Strange Bidder
Strange Bidder
"An auction?"
Doyoon tilted his head.
An auction?
Did he have to go to an auction house or something?
"An auction is a feature of the Exchange."
Seah raised her index finger.
"It's no different from an auction in the real world. The person who places the highest bid wins the item. It's usually used when auctioning off rare items."
"So, what Lee Sol-ssi meant by the fairest method is..."
"Giving the item to the person who bids the highest price is the fairest."
Lee Sol said.
"Isn't it exhausting for you to meet rankers one by one like us? Besides, you never know what intentions the other person has, so meeting up recklessly is dangerous. It's not like you know the market price of elixirs well either, right?"
"That's true."
In the first place, ordinary alchemists didn't even make elixirs, so there was no way to know what the market price was.
"Then putting it up for auction will definitely be the most convenient. The Exchange will automatically sell it at the most appropriate price."
Doyoon nodded at Seah's words.
Up until now, he had traded directly with Lee Sol and Seah, and while that wasn't bad, he had no idea how future rankers he met might treat him.
Even if it wasn't physical violence or kidnapping, there was a high possibility they would scam and lowball him, someone who had just set foot in the world of the Awakened.
On the other hand, an auction would sell Doyoon's items in the fairest and safest way possible.
"By the way, how do I use this auction feature?"
"I'll explain it to you."
Seah looked up into empty air.
"First, please summon the Exchange in your mind."
Doyoon followed Seah's instructions.
[Welcome, 'Zero-Calorie Alchemist'-nim. We hope you have a pleasant trade.]
Upon entering the Exchange, the main page was still selling expensive weaponry at high prices.
Even so, those were cheaper than Doyoon's elixirs.
"If you look below the left categories, you'll see the Auction House. You can do it once you enter there."
Just as she said, 'Auction House' was written on the bottom left of the Exchange window.
As he kept gazing at it, a new window appeared.
[You have entered the Auction House.]
A window similar to the Exchange appeared.
The difference was that the prices written beneath the items on the main page were fluctuating in real time.
[Sword Forged of Orichalcum]
Current Bid: 63,530,000 pt
[Robe Woven from Human-Face Spider Thread]
Current Bid: 23,140,000 pt
Doyoon's mouth gapped wide open.
About 60 million points and 20 million points...
Then that's roughly 6 billion and 2 billion won!?
As if anticipating Doyoon's shock, Seah smiled and said:
"Unlike the Exchange, the Auction House frequently features especially rare and powerful items, so rankers are the main users here. Non-combat type Awakened like blacksmiths or tailors also tend to trade here if their skills are outstanding."
"I-I see."
He had been thrilled about selling his elixir for 1 billion won, but was that kind of money commonplace in the realm of true rankers?
Granted, elixirs were consumables while items like weapons or armor were semi-permanent, so it wouldn't make sense for their prices to be identical anyway.
"Since you're already in, why don't you try it out once?"
At Lee Sol's words, Doyoon asked back:
"Huh? I don't have any elixirs right now."
"You don't necessarily have to sell an elixir. You can just sell a potion. It's just to test the waters anyway."
"Mm. Then please wait a moment."
Doyoon went to his house and brought out a Low-Grade Recovery Potion.
"I made this while raising my proficiency, so I'll try putting it up on the Auction House."
With the intention to auction it off, he focused on the auction window.
[Auction Registration]
[Please place the item to be auctioned on top of the window.]
Just like the sales window, there was an empty space in the auction window to place items.
When Doyoon touched it to the window, the Low-Grade Recovery Potion vanished into a cluster of light.
[Please set the minimum bid price.]
"100,000 points."
The very first Low-Grade Recovery Potion he sold was 100,000 points, but after witnessing Lee Sol's duel, he had gained the confidence that he could sell it at a much higher price.
[Price has been set.]
[Please set the auction duration.]
"Mm. Since I'm just testing it out, 1 hour?"
[Duration has been set.]
[Would you like to start the auction?]
"Yes."
[The item has been registered in the Auction House.]
Just like the Exchange, when entering the potion category, Doyoon's potion was right at the top.
Perhaps because potions usually sold so cheaply, nobody normally auctioned them off—Doyoon's potion was the only one being auctioned in that category.
[Zero Calorie Low-Grade Recovery Potion]
Current Bid: 100,000 pt
Time Remaining: 00:59:46
Seller: Zero-Calorie Alchemist
"I've registered it."
At Doyoon's words, Lee Sol and Seah looked into thin air.
Those two were probably looking at the auction window as well.
