The country that benefited the most from the birth of the Auction House was, unexpectedly, not one you'd expect.
The Dwarven nation of Terin. They were the ones who gained the most from it.
DWARF 1
"The world is a better place! This era is calling for us dwarves!"
DWARF 2
"Right you are!"
Two dwarven men clinked their beer mugs together in a tavern.
CLANG—!
With a cheerful sound, a bit of beer overflowed, but the dwarves didn't pay it any mind. They had no time to worry about spilling a little beer.
Today was a joyous day to eat and drink until you drop!
That little spill was easily brushed off.
DWARF 1
"I don't know who the Head Admin is, but if they ever come to Terin, I'll treat them to a feast!"
DWARF 2
"Heh heh! The Head Admin might be a dwarf, you know."
DWARF 1
"The very fact that they opened an auction house is suspicious!"
Recently, the economic situation of the dwarves had improved for the most part, and their faces were all filled with smiles.
The Gallery Auction House.
A window was opened to sell all the goods of the world, and the dwarves were able to make advantageous deals.
DWARF 1
"Goodbye, poverty! Goodbye, the era without a Head Admin!"
The dwarves had lived in pain until now.
Stuck in the southeast of the continent and being a forest region, their distribution costs were high. No, they were extremely high. It was so bad that most of their net profit was eaten away by distribution costs.
Still, if the dwarves wanted to survive, they had no choice. Their specialty was manufactured goods: weapons, armor, accessories, farming tools, and so on. They had to trade to make a living. That's why the nation of Terin had been exporting even at a loss.
Because if they didn't go through the merchant guild of Theusser, one of the closest nations, they couldn't even sell. The next closest, the Osen Kingdom, had a small merchant guild and couldn't compete with the Theusser Empire.
What about trading with Maderos, the closest nation to the north? Maderos, located just to the north, was the nation of the Demon Race that dwarves despised.
...
They'd rather bite their tongues and die! They could never do that. They were savages! They knew nothing of the hearts of dwarves, who revered equipment!
So, the dwarves had no choice.
DWARF 1
*Gulp.*
The dwarves had endured many dissatisfying trades.
The horse taming technology of the Theusser Empire was something no one else could match. But that was a thing of the past. Thanks to the auction house system born in the Gallery, they had escaped all those constraints.
DWARF 2
"We're free! We are no longer slaves to distribution!"
DWARF 1
"*Huuuh...!* Even if I sell it cheap, there's profit left after excluding distribution costs! How much I've struggled until now to match prices...!"
DWARF 2
"Right you are. You have no idea how great it is."
Thanks to the increased profit, they could drink plenty of refreshing beer! Who would've thought they'd be this grateful.
One of the dwarves, who had been laughing and shouting, muttered to himself.
DWARF
"I'm so grateful, I want to do something for them..."
He wanted to express his gratitude to the Head Admin. What would be an appropriate gift?
As he pondered, he went 'Ah,' and nodded. Anything the dwarves make is a masterpiece. He could just gift one of those.
He called his colleagues over and relayed his idea.
DWARF
"I'm thinking of making something for the Head Admin as a thank you. What do you think?"
DWARF 2
"What kind of thing are you thinking of making?"
DWARF
"I wish for the Head Admin to live a long life, so we should make something worthy of that!"
DWARF 3
"Something easy to carry... and that can prevent life-threatening danger. That would be it."
DWARF 4
"Hey! Valin! Get over here!"
The dwarf craftsmen gathered one by two, starting to voice their opinions in their respective fields. The project seemed to be growing bigger than expected. But that's fine.
The dwarf who led the project brushed it off and suggested what to make. It was a gift to express infinite gratitude to the Head Admin. They just wanted to give the best gift possible.
DWARF
"Then how about making it according to this design?"
DWARF 2
"Oh. Not bad."
DWARF 3
"It's a bit tricky... Scottlin, can you handle this level with gem crafting?"
SCOTTLIN
"Are you looking down on me? It's as easy as drinking beer lying down."
DWARF 4
"I'll do the engraving."
DWARF 5
"Everyone, clear your schedules for a few days and make it. A suitable item will come out. Let's each take some time!"
With a light idea, an extraordinary item began to be crafted. As the dwarves heated up with their creation...
The Gallery was still captivated by Cola. It was a black liquid that made the Demon Race gasp, humans faint, and Elves rave about.
Title) Pour more Cola please Please.
💬 Comments
— User123
Please give us Cola.
— User456
Cola!!!! More !!!!!
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"These guys must be possessed by the ghosts of those who died without drinking Cola."
Ah. They had lived without Cola. As a modern person who had been drinking Cola since birth, the Head Admin found it hard to understand. A life without Cola? He'd rather die. How do they even live? He finally understood.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
HEAD ADMIN
"Hmm. Now, instead of Cola, should I put up something else?"
