Holy Night: My Husband is Definitely a Paladin - Chapter 74
Irene and Michael sat in the seats prepared for them.
Under normal circumstances, they would have been given prime spots reserved for pairs, but the attention and stares directed at Michael were overwhelming.
So, Irene requested a box seat along the wall, meant for those who wished to participate in the auction without revealing their identities.
Fortunately, the auction staff, not wanting any disruptions during the event, granted their request without hesitation.
“Huu.”
As she sat down, Irene let out a long breath without realizing it.
Noticing her reaction, Michael spoke again.
“If anyone else dares to be so rude to you, please tell me right away.”
As if she could.
‘If I did that, we’d definitely be clearing away a corpse.’
Honestly, such words weren’t that big of a deal, but seeing Michael react so fiercely made Irene realize anew that he was a knight of the temple.
Not only would he act this way for her, but he would do the same if anyone else were insulted in such a manner.
‘If only he had done this in the past.’
The thought crossed her mind before she shook her head. It was a pointless thought.
With a bitter smile, Irene looked at the auction catalog placed on the table beside her chair.
The main event of today’s auction was the Invisibility Ring, but that wasn’t the only artifact up for sale.
“Our Stone of Silence is listed here as well.”
Irene glanced at the picture of the Stone of Silence in the catalog. It was something they had obtained from a dungeon after successfully completing a high-tier raid together.
A few days ago, after acquiring the Invisibility Ring from another high-tier dungeon, Irene had been unable to sleep.
It was a regret that lingered—had she received a share of the reward, she would have been able to pay off her debt much more quickly.
Of course, that wasn’t her only regret.
‘I still don’t understand why that artifact showed up there.’
The artifact should have appeared in the dungeon she had entered with Michael. But instead, it had appeared in a completely different place.
‘That’s not the only thing.’
All the other dungeon rewards had been exactly as she remembered, but the Invisibility Ring had vanished from her grasp, only to show up elsewhere.
The bigger issue, however, was that she was struggling to save any money.
‘And the things I do manage to get are bound to me, so I can’t sell them.’
Even the rarest items, like the Invisibility Ring, seemed to lose their value once she had them. At this point, she began to wonder if someone was deliberately preventing her from accumulating wealth.
Nevertheless, Irene knew she had to find a way to make money again. This time, she had asked Michael to accompany her to the dungeon where the Stone of Silence could be found.
Throughout the journey to the dungeon, Irene had been anxious.
‘What if it doesn’t appear this time? Or something else does?’
If that happened, much of the information she had remembered would be rendered useless.
With her heart pounding, she had opened the reward chest—and to her relief, the Stone of Silence was inside, just as she had remembered.
Finally, things were happening the way she remembered, and she felt a wave of relief wash over her. She had decided to attend the auction not only to check that the stone sold properly, but also to see how much the Invisibility Ring would go for.
‘And besides, I’ve never been to an auction before.’
She had always imagined what it must be like, listening to Wilhelmina brag about her trips to the auction house.
‘In the end, I’m here after all.’
And not only that, she was seated in a comfortable, prestigious spot, ready to watch the auction unfold.
Soon, the auctioneer stepped onto the stage, greeted the audience, and announced the start of the auction.
As the lights dimmed inside the auction house, all the focus shifted onto the auction items displayed on the stage.
“Thank you all for your patience! This year, we are honored to welcome many distinguished guests…”
Irene only half-listened to the auctioneer’s introduction as she gazed at the glittering artifacts on display.
When they were first retrieved from the dungeons, they had been dirty and grimy, but now, polished and shining under the lights, they looked like priceless treasures.
‘Not that they aren’t priceless, of course.’
Seeing how valuable even the Stone of Silence appeared, Irene now understood why people were willing to pay the auction house’s fees to sell their items.
As she eagerly awaited the start of the bidding, she scanned the items below.
“Hm?”
Something among the auction items caught her eye.
