Chapter 202: Episode 202_Beco a Well-Treated Sucker (3)
5.
He had died several tis. On his way back, he had faced many more near-death crises. Ominous rumors of black magic mages roaming the lands were unavoidable, plastered across every community forum, amplifying his anxiety.
Despite it all, Nodaji hadn’t given up. He explored the ruins and finally returned with his prize.
“I haven’t reached the very end yet,” Nodaji explained. “With my current combat abilities, that’s as far as I could go. I plan to improve my stats and hunt a bit more to conquer the place.”
Such resolve! What kind of ruin could possibly make a man who had given up on hunting, believing it to be aningless, change his mind so drastically? Simin didn’t know the details, but he understood the sentint.
“I know that feeling well. That drive to work hard to earn money and provide for your family is a very admirable thing.”
Nodaji’s efforts, after all, translated directly into money for Simin. And now, he had brought back a Special-grade item. Nodaji’s Special items were particularly unique. If it was anything like his previous finds, it would be an exceptionally good item. No, being good was just a bonus; it might even have a function that Simin desperately needed, like increasing item drop rates.
The thought made his anticipation swell. He reached out to Nodaji, who was cautiously extending the ore.
“Um, boss, about the paynt...”
“I’ll check it and throw in a special bonus for you.”
Simin brushed aside the gentle protest with a show of generosity and took the ore. He imdiately identified it.
[Special Enhancent Stone]
[Grade: Special]
Silence fell. For a long while.
*
Han Simin wasn’t an entirely bad person. He might love money a little too much, but he treated his own people well enough and would occasionally pay a fair price for a valuable item.
So, this ti, he gave Nodaji a considerable sum for the Special Enhancent Stone.
“Whoa! Five thousand dollars! Thank you so much!” Nodaji exclaid.
“Not at all. It’s a Special item. We haven’t discovered its use yet, but it deserves a good price. Use that to upgrade your stats, and I hope you clear those ruins soon.”
“Yes, boss. Of course!”
In truth, compared to its Special grade, the price was a steal. This was a ga where even a random stone picked up off the street could fetch millions if it had a Special grade. Of course, there was a high chance of it being a dud, but even so, by Simin’s standards, it was an excessive reward. He could have easily co up with an excuse to pay less, but he deliberately chose not to.
’Nodaji is family now,’ he thought.
He had retrieved it from the middle of an uncleared ruin. An item like that was Special grade. What would he find if he cleared the whole thing? Moreover, the item was a Special Enhancent Stone. It was possible that more items related to Simin would appear. It was a perfectly logical investnt. An investnt with no downside. For Simin, who was already overflowing with money, it was an amount he could part with willingly.
After neatly transferring the funds, he put the money out of his mind and picked up the stone. The Specialists were just as intrigued.
“What in the world is this thing used for?”
“Maybe it improves the effects of an enhancent?”
“What if it gives you
3 levels with a single success?”
“Could it let you enhance sothing beyond
15?”
“Whoa! Seriously? That would be insane!” Yeseul gasped.
Speculations flew wildly, but no one could be certain. If there had been an item description, they could have at least made an educated guess, but all it said was ’Special grade.’ While he could interpret it however he wanted, Simin, as the owner, had to think long and hard.
There was only one. He had to hold onto the hope that he might find another, but he couldn’t expect it. He had to proceed as if this was the only one that would ever appear before the ga shut down. Only then could he figure out how to maximize its efficiency.
“Hmm.”
Even Simin, trying to be level-headed, had all sorts of theories racing through his mind. Most of the wild guesses from the Specialists were appealing, especially the idea that it could break the
15 limit. If that were possible...
’That’s insane.’
What would he enhance to
16? He might spend weeks just deciding, but if it was possible, there were plenty of candidates.
His deliberation continued for so ti before he finally stood up. When he did, the look of indecision was gone from his face. He had made up his mind. As everyone’s expectant gazes focused on him, Simin spoke.
“Let’s just enhance it first and see.”
He hadn’t finished deliberating. He had just postponed it.
*
Enhancing an enhancent stone.
For Simin, who spent his days pondering how to use his imagination to make more money in the hyper-realistic world of Fantastic World, it wasn’t a difficult concept to grasp. He had actually considered it several tis and even calculated the potential effects. But he had never put it into practice. The reason was simple.
“It’s a waste of money.”
Each stone cost one gold. Even if he ignored the enhancent fee since he was doing it himself, a single swing of the hamr cost $150. Even assuming the lower market rate from the past, that was about $120. To add that cost on top of the stone itself to enhance another item? It was just too inefficient, no matter how you looked at it. A
1 enhancent stone would need to double the effect just to break even, and since it didn’t, there was no point.
But things were different now. This was a Special Enhancent Stone. An item of Special grade. To just use a stone that might be the only one of its kind in the world as is?
