C276 Entering the Auction

The sun blazed overhead as several men in uniform, looking sharp and well-dressed, reverently bowed before a man cloaked in black within the auction house. The man's large robe barely concealed his gaunt frame, his skeletal right hand caressing the chair's armrest, nails scraping with a raspy sound. The grating noise filled everyone's ears, reminiscent of a nail screeching across glass. Yet