Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: A Precarious Companionship (8)
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“Boland.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re going to try one more time?”
“Well.”
Boland fell into thought.
“Something does feel off, but I can’t put my finger on what.”
Hearing that gave me a bit more certainty.
That this wasn’t your standard DAT.
‘Boland senses it too, it seems.’
A world with magic.
For those dealing in the shadows of such a world... expecting honesty was unreasonable.
Even Earth had its scammers— this place would have even more.
“...So you kept going despite the suspicion because you wanted the prize?”
“At first, I figured 50 silver for that item was a good deal. Sure, I might’ve tried a round no matter what the prize was.”
Regin and Boland’s gazes turned to the prize.
Behind the shopkeeper sat a neatly packaged blue egg.
One of the items familiar to Regin.
‘Plexis’s Egg, huh.’
The Plexis pendant hidden safely in his inventory came to mind.
This egg was another creation by the mage Plexis, who’d made that pendant.
‘One of DAT’s three great mages in its lore. Items he made long ago are considered valuable now.’
The pendant was actually the lowest-tier item bearing his name.
There were over 14 Plexis-named items, and this was at the bottom.
Of course, the others weren’t all high-performers either.
‘Some have such unique options they’re useful in niche ways.’
Not overwhelming specs, but famous for bizarre options no other items had.
There were even players who researched dedicated Plexis builds.
...And the one who’d researched that Plexis build was Regin himself.
“Interested in Plexis’s Egg?”
“I’ll admit, it does catch my eye.”
“Do you know what it is?”
“I know you inject mana into the egg and a random item comes out.”
“You’ve got it exactly right.”
Plexis’s Egg was a peculiar item in its own way.
One of the few gacha-style random-pull items in the game.
‘In the lore, it’s a pocket Plexis made to store items.’
The mage Plexis, who crafted magic tools, had to procure items in secret back then.
And this egg was what he’d made for that.
It looked like a simple egg, but inside, he’d store items he or the recipient needed.
‘That’s why it has no duds— a real advantage.’
Open it, and you’d get one of Plexis’s 14 items.
For Regin, as long as it wasn’t the pendant he already had, it was pure profit.
‘That’s why I dumped gold into this gamble back in the game.’
Truth be told, Regin had no room to call Boland a sucker.
He’d thrown gold at this himself during DAT sessions.
The problem? He’d never once won that prize.
‘I figured the devs rigged it.’
Maybe this shopkeeper had rigged it instead.
“Let’s do one more.”
“Huh?”
“With you here, maybe I’ll spot something I missed.”
Clink!
Boland cheerfully tossed 50 silver and gripped a dart.
‘He said two darts always hit dead center.’
Boland claimed it was weirdly hard to get all three in the center.
Whoosh!
Same this time. The first two darts flew perfectly toward the bullseye.
But the third was the issue.
Ting!
“...Damn.”
Boland’s unchanging expression filled with regret.
He looked utterly baffled about what went wrong.
“Spot anything?”
“Not sure.”
Boland glanced at Regin, but Regin couldn’t say for certain either.
“My take is...”
Still, he had a hunch.
He’d done this dozens of times in DAT. And now he’d watched Boland, with his superior physique, try it.
Maybe he could figure it out. The moment Regin’s eyes hit the target.
“...Ahem. We’ve gone far enough— best to call it and move on. How about we wrap up?”
“Huh?”
What the hell was this shopkeeper bastard up to.
The boss cleared his throat, clearly preparing to shoo Boland and Regin out.
It reeked of evasion.
Clink!
“Ah, sorry. The money’s already in— can’t we just do this one last round?”
Before the shopkeeper could chase them off, Boland’s coin landed in the basket he’d set out.
“...Fine, just one! I’ve got other customers— you two can’t hog it all day.”
“Got it.”
Boland looked to Regin again.
“If you’ve got a hunch, speak up. No blame either way.”
“Then trust me just this once.”
“Alright. What?”
“How about closing your eyes when you throw?”
“...What?”
Regin’s gaze fixed on the target once more.
“Just shut your eyes and throw by feel.”
* * *
Throwing blind when he couldn’t even hit with eyes open— Regin’s advice was absurd.
But Boland nodded.
“...Ha.”
A hollow laugh followed.
“You figured it out that fast?”
It made sense, after all.
Boland closed his eyes, dart in hand.
Whoosh!
First dart.
Whoosh!
Then the second.
Boland kept his eyes shut and threw.
Thunk!
Finally, the third dart hit home. When Boland opened his eyes.
“...Yes!!”
All three darts were dead center.
Boland clenched his fist and let out a quiet cheer.
“Right— the target itself has an illusion effect that kicks in once per round!”
It wasn’t a powerful illusion. If it were, Boland would’ve noticed first.
But the subtle illusion blended so cleverly that even he’d missed it.
Regin had spotted it instantly.
Or rather, he figured it had to be that— nothing else fit.
A tiny bit of mana couldn’t cast a shield or reflection spell.
It was an illusion rigged to make you miss once for sure.
“Hey, boss! That’s a win, right?!”
“...Damn. What kind of lunatics are you?”
“What?”
