Chapter 109
Chapter 109
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: Squandering (3)
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Gulp-.
Yuri swallowed dryly.
‘A mystery box...’
The name alone reeked of sticky gambling vibes.
He examined the box closely.
It was about a meter in width, length, and height.
A single small hole just big enough to fit a hand through.
And a black cloth draped over that hole to block any view inside.
Even at a glance, its purpose was obvious.
But there was one thing that bugged him.
‘...What’s that number?’
On the top of the black box.
The number 49 scrawled in one corner nagged at him oddly.
Coco, spotting where Yuri’s gaze had landed, snickered.
“Sharp eyes. Wondering what that number means, huh?”
Nod, nod-.
Yuri bobbed his head solemnly, and Coco leaned forward.
And then.
Thud-.
Another black box rose up from under the bar table.
Yuri blinked at the sight.
‘Another identical one...?’
It looked exactly the same, but the corner of this new black box bore the number 50.
Coco showed the box to Yuri and grinned.
“I’ll show you what these numbers mean myself.”
With that, she approached the display shelf.
She picked up a price tag from the now-empty shelf where Yuri had bought his items.
A small paper tag listing the item’s name and price.
Coco started gathering them—from low-grade and high-grade potions to all sorts of recovery meds—folding each one twice.
She stuffed the neatly folded papers into the box marked 50 and shook it.
Rustle- rustle- rustle-.
It made a racket, likely because the box was already packed with plenty of paper.
A few seconds later.
Thud-.
Coco set the box down and gave him a peculiar look.
“So, what do you think this number means?”
Her eyes seemed to say, ‘Can you figure out the answer to this little puzzle?’
Yuri answered without hesitation.
“That’s the box with all the price tags from stuff the 50th Cohort bought, right? And the one with 49 is from all the purchases by the 49th Cohort so far?”
Coco wagged her finger side to side at his response.
“Close, but no cigar.”
“...You don’t look disappointed at all.”
“You’re right, I’m not really.”
“So what does the number mean?”
Prodded by Yuri, Coco took a deep drag on her cigar.
Hoo-.
Her voice mingled with the thick exhaled smoke.
“The 49 means this box was made the year the 49th Cohort arrived, and 50 means it was made the year the 50th Cohort arrived.”
“Hmm...?”
Yuri furrowed his brow in confusion for a moment.
Then a bolt of realization struck his mind.
“No way?! That box has... price tags from every item sold in last year’s special sales?”
“Ninety-eight points.”
“Ninety-eight?”
Yuri quickly pinpointed the missing 2% in his own words.
His eyes widened in surprise.
“...Including the bargain specials?”
Only then did Coco flash a bright smile.
“Congratulations, full hundred.”
“Wow.”
Seeing Yuri’s astonishment, Coco added an explanation.
“This 49th box contains price tags for every special sale and bargain special item sold at the dorm over the past year, from January 1 to December 31.”
“......”
“It’ll be tossed at year’s end, but until then... you get what it’s for, right?”
Yuri nodded faintly at the question and cut straight to the chase.
“How much for one draw?”
“First-years: one million.”
“......?!?”
Yuri’s eyes bulged.
Coco snickered at him.
“Why the shock? First-years are a million, and higher years cost even more.”
“One million...”
His first thought upon hearing ‘one million’ was ‘That’s expensive.’
But Yuri soon shook his head internally.
‘If it only had stuff sold to first- and second-years, yeah, it’d be pricey.’
But Coco had said every special sale and bargain special.
Meaning items bought by third-, fourth-, and fifth-years were in there too.
And as higher-years with tons of points, their purchases would be high-value.
‘Spend a million points and pull even a low-grade or high-grade potion...’
He’d more than break even—maybe multiply his investment several times.
At that thought, one million didn’t seem expensive at all.
Reasonable, even.
‘First-years at a million... tiered pricing by year to stop higher-years from gaming the system.’
Even at a million, higher-years would probably dump points into the mystery box eagerly.
He knew he would.
Yuri asked with a serious glint in his eye.
“How many tags are in there total?”
Hoo-.
Watching Coco silently puff smoke, Yuri nodded as if he’d expected as much.
Instead of waiting for an answer, he turned to the display case.
‘Forty-ish items today. Average that to forty, and special sale items sold to all years over a year...’
Yuri crunched the numbers fast.
‘2,400 items.’
Of course, not everything sold out, and there’d be bargain specials too.
Factor in some margin of error and halve it...
‘That’s at least 1,200 tags in the box.’
Even that wasn’t certain.
