Wandering Merchant Alliance (1)
Warm water enveloped his entire body.
“Hooo…”
A low moan slipped from his lips unbidden.
He could have cleaned himself with the Wind of Purification, but a shower was something else entirely. It was the feeling of accumulated fatigue melting away in the heat, soft and complete.
Hyun Si-woon even stored the Invisible Sword in his inventory and surrendered himself fully to a moment that belonged to him alone.
Outside, the laughter of children drifted in. The cozy smell of dinner being prepared filled the air. And waiting for him was a soft bed.
This is what home feels like.
A place that was truly snug.
An unfamiliar sensation suddenly washed over him—an emotion he had never fully known even before the world changed. To him, home had always been nothing more than a physical space for sleeping and gaming. An empty house with no one in it. A life sustained solely by the living expenses his uncle wired each month. No parents. No siblings.
But this place was different.
When he opened the door, people were there to welcome him. Comrades who sweated beside him, fought back-to-back, and shared a single warm meal. Residents who called him their benefactor and truly worried over him, looking after him with sincere care. The air here was thick with human warmth.
How ironic.
Si-woon gave a bitter smile. Only after the world collapsed had he finally gained something that actually resembled a home and a family…
“Nice.”
He finished washing and changed into soft, fresh clothes. One by one the members emerged, and once they had all gathered, Si-woon made his announcement.
“Alright. No training today.”
“From this moment, exactly three days. Complete vacation. Doesn’t matter what you do. Sleep the whole time if you want. Read books. Hang out and play with the camp residents. Rest properly while doing whatever each of you feels like.”
“What? For real, hyeong-nim?”
Hwang Dae-un’s eyes went round as saucers. The other members wore equally disbelieving expressions.
“What’s gotten into you?”
“I haven’t even hit stamina 19 yet…”
“No morning martial arts practice either?”
Si-woon grinned.
“Mental rest is part of training too. Just because the world’s ended doesn’t mean we have to give up happiness. You need proper rest if you want healthy growth.”
Honestly, they had been running themselves ragged. The others might not fully realize it, but Si-woon especially had. He had regressed more times than he could count.
When he finished speaking, a brief silence settled over them. The members glanced at one another’s faces, as if confirming that what they had just heard was real. Then Hwang Dae-un, the first to grasp the situation, shattered the quiet with a roar.
“Wooooooooh!”
He thrust both arms skyward and bounced up and down like a child.
“Vacation! Freedom! Hoorayyyyy!”
That was the signal flare.
“Really? Is it actually okay?”
A bright smile bloomed across Jang Cha-yul’s face, washing away the fatigue.
“Oh my god, then I’m sleeping the entire day. Nobody wake me.”
Baek Do-hee collapsed onto the sofa with pure bliss written across her features.
“Keuh, as expected, our leader’s got a big heart.”
Baek Yeon-ho flashed a thumbs-up, and even the usually taciturn Kang Si-a lifted the corners of her mouth slightly and nodded.
Si-woon returned to his room—the former research director’s office. The residents had swept and polished every surface; not a speck of dust remained.
“Haa.”
He sank into the plush sofa. Off to one side stood a liquor cabinet. Inside, the bottles Ma Gang-il had collected were arranged in neat rows.
Liquor, huh.
He selected one bottle that looked especially fine. Heavy glass, an antique label. A spirit he had never seen before—the kind he might never have tasted in his entire life if the world had not turned upside down.
Shall I try a little?
People said it felt that good when you drank it.
Glug, glug, glug.
The clear, transparent glass filled with amber liquid; the sound rang out with unusual clarity. As if drawn by that sound, a knock came and Baek Yeon-ho poked his head through the doorway.
“Oh, drinking alone?”
The moment his eyes landed on the bottle in Si-woon’s hand, Yeon-ho’s eyes ballooned to the size of lanterns.
“Oh, that!”
“...?”
“That’s Balvenie 25 Year! You had something like that here?”
“Balvenie? What’s that?”
“You don’t know Balvenie, the foundation of single malts? Well… if you’re just barely an adult, I guess you might not. And 25 Year… heh, back in the day that easily went for 1.5 million won. A real treasure.”
Excitement and reverence mixed in Yeon-ho’s voice. He approached carefully, caressed the bottle, and swallowed hard.
“In this ruined world every bottle is limited edition. Right now you can’t even put a price on this. If you sold it for TC… aigoo, I can’t even imagine. Save it, Si-woon. You really have to save it.”
“Yeah. Have a glass, hyeong. Didn’t know you were a drinker.”
Si-woon casually took out another whiskey glass and poured for Yeon-ho—filled it right to the brim.
