After the blinding rays of light subsided, Sungjin and Franz stared at the gigantic figure of Cain standing before them. He was about double the previous size. His eyes were level with Sungjin now.

  The suddenly-taller Cain took a look at himself and then

  “Awoo~”


  Let out a long howl. He sounded quite pleased. Just then, Sungjin noticed that the figurine had changed as well. The figurine was larger and slightly glossy. It was looking more like Cain now. Sungjin held the item up for inspection.

  Grand Kin – Master of the Forest

  Legendary Summon

  Special ability – Spiritual Link (Grand Kin)

  Spiritual Link(Grand Kin) – Loyal Familiar, Summon Grand Kin.

  If Summon is killed, or if 10 minutes pass from the time of summoning, it disappears.

  Grand Kin who inherited the Forest from his mother.

  According to legend, he can communicate with other creatures of the forest and command the spirits.

  “Whoa……”


  Sungjin was staring at the screen. Franz was also standing wide mouthed.

  “This…… from chapter 2……?”


  He must have mistaken Cain for Ahenna. Although, the current form of Cain looked just like her.

  “Grr?”


  Cain walked towards Franz. Perhaps due to his size, Franz unconsciously took a step back.

  “Whao……”


  Cain tilted his head and turned to look at Sungjin. He began to resemble a human.

  ‘Master, who is he? How can you be in the Black Market together with him?’


  He seemed to ask with his gaze. Sungjin pet his head and said

  “He’s my comrade. Just like you are mine. Comrade.”


  Cain seemed amazed and turned to resume staring at Franz.

  ‘Sniff sniff’


  He smelled the air as if trying to memorize the scent. Sungjin said to Franz

  “He is my friend Cain. As you can see he is a wolf…… but he is the most dependable ally.”


  “I see.”


  Now that the ‘Comrade’ was mentioned, he thought of something.

  “Oh yeah…… about that……”


  “Please tell me.”


  Sungjin scratched his head and said

  “What do you think of taking 10% penalty from Raid reward in Coins?”


  “10%…… Is this about the Ring of the Rich? Didn’t you say that it would give me additional 10% instead?”


  “Eh?”


  Sungjin stopped as if he was hit in the head. Now that he thought of it, buying “Ring of the Rich” would eliminate the 10% penalty.

  “Ah…… in that case…… follow me.”


  While on the way to the Jeweler, Sungjin told Franz about the penalty. Of course, not everything was revealed.

  “This is a secret but…… in order for me to ‘Choose’ someone, it needs the sacrifice of another. A permanent 10% reduction in coin reward…… that kind of sacrifice.”


  “Really?”


  “What I want…… is for you to also partake in that sacrifice. If you can handle that burden, it will allow me to select another ‘Chosen’ as a Comrade.”


  “Ohh……”


  While they were exchanging words, they arrived at the Jeweler. Sungjin asked as soon as he entered the shop

  “Meridian, Heart of Gold – Ring of the Rich please.”


  “Alright”


  The Cat shop owner retrieved a simple blue sapphire ring from the back. Sungjin said to Franz

  “I’ll buy this for you. It’s only 500 coins……”


  But Meridian took away the ring and said

  “Wait! This isn’t 500 coins.”


  “Hmm?”


  Sungjin was shocked.

  “That was a long time ago. It’s 5000 coins now.”


  “What?”


  Sungjin exclaimed. Meridian explained

  “This item gets more expensive as time passes. It’s such a popular item that the price fluctuates.”


  She was right. He had received between 500~1000 coins in bonus last round. So if this only cost 500 coins, he would see a return on his investment the very next round.

  Anyone who is aware of this ring’s existence would save up to buy it ASAP.

  “But 5000 coins is too expensive!”


  Sungjin was beginning to get angry. Meridian replied in a calm voice

  “It’s still on the cheap side. Further on the raid, this becomes even more expensive. I can’t give you any discount. You know already right? The rules of this place?”


  There was no such thing as barter.

  “Ugh……”


  Franz stepped forward.

  “Ahh Kei, I’ll buy this myself. It’s supposed to be my item anyway.”


  “But I am just trying to use it to reduce your penalty……”


  “You already gave me an incredible amount of stat points. If I could pay just 5000 Black Coins to buy this much stats, I would buy it a hundred more times. And I do have some coins left anyhow.”


  Before Sungjin could reply

  “Please give me that.”


  He immediately bought the ring from Meridian. And then

  “Now…… on to the next……”


  He faced Sungjin. Sungjin stared at him for a moment before presenting the ‘Helix Ring’.

  *

  When Sungjin returned to the Ninety Nine Nights, Dalupin was cleaning away Sungjin’s uneaten burger.

  “Ah…… You disappeared and didn’t return for a while, so I was cleaning up now.”


  Sungjin said to him

  “Don’t worry and clean up. I ate somewhere else. And……”


  Cain was behind him

  “Grr~”


  He was unable to enter the Inn and was stuck outside.

  “You’ll probably have to feed him double the amount.”


  Dalupin saw Cain’s figure and replied

  “Ah…… you’re probably right.”


  He nodded. Rajenta stared at Cain’s enlarged body and

  “Kaa……?”


  He hid himself behind a chair. It would be difficult for them to roll and fool around like before. Soldamyr saw Cain and understood that Sungjin must have given him the fruit.

  “Cain is looking more dependable now.”


  “Yes. On the next opportunity, it will be your turn, Soldamyr.”


