He focused his mind and skewed his reasoning, summoning the Business God System.
'Skill…'
'Eye Of Apollo…'
Ti-ring!
[Active Skill> Eye Of Apollo]
Ti-ring!
[Object Acquired]
[7 Kilograms Amethyst Gem]
[The gem is popularly known for it abily to gleam in different shades of green. Valued for its unique and soothing colour, it is often used in jewelry and decorative items]
[Target Value]
[7 Kilograms Amethyst Gem> $550,000]
"There it is…" Keith said softly in anticipation.
"Set the opening bid at $550,000 please…" Keith said with a cunny smile.
After providing the shop owner with Valerie's black card account details, he followed the convention staff to where the auction would be held.
Seeing as he requested to keep his identity, he was given a mask to shield his face from the potential audience during the auction.
The lights crumbled in dark sudded auction hall, leaving only the elevated platform the audience in the auction room could look up to.
He was wearing a sleek silver mask, stepping into the spotlight with the amethyst gem sitting beside him on a podium.
The lights, mask and the fact he was the center of attention gave him a magnetic presence. Calm, like a predator walking into a den full of prey.
Going by the psuedo name— Mr. Halo, Keith stood tall beneath the mask, his eyes scanning the crowd from behind the reflective surface.
And, to his surprise his actions were valid. He could see them, all of them. Those snakes from Noir York City, the ones who burned his investment to the ground.
He did expect them to be at the convention, he just didn't think they would all be gathered in the auction room waiting to purchase high quality items.
From Donald Matson in his smug, glinting designer tuxedo to his backstabbing fiancee Jena Carpenter. Glen Carpenter to Dressa. Victor and Vikram Sawyer were in attendance too. Valerie Sawyer, sipping champagne with her glossy nails.
And in the VIP booth, covered in luxury and silence, sat Valerie's grandmother- Matriarch of the Sawyer family.
Amongst them were high ranking elites of the capital city of Xhina.
Keith smiled beneath the mask.
'This ought to be interesting…'
A female auctioneer stepped up to the podium, her voice was refined and echoed through the auction room.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we present one more item— an Amethyst stone, untouched, flawlessly cut and verified by our finest…"
"Presenting the gem here is the man standing by my left, goes by the psuedo name Mr. Halo…"
Gasps and whispers spread across the room like a dynamo effect.
Valerie leaned toward her grandmother. "It's perfect. That's at least a tier-2 resonance gem, maybe higher…"
Her grandmother's eyes narrowed. "I've never seen this in circulation. Where the hell did he get it?"
Clap!
The auctioneer clapped her hands and raised her gavel into the air. "Opening bid set at $550,000 by Mr. Halo."
Hands went up almost instantly.
"Six hundred thousand," one man from behind barked.
"Six fifty!" a prestigious lady came, her fan snapping shut.
Keith stood still, his hands were clasped behind his back, with a perfect posture to go with it. Everytime the audience seemed to slow, he shifted slightly, projecting silent pressure like gravity.
The room's attention stayed locked on him, begging him to move, speak or react once he was satisfied with the bid.
He did nothing, except smile inwardly.
"Seven hundred thousand!"
"Seven fifty!"
"Eight hundred!"
The Sawyer family matriarch raised her card, "Nine hundred thousand…"
People gasped, no one outbid the sawyer matriarch.
But then— "Nine fifty…"
The Sawyer family matriarch snapped her head towards her granddaughter in shock.
"Valerie?"
She didn't even look at her, her eyes were still fixated on Keith hoping he would agree to the bidding.
The room grew hot with tension as the auctioneer cleared her throat nervously.
"Do we have…?"
"One million," Glen spoke up.
The audience gasped again.
Keith exhaled slightly beneath his mask, then slowly… tapped his gloved finger on the rail of the auction stand.
Just once.
The crowd flet it. An unspoken sentence, he definitely wanted more, and the bait worked.
The Sawyer family matriarchs eyes flared.
"One million and one hundred thounsand!… and one cent!"
Her gavel lifted.
Keith stepped forward, at last.
The audience released the loudest frenzy of gasps since the beginning of the auction.
"Mr. Halo has indicated that he is satisfied with the current bid… are there any more competitors?" the auctioneer announced.
The audience remained silent.
"Going once… going twice…"
"Sold!"
Bang!
The gavel slammed.
Cheers and claps erupted from the audience. Flash photography followed suit, Valerie looked stunned, her grandmother looked like she wanted to burn the stage with her money.
"You didn't have to add the One cent grandmother…" Valerie leaned in and whispered to her grandmother.
"That was a testament… I felt insulted that a pawn from the Carpenter family would challenge me…" she said with dominance as she eyed Glen Carpenter who made a bid earlier.
Keith turned without bowing, without a word of thanks.
As he walked offstage, his lips curled in satisfaction. The people who tried to bury him were fighting to make him richer.
How ironic.
***
The money was paid and the funds were transferred to the account Keith had provided.
Even thought it wasn't directly to his personal bank account, he was certain his innate skill would still automatically activate because he was the one the made the business successful, therefore the landing account didn't matter and multiplier effect would still take place.
Ti-ring!
[You have earned $1,100,000 from chosen Business Domain >Antique Business<]
[Innate Skill Activated> 100x Multiplier on all income streams of chosen Business Domain]
[You have received $110,000,000]
[Congratulations you are a Multi-millionaire!]
The systems interface danced in a frenzy of bright golden hues in celebration of his achievement. He finally did it, against all odds.
[Congratulation Host!! You have successfully completed the monthly quest> Earn a net profit of $100,000,000 in the month of June from the Business Domain> Antique Industry!]
Ti-tiring!
[You have leveled up!]
[You have leveled up!]
[You have leveled up!]
[Level 9!]
[Rewards> 50 BGS Credits]
[Total BGS Credit available> 55 BGS Credits]
Ti-tiring!
[New skill unlocked!]
[Eye Of Aurelius!]
[Composition> Allows host to see the success rate of all things.]
[Cooldown> Can be used for only 10 minutes every 24hours.]
[Skill Upgrade is not available yet.]
'Yes! I have completed my main quest in just one single day!' Keith clenched his fist, basking in the atmosphere of triumph as he saw the systems icons spew incredible congrats messages.
He was one step closer to his goals, climb to the very top of the business world and getting his revenge on those that wrong him in his past life and this present one.
'And it seems I unlock a new skill when I complete my main quest every month…'
'Alright then… I have completed the main quest, I just need to make a business out of the antique sector to add to my growing empire and also I need to revive my food industry sector too…'
Keith sighed heavily as he folded his sleeves and secured his mask tightly against his face.
'My empire isn't going to build itself… let's get to it…'