Apocalypse Architect: A Tower Defense LitRPG

Chapter 98: I Bid Fifty

Seeing Elena finally stir, Jax exhaled a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. Relief washed over him, but it was short-lived.

Elena’s eyes snapped open. Despite her precarious position, she glared ferociously at the sea of leering faces surrounding the stage.

“You… let me go… I want to go home…”

Her voice was frail, trembling with the aftereffects of the drug, yet it carried an undeniable, cutting steel. It wasn’t a plea; it was a demand.

The crowd, however, only grew more frenzied at the sound of her defiance. To them, a spirited pet was far more entertaining than a broken one.

Jax shook his head slightly, frustration gnawing at him. He desperately wanted to give her a sign, a subtle nod to let her know she wasn’t alone, but he couldn’t risk it. If his cover was blown now, they were both dead.

Suddenly, he felt eyes on him.

He glanced up to the stage. Hazel was looking right at him, her expression offering a silent, fleeting reassurance. I’ve got this.

Jax shot her a look of profound gratitude.

Hazel cleared her throat, her professional mask sliding back into place. “Alright! Gentlemen, you demanded proof of life, and you’ve seen it. She is awake and spirited. Now, let the auction begin!”

Bang!

The wooden gavel struck the table with a sharp report that silenced the room. Everyone straightened up, the air thick with greed.

“Starting bid for Test Subject S1: One Tier 3 Core. Equivalent payments in Tier 1 and Tier 2 Cores are accepted! Begin!”

The words had barely left her lips before the paddles began to fly.

“I bid five Tier 3 Cores!”

“Seven!”

“Don’t even think about fighting me for this! Ten Tier 3 Cores!”

“Hah! You think ten is enough to secure a prize like this? I bid fifteen!”

Sitting on the sidelines, Jax felt a cold sweat prickling his back. The price had skyrocketed to twenty Tier 3 Cores in the blink of an eye.

Shit! Is everyone in Redrock Bastion made of money?

He hadn’t even lifted his paddle yet, and the price was already threatening to eclipse his entire fortune.

“Twenty-one Tier 3 Cores!” a booming voice echoed through the hall.

Jax turned toward the source of the sound. A tall, burly man stood amidst the crowd, a smug grin plastered across his face as if the girl was already in his cage.

Jax narrowed his eyes. The man looked incredibly familiar.

Wait. Isn’t that the eldest son of The Helios Syndicate? Sawyer’s brother… Slade?

As if reading his mind, a man seated next to Jax leaned over and whispered to his companion. “Tsk, tsk. The Helios Syndicate is loaded. Now that Slade has stepped in, I doubt anyone else has the guts to compete.”

People around them sighed, lowering their paddles in resignation. The Helios Syndicate was a financial titan in Redrock Bastion; fighting them was a losing battle.

“I heard Slade is gunning for the position of family head,” another whispered. “The old patriarch isn’t doing well, and the rivalry between the brothers has gotten vicious.”

“Speaking of which, did you hear? Sawyer got his hands on a blueprint recently. Rumor has it, it’s for a new type of Defense Tower core with an energy conversion rate exceeding fifty percent!”

“Hiss… over fifty percent? Is that even possible?”

“If it’s true, Sawyer is a lock for the succession. That kind of tech is a game-changer. Where the hell did he find it?”

“Who knows? If that blueprint went to auction, it would fetch tens of thousands of Tier 3 Cores easily.”

“Tens of thousands? Damn… whoever sold that to him must be rolling in Credits. Why haven’t we heard anything about the seller?”

The surrounding crowd buzzed with envy and speculation.

Jax, listening intently, felt a lightbulb go off in his head.

That’s right! The blueprint!

He had sold that design to Sawyer. But he had more. If a single blueprint was worth that much, he didn’t need to worry about scraping together loose change. He could buy Elena outright.

Heart pounding, Jax signaled for a nearby attendant. The waiter hurried over, bowing slightly.

Jax leaned in, lowering his voice. “I have a high-value blueprint I want to consign for auction. Is it too late to add a lot?”

The attendant blinked, taken aback. He checked his watch and shook his head apologetically. “I’m afraid so, sir. The appraisal and auction window for technical documents has already closed.”

