Chapter 8
The eyes of the people exchanging frantic glances were filled with unease. 'Are we really putting that on Sertina?''Won't she get mad?''What if we all end up dead?'
It was because the item Lee Min-ho had pulled out was shocking... no, outrageously over-the-top.
"Pfft."
Tier's face, clamped shut with both hands to stifle her laughter until it turned beet red, was smeared with a mix of horror and delight. Yunsia buried her face in her palms, head bowed low. Kim Min-seok stood frozen like a statue, his brain short-circuited, mouth flapping open and shut.
The outfit itself wasn't anything scandalous. But when the wearer was none other than the harbinger of world's end, Sertina, that changed everything.
'Even so, making her wear something like that?'
That was the collective thought running through everyone's minds. She was a being perched at the pinnacle, serenely overlooking the mortal world. The invincible overlord of the heavenly realm, enthroned upon a seat of blood. And to such an existence, Lee Min-ho had offered...
◈ Acquired from Astría Online New Year's Event
A limited costume from Astría Online's New Year's event.
"Oh man..."
Hwang Cheol-ho clutched his face in dismay. Silence blanketed the survivor outpost. And that silence pointed squarely in one direction.
Clack, clack. Sertina approached Lee Min-ho without a word. The brown bear plush head hung its gaze downward, looking for all the world like a drenched kitten, utterly pitiful.
And toward him, she extended her hand.
"Let's trade."
"Pardon?"
Lee Min-ho's head snapped up. The mismatch of its huge, round eyes and sturdy body was comically absurd.
"A-are you serious?"
"Yeah."
There wasn't a hint of hesitation in Sertina's voice.
'Is this for real?' Lee Min-ho pondered with a troubled expression before finally speaking up. "Understood. Then..."
He busily manipulated the air with his fingers, operating some invisible interface. Moments later, a translucent window materialized before them both.
⊳ Astría Online's secure peer-to-peer trading interface
⊳ Fraud-proof design
Astría Online's system for direct item trades between players. Word was it was designed to prevent any scamming. As if anyone would dare scam me in a face-to-face deal anyway...
Under the name "Lee Min-ho," the "Brown Bear Plush Head" appeared.
"Here you go."
"Okay."
Sertina moved her fingers too, placing a generous pile of gold into the trade window. Both clicked "Confirm."
Trade completed.
"Whaaaaat!?"
A piercing shriek erupted from Lee Min-ho's side. Why's he so worked up?
"N-no, thiiis... this!!"
Stammering like a glitching computer, his face drained of color as he trembled.
As Sertina tilted her head in confusion, Lee Min-ho regained his wits from whatever distant galaxy they'd fled to.
"I think you entered the gold amount wrong?"
Sertina checked the trade history with a flick of her finger.
"It's correct."
"Huh?"
The crowd gathered, circling with puzzled stares. 'What's got him like this? How much did he get?' Peering at Lee Min-ho's trade window, their jaws dropped.
"Am I seeing this right?"
One rubbed his eyes. Awe and envy flickered in several gazes. Even Hwang Cheol-ho stepped in to smooth things over.
"Pardon the intrusion, Sertina. But this item isn't worth 100 million gold."
With real-world currency mirrored directly, 100 million gold equaled a cool 100 million won.
But Sertina shook her head.
"I've got plenty of money."
"Even so, 100 million for a plush head is a bit..."
Hwang Cheol-ho rubbed his hands awkwardly, flashing a strained smile. Truth be told, Sertina knew full well.
'A gag order, basically.' A way to ensure they wouldn't blab about her identity. A tacit bribe, forcing a debt of gratitude down their throats.
Of course, Lee Min-ho was at fault for accepting without checking the amount.
"It's fine. I've got tons."
And Sertina really did have tons. An unimaginable fortune. Her sense of money was still off after arriving on Earth so recently, but even she could guess: dumping just a fraction into the market would rock the global economy.
Where the hell did she get that insane amount? Sure, she collected treasures from Pandela, but... Was that hero's holy sword pricier than expected? Or the cursed music box from demon territory? That thing's stacked curses could've wiped out a king easy.
Hwang Cheol-ho tried persuading her several more times, but Sertina wouldn't budge. In the end, Lee Min-ho and he threw up their hands.
"Haa... Th-then we'll gratefully accept."
Clutching 100 million yet sighing like the world had ended, Lee Min-ho's shoulders slumped heavily. What can you do? Better than getting pelted with stones by players on the street.
With the unexpected money drama wrapped up, people dispersed to their tasks one by one.
Yunsia approached with a torn box in limp steps from afar, her face pale as she dumped the blackened contents into the food waste bin. Rations ruined to rags by the raid boss.
Glancing sidelong at Lee Min-ho, she finally spoke haltingly.
"Min-ho. Tomorrow, we'll handle rations ourselves."
"What? Without me?"
"No choice. At this rate, we'll all starve tomorrow."
