Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Limited Edition Outfit Set
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[Philia Village, Oasis of the Desert]
"Oh."
After crossing the Phames Desert, I finally arrived at 'Philia Village'.
For a village in the middle of a desert, it was quite large.
Though smaller than Erenburg, the first city I passed through, this desert town had all the shops an adventurer would need to prepare for a dungeon run.
A large oasis sat in the center.
Perhaps because few players had entered this region yet, there seemed to be more NPCs than players.
I hadn't visited it myself, but I imagined a similar village existed in the Phames Desert on the actual Astria Continent.
*Stomp, stomp.*
I strolled along, scanning the shops that would play a crucial role in my preparations.
First, the general store.
"Welcome."
A middle-aged man with a mustache and a turban greeted me.
The general store NPC in Philia Village, with his friendly demeanor, seemed much kinder than the one back in Erenburg.
I chuckled, recalling the unfriendly shopkeeper from Erenburg.
[Medium HP Recovery Potion]
[Cooldown: 30 seconds]
[Recovers 200 HP over 10 seconds.]
"Ooh."
The HP recovery potions had improved, likely to match the higher HP of players entering this region.
The price was 1 silver.
"Yikes."
A sharp cry escaped my small throat.
The small HP recovery potion cost 30 copper, so this was more than three times the price.
Twice the performance for three times the cost.
But it was a necessary investment for smooth hunting in this region and for tackling the next elite dungeon.
It was a huge relief that I'd saved up gold by farming the 'Cave of the Orc King' and selling elite weapons.
Fighting back tears, I bought fifty HP recovery potions.
I'd have to use them sparingly, really sparingly, until I was done with this area.
After buying potions and simple meals at the general store, I stopped by the weapon shop.
But the performance of the store-bought weapons was disappointing.
Their attack power was only slightly higher than the elite weapons from the previous region, yet they had no special options and were just expensive.
Now that I could farm elite dungeons, there was no reason for me to buy store-bought weapons.
I figured there would be rare weapons exclusive to field bosses, like the 'Orc Warrior's Weapon', in the high-level areas of the Phames Desert.
The plan was to hunt hard with the 'Sword of the Orc King' to level up, farm a field boss weapon, and then move on to the next elite dungeon weapon.
Shaking my head, I left the weapon shop.
The next place I visited was...
"We have many fine clothes!"
"Oh."
The tailor shop.
A shop for players who enjoy dressing up their characters in various outfits—the so-called 'fashionistas'.
I glanced down at my current outfit with dissatisfaction.
It had been a while since I'd started wearing this 'Orc Warrior Outfit Set'.
In the very early days of the game, it was a unique outfit, but now it wasn't rare at all.
It had become one of the most common outfits among players in the Orc Forest region.
If I had gotten the uniform from the 'Cave of the Orc King', I would have switched to that.
"It feels a little worn out, too."
I'd never heard of in-game outfits getting dirty, but to my eyes, it somehow looked faded.
It was time for a change of clothes.
I browsed the clothes displayed in the tailor shop.
And then, I found an outfit set that I absolutely loved.
"Gasp."
A rare outfit set, complete with a limited edition tag!
The simple shirt and shorts with a small slit on the side looked very comfortable for moving around in battle.
The white beret displayed with it seemed like it would go well with my hair color.
And the long coat, reminiscent of a stylish uniform, was the finishing touch.
It looked hot for the desert, but I seemed to recall hearing that people wear long outer garments in dry deserts to prevent moisture loss.
Wouldn't that coat flutter so coolly when I swing my sword?
My mouth agape, I stared blankly at the outfit set and checked the price.
[Desert Admiral Outfit Set]
[1 Gold]
"Eek!"
I couldn't help but scream.
One gold... in real money, that's like a thousand dollars?
How can an in-game outfit be this expensive?
Of course, gold itself is expensive since the game just launched, and it'll probably be more affordable once the in-game economy stabilizes.
"It's too expensive."
On the verge of tears, I checked how much gold I had.
After cashing out a portion to help with my living expenses and buying a ton of necessities like potions, I had about 1 gold and 30 silver left.
"I-I mean, I *could* buy it if I wanted to."
If I thought of it as just in-game currency, I could afford it, expensive as it was.
But thinking of it as a thousand dollars made my head spin.
I've never even spent more than thirty dollars on clothes for my real body.
*Sob, sob.*
Fighting back tears, I gazed wistfully at the outfit set, and just as I turned to drag my reluctant feet away...
*Poof.*
I bumped my head into something soft.
When I looked up to see what soft thing was blocking my path, my eyes were met with...
Red?
The red thing looked down at me and grinned.
