On one side of the deathmatch was the Rank 9 Mage Andrei with his Rank 5 Winged Wolf bloodline, while on the other was a Saint-level individual with the Rank 6 bloodline Titanium Wolf.
The duel took off before Emery could do anything about it and he was forced to watch until only one of them remained standing.
Even though Andrei was standing tall with his muscular two-meter wolf figure, his opponent still towered over him with ease.
At the bald man's prompt marking the start of the deathmatch, both figures quickly transformed.
The larger figure became covered in metal with almost no fur visible. Meanwhile, Andrei's transformation was the complete opposite, the hair on his body grew into long, brown feather-like fur. With a pair of wings that spanned almost two meters long, the Winged Wolf resembled a bird more than a canine beast.
After their transformations were completed, Andrei utilized his high mobility and launched his long, sharp claws at his opponent. On the other hand, the Titanium Wolf calmly approached with powerful steps, each enough to shake the arena.
The brutality of the battle made the spectator's hearts rush. One strike, two strikes, three strikes… They could hear Andrei's sharp claws pierce and tear the wind as he moved, yet the Titanium Wolf remained as immovable as a mountain.
At the same time, Andrei was able to evade the Titanium Wolf's strikes with ease. The Winged Wolf appeared to have the upper hand having landed undeniably more attacks, but his sharp claws, wings and talons were barely able to leave shallow marks on his opponent's metal skin.
With one slip of movement, the Titanium Wolf managed to grab Andrei's wing. The metal-covered beast heavily smashed him to the ground and tore one of his wings apart, splattering a burst of red on both beasts.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThe sudden gruesome sight of Andrei's situation caused Emery to hurriedly inquire once again.
"Can't we stop this!? I will pay for the Winged Wolf, give me a number!"
The young lady in front of him only gave another apologetic smile, "Our apologies, but halting an ongoing deathmatch is impossible. There is nothing we can do."
Hearing the young lady's explanation, Emery's feeling of discomfort intensified along with a growing sense of unease.
"What if he loses?" Emery turned to the young lady and asked.
This time, the young lady paused for a moment before responding, "About 90% of the time, the losing wolf ends up an incomplete carcass. And even then, the dead body becomes the property of the winning wolf, intact or not."
With irritation and indignance, Emery clenched fists and focused back on the battle arena. He silently hoped that Andrei would win the duel or, at the very least, make it out alive somehow.
In general, a Rank 9 Mage was equivalent to a Rank 9 Acolyte. This meant a Rank 9 Mage should have been able to win against an opponent at the Saint level under normal circumstances.
However, what Emery didn't realize was that Andrei did not utilize his advantage as a Rank 9 Mage: his spells. Moreover, upon closer inspection it was clear Andrei wasn't aggressive enough in his attacks.
As a result, the spectators immediately lost faith in him and his victory the moment his wing was torn. Instead, the area was now filled with cheers in favor of the Titanium Wolf.
From the side, Emery saw Andrei was still crawling and trembling with pain. As his eyes were fixed on the struggling wolf, an indescribable feeling of suffocation filled his chest.
He couldn't resist the drumming urge to scream.
"Get up! Do not give up! Get! Up!"
Even though Emery screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice was still drowned by the fervent cheers of the surrounding spectators. Yet despite that, as if the wolf on stage heard his voice, Andrei stood up and dodged the Titanium Wolf's heavy smash by a hair's breadth.
When the powerful smash landed right next to his head, the look on Andrei's face changed. A crazed glint flashed in his eyes and, at the shock of everyone witnessing, he tore his other wing and fiercely charged at the Titanium Wolf.
With blood all over the Winged Wolf's body, the deathmatch became even more bloody and brutal. The spectators' cheers became more fervent than in the previous match as violent attacks struck and the two wolves painted the arena crimson.
In the end, however, the two wolves could no longer withstand each other's brutal attacks and fell to the ground at the same time.
The bald man felt a little unsure when he saw that both products ended up in such a state. None of them died, but none emerged victorious either. He briefly looked at the wolves in the arena with creased brows before making his announcement.
"Let's start with 500,000 for both!"
Upon seeing that the deathmatch had come to an end, a wave of relief washed over Emery. Andrei was still alive. Furthermore, not many would be interested in bidding on half-dead wolves.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmWhen the price seemingly stopped at 700,000, he finally decided to join the bid. Emery raised his number to start bidding, but before he could even utter a word, the man on the VIP corner called one million spirit stones on them.
The entire auction room fell to a freeze.
Emery was irritated. It wasn't that he didn't have the spirit stones to bid against Philip Corvin, but challenging the man's bid would lead to his presence being known.
Still, he couldn't let Andrei return to the Corvin household.
"1.1 million spirit stones!" Emery called.
His decision immediately garnered attention and, as expected, this included the people on the VIP tables. Emery was secretly worried that Corvin would raise the bid.
"Going once, going twice… sold! Congratulations to the new owner of two excellent warriors!" the bald man announced.
Fortunately, no other bidder challenged his bid.
Emery gave the young lady the spirit stones he bid. Just after she made sure it was the right amount, the young lady informed him it would take a few hours to treat the wolves' injuries before he could take them.
"Actually, I'm in a bit of a hurry. I will take care of them myself," Emery said. He didn't want to stay there any longer and risk getting noticed by Corvin. Besides, he still had the pill.
The young lady nodded in understanding, which prompted a smile from Emery. However, just as he was about to leave following her, a magus came and stopped him.
"Our master Philip Corvin wishes to speak to you."