The General Store's Catalog

The General Store's inventory did not appear all at once.

"If I pick one, I can't buy anything from the other grades?"

"Not quite. There are just too many items, so they're sorted that way. It doesn't mean much."

"Oh. Really?"

That was a relief. He could hardly assume Transcendent was best in every case.

"Show me Unique first."

"Unique? Hmm... sure, I guess."

At a time like this, you started from the bottom. Look at Transcendent first, and every grade after it would only disappoint him twice as much.

Yujun turned a stiff face on Kantra.

"Why is there nothing but equipment?"

"Consumables are handled separately here. And there aren't many of those for sale."

"Why on earth?"

"You want consumables?"

"Yeah."

"Then pick Transcendent. They'll be in there."

"...For a place that calls itself the General Store, the stock is awfully thin."

"There's almost nothing missing on the equipment side. Consumables are just rare."

Yujun let out a long sigh.

Most of what he had just seen in Unique were things he already owned. The grade sat above Heroic, so other players might have coveted it—but not him.

"Why are there so few consumables?"

"You're asking the wrong person. Only whoever built the General Store would know."

"Aren't you the owner?"

"I was stuck with the counter for a while. I didn't ask for it. I'm just being toyed with by the gods."

"Toyed with by the gods? So the gods are the ones hosting this event?"

"Not exactly... Anyway, I can't tell you the details. I don't want to deal with the fallout. No—I can't. I'm nothing but a witch."

"Show me Legendary."

"Before that... how many points do you have?"

"Around thirty-two million."

"...What?"

"What?"

"Thirty-two million, not three point two? Honestly, even three point two million is an absurd number..."

"Check for yourself."

"Give me a moment."

Kantra closed her eyes. Ten seconds or so passed. When she opened them again, her mouth fell open.

"...It's real."

She stood there a moment, face blank with shock, then found her voice.

"How did you gather that many?"

"Never mind. Show me Legendary."

"With a score like yours, you'd be better off starting at Transcendent."

"I still have to check."

Time was plentiful. The other players didn't even dare think of stepping into the General Store. There was no reason to rush.

"Here."

Kantra brought up the Legendary list. Yujun ran his eyes down it and shook his head.

"Nothing I need."

"Right? From the look of your gear, it's all Mythic. I told you—you have to look at Transcendent."

"Show me Mythic too."

"Mm. Fine."

Kantra refreshed the list with the air of someone who had given up arguing. Mythic items began to unspool through the air in a long holographic row.

In truth, if that list held no consumables, there was no reason to be looking at it. And sure enough, not a single Mythic item caught his interest. He already owned every one of them; of course none of it appealed. If there had at least been consumables, there would have been far more worth seeing.

"Transcendent."

"Knew it." Kantra said it with a smile.

This time there was no equipment. Only three consumables.

"Why is this all there is? I get that consumables are scarce, but where's the equipment?"

"I told you. Consumables."

"You never said there were only consumables."

"Transcendent equipment can't be sold. No—there simply isn't any stock."

"And since you were forced into the job, you don't know why?"

"Quick on the uptake."

Yujun swallowed a groan. He hadn't expected the selection to be this thin.

"Can I buy as many Transcendent Stones as my points will cover?"

"You can buy exactly one."

"What...?"

Kantra flinched and backed away. Yujun's expression had turned murderous.

"Calm down. Just because it's the General Store doesn't mean ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the stock is infinite. Equipment at Mythic and below is lying around everywhere, but consumables are different."

"Aren't equipment and consumables equally hard to get?"

"They are. Whoever made this place must have decided consumables mattered more."

"...Hm."

"There's only one Transcendent Stone in the whole store. You're buying it, right?"

"You know what a Transcendent Stone does?"

"Me? All I can do while I'm stuck here is stare at the merchandise. I picked it up along the way. Asking me that—you know too, don't you?"

"Yeah."

"Then I don't have to waste my breath explaining. It's all written in the options, so look it over at your leisure. Only three of them. Won't take long."

"What's the Random Rune Box? There's no description."

"Oh, that? I don't know either."

"..."

"The information doesn't show up for me, so how would I?"

An item of unknown identity. Still, it sat on the Transcendent list, so it was bound to be good—and it cost two million points besides.

The Dragon Blood Stone, though. I'm curious.

He called up its information ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at once.

"Ah, that one needs a Bloodstone Extractor. Go back to the Mythic list and you can buy one for a million points."

"Don't need it."

"Huh? Why?"

"I already have one."

"...Y-you do?"

"And the Dragon Blood Stone and the rune box—one each as well?"

"Yeah."

Yujun's face made his displeasure plain, and Kantra added, "Honestly, who expected Transcendent items to actually sell? Whoever built the store probably put them up just so they'd look like they were there. At most the rune box might have moved. If it weren't for you, the Transcendent Stone wouldn't have had a chance."