"Hello?"
"Gasp..."
*Thump, thump.*
*Clomp, clomp.*
"E-Eek!"
Why does she keep following me?
That kill-stealing woman, not content with taking my monster, had also snatched up the limited edition 'Desert Admiral Outfit Set' that might never be sold again, and now she was following me around town.
How long had she been watching me?
"Ahh~ I bought it because it looked pretty, but I think the 'Orc King Outfit' suits me better. I feel like I bought it for nothing."
And now she was taunting me.
Swallowing tears of frustration, I quickened my pace.
*Thump, thump.*
*Clomp, clomp.*
"Um, excuse me, Rain?"
“...”
Without looking back, I kept walking silently as she tried to talk to me.
"It's just that, it'd be a waste for me to throw this outfit away, and I can't be bothered to list it on the auction house and keep checking on it."
“...?”
What in the world is she talking about?
"So, I was wondering, would you like to take this outfit set?"
"Eh."
Her unexpected offer left me stunned.
She's giving me an expensive outfit worth one gold for free?
*Sway, sway.*
The 'Desert Admiral Outfit Set' she held out swayed before my eyes.
"Gasp!"
My eyes followed the swaying outfit as if mesmerized, but then I snapped back to my senses.
*Smack!*
I slapped my face with both hands.
Get a grip, Rain.
There's no such thing as a free lunch.
That wicked woman might use the outfit set as bait to make demands of me.
I'll be roped into her party before I know it, forced to work as a fill-in tank with no way out.
But... but I really love that outfit set.
Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to just close my eyes and let her use me for a little while?
One gold for one gig as a fill-in mercenary... that doesn't sound like a bad deal.
“...”
*Tiptoe, tiptoe.*
*Snatch.*
I cautiously approached her and snatched the swaying outfit set from her hands.
"Oh, my."
The red-haired woman beamed.
*Beep.*
[You have sent a friend request to Yin-Yang Master 'Chris'.]
[You are now friends with Yin-Yang Master 'Chris'.]
"...I can't if I'm busy."
Especially when I'm trying to solo an elite dungeon.
I was planning to turn off my message notifications then anyway.
"Really? You'll party with me?"
"Just once."
"Yay!"
*Hop, hop.*
The red-haired woman grinned foolishly and jumped up and down, just like I did when I first logged into the game.
Such a childish adult.
Ah, although I'm an adult too, of course.
The red-haired woman, whose username was 'Chris', waved until I was out of sight.
Thankfully, she seemed satisfied with the friend request and didn't follow me anymore.
Once she was completely out of sight, I took the 'Desert Admiral Outfit Set' from my inventory and put it on.
"Heh."
*Twirl, twirl.*
*Flutter, flutter.*
The cool coat billowed with my movements as I spun from side to side.
So cool! So cool!
*Hop, hop.*
It was even comfortable to jump in.
As expected of a one-gold outfit, there wasn't even the slightest hint of discomfort.
I was so satisfied.
I'm the owner of a one-gold limited edition outfit!
*Click, click.*
As if taking selfies, I spent a while in front of the village oasis, snapping a ton of screenshots of myself in the 'Desert Admiral Outfit Set'.
*
Chris was in a very good mood.
"Heeheehee."
*Kaboom!*
A talisman flew from her hand, and the monsters of the Phames Desert fell like autumn leaves before the Yin-Yang Master's powerful main skill, 'Demon Seal Formation'.
"Wow, you're already level 18, Chris? The next elite dungeon is level 25, right?"
Cherni, the Spirit Master from 'Chris's Attack Squad', who had logged on at some point, approached Chris and spoke to her.
"Yep. I need to focus on leveling for a while. Heehee."
“...?”
Cherni gave Chris a suspicious look.
"Did something good happen, Chris? You don't usually laugh this much."
"Hmph~? And why is my dear junior so curious about the personal life of the great Chris?"
Cherni's jaw dropped.
"Ch-Chris. Did you catch something from Beimerung? The ice queen herself, laughing like a fool and cutely referring to herself in the third person... Ugh!"
*Thwack!*
Chris kicked Cherni in the shin.
"Kh, ugh. Yep, that's the Chris I know."
"Shut up. If you have time to chat, you should be leveling up. We're overlapping hunting spots, go over there. Shoo, shoo!"
Chris waved her hand at Cherni as if shooing a fly and continued hunting.
Cherni scratched the back of his head and moved to a spot where their monsters wouldn't overlap.
"Heehee, heeheehee!"
For a while, a sinister rumor spread among the vanguard players about sightings of a red-haired beauty who slaughtered monsters while letting out a foolish laugh.