Business Interference (2)
Thick gray smog hung heavily between the tattered tents of the Yellow Zone. Normally, the market alley would buzz with merchants hawking Magic Stones and ragtag scavengers haggling over scraps from the ruins. But today's air was different. As murky as the smoke, the atmosphere was steeped in despair.
In front of the trading post run by the Oasis Guild.
"N-No way! 150 stones? It was only 50 yesterday!"
A rookie stalker, clad in crudely patched leather reinforced with industrial tape and wearing a cracked hardhat, shouted with bloodshot eyes. In his hand were 50 Magic Stones he'd barely scraped together last night—scavenging trash from uncharted zones and killing walkers.
"Yesterday was yesterday. Starting today, it's 150."
"W-What...? You're kidding, right? This filthy purified sludge for 150?!"
"Kidding? Hey, punk. You think we're joking?"
An Oasis Guild stalker lounging behind the shop's metal shutter cackled.
"Our water source is having issues, so supply's short. What do you want us to do about it? If you're pissed, go find drinkable water yourself."
"B-But still..."
The rookie's face drained white at the merchant's mockery. The clean Odasu from the shop had certainly livened up the market, but it was far too little to sustain the entire Yellow Zone. Still, they'd managed so far. There was hope that the shop would shake Oasis's monopoly, and existing water prices had held steady enough.
But when Oasis used the shop's emergence as an excuse to slash distribution entirely, the situation turned to hell in half a day.
"Aigoo, you think we want to sell at this price? Oasis is threatening to kill us all if we don't match their rates!"
"We had no choice but to raise prices!"
Excuses poured from small-time water peddlers in alleys everywhere, but they fell on deaf ears among the survivors.
"How does it jump from 50 stones yesterday to 150 overnight?!"
"What?"
"50 was already steep, but we endured. But 150? That's insane profiteering!"
A man in battered armor protested politely to an Oasis guild member in front of the shop.
"Hey... listen to this punk's loud mouth."
"The Gallery shop sells ice-cold mineral water you couldn't even dream of before the apocalypse—for just 20 stones. At this rate, resentment will only—"
"What? Gallery shop? Hold on... you little shit!! You got an invite too, didn't you?"
"Huh? N-No, I di— Gah!"
Thwack—! Crack—!!
The guild member's rifle butt smashed mercilessly into the man's face. As he rolled on the ground spewing blood, surrounding thugs rushed in, stomping him viciously amid laughter.
"Urk! Gaaah!"
"This is why prices keep rising—disloyal scum like you! Drag him away! One more for tomorrow's public hanging!"
"Lol, add him to the list!!!"
"Daddy!! Daddyyy!!"
His young daughter, hiding behind him, wailed and clung desperately, but one thug kicked her aside irritably.
"Daddyyy... Waaah!!"
"You gonna move or what?"
Someone watched the horrific scene from hiding in the alley.
"These crazy bastards..."
It was Juddak—Eun Wol. She wanted nothing more than to slaughter them all right then. For her, it was entirely feasible. But she couldn't.
"..."
Ironically, without them, the Yellow Zone's drinking water supply would truly cease. Of course, Eun Wol hadn't been idle. She'd gone to not just Yellow Zone but major guilds dominating the Orange Zone, pleading for new contracts.
'We'd love to help, but we can't. If the big shots from Green Zone are backing this...'
'Even we can't afford to piss off the hunters...'
All she got was cold shoulders.
'Raising prices? Sounds good to us.'
'Maybe we should hike our byproduct rates too...'
Some even sided with them. In this ruined world, saving the weak was a luxury too far.
"Am I... powerless alone? Can't protect... can't change anything."
Aaah. Utter isolation. She'd endured on flimsy resolve to rebuild the world, but she was just an impotent fool who couldn't save even one dying soul before her eyes.
Yet Eun Wol's red eyes never clouded with despair.
'Then I'll go to the Red Zone myself. Farm as much water as possible every day.'
Red Zone. Utterly resource-rich compared to other areas—but proportionally deadly. Even ten veteran stalkers in top gear were lucky if one or two crawled out minus a limb. Entering solo was suicidal gambling, even for Eun Wol. She knew the risks better than anyone.
But it beat letting those parasite scum keep survivors' throats in their grip.
"Alright..."
As Eun Wol turned to rush to the Red Zone,
"Th-The shop posted an announcement!!!"
"Announcement! It's up!!!!"
The crowd in front of the shop erupted.
"Shop announcement...?"
Eun Wol ducked back into the alley and opened the Gallery.
Thank you to all members using our shop.
Thanks to your enthusiastic support and purchases, our inventory management system has successfully upgraded.
Item:Odasu 500mL
Price: 20 Magic Stones
[Current Stock: 700 / 700] (UP!!!)
Stock replenished with notice. Immediate purchase available.
We at Starplex will continue providing a pleasant shopping experience. We look forward to your continued patronage.
Eun Wol froze on the spot.
"...700...?"
It was double the total released over the past week. That massive flood of mineral water hit the market all at once.
The Gallery's despair flipped in an instant.
"Kya, now that's more like it."
What a hilarious sight. It was never a fair fight to begin with. Their water was crudely filtered sludge; mine was pre-apocalypse fridge-chilled mineral water. And mine regenerated for free via my abilities, delivered automatically. Zero loss for me.
"Plus what? Dropping to 100 stones urgently?"
Not 100—it was worth selling for 10 and still turning profit. Refreshing showed real-time updates flooding in.
Small merchants who'd gouged with Oasis were quickest to sense the shift and jump on the bandwagon.
"Why that judgment? So dumb."
They couldn't know my identity, so fair call—but still dumb.
Water prices seemed headed for normalization fast, but...
Public opinion hadn't fully shifted yet.
"Oh, look at these guys."
Crisis lingered. 700 seemed huge but was absolutely insufficient, birthing such sentiments. Dirty water prices might dip then rebound.
But.
Oasis's stacked hate from hoarding had users voluntarily sharing excess stock, shifting mindsets entirely.
"Boycott too???"
Users vowed to shun Oasis's dirty water—and went further, chanting "hold strong."
"Whoa, don't overdo it, guys...!"
I didn't expect that far. Buy from outside if needed. Can't rely solely on my shop.
I worried they were pushing too hard, but the next post...
"Kyaah..."
"Oof, too fun."
Couldn't hold back the laughter.