A list of equipnt appeared in my mind.
All of it was A-rank.
There were occasionally so B-rank items as well.
‘There aren’t many items.’
I thought I would spend quite a bit of ti deliberating, but there weren’t that many options after all.
‘The performance is not bad.’
It’s A-rank, after all.
It’s not easy to find this kind of equipnt anywhere else.
Honestly, could I find sothing better than this on the upper floors?
It was reliable enough to make question that.
‘I can take up to three of these?’
There’s no limit to the number of attempts.
Unless I get eliminated in the mission and my information gets reported to the ‘police station,’ that is.
‘For now, I’ll avoid the artifact.’
If I chose an artifact, I wouldn’t even know what could happen.
I’d be furious if the Illusory Book devoured it again, and I couldn’t buy it back.
I do agree that the Illusory Book needs to be leveled up eventually, but it’s not urgent right now.
‘Armor.’
I looked through the armor instead of the weapons.
Right now, survival was more important to than offense.
When I can’t kill an opponent in one blow, when I encounter soone who can withstand my skills,
it’s honestly too dangerous.
To remove the variable, I decided to go with armor.
‘Artifacts…’
The reward itself was an A-rank artifact.
The background of the 5th floor and the fact that it was similar to the modern world I knew made suspicious at first.
‘I didn’t expect to see familiar nas.’
But there were also completely different nas.
Even if the history was similar, it didn’t seem like the nas of the great people were always the sa.
[Chungmugong's Wae Myultae Sword (Blue)][A]
One artifact caught my eye.
As a Korean, I couldn’t just pass by it.
‘Wae Myultae Sword?’
Just hearing the na, I could tell its purpose.
‘But didn’t Admiral Yi Sun-sin only command naval battles?’
He was a general.
He probably wouldn’t have participated in hand-to-hand combat unless absolutely necessary.
[Chungmugong's Wae Myultae Sword (Blue)][A]
Type: Taedo (Sword)
Stats▼
【Attack: ＋69】
【Durability: 150/150】
Options▼
【Cleaving Strike Lv.7】
【Protector of Joseon Lv.6】
【Automatic Restoration Lv.5】
The attack power is decent.
Most A-rank weapons have similar stats.
What’s important are the options.
‘Two damage amplification options.’
Since it’s blue in color, there aren’t many options, but the levels of the options were high, which guaranteed its quality.
[Cleaving Strike Lv.7]
When performing a slashing attack, physical damage ＋35%.
The weapon’s options weren’t affected by the tooltip error.
I knew this from when I first acquired the equipnt.
‘Is it not treated as a skill?’
It seems to be closer to the weapon’s stats.
In contrast, the options for artifacts are treated as skills, not stats.
‘But artifacts are devoured by the Illusory Book.’
[Protector of Joseon Lv.6]
When worn by a Joseon person, all stats ＋6.
Automatic Restoration gradually recovers durability over ti.
It’s a good option that prevents equipnt from breaking if I take breaks in between.
‘...What I need right now is armor.’
I don’t particularly need weapons.
I looked through the armor.
All of them seed uncomfortable.
‘This isn’t easy.’
It was hard to make a decision.
Just then, soone appeared.
A person I’d never seen before in the empty room.
I could imdiately tell he was an administrator.
“Not bad for a new player.”
The administrator was wearing a police uniform.
It was identical to the uniform worn by the police faction players.
‘A typical detective look.’
He looked the part.
With a neatly grood beard, sharp eyes, and a harsh-looking impression.
If this man were to suddenly show his ID and ask to step aside to talk for a mont, I’d instinctively turn around and run, even if I hadn’t done anything wrong.
“I thought it would take a while, so I ca by.”
He’s speaking informally right off the bat.
But I couldn’t say anything.
The man in front of was a transcendent, the strongest kind of player, and I was just a climber, a weakling.
“What kind of equipnt do you want? Just tell , I’ll find it for you.”
“Is that really a feature?”
“It is. But I haven’t granted you the authority to access it. If you start searching carelessly, it’ll burden the floor.”
“......”
How can I be sure the equipnt you’re showing is the best?
A suspicious thought crossed my mind.
It seed like the man read my thoughts and chuckled.
“The A-rank equipnt given as rewards on the 5th floor? It’s pretty much the sa stuff. At best, it’ll get you to the 20th floor. Do you think I’d feed newbie players equipnt like that? Do transcendent players seem so insignificant to you?”
“......”
“Ah, there are famous transcendent players on the lower floors. A ridiculously light dragon.”
Blinky seed to be famous everywhere.
Everyone knew who he was.
“Don’t worry. I won’t ss with the rewards. I’ll recomnd the most useful reward for you.”
“...Really?”
“Yeah. That’s how you’ll work harder on missions, right? You’re not going to just take this reward and go up right away, are you?”
I wasn’t planning to go up until I’ve used up my stack.
Even if they told to go up, I wouldn’t.
If I can milk it, I’ll milk it.