Jax frowned, his gaze intense. “Find a way. This blueprint is critical.”

The attendant hesitated. The man in front of him didn’t look like a time-waster. “I… I can ask the Chief. May I have your name, sir?”

“Jax.”

“Oh! Right away! Wait… Jax?”

The attendant’s eyes went wide. He recalled the juicy gossip circulating among the staff earlier: the icy auctioneer, Hazel, had taken a lover. A man named Jax.

Jax nodded calmly. “Yes. I am that Jax. Now, hurry.”

The attendant gave him a look of pure, unadulterated envy. To land a woman like Hazel meant marrying into a fortune; this guy was set for life.

“Understood, sir! I’ll go immediately!” The attendant turned and sprinted toward the backstage area.

With the blueprint currently just a promise, Jax turned his attention back to the stage.

Elena’s defiance had crumbled. The reality of her situation was sinking in. She huddled in the cage, the fierce glare replaced by terrified tears silently tracking down her cheeks.

On stage, Hazel scanned the room, her heart sinking. No one was challenging Slade. She raised the gavel, delaying as much as she could.

“Twenty-one Tier 3 Cores, going twice. Do I hear a higher bid?”

Down in the crowd, Slade looked around with arrogant satisfaction. He enjoyed the silence; it smelled like submission.

Just as Hazel’s arm tensed to bring the gavel down, a voice cut through the air.

“Thirty Tier 3 Cores!”

The hall erupted. Heads whipped around, hundreds of eyes locking onto Jax.

Jax sat perfectly still, his expression unreadable, staring straight at Elena.

On stage, Hazel almost dropped the gavel. Thirty? She knew exactly how much money he had—eleven cores. Even with her contribution, they capped out at twenty-one. Where was he getting the rest?

“Where did he get that kind of money?”

“I’ve never seen him before. Which family is he from?”

“Straight to thirty? He’s insane.”

“Oh, this is getting good. Someone actually has the stones to snatch prey from Slade’s jaws?”

Slade’s smile vanished. He turned slowly, his eyes narrowing as he located the challenger. He had planned to win this easily and show off his dominance, but some nobody had just slapped him in the face.

He strode over to Jax’s section, towering over the seated young man.

“Kid,” Slade spat, his voice low and menacing. “Do you know who I am? I’m Slade, of The Helios Syndicate. Do yourself a favor—give me face and drop out. I’ll even toss you a few Credits for your trouble.”

Jax didn’t even look at him. He stared at the stage and shook his head. “Sorry. I’m taking S1 home today.”

Slade’s brow twitched. “Which family do you represent?”

“Classified,” Jax replied coolly. “If you aren’t going to bid higher, she’s mine.”

“You’ve got guts, kid. Fine.”

Slade scoffed, turning his back on Jax. He raised his paddle high, making sure everyone could see.

“Thirty-five Tier 3 Cores!”

He glanced back at Jax with a sneer. “Your turn. Let’s see how deep your pockets really are.”

Jax smiled, a calm, dangerous expression. “Alright. Let’s compare.”

He raised his voice, clear and steady.

“Fifty Tier 3 Cores.”

The silence that followed was absolute. Even the background music seemed to cut out.

Jaws dropped. People stared at Jax as if he had grown a second head.

“Who is this guy?”

“Fifty?! That’s madness! You could buy an army of regular slaves for that!”

“Is he here to wreck the auction? That’s enough to buy A-Grade subjects!”

“Holy hell… the total value of everything sold so far doesn’t even add up to fifty cores!”

Jax ignored the murmurs. He looked straight at Hazel, his eyes locking with hers. “I don’t think anyone is going higher. Can we move on?”

Hazel swallowed hard, composing herself. She didn’t know his plan, but she trusted him.

“Test Subject S1… going once at fifty Tier 3 Cores!”

“Going twice!”

“Sold!”

Bang!

The gavel struck with finality.

The room remained hushed. No one dared to breathe a word of challenge. With that kind of spending power and that level of arrogance, the crowd was convinced Jax was a scion from a powerful Inner City clan.

Even Slade hesitated, his anger tempered by caution. He couldn’t read this guy. Scowling, he quietly signaled his subordinate.

“Find out who he is. Now.”