Chapter 18: The Auction

*Mia* I was certain that Locas was a lunatic. He drove way too fast. Was he really not afraid of hitting someone? My heart almost jumped out of my chest. I scolded him, but he laughed it off, which was ridiculous. Although the car had stabilized, I could still hear my heart pounding violently. Locas, this desperado, was still asking me if it was exciting! All I wanted to do was to punch him on the head. Pulling out the moon goddess necklace, I muttered, "Noble and holy moon goddess, I think I met a lunatic. What should I do?" "Hahaha..." Locas laughed hysterically. I covered my ears in pain. When I saw Locas speaking confidently when he was invited to speak on stage by the organizers at the auction venue, I was secretly shocked. I had always thought that he was just an ignorant, incompetent, and cheeky fellow. I didn't expect him to put away his cynical side and behave like a gentleman. His every move exuded the elegance of a noble. I heard two girls discussing behind me. "Is this Sailandia's Locas? I've heard about him for a long time. I didn't expect him to be so handsome." "Yeah, I saw him in a magazine. He was rated as one of the five most influential dignitaries of the year. Apart from him, everyone else in the magazine was an alpha. I was fascinated the moment I saw him. I've already pasted the cover of that magazine on my wall." "You really got lost in love land, but I'm no better. When I heard from my father that Locas would be attending today's auction, I decided to come immediately." "Hey, hey, look over there. Cindy is also here. Hmph, she even lied to me yesterday that she had an appointment with a hairdresser today. Why is she here at the auction?" "Cindy is Locas's most loyal fan. It's said that when Locas was eating with her father, she insisted on tagging along. Locas only said one sentence to her throughout the entire meal, which was 'Hello Cindy'. That was enough to keep her amused for an entire week. Isn't it the most hilarious joke or what?" I couldn't believe Locas was this popular with girls. I thought he was just a playboy who merely hung around my clinic. When Locas came down from the stage in high spirits and sat beside me, I felt many eyes on me. Locas leaned over and chuckled in my ear. "How was it? Did I look handsome?" For some reason, I felt a little uneasy about this kind of intimacy. I carefully moved away from him a little bit. Coincidentally, there was a gap between the two of us. Someone suddenly sat in the space between us and forced me to move even further away. How rude! Who was this? A blonde girl wearing a gold-colored spaghetti strap skirt sat between me and Locas and said in an excited voice, "Mr. Campbell. It's an honor to see you again." Locas seemed to be stunned for a moment before saying slowly, "It's... the Kennedy family..." The blonde quickly said, "It's me. I'm Cindy. Do you still remember me? That's great. When the auction is over, are you available for a cup of coffee?" Locas's voice was filled with amusement. "Of course. You know, it's always difficult to refuse an invitation from a beautiful lady. But now, I have something to do. Miss Kennedy can go back to your seat and wait for me. Look... My friend's clothes are wrinkled." Cindy looked at me with contempt, but when she looked at Locas, she was all smiles again. She kissed Locas on the cheek and got up to leave the seat. After she left, the strong perfume lingered for a long time. Locas smiled and asked, "What's wrong? Are you unhappy?" I snorted. "What's there to be unhappy about? You should be happy. There's a beautiful woman kissing you and offering you coffee." Locas suddenly hugged my waist and my body stiffened. "What are you doing? Let go of me. There are so many people watching you, and we're sitting in the first row!" Locas said indifferently, "I could care less if they're looking. Besides, she's not a beauty. You're the beauty." My heart skipped a beat. "Yeah, nice try." At this moment, the auction officially began. The antiques here were not something I could afford. I widened my eyes at the rare antiques in front and felt as if my horizons had widened. When a sapphire necklace called 'Catherine's Tear' appeared, I was stunned. It was too beautiful. I was so excited that I gripped Locas's hand tightly. Locas was in pain from my grip. "Mia, if you like it, I'll buy it for you. Stop scratching me." Only then did I realize something. I quickly let go and apologized embarrassedly, "I'm sorry, you don't have to buy it. I'll just take a look." In the end, Catherine's Tear was bought by a rich lady. The auction was coming to an end when a gray-haired old man came on stage with a vase in his arms. "This is the only thing left in my house. I had no choice but to sell it. Please give me a chance. It doesn't matter how much you're offering as long as it can save my daughter. She's still lying in the hospital waiting for the money for surgery." There was an uproar below. Locas waved his hand and a staff member came over. Locas asked in a low voice, "Where is he from? Can anything be auctioned here? This thing has not been appraised by an expert at all. Is it in accordance with the rules?" The staff hurriedly said, "I'm sorry, sir. We didn't expect this at all. I'll get him to come down now." At this moment, Locas was like a completely different person. He was cold and completely without sympathy. The security guards began to pull the old man off the stage. I couldn't stand it anymore and stood up to criticize loudly, "This gentleman only did this because he's in trouble. Perhaps he doesn't have a very precious item to offer, but are you guys here so unsympathetic? He's already so old, but he still has to be mistreated by you people? Can't we just check if the thing is real or fake?" There was a moment of silence. Someone stood up from behind and said, "That's right. This auction was originally set up for charity. Now that there's really someone who needs help, why can't you be more tolerant?" Everyone agreed. Locas shrugged and waved at the organizer. The organizer asked the security guard to leave. It turned out that the organizers had to listen to Locas. "Could it be that Locas is the boss behind the auction?" The vase brought by the old man began to be auctioned. Compared to the previous rare items, the price of the vase was very consumer-friendly. However, most people were not interested in this vase. In order to help the old man, I raised my sign as high as I could. Unexpectedly, there was an auctioneer who kept competing with me. When I raised my sign for the third time, Locas stopped me. "You can't continue. Do you think it's worth it for you to pay 1,000 dollars for such a vase?" I hesitated for a moment. The host had already announced 800 dollars twice. I said, "It's none of your business," and continued to raise my card. In the end, I bought the vase for 1,600 dollars. Although I knew that the vase was indeed not worth so much, it was still worth it to help an old man who was in trouble. When the auction ended, I wanted to go backstage to pay, but I suddenly realized that I had just bought a craft yesterday and that I didn't have enough money left now. I didn't know what I should do. At this moment, Locas came in. I was a little surprised to see him. "Shouldn't he be having coffee with that woman called Cindy?" Fortunately, he was here to solve my urgent problem. "Locas. Can you do me a favor?" I tugged pitifully at his sleeve. Locas raised an eyebrow. "You're the most dazzling woman in the hall. Is there anything else you need my help with? Weren't you trying to be a hero just now?" His words sounded sarcastic. I couldn't care less. It would be embarrassing if I couldn't pay. "Can you lend me some money? I don't have enough," I whispered. "What? You don't even have enough money and you tried to be a good person? What makes you think you can do that?" Locas mocked me loudly. I didn't argue with him. "Can you lend me money or not?" I put away my flattering expression and narrowed my eyes at him threateningly. "I can, but I have to charge some interest." He thought for a few seconds and smiled meaningfully.