Chapter 110
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 110
"There’s nothing wrong with it. A landowner desperate to settle their debts will sell anything, hiding every flaw they can."
"That’s fraud!"
"Welcome to the world of crime."
Harriet was speechless, managed only a hollow, disbelieving laugh.
Heat crawled up her neck. Instead of impressing Cedric, she had exposed herself as a complete amateur. She couldn't even focus on the subsequent auctions, yet she remained in her seat, too embarrassed to get up and leave in the middle of the session.
How ridiculous must I look? I should have studied more.
She had learned the basics of economics, industry, and real estate from Roxana, but it was all theoretical. She stood no chance against those who had spent years managing family fortunes and developing a shark’s instinct for profit.
Just as she resigned herself to the fact that her first attempt at real estate investment was a failure, it happened.
Cedric suddenly reached out, seizing Harriet’s wrist—the one holding her bidding paddle—and thrust it into the air.
"W-what are you doing?!" Harriet hissed, startled.
He didn't answer. His focus was entirely on the auctioneer. All around them, white bidding paddles rose and fell in a frantic rhythm.
In the chaos, Cedric pressed a second, red paddle into Harriet’s hand. She was so stunned by the sudden tension in the room that she couldn't even bring herself to protest.
"Two hundred and twenty thousand Dirham! Two hundred and twenty thousand! Any more bids? Going once, going twice... Sold in five! Five, four, three, two—!"
At that exact moment, Cedric gripped Harriet’s wrist and jerked it upward again. Other paddles rose across the room, but Harriet was the only one holding that additional red paddle.
"Highest bid, two hundred and seventy thousand! Sold!"
The auctioneer’s voice rang out like a bell as he slammed his gavel against the floor.
"Lot number 2253, farmland in Lowerberry, sold to bidder number 135 for two hundred and seventy thousand Dirham!"
The sound of the gavel was like a clap of thunder. Harriet stared blankly at the auctioneer for a long moment before looking down at the paddle in her hand. Sure enough, the number '135' stared back at her.
She had just bought a piece of land she couldn't even locate for two hundred and seventy thousand Dirham. And she had been forced into it.
"What on earth do you think you're doing?"
Harriet was so utterly dumbfounded that she had become strangely calm. She grabbed Cedric’s arm, her voice trembling with suppressed indignation. She wondered if her tone was a bit too sharp, but considering the absurdity of the situation, she decided she didn't care.
Cedric, however, simply smiled. His expression was completely devoid of remorse.
"In ten years, it will be worth ten times what you just paid. Hold onto it until the time is right."
"What?"
"For your information, nothing better than this will come up today."
He gave a slight, polite nod, as if they had merely shared a pleasant greeting, and rose from his seat. He calmly weaved through the crowd and disappeared out the exit before she could utter another word.
Harriet stared at his retreating figure as if she’d seen a ghost. She only snapped out of it when an auction attendant approached her.
"Bidder number 135, please take this slip to the winners' office to complete the paperwork."
"Oh, y-yes! Of course. But... where is the office?"
The attendant gave her a look that clearly said, You came here without even knowing that? but he pointed the way regardless. "Out the door and to the right. You can't miss it."
"Thank you."
Harriet rose and followed the path Cedric had taken. She scanned the area outside the auction house, but he was nowhere to be seen. Meanwhile, she could feel the weight of several gazes following her; a young woman successfully bidding on land was a rare sight.
Inside the office, Harriet began filling out the paperwork with an attendant’s help. Only then did she realize the specifics: she had won a small plot of farmland, a mere thousand square meters. The starting bid had been only eighty thousand Dirham.
I paid two hundred and seventy thousand for this?
Just as her temper began to flare, certain that Cedric had played a cruel trick on her, the attendant spoke up warmly.
"You are truly lucky to have won this bid, My Lady."
"Pardon? Is that so?"
"Did you not bid knowing the details?"
Harriet shifted her gaze, unsure how to respond. Interpreting her silence as caution, the attendant leaned in and whispered, wary of eavesdroppers.
"Ah, my apologies. It’s best not to speak too loudly about these things, isn't it?"
"Ha... haha..."
"The Alkines Reclamation Project is being handled by the House of Kailas, so there’s no fear of it falling through. Once that forest land is converted into a residential district, Lowerberry will become the primary gateway. It will be a completely different world then."
At his words, a fading memory suddenly snapped into focus.
The Alkines Reclamation Project.
It was a massive undertaking delegated by the Imperial Family to the House of Kailas. The goal was to transform the Alkines forest into a residential hub to alleviate the overpopulation of Genoa. Since Alkines was Imperial property, buying land there was impossible until the project was finished. Consequently, the value of the surrounding areas was expected to skyrocket.
So... I just hit the jackpot?
If Lowerberry was indeed the gateway to Alkines, a thousand-square-meter plot was worth its weight in gold. That was why a plot starting at eighty thousand had tripled in price.
He said it would be worth ten times its current price in ten years.
Remembering how Cedric had stated it as an absolute fact, Harriet’s hands began to tremble. The prospect of gaining 2.7 million Dirham just by waiting felt like a dream.
Yet, a bitter sense of defeat settled in her chest.
I’ve benefited from him again. If I had been on my own, I would have wasted two hundred thousand Dirham on a useless piece of dirt.
She didn't want to be self-deprecating, but the thought was intrusive: Is there nothing I can accomplish on my own?
And yet, she didn't have the nerve to forfeit the land. That kind of pride was a luxury for those who had nothing to lose.
"Almost done. Just sign here on the last page."
Harriet gave a small, bitter smile and signed her name neatly in the blank space.
"Once the balance is settled within the week, the process will be complete. Your deed will be issued one month after that."
"Thank you."
She left the office and stepped back out into the bustling entrance of the auction house. Everyone was still engrossed in the fever of the bids. It was then that the true nature of her unease finally hit her.
Why was Cedric even there?
For someone who claimed to be looking for "good items," he hadn't bid on a single thing for himself. He had only intervened to secure her bid.
What on earth are you thinking, Cedric Kailas!
Harriet clenched her teeth, feeling inexplicably furious. She told herself she would have to try very hard not to fall into any more of his strange traps.
*
"Welcome back, Your Grace."
Gerard, his aide, greeted Cedric with a respectful bow.
Cedric gave a curt nod, sat at his desk, and began sifting through the Alkines Reclamation Project documents he had been reviewing that morning. On top of the pile was the progress report for land acquisition in Lowerberry.
He chuckled, recalling the conversation from earlier that day.
"How is the land acquisition in Lowerberry progressing?"
Before commencing the project, they were buying up all the surrounding land to prevent future disputes. Lowerberry was a priority.
Gerard had answered immediately. "Forty-five percent of the undisputed land has been acquired in the name of the House of Kailas. Another forty percent has been purchased by private investors, and the remaining fifteen percent—the problematic plots—has gone to auction."
He had paused then, asking, "Most of it has been sold, but should we move to acquire the remaining auction plots as well?"
"Are there any left?"
"A few. One is coming up in today's auction. It’s a very small area, but—"
That was when Edgar had burst in, looking energized.
"It looks like Lady Harriet went to the auction house today! I saw her right outside on my way here. It seems she’s developed an interest in real estate."
To hear that Harriet was at the auction house at the exact moment they were discussing it...
Was it a coincidence, or fate?
Cedric’s contemplation hadn't lasted long.