"No. I will be buying all the eggs. Pack it up for me."
"Hmmm?" Everybody turned to look at the new voice. The crowd that had gathered around the egg counter had parted and a new figure waltzed in exuding an air of confidence and authority. The newcomer was a tall young man with two ivory horns, dressed in fine garments, suggesting someone of wealth and status. Several items on his person also suggested an extremely high grade, perhaps even surpassing the Legendary grade.
Moreover, the fact that he was casually buying every single egg lined up on the system shop counter meant that his funds were unimaginable to the common folk. His background was definitely not simple.
The young man's gaze was fixed on the tray of eggs, but there was a particular intensity when he looked at the small white egg Liam had just chosen.
The fairy, recognizing the potential for conflict, looked nervously between Liam and the newcomer. "Esteemed guests, please, there's no need for any dispute. We have plenty of eggs for everyone."
"Yes, and I am buying all of it." The tall young man clapped his hands and two other men with similar types of horns on their heads rushed forward to finish the transaction as they began talking about specifics with the fairy.
The fairy quickly obliged as he started packing everything. Liam silently stood on the side and watched the whole show. Meanwhile, the five eggs he had selected including the last one were neatly packaged by another fairy. The woman then handed them to Liam.
"I hope your experience this time was satisfactory, Grandmaster." The fairy bowed and handed the eggs to Liam.
But before he could accept them, one of the attendants rushed to Liam. "Hey butterfly, what are you doing? Didn't young master already tell you that he would be buying everything? What are you doing with these five eggs? Pack them all up. Do you understand?"
The fairy immediately became anxious and started stammering. "I… I… Grandmaster has already paid for these… it is not possible for me to…"
"Pfft! Grandmaster? If he is a Grandmaster, then even my uncle is a Grandmaster. Stop wasting our time. You heard the young master. He wants all the eggs. Are you going to refuse him for the sake of this one person?"
The fairy, clearly in a difficult position, looked helplessly between Liam and the attendant. Before the situation could escalate further, the tall young man, presumably the 'young master,' turned his attention towards the commotion.
"What? You are still not obeying me? Do you want to refuse the direct orders of the Horned tribe?"
The fairy immediately started trembling. "I am sorry… I… I cannot.. I am.."
"What seems to be the problem here?" he asked, calmly walking towards the counter.
The attendant quickly explained the situation. "This man has already bought these five eggs, and he refuses to sell them to you, young master."
Seeing that the guy was unfairly placing all the blame on Liam, the fairy tried to mediate but it was of no use.
The young man looked at Liam and the eggs with interest. "Is that so?" His gaze dragged on Liam from top to bottom. "I am Kael from the Horned Tribe. May I know why are you so keen on keeping these eggs?"
"I have my reasons, as I'm sure you do for wanting to purchase the entire collection," Liam replied calmly.
However, not missing this opportunity, Dante gnashed his teeth and quickly added fuel to the fire, taking advantage of the situation. "You should really consider who you're trying to bully. You might have your status, but that doesn't give you the right to trample over others' decisions."
Kael's eyes flickered with a hint of malice, and then his expression softened into a smile. "My intention wasn't to bully anyone. I simply didn't expect anyone to have made a selection before me."
Shockingly, he even signaled his attendant to stand down. "We respect others claims. If these eggs are already his, then we have no right over them."
The attendant who had been so aggressive earlier seemed taken aback, and a murmur went through the crowd. It was clear that nothing was resolved. Only the fairy sighed in relief. She was going to ask Liam to take everything but she was a little startled to see that he had already done so. While everyone was busy talking back and forth, the eggs were quietly pocketed without muss or fuss. The fairy could only give a small awkward smile and bowed. "Thank you for your understanding, Grandmaster Liam. I hope these beasts will serve you well. Ah. We also have an inspection feature that would allow you to discern the details of the egg if you choose."
Liam paused for a moment and then nodded. This could be extremely helpful. Otherwise, he might have to wait a long while to find out what type of beast egg he had purchased. Also, after reading some of the basic knowledge he knew that each beast egg is unique and more so as their grade increases. Most of them require very specific environments or raw materials to mature and hatch. Luna herself had gobbled up several flame fragments and countless medicinal herbs before she hatched, well for the second time.
"Ummm…" The fairy continued looking hesitant even though Liam gave the nod. "Unfortunately, I am afraid this feature will reveal the content of your egg publicly to the current customers in the shop." She added with reluctance.
Liam frowned. He did not want to create any unnecessary conflict and clearly, he was already on the cusp of one, perhaps deep in it. This was only going to further worsen the situation.
Before Liam could say anything, the fairy quickly added. "This is a special feature of the gambling den, Grandmaster. It is to encourage more of our customers to gamble. So the feature is only available for the next hour and only at this specific counter."