As soon as the imperial family arrived in the hall, a change occurred: all the nobles present lowered their heads as the whispers and laughter ceased.
Silence took over. Assad hesitated momentarily before bowing his head just like all other nobles; at the centre was Shim Ju-Won. A single man with the power to generate this kind of respect from everyone in the room.
He spoke calmly, although he could be heard throughout the entire hall without having to raise his voice at any point.
"You may lower your heads now."
There was a short pause before he added, "I appreciate the gesture."
The nobles slowly raised their heads after this; however, the energy of the room was still there but different as the emperor and family left for their seats, eyes were watching their every move from different parts of the room.
Distant from the emperor and turning her head was the empress Shim Wen Yu who caught sight of a familiar face, and then smiled faintly as she stepped away from the emperor.
"Vonessia, what a great pleasure to see you!" she called out, her voice full of grace.
The moment Vonessia heard her name, she looked toward the direction of the empress and gasped with shock at having the empress Shim Wen Yu standing in front of her with a relaxed look upon her face but an unreadable warmth within her.
"Whoa... Empress Wen Yu, isn't this a surprise?" she said, narrowing her eyes ever slightly.
"I know what you mean," she replied softly with a wide smile.
"I did not think to see you here tonight," replied Vonessia.
"Neither did I," said the empress.
The two of them stepped closer to one another and leaned gently toward one another, kissing each other lightly on the cheek, which for any outsiders watching looked like two powerful individuals greeting one another courteously; however, once their lips were next to each other, Vonessia's voice dropped from just above a whisper to barely audible.
"... Why are you still alive?"
Empress Wen Yu's smile didn't change; however, her eyes shifted quite noticeably toward Vonessia.
"Huh? What did you say?" replied Empress Wen Yu questioningly.
Vonessia immediately regained her composure, fully aware of what she was doing at this point.
"I asked you,what's the royal family doing at the Ruikha Empire's Seventh Auction?It's not even in Riso." She asked with a smooth tone and a sharp gaze towards the woman in front of her.
Wen Yu laughed softly.
"I have always wanted to come to the auction," she said pleasantly.
After a short pause, her smile grew wider.
"And…I now have a reason to be there."
Vonessia tilted her head in confusion, not knowing the reason she was present. As Empress Wen Yu turned around to look at the princess, Vonessia followed her gaze to see the princess looking back at her and realized the reason the empress was present at the auction was her daughter.
"That makes sense."
After exchanging smiles, Wen Yu gave Vonessia a hug. When they finished hugging, Vonessia returned to her own seat where Assad was waiting with Sévon. Assad's curiosity got the best of him so he leaned over to Vonessia and said, "Pardon my curiosity, ma'am, but I couldn't help but ask you who was the lady that you were visiting with?"
Vonessia looked at Assad with her calm expression and smiled.
"Curiosity always kills the cat doesn't it?"
Assad laughs nervously.
"That lady is the empress of the Ruikha Empire."
Assad blinked in disbelief, he only made the most foolish question ever. He ought to have known that the noblemen all the way to the ground were bowing to the royal family.
Yet Vonessia was correct, curiosity kills the cat and in this scenario the cat was Assad.
There were seven minutes remaining until the auction started.
Nicla Grado had returned to her seat and was shocked to see what had transpired between Vonessia and Wen Yu. Her mind was full of questions.
She wanted to pry into what happened and she wanted her unanswered questions answered, but she knew that would be improper of her. Instead, she let it go and prepared herself for the auction
A matter of minutes passed and there were several other people inside the auction house. It was now at full capacity. In the VIP room numerous high class nobles as well as representatives from the three largest families were present. The largest Family Clans are the Mahi Clan, Kuzrimma Clan, and the Amore Clan respectively.
As the last few guests found their places and chit chat in the hall faded, a moment of total quietness settled over the hall. Suddenly, the lights went out and a wave of murmurs swept across the hall followed by complete silence. Then a single spotlight turned on in the middle of the stage.
A male figure moves forward confidently with a big smile.
"Distinguished guests, welcome."
He placed his hand on his chest and bowed slightly.
"I am Arnid Semlall, your host this evening."
Applause erupted throughout the hall for Arnid and his smile widened.
"Wow… this is amazing!"
Having put his hand into the air, he let applause die down to complete silence.
"You are all welcome to the Seventh Ruikha Empire Auction."
Another round of louder applause was given to Arnid as he scanned over the audience again before continuing to speak.
"Before we get started, we have some very special guests here tonight."
The mood in the hall tightened immediately.
"If I may, please give a warm round of applause for The Big Three Families."
He pointed out to the audience.
"They are: The Mahi Clan, The Kuzrimma Clan and The Amore Clan."
Applause broke out in the hall as nobles around the room turned to one another looking for the main families of power. Arnid chuckled lightly.
"Wonderful," he said softly.
He held up one finger above his head.
"But we are not finished yet."
Then the room returned to silence again and his voice fell low.
"This evening, the people in this room will be honored to be in the presence of someone much more important than themselves. Therefore, if I could ask you all, to please bow your heads... to His Majesty, Shim Ju-Won... and the Imperial Family."
At that moment, everyone within the hall bowed their heads in response to Arnid's request. The sound of all the nobles moving filled up the very large room. The only people who remained upright were those in the VIP area. In the very center of the entire room, the Emperor raised one hand up slightly.
Although this was a simple gesture, it possessed complete authority. All of a sudden, Arnid clapped his hands together creating a loud echo in the hall.
"I have a feeling tonight is going to be one helluva night." He said with a huge grin.
He placed one hand over his heart with great drama.
"To be honest with you, I feel like a rockstar, and I'm not even a rockstar."
Many in the crowd started to chuckle. Arnid laughed out loud then took an upright position again.
Arnid let out a soft chuckle before he straightened up.
"Now that we've got that out of the way -"
He lifted his arm toward the stage.
"Let's get started."