Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Chapter 17.
A Transaction Draws Spectators.
One could make a spectacle of another's misfortune, and catch a glimpse of the preferences and tastes of the Deities.
There was no reason not to watch.
“Hey, look, a Rank 0 is making a transaction.”
“Where? That wolf mask?”
“Let’s go.”
People swarmed towards Gunter’s stall—
“What is that?”
—and soon, disappointed, were certain that a confiscation was imminent.
Everything placed on the stall was, without exception, trash.
“Is that… a dead bug? How can a spider be that big?”
“They put a skull on it? Is that person sane?”
“Yo, crazy. There are even rocks.”
“Aren’t these supposed to be items imbued with magic?”
“Bullshit. I don’t feel anything.”
Gunter had even placed three items on the stall at once.
Three consecutive transactions.
The crowd’s gaze shifted from concern to outright pity.
“They’re trying to get away with way too much for nothing.”
“Well, we were like that once too.”
“Hmph, this isn’t a place where luck works… Tsk, you need to analyze.”
Some smirked maliciously.
“By looking at this cheap trash, maybe they’ll look more favorably on my items?”
“Of course. As soon as that guy gets confiscated, I’m going in.”
But Gunter remained unperturbed, even as the Minion examined the items.
[…Are these truly the items?]
Coincidentally, the transaction attendant was the Minion Gunter had met at the shop entrance.
Gunter nodded.
[…Please wait a moment]
Though his face was hidden by his robe, his displeasure was evident.
He seemed to consider Gunter a customer who wouldn’t contribute to his ‘performance.’
Woowooong—
As the Minion waved his hand, the items slowly floated up and passed through the ceiling's veil.
Immediately after.
A soft light burst from the uppermost floor where the Deities resided.
[……]
The Minion waited for a reaction.
Everyone else also held their breath, watching the situation unfold.
…Of course, Gunter, who could see the status window, already knew the results before the Minion told him.
[‘Rotten Swamp Fang’ shows great interest in the ‘Phildra Spider Taxidermy’ you registered. The Phildra Spider was his most favored prey before he attained divinity and ascended.]
[‘Mad Demolitionist’ smiles as he gazes upon the ‘Calus Ruins Fragment’ you registered. This is the remnant of the last place where he self-destructed with his enemies before ascending.]
[‘Exile of the Ice Land’ gazes upon the ‘Loyal Retainer’s Skull’ you registered and falls into reminiscence. This is the remains of a vassal who served him before he attained divinity and ascended.]
Rotten Swamp Fang.
Mad Demolitionist.
Exile of the Ice Land.
It couldn’t be helped that their epithets were somewhat pathetic, even wicked.
They were the Deities who presided over the lower floors.
But for now, they were enough.
Enough to exchange the trash he had painstakingly collected for the items needed for the ‘Initiation Test.’
Hwoong—
Finally, the Minion descended from the air and stood before him.
And continued speaking in a surprisingly gentle voice.
[‘Rotten Swamp Fang’ has offered ‘Corroded Inner Core Fragment’ as an exchange item.]
[‘Mad Demolitionist’ has offered ‘Special Adhesive Bomb’ as an exchange item.]
[‘Exile of the Ice Land’ has offered ‘Frost Ghost Robe’ as an exchange item.]
A moment of silence.
The Minion added,
His tone now a little more chatty.
[Congratulations. It has been a very long time since we had a customer succeed in three consecutive transactions. You have remarkable taste!! Will you accept the exchange?]
“Yeah, you punk.”
[……]
Simultaneously.
Tstststst—
From an unfathomable height, which could hardly be called a ceiling, a light sparkling like starlight flowed down.
Soon, a cluster of light condensed in the air.
Something took shape within it.
Woong—
The first was a small, bead-like fragment emitting a sticky green light.
It had a black, viscous surface, from which a faint poison wafted.
Woong—
Then, the second exchange item appeared.
A rectangular bomb.
A sinister red light pulsed from its center, encased in metal.
Woong—
Lastly, a robe as white as snow emerged from the light.
An intense cold could be felt even without approaching it.
[Addict Saintess gazes intently at the Inner Core Fragment.]
Only then did Gunter grin.
‘Just as I expected.’
The surroundings began to stir belatedly.
“What… No way! Those are the actual exchange items? There’s an Inner Core too?”
“Damn, look at the quality of that robe.”
“No, he got these artifacts with that trash?”
Yes.
If it had been just one, it might have been understandable.
There’s such a thing as beginner’s luck.
But to succeed in all three transactions…
This was a result no one had anticipated.
“What kind of person is he…?”
“A Contractor? But I don’t see a Stigma.”
“No, if he were a Contractor, he wouldn’t be Rank 0 in the first place.”
Disbelieving gazes.
[‘Wolf Mask’s’ reputation has slightly increased.]
But Gunter, unconcerned by the murmurs, first collected his items.
[Item Acquired! Corroded Inner Core Fragment (Rare)]
[Item Acquired! Adhesive Bomb (Rare)]
[Item Acquired! Frost Ghost Robe (Rare)]
All of them were necessary for Act 1, Scene 2, the ‘Initiation Test.’
As he stuffed all the items into his backpack.
[Customer]
The Minion approached.
Bowing respectfully.
[The Deities were greatly pleased with the exchange items. I am truly delighted to have assisted in such a monumental transaction.]
“Yeah, you punk.”
[…This was Attendant 28, Rakies. We look forward to your next visit.]