Cola is a beverage destined for success. Hadn't it been selling black water for 100 years on Earth alone?
The name value is so high that 'black water' brings Cola to mind before oil. If he sold Cola... shouldn't he also sell a beverage worthy of it?
After some thought, he chose Cider from the list. If you sell black water, you should sell white water too.
HEAD ADMIN
"But will I even have time to manage the Gallery like this?"
The auction house was taking more time than expected, making his schedule grueling. It was still much better than his days running the Minor Gallery, but thinking about how more features like this would be added in the future... he needed a solution.
First, let's sell the Cider and then think about what to do. He needed to create a more efficient process for managing the Gallery, or make the Sub Admins pull their weight.
Just as he was about to select Zero Cider to sell again, a message chimed and popped up.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙
The Auction House level has increased!
HEAD ADMIN
"...Huh?"
Did the Auction House have levels?
⚔ STATUS ⚔
Gallery Management Level: 3
Auction House Level: 2
Points: 34034
[Weapons] [Armor] [Accessories] [Consumables] [Food] [Etc.]
HEAD ADMIN
"...What's this? Something new popped up?"
First, he decided to check what had changed.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
A few days after the Cola craze hit the Gallery.
The buzz in the Otherworld Gallery -a gallery that had lost its preciousness by being deceived by familiarity- continued to roll.
Title) Isn't Cola getting a bit boring now? If you're bored, give it a downvote. lol
💬 Comments
— User123
Then don't drink it. lol
— User456
I drank it well for you. lol
⭐ Top Comment
— User789
lol One competitor down~
Of course, most were still thirsty for Cola.
💬 Comments
— User123
For real, I don't know. I need to drink about 5 more Colas to find out...
— User456
I need 10...
— User789
I need to drink 3 glasses a day to know, for real.
— User012
If you mix it with alcohol, it doesn't get boring. lolol
— User112
? Why would you do that to Cola???
— User113
Try mixing it with Valen 28-year-old at a 1:1 ratio. Yeah.
— User114
Wow lol Holy shit lol It's surprisingly tasty.
— User115
This is pretty good, you know?
— User116
I thought Cola was getting boring, but it's not at all.
— User117
If you eat it with french fries, it doesn't get boring.
— User118
It doesn't get boring even with meat lol
⭐ Top Comment
— User119
Cola is indeed the drink of the gods, and the Head Admin is indeed a god. Yeah...
Title) But can't Cola be sold permanently? I feel bad for the Head Admin, having to manually sell it every day.
💬 Comments
— User120
If you let me handle the Cola, I'd sell it for you.
— User121
I can sell Cola too, leave it to me.
— User122
23 years of market street vendor experience, fully capable.
— User123
3 years as a home security guard, can I do it?
— User124
Home security guard specs are pretty tough, yeah.;;
Cola talk continued in the Gallery. However, the most important topic was predetermined.
"It's just too hard to buy Cola."
To buy Cola, you have to compete fiercely with others. And if you don't drink it, it's like there's a drug in the drink. It's too thrilling and you keep thinking about it. It doesn't interfere with daily life, but you just end up wanting to drink Cola.
Title) Is there a drug in Cola? Yeah;
💬 Comments
— User125
No drug components were found.
— User126
The Elves analyzed it this time and said there are no drug components.
— User127
I heard it's 1% of something that creates a sweet taste and a brain-awakening effect, and the other 99% is water. Is that possible?
— User128
Is that possible?
— User129
If it's possible, they must be selling it. lol
— User130
How the hell do they do it?
— User131
It's not a drug, but the analysis says it's not good to drink a lot of Cola.
— User132
They said to only drink up to 3 glasses a day.
— User133
What happens if I drink 4 glasses?
— User134
You feel as good as with 4 glasses.
— User135
lol I'm going to feel good with 5 glasses lol
⭐ Top Comment
— User136
It's not that bad, but it's not like it's good for you either. If you feel weird, just drink in moderation.
💬 Comments
— User137
This seems right. Yeah.
— User138
If my body breaks while drinking, I can just get it fixed at the church then. It's fine, it's fine.
— User139
The church is not a resurrection point.
— User140
The priests are sobbing lol
— User141
They can't even fix you at the church, you idiots. lol
Even though it's not a drug, it's not a very good beverage either. Thanks to the facts revealed by the Elves obsessed with research, a lot of information circulated in the Gallery.
Cola should be drunk in moderation. But it says it's good if you drink it in moderation, so there's no problem, right? In the end, Cola consumption increased again, and the Head Admin had more work to do.
Title) When is Cola being sold this time? Yeah?
💬 Comments
— User142
For real...
— User143
I'm exhausted...
— User144
I'm cold... Head Admin... where are you...
— User145
The Cola component is gone...
