Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Carpenter's Gloves
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The dark staircase stretched deep into the underground.
Torches embedded sporadically in the walls provided at least some visibility.
The king had offered me the chance to pick my own reward, yet he showed no sign of descending from his throne, leaving me to go down alone.
As his abilities made clear, severing my head from my body would be a piece of cake for him, so there was no need for him to follow and monitor whether I was slacking off.
Royal vault.
What kind of place could it be?
In the game, it was nothing more than a setting detail—never actually implemented—so I had zero idea.
"Just how far down does this go?"
To start with, I'd already been descending these stairs for a solid five minutes.
I had an appointment with the Shop, so I needed to wrap this up as quickly as possible, but things were looking like I'd definitely miss it.
"Sorry, Shop!"
My voice echoed off the walls, bouncing back into my ears.
It left a strange sensation, almost as if Shop were my own name, when suddenly a bright light appeared far below.
Judging by the glow, it was definitely not just another torch.
"Finally!"
What the king called the royal vault resembled a massive warehouse far more than any vault.
The only thing vault-like about it was how incredibly valuable every single item inside appeared to be.
Some I'd seen somewhere before, others I'd never laid eyes on in my life.
Grabbing something without knowing its usage could lead to disaster, so sticking to the familiar seemed smartest.
Besides, I already had one in mind.
"Carpenter's Life? Nah. Tailor's Bag? No. What the hell is this? Excalibur? Yeah, right."
After rummaging through the warehouse for a while, I finally spotted the item I'd had my eye on even before possessing this body.
"Carpenter's Gloves."
At a glance, they looked like ordinary leather gloves, no different from any other.
But actually putting them on told a different story.
I slipped them on for a test.
It felt a bit gross thinking about wearing gloves someone else had used, but the gloves' power overshadowed any unease.
"Yah!"
Objects began to float in sync with my hand movements.
That's right.
The ability of the Carpenter's Gloves was telekinesis.
Useful anywhere, but especially invaluable for rebuilding a city.
Of course, power like this came with a drawback.
Wear them too long, and your skin turns to tree bark.
It was basically the developers' silent nudge to use them in moderation—no big deal.
Time to head back, fast.
Things hadn't gone exactly as expected, but the outcome was better than hoped.
My happy mood lightened my steps as I hurried along.
Wobble...
Wobble...
Wriggle.
Wobble...
...
"?"
Something like a strange sound?
Probably just my imagination.
Wobble...
Wriggle.
Wobble...
Wobble...
...
This time too, my imagina—
"It makes sense!"
I whipped my head around at full force to scan the surroundings. Several items that had been neatly arranged moments ago were now subtly askew.
The ones that had shifted were all unfamiliar from the game.
I picked up one that looked like bread. Hard to describe, but it definitely felt alien—not like any bread.
"Is it because the bread's red? Or that distinct fishy blood smell?"
Blood-scented bread.
What can I say? Truly unsettling.
...
A sudden ominous thought struck my mind.
"No, it can't be."
I carefully sliced the bread in half.
Thump—
Inside pulsed a vigorously beating heart, surrounded by what looked like miniature organs wriggling about.
"Not convinced yet!"
I split open another one that had moved earlier.
This one wasn't as soft as bread, so I borrowed the power of my tentacles.
When those tentacles came away coated in slimy, red, warm liquid, I had no choice but to accept the truth.
I'd once wondered about something when entering this tale.
The king undeniably wielded overwhelming power, but with no ghosts or monsters appearing, why was it classified as a tale?
Now I had my answer.
The items here were made from people.
The vanished citizens and buildings.
I had no idea where the buildings went, but the citizens? I knew now.
I turned my gaze to the gloves, sticky with clotted blood on my hand.
"Then these too..."
I quietly removed the gloves, pretending nothing had happened.
Yeah, I know nothing.
Now I understand why they say ignorance is bliss.
I'm selling them anyway.
My now-heavier footsteps thudded dully through the underground.
The moment my toes crossed out of the royal vault...