“Well, anything will get better if I get it to
15.”
In Fantastic World, an item’s grade was a asure of its growth potential—the limit of its effectiveness. Naturally, he felt that a Special-grade enhancent stone was worth the investnt of enhancing it. Of course, there was no guarantee. He had no certainty. But it was an item worth gambling on, even if he lost it.
Most importantly, his recent awakening had expanded the scope of his enhancent ability. At the ti, he hadn’t given it much thought, but holding the Special Enhancent Stone now, he felt a flicker of excitent.
’Maybe...’
Maybe the body enhancent he had once dread of was now possible. His boundless imagination erased any hesitation about spending money. Enhancent stones rained down upon the Special Enhancent Stone resting on the anvil.
6.
For
1, it took one enhancent stone. As a sacrifice, another ten were added. For
2, twenty. For
3, forty. Simin, who had started with gusto, found his pace slowing with each successive attempt.
“Co on, you stole 20,000 of them, what are you hesitating for? I feel like hitting it for you,” Yeseul prodded.
“If it keeps increasing like this, I’ll run out of stones before I even get to
15,” Simin retorted.
“Nah, no way it’ll keep doubling, right?”
He hadn’t attempted
4 yet, but the signs were ominous. If it increased by twenty each ti, it would be painful but manageable. But if it truly doubled, by the ti he passed
10, a single attempt would require tens of thousands of stones as sacrifice. He didn’t think it would co to that, so he took a deep breath and brought the hamr down.
A flash of success. A sigh of relief.
“Phew.”
“What? What happened?” Yeseul asked eagerly.
“It didn’t double.”
Sixty stones. It was by no ans a small number, but it was better than eighty. Comparisons are always relative. Having already started, giving up was not an option. He steeled his resolve.
’There has to be sothing special about this.’
He brainwashed himself again and again. He hoped it was true. He prayed to Betago. Whatever he did, he had to challenge it after making the best possible preparations. Whether it was body enhancent or a
16 attempt, there were no do-overs.
“Whew. I guess I shouldn’t bear this kind of pressure alone.”
Amidst a mix of anticipation, tension, anxiety, and impatience, Simin’s mind raced. Ever the opportunist who never took a loss, he turned on his broadcast.
*
“Everyone, I’d like to begin with an apology.”
Simin’s face on the screen was more serious than ever before.
—????????
—What’s going on?
—Is this the last stream?
Naturally, the viewers were worried. Why would he say sothing like this out of the blue? Coming from soone who barely ever communicated with his audience, it was even more unsettling. Though he charged an exorbitant $100, his streams were a guaranteed source of entertainnt that was hard to find elsewhere. The viewers, imagining a world without his broadcasts, began to protest.
—Don’t go.
—At least stream once in a while.
Whatever was happening, they didn’t want him to stop. Donations even started pouring in. But Simin’s expression remained grim.
“No, I’m not quitting. I just have an announcent to make. To be honest, until now, I’ve been streaming as a hobby, for the viewers’ enjoynt rather than for money.”
And then ca the main point.
—???????????????????
—What did he say?
—Did I hear that right?
A wave of question marks flooded the chat. The worry of having misheard vanished in an instant. It was a statent that every single viewer, without exception, could not accept. But Simin continued, undeterred.
“But lately, things have been a little tough. I need to create content for the stream, and that requires money. But since I’m just an unemployed guy who plays gas, I don’t have a steady source of inco. The only money I make is from the stream and ad revenue, and after paying for rent, food, and savings, things are tight. To do an enhancent stream like this under these circumstances, it wouldn’t be strange to go into debt.”
—Hey, stop lying. You make hundreds of millions per stream.
—You shaless bastard!
[... has been kicked from the channel.]
Even as he spoke with a sorrowful expression, the purge continued unabated.
“So, I’ve made a decision. I can’t show my viewers a defeated side of , so I’ve decided to be just a little bit greedy. However, I won’t pass that burden onto you. You can continue to watch my streams at the sa affordable price. You don’t have to send any cash items, either. But! I will ask for a little more of your ti. Just one minute. It might be a bit of a hassle when you log in, but I would be grateful for your understanding.”
Then he delivered his sincere-sounding conclusion.
“Thank you so much. Now, I will continue with the enhancent.”
—???? Who gave you permission?
—Who are you thanking? I don’t think I agreed to anything yet.
—So you’re just saying you’re adding more ads, right? Seems like there are plenty already.
—I wonder if he has a conscience, but seeing how much he spends, I guess he does need to add an ad or two. They say each of those stones costs 1 gold.
As always, the viewers’ opinions were completely ignored. With his unilateral announcent, Simin had covered his losses through the broadcast, and the worry on his face eased considerably.
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