Now, it made sense why Bennett had said that she couldn't afford to offend the guests tonight.

Bennett appeared to value Fraser greatly. Upon Fraser's arrival, Bennett personally greeted him. Although their initial conversation made it seem like they were close friends, they quickly shifted to more meaningful topics.

Despite not comprehending their conversation, Ariana had an intuition that they were covertly exchanging information with each other.

She hoped to eavesdrop on their conversation for any useful information, but she was surprised when more political figures from Conata joined Fraser, and everyone seemed familiar with Bennett, conversing with profound implications as if they shared a long history of acquaintance.

The evident collusion between officials and businessmen was clearly indicative of corruption.

Ariana abandoned the notion of eavesdropping since she realized that even if she managed to uncover some secrets, she wouldn't be able to do something to these individuals. This was also why these people didn't avoid discussing sensitive matters in her presence while conversing with Bennett.

Ariana's mind wandered as she came to terms with the situation.

In the grand scheme of things, these matters held little importance for her; Ariana's main concern was simply to locate Holden.

Before, Holden had shared with her his plan for her to sneak into the banquet hall, where he would join her, allowing them to escape together.

However, with a multitude of guests present and the imminent start of the banquet, Holden had yet to make an appearance.

Ariana couldn't shake her worries about whether Holden would actually arrive and whether he was safe at the moment.

As Ariana's thoughts drifted, the banquet commenced.

A loud noise caught her attention, leading her to discover a circular exhibition stand at the center of the banquet hall, enclosed with a pure gold fence. Subsequently, a host announced that an auction was going to start.

Initially, the items up for auction were relatively ordinary, consisting of rare and valuable treasures. While the prices were steep, they fell within the expected range.

As time passed, the auction grew increasingly strange. In addition to showcasing cultural artifacts from various countries, the auction also included the sale of people.

Men and women alike were present as beast slaves, possessing remarkable physical attributes.

These beast slaves, confined in a massive cage, gazed around in terror.

The atmosphere was charged with excitement. Prior to the auction of beast slaves, individuals had already chosen the beast slaves they desired and devised plans on how to use them, openly discussing these plans with those nearby.

Their plans for the beast slaves grew increasingly perverted, causing Ariana extreme discomfort and a desire to vomit as she listened.

Observing the cage and the people offstage, Ariana couldn't help but smile bitterly. She considered herself fortunate; at least she hadn't been reduced to an auction item.