🔔 ECHOES 🔔 "Please don't leave us!" "Save me!" "I can't feel my body..." "It's God's curse! Punishment for the king's arrogance!" "Please, give me back my body!" "Oh God! Please forgive us!" "Hah... huh... ha..." The bell rang again, and the vault fell silent.
What the hell had I just heard?
The voices came from the items.
Those items still retained their consciousness.
"King, you insane bastard!"
I sprinted up the stairs at full speed.
The king remained seated in his arrogant pose.
"Your Highness, those items—don't tell me!"
🔔 KING'S CONFESSION 🔔 "I was arrogant." The king nodded.
"Indeed, your guess is correct. My arrogance stole away my subjects' bodies, leaving me only able to trap their souls."
The king glanced briefly at the rebuilt annex before continuing.
"So that one day, should my kingdom return, I could revive them. It was an unavoidable choice."
🔔 KING'S CONFESSION 🔔 "Then why offer Your Highness's subjects to me?" 🔔 KING'S CONFESSION 🔔 "For my subjects, obeying the king's will is an honor in itself. Handing them to you, who has earned my trust, is thus brimming with honor." A hint of sorrow tinged the king's face.
"However, the item you've taken already has all consciousness faded, so it won't sense that honor."
That sorrow wasn't for the lost consciousness of his subjects—it was regret that they wouldn't feel the honor he bestowed.
Even after losing everything, the king hadn't escaped his arrogance.
I could vaguely sense that God's wrath would only end once he truly realized his sin.
🔔 KING'S FAREWELL 🔔 This kingdom would never return, rendering the king's wish futile. "Then I'll be on my way."
🔔 KING'S FAREWELL 🔔 "Farewell. Merchant from afar." As his parting words suggested, I had a feeling I'd return here someday.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "There's nothing here!"
"Same here, nothing special."
Se-jin and Woo-seok inspected the shop meticulously, leaving no corner unchecked.
Truth be told, Woo-seok was cutting corners a bit, and Se-jin knew it, but he decided to overlook it as newbie whining.
"Woo-seok."
"Yes?"
"Let's do this right."
"Yes."
Se-jin hadn't given him any particular warning glare, but Woo-seok stopped slacking off after that.
In any case, despite their efforts, they found nothing unusual.
The Merchant kept the shop spotless by default, stashing all important items in drawers.
I'll need to act before those guys open the counter drawers.
The Merchant foolishly left things in there that absolutely can't be discovered.
"Now just this drawer left, huh."
Hmm.
What would be good?
Arms and legs first? No, if something big happens to them, it'll put the Merchant in a tough spot.
As the Shop pondered deeply, a story the Merchant had once told it suddenly came to mind.
Yes, that would be fun.
Cliché, sure, but nothing more entertaining came to mind.
And it was perfect for concealing information too.
From now on, I'm changing the Shop's rules.
🛒 SHOP RULE UPDATE 🛒 With the Shop's declaration, the entire space began to rumble. "Wha—what? What did you touch?!"
"Wasn't me!"
The counter and all display cases shoved against the walls, leaving the shop empty—then a white panel materialized on the bare wall.
Words began to etch themselves onto it.
"Wh-what the...?"
"That thing..."
🚪 CURSED RULE 🚪 [A Room You Can't Leave Without Doing XX] "That... isn't what I think it is, right?"
Se-jin was bewildered.
If it had specified exactly what to do, he could've followed that—but the vague XX left him clueless.
"Haa... what even is this."
He might have actually known deep down.
"T-Team Leader Se-jin..."
Suddenly, a sleazy voice slithered into Se-jin's ear.
"Ugh, get lost!"
"Eh...?"
Seeing Woo-seok's dumbfounded look, Se-jin realized he'd misjudged.
"Ah... no. Sorry about that."
"It's fine... L-look here..."
Where Woo-seok pointed, in tiny letters: 'XX is cleaning.'
At that instant, cleaning tools dropped with a clatter.
Se-jin pointed at somewhere else with his finger.
There, on his lips: 'Merchant bastard.'
"Merchant bastard!"
Of course, the Merchant hadn't done a thing—but no one could imagine the Shop acting on its own like this.
If they could peer into the Shop's status window, they'd see it brimming with the word haha! full of laughter.