Chapter 16. For Growth (3)
In the middle of the night when owls came out to cry, I came back from working out and collapsed on my bed.
Ever since I came to this world, I found it hard to fall asleep. My body was tired, but countless random thoughts emerged in my head preventing me from falling asleep.
How could I survive in this world? What actions should I take? Should I be a supporter who secretly helps the leading characters? Or should I become a villain and execute the evil side from the inside like in the noir movie I saw?
Then, I got suddenly curious about my current stats. I looked for my laptop.
===
▷Stats
*Variable stats
[Strength 1.735]
[Stamina 1.845]
[Speed 2.15]
[Perception 2.605]
[Vitality 1.65]
[Magic power 1.3]
===
Sure enough, my stats were on the rise. All stats other than magic power had surpassed an average adult male’s (1.5), and my perception could be said to have surpassed what an ordinary person was capable of having.
But I was still far from ready from entering a field. I needed money, it wouldn’t be long until the Packhorse Master guild would go public.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through my mind.
Indeed, going to the Field was the most honest way of making money. I had been putting it off because my stats were lacking, but after thinking about it carefully, there was a way around it.
I could make up for my lacking stats by using the laptop to strengthen my weapon. Just like Kim Suho, who would later use a single holy sword to sever a mountain…
It seemed like the quickest way to become stronger. But it was also a huge waste of SP.
I currently had a training gun provided by Cube and 380 SP I got from destroying my potential friendship with Chae Nayun. Now, suppose I also had the famous handgun, Desert Eagle.
Even if I invested all of my SP into strengthening my training gun, it would likely only come to equal the Desert Eagle.
In other words, SP was more efficient when it modified weapons with a more powerful base performance.
“Hm…”
Speaking of the Desert Eagle, I suddenly became curious. It was the only firearm I had in my setting.
Without getting up from my bed, I turned on my smartwatch and entered a weapons dealer website.
Essential Armory.
It was an armory operated by the ‘Essence of the Strait’ guild. Since weapons above the artifact grade were sold in auctions, Essential Armory was the most popular website for factory manufactured weapons.
[Welcome to Essential Armory.]
As expected of the most popular weapons dealer website, it was well designed. The homepage showed off new items, while the top bar had categories such as sword, spear, bow, and rapier. Perhaps because mercenaries often used the website, it also had a good selection of guns.
I clicked on [category – gun].
There were different types of guns such as handgun, assault rifle, and sniper rifle. For now, a handgun suited me best since it didn’t hinder my movements. The Desert Eagle seemed to be a popular choice among handguns, as I quickly found it.
===
Desert Eagle
—Feel the transcendental power! Built into the Desert Eagle is a magic amplification device that boosts the power of magic bullets! Because of its huge recoil, the Desert Eagle is recommended only for the most proficient sharpshooters.
*Weight: 3.5948kg (1.2938kg with weight reduction magic effect added)
*Length: 333mm
*Identification and contract required to purchase.
===
Desert Eagle. Its picture on the website looked much more beautiful than the original design. The barrel had an elegant platinum color, while a majestic eagle was inscribed on the grip. While looking like a piece of art, this weapon boasted a heavy weight and a bulky size.
Just from a glance, I could tell how powerful it was. There was just one problem.
“It’s too expensive.”
It was expensive. Its base price was 20 million won, and the price doubled when I clicked on a checkbox that said 'full attachments’. I needed the weapon to make money, so buying it almost seemed counterproductive.
“…Ehew.”
I tried to think about what to do, but my brain refused to function. My consciousness was foggy, and I felt drowsy. It seemed sleep would come to me soon.
I turned off the smartwatch without hesitation and entrusted myself to my instincts. Thinking about this could wait until tomorrow.
…When I opened my eyes back up, it was Wednesday.
Bright morning light shone through the curtain.
It was an unpleasant light no matter how many times I looked at it.
Another exhausting day had begun.
“Whew.”
With a sigh, I brushed off the negative emotions that came to me every morning. After trudging to the bathroom and getting washed, I put on my uniform and left the dorm. 10 minutes was enough for this routine.
Once outside, I saw other cadets getting ready for class. It was still early morning, but they were busy laughing and chatting. Seeing them enjoying their school life, I began to realize why I felt so lethargic.
I didn’t have a friend in this world. I didn’t even have someone to talk to. Being able to hang out with friends was the only thing keeping school from being boring, but I was no longer in my old world.
Should I try to look for a girlfriend?
No, I was too lazy for that. If I used too much of my emotion on needless human relationships, my condition could get worse.
Yep, I should just be content with dying alone.
With that, I quickened my pace to the classroom.
**
“As you know, a guild’s database contains many useful information. But most of the time, you have to reach a certain rank to get access to them.”
I thought about my weapon as I half-heartedly listened to an old professor’s lecture. The figure of a majestic eagle shimmered in front of my eyes.
How could I make the money to buy it?
The first thing I thought of was selling information.
I had designed most of the monsters myself, so I roughly knew their vital points and attributes. Since each guild had a different collection of data, if I sold them the information they didn’t have…
No, this wasn’t the best idea.
In the first place, it took 5 years for an information broker to build up his reputation. It also didn’t seem like a good idea to disrupt the world’s balance just to make some money.
“…Now, let’s continue after a little break.”
Before I noticed, break time rolled around. I immediately turned on my smartwatch to enter Essential Armory once more, but I had received an unexpected message.
[Excuse me.]
I was familiar with the sender’s name.
Rank 7, Yoo Yeonha.
Because smartwatches of cadets were connected to the Cube’s intranet, it was possible to message other cadets without knowing their exact contact address. This was the first time I was using this feature.
Yoo Yeonha was sitting in the front row. After giving the back of her head a quick glance, I replied to her message.
[What?]
[What are you?]
What nonsense was this?
[What do you mean?]
She didn’t reply for a while. I wondered where this was coming from, then remembered what I told her before. I peeked at the time. It was 1 P.M. I gave her the information yesterday and she already confirmed it was true?
[Ah, is it about that? I’m surprised you believed me.]
[What?]
[So? Wasn’t I right?]
In truth, I was also dying to know whether the Mountain Tyrant’s setting was unchanged. If this unknown co-author wanted to change everything I knew, I would have a tough time ahead of me.
[…Yes.]
“Whew.”
Thankfully, it seemed that wasn’t the case. I breathed a sigh of relief.
[How did you know?]
[You think I’d tell you?]
Yoo Yeonha’s shoulder twitched. Immediately afterwards, she returned a short reply.
[No.]
A smirk emerged on my face. When I was about to end the conversation, I remembered something.
Desert Eagle, the elegant and dignified bird of prey.
I had almost forgotten about it. The reason I gave the information to her was for times like this.
Coincidentally, Essential Armory was operated by Yoo Yeonha’s guild, ‘Essence of the Strait.’
[Anyways, if you benefited from the information I gave you, I’d like to ask for a favor.]
Yoo Yeonha suddenly turned around. As though she had kept an eye on my seat, she knew exactly where I was. Though her gaze was still sharp, it seemed to hold less weight.
How should I put it… Right, she looked like a big bag of money.