Resellers were even appearing because of the Cola. The supply couldn't keep up with the demand. Even if he put it up anticipating the demand, a prediction is just a prediction. There's a limit. Even if he knew the number of people in the Gallery, it sold out so fast, there was nothing he could do.
As the Gallery users were desperately calling for Cola for a long time, they discovered something strange.
Title) Cola is up!!!!!!!!!!!
💬 Comments
— User146
For real?
— User147
Not a bait, right?
— User148
? It's real.
— User149
Why is this real?
Title) Cola is up, but 6 for 1 Silver..?
💬 Comments
— User150
????
— User151
Is this real? lol
— User152
What the hell is this? lol
— User153
Is Cola increasing? lol
Title) Also, Cola purchase is unlimited; I pressed 1000 to check if it works and got screwed
💬 Comments
— User154
lololololol
— User155
The whole town will have to drink all the Cola now. lol
— User156
I'm already sprinkling it around me...
— User157
Wouldn't it be fine if I just don't claim it?
— User158
If you don't claim it, the item disappears after 3 days...
— User159
For real? Oh, there was a feature like that.
Title) How did this happen? ???
💬 Comments
— User160
I wonder too.
— User161
Must have done something.
— User162
This is possible, huh. lol
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
HEAD ADMIN
"Yeah. It works."
The Head Admin muttered while looking at the Gallery. When he checked the message that suddenly popped up, several features had been added.
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡
[Auction House Sales Fee Exchange]
Exchange fees for Admin Points.
50 Silver : 1 Point exchange rate.
Feature Unlock: 10,000 Points
⚡ SKILL ACTIVATED ⚡
[Auction House Auto-Listing]
Automatically lists designated items in the Auction House.
Feature Unlock: 10,000 Points
HEAD ADMIN
"...This is good."
The sales fees were practically overflowing now. To the point where it was like having nearly 10 billion won on Earth, but it was useless for Gallery surfing. He flew through 20,000 points to unlock two features, but it was worth the cost.
'Oh.'
Points were piling up as soon as he unlocked them. All the fees were being converted into Admin Points...! The points were then converted back into Cola and Cider.
HEAD ADMIN
"Ah. Points are being duplicated."
He registered Cola in the Auction House. He put up a 6-pack bundle for 1 Silver, and Cider the same way, a 6-pack for 1 Silver. And then he immediately wrote a post in the Gallery.
— Head Admin Title) Cola is up. Yeah. And Cider is up too. Yeah;
💬 Comments
— User163
Cider? What's this?
— User164
Ah, lol It's super refreshing when you drink it! But is this right? 6 are coming.
— User165
? Why is it 6 for 1 Silver?
— User166
What the hell is this? lol
— User167
Wait, are you suddenly giving 6 times the amount?
— User168
Unlimited quantity with a 6x event; Is the Head Admin not doing business tomorrow?
⭐ Top Comment
— User169
Head Admin) Nah.
💬 Comments
— User170
Ah, lol
— User171
Head Admin!! Head Admin!! Head Admin!! Head Admin!! Head Admin!! Head Admin!! Head Admin!! Head Admin!!
Title) Head Admin oppa... how much do I have to show you? (Elf pic shyly covering her lower abdomen with her hand.jpg)
💬 Comments
— User172
Ah, lol
— User173
Now the real Elf wife is going to leave. lol
— User174
This I can't miss. lol
— User175
Gold fur is visible?
— User176
If she says let's have sex, she'd do it. lol
— User177
For real lol
— User178
I thought Elves were strict about chastity?
— User179
That's not it, no.
— User180
It seems they're only strict with you.
— User181
Well, guess so. lol
— User182
Elves stay with a man for life if they think he's good.
⭐ Top Comment
— User183
Head Admin) Put it up. I'll be the only one to see it.
💬 Comments
— User184
Is that possible?
— User185
Would it be possible? lol
— User186
Can you post it privately? lol
— User187
Are you going to use the Gallery alone? lol
While the Gallery was being heated up by the Elf's pelvic bone, another post went up.
Title) You shady white-skinned folks. (A pic of a sexy Dark Elf sister's butt.jpg)
"Acting all innocent in the front. Lewd in the back."
"We Dark Elves are always confident."
💬 Comments
— User188
Ah, lol
— User189
The Dark Elf sister's butt is no joke.
— User190
Head Admin) I want to be a Dark Elf when I grow up! I want to be a Dark Elf when I grow up! I want to be a Dark Elf when I grow up! I want to be a Dark Elf when I grow up!
— User191
What are you doing, you bastard. lol
— User192
lol What happens when you grow up to be a Dark Elf? lol
— User193
Wait, isn't this guy a Dark Elf already?
— User194
In fact, isn't it an Elf? For real lol
The Gallery was peacefully turning for the day. A peaceful Gallery, but.
⚠️ CRITICAL WARNING ⚠️
It seems I'll get caught up in your trick, Head Admin.
Someone scoffed and connected to the Auction House.
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