"Haa..."
Lee Min-ho scratched his head furiously, worry and guilt etching deep lines on his brow.
"You guys alone will be dangerous... Better come with me tomorrow."
"No way. Your pain hasn't even faded—what rations run? Don't forget you barely survived."
Yunsia's arms crossed firmly, her stance unyielding. Lee Min-ho stared resentfully but dropped his gaze, sensing the unbreakable wall in her eyes. Gloom thickened the air like depths of the ocean.
Then, piercing that heavy mood, Sertina spoke.
"I can help with that."
Lee Min-ho's head jerked up. Eyes turned her way, pupils widening in bewilderment.
"S-Sertina herself?"
Yunsia, clutching her left arm, asked in a quavering voice. Sertina closed her eyes and nodded once.
"Got nothing else to do anyway."
"Th-then the price..."
"No need."
Yunsia and Lee Min-ho hesitated, glancing awkwardly without replying. Too burdensome? Come on, I'm charging a fee here. Defend me properly later. Got it? That's your job.
With no response, Sertina drove the wedge herself to prevent backing out.
"Phone numbers."
"Pardon?"
"Let's exchange."
She whipped out her smartphone in her right hand, thrusting it forward. Tier, scurrying over with a box, gaped wide-eyed.
"Sertina has a phone too!?"
"Yeah? Sort of."
The box slipped from Tier's hands with a thud. Sertina scratched her head. Is it that big a deal? You all have one each.
"Do you know how to use it?"
"A bit."
Tier rubbed her chin thoughtfully, peeking sideways with hopeful eyes before speaking.
"Then... are you a Player too, Sertina?"
"Nope."
"Huh? Then how do you know smartphones..."
"It was in my head since landing on Earth."
Tier licked her lips nervously.
"Th-that sounds like you really came from another world."
"I did."
Sertina shrugged. Closing her eyes briefly, she recalled her first moments on Earth.
'This little gadget helped me adapt fast. Without it, I'd have struggled big time.'
Yunsia scratched her head in fresh awe.
"Whoa... You really are the real deal..."
Lee Min-ho, eyeing Sertina's phone suspiciously, ventured cautiously.
"By the way, Sertina, what's your number?"
"Dunno."
"Pardon?"
'She doesn't know her own number?' Lee Min-ho nearly pointed it out but shut his mouth at the absurdity. Memorizing one's number was second nature in the info age. But he'd forgotten: Sertina was an Irregular from another world.
No contacts from there, obviously. And she'd likely descended right after Astría Online went live. No reason to use one.
"Try calling mine?"
"Why call?"
"Then you'll see your number."
"Got it."
Sertina punched in the number Lee Min-ho recited with her small fingers. The usage was ingrained in her mind. She hit call.
Lee Min-ho's phone buzzed.
"Uh...?"
His face twisted in confusion at the lit screen. Kim Min-seok sidled up.
"What's up? Problem?"
"Nah, but... no number shows?"
"Huh?"
Kim Min-seok leaned in, frowning. Then his jaw dropped in shock.
"What the hell is this?"
"Beats me."
"What kinda script is that? A phone number?"
The screen displayed not standard Arabic numerals, but bizarre symbols and erratic scribbles impossible to type—grotesque glyphs.
"Heh..."
Kim Min-seok groaned in disbelief. He'd clung to a sliver of doubt that she might be human after seeing her handle the phone. But one outgoing call shattered that illusion.
After much hassle, they swapped contacts. Sertina turned toward home, tossing out casually over her shoulder.
"See you tomorrow. Oh, and keep me secret."
The group watched her retreating back like fledglings eyeing their mother bird. None believed she'd really show up again.
Humans are creatures of adaptation, after all. Even in a world flipped overnight, people were carving out their places.
With media back online after nearly a month, articles flooded in.
"Sertina! Thanks for all your hard work today!"
"Haha, we're the grateful ones!"
Sertina had peeled off her hazardous creature sticker(?) status and built solid ties with the Seoul Forest Station survivors. She was now indispensable, their core pillar.
After another smooth ration run, she returned home and opened the cupboard.
"Hmm... Food's almost gone. Should've grabbed extra earlier."
Just one cup ramen left. Irritation furrowed her brow as she bit her lip. Nothing worse than heading right back out.
She tore open the ramen, filled the coffee pot with water, and heated it up.
"I'll ask for some at lunch later. Too lazy now."
She wolfed it down and flopped onto the sofa. Post-meal drowsiness hit hard, haze settling in. Heavy eyelids drooped.
Then, an unidentified window popped up before her eyes.
Notice: Astría Online update begins today at 12:00 PM.
Players, please wait in a safe location until completion.
Update duration: Approximately 1 week.
"Update...?"
She blinked to check, but crushing fatigue overwhelmed her. Consciousness sank into the depths, darkness falling.
...Even then, I had no inkling of the storm this would unleash.