"You two, do you have any collections you'd like to consign?"
A lady dressed in an exquisitely tailored outfit approached: "I'm Ludovica. It's a pleasure to serve you."
Under Miss Carlotta's instructions, Ludovica needed to properly introduce things to the two distinguished guests of the Montelli family.
Rover inquired: "The collections in this hall are quite dazzling. What exactly do you collect here?"
Ludovica smiled: "Everything."
"From pre-Lament literary works, legacy currencies, electronic machinery, to contemporary art, precious metals, and more."
"Averardo Vault collects everything of value—or rather, everything valuable to Ragunna's past and future."
"But what constitutes value, I believe, varies by individual."
"So, we appraise the value of collections to determine their worth."
Rover pondered briefly: "So strict? Are there any items that sound utterly absurd but which you deem valuable enough to collect?"
Ludovica extended her hand, leading the two toward a display case: "Of course. Please, follow me."
The two followed Ludovica to a collection display case, inside which sat a can.
Lucian wore a curious expression; the text on this can read "Pet Food Only."
Clearly a pet food can—did something like this have collection value?
"It doesn't look particularly special. Is there some mystery inside?"
Ludovica smiled: "To be honest, there's nothing inside the can."
"We determined it to be a pre-Lament pet food can, but due to a production error, it wasn't filled with any contents."
"I can see your confusion, but that's precisely why the family was willing to pay a high price—it's sealed with the only known sample of pre-Lament air in Ragunna."
Lucian & Rover: "?"
Lucian fell silent for a moment: "Pre-Lament air? Does something like that really have collection value?"
Ludovica explained: "As I said, our judgments of value stem from many angles, many of which run counter to common perceptions."
"But these items are undoubtedly valuable in our eyes."
Lucian pondered briefly: "In that case... does air from Jinzhou have value?"
"Or air from the Black Shores? Air from Sonoro Sphere?"
Ludovica shook her head slightly: "Regrettably, the airs you mentioned aren't rare, so their value wouldn't be high."
Rover propped her chin: "How about we check Abby's value?"
Abby immediately jumped out from the Tacet Mark in dissatisfaction: "Hey! How can Benbu's value be measured by mere worldly currency?!"
Ludovica's eyes lit up upon seeing the small white talking Echo:
"This is the Abby you mentioned? An Echo capable of communicating with humans and possessing intelligence?"
"To be frank, among the vault's Echo collections, there's never been such a special specimen!"
"If you're willing to consign it, we'd certainly offer a price that satisfies you!"
Ludovica's tone grew excited, her gaze on Abby as if beholding a mountain of gold.
Seeing Ludovica's eyes as if she wanted to devour it, Abby hurriedly waved his hands:
"Rover, Lucian, you're not really going to sell me, are you!?"
Lucian reached out and tugged Abby's large ears: "As if that would ever happen."
Abby patted his chest in relief: "You scared Benbu half to death..."
Ludovica looked regretful: "If you change your minds later, we're always welcome."
Abby: "...Hey!"
At that moment, Carlotta returned from the front desk. Ludovica bowed slightly and stepped aside to avoid interrupting the second miss and her distinguished guests' important matters.
"How did it go?"
Carlotta sighed: "I'm sorry, but the situation has changed."
"I just learned that Uncle Capollo happened to have something come up and left, so I can't arrange a meeting with him for now."
"That means the original plan needs adjustment, but that's fine too—I had other surprises prepared."
"Let's find a quieter spot. Follow me."
The two followed Carlotta to a circular sofa in the hall's corner.
Carlotta was about to have Lucian and the others sit when she saw Lucian's expression harden, his steps halting in place.
Lucian placed a hand on Rover's snowy shoulder, tilting his chin: "See who that is?"
Rover followed Lucian's gaze and saw a blond man in red clothes with his back to them.
It was Cristoforo!
Carlotta looked at the two puzzledly: "What's wrong?"
Lucian leaned close to Carlotta's ear and quietly explained the full circumstances to her.
Upon hearing this, Carlotta looked toward Cristoforo's back, her elegant brows furrowing slightly:
"You mean that man is a high-ranking Fractsidus member? And you've already crossed paths with him?"
Rover stared at his back: "If possible, we could grab him now and interrogate him."
Carlotta pondered for a moment: "Though Fractsidus has an equally poor relationship with us Montellis, I hope you won't act here."
"Today is the vault's auction day; as you've seen, many families—including high-ranking figures from other regions—have come here."
"If we start a brawl with a guest at a time like this, it would impact the Montelli reputation to some extent."
"Of course, if you feel this is an excellent opportunity, I won't stop you from acting."
"However... the aftermath might be somewhat difficult to handle, especially since this is a critical moment before Carnevale."
"The Order of the Deep and the Fisalia family are both watching intently; I don't wish to invite extra trouble at this juncture."
Though Carlotta was somewhat tempted by the chance to capture a Fractsidus high-rank, from the family's perspective, acting now wasn't a good idea.
After the Echo out-of-control incident, so many eyes were watching; any stir would be exploited by those with ulterior motives.
Moreover, now that they knew Fractsidus was the power backing the Order of the Deep and Fisalia, capturing Cristoforo at this point would surely provoke fierce retaliation.
Even if the Montelli family claimed Fractsidus had collaborated with the Order of the Deep and orchestrated the Echo out-of-control event, who would believe it?
In a region so steeped in faith, the Order of the Deep's credibility clearly outshone that of the so-called greatest family, the Montellis.
No one would believe the Sentinel's spokespeople, the Order of the Deep, would collude with such an evil force.
But Carlotta thought again: Lucian had clearly captured Phrolova too—why then had no Fractsidus members come to cause trouble along the way?
Lucian glanced at Phrolova in his arms, who was oblivious to the outside world with her ears covered, equally puzzled.
After capturing Phrolova, Cristoforo had indeed probed once.
But beyond that, there had been no other actions. Was this deliberate on Fractsidus's part?