"Yep. It's up properly."
"I confirmed it as well."
As Lee Sol and Seah nodded, Doyoon asked:
"So we just wait now?"
"Yes. Ah, someone is bidding right now."
[Zero Calorie Low-Grade Recovery Potion]
Current Bid: 101,000 pt
Time Remaining: 00:58:50
Seller: Zero-Calorie Alchemist
Hardly any time had passed since he uploaded it, yet a bid came in right away.
It seemed the current minimum bid increment was 1,000 pt.
Though slow at first, the bid price began rising faster and faster.
Current Bid: 173,000 pt
Time Remaining: 00:52:31
"Roughly how much do you think it will finally sell for?"
At Doyoon's question, Lee Sol tilted her head.
"Mm. Who knows. A potion's usefulness varies depending on one's skill level, but maybe around 300,000 points?"
Just as Lee Sol said, the bid price that had been rising rapidly began to slow down once it surpassed 250,000 points.
Current Bid: 273,000 pt
Time Remaining: 00:21:11
"It really looks like it'll sell for around 300,000 points."
"Not bad. You said you originally sold it on the Exchange, right? How much did you sell it for?"
"...100,000 points."
"A third of that? Dirt cheap."
Just as she said, even though he had just awakened and naturally didn't know all the Exchange features, he had sold it far too cheaply.
'Wait, is that really true?' Doyoon suddenly thought.
Marketing is crucial if you want to sell goods at a high price.
Even though Doyoon's potions consumed zero capacity, because the market price of ordinary potions was so cheap, there was no denying they could be undervalued.
By nature, people fail to properly recognize value until they see it with their own eyes.
The thing that changed that was Lee Sol's duel.
In a duel where Jack had been expected to win, Lee Sol demonstrated an overwhelming victory and revealed that it was thanks to Doyoon's potion.
Those who received a strong impression from Lee Sol's duel recognized the value of the zero-calorie potions, so Lee Sol deserved immense credit for why he could sell it so dearly now.
"...3 minutes left."
Just as Seah said, the final sale really wasn't far off now.
Current Bid: 312,000 pt
Time Remaining: 00:02:42
About 310,000 points, huh.
For a test run, it was quite successful.
His proficiency had gone up quite a bit, so now he could craft a Low-Grade Recovery Potion about twice a day, which was no different from earning 60 million won a day.
Thinking about it that way, his life until recently—jumping from one part-time job to another—felt like a mirage.
Back then, he bought pasta instead of rice just to save ten thousand won.
Now, forget pasta, he could afford to eat steak every single day.
"H-Huh?"
Just then, Seah let out a flustered voice.
"What's wrong, Seah-ssi?"
"D-Doyoon-ssi. Someone placed a bid."
A bid?
What's wrong with someone placing a bid...?
However, upon seeing the bid price, Doyoon's expression couldn't help but freeze.
Current Bid: 10,000,000 pt
Time Remaining: 00:00:32
"T-Ten million points?!"
Bidding 1 billion won here?!
Ten million points was the exact amount Seah had paid him when buying the elixir.
No matter how rare Zero-Calorie potions were, they certainly weren't worth ten million points...
['Zero Calorie Low-Grade Recovery Potion' has been sold.]
[10,000,000 pt has been paid.]
'I-It actually sold?!'
[Current points of 'Zero-Calorie Alchemist'-nim: 20,000,000 pt]
Because he had already converted the 100,000 points earned from selling his very first Low-Grade Recovery Potion and the points from selling to Lee Sol, combined with the points from selling the elixir to Seah, he now had a total of 20 million points in hand.
Doyoon asked Seah:
"Seah-ssi. Is it possible my potion is actually worth ten million points or something?"
"No way. Of course, a potion that consumes zero capacity is amazing, but even so, it shouldn't be worth ten million points..."
"Transaction history."
Lee Sol crossed her arms.
"Take a look at your transaction history."
"Transaction history?"
Tilting his head, he summoned the transaction history in his mind, and a new window appeared.
[Transaction History]
[Sold 'Low-Grade Recovery Potion' to 'WannaEatCandy'-nim for 10,000,000 pt.]
[Received 10,000,000 pt from 'DivineArcherSeah'-nim.]
[Received 600,000 pt from 'ColdNoodleMage'-nim.]
[Sold 'Low-Grade Recovery Potion' to 'HelpTheNewbie'-nim for 100,000 pt.]
"WannaEatCandy?"
The transaction history truly showed that the potion had been sold for ten million points.
...To an opponent with the bizarre name of 'WannaEatCandy'.