  “No no, even if I were to eat that thing, I doubt much would change in me.”


  “Is that so?”


  While Sungjin was exchanging words with him, Dalupin approached them with a stack of papers.

  “Here are the receipts from the auction, and the information page on the next Raid.”


  Sungjin first checked the information sheet.

  ‘Information pertaining to ‘Red Dragon’s Lair’


  This time reading the information sheet in detail was important. Sungjin put the sheet into his vest and sat on the table to review the receipts.

  ‘This is 3000…… the minimum price. Damn…… I should have sold it for more.’


  ‘This one is 5300! Nice!’


  ‘Oh! 7000 instant buy?! Let’s see, Knight of the Emperor? An excellent title. Must be skilled and wealthy.’


  Sungjin counted the coins like a child receiving his allowance and put the receipts one by one into the cube. He had sold 9 out of 10 items up for auction.

  He was now so experienced with selling via the Auction that he could be considered a master. Sungjin asked the Operator

  “So how much did I make this time?”


  [41151 Coins]

  “What’s the total then?”


  [50297 Coins.]

  ‘The most pressing item is…… Star of the nameless at 20,000 coins. Gourmet’s monocle 15,000 coins. And Moon Specter’s Enhancement cost of 10,000. 45,000 Coins in total…… I have enough.’


  He would have 5000 coins remaining after buying everything he needed. It was because the income from the Auction was higher than he expected.

  ‘5000 coins left…… I should get the Elix……’


  Then he remembered.

  ‘Oh wait…… Recharging the marbles’


  He had forgotten for a moment. He would need 5000 coins to recharge all five of them. His remaining funds were 297 Black Coins.

  ‘.…… Ok, Elixir is for next time then……’


  Sungjin got up after making up his mind. He had finally finished everything he needed to for today. The only thing that was left to do was to shower and rest. But once again, he remembered

  ‘Nada……’


  If she checked her status screen, it would have resolved her misunderstanding of his intentions. And if she checked the ‘Chosen One’ title, she would be aware that she is able to call him.

  ‘I wonder if she will call me……’


  Sungjin looked out into the darkness through the window. But throughout the night,

  [The chosen one requested your teleportation.]

  No such announcement came.

  *

  “Here is the Star of the Nameless, Gourmet’s Monocle.”


  Sungjin gathered them from the table. Finally, the man handed over five brightly sparkling marbles.

  “And they are done recharging.”


  Sungjin put all the marbles away. And finally he took out the white coin and said in a business-like tone

  “One more Holy Water please.”


  But at his request, ‘The Man’ grinned with a knowing smile.

  “Eh, are you enjoying the Holy Water?”


  “Yes.”


  His grin grew revealing his teeth.

  “Hmm…… Ok, good luck.”


  A distasteful laughter. Sungjin wanted to leave. But then the man said one more thing.

  “The next raid…… is the Red Dragon’s Lair.”


  This was the first time he ever mentioned anything about the raid. Sungjin turned and said

  “Yes.”


  “Hmm…… Well, good luck. The Red Dragon is…… well…… a historical and…… a powerful being.”


  A strange nuance; As if he was hiding something.

  “.…… I know.”


  Sungjin replied and left the shop. It was still dark outside.

  “Operator, time?”


  [4:45 AM.]

  ‘Is Moon Specter…… done upgrading?’


  The Smithy was on the way to the Ninety Nine Nights anyway, located to the south. It was only a slight detour to visit the Smithy first. He felt that it couldn’t do any harm to visit it on his way back, since if it was already done he wouldn’t have to make a second trip later.

  ‘Well, there is nothing to lose.’


  Sungjin made up his mind and turned his feet towards the smithy. It was still before the first twilight of the day.

  ‘Clang! Clang!’


  He could hear metal clash against each other in the distance. Sungjin continued to walk over to the Smithy. He saw Kargos hammering away, sweating buckets late into the night.

  Sungjin got quite close to him, but he continued to hammer away not having realized that Sungjin had arrived.

  “Clang! Clang!”


  Sungjin continued to stand silently as to avoid distracting him. Kargos continued to hammer away for another hour.

  “Clang! Clang!”


  He hammered and hammered until finally he dipped the entire length of the sword into the cold water and extracted it. The Moon Specter’s bluish blade reflected the moonlight and became even more vibrant.

  Kargos closely inspected the blade and muttered to himself (although he wasn’t alone)

  “Whew…… almost done. What a difficult item to work with. But…… definitely worth the extra effort. A blade with this much Death Ki……”


  And at that moment, Sungjin who had been watching for over an hour finally interrupted him.

  “Thank you for your hard work Kargos.”


  “Oh My Goodness!”


  Kargos flinched as if he had seen a ghost.

  “You surprised me! How long were you standing there for?”


  “Since just a moment ago.”


  Kargos calmed his rapidly beating heart.

  “Well…… anyway, the sword is finished. This was most definitely a possessed sword…… a ghost blade.”


  Sungjin was surprised to hear that.

  “Oh, you were able to tell? It is a sword with the power of a spirit……”


  “Of course I can tell. And……”


  His voice trailed off. He then said

  “Well, see for yourself.”


  He handed over the newly upgraded Moon Specter to Sungjin.

  Editor’s Note: So do y’all want an April fool’s from us tomorrow? Honestly, I have no idea what to do and spending time to mess with a chapter to fool y’all might just earn me the ire of many which also doesn’t seem like a great idea. Hmm, thinking of not doing it