Chapter 77
Chapter 77
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 77
Chapter Title: The All Master Who Regressed to Bronze
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Returning home, Choi Shin-hyeok immediately began settling the rewards he'd put off.
"Wandering Merchant Summon Scroll."
This was one of the rewards from becoming the Colosseum Champion. True to its name, it allowed him to summon a wandering merchant.
If he knew a specific wandering merchant, he could choose to summon that one, so Shin-hyeok quickly thought of a name.
"Gold Maniac, Goldrich. That guy should do nicely."
Gold Maniac, Goldrich.
He was a wandering merchant affiliated with the Merchant Alliance, one of the ten dimensions in the lower realms.
As his nickname suggested, he'd sell anything for the right price, so if handled well, even rare items that were hard to obtain could be acquired.
The downside was that everything was a bit pricey, but every coin had two sides, so there was no helping it.
Anyway, with his wandering merchant chosen, Shin-hyeok tore the summon scroll without hesitation.
Riiip! Boom!
A thick cloud of smoke burst out the moment the scroll tore.
When the smoke finally cleared, a handsome blond man with golden eyes stood there.
"Huh? This dimension hasn't even entered the Unified League yet? A player here chose and summoned me? From the Five Lords Family?"
"Gold Maniac. The important thing is that I called you."
"...You know me?"
"If I didn't, I wouldn't have called you. Set up your stall. Let me see if there's anything worth buying."
"Ha, listen to this punk. You think I'll set up my stall just because you say so? Unbelievable. Customer, you wanna get hit?"
A dimension where the Unified League hadn't even started.
Though stunned momentarily that someone here had called him, Goldrich was soon outraged by Shin-hyeok treating him like a mere stall-keeper. He clenched his fist.
Golden energy swirled around his fist.
'He's definitely strong. That's what you get from a merchant in the lower realms.'
It would be a mistake to think merchants were weak just because they were merchants.
Wandering merchants who traveled dimensions selling goods were especially not.
They received some systemic protection, but ultimately, protecting their wares required their own power.
In that regard, Goldrich—a seasoned wandering merchant—was undoubtedly an exceptional player.
His raw combat prowess was impressive, and the power of that golden energy was formidable too.
'Gold Power. A special stat on par with mana or holy power.'
Gold Power.
It was a pretty useful special stat, as far as he knew.
The downside was that it guzzled insane amounts of money, but that hardly counted as a flaw.
But one crucial point was—
Fwoooosh!
"Wanna try me?"
"..."
In the end, he was still a merchant.
His raw specs might be high, but he lacked actual fighting experience.
In that situation, as Shin-hyeok unleashed a massive wave of demonic energy, Goldrich's face stiffened.
Especially since Shin-hyeok's demonic energy was refined through the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, far superior to ordinary demonic power. As a discerning merchant, Goldrich could sense the difference.
Shhh...
The golden energy around his hand naturally dissipated, and the tension left his clenched fist.
And then, naturally—
Shasha!
"I'll serve you with utmost sincerity, customer! I'm just a lowly stall-keeper!"
He rubbed his hands together like a fly and flashed a sleazy merchant's smile.
The sight of a stereotypical handsome blond man groveling didn't match at all, yet somehow suited him perfectly, making Shin-hyeok chuckle.
"Set it up."
"Yes, sir!"
As if he'd been waiting for this exact moment, Goldrich began setting up his stall.
But even as he did, he glanced at Shin-hyeok cautiously.
"B-But just to check, you do have the money, right? If this dimension hasn't opened the Unified League yet, your D.P. isn't the Unified League standard, so the exchange rate will be insane. Hmm, I just checked—on this Earth dimension, converting local D.P. to Unified League D.P. is about 1:10,000."
'Oh right, there was that issue too.'
D.P.
Dimension Points.
These were used to buy items from the Dimension Arena system.
The exchange rate was 1:1 based on the key currency.
One dollar equaled one D.P.
But once the Unified League began, local D.P. became worthless.
The D.P. used on Earth now was native dimension D.P., valuable only within this dimension.
So it had to be reconverted to Unified League D.P., following the set exchange rate.
And for a native dimension not yet in the Unified League, the D.P. was utter trash.
'But 1:10,000? That's a bit much.'
Even accounting for that, the rate was ridiculously bad.
At that rate, 10,000 dollars became 1 dollar.
In Korean won, 10 million won for 1,000 won.
Sensing Shin-hyeok's thoughts, Goldrich licked his lips while eyeing the gear Shin-hyeok wore.
"I can take gear as payment if you want. I give top dollar. Or unique-grade materials or higher. In a native dimension, material values aren't properly assessed, so you can get them cheap, right?"
True to his nose for money, he'd instantly recognized Shin-hyeok's equipment as top-tier.
He also pointed out that most native dimensions undervalued materials compared to Unified League dimensions, making them a good trade option.
Treating materials buyable with Earth's money or D.P. as more precious.
It was unavoidable.
Earth's money or D.P. only worked in Earth's pond, but unique or legendary materials were valuable even in the Unified League.
But—
"I don't have anything I'm using to sell."
"Not using?"
"I've got a legendary craftsman. Legendary materials go without saying, but even unique ones are getting melted down like crazy."
"What? No way! A legendary artisan in a dimension that hasn't even joined the Unified League? Are you messing with me?"
"You'll know when you see my spear and sword."
"...This is real. You can feel the craftsman's touch. Completely different from system-generated gear. Damn, such treasures in a backwater dimension..."
Bang Se-jin was currently running his forge like a black hole, sucking in all materials, so there was nothing to sell.
Even if there was, Se-jin would use it later anyway, so no selling.
