บท 25: Chapter 25: It's not below my bottom line, it can be sold
"Time's about right."
Edward opened the [Island Trading Platform].
On the platform, only a few minutes remained for the instant purchase of the [Snake Armor].
Twenty-four hours had passed, and no professional had come up with three thousand gold coins to snap up the [Snake Armor], so it had to go to auction.
Except for Edward.
At this moment, countless professionals were also turning their eyes to the trading platform.
They were all watching the [Snake Armor].
Whether they were planning to participate in the auction or just there for the spectacle, it all meant that Edward's hype plan was very successful.
The more people watched, the higher the final price of the [Snake Armor] would be.
Soon, a few minutes passed, and the [Snake Armor], not snapped up by anyone, was forced off the shelf and returned to Edward's hands.
He didn't hesitate to relist the [Snake Armor].
The trade was set to 'auction mode'.
The starting bid was six hundred gold coins, with each bid increment no less than ten gold coins.
The auction duration was set for one hour.
Compared to the instant purchase price of three thousand gold coins, the auction's starting bid was a full four-fifths less, essentially a deep discount.
However, it was very unusual.
Ten minutes had passed, and not a single professional had participated in the auction.
This left Edward somewhat puzzled.
...
[Island Chat Channel—]
[Looks like Big Ed's about to eat his words.]
[Ten minutes gone, and not a single pro has bid. Big Ed must be spitting blood.]
[Why spit blood? If such primo gear doesn't sell, just wear it yourself... Honestly, if it does sell, I'd feel it's a waste for Big Ed.]
[But here's the thing, Ed's a Lord.]
[At this stage, a Lord doesn't need to wear any gear.]
[Even if it's a real god-tier item, it's better to trade it for gold coins and summon more troops.]
[If I were Ed, I'd definitely sell the Snake Armor.]
[With the gold coins, you can summon more troops, get more gear. The profits from that would far exceed what the Snake Armor could bring in.]
[I even wonder if all the big shots got together and agreed not to bid, just to keep Ed from getting those gold coins and expanding his army.]
[It's possible.]
When Ed saw this message, he had the same thought.
Were the island's 'big shots' really teaming up against him?
It wasn't out of the question.
After all, he was already powerful enough.
Some pros even called him the strongest Lord on the island.
With that kind of reputation, it made total sense for other Lords and combat pros to band together to hold him back.
If the Snake Armor didn't sell, he wouldn't get a pile of gold coins.
And naturally, he couldn't expand his troops.
This could indeed slow down his progress.
...
Another fifteen minutes passed.
It's been nearly half an hour since the [Snake Armor] went up for auction.
But so far, no one has participated in the bidding for the [Snake Armor].
The bid has remained at the base price of six hundred gold coins, unchanged.
However, Ed wasn't worried.
Even if, as he suspected, some people on the island were working together to cause the [Snake Armor] to fail to sell, it didn't really matter.
He had an ace up his sleeve and was about to make a real fortune.
The [Snake Armor] was just one piece of equipment.
Once the Blacksmith Shop was up and running, he'd be selling equipment in batches.
Since the [Snake Armor] was a high-level premium piece, ordinary pros couldn't afford it.
But if it's mass-produced standard gear, suitable for the average pro...
That would definitely trigger a mad rush from countless pros.
Then, he'd be making money hand over fist.
Also, Ed had another theory...
This so-called 'team-up to suppress' was just nonsense.
The real reason was that those who wanted to bid on the [Snake Armor] didn't dare to join the auction too early, to avoid driving the price too high and making it unaffordable.
That was also a possibility.
Of course, no matter the outcome, it wouldn't be a loss for Ed.
He had one thought now.
If it sells, great; if not, he'll just keep it for himself.
...
"Can you believe this top-notch gear isn't selling?"
"That's a real joke."
The Golden Behemoth Lord, lurking in the prairie, couldn't help but burst into laughter seeing that the [Snake Armor] he put up for auction hadn't received a single bid in half an hour.
He felt all the frustration he had endured from Edward these past days dissipate in that moment.
"But seriously..."
"Who exactly is suppressing Edward, and why haven't I heard a thing about it?"
As the leader of the island's strongest alliance, the [Hall of Kings], he would have expected to be informed if someone was secretly manipulating this situation. After all, if he were to join the bidding, wouldn't that mess up their plans?
But the problem was, no one had approached him.
The young man couldn't figure it out, and decided it wasn't worth the headache.
For him, as long as the [Snake Armor] didn't sell, it was good news.
...
Time passed again.
Before you knew it, there were only five minutes left until the end of the [Snake Armor] auction.
But just then~
The previously stagnant bidding suddenly shot up by ten gold coins.
It felt as if someone finally couldn't hold back any longer.
"Damn it, who's messing around at this hour?"
The youth couldn't help but curse, visibly upset.
Seeing Edward make money was a sore sight for him.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got.
...
At the same time.
The island's chat channel also exploded.
Some were sending messages in celebration.
Others felt utterly disappointed at that moment.
These people, whether out of jealousy of Edward or not wanting to see Edward expand his territory with more money... whatever the reason, they were all in a foul mood.
They cursed the person who joined the bidding.
But soon, something even more annoying happened.
This round of bidding was like the sound of a charge.
In the next minute, the number of bids jumped over twenty times, sending the auction price soaring to over eight hundred gold coins.
Most importantly, the upward momentum showed no signs of slowing.
A minute later, the bidding broke the thousand gold coins mark, making those Lords who couldn't afford to recruit troops due to a lack of gold coins green with envy.
A thousand gold coins, that's enough to recruit two hundred troops if you're talking low-level troops.
[Big shot Edward is making a killing.]
[Once the Snake Armor sells, he'll be able to recruit dozens of top-tier units right away.]
[That's terrifying.]
[I only got low-level troops, and I have just over thirty of them. Can't imagine, with dozens of top-tier units, how fearsome Lord Edward will become.]
[He might even take down a native intelligent creature's Stronghold, right?]
[That's a bit of an exaggeration, top-tier units start at level four, even dozens of them together would hardly be enough to conquer an intelligent creature's Stronghold.]
[By the way, who is this wealthy bidder?]
[All I know is that our Elite Command Guild's leader is one of them. This morning, our leader was borrowing gold coins on the alliance channel, definitely for bidding on the Snake Armor.]
[Borrowing? What a slick move.]
[No need to be shocked, just basic operations.]
[Our United Gamers Alliance's leader also borrowed money, otherwise where would he get so many gold coins to participate in the auction?]
...
In the Lord's Hall.
Edward was also watching the continuously rising auction price.
"These people, they really did hold out until the last few minutes."
"But no matter what, the auction price has already exceeded a thousand gold coins."
"It's not below my bottom line, it can be sold."
Edward had been prepared for the auction to fail, but he hadn't expected there to be so many 'rich people', which was a pleasant surprise.
"One dual-winged Angel, fifty gold coins."
"I wonder how many dual-winged Angels I can summon at once after the auction ends?"
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