“Yes! I’ll drink well!”
Yeon-ho accepted the glass with pure joy and soon retreated to his own room, clearly intending to savor it alone.
Quiet silence returned. Si-woon raised his glass to his nose. A fragrant yet heavy oak aroma rose, laced with sweet honey and vanilla that gently stirred his mind. He tilted the glass and took a sip.
…Bitter.
Yet behind the bitterness came a soft texture that wrapped his tongue and a complex weave of flavors. Heat slid down his throat, followed by a deep, lingering finish.
Not bad.
Si-woon sank deeper into the sofa, slowly savoring the remaining whiskey as he opened the community window. Nearly three weeks of absence. Time to see how the market had changed.
Entering Republic of Korea Server (KR).
Connected Users: 90,203
Hyun Si-woon (Floor 3) — Online
Down to ninety thousand now.
While they had been locked in a desperate struggle on the fourth floor, the world had kept turning. Si-woon immediately fixed his gaze on the Free Board. The reaction was exactly what he had expected.
Gathering only the posts related to the Wandering Merchant painted the same picture. People wondering why he had gone dark. Speculating that he had been assassinated or failed while climbing the Tower.
Si-woon gave a bitter smile and took another sip of the remaining whiskey. The human heart was truly fickle. At first he had been nothing more than an anonymous merchant selling curious items. But the moment people grew accustomed to the overwhelming convenience and survival power he provided, his existence stopped being optional and became essential.
Faster than I expected.
He could probably raise prices a little more without shocking the market. He would visit Lumi at four in the morning.
And there was additional information.
Guilds?
He moved straight to the Party Recruitment Board. In the past it had been filled with nothing but posts looking for small parties. Now it was different. The word “guild” appeared with increasing frequency at the top of the board.
Huh.
Faction-building among climbers had begun. In truth it was the natural order of things. Humans were social animals. Even in chaos they instinctively formed groups and created order within them. Just as he himself had settled into Eden Camp, others had no choice but to band together against fear. If anything, the appearance of guilds had come a little late.
We might have to take a form like that someday ourselves.
Eden Camp could serve as an excellent foundation. But the time was not yet right. Rashly expanding a force would inevitably draw more threats and checks—especially the attention of Rankers.
For now we keep moving as we are: a small elite unit.
Si-woon organized his thoughts and returned to the Free Board. What he needed to focus on right now was not guilds, but the boiling public sentiment of this market.
I’ll visit Lumi this dawn.
That dawn.
Wandering Merchant ‘Lumi’ opens the shop.
Only Climbers may use the shop.
Held TC: 101,888
Perfect.
His TC holdings were enormous. Ten thousand TC each as the fourth-floor clear reward, plus everything they had stripped from the islands on the fourth floor… add the Grade 7 monsters he had hunted on the way back to Eden Camp, and it all added up.
First the daily shop. He purchased far larger quantities than before. Climbers would be exhausted, so a surprise five hundred of each!
And then…
Space Expansion Backpack.
The corner of Si-woon’s mouth lifted.
I hear the value on these has skyrocketed.
Apparently some were trading for over a thousand TC. The market itself had proven their worth.
Even so.
I’ll release about five at 800 TC.
He had not forgotten the community posts. The countless climbers who, even in his absence, had missed the Wandering Merchant and desperately longed for his return. They were more than mere consumers; they were loyal supporters who had safeguarded the brand value of the Wandering Merchant.
The price of 800 TC was a kind of apology gift for them.
You’ve waited a long time, haven’t you? I’m putting them out cheap out of guilt! But quantity is limited, so only those who truly need them—or those with luck—get to take them!
That was the message he was sending. It would reward their loyalty and plant a positive image: the Wandering Merchant was not a cold-blooded merchant who chased only profit.
Of course, Si-woon was not actually apologizing. An extremely limited supply of bags would simultaneously create the ecstasy of the few who succeeded in buying and the bitter regret of the many who failed. And that regret would soon become even greater craving.
Ah, I could have bought one for 800 TC!
Who knows what the price will be next time!
I have to buy no matter what!
Reactions like that would follow. People would wait for the Wandering Merchant’s next appearance with far greater desperation than before. While pretending to soothe the market for a moment, Si-woon was in fact pouring oil on an even greater flame of desire.
— Kkoo-woo, kkoo-woooo!
Lumi flapped its tail in delight, endlessly spitting out orbs of light. In moments the basement floor was buried in items.
And the place Si-woon’s gaze finally settled:
Monthly Shop.
Time to check the unique items that had almost certainly reset.