chapter 9
chapter 9
Where Did You Get That? (1)
Shine tried to suppress her laughter, but couldn’t hold it in and burst out with a small snort.
Then she rolled her eyes, glanced around, and quickly returned her gaze to her hands.
Hehe~
Sniff sniff—
My baby even smells nice.
I want to use it quickly.
She wanted to use it like crazy.
But the weekend training grounds were already fully booked.
Even though Shine hurried to reserve one, there were no available slots until Monday.
So she had no choice but to wait.
The time of patience was painful and exhausting.
But it was worth it.
Without even thinking about dinner, Shine ran straight to the training ground as soon as classes ended.
Her friend called out to her from behind, but the voice went in one ear and out the other.
“Haah… haah!”
The moment she arrived, she pulled out the weapon from her large bag.
Smack, smack, smack!
She planted three kisses on the radiant weapon.
“Sorry~ it must’ve been hard staying in the bag, right? Aww, my baby! You worked so hard~❤”
Since no one was around, she threw away all noble dignity and spoke in a childish tone to the weapon.
Even that wasn’t enough.
After carefully wiping it again with an expensive silk handkerchief, she finally lifted it.
“Hoo… hoo…”
Shine was certain this equipment would break her limits.
But that was only her assumption.
‘Even if I’m confident… what if it’s not?’
Equipment played a significant role in performance.
And Shine already had equipment that didn’t fall behind others, provided by her family.
‘Changing weapons shouldn’t suddenly set a new record.’
Her previous weapon wasn’t bad at all.
‘Still… this one is different.’
She knew the moment she saw it.
She needed this.
It wasn’t hers yet—
But it would be.
She raised the crimson-colored bow.
The red gem in the center emitted a mysterious energy.
No more hesitation.
She aimed at the target.
‘I’ll prove it’s special!’
Wooooooong—
Her will reached the exclusive equipment, “Flame Dragon Lotus.”
The mana of an Awakener resonated with it.
And—
Fwoosh!
An arrow infused with blue flames formed.
It shot toward the target at incredible speed.
KRAAAAAASH!!! BOOOOOM!!!
A deafening explosion echoed.
Blue flames shaped like a dragon engulfed the target.
The moment it hit—
It exploded like a blooming flower.
Rumble—
“Ahh!”
Even the sturdy training room shook.
The unexpected explosion made her ears ring.
Shine stood there, stunned.
“…What was that?”
She hadn’t even used a skill—
So why was it stronger than one?
Beep! Beep! Beep!
Half the target was gone, completely destroyed.
It was made of shock-absorbing material—she had never seen it damaged like that.
Still, it had done its job.
The power result appeared.
[401]
For reference, Shine had struggled for a year to break 400.
Her previous best was [388].
Just by changing weapons, her score jumped by 13 points—
Reaching A-rank at 401.
Drip, drip—
Tears fell from her eyes.
Even if it was only her power stat that reached A-rank, breaking her stagnation was what mattered.
“I knew it.”
Maybe it wasn’t coincidence—
Maybe fate led her to this weapon.
With this, she could reach A-rank.
No—
Maybe even S-rank.
“Right? With you, I can do it.”
She hugged the weapon tightly.
Gratitude toward the suspicious man welled up inside her.
To rent out such a weapon for just silver werewolf fur?
It made no sense.
“Why did he try to sell this to me?”
Now that she had confirmed its performance, curiosity about him surged.
With this weapon, he could easily hunt monsters like werewolves.
So why give it away?
‘It’s not cursed or anything…’
She decided to reach A-rank as soon as possible and request more support from her family.
Suspicious or not—
He had helped her.
That was what mattered.
⁂ ⁂ ⁂
“Ugh… my back hurts.”
Cleaning felt harder than hunting monsters.
It was far more exhausting than expected.
Still, I believed in doing things properly, so I kept at it.
After three days—
The place finally became livable.
‘Feels good.’
Not all three days were spent cleaning.
The roof had holes, so I had to repair it to prevent leaks.
Still, the effort paid off.
Compared to the gloomy surroundings, the shop now looked somewhat like a proper general store.
Of course, it was still empty.
I needed shelves.
‘And I need to set up my living space.’
Nothing fancy—
A bed, basic cooking tools, maybe some workout equipment.
All of that drained the money I had worked so hard to earn.
Watching my savings shrink hurt.
The high cost of living was brutal.
Still, if I wanted to do business with nobles, I had to adapt.
Even so, the prices were absurd for commoners.
It was like the academy was saying—
“Commoners, don’t live here.”
After all, this place was built for nobles.
“Even from afar, it looks like a shop.”
Since I chose a low-traffic area, I designed the interior to blend with the surroundings rather than stand out.
If it looked too different, it would attract unwanted attention.
‘Students probably won’t even come near here.’
That was fine.
I wasn’t targeting them anyway.
Now the only problem was what to sell—
But that wasn’t really a problem.
‘I have plenty.’
Fourteen years of gacha.
Even with few customers, I had enough items to run the shop.
That’s why I chose a quiet location.
“Now all I need… is customers.”
I recalled my part-time job at a convenience store after becoming an adult.
Using that memory, I neatly arranged the items.
Did a general store really need that many products?
Everything I had came from gacha anyway.
‘…Maybe I should let customers try gacha too.’
Like those capsule machines—
You put in money and get a random item.
I looked around but couldn’t find one.
So—
“Can you make something like this?”
I decided to commission one.
“Hm, looks doable. What’s it for?”
“Just a toy for kids. How long will it take?”
“About two days. Easy work.”
As expected from a place dealing with nobles—the craftsmanship was impressive.
In just two days, it was done.
Though made of plain steel, it worked perfectly.
With the machine installed—
My ideal shop was complete.
Honestly, I was happy.
“Time flies.”
A whole week passed before I knew it.
When I was a mercenary, time dragged endlessly.
Now it flew.
Maybe people really should do what they want.
‘Once I summon characters and sell their exclusive gear, I’ll have enough wealth to live comfortably forever.’
All I needed to do for this world—
Was summon characters.
Nothing more.
There was a clear gap between me, a commoner, and them, nobles.
I couldn’t raise them like in the game.
‘After hardship comes happiness.’
I wanted to reward myself too.
‘If only there were a nice commoner girl nearby… but maybe that’s too much to ask here.’
Standing in my very own shop—
I couldn’t hide my satisfied smile.