Yuri couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Some mystery box... lives up to the name.”
What items had been in last year’s special and bargain specials?
How many sold?
All pure luck.
And now, which one he’d draw? More luck.
‘But having bargain specials in there is a relief. Wait... bargain specials?’
A spark lit in Yuri’s eyes.
He slammed his hand down on the 50th mystery box.
“Hey, I’ve decided! I’ll draw from this one!”
Coco exhaled smoke with a sly smile.
And then.
Smack-.
She swatted his hand away firmly.
“No funny business when you know damn well that’s off-limits.”
“Tch.”
Yuri’s lips pouted.
Instead, he fixed her with a serious gaze.
“You’re serious about that, right?”
“About what.”
“January 1 to December 31—every price tag from special sales and bargain specials.”
Yuri repeating the claim she’d been so confident about earlier.
Coco laughed, knowing why he was pressing.
“Yeah, I don’t lie about stuff like that. This box...”
Her finger tapped the 50th box.
“...has price tags for every item sold in this year’s bargain specials. First-year stuff included, no exceptions.”
“That’s all I needed.”
Yuri’s eyes blazed at Coco’s confirmation.
He glared fiercely at the 50th mystery box.
‘It’s in there, huh?’
One of the items he’d bought from this year’s first-year bargain special: the Bone Tribe’s secret.
The so-called Elixir—its price tag was inside that 50th box right now.
Another shot at getting the Elixir.
Yuri, unable to tear his eyes from the 50th mystery box, asked.
“When can I draw from that one...?”
“After it’s aged a full year?”
Coco inwardly chuckled at the intense longing in Yuri’s voice.
‘He figured it out. What the Bone Tribe secret is.’
Otherwise, why flaunt his desire so openly?
It burned so hot, the box might catch fire if left alone.
Coco moved to shut it down.
“So, you doing it or not? If not, I’m putting this away.”
She tapped the 49th mystery box.
Yuri replied without a second thought.
“I’m in.”
Only then did Yuri shift his gaze to the 49th box.
But his eyes still burned.
‘Fine, I’ll clean you out!’
Draining his entire fortune would get him seventeen draws.
‘That’s gotta snag something good!’
Yuri’s idea of ‘something’ was, naturally, something hugely valuable.
The kind worth over 17 million points.
Yuri approached the mystery box with brimming confidence.
Just then, Coco blocked him briefly.
“If I catch you messing with mana...”
Whoosh-.
Coco’s face went blank, and the air temperature plunged.
Her voice came out ice-cold.
“You’ll get a good look at what your arm’s cross-section looks like.”
Chill-.
His instincts screamed nonstop under the refined, thick killing intent.
‘As expected... not your average Black Sword soldier.’
His gut had been telling him for a while.
This Coco woman’s level.
She might even surpass Greta Wigan.
Yuri waved it off lightly at her warning.
“Messing around? Why would I? I’m the lucky guy!”
“Sure, Mr. Self-Proclaimed Lucky Guy? No time to waste—draw already.”
Coco shoved the box toward him.
Yuri plunged his hand in without hesitation.
Rustle-.
The sensation from his hand and arm made Yuri’s face stiffen instantly.
‘So many.’
The huge box felt stuffed to the brim with paper.
Maybe way more items than he’d guessed.
Yuri stirred carefully.
Rustle- rustle-.
‘Something good... please, something good!’
Watching Yuri rummage frantically, Coco muttered in disbelief.
“For a self-proclaimed lucky guy, you’re awfully cautious.”
Did her words prod him?
“Here goes! Hah!”
Yuri yanked out a single sheet swiftly.
And unfolded it right away.
A cheer burst from his lips.
“Yes!”
He showed the paper to Coco.
-Low-Grade Mana Enhancement Potion 2,500,000P
“Oh?”
Yuri puffed up instantly at Coco’s faintly impressed look.
“See?”
Proving he was the lucky guy with a single profitable draw—couldn’t blame him.
And it was the low-grade mana potion he needed most.
Having tasted one win, even greater confidence filled Yuri’s eyes.
He didn’t hesitate, shoving his hand back in right away.
Up till then, his face brimmed with confidence.
And when he swiftly pulled out another sheet and unfolded it instantly.
“......?!?”
In 0.1 seconds, his expression froze.
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
A low mutter escaped Yuri.
“My 990,000 points...”
990,000 points vaporized.
Yuri had to soothe his sinking heart.
‘It’s fine! Still up 510,000 points.’
But now the dilemma began.
‘Quit while I’m ahead?’
