Alexandre then counted up the money he had left. He still had $50,000 in cash from his years of savings in civilian life, as well as $100,000 that he'd coerced from his attackers in the third exam. The total of $150K was both a lot and perhaps not enough—by this ti, Alexandre was well aware of how overpriced Hunter equipnt could be!
Alexandre knew that he possessed so of the best potential in the academy to progress swiftly both in power and in money, due to the ranking bonus system. However, other students who'd been here for much longer would have so advantages over him, so Alexandre needed to bridge that gap as quickly as possible.
"Investing what I have now is the best solution," he said to himself. "That'll give as much starting power as possible." He decided to keep $10,000 in cash and another $10,000 in his bank account to cover the costs of the first few months and in case of ergencies... but everything else was fair ga! Alexandre then set out for Hunter's Paradise, taking the long walk that lasted over an hour from the academy to the town.
***
When he finally arrived, he grinned at the now-familiar sight of the little trading town. It was as magnificent as ever, with its serene modern buildings facing the sea.
On his first visit, Alexandre had spotted a huge shopping center. He sought this out again and discovered it was a huge store at least 500 square ters in size. His heart sank as he read the corporate logo above the sliding front doors:
Terra Corporation Hunter Shop.
"So their influence extends even out here," he muttered. Of course, he'd known that they had a hand in everything related to Virus Z, but he hadn't expected that he'd need to be handing them money at every step of his journey. "Oh well," he said at last, and went inside.
The llow sll of plastic packaging and the gentle sound of instruntal music t Alexandre's ears as he stepped inside. He was imdiately greeted with displays advertising all sorts of Hunter gear: armor, weapons, potions, and even jewelry. The next thing he noticed was the huge number of people. Many of them wore Hunter Academy uniforms, but with unfamiliar badges. Alexandre guessed that these were the second-and-third-year students.
Feeling curious, Alexandre looked at one of the closest potions and scanned it.
╔════════Aurora Nexus: Inspection Mode═══════╕
╟─╼[Potion] [Hunter] [Single Use] [Common]
╟─╼[Na] Suffering Reduction Potion (Tier 1)
╟─╼[Price] $1,000
╠═══════════════╡
╟─[SUMMARY]
║"Reduces pain by 50%."
╟─[Duration ] 30 minutes
╟─[Tip.1] Drink up!
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════╛
Alexandre wasn't interested. Pain didn't bother him much to begin with. He also wondered who exactly the potion was intended for... experienced Hunters would beco almost immune to pain, so only novice Hunters needed a pain reduction potion. But it was so expensive for just half an hour of effectiveness that only big guilds could afford such a thing, and none of them would waste so much money on novices!
Alexandre kept walking through the store and looking at what was available. Finally, a display caught his eye labeled "Experience Boosters." It contained items which looked like that vial which Professor José had given him, separated into categories labeled "Rare," "Epic," and "Legendary."
Alexandre began to scan the "Rare" category one by one:
╔════════Aurora Nexus: Inspection Mode═══════╕
╟─╼[Potion] [Hunter] [Single use] [Rare]
╟─╼[Na] Liquid Experience Bottle (Tier 1)
╟─╼[Price] $10,000
╠═══════════════╡
╟─[SUMMARY]
║"Gives 100 experience."
╟─[Tip.1] Don't drink! Inject, instead.
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════╛
This was identical to the one José had given him. Alexandre moved on to the next.
╔════════Aurora Nexus: Inspection Mode═══════╕
╟─╼[Potion] [Hunter] [Single use] [Rare]
╟─╼[Na] Liquid Experience Bottle (Tier 2)
╟─╼[Price] $150,000
╠═══════════════╡
╟─[SUMMARY]
║"Gives 1,500 experience."
╟─[Tip.1] Don't drink! Inject, instead.
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════╛
Alexandre's eyes bulged out of his head as he read the price. $150,000!? That was the price of a house in New England! Surely this was completely unaffordable for anyone who would need it. Alexandre shook his head and moved on to the next.
╔════════Aurora Nexus: Inspection Mode═══════╕
╟─╼[Potion] [Hunter] [Single use] [Rare]
╟─╼[Na] Liquid Experience Bottle (Tier 3)
╟─╼[Price] $3,000,000
╠═══════════════╡
╟─[SUMMARY]
║"Gives 30,000 experience."
╟─[Tip.1] Don't drink! Inject, instead.
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════╛
Alexandre's eyes watered as he imagined the many things he could do with three million dollars. In 2037, this sum was colossal. Only 1% of the population could raise this money, even if they sold everything they had.
Surely there wasn't a single Hunter who would bother to buy such an item. "It seems that for the Rare experience potions, the cost and the amount of experience increase linearly. You don't get more bang for your buck if you buy a bigger potion. I wonder if this is the sa for the Epic potions?"
With that question in mind, Alexandre turned to the first experience potion in the Epic category and scanned it.
╔════════Aurora Nexus: Inspection Mode═══════╕
╟─╼[Potion] [Hunter] [Single use] [Epic]
╟─╼[Na] Uncommon Liquid Experience Flask (Tier 1)
╟─╼[Price] ???
╟─╼[Level Required] ???
╠═══════════════╡
╟─[SUMMARY]
║ "???"
╟─[Tip.1] ???
╚═════════════════════════════════════════════╛
Apparently, Alexandre wasn't high enough level to even see these details. He wasn't terribly surprised, though he was quite disappointed. At the very least, he'd wanted to see the price!
Instead, he discreetly inspected the display case's glass. Perhaps, if the glass was weak enough, he might be able to "borrow" an item from within it.
Unfortunately, a scan quickly revealed that this glass had been created using minerals derived from zombie bones. Such glass could easily stop even a bullet from a weapon of war.
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