The Eclipsed Bloom-Chapter 112: Bought

A voice rang out clearly from the front row.

"One hundred gold coins."

The announcer’s smile widened, and he rubbed his hands together in excitement.

"Well, well! A fine start! Do we have anyone willing to raise the bid?" he called out, voice booming across the hall.

The audience stirred, whispers spreading like wildfire. A few glances were exchanged until another hand lifted confidently into the air.

"One hundred and fifty gold coins," a thick voice announced.

Himeros’s expression shifted. Her cold demeanor darkened instantly. Eyes sharp, she glared coldly at the bidder.

The man—a middle-aged figure wearing a grotesque goblin mask—grinned and rubbed his palms eagerly.

The announcer turned toward him and, noticing the goblin mask, gave a sly grin.

"Ah, the honorable sir in the goblin mask," he said, voice laced with mockery. "Aren’t you here to purchase... trained slaves? The kind who already know how to please their masters? With your goblin mask, we can offer you the finest slaves."

The announcer chuckled lightly, clearly trying to redirect the man’s attention. "She’s just a raw slave, untrained, wild. Perhaps not what someone of your... tastes usually prefers."

The goblin-masked man glared at the announcer, his tone sharp with irritation.

"What? Do you have a problem with me? I’ll buy her and train her myself."

Zara POV:

Disgust twisted in my stomach as I heard their words—like they weren’t even talking about a person, but some object to be used.

Ughh... I squirmed, but the two men still held my arms in a tight grip, dragging me forward like I weighed nothing.

And then—

"Five hundred gold coins."

My body froze.

That voice...

I turned my head sharply toward the front row. My gaze locked onto a woman wearing a white fox mask. Her long pink hair flowed softly down her shoulders.

Wait... isn’t she—

Whispers rippled through the audience.

"Whoa, who is she? She just doubled the price like it was nothing!"

"Yeah, seriously. That girl isn’t even worth that much..."

"She’s not even trained."

The announcer kept a professional smile plastered on his face, but his hands were trembling—clearly from excitement at the sudden jackpot.

"Any more bids?" he asked, voice almost breathless. freewёbnoνel.com

Silence.

Not a single hand raised.

He slammed his hand on the table.

"Going once! Going twice! Sold to the lady in the front row!"

The chains jerked as the men started dragging me backstage again like some package.

These bastards... Just wait. If I ever get my powers back, I’ll tear this whole disgusting auction apart.

My body trembled with rage.

They forced me to kneel—my legs pressed against the cold, hard floor. Every second felt humiliating.

After what felt like forever, a pair of elegant shoes stopped right in front of me. I raised my head slowly, my eyes narrowing as I saw Himeros staring down at me. I glared at her angrily, then looked away.

Her voice was sharp, angry.

"Who told you to make her kneel?"

The men holding me flinched at her tone, their hands beginning to tremble. One of them quickly stepped back and spoke nervously.

"M-Miss, most masters prefer their slaves presented this way. It’s become the norm. Forgive us if this offended you..."

I didn’t wait—I stood up quickly, trying to put distance between us.

But before I could take another step, Himeros’s arm wrapped tightly around my waist, her grin wide and possessive.

Without another word, she lifted me off the ground like I weighed nothing, holding me bridal style.

Then, she turned and began walking away—with me in her arms.

"Put me down, Himeros!" I snapped, glaring at her.

A slow grin spread across her lips."Mmm... my name sounds so perfect coming from your mouth. Say it again, won’t you?"

My teeth clenched. utterly Shameless woman.

Suddenly—"Boom! Boom!"

My body stiffened at the sound of loud explosions echoing through the air.

I looked over her shoulder, my eyes widening in horror. The entire auction building was collapsing in flames. The flames had obliterated one of the carriages with the Dragon crest.

Amid the smoke and chaos, I squinted—my gaze locking onto a burned man crawling with a goblin mask melted onto his face.

I turned to Himeros, stunned.

"D-Do you like it?" she asked sweetly, her voice thick with affection."I did it all for you."

I took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm inside me.

"D-Did you do that?" I asked hesitantly, my heart pounding.

"Yes," she said casually, "You know, at first I only planned to kill that bastard... but then they made you kneel." Her voice dropped, laced with irritation.

