Stepping through the rift, Priam entered a chamber hewn directly from the rock by the roots of Log-a-rhythm. He took three strides forward, placing his hand on a root snaking along the wall. Secret Passage opened, and Priam stepped through into the clearing. Behind him, the tree’s trunk sealed shut as he lifted his gaze toward the Necromoon.
Suspended in the sky, the alien entity triggered a cataclysm with its re presence. When Priam would travel back in ti, everything suggested that the moon would notice the trickery... and ignore it. To the Necromoon, he was nothing.
Being overlooked by the stars had never stopped humanity from living, and Priam focused on his mission.
“Where are they?”
“A hundred ters from here. Seth refuses to enter Oasis,” Jasmine replied, her voice a whisper from within her shadowy concealnt.
“Either he’s paranoid... or the banishnt of necro corruption is affecting him,” Priam muttered, heading toward Ymir’s shop. He had business to attend to before the final act began.
The rchant stood near the Auction Altar and turned as Priam pushed aside the tent flap.
“Lord Priam, it is a pleasure to welco you to my humble shop,” Ymir said, fingers interlocked against his chest in a respectful gesture.
Priam returned the gesture with a polite smile. “rchant Ymir, I’m here to retrieve the fulcrum fragnt and propose a trade.”
In his right hand, he held Taishi’s spear. The legendary weapon was objectively superior to Prosse, cutting with greater ease and precision. In a test, Priam had struck both weapons against each other, chipping his own blade. However, Prosse was bound to him, and that made all the difference.
According to his phoenix ntor, it would be easier to enhance his weapon by reforging it in a ritual. That was intriguing, but not as appealing as the primary benefit of their bond: synchronizing their strengths. Currently, the weapon enjoyed a small portion of the effects of his Titles and Talents. By improving the [Prosse - Bound Weapon] Talent, the spear could potentially gain their full effects, even Priam’s resistances. In ti, he, too, would likely reap certain advantages.
Thus, Priam wasn’t planning to switch weapons but found it a sha to let a legendary weapon go to waste.
“When I chose Back in Ti, I knew I had to exploit this reward to its fullest to make it as valuable as Lord Fifth,” he confided to the rchant. “One of the deciding factors was Concepts Archipelago. My internal world is a Gold Talent and therefore part of . As such, it will likely travel back in ti with ... along with all the items within.”
Ymir nodded slightly, attentive.
“I want to duplicate your products,” Priam finally proposed. “Particularly the plants you cultivate.”
Ymir, a half-elf vegetarian with that Title, owned a greenhouse with a rare collection of plants. Priam intended to sacrifice them as samples to Log-a-rhythm, but their price had curbed his ambitions. Even for him, three million Sun points was an astronomical sum.
“Your offer is interesting, but what’s in it for ?” the rchant asked.
“I’ll take the clones of the plants, and you’ll keep the originals. You would get a free copy of every item in your shop.”
A contrite expression crossed the elf’s face. “My Lord... I don’t doubt your honor and am sure you’re not trying to cheat . However, and I an no offense, your reward isn’t a sufficient guarantee for to take this risk.”
“You think I might die before triggering Back in Ti,” Priam realized.
Ymir nodded. “Death, a mind break, control or wipe, a soul scar, a ti lock... I’m a rchant, not a warrior, but I know your enemies are powerful, and your Tribulations will do everything to stop you from escaping. In the dreadful event that you perish, I would be left with nothing.”
The rchant’s argunts were sound, and Priam decided to show so goodwill. “I can give you a portion of my current Sun points.”
Ymir’s smile returned. “That would be a good start.”
“A good start?”
“If Miss Jasmine adds her own points, we’d reach just over two million; a reasonable guarantee for the entirety of my stock.”
Priam’s shadow quivered, revealing Jasmine. “You can detect ?”
“rchants have a few interesting perks,” Ymir replied.
Jasmine narrowed her eyes. “Is this your shop?”
Ymir rely smiled, and Priam tucked the information away for later. A skilled thief might be able to outwit a rchant, but Jasmine was primarily an assassin.
The conversation had drifted, and Priam steered it back on course. “You’re asking for all my Sun points, and... Well, I have to admit I was hoping to keep so to confirm that the Auction was off-limits to .”
The phoenix had told him the System wanted to reward him, not provide a platform to scam other users, but he wanted to be sure.
“The Auction isn’t off-limits to you,” the rchant corrected. “But in practice, you can’t use it. When you purchase an item at the Auction, it takes twenty-four hours to arrive to prevent such exploits. I’m afraid luck isn’t on your side.”
“I see... In that case, I suppose I’ll settle for your herbs for two million.” It was already a million saved, and Priam didn’t want to waste ti haggling. He had bigger fish to fry.
Ymir led them to his private greenhouse and slid open a wooden partition, revealing a dazzling array of magical plants. “A pleasure doing business with you.”
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