Chapter 48: Private Stores
An extreme sense of unease washed over Zhou Ning.
The council member from the Life Alchemy Society, the one mentioned in the TV series, had never appeared. It was now obvious that the schoolteacher, Elvis, was one of the enemy's agents. There was no way he didn't know Holweg was dead, and he probably even knew Holweg kept a diary.
This is a real world, Zhou Ning reminded himself. Never underestimate the enemy's intelligence. So, is it possible that Holweg's death was part of their plan? That this diary was deliberately left for us to find?
...This was ridiculous. Even a game required this much intrigue.
If his suspicions were correct, this situation was about to escalate dramatically.
Zhou Ning looked around for Sherlock but instead met Ian's ardent, admiring gaze. Even John, standing not far away, was staring at him with wide, sparkling eyes, as if he'd just witnessed the awakening of some extraordinary talent.
A chill ran down Zhou Ning's spine. Did I overdo it?
Seeing Zhou Ning's eyes on him, Ian hurried forward, his tone cautious and respectful. "Mr. Wayne, are you alright?"
Zhou Ning felt a shiver of unease at the sudden formality. He waved his hand to indicate he was fine and asked, "Where's Sherlock? I have something important to discuss with him."
"Mr. Sherlock is coordinating with the university. Please wait a moment."
Without another word, Ian turned and headed toward the school building. He couldn't believe that at the most critical moment, the young man he had once looked down on had proven to be the most reliable person there.
He had single-handedly repelled Elvis, killed the deformed coachman, and dismantled the bomb. It was no exaggeration to say he had turned the tide of the entire battle. In an era where supernatural powers were just beginning to emerge, latching onto someone so powerful was a golden opportunity. What was wrong with running a few errands for him?
Of course, Zhou Ning had no idea what Ian was thinking. He simply stood there and waited for Sherlock.
About two minutes later, Sherlock hurried over. "Ian said you had something urgent to tell me? We owe you our thanks for what happened. I'm afraid many people would have died otherwise."
Zhou Ning didn't respond to the praise, instead directly voicing his doubts. He finished with a solemn question, "I need to know—which country is participating in the state visit at Witsel Church Square today?"
Sherlock pondered the question for a moment. His expression suddenly changed, and he whispered, his voice strained, "Luins... Oh no!"
He quickly gathered several members of the Day Watch and rushed toward two carriages parked at the corner of the street. "Wayne, come with me! We need your help!"
The system panel lit up.
[You have triggered a subsequent event for the B-Rank mission [Conspiracy]. The mission [Conspiracy] has been upgraded to A-Rank.]
Finally, Zhou Ning thought, breathing a sigh of relief. He nodded in agreement. Before climbing into the carriage, he turned and glanced at XB. "You come too."
"He might be able to help," Zhou Ning explained to a questioning Sherlock.
"I can go?" XB was flattered to hear his name called. After getting a nod of consent from Sherlock, he scrambled into the carriage after Zhou Ning.
Zhou Ning smiled faintly, looking out the window. He certainly wasn't bringing XB along because he was useful. The kid was completely useless, at least for now. While XB might have talent in the future, that was a long way off. Zhou Ning's real reason was that the upcoming situation was likely to be dangerous, and XB had a large audience. It was worth bringing along a guinea pig who could double as a live broadcaster and commentator.
On the other side, having completed the previous task, XB immediately received a notification:
[D-Rank Quest [Terrorist Attack] completed. You have gained 2000 experience points.]
[Wayne Stewell's favorability toward you has increased by 5 points. Current standing: Indifferent.]
[Open a private store for player [XB]?]
Zhou Ning chose "Yes" without hesitation.
A trading panel, similar to those in online games from his previous life, appeared before him. It had two tabs, "Item Store" on the left and "Skill Store" on the right. By clicking the '+' sign in the Item Store, Zhou Ning could add his own items for sale, including those obtained from the simulator. In the Skill Store, he could selectively list skills he had mastered.
Zhou Ning tried putting a few items up, and a new prompt appeared:
[Please fill in the product description and price.]
[You may also set purchase conditions, including but not limited to: Favorability, Level, Faction, Nationality...]
I can even set favorability limits? Zhou Ning was delighted. This gave him much more room to maneuver. He knew that the most time-consuming part of this game was grinding favorability and reputation. Back then, as a mage, he had completed over seventy quest chains for the court mage Elan, spending countless gold coins just to learn the Fire Dragon Technique.
Now it's my turn to set favorability requirements for the players... How the tables have turned.
Zhou Ning quickly set up the items and confirmed the listings.
