Shopping is Fun
"Captain."
"Yeah?"
Kanchu lowered his voice and scowled fiercely.
"What the hell is that? The energy's downright filthy."
Jinhyeok looked at the equipment in front of him.
Just staring at it sent a strange chill creeping up his spine.
Yordles were far more sensitive than humans, so it wasn't surprising for him to grimace like that.
"Hoo. It's the only cursed gear I own."
Letting out a long breath, Kim Jin-guk wiped his brow.
He hadn't even moved anything heavy, yet sweat beaded thick on his forehead.
It was because he'd handled it with such painstaking care, wrapping it in a thick cloth sack to keep his hands from even brushing against it.
"It's tower-exclusive gear, but you still can't touch it?"
"Not exactly, but it's bad luck."
Shrugging, Kim Jin-guk pointed to the sword.
"It's called Kamachi. Also known as the Engraver's Blade. Wherever the blade touches, it carves an engraving. These engravings stack up, and you can detonate them whenever you want. Once enough layers build up, they say it can shatter even a sturdy golem in one hit. Of course, the engravings are narrow in scope, so stacking them isn't easy."
"Oho."
It was an ability that perked up his ears.
A swordsman's typical counters were monsters with tough hides that shrugged off physical damage.
The fact that it could take down those kinds of foes effectively already had him hooked.
"Tempting, right?"
"Yes."
"But there's still the important part."
Shaking his head, Kim Jin-guk pointed to Kamachi's hilt.
"The moment you grip Kamachi, the curse kicks in. It's called the Curse of Aging. Every swing of the sword costs you one year of your lifespan. Even the slightest flick deducts a full 365 days."
'That's intense.'
One year per swing.
By simple math, that was enough time to climb 365 floors of the tower vanishing in an instant.
"Has anyone actually used it?"
"Oh, sure. The old man who sold me this Kamachi was the user. The sword's options were so ridiculously appealing that I shelled out a whopping 100 million for it. A few days later, I flipped it to a freelance hunter for 300 million."
Jinhyeok swallowed dryly at the mention of those huge sums.
How could a single sword fetch the price of a luxury foreign car?
"Haa. Just thinking about it still makes me dizzy."
It must have been a memory he didn't want to relive, because Kim Jin-guk pressed a hand to his forehead.
"The day after the sale, all hell broke loose. That hunter stormed in, furious beyond belief. He looked ready to beat me to death right then and there."
Unlike normal options, curses didn't show on the surface.
You needed an expert appraisal or to equip it inside the tower to find out.
The moment he gripped the sword, the Curse of Aging status must have hit him, so the freelance hunter's rage was understandable.
At least it was fortunate that the hunter noticed the curse before swinging it in the tower.
"In the end, I bought it back for 300 million, plus tossed in a 50-million consolation fee to settle things. The loss wasn't small by any means. Ugh!"
Kim Jin-guk's eyes genuinely welled up with tears, it seemed so painful.
Losing a clean 100 million would make anyone weep blood.
"But didn't you say someone used it? That freelance hunter didn't swing it."
"Oh dear, I got sidetracked into my own sob story. The old man who sold it to me was the one who used it. If I may ask, how old are you this year, sir?"
"Twenty-two."
"The old man turned out to be twenty-two too, when I looked into it later."
"Oh."
No further explanation was needed.
It was a sword that had turned someone Jinhyeok's age into an old man in the blink of an eye.
"Hey! Hey, Kim Jin-guk!"
Just as the explanation wrapped up, a few nearby shop owners approached.
"No matter how good the money is, this is too much!"
"Right! We didn't peg you for this, Uncle Jin-guk—we're disappointed! What are you trying to sell to a newbie player?!"
"No way, is this guy possessed by the ghost of greed? What the hell did he pull out? That's the one from back then!"
In their eyes, Kim Jin-guk must have looked like a scammer preying on rookies.
As Kim Jin-guk desperately tried to explain that wasn't the case,
Jinhyeok rubbed his chin and examined Kamachi.
'I have to buy this no matter what.'
The Curse of Aging.
Flashy name, but in the end, it was just a type of status ailment.
[All Status Ailment Resistance SSS+]
With that, there was no chance of the curse activating.
The problem was the price.
His entire fortune: 12 million won.
Factoring in living expenses, he couldn't blow it all on one sword.
He glanced around slyly.
Kim Jin-guk was still getting chewed out mercilessly, despite his explanations.
The stage was set for a bargain.
"I'll take this sword."
A heavy silence fell in an instant.
All eyes turned to this reckless young man, of course.
Drawing in a breath, Jinhyeok put on a sparkling yet resolute expression.
"My dream is to conquer the tower. More precisely, to create a world where our people no longer fear the transfers. If that's possible, I'm prepared to burn through my lifespan however much it takes."
"Gasp!"
"Oh my..."
A few of the gathered merchants clapped hands over their mouths.
A grand ambition and sense of justice that belied his age.
He was a young man rare in these times.
"Of course, I'll only use it in moments of life or death, so no need to worry. This precious life was given to me by my parents, after all. The only issue is..."