“I told you to leave! Hell, this last round’s void— you tried too many times!”
“What nonsense is that?”
“I said get out, and you ignored me and started anyway?”
“You took my money— what are you on about? Need me to knock some sense into you?”
The shopkeeper spouted bullshit to void it, while Boland righteously claimed his due.
When the boss realized he couldn’t weasel out, he started packing up to bolt.
“Wait. This was rigged?”
“Yeah! That guy just said it— illusion magic on it!”
At that moment.
One man’s shout sparked chaos.
Onlookers and folks who’d already lost silver to darts and left came running at the commotion.
“Illusion magic?! You scam artist— give back what I lost earlier!”
“I knew something was up with that pricey prize. Scum like you belongs in jail!”
“Thief! My money too!”
Crash!
Some hurled what they held. Others charged the shopkeeper with fists raised.
Bystanders clashed and traded punches too.
“W-wait! My arm!!”
Someone got tangled and trampled head to toe.
“...Damn! Damn it!! Let go! Who’d think a game here mixes in magic?!”
The shopkeeper somehow wriggled free in the melee, grabbing his money and prize.
His hair was a mess, face bloodied from flying fists.
But as he smirked at escaping unscathed.
“Hold.”
A brown-robed elder approached, raising a hand.
“If you value your lives, stop right there.”
Just two words.
The elder’s two words froze everyone as they turned to him.
‘...At least third-circle mage.’
The mana wafting from him crushed the air.
Not just Regin— everyone there knew instantly.
‘This is the black market overseer.’
Even if they all piled on, they’d lose to the old man.
* * *
“How’d it go?”
One floor below the black market— the underground level.
Heavy mana hung in the air as the brown-robed elder entered.
The man who’d quelled the riot in seconds bowed upon entering the room.
“I warned the rioters not to cause more trouble.”
“And?”
“The ringleader merchant, Kariang, has been permanently banned.”
“Yeah? Why? He was just a small-time scam artist scraping pennies.”
“Problem is his scam got exposed. He’ll stir up trouble every time he shows up now.”
“Tch. Get caught cheating, and you’re done. Good call— don’t let trash in.”
A boy sat before the elder.
White hair slicked back, skin pale.
He eyed the elder with his signature sharp gaze.
“So why’d it get exposed? Was the guy a hack, or did some sharp player show up? I’m curious.”
“Seems a newbie from the enchantment division spotted it right away.”
“What? Pfft, hahaha— caught by a rookie?”
“Not luck. He nailed the core flaw in Kariang’s darts. Takes hundreds of tries to pinpoint that unless you’re experienced.”
“...So the kid’s got skills?”
“That’s my read.”
The elder paused, then continued.
“Unlike other enchanters, his eyes are sharp. If it’s no fluke, he could stir trouble with other merchants too.”
“So?”
“We could blacklist him to bar entry.”
“What? What the hell are you saying?”
The boy scoffed.
“Old timer, you losing your edge?”
The elder held his stance, waiting.
“Old timer, we stick to how we’ve always done it.”
“...”
“Change up over one slip, and it’s more headaches. That’s my take.”
The boy smirked at the elder.
“We gotta walk the tighter rope.”
“...”
“Teetering on the edge of blowing up without actually doing it. That way, the big shots upstairs stay guessing, right?”
“...”
“Next time that guy shows, don’t blacklist— report to me direct.”
“What do you plan?”
“Obvious, isn’t it? Kariang was easy pickings, right? He solved the simple puzzle...”
The boy’s voice turned chipper.
“Time to see if he cracks harder ones. Hoping that sharp eye fools our superiors too.”
* * *
“You okay?”
“Yeah. We’re fine.”
Paphoni and Bowman rushed to Regin after finishing their business.
Truth be told, they’d wanted to check sooner, but the vibe was off.
“...That guy showed up. Damn it. Every time he’s around, my body freezes up.”
Bowman scowled.
Not a good feeling at all.
Overwhelmed by something. Not a monster, but a person— the gap stung his pride.
“No need to worry. There was a ruckus, but we stayed clear.”
Boland calmed Bowman and continued.
“And we got what we deserved.”
When the elder arrived.
The rioters were subdued, and the fleeing shopkeeper was hauled off by the old man.
That’s when the prize dropped to the ground.
Boland snatched it without missing a beat.
“Plexis’s Egg? You got this, Regin?”
“Yeah.”
Boland handed it over after securing it.
No real use for him, and he didn’t need it that bad.
He’d only tried for the prize gimmick.
‘I’m happy with it.’
Normally, Regin might’ve politely demurred, but he took it without a word.
It wouldn’t have happened without him anyway.
And that face-off with the elder was burned into his mind.
‘...After meeting that old bastard too, I want my payout for the mess.’
The mana pouring off him had locked Regin’s body stiff. Like facing the lycanthrope.
“I’ll put it to good use.”
His hands shook taking the egg.
Not even precarious— could the gap feel this vast?
‘Still a long way off... to survive guys like that.’
Clutching Plexis’s Egg tight, Regin thought.
‘I have to use every trick in the book... get strong enough to live.’
Regin’s mind raced hot once more.