Deon leaned back in his chair, staring at the Level purchase screen for a few more seconds before closing it with a thought.
If this were still District 4, he would’ve bought the Levels without hesitation. Being faster, stronger, and harder to kill was the kind of simple improvent even an idiot could understand.
But right now, he didn’t need any of that...at least, yet. So Deon opened the Card Shop again. He filtered them by function, looking for mostly [Support-based] Cards or [Recon-based] Cards.
The panel flickered, rearranging itself as new Skill Cards appeared beneath a glowing header.
[Recomnded Skill Cards]
[Thread (Common): 10 Points – Creates a thin, invisible thread between two objects. If the thread breaks, the user receives a ntal ping.]
Hmm, maybe useful but fulfills only one niche. And I’m not particularly worried of the others anyway. Next.
[Quiet Step (Uncommon): 50 Points – Muffles the user’s footsteps for 1 minute.]
Not bad as well, maybe so rooms require to be sneaky and steal sothing. Will buy when the situation arises...Next.
Deon scrolled through the rest of the options, which only contained skills that were good at their specific niche, but outright useless in others. Even the Rare Cards followed this trend.
He kept a few of them in his mind, but the rest...
"Trash..."
[ClownWithWifi: Ain’t no way bro called the shop trash!]
[ChairGoblin_22: Thread is actually decent tho]
[RandomToastEnjoyer: lowkey most Cards in the shop are worse than dropped or gacha’d ones.]
[LovesAGoodBargain: Information tools are rarely useless. But so are definitely overpriced for their value.]
What they said had rit, but once again, the sa problem erged. They were useful tools—yes, but tools were only good after he knew what job needed doing.
Buying them now would be like buying a hamr because he might need to fix a pipe later. He tapped on one of the Rare Cards that at least sounded promising.
[Red String (Rare): 200 Points – Attach a string to an object and yourself, causing it to permanently be bound. Any changes in condition to the object affects you and vice-versa (does not work with other Cards)]
Tch...
For a second there, Deon thought he could get a permanently bound Card, recreating the effects of a True Holder. But maybe that wasn’t so easy.
Hana looked over from the shelves. "Did you find anything?"
"Several ways to waste Points."
"So...no?"
"No."
Vivian, who had been inspecting the painting above the desk, glanced back with a lazy smile. "Why not get sothing? You’re the richest one out of all of us?"
"No thanks," Deon replied imdiately. "After my experiences with money...I’d rather be frugal, thanks."
"Suit yourself," she shrugged before lying on one of the red chairs and almost imdiately falling into a nap.
Unbelievable! How can soone take a nap in a death ga with such a tight ti crunch?!
Deon found that his jaw was wide open before proceeding to close it. He turned, looking one last ti at the shop before closing that as well.
But just as he was to start looking through the stack of papers in the table ahead, a new ssage appeared in the chat that caught his eye.
[GraveyardArchivist: Would you like to buy one of my Skill Cards?]
GraveyardArchivist? I’ve never seen this na before. Has he always been lurking my chat?
Deon looked at the Viewers tab, seeing if it had gone up, and to his surprise...it had...by a few people.
[Viewers: 15]
[ClownWithWifi: oh hell nah]
[ChairGoblin_22: archivist spoke???]
[RandomToastEnjoyer: bro was lurking this whole ti]
Even the chat seed to slow when the Archivist ca in. Not stopped, obviously. These people seem physically incapable of shutting up, but the mood changed just enough for Deon to notice.
"You guys know him?"
[RandomToastEnjoyer: creepy lore guy]
[ChairGoblin_22: he mostly just watches]
[GraveyardArchivist: So? What do you say?]
"Hmm..." Deon scratched his cheek. "Tell what it does first, then I’ll decide."
Ding!
[Private Trade Offer Received.]
Deon opened the notification with a tap.
[Private Trade Offer]
[Viewer: GraveyardArchivist]
[Offer: Personal Skill Card]
[Skill: Playback (Expand)]
[Price: 300 Points]
Three hundred Points? So this seems to sit sowhere in between a Rare and Epic Skill Card...seems valuable, but is it what I need right now?
Deon tapped on [Expand].
[Playback]
[By touching an object, the user may reconstruct a fragnted mory tied to the object’s strongest lingering impression.]
[The clarity of the reconstruction depends on object condition, emotional residue, and temporal distance.]
[Warning: mories may be incomplete, distorted, or contaminated.]
Deon saw the value of it instantly. In a mansion full of hidden mysteries, filled with lies...this—was the closest thing to an objective witness he could buy.
But three hundred Points...that’s pretty much everything I have. I’m gonna go broke again for sure.
Yet that wasn’t even the biggest problem. As it stands, Points are a currency...but they’re also a ranking.
Deon noticed that Mimi had called this the Second Ga, whilst the Ga Master had called the ruined city the First Scenario.
That distinction had been bothering Deon ever since they arrived. During the First Scenario, Musical Chairs had been the First Ga, and even then, there were multiple rounds inside it.
If this was only the Second Ga, then it ant this mansion was still inside the First Scenario.
There could be another Ga after this. Maybe even more. And if the Scenario ranking was calculated at the very end...
Then spending three hundred Points here could be the sa as voluntarily cutting his own legs off before the finish line.
Deon’s eyes moved toward the corner of his panel.
[Current Points: 371]
Then toward the offer.
[Playback — 300 Points]
I’d fall to 71 if I accept, that doesn’t even scratch the Top 10, let alone the Top 5.
But most importantly...
Deon knew it might not be enough to beat Levi. If he spent three hundred Points now and Levi didn’t. Then by the ti this Scenario ended, Deon could lose first place without even knowing when it happened.
And sothing told him that the title of "First Place" didn’t co without its rits or advantages.
But then ca the other problem. First Place only mattered if he lived long enough to claim it.
Deon stared at the offer again.
[Playback — 300 Points]
"Ah, screw it."
[Trade Offer Accepted.]
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