Exclusive Store (3)
“It’s more than what you expected.”
“Yeah?”
“Death, pleasure, and loss. In the end, I must say that I admire Fate’s mental power and will. It’s really great, beautiful. It is absolutely impossible for me.”
I was a little embarrassed by the unexpected praise. This uncle knew my situation, so it was not surprising to him. I told him with all my heart that I would not be affected by his praise.
“What’s your name?” I asked the man.
“It is Rain (B). You can call me Rain,” he answered, a smile still plastered on his face.
It’s almost as if the Bartender stressed the letter ‘B’ for some reason, but I decided not to ask. After what he said, he placed the glass in front of me.
“But I have to make a few things clear. I call Fate ‘Today’s Luck’. I think it will be one of the most significant benefits that Fate can get from a dedicated store.”
I wondered where I had seen the phrase ‘Today’s luck.’ Then I remembered that I had seen it in the notification window.
I lingered and looked at the glass and asked, “Isn’t this just a drink?”
“That is correct. At least that’s not what Fate thinks,” he answered.
I didn’t know where he got the drink from, but I poured it into my glass. The hot reddish liquor filled the glass a little.
“Now, take it hot.”
“… … Whoo.”
There was one thing I was convinced of. Rain didn’t mean any harm to me.
I drank with confidence though I did not know where the drink came from.
“Okay.”
The alcohol was fiery and cold at the same time. I felt my lungs burning the moment the violent scent filled my mouth and nostrils. It was an intense experience indeed.
But there was something that surprised me more than that.
[‘Acquisition experience 1.5 times’ is applied for 3 hours from the moment you leave the exclusive store.]
At that instant, I found out why this drink was called ‘Today’s Luck.’
“The effect is random?”
Rain nodded very lightly and asked me in a hushed tone, “Sure. Did you win?”
“It’s 1.5 times the experience for 3 hours. Is this a prize?” I asked.
“Hoohoo, that’s a secret,” he laughed lightly.
Before I could wrap my head around the new situation, he took the glass from me.
“Fate, you know, this is a shop. I’m only here to sell things that exist in the store to Fate. I know Fate, and Fate knows me, so now I want to show you the products that you can buy with your current money. What do you think?”
“Okay, show me.”
“I like your answer. Let me show you.”
As soon as he finished saying those words, a glass window came to before my eyes. It was like looking at a catalog of home shopping. Number, photo, and description. It was in repetition.
However, there were only four products I could buy.
First, the Hardened Steel Sword (150/150). Rare degree normal, attack power 70 at 50 silver.
Second, was the Reinforced Bronze Shield (300/300). Rare degree normal, defense 95 at 50 silver.
Third, Leather Armor (180/180). Rareness normal, defense 60 at 40 silver.
The fourth was the Emotion Scroll (1/1). It is a rare item,and the emotion of the object is possible at 55 silver.
Reinforced steel swords and reinforced bronze shields cost 50 silver each. Set aside the emotion scroll.
Why was it that the ‘Leather Armor’ had no other prefix? Moreover, it was cheaper than the sword and shield. Perhaps it was because its quality was lower than swords and shields.
“Rain, I have issues with the third,” I informed him.
“Yeah. Reinforced Leather Armor is currently not available for purchase with your money, so I showed you the Leather Armor instead,” Rain answered.
Damn it, Reinforced Armor was what I wanted the most right now!
Should I buy and wear 60 Leather Armor? If not, should I collect more money and come back to the store later to buy reinforced leather armor? I was worried. But then, Rain smiled at me and said, “Fate, I admired Fate’s mental strength and will.”
“You already told me,” I muttered.
“I can see that you have decided on just two products and not the other two. So just for today, just between you and me, the discount rate will be provided.”
Immediately after he finished speaking, a new window appeared in front of my eyes. As I looked at it, I thought, even though Rain was not necessarily an awful person, he sure was vicious.
[1. Rare item. Blood Iron Armor (480/480)-Defense 230. If you absorb more than a certain amount of blood, the item grows by itself, and the durability is restored by soaking it in blood. Special sale price 55 silver.]
[2. Rareness cannot be measured. The body under human emphasis (90/90). Includes redemption bonus for Seoul, Jongno-gu, Korea when purchasing Special sale price 57 silver 70 bronze.]
I wanted to say something. I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
“Do you like the special sale product?” Rain asked.
“Ah… Mmmm… … uh… ….”
Even though I knew that the words I was trying to say weren’t forming in my mouth, I was determined that I wouldn’t leave without saying something.
“Is this what happens?”
“I quickly recovered the body from which I lost my soul with Fate. If Fate’s soul escapes from one body and settles again in a human body, the heart will start to run again,” Rain said.
“What!? Is that possible?” I exclaimed.
“Of course, it’s possible. I never lie,” Rain answered confidently.
Even the reliable words of Rain seemed to mock me. As I listened to him, conceited thoughts filled my mind.
My heart was having a seizure again, but this time, it was so much that I didn’t need a knife. Looking at me, Rain’s smile deepened. I could barely calm down. So, I opened my mouth, and without holding back, and let out the screams and growls.
“It is possible. Don’t you think?”
“Of course. However, you will need to prepare a suitable excuse for those around you. You could say you were sucked into a small warp gate that happened all over the world during the Great Convergence, or you summoned it while in the dungeon.”
