The Broken Halo

The moment the elderly Frostborn spoke those words, the atmosphere within the auction hall subtly changed.

“A Winter Monkey.”

Many demons who previously looked bored or were talking immediately became attentive.

Some even straightened their postures unconsciously.

Simon narrowed his eyes slightly while looking at the large cage on the stage.

Cold air continuously escaped from beneath the black cloth covering the cage, and strangely enough…

The temperature within the auction hall gradually began dropping.

Some Lesser Demons immediately circulated their demonic energy to resist the cold while several Fiends narrowed their eyes with serious expressions while subtly circulating their demonic energy to also resist the cold.

The old Frostborn smiled faintly after noticing the reactions of the crowd.

“It seems many of our guests are already familiar with this creature.”

He slowly grabbed the black cloth.

Then…

He pulled it away completely.

The auction hall became silent.

Inside the cage was a monkey roughly the size of a human child.

Its fur was pure white without the slightest impurity, and faint frost patterns could be seen across parts of its body like naturally formed runes.

Its long tail was wrapped calmly around its body while chains covered in chaos runes restrained its arms, legs, and neck.

Yet despite being restrained…

The Winter Monkey looked completely calm.

Too calm in fact.

Its pale blue eyes slowly swept across the auction hall without fear.

And when Simon looked into those eyes, his expression subtly changed as he realized something.

’Hmm… This is an intelligent beast.’

The monkey’s eyes did not resemble the eyes of an ordinary beast.

It looked more like a calm observer studying everyone around it.

Cold mist continuously escaped from its body while frost slowly spread across the chains restraining it.

The Winter Monkey suddenly looked toward one of the private boxes calmly.

Lucien’s private box.

Then it shifted its gaze toward another private box.

Then another.

It stared directly at several powerful demons without the slightest fear in its eyes.

Not even enslaved demons normally acted this calmly, and this Winter Monkey immediately piqued Simon’s interest.

’I never fought a Winter Monkey in my past life but I’ve heard a few things and rumours from my past comrades who fought them.’

’It’s so small, but it’s extremely dangerous. And it’s aura… that beast can kill every demon here… including me.’

Just as Simon had this thought, the old Frostborn spoke once more.

“This Winter Monkey was captured deep within the Frozen Abyss Mountain Range after the deaths of three Greater Demons and over forty Archfiends.”

Some demons within the auction hall inhaled sharply after hearing this.

Even Simon’s eyes could not help but flicker at these words.

The old Frostborn continued calmly.

“As many of you know, Winter Monkeys are extremely rare and extremely intelligent creatures.”

“They can also create and manipulate ice chaos runes.”

A ripple spread throughout the auction hall afterward.

Those who had no idea were suddenly extremely interested in the Winter Monkey.

Simon quietly observed the Winter Monkey while remaining thoughtful.

’A beast that’s capable of creating and manipulating ice chaos runes? That’s exceedingly rare.’

That alone already made it extremely valuable.

The old Frostborn raised a finger.

“This Winter Monkey also possesses a High A-Grade Ice Affinity.”

“And…”

He paused briefly.

“It possesses a Minor Royal Bloodline.”

The atmosphere became extremely tense afterward. It felt like a volcano that was about to explode.

Even several demons that previously looked calm immediately became restless.

Minor Royal Bloodline.

That was not something many demonic beasts possessed.

Many of them present only possessed Noble bloodlines and not royal bloodlines.

Many demons were already thinking of subduing it and using it as a pet or killing it and consuming it to become stronger.

The old Frostborn smiled faintly at the reactions.

“Furthermore… This Winter Monkey is a Minor Calamity Beast.”

Which meant it was comparable to a Minor Greater Demon.

The old Frostborn continued with a bright smile.

He knew that his next words would definitely cause every single demon in this building to be interested in the Winter Monkey.

“If the heart of a Winter Monkey is consumed raw, there is also a possibility of gaining ice affinity, but it won’t be as high as the Winter Monkey’s ice affinity.”

“You’ll most likely get a D grade ice affinity or a Low C grade affinity if you’re able to completely consume the heart of the Winter Monkey.”

This time…

The auction hall truly became chaotic and it exploded like a volcano.

Many demons immediately began speaking loudly among themselves.

Even Simon’s eyes flickered slightly after hearing that.

An Ice Affinity.

A demon could not obtain an elemental affinity by consuming the heart of a demon or a demonic beast, it was only Devour that could do such a thing.

But in the past two months of Simon visiting the library, he knew that there were some demonic beasts that could grant one an elemental affinity if their heart was eaten raw.

He just didn’t know that a Winter Monkey was one of them.

’But I’m curious about two things. If Vexa was saying the truth, why would the Night Sovereign be interested in a Winter Monkey?’

’Does he want to gain ice affinity or improve it? Could that be the reason?… How strange.’

He narrowed his eyes slightly as he observed the Winter Monkey.

’And I wonder… Would I be able to get a B grade or A grade ice affinity if I devour the Winter Monkey instead? And what else can I get from it if I devour it?’

’Hmm… But that would be dangerous.’

’If the Winter Monkey is truly connected to the Night Sovereign, then it would not be wise of me to devour it.’

’But the fact that the heart of a Winter Monkey can grant one ice affinity is going to skyrocket its price… Will five million hell low grade stones be enough for me to buy it?’

’And it’s also a Minor Calamity Beast again.’

The old Frostborn smiled.

“The starting bid…”

“Five hundred thousand low grade hell stones.”

Silence descended for less than a second.

Then…

“Six hundred thousand!”

“Seven hundred thousand!”

“One million low grade hell stones!”

“One point three million!”

The bidding instantly exploded into madness.

Simon quietly observed everything while his gaze occasionally shifted toward Lucien’s private box.

For the first time since the auction began…

Lucien finally became active.

He could feel Lucien’s aura becoming slightly turbulent after the appearance of the Winter Monkey.

“Two million low grade hell stones.”

His calm voice echoed from the private box clearly.

The entire auction hall became quieter briefly afterward.

Two million low grade hell stones.

That amount alone could bankrupt some organizations.

Yet Lucien sounded completely calm while bidding it.

The old Frostborn smiled faintly.

“As expected of Young Master Lucien.”

However, Lucien’s bid did not suppress everyone.

Another private box suddenly spoke.

“Two point five million.”

A wealthy merchant immediately shouted afterward.

“Three million!”

“Three point two million!”

“Three point five million!”

The atmosphere within the auction hall gradually became crazier.

Many demons were no longer bidding calmly.

Their eyes had already become red from greed.

Meanwhile…

The Winter Monkey simply sat calmly inside its cage while observing the madness around it with those pale blue eyes.

No fear.

No panic.

Only silence.

Then suddenly…

Its gaze slowly shifted across the auction hall.

And for a brief moment…

Its eyes landed directly on Simon.

Simon’s eyes narrowed slightly.

The Winter Monkey continued staring at him quietly for several seconds before finally looking away again.

At that same moment…

“Four million low grade hell stones.”

Lucien’s calm voice echoed throughout the auction hall once more.

’Yeah. Five million low grade hell stones is definitely not enough.’ Simon thought with a slight twitch of his lips.

How in the world was he going to buy the Winter Monkey now?