[Ding! NPC Wayne Stewell has opened a private shop function for you.]
XB received the prompt immediately.
The protagonist's private shop? I'm spending every last coin!
XB was not about to miss this opportunity and quickly opened the store interface.
The items were displayed according to rarity and price. He took one look and was instantly captivated. His head spun, and the thousands of thoughts rushing through his mind condensed into a single word.
"Holy..."
At that moment, the viewer count in his live broadcast room had reached a terrifying twelve million and was still climbing. The comment barrage was a frantic, scrolling blur, and the most common word was the same one on his lips.
"HOLY..."
"A Stone Mask! My god, even if it just grants the qualification, it can turn you into a hidden vampire and massively boost your combat power. If it were me, I'd give up my humanity in a heartbeat!"
"Vampires are strong, but they have weaknesses. They can't go out in the sun or they turn to ash. Isn't that just asking for trouble?"
"We're players, who cares? Wear a hat, wrap yourself up tight. We can resurrect anyway. Being invincible at night gives you a huge advantage in the early game!"
"Did you guys not see the guns? They look like the same ones Wayne uses!"
"I'd go for a Devil Fruit! Even if it says 'Unavailable,' the fact that it's listed means it exists! Imagine having all those different powers!"
"Who is this guy? How does he have this stuff?"
"He's the protagonist, duh! Is it weird for the main character to have some treasure?"
XB's mouth was watering. The Stone Mask, the "temporarily unavailable" Devil Fruit, the Mini-Mechanical Soldier Cards, the Browning M1906 pocket pistol, the M1 Garand rifle... to him, every single item was a god-tier artifact.
Any one of them would make him the coolest player in the game, putting him light-years ahead of the professional players.
Then he looked at the prices.
XB: ...
Everything was completely beyond his reach. The awesome-looking guns started at 15 Viktors. The Mini-Mechanical Soldier Card cost 50 Viktors and required 10 favorability points. The Devil Fruit was a staggering 500 Viktors.
Is this some kind of joke? XB couldn't help but shed tears of poverty.
The item store had made him feel the cruel disparity of life. When he clicked on the skill store, his heart broke all over again.
Because there was nothing.
Among the general skills alone were ones that were clearly powerful at first glance, like Marksmanship, Mysticism, and Mechanical Mastery.
Scrolling down, he was even more shocked.
What are all these?
Flying Guns! Armament Haki! Ripple Breathing! Mozambique Shooting! Rapid Pursuit!
The Ripple Breathing method, in particular, could passively increase strength and agility with just a single point, and daily practice would continuously improve those stats!
"This has to be a protagonist-exclusive skill! It has to be!" XB gritted his teeth, roaring internally.
What made him even more excited was a knowledge book that unlocked the hidden class [Wandering Gunner]. It was priced at 30 Viktors—not too expensive—but it required 30 favorability points with the protagonist!
A hidden class! XB stared at Zhou Ning in shock.
Zhou Ning, guessing his thoughts, simply returned an unfathomable smile. He had just put a random book in the store and changed the description. He set the favorability requirement himself; he could make it whatever he wanted. He was only listing it now to give the players a grand, tantalizing goal. It might be a rip-off now, but the investment would surely pay off later.
"So the protagonist's class is called 'Wandering Gunner'!"
The news electrified not only XB but all the viewers in his stream. As expected of the protagonist's class, it sounded mysterious and high-end just from the name!
Although he couldn't meet the requirements yet, XB wasn't discouraged. Instead, he was filled with ambition, for he had just seen the path his future would take.
He looked at his money and experience points, which were just enough to learn Shooting Mastery. Without hesitation, he bought it.
I am definitely going to become a Wandering Gunner!
...
[Your skill [Shooting Mastery] has been learned. You have received 2000 experience points and 10 Roshen.]
The money players spent learning skills would be fully returned to Zhou Ning as "tuition."
According to the rules of Apocalypse, imparting a skill was equivalent to teaching it; his own mastery of the skill would not change.
So no matter what XB learned from him, Zhou Ning would only profit. This was a much faster way to make money than alchemy.
After fleecing his first customer, Zhou Ning stretched and opened the simulation panel.
Wake University was located in the eastern Docklands. At full speed, it would take about twenty minutes to reach Witsel Church Square in the city center—just enough time to run a simulation and increase his strength.
Zhou Ning was determined to claim the rewards for this A-Rank mission.
After checking his balance of Time Travel Coins, Zhou Ning saw that the Hall of Wonders had given him nineteen, and he had received one more as an overnight "living allowance." He spent 50 Viktors to purchase five more coins, then selected the option to travel through time again.
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