The Transcendent Stone cost five million points. Aside from Yujun, there had been people with a score that high—Erger and Leonhard, the ones who had teamed with him. They could not buy a single Transcendent item. Yujun had bought them all.

"You're buying all of them?"

"Yeah."

"The Random Rune Box too? It doesn't even list an effect."

"I've played enough games to know. It's definitely good."

"...Games? What's that?"

"They exist. Hand them over."

"All right. I'll deduct the points first."

Once every Transcendent item was his, he had 15,602,630 points left. Still a great deal.

"I'll have to spend the rest on Mythic."

"Yeah, I suppose you'll have t—"

That was when it happened. Kantra's whole body shuddered, as if she had been struck by lightning.

"What is this? Why does she tremble so frightfully?" Paranet yelped.

Hey. Your face is scarier.

Kantra's eyes rolled white, then settled back to normal. Her expression was graver than before.

"I'm putting up a barrier for a moment. Don't be startled."

"...A barrier?"

Kantra extended a hand. A thick membrane of a barrier settled over the General Store.

"What kind of barrier is this?"

"One that keeps the exalted ones from eavesdropping. It has no physical effect."

"Then why now?"

"I have something to say to you."

"What."

"There is someone who wishes to sponsor you."

What was this, all of a sudden?

"Sponsor?"

"Yes. Sponsor."

"Do you happen to know about ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Lady Ner?"

"How would I know th—"

Wait. Ner? He had heard that name somewhere.

The operator of War of the Gods was named Ner, wasn't she?

Ner—the operator who had announced the server's shutdown. He had resented her bitterly for killing the server out of nowhere, but the inventory and the Equanimity perk had changed his opinion of her a great deal.

"I know her."

"That's a relief, then. She says she has a proposal for you."

"A moment ago you called it sponsorship."

"Strictly speaking, it is sponsorship... but there's a price."

"You want me to hand over points, and Ner gives me an item?"

"...What. How did you know?"

"One look and it's obvious."

"...Impressive."

"This conversation can't leak to anyone else, can it? That's why you raised the barrier."

"Right."

"And the ones watching—are they gods?"

Kantra's mouth opened and closed. He had already said everything she had been about to tell him.

"How in the world do you know?"

"The circumstances point that way."

"Do they?"

"One more thing. Why does Ner want to sponsor me?"

"I don't know either. So—are you taking it, or not?"

"I'm allowed to refuse?"

"Yes. It isn't mandatory."

"What's your relationship with Ner?"

"I can't tell you."

Kantra said it flatly, and Yujun let it go without a fuss. He knew prying would not produce anything.

"Fine. Give me the item."

"I'm not giving it to you. You're buying it with your points."

"That's what I said. I'm buying it."

"All right."

A worn cloak appeared on the wooden table. It had not been created there; it felt as though it had been sent across space.

"Don't tell me... this is the sponsorship gift? This is a bit..."

"...Yeah."

The cloak was painfully shabby to look at. Nothing on it was badly torn, but it was clearly a thing made long ago.

"Still, I don't think it's a joke. Check the options."

Yujun lifted the cloak with a doubtful eye.

One look at the options, and Yujun sucked in a useless breath.

Cloaks were genuinely difficult items to obtain. The item type itself existed in only a handful of copies, and a cloak with good options was about as easy to come by as a star plucked from the sky. And yet the options on this shabby thing were so absurd his mouth fell open.

There's no level restriction at all. Only the Primordial Player can wear it.

An item that granted a skill simply by being equipped. He had never seen one.

"How much?"

"All the points you have."

"Fine. Take them."

Yujun handed the points over without a second thought. Now he understood why she had called it sponsorship instead of a trade. Receiving a broken item like this for free would have been the stranger outcome.

"She actually wanted to give it to you free of charge, but she said she couldn't possibly handle what would follow. She asked me to tell you she's sorry."

"Oh, Ner did? Kind of her."

"...A god is not your friend."

"Then is she my liege? I don't see why I owe ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her honorifics."

"...You're not wrong. Anyway, we're finished here, yes?"

"Not yet. I should at least put the items to use before I go."

Yujun equipped the cloak first, then opened his status window and checked the skill tab.

It's there!

Once he had confirmed Blink, he took the cloak off. The skill remained on the status window all the same.

"Nice."

He put the cloak back on. All stats, up thirty percent. He could feel his body change, clear as anything. And if luck rose as well... his luck was probably pressing against the ceiling already.

That was not the end of it. Yujun drew out the Transcendent Stone.

I'll use it on the cloak.

As he saw it, the stone would do more good here than on a sword or a piece of armor. The Primal Shabby Cloak traded a miserable defense value for options that were exceptional—so good it was hard to believe the thing was merely Mythic. Worth a Transcendent Stone, he decided.