid could be equal, which also shows the difficulty of the mermaid race.
And fish-men, lacking basic aesthetic appeal, are just a group of very strong brutes. These fellows, whose strength is generally ten times that of humans, are the ideal choice for manual labor.
The auction price is only one million Berry.
But they can do many times the work of human slaves.
The few wealthy families in the front row had no feelings for the fish-man. Just as this fish-man was about to be passed over, a question came from the back.
"Does the fish-man on stage know navigation?"
The fish-man bared its teeth, letting out a low, fearful growl at the auctioneer who had questioned it, much like a rabid dog. The auctioneer awkwardly replied, "It does not."
Ren Arakawa waved his hand, indicating he wasn't interested, and this fish-man item was passed over.
After that, a human beauty came up, and was auctioned off at a price of eighty million Berry.
Then, a dwarf of the Tontatta tribe, auctioned off at one hundred ten million.
At this moment, a voice emerged from a VIP room on the second floor. Though not loud, it reverberated throughout the entire venue.
The voice, imbued with impatience and an air of worldly indifference, asked, "Are there any good items today? If not, I'm leaving."
The auctioneer on stage hurriedly nodded and bowed to the direction of the second floor, saying, "Originally, a significant batch of merchandise was scheduled for the end of the month. Since the gentleman wishes to see it, we will bring it all up now!"
After he finished speaking, several people from below came up, sequentially carrying huge fish tanks onto the auction stage.
Inside the fish tanks were three mermaids with green hair, white hair, and yellow hair, each a great beauty.
Seeing these three mermaids, all the wealthy people in the audience collectively reached a climax!
"Hurry up and announce the reserve price!"
"Faster!"
"This old man wants to bid!"
"Can't wait to get a few!"
They shouted, urging the auctioneer to quickly announce the reserve price, while the auctioneer looked hesitant towards the VIP room on the second floor.
"We must wait until the distinguished guest on the second floor expresses his thoughts before we can continue the auction. If the distinguished guest on the second floor is interested in the merchandise, it will not enter the market at all."
"What?! Why?!"
Everyone immediately burst into fury. Among those present, who wasn't incredibly rich and noble? Why should they defer to anyone else?
Could it be...
The curtain of the VIP room on the second floor opened, and a plump man wearing a bubble oxygen mask appeared at the window.
Seeing this attire, the crowd who had just been urging immediately fell silent.
Because that fellow in the VIP room on the second floor was a Celestial Dragon of the Sabaody Archipelago, and even more so, a ruling race of the world.
A Celestial Dragon!
This Celestial Dragon looked at the three mermaids through the glass, waved his hand: "My family's stock is far superior to what you have here!"
After saying that, he turned around and left directly.
As soon as the Celestial Dragon left, deafening bids erupted in the auction house!
"One hundred million!"
"One hundred thirty million!"
"One hundred sixty million!"
These old gentlemen all vied to get their hands on the three mermaids.
At this time, Ren Arakawa, positioned at the back of the hall, spoke again, asking, "Do they understand navigation, or can they cook, or sail a ship?"
Hearing such a strange question, let alone the auctioneer, the wealthy patrons below the stage all smirked.
"Hahahahaha! Buying mermaids and actually asking such a strange question? Instead of asking these, why not ask if they have 'first-time' experience?"
"Exactly! What's the point of asking these? Mermaids only have one fate: to obediently give this old man 'aquatic therapy'! Hahahahahahaha!"