A Demon Archduke is akin to a symbol of fear to humans since they possess enough might to bring down multiple super tier nations in a single day. It is said that in the ancient era when they waged wars, they brought forth catastrophic damage to this world.
In this day and age, It is incredibly rare to see a demon of such high rank wandering outside since most of them never leave their dungeon and mostly live a life of solitude.
They use Demon Marquess, Demon Earls and other low ranking Demon Nobles as their hands and legs while they indulge themselves in their desire.
Be that may, this was Simon's first time coming in so close contact with a Demon Archduke. He had felt the bloodline suppression before in the Walpurgis too but after experiencing that absolute gulf up close one more time, made him realise once again that there was still a sky above a sky.
He might have gotten a little content feeling the rush of power after becoming a Demon Earl. This run-in with the Demon Archduke could be called a lucky break.It did not discourage him, but rather motivated him to work even harder towards his objective.
It was like a wake up call for him. He might have become a true Demon Noble and stepped into their inner rankings. But this was just the beginning, he had only arrived at the starting line and had a long road ahead of him.
Simon clenched his hands feeling the excitement rush into his body. Grimvul had told him that only the VVIPs are allowed inside this room. No wonder he met a Demon Archduke right off the bat. There were bound to be more high ranking demons present here as well.
"Oh? Aren't you that friend I made during the Walpurigs?"
Just when Simon was sorting out his thoughts, a voice came interjecting out of nowhere. When Simon turned towards that voice, he was a little surprised to see a familiar figure.
Elegant clothes, short hair, coffee brown eyes, chubby face and plump belly. This guy, he was the very same glutton that Simon met during the Walpurgis. So he was here too.
"Hehe," the fatty approached Simon and smiled "I knew it, you would be invited here too Simon".
"Um…" This was a little awkward, the other party clearly remembered his name but he on the other hand had completely written off their name from his memories.
"Huhh?! Did you perhaps forget my name? It's Oswell, OSWELL!! Aren't we friends? You should at least remember it…" the fatty introducing himself as Oswell, stated while chomping down on a drumstick.
"When did we become friends? More importantly, what do you mean that you knew I would here?" Simon locked his brows at the overly friendly mannerism of Oswell's speech and questioned.
"Sure we are, do you not remember the events of the Walpurgis? We shared a hearty conversation while munching down on plates of food, we clinked our glasses before merrily singing and becoming the best of friends. We are birds of similar feathers, so let's get along… nom… nom"…
"As if something of that sort happened. Aren't you the one who doesn't remember the events of the Walpurgis?" Simon retorted, the events that he remembered, was vastly different from the one spoken by Oswell.
"Is that so? Well, you might be right. That event was very boring anyways, no wonder I don't remember much of what happened at that time. Though I do remember you, you are the friend that I made before leaving… Hehe" Oswell spoke flailing the drumstick.
This demon as he remembered was as carefree as before. He spoke his mind put without even bothering to keep his voice down. Fortunately, the other presence in this room minded their own business and did not seem to be interested in their conversation.
"Hehe, don't worry. Those who are here, are all self centered bastards. Unless it concerned them or their interest, they would not even pay you any attention" Oswell scoffed.
"Anyways, answering the question that you asked me before, I knew you would be here because only the VVIPs are invited to the exhibition to observe the items before the auction starts. Grimvul only invites those to this room who he thinks are special or have the potential or qualification to become one. Hehe, and I believed Simon is someone special".
Hearing his reasoning, Simon couldn't help but look at Oswell in a new light. This demon was surprisingly more perceptive than he thought. He usually seemed goofy and more self centered than any of the other demons.
However, that might just be a front, a fake appearance that he puts on to deceive others.
"If we go by your reasoning, then aren't you special too?"
Simon replied. The first time he met Oswell, the latter was a Demon Marquess. However, judging by the faint aura he released every now and then, and the strong bloodline suppression Simon felt when meeting him, he could tell that the rank of this demon was at the very least the peak of Demon Marquess or maybe even a Demon Duke.
"Haha, it looks like my own words came back to bite me. Well, let's just say that we both are special in our own ways to be invited here" Oswell laughed loudly before changing the topic
"In any case did you find anything that interests you?".
It was very obvious to Simon that Oswell didn't want to delve too much into this subject and as such, changed their topic of conversation.
"I was just looking around, I haven't found anything of interest yet" It was true, although from the description of the items he could tell that they were very powerful. Till now, he was yet to find anything that interested him and made him want to possess it no matter what.
It couldn't be helped, unlike the other demon nobles, Simon's [Main Menu] was a little special. Every Demon Noble who created their own dungeon, have their own dungeon menu. However, Simon possessed two Menus since the time he was reincarnated here.
But due to a certain mistake, his [Dungeon Menu] accidentally merged with the menu of Laplace. This caused some of the options to become bugged and various unique things to appear in his dungeon.
That being said, only his [Main Menu] had the options of [Armoury] and [Ga??????]. The first option upgraded the rank of the items while the other gave him all sorts of random items when he inserted DP in it.
It was because of these options that Simon had no shortage of artefacts. No ordinary items will be able to hold his interest unless they were something like the finger of Ozymandias or like the crown of brilliance he got from the forbidden trial.
"Heh, isn't this item just another scam from that merchant" Oswell glanced at the item Simon was observing earlier and commented, "You haven't really fallen for it right?".
"What do you mean?" Simon questioned.
"I'm saying that you shouldn't blindly believe what your [Appraisal] Skill tells you. Not every treasure that you see here are real, there are a lot of junk and ordinary items mixed within. Those demons who simply follow what their [Appraisal] tells them are sure to get scammed during the auction".
"Grimvul did not receive his title without any basis. If you are not careful, he will completely scam you out of all your DP and everything"
Oswell explained trying to contain his laugh. He knew about a lot of demons who got scammed by Grimvul and harbour a grudge against him.
"Are you saying that the results from the [Appraisal] are wrong?"
Simon had this vague feeling that something was wrong. This feeling got stronger after what Oswell said. Thinking about it carefully, the thing in front of him no matter how he saw it, was just a normal soft drink bottle that one could find anywhere on earth. There was no way it would be appraised with an [A] rank.
"I'm not saying that the [Appraisal] is wrong. However, you cannot rely on that here. Grimvul is a very cunning guy. He knows that many demons tend to simply rely on their [Appraisal] skill to judge the value of an item. That is why, to take advantage of it he has tinkered with some items to make them seem like they have some value".
This bottle here for example, Jar of Affluence.. there really might be an item like that. However, this one clearly isn't that item. The result that the [Appraisal] showed you, was from the original item. Do you get me now?"
Oswell corrected. After that he made a wicked smile and looked left and right before speaking in a hushed voice.
"You know among the many fakes that I have seen here, there was this puke thing displayed as an item here. Appraisal will tell you that it is the Glutinous Glucose of the World Devouring Slime but in reality, it is just a puke of some alien being".
"Hehe, I wonder which idiot demon will buy it and consume it. I cannot wait to see" Oswell rubbed his palms in prayer and repeatedly muttered 'Please let it be a high ranking demon, a Demon Duke would be the best'.
"This guy…" Looking at that Oswell, Simon didn't know whether to laugh or cry. At the same time, he was also a little impressed. Not only he knew a lot about the auction, he was also enjoying the event to its fullest.
Thanks to the latter, he was also enlightened about the schemes of the merchant. Now he knew not to only rely on his [Appraisal] and see things for himself.
Still, to think that puke like thing was actually a puke. Grimvul really had some galls to sell it in an event where so many high ranking demons are gathered.
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