"So, I just destroyed the entire auction. Honestly, my first thought was to wipe out this whole city where your knee touched—" she shrugged with a smile, "—but then I figured... it’s not worth it."

She looked at me like she was expecting praise—her eyes glimmering with pride, like she’d just gifted me flowers instead of mass destruction.

Still in a daze, I felt something soft brushing my neck. My fingers instinctively reached up, and my brows furrowed as I touched it.

"W-What is this on my neck?" I asked slowly, heart racing.

A soft, pink, silky collar wrapped snugly around my throat.

She smiled sweetly, yet at the same time terrifyingly."Well, now you’re mine. This is my gift. This collar is like my eyes, perfect for you. And this collar means I own your body... and your soul. Which means..."

She leaned closer, whispering lovingly—

"We’re life partners now."

What... what kind of twisted logic is that!?

"I’m not your slave or anything," I snapped, glaring at her.

She looked down, her face unreadable. Then, without warning, she shook my body, my hand pressed against her neck to balance.

"You could become that girl’s slave, but not mine?" she said, voice trembling with something between hurt and fury."And I’m not even making you a slave. This collar just has a rune—only I can remove it. That’s all."

My brows furrowed.

"What do you mean... that girl’s slave?"

Suddenly, a memory slammed into my mind—kissing a girl named Anahi, whispering intimate names to her. The warmth, the touch, the way my heart fluttered...

My face turned crimson.

Before I could process anything else, something soft and familiar pressed against my lips.

My breath caught—Himeros was kissing me. Not with cold detachment, but not with tenderness either. It was something in between—possessive, needy, shaky with emotion.

As she pulled back, her breath was hot against my lips.

"Did you blush remembering her?" she whispered, her voice low and trembling with jealousy.

"I should’ve killed her the moment I saw her."

"What? Tell me—who was that girl? And why did she control me?"

Her eyes narrowed slightly, voice low and trembling with restrained jealousy.

"That should be my question. Why were you under her control?"She stepped closer, her tone sharpened."Only I have the right to hold that kind of power over you."

I scoffed, my lips twitching in frustration.

"You don’t have that right either."

Himeros blinked, visibly stunned—like the words slapped her.

"W-What do you mean I don’t? Of course I do!"Her voice turned shaky with disbelief.

"I bought you! You’re mine now. I knew you’d resist me at first... but it doesn’t matter anymore. We’re life partners."

She smiled like she believed every word of her twisted logic.

"I’m not some product you can buy, put me down now."

Hearing her way of speaking only brought anger to me.

Getting down, I start walking away from her.

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At the entrance of a moss-covered cave, two women came to a stop.

Lilith narrowed her eyes as she stared into the darkness.

"Grace, this place... something about it feels strange."

Grace nodded, stepping forward cautiously.

"Yeah, it’s only one cave with a strange entrance. Let’s check inside."

After a short walk through the damp, narrow path, she stopped.

"It’s a dead end, Lilith."

Lilith’s eyes scanned the rocky wall.

"No, it’s not. Look closely—see those strange markings? They look like runes."

As Lilith touched the marking, her brows furrowed tightly.

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[Earth]

"In this cave where silence sighs,Our love will bloom where magic lies."

Putting away her mic, a bright smile lit up Helen’s face as she gazed at the cheering crowd, their hands waving in joy, light sticks waving in air. Sweat trickled down her forehead, but her eyes sparkled brightly.

"Thanks, everyone, for coming here!"

"Woooooo!"The roar of the audience followed her as she stepped offstage, waving her hands.

Walking through the hallway toward her star room, her pace slowed when her gaze landed on a woman with long purple hair, silently staring at her from a distance.

A strange chill ran down her spine. She tried to walk faster, brushing past her.

"Excuse me, miss. Are you Helen—Miss Ava’s younger sister?"

Helen froze mid-step.

"...You know my sister?"

The woman’s sweet smile widened, but something was unnerving in her voice.

"Yes, miss. I know her... very, very thoroughly."

Helen’s face turned pale at her tone, unease creeping in. She stepped back slowly.

Suddenly, a sharp sound echoed from above—Like a crawling spider.

Heart racing, she looked up, her body trembled eyes became dull.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

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