Inspecting the Spear of Fierce Killing and the True Holy Sword, Goldrich realized Shin-hyeok was telling the truth, and his eyes sparkled.
"I'd love to meet that craftsman sometime."
"Maybe if there's a chance. In return... you know."
"Haha, somehow I feel like the prices might drop."
"Good. That's the attitude."
Goldrich, willing to offer a bigger discount this time in hopes of meeting Se-jin.
His insight into Shin-hyeok's intentions proved he was an excellent merchant.
But the problem remained.
"If you're not selling gear or materials, how do you plan to pay? You're clearly a top player, so you won't lack for this dimension's money, but the loss would be huge. I don't care as long as I get paid, but let me say it again: my wares are all top-grade. Very expensive."
The payment issue.
Without selling gear or materials, he'd have to pay with Earth's D.P., which would mean massive losses.
Native dimension D.P. was trash to Unified League dimensions, but it was solid currency on Earth, making it worse.
Shin-hyeok smiled and replied.
"There's currency that works across dimensions."
"What's tha—wait, no way."
Currency obtainable even without joining the Unified League, yet still valuable afterward.
That was—
"Achievement Points."
"...I figured as much after seeing your strength, but yes, achievement points are more than sufficient. Provided you have enough of them."
Achievement Points.
But without a sufficient amount, they were meaningless.
Just like how 1g of gold couldn't replace billions.
But that was irrelevant to Shin-hyeok.
"How's that?"
"...Gasp!"
The 1 million achievement points from the impossible achievement.
Plus the miscellaneous ones from his broadcasts and such.
All totaling over 1.5 million massive achievement points. Goldrich sucked in a breath.
His eyes gazing at the achievement points window melted like those of a lover smitten.
How much time passed?
"I'll serve you with all my heart and soul, customer!"
"Good."
Goldrich bowed deeply.
Beyond a 90-degree bow—a full 180.
His crown nearly touched the ground. Shin-hyeok nodded and began rummaging through the stall.
Goldrich's stall was cluttered with countless items.
'His bad taste in presentation is consistent.'
Goldrich's creed was money above all, but he valued discernment.
He hoped customers would pick valuables from the mess.
Some item windows were even partially obscured or mosaiced, making eye for value essential.
Of course—
"Sort by best items."
"Uh..."
"What, don't wanna meet the craftsman?"
"Activating auto-sort function!"
The ultimate cheat key.
Using Sejin-mong created an auto-sort function out of nowhere.
The cluttered stall sorted itself instantly, leaving just three items.
"Explain."
"This is a scroll to awaken a pet's origin. It forcibly awakens the dormant origin in your pet, so if you believe in your pet's potential, it's a must-have."
"Nice. Next?"
"Dimension Arena Death Exemption Ticket. You might not know since the Unified League hasn't started—"
"I know. From the Unified League, deaths in the Dimension Arena are real deaths."
"...Hmph, you're no ordinary customer. Anyway, this scrap of paper is worth one life."
"Next."
"Legendary Enhancement Stone. Usable only on legendary-grade or lower gear. Enhances options and unique skills."
"If I use it on legendary gear that then grows into mythic-grade, what happens to the enhancement?"
"...Hmm, that's extremely rare. Growth gear is scarce to begin with, and even rarer for mythic potential. But asking that means you have such gear?"
"Just answer."
"Merchant Alliance records say... it persists."
"Nice."
All three items were satisfactory.
The pet origin scroll was perfect for Kkamakki. The death exemption for Tarkhan or as insurance for Shin-hyeok in the Unified League later.
Finally, the legendary enhancement stone was ideal for the Armor of Absorption.
It was the only gear he had with mythic growth potential, maximizing enhancement value.
But the most important part remained.
"Prices?"
"Scroll: 1 million. Enhancement stone: 500k. Death exemption: 100k."
"Pricey."
The total of 1.6 million was nearly all his achievement points.
At Shin-hyeok's reaction, Goldrich rattled off explanations.
"Good items must be expensive—that's my philosophy. And they're not that pricey. The scroll drives tamers and druids wild. Enhancement stones are sought by all players. For you, with mythic-potential gear, it's basically a mythic stone. And the death exemption? Pain to explain. Any Unified League player needs at least one."
"Hm."
Shin-hyeok stroked his chin, lost in thought amid the rapid-fire sales pitch.
But not for long.
"I'll take all of them."
"Wise choice!"
All were essential for Shin-hyeok.
Seeing the buy intent, Goldrich beamed and meticulously packaged the items at lightning speed.
Godlike hand speed.
But Goldrich had overlooked one thing—
"I never said I'd pay your asking price."
"Pardon?"
"Knock off 600k, make it 1 million?"
"...Are you insane? 600k off? That's nearly half! Outrageous!"
"Hmm, somehow I feel like our legendary craftsman might get too busy suddenly. Hard to make time."
"...Kuh!"
Shin-hyeok had no intention of paying full price.
Bargaining by leveraging Se-jin, Goldrich groaned and ground his teeth.
For a merchant like Goldrich, a legendary artisan stably supplying unique and legendary gear was a money fountain.
And even more crucially—
"Securing an exclusive contract with a legendary artisan is no small advantage. Massive profits from that alone, plus edge over other merchants. You'd give that up? For a mere 600k achievement points?"
"Ugh...!!!"
The benefits and interests dwarfed gear sale profits.
His jaw trembled.
Nearly half off!
The most heinous crime of his life, but the answer was set. Shin-hyeok drove the nail in.
"Oh, and our artisan's trait is growth-type, not completion-type?"
"...!"
Already legendary, yet with no ceiling—room to grow further.
Goldrich had no choice but to kneel.
Sejin-mong's another win.