“Then you have nothing to worry about! If I could return to humans, I would return to my former position again!” I said.
As he handed me the second item, he stopped momentarily and looked at me.
“Back to my location. Back to my position when I was one of the ugly ones. A despicable guy who just lived every day without any dreams, wills, or possibilities?” Rain said.
“Rain, can I ask you a few questions?” My voice was surprisingly calm.
Rain gently smiles and replied, “I am also not well informed, but I’ll give you a free answer today, only for what I think is okay to answer.”
I asked him in a rush, “What happened to the earth?”
“The Great Convergence caused the Earth to become one with Hatter. Except for a number of complicated explanations, now on Earth, abilities, monsters, dungeons, and labyrinths are being played. Everything has changed,” he answered.
It was just as expected. Just before I died, the announcer was talking about what was happening. A monster had appeared. If it actually did, then yes. It would have been the same world as Rain knew.
I subsequently asked, “When I go back to being human, will I still have an ebon heart and predation?”
“No. Fate would have seen it with his own eyes. The skill column will be empty,” was his firm answer.
The answer was also as expected. This skill was only obtained because I was a Goblin, and I had the Goblin’s body. A human being could not handle the ability. I had no such strong talent. That is not what I was born with.
Then that was it! The talent that saved me as a Goblin and made me alive so far was the ebon heart!
I closed my eyes and opened them. I took a breath as I prepared to ask the third question, and I met Rain’s calm stare.
Rain exhaled and then asked me, “Are you not going to ask?”
“I don’t want to,” I responded quickly. What if I asked and he doesn’t answer?
Rain smiled again and asked me, “Would you like to buy it?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. But before that, I have another question.” I paused briefly, as I watched the middle-aged man wipes a glass with a dry cloth.
“However…” I started but couldn’t finish the question.
“If I continue evolving into a Hob Goblin, will I become human again? No, I meant to ask, will I be able to work in human society?”
“Huh, of course!” He smiled with sincerity. I wasn’t sure whether he liked the way I changed the question midway or not.
“Good. I have heard everything I need to,” I replied, shedding the hesitation in my mind.
“I will buy a blood iron armor.”
Back to humans? What will I do if a weak human body falls into a world full of other abilities or monsters? Only then will I be able to eat Jjajangmyeon. However, the jjajangmyeon eaten by the ‘ugly man,’ who has no room for growth, will definitely not taste better than the Goblins I had hunted and eaten.
When I received the quest, I recalled the text that appeared in the notification window: Curse and Blessing.
That was right. My situation was really cursed, but at the same time, it was a blessing.
I was born as an ugly man, lived as an ugly man, and died as an ugly man. I got the chance to seize the position of a real man, not just to envy other good men.
I tried to imagine where I had been before. It was possible at this age. From Goblin to Goblin Fighter to Hob Goblin, it was a possible choice as I grew.
I will win. I was tired of only envying the strong and the mighty. It was terrible to think about going back to humans. I wanted to be stronger. I wanted to survive, but I wanted to be strong enough to be similar to them. I want to be strong in order to survive, and I also want to survive to become strong.
I had previously thought the two desires were forming an up-and-down relationship within me, but I was wrong. I wanted to be strong from the beginning.
Humans go inside because they are afraid of coming out. That’s right, but it wasn’t the only reason. I found a rational reason to conceal my own irrational needs. And when I admitted it, I felt comfortable. At this moment, ‘strong’ and ‘live’ within me have equal weight.
As if he knew it well, Rain said with a satisfied smile, “It really is an excellent choice. It is not uncommon for recovery and growth to occur only by soaking in blood.”
The process of physically giving him money was not necessary. The 55 silver in the inventory disappeared automatically, and almost instantly, a full body armor made of reddish-red steel came into the inventory.
I replied, looking at it and my Blood Bastard Sword next to it, “But above all, there is a reason why I picked this out.”
“Huh, why?”
Rain smiled steadily and accepted my question. But I knew that the Blood Bastard Sword I got from the Goblin Warrior was also a weapon that can be grown just by soaking it in the blood. He wasn’t really an ordinary Goblin Warrior because not only did he have magic, but he eventually defeated a mercenary who had intense energy. It seemed like a miracle that I was able to kill him.
“Fate, I have a last gift to offer.”
“What is it?”
“It’s time,” he replied without thinking.
“Time?” I asked, confused.
“Yeah. We will increase the time limit by 11 minutes to 12 hours and 11 minutes. I know I haven’t been able to sleep for a while. What do you think?”
I refused with a bitter smile and said, “That’s okay. It is not normal now. It’s never normal for a natural sleeping bath to be treated more than it is. As long as you accept this sleep bath as a condition, your resistance to condition abnormality will continue to rise.”
Only
Rain was speechless. Perhaps his appearance is rare, I thought.
“I don’t want to give myself room. Later, very later, I will pay a fair price. Maybe by that time, you won’t have to buy time.”
“This is absolutely surprising for me. Fate is amazing.”
“Then, can I just ask one more question?”
“Hahaha, I see. Ask.”
‘Fate would have already died, but why are you calling me Fate and not Kang Si-ha?’
I intended to ask this question, but came out of my mouth was, “do you sell Jjajangmyeon?”
Rain smiled and replied, “It’s worth 5 gold, guest.”
Comments