Jinhyeok trailed off, a shadow of sorrow crossing his face.
"That walking the path of justice costs a lot of money. With a little sibling waiting at home, I can't spend freely."
It wasn't a lie.
He did have a sibling back at the family home.
Though they probably weren't waiting for him, but still.
"Just give it to him quick! It's just gathering dust anyway—you can't even sell it!"
"Yeah, Kim Jin-guk! Think of it as contributing to the greater good!"
"We're merchants through and through, but we can't ignore someone so righteous!"
Amid the chorus of voices from all sides, weapons dealer Kim Jin-guk squeezed his eyes shut.
Just as they said, it was gear he couldn't sell anyway—sell it, and who knew what retaliation he'd face.
He'd clung to it out of regret over past losses, but it seemed time to let go.
"Ah, alright! I'll let it go cheap! Name your price!"
Jinhyeok, who had been hanging his head in feigned sorrow, let a faint smile curl at his lips.
Gulp!
From below, Kanchu—who'd been watching—swallowed dryly.
People turn terrifying when money's involved.
That was the lesson learned today by yordle ranger Kanchu.
"La la la."
Jinhyeok hummed a cheerful tune.
He'd scored an amazing piece of gear at a steal.
[Cursed Engraver's Blade, Kamachi]
Level Restriction: 15.Rank: Epic.Attack Power: 30.Unique Option: Each strike on a target engraves a mark. Marks stack, and the user can detonate them at will.Engraved marks last for 10 seconds. Successful stacking refreshes the duration to 10 seconds.Higher stacks increase the cumulative damage amplification.Usage Penalty: Afflicts the user with the status ailment Curse of Aging. Each swing reduces lifespan by 1 year.
Perhaps because he'd already recognized the curse's existence.
A system window popped up with the relevant details.
Looking at it, a smile tugged at his lips again.
The attack power wasn't all that high, but it was a full epic item.
And Jinhyeok had snagged it for a mere one million won.
'Thanks for the curse.'
No one would sell something they'd bought for 100 million for one million, no matter how much the buyer begged.
This deal had only been possible thanks to that insane curse.
'Still, it's ridiculous. Lifespan reduction?'
In a normal case, he probably wouldn't touch Kamachi even in a desperate moment.
Swinging it to survive, only to lose a year each time? Absurd.
"But where'd Seira go? She better not be causing trouble somewhere."
'Seira, you say.'
If explosive yordle Kanchu was an unpredictable rubber ball, Seira was like a serene lake.
In other words, even if she was out of sight, there was no anxiety.
She was probably quietly browsing clothes somewhere, killing time...
"Oh my, oh my! It suits you so well!"
"It's perfect for you, miss! Wait, where are you from? Your hair and eyes are gorgeous!"
"Sis! How'd you do your makeup? Or are you a model? You look like a doll!"
A buzz of voices drifted over.
Even more people had gathered at the women's clothing corner than at the weapons shop earlier.
Sweat trickled down his back.
Why was that?
He didn't have clairvoyance or anything, but he knew exactly who was at the center.
"What do we do, Captain? Should we blow it all up?!"
"Shut up with the gut-busting nonsense and stay put."
He sidled over stealthily and stood on tiptoe.
Sure enough, at the heart of the crowd stood Seira, clad in a floral blouse and jeans.
For some reason, the hat and mask he'd prepared for her were in the hands of a sales clerk.
'If I dispel the disguise here, it'll only draw more attention.'
It would definitely make headlines.
Best to slip away before it got any noisier.
He wove through the commotion and approached the clerk.
"Hi. Could you ring up everything my friend's wearing right now?"
He paid quickly, then shot Seira a piercing look.
"Ah."
Seira, who had just spotted Jinhyeok.
He gestured the direction with his hand and exited the store first.
He didn't forget the mime for putting on the hat and mask.
Waiting a moment at the back exit, Seira appeared with the shopping bag.
Perhaps because Jinhyeok said nothing even after they met.
Seira bowed her head.
"I'm sorry. I failed to follow the master's orders. You said you'd help me try on clothes, but then you took the mask and hat away."
"Huh? Sorry for what? So what if your face got seen a little."
He meant it.
It was best to stay as low-profile as possible, but getting spotted wouldn't lead to anything dire.
After all, they couldn't even dream that Jinhyeok's synchronization rate was 100%.
Even if they harbored some suspicion by some fluke, it didn't matter.
There was no way to verify it.
"I thought you were angry because I was quiet."
"They were staring because it suits you so well."
And it really did.
An unbelievable fit.
No wonder people were making a fuss.
"Is that so."
Seira glanced at the full-length mirror beside her.
"It does suit me well."
Enviable. That self-assurance.
Grroowl!
A hearty rumble sounded from the side.
It looked like he needed to feed Kanchu something.
Stretching, he scanned the surroundings.
"Let's grab some food."
He'd gotten roughly what he needed, so the outlet shopping was done.
Now, all that remained was escaping the basement.
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T/N:
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