Everyone knew—even a seven-year-old—that you stop when you’re winning.
But Yuri wasn’t a seven-year-old.
He was a sixteen-year-old boy, prime for temptation.
Gulp-.
Yuri swallowed dryly.
“Just one more...”
With trembling hand, he drew another sheet from the box.
And then.
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
“......”
He was speechless.
A faint red crept into Yuri’s eyes.
‘It’s... it’s okay... one more low-grade potion and... I break even.’
Know what screws gamblers worse than losing money?
The false hope they can recoup it.
Yuri fell hook, line, and sinker for that delusion.
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
“......”
After three straight lecture forms, the red in Yuri’s eyes deepened.
He growled at Coco.
“This... it’s rigged! Totally rigged!”
“Pfft, rigged? Nah, you’re just unlucky, Mr. Unlucky Guy.”
“N-No way... my... my points!”
Already down nearly four million points, Yuri clutched his head.
Then the devil’s whisper slithered into his ear.
“Maybe ’cause you’re drawing one by one? Grab a bunch at once, and you’re bound to snag something.”
“......?!?”
Yuri’s face lit up with grand realization.
‘That’s it!’
The odds were the same either way, but her words rang weirdly convincing.
Proof his reason was crumbling.
Yuri steeled himself and plunged his hand back in.
A thick wad of paper came out in his grip.
Coco counted them with a grin.
“Let’s see, one, two, three... exactly ten? Going all in?”
“Of course!”
Yuri’s total spend now: 16 million points.
“Phew... please.”
Yuri exhaled long and opened the first sheet.
-Bone Tribe’s Top-Grade Injury Recovery Potion 1,000,000P
“Nice!”
Clean break-even to start.
Yuri thought it was a solid opener.
But first hands are always the flashiest.
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
After six straight lecture forms, curses flew from Yuri’s mouth.
“Fuck! Are they insane? Who the hell buys this many lecture forms!”
Coco giggled at his frenzy, but Yuri was too far gone to notice.
His shoulders trembled.
‘No choice now!’
Fueled by spite, Yuri gritted his teeth and flung open the last three at once.
A beastly roar erupted from him.
“Raaarghhh!”
Yuri howled in ecstasy.
-Lecture Application Form 10,000P
-Mid-Grade Mana Enhancement Potion 5,000,000P
-Bone Tribe’s High-Grade Antidote 1,000,000P
One lecture form among the three was a drag, but a mid-grade mana potion!
Plus a million-point antidote!
“Huff, huff-.”
Yuri took deep breaths and tallied up.
‘950 million worth of good stuff... and twelve lecture forms I wanna shred.’
The forms made his hands shake, but he couldn’t toss ten-thousand-point scraps.
Seeing Yuri fuming, Coco grinned.
“Well? One last round?”
Her nudge made Yuri’s pupils waver in conflict.
‘Go for it? Or not?’
About 1.2 million points left in his account.
Exactly one more draw.
That thought sparked madness in Yuri’s eyes.
‘Yeah, what’s another million on top? No biggie!’
He couldn’t even calculate his losses anymore.
No—wouldn’t!
‘One last big hit! Recover it all in one go!’
Yuri extended his hand.
“Last one!”
“Damn, pretty face but balls of steel!”
Coco laughed and offered the box.
His pale, shaking hand rummaged inside.
Sliiiide-.
The final sheet clung to his hand as it emerged.
Gripping it tight, Yuri felt certain.
‘Good vibe.’
Unlike the others, Yuri didn’t open the last one right away.
He unfolded it halfway first, then slowly slid the paper diagonally with his thumb.
Just enough to reveal the price.
His thumb inched the paper forward meticulously.
Sliick-.
Just the last digit peeked out.
‘Starts with a zero...’
Then the second digit’s zero.
Sliiiide-.
A bit higher, the third zero appeared.
Smooth sailing so far.
But now the fourth digit.
As the paper slid up, Yuri’s heart pounded wildly.
Gulp-.
Swallowing dryly, Yuri unwittingly stuck out his tongue.
The fourth zero came into view.
A gleam flashed in Yuri’s eyes.
‘At least five zeros! Jackpot incoming!’
Sliiiick-.
Sensing it, Yuri’s fingers darted down fast.
The carefully slid paper folded back in half.
Meanwhile, Coco, who’d been watching his antics amusedly, tilted her head.
Her eyes questioning why he wasn’t finishing the reveal...
“I-I’m too freaked out right now......”
Yuri patted his chest and answered.
“...I’ll open the rest in 60 seconds.”