Ting—!
As Rakies snapped his fingers, the number on Gunter’s chest badge changed to ‘2.’
The decoration also became slightly more ornate.
From now on, he would be able to ascend to the second floor.
“…Rank 2?”
The onlookers were surprised once again.
Achieving Rank 2 on his first transaction.
Even for them, frequent visitors to the shop, it was a rare sight.
In fact, most of them were still Rank 0.
‘Guess I should head out now.’
Gunter walked towards the shop exit.
As if waiting, messages appeared.
[Marcher in the Grave gazes at you.]
[One Who Sits on the Broken Throne reaches out towards you.]
[Covenantor of Stars…]
Various gods showing interest in him.
‘…….’
A natural question suddenly arose.
If he were to reveal to them that he possessed Karma.
What kind of reaction would follow?
‘I do need to test it out sometime.’
He needed a sample.
To see if other gods truly coveted Karma.
What its value was, depending on the amount.
Whether the efficacy of Karma varied by specific god, and so on.
There were many things to find out.
Currently, he poured Karma into three gods, but someday he would need to gain the power of other gods as well.
He was also genuinely curious about the gods’ reactions and rewards.
And who knew?
He might even gain new clues about Karma or regression.
‘If an opportunity arises later to meet a higher deity… it would be worth considering.’
In fact, he had already decided on a candidate.
One who clearly belonged to the side of good, and possessed a powerful divinity, whom he would meet soon.
‘Alright then.’
Gunter took a deep breath as he stepped into the portal.
‘Time to head to Act 1, Scene 2.’
After completing a few miscellaneous preparations.
He headed to the meeting place.
The cesspool of the Border City.
The ‘interviewer’ was waiting for him in the lower levels.
[Lower Level Entry Approved]
The Golem attendant’s expressionless metal face clicked.
[Notification: This area is not guaranteed to have public order maintained, and the city authorities’ protection may be difficult to apply. Various criminal activities occur frequently here, including robbery, violence…]
“I get it, just call the elevator.”
[Yes]
Clang—
The elevator arrived with the rough sound of chains dragging.
As soon as he stepped in, an unpleasant odor assaulted his nostrils.
Oil, metal, filth, and the smell of blood.
If Ryan were here, he would have surely muttered,
“My god, this is more revolting than my unwashed underwear from the past month.”
…I wonder what he’s doing right now.
He was a friend he’d been with for nearly two years.
That absence felt larger than he expected.
Especially since he was heading to a dangerous place.
Boom—
The elevator descended rapidly towards the lower levels.
The landscape of the lower levels gradually revealed itself through the wire mesh.
Narrow, damp alleys, faint lights flickering between dilapidated buildings.
[Red Street Pillar feels nostalgia.]
‘Me too.’
[Red Street Pillar tilts his head.]
The map attached to the request form marked the meeting place in red ink.
I descended from the elevator and headed there.
Pickpockets and beggars.
Robbed corpses.
Gang members pointing knives at each other.
Even people from the upper levels who sought special pleasures in the lower depths.
After passing through several such groups, I arrived near the meeting place.
Ah, there was an unexpected event in the middle.
“Behold this dark world. Is there order here? Does justice exist? No. But if a true god descends… all will be set right.”
A clergyman in white robes, holding bread and a Bible, preached fervently.
At his feet, lower-class citizens knelt, mumbling incomprehensible prayers.
‘…Rutien.’
The lower levels were their primary source of offerings.
The few offerings I needed to save today would likely be people he had deluded like this.
“……”
At that moment, our eyes met.
The priest, who looked to be in his early thirties, smiled faintly and raised his hand.
“Brother, are you interested in true salvation?”
“No, not at all.”
Rutien was someone I couldn’t stand.
So, I was more interested in other things.
For instance, leveling up.
The fact that proselytizing priests were a famous source of experience points.
Swish—
[Level Up! / Lv.38]
[Stamina 28 -> 29]
I cut down the proselytizing priest, who wore a foolish expression, in a single stroke.
He was trash who would take the lower-class citizens to be sacrificed.
There was no need to show mercy.
As if my experience bar was full, my level rose immediately.
“Wh-what!”
“Aaaargh!”
The lower-class citizens, who were supposed to be sacrifices, screamed and fled.
Even so, I didn’t forget to diligently pick up the bag of bread.
I felt the Golem attendant’s warning voice echo in my ears again.
[This area is not guaranteed to have public order maintained, and the city authorities’…]
Yes, that applied to them too.
I stepped past the priest’s corpse and into the alley.
And so, upon arriving at the entrance of a certain dilapidated building.
Ting—!
[New Stage Entered: Act 1, Scene 2 – Initiation Test]
[Subsequent scenario branches and rewards will differ based on your choices and actions.]
[Tip: Capture the interviewer’s taste!]
The awaited message appeared.
…Along with the interviewer.
Thump—
A silhouette, which appeared out of nowhere in the shadow of the building entrance, stood before me.
“Nice to meet you, Gunter.”
Though his face was hidden by a mask (coincidentally, also a wolf mask), I couldn’t fail to recognize him.
Moon Wolf.
One of the main characters of <Forgotten God>.
A world-class powerhouse who had reached the 6th Rank.
And, the interviewer for this test.
“Then, let’s begin the mission briefing.”
[Opener of the Red Night gazes at you.]
Tap—
The parasol in Moon Wolf’s hand struck the ground with a dull sound.