“Everyone who chooses the thief faction has a desire to get stronger. No one is satisfied with just one ti.”
“I understand.”
Elise, King of Thieves, the Great Mage.
They must have a clear record by now.
They must have earned the qualification to go to the 6th floor long ago.
But I stayed and held out.
There’s still sothing I can gain from the 5th floor.
‘Even if the A-rank equipnt from here only lasts up to the 20th floor... honestly, it’s better than nothing.’
I told the man what I wanted.
“Armor... equipnt? Or artifacts?”
“I want armor.”
“Honestly, let advise you. Armor isn’t as efficient as artifacts. You know that artifacts let you use skills regardless of slots.”
I understood what he ant.
‘Simply increasing durability isn’t as efficient as boosting attack power.’
Health stats include both vitality and durability.
But the durability of armor is just durability.
The reason I increase my health is not to boost durability, but to gain more vitality above a certain threshold.
‘I know. I know.’
The Illusory Book.
What am I supposed to do when this bastard devours artifacts?
“Let show you first. Starting with artifacts.”
A list appeared.
Each artifact was overwhelming in terms of performance.
‘The stats themselves are definitely lower.’
When it cos to durability, artifacts can’t compete with equipnt.
But artifacts had skills that equipnt didn’t.
“You must have noticed it while coming up. Elental damage, spell damage, and the danger of crowd control.”
“......”
I nodded.
I wholeheartedly agreed.
‘When the weak band together, even the strongest can be brought down.’
This didn’t happen on the 1st floor.
No one had adapted to the Soul System yet.
But not anymore.
The relatively weaker players have adapted to the Soul System, and they know how to beat the strong.
“Especially the toughness option. It’s hard to find anywhere else. I’m advising you because we’re both Korean.”
“...You’re Korean?”
“Chungmugong’s Wae Myultae Sword. I saw you thinking about it, and I knew you were Korean. Of course, the dinsions might be different.”
The man’s body slightly floated.
I imdiately realized he was a flight-type psychic.
‘Illusory Book. If you’re listening, respond. Can I take the artifact?’
The Illusory Book had often manipulated my information without my consent.
Every ti it happened, I wondered if this thing had a mind of its own.
So I occasionally ask it.
There’s never a reply, but...
[‘The Illusory Book’ devours ‘White Dragon Heart’.]
“!”
[The Illusory Book is growing.]
[‘Devour Lv.2’ has leveled up to ‘Devour Lv.3’.]
The ssage I saw before appeared again.
I was confused for a mont...
‘Considering the timing, this must be a response from the Illusory Book.’
Why did it send this ssage?
‘It doesn’t consu ongoing artifacts.’
If this was sothing the Illusory Book chose not to devour on its own,
Then why?
Did it not devour it, on purpose?
I recalled the devouring option.
Every ti the Illusory Book devours an artifact, it raises intelligence and wisdom stats.
Consuming F-rank artifacts like this could be incredibly overpowered.
When I first obtained the Illusory Book, I had the sa thought—tricks.
But I soon realized it was impossible.
‘Ah!’
A lightning bolt struck my mind.
The Illusory Book reminded of sothing I had forgotten.
‘So I can take artifacts that are significantly worse than the Dragon Heart?!’
There must be a reason it sent that ssage during the Dragon Heart absorption.
If there’s a reason, it ans the Illusory Book is drawing a line.
‘It’s a declaration to devour sothing better than this.’
You insane pig.
[‘The Illusory Book’ devours ‘Hers’ Shoes’.]
‘Hers’ Shoes’ were artifacts with toughness options, which the administrator had shown .
The Illusory Book was threatening , saying it would devour them.
‘Whoa, whoa. Let’s calm down.’
[‘The Illusory Book’ devours ‘Hers’ Shoes’.]
‘Okay. You’re not a pig. It was your rightful claim.’
The Illusory Book stopped sending ssages.
It seems to agree with the idea that it had a rightful claim.
“You’re thinking for a long ti. I’m glad I ca. If I hadn’t, it would have taken you all day.”
“…It’s better to choose carefully for the future.”
“Yeah. That’s true. So, have you made your decision?”
I nodded.
There wasn’t a better artifact than Hers' Shoes.
The Illusory Book gave its blessing.
[Hers' Shoes][B]
Type: Artifact
Stats▼
【Agility: ＋5】
【Durability: 50/50】
Options▼
【Thief’s Footsteps Lv.1】
Reduces ‘Slow’ effect by 200%.
【ssenger’s Footsteps Lv.1】
Reduces all ‘Status Ailnts’ by 52%.
The tooltip error inflated the numbers about 10 tis.
It just makes laugh every ti I see it.
“Finally made your choice?”
The administrator opened a portal.
A portal connected to the city.
I put on the shoes and stepped through the portal.
My footsteps felt light.
Whoo-oom—.
Whoo-oom—.
As soon as I arrived in the city, my smartphone vibrated.
The thief faction’s community.
It was noisy there.
[All new players, gather at the ‘Playdance’ club ─ King of Thieves]
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