Chapter 95: Into The Undercity, A Nesting Doll of Fees

Chapter 95: Chapter 95: Into The Undercity, A Nesting Doll of Fees

Rian Sinclair walked into the room. Seeing the equipment inside, she figured it was likely for checking if anyone was carrying weapons or chemical substances.

After leaving the room, they took a few steps and arrived at a door. A table was set up beside it, with a few people seated around. Several armed men stood nearby on guard.

As Rian and her group approached, they realized it was a counter for collecting number plates. When it was their turn, a seated woman took out four round tokens inscribed with numbers and explained.

"These are your numbers. If you want to buy anything or bid on an item, you must have a number plate for the transaction. This plate is only valid within The Undercity. The price is fifty thousand US Dollars. WeChat Pay or Alipay?"

Hearing the familiar payment methods, Rian almost wanted to scoff, wondering if Meridia was really this advanced now.

Quentin Sinclair took out his phone and opened his payment QR code. The woman smoothly retrieved a scanner from under the table and scanned it, and Rian immediately saw the familiar payment deduction screen. Quentin handed a number plate to Ms. Sinclair, then distributed the rest to the other two.

Rian looked at the number plate in her hand, silently cursing the boss behind the scenes. They were truly ruthless—worse than a capitalist. Moreover, this person was definitely a Veridian merchant. She gritted her teeth slightly. After all, this nesting-doll style of consumer exploitation was all too familiar.

With their number plates in hand, they entered through the small door.

At this point, Rian felt completely unfazed. She toyed with the number plate, holding it up to the light, then shading it with her hand to examine it further. Her lips curled up slightly. The design of this little trinket was quite high-tech. Under the lights of The Undercity, she could see an internal chip and the shape of a wolf’s head embedded within the card.

When shielded from the light, the number plate looked like nothing more than an ordinary card. Rian formulated a hypothesis in her mind, but there was no time to verify it just yet.

Slipping the card into her pocket, she walked forward. She noticed people setting up street stalls around her, selling various items. However, the entire trading process was quite silent, with almost no loud noises or commotion. She also noticed that both buyers and sellers were finalizing their transactions using hand gestures. As Rian walked, she paid close attention to their finger movements and quickly grasped the gist of it.

She then turned her gaze to the surrounding stalls. Some stones emitted a faint glow, but they failed to catch her interest at all. With her X-ray vision, she could see through the surface to the inside. These glowing lights were nothing more than the jade green concealed within the rough stones.

Rian strolled leisurely through The Undercity. Since the auction hadn’t started yet, she was in no hurry. Quentin and Venus followed slowly behind her, adjusting their pace to match hers.

Rian observed the stalls. Most of them had a few people gathered around, but she noticed one particular stall that was completely deserted. Curious about what the vendor was selling, she walked over. The merchandise consisted of books, notebooks, and similar items. Compared to the other vendors, this stall looked entirely unremarkable.

The vendor had a Meridian face and was quite handsome.

Rian looked at the books on display, thinking to herself that it was no wonder business was so slow. She crouched down and asked, "Can I take a look at these books?"

Hearing this, the man looked up. He was momentarily stunned by Rian’s breathtaking beauty at such close proximity, but quickly recovered with a smile. "Of course!"

Upon hearing the vendor’s voice, Rian reached out for the books placed on the ground and leafed through them casually. There were many foreign classics, but surprisingly, there were Veridian classics as well. After browsing for a while, she noticed a dusty, leather-bound book sitting in the corner. Piqued, Rian picked it up and asked, "How much for this one?"

The man simply glanced at the item in her hand and casually made a hand gesture indicating the price.

Venus was quite familiar with how things worked in The Undercity. Although he didn’t know why she wanted to buy a book, seeing that his master liked it, he kept an eye out to ensure the vendor wouldn’t try to price-gouge her.

"Master, one hundred US Dollars."

The price was reasonable enough. Items sold in The Undercity were generally not cheap, so this could be considered a bargain.

Rian nodded. Quentin immediately stepped forward to scan the QR code and pay. Once the transaction was complete, they prepared to leave.

The vendor suddenly spoke up. "There should be another copy of this notebook, most likely featured in the upcoming auction. If you’re interested, you can check it out, miss."

Rian didn’t say anything, merely nodding in acknowledgment. The group wandered around the area for a bit longer.

Quentin, who had been keeping an eye on the time, spoke up. "Ms. Sinclair, it’s time." He took out a prepared mask and handed it to her.

Rian took it and put it on. It was a fox mask. Quentin had probably slipped away to buy it earlier. The masks worn by the other three were of ordinary designs.

Led by Venus, the group walked up to a small door. Sitting next to it was an emaciated old man, his body shrouded in a black cloth that left only his eyes visible. The old man’s voice was hoarse as he looked at the four people before him. "The auction entrance fee is one hundred thousand US Dollars."

Hearing there was yet another entrance fee, Rian wondered what the point of the invitation even was. Was it just to grant them the right to know this auction existed? Regarding The Undercity and its nesting-doll-style operations, her initial speechlessness had now morphed into a sense of normalcy. In fact, she would have found it hard to believe if they didn’t charge her.

After swiping her card, Rian led the three of them inside.

Before them was a large circular stage, flanked by small tables and stools. Rian looked at the number plate in her hand; their seats were located roughly in the middle of the hall.

Venus located their spot according to the number plate, invited his master to sit down, and then took a seat beside her.

"Master, the people sitting in the front all have powerful families backing them. But this boss is quite strange—no matter how powerful a family’s influence is, no one is allowed to sit on the second floor.

"Rumor has it that only the boss behind the scenes can sit up there."

Rian listened absentmindedly to Venus’s explanation while surveying the hall’s layout. Seeing the surveillance cameras scattered everywhere, she felt the urge to complain, yet simultaneously found the setup perfectly reasonable.

People began taking their seats around them, their faces completely obscured, making it impossible to discern their identities. Her gaze then drifted upward to the second floor. The lights in the center room turned on, signaling that the mysterious boss was likely seated inside.

Although Rian was curious about this boss, she had zero desire to actually meet him. After all, dealing with such a ruthless and greedy merchant was a surefire way to get ripped off. Not to mention, the other party was an arms dealer.

Rian was suddenly reminded of Scott Sutton, whom she had met that afternoon—beautiful, yet incredibly dangerous.

She shook her head, forcing Scott Sutton’s face out of her mind. She examined the layout of the second floor; there were only five rooms like that. She had no idea how those rooms were allocated. As more and more people filtered into the hall, she stopped paying attention to the second floor.

The latecomers to the hall mostly wore masks, though a few opted not to, instead bringing along a large entourage of bodyguards. She took a sip of the complimentary tea, quietly observing the new arrivals.