Isaac saw himself through the Crystal Core's light projection. He wore a white shirt and dark blue vest wrapped in a black long coat. His bone-white hair was neatly styled to the back, coupled with gold-framed glasses. His appearance really looked elegant, typical of a noble.
Clap clap clap!
Pippi was seen clapping her hands at her master's new appearance. After that, she gave two thumbs up.
"Lord, you're cool!"
Isaac turned to Pippi. "Do you think something is missing?"
The little girl shook her head. "No, Lord. You're perfect! You'll definitely be the most handsome demon at the auction!"
Hearing that made Isaac chuckle. To humans it might be a compliment, but to the demon's ears it sounded like a joke.
Appearance was important for demons, to show their worth. However, handsome or attractive was not one of them. In the Nether Realm, demons of ordinary beauty and good looks worked to satisfy lust.
They were seen more as objects than demons. That was why Isaac didn't really like being called handsome.
"Thank you, Pippi. But that's not a compliment I wanted to hear."
Pippi raised her eyebrows.
"I'm sorry, Lord. Pippi misspoke. Pippi means, you look terrible, anyone who sees you will freak out."
Isaac narrowed his eyes, taken aback by what he had just heard. Now, he felt like he was being insulted rather than being praised.
Cetak!
"AW!"
A hard flick landed on Pippi's forehead. The little girl put on a questioning face. She didn't understand what mistake she had just made. Meanwhile, Isaac didn't say anything.
From the empty air, a speck of golden light appeared. Then, the golden light expanded and created a kind of vortex.
A portal had just formed.
Then, the figure of a beautiful woman with light brown hair and a pair of white wings appeared from behind the portal. An angel from the Heaven Realm picked him up.
Isaac quickly straightened his collar.
"Lord Isaac Constantine. Are you willing to enter this year's auction?"
"Yes," Isaac replied firmly.
The angel invited Isaac to enter the portal.
"Pippi, take good care of the dungeon," Isaac said.
"Aye aye, Lord!" Pippi posed a salute.
Isaac entered the portal and was followed by the angel. The golden portal then disappeared again completely.
.
.
.
When Isaac opened his eyes, he found himself in a magnificent hall.
The walls were decorated with beautiful carvings. In the air, the candles floated and lit up brightly. A red carpet was spread out on the marble floor. The round white tables with various dishes served on top of them.
Isaac took a deep breath.
"Eden Palace… a demon's dream that never came true."
The noble demons, with various shapes and forms, dressed in noble clothes acted like guests of honor. They mingled, chatted, and enjoyed every dish that was served perfectly.
From the outside, they looked friendly, not hostile at all, but actually not a few of them harbored hatred for each other.
It was not a secret that demons would do anything to achieve what they wanted. They suppressed all their hatred and grudges for one reason, namely to build a relationship.
The annual auction was not only a place where they bought high-class items or monsters to build the dungeon's power, but it was also a time for demons to determine which ones should be enemies and allies.
Isaac saw familiar faces. They mingled and formed into eight groups. Each group was an alliance led by a Duke.
With a total of 108 noble demons, if they decided to destroy each other, there was little chance for them to win, even for a Duke class. Thus, they decided to cooperate and get rid of the other demons to reduce the number of participants. After the other demons were eliminated, there were two possibilities.
They left the victory to one of the demons, then shared the power. Or they would kill each other.
Demons were always looking for power.
Isaac was no exception.
"Lord Isaac Constantine!"
A familiar deep voice was heard calling his name. Isaac turned towards the voice. A demon that resembled a human form, skinny in stature and had black hair, came up to him.
The demon seemed to be smiling. Isaac also quickly put on the same expression.
"You look fine. I think something happened to you," said the demon.
The words sounded clearly like bullshit in Isaac's ears. No demon was worried about the fate of his enemy. Isaac knew what it meant.
"Sorry I couldn't return your call, Lord Loke. My Dungeon is currently in a critical state," Isaac lied.
Baron Loke frowned, as if he was sympathetic to Isaac's trouble. "I see. We, Barons, are at a huge disadvantage, especially the difference in zenny that we have got to start the game."
The smile on Isaac's face grew wider.
'He's still the same demon.'
Isaac was very familiar with Baron Loke. A demon who was good at hiding emotions and desires. It was really hard to read the man's mind. In his previous life, Baron Loke was Duke Barbatos' right-hand man. He would later become a figure who played an important role in domination in China.
Even though the demon was only a Baron, Isaac saw him as a threat.
"With our current state, it's hard to fight alone, especially against the Earls and Dukes. A lot of blood and sweat will need to be sacrificed. So, how about we build power together?"
Isaac laughed inwardly.
'A cautious and no-nonsense approach. Baron Loke… you're amazing. You must be eliminated as soon as possible.'
Baron Loke continued his words. "There are already 10 Dungeon Masters, all based in China. Added to you, I believe our strength can rival that of other demons."
He looked into Isaac's eyes with firm determination. However, Isaac had made up his mind long before coming here.
Isaac smiled.
"It's an honor to work with you, Lord Loke. I'll consider it after the auction is over."
Lord Loke's facial expression was still smiling, but his gaze became sinister. He was smart enough to know the meaning of Isaac's words.
"Very well, Lord Isaac. I hope you 'really' consider it."
Lord Loke showed respect for a moment, after which he turned and left Isaac. The demon walked towards a group of demons who were chatting with each other. One of them was a male demon with a muscular body and ruby-red eyes. When Lord Loke confronted him, the demon turned towards Isaac with a sharp gaze.
A feeling of pressure and intimidation crept through the body as Isaac looked into the demon's eyes. Isaac quickly put on a friendly smile. After that, the demon stopped staring at him.
'Duke Barbatos… after the level I reached so far, you can still pressure me like this.'
Isaac didn't flinch. He smirked instead. There was no word "fear" in his dictionary. He had fought various demons, and some of them died at his hands. The stronger the opponent he managed to destroy, the higher the satisfaction he got.
He was very curious about what it would be like to destroy Duke Barbatos.
Isaac looked around, those demons glancing at him like he was prey.
Among them, there were faces that he had not seen for a long time. Duchess Valefor, a female demon, had a fat body and two goat's horns on her forehead. On both of her wrists, there are many jewellery made of gold. She was surrounded by male demons who praised her beauty.
At the end of the hall, there were two groups of demons gathered across from each other. The two groups were the alliance of Duke Rein Aamon and Duke Gatt Samigina.
However, there was one demon that really caught his attention. The demon who managed to make Isaac boil with rage when he saw his figure alone.
'Duke Gavin Bael…'
The silver-haired male human-like demon became the center of attention of the demons. He was near the dining table, making the demons who wanted to take the dish feeling reluctant.
Duke Gavin looked friendly, putting on a smile when he spoke to his group. From a distance, Isaac could hear every word he said sounded sweet. This made Isaac really ashamed of himself.
'How could I fall for that cheap show… ?'
Isaac took a deep breath, trying to calm his raging emotions.
'Now is not the time to face Gavin.'
Isaac's eyes shifted to another figure. It was a graceful woman with a cold expression on her face. Her hair was blood red, a stark contrast to her skin, which was as white as snow. A strange feeling started to appear in his chest.
The demon he last killed in his previous life, Duchess Alyna.
'Nice to meet you again, Lady Alyna.'
Isaac smirked.
The large gate at the south end of the hall opened. The figure of a man with long golden hair and skin that glowed like a pearl appeared. On his back, there were three pairs of white wings.
Instantly, all the demons' attention was drawn to the figure. A tense expression appeared on their faces.
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