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“What’s going on?” Yaeger asked, her tone serious as she noticed Kastina’s panicked expression.

“I’ve got two pieces of news. One’s bad, and the other… is also bad. Which one do you want first?” Kastina asked, still flustered.

“Isn’t that the same thing?” Yaeger frowned, her unease growing.

A sense of foreboding crept over Yaeger even before Kastina finished speaking. The look on Kastina’s face told her everything—this wasn’t a joke. She was dead serious.

“Start with the not-as-bad news.”

Kastina took a deep breath, steadying herself before continuing. “I bribed some servants in Grand Duke Keene’s residence a while ago. An hour ago, one of them gave me reliable information—Grand Duke Keene is planning to lodge a complaint with my father to trigger an investigation of the Imperial Auction House!”

Yaeger remained calm, unsurprised by the news. She had anticipated that Grand Duke Keene would eventually make a move. He wouldn’t dare dismantle the auction house openly, but he also wouldn’t let them keep all the profits. It was only a matter of time before he made his next move.

After their last attempt to stir trouble ended in failure, this new scheme was bound to be more calculated—and far deadlier.

Normally, Grand Duke Keene’s complaints wouldn’t amount to anything. They had acquired the auction house legally and operated within Imperial law. The real issue was Yaeger’s identity—her suspected connection to Alicia.

She’d be lucky if Richard didn’t personally arrest her and flay her alive upon his return, let alone investigate the auction house.

‘The auction house will definitely be seized and investigated—there’s no way to avoid it. Fortunately, Kastina smashing Layna’s store severed our public connection. Otherwise, she’d be implicated too.’

“Forget about Grand Duke Keene for now. Let’s make as much money as we can while we still have time. Now, what’s the other bad news?” Yaeger asked calmly.

“How are you so calm?” Kastina tilted her head, puzzled. “It’s like you knew this would happen.”

“Of course. I always prepare for the worst,” Yaeger said nonchalantly.

“As expected of you.” Kastina picked up an opened letter from the table and handed it to Yaeger. “The other bad news is this secret letter.”

Yaeger skimmed the letter quickly.

“What? Your father is returning from the northern fortress today?” she exclaimed, caught off-guard before even finishing the message.

“That’s what the letter says. Apparently, the conflict with the Sky Empire has been resolved,” Kastina replied, her voice uneasy.

“Where did this letter come from?” Yaeger asked, her lips pressed into a thin line.

“I stepped out for a bit earlier. When I got back, the letter was already here on the table.”

“Huh?” Yaeger blinked in confusion. “Why are you trusting a letter that just showed up out of nowhere?”

“I believe the letter is credible. Before you got back, I sent some of my confidants to gather information from the palace. The atmosphere there was incredibly tense. Even the servants of high-ranking officials were out hunting for intel,” Kastina explained calmly.

“But who could’ve sent us such vital information…?”

A petite figure suddenly crossed Yaeger’s mind.

‘Lili! I almost forgot—she’s second in command of [Hidden Kill]. Her information network is vast, and slipping into this office would be child’s play for someone of her skill.’

With the available clues, Yaeger quickly identified the source. Aside from that lovable Lili, she couldn’t imagine anyone else delivering such critical information at a time like this.

“Based on the letter, your father and his men will return to Jade City in two days. That gives us only two days to make as much money as possible,” Yaeger said solemnly.

“Ah… You don’t have a solution? We’ve barely even started!” Kastina asked, her frustration evident.

They had poured so much effort into building this auction house, and now it had only two days left before shutting down. How could she possibly accept that?

“There’s no way around it—the situation is serious,” Yaeger said, patting Kastina’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. It’ll only be closed for a few days. We’ll reopen soon enough.”
“Really?”
“Have I ever lied to you?” Yaeger smiled reassuringly.

If the rebellion succeeded, reopening the auction house would be a certainty.

“While we still have time, let’s clear our stock. Hire people to distribute pamphlets around the city, and promote a five percent discount on everything for the next two days as a gesture of gratitude to our customers,” Yaeger instructed.

“Yes, I’ll get right on it!” Kastina nodded eagerly and marched out.

“Wait! Besides clearing the stock, make sure you collect the materials I asked for—no matter the cost!” Yaeger called after her.

“Got it. Anything else?” Kastina asked.

Yaeger brushed a hand through her hair and smiled gently. “That’s all for now. Thanks for your hard work.”

“Yes.” In the past, Kastina would’ve responded with something cheeky, like reminding Yaeger that she co-owned the auction house and wasn’t working just for her.

‘She’s becoming more sincere. That’s good,’ Yaeger thought with a satisfied nod as Kastina left.

“Now, let’s check on the trading hall.” With some time to spare before noon, Yaeger decided not to rush to Allie.

It took her less than a minute to reach the appraisal room. The moment she entered, clad in her black cloak and white mask, everyone stood and bowed.

“Good day, Miss Flower!” They looked like a group of obedient minions.

“I’m just here to observe. Carry on with your work.” Yaeger waved her hand, signaling them to sit back down.

She moved to a small window near the entrance and peeked outside. The trading hall was bustling with activity, just as lively as ever.

The players remained enthusiastic, clearly satisfied with the trading platform’s straightforward, safe, and convenient process. Their only gripe was that the trading procedures took a bit too long.

Yaeger had anticipated this complaint, which was why she tasked Allie with designing an intelligent trading system. ‘Looks like it won’t be useful for now,’ she thought.

With Richard set to return in two days, even if Allie finished the system by then, it wouldn’t matter—it’d be too late to use.

‘I won’t be able to make any money for a few days… What a massive loss.’ Yaeger sighed internally as she stared at the crowd of eager spenders.

“Master Zhang! We can exchange this material for Empire Prestige!”

Just as Yaeger sighed, an excited voice rang out. Yaeger glanced over and, as expected, spotted Taurus and his group inspecting materials.

“Buy, buy, buy! Get everything useful!” Taurus commanded, waving his hand dramatically.

The bystanders shook their heads in resignation. It was clear that Taurus intended to scoop up all the new materials for himself.

Since yesterday, buying anything had become nearly impossible whenever Taurus was around. The reason was simple—he offered exorbitant prices that no one else could match, leaving other buyers too intimidated to compete.

“Heh, I really love this sucker.” Watching Taurus recklessly throw his money around, Yaeger’s radiant smile widened, her eyes curving into playful half-moons.