A Veteran of Infinite Buffs - Chapter 37
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 37
“….”
The lobby, already growing desolate as people vanished in real time, fell into an even more oppressive silence.
“Subspace. You said you needed it.”
“…Yeah.”
Of course I needed subspace.
So I’d asked Sung-chul for help.
Yet for some reason, Cha Eun-kyung’s assistance came pouring in instead.
“Kael.”
If this were the Sung-chul I knew.
No, honestly, I’m not sure anymore.
Manager Park, who had once been his superior, was still being thoroughly pressured even now.
“What are you doing? That’s an incredible offer.”
“…Huh?”
When was the last time I saw that expression on his face?
At least, I don’t think that expression was ever directed at me before.
Sung-chul was unmistakably envious.
“Th-thank you?”
“Mm.”
Cha Eun-kyung had already pulled out subspaces.
Two of them, no less.
“I’ll empty them for you.”
Now it was certain.
She was the subject of articles I’d seen on the news several times during lunch breaks but hadn’t paid much attention to.
The second daughter of a conglomerate family renowned across America and Europe—that was Cha Eun-kyung’s true identity.
Come to think of it, even our nation’s top corporate chairman bore the surname Cha.
“Ah.”
Now I understood Sung-chul’s attitude.
She was born as society’s ultimate victor.
Standing in opposition to someone like that meant unlocking a hidden difficulty level beyond hardcore—the ultimate challenge.
“I’m deeply honored. I shall cherish this kindness for life and pass it down as a family heirloom.”
“…Then I won’t give it.”
“My apologies.”
I admit I’d been indifferent to how the world worked.
Yet paradoxically, this became my advantage.
Had I recognized her as a conglomerate heiress from the start, we would never have formed this kind of relationship.
Cha Eun-kyung preferred ordinary VIP treatment over excessive deference.
“Please wait a moment. I’ll gather the gold right away.”
An opportunity to secure both the subspace and exchange simultaneously had arrived.
I had no intention of reselling it, but since it was an item personally used by the second daughter of a conglomerate family, it came with a premium attached.
It was a valuable opportunity I couldn’t refuse.
“This is insane. I should exchange everything except 50 gold.”
50 gold was my absolute minimum.
It was emergency funds to teleport through all the remaining Beginner Villages and return to Liam.
Of course, if it wasn’t an urgent situation, I’d take a carriage instead.
“Here’s 478 gold. Please verify it.”
I quickly retrieved the gold coin pouch from the safe and handed it over to Cha Eun-kyung.
“Okay.”
The gold coin pouch disappeared into Cha Eun-kyung’s subspace.
For some reason, even after waiting quite a while, the pouch didn’t return.
Cha Eun-kyung simply stared at me.
“Ah, um. Yes.”
I decided to coolly give up on the pouch.
After all, with just a few dozen silver invested, I could get a better pouch than the one I’d been using.
“Don’t you need to verify the amount?”
“You didn’t verify it either.”
“…Just a moment.”
There were a few messages I hadn’t checked.
Since I’d linked my bank account to the game, I could verify the deposit details with a single gesture.
[Deposit]
[570,000,000 won]
[From Cha Eun-kyung]
A staggering 570 million won had been deposited.
For some reason, the trailing digits fell out cleanly.
For convenience, I used the calculator provided in-game to multiply 378—subtracting 100 for the subspace price from the 478 gold—by 1.5 million.
567,000,000
For some reason, an additional 3 million won had been deposited.
Had she priced the pocket dimension at 98 gold?
Truly, the magnanimity and grace befitting a chaebol heir.
“I’ve confirmed the deposit. Thank you.”
“Hold out your left hand.”
“Pardon?”
Cha Eun-kyung grasped my hand.
And then a message appeared.
[Pocket dimension transfer in progress.]
[Eun-nyang E is transferring a pocket dimension to Kael.]
[This pocket dimension was created by the Black Magic Tower.]
[Transfer details will be automatically sent to the Black Magic Tower.]
[Do you accept?]
It seemed the pocket dimension was next.
There was no reason to refuse such benevolent generosity.
[You have accepted the pocket dimension transfer.]
[Magnificent Achievement!]
[You have received a pocket dimension for the first time!]
[Wisdom increases by 1.]
[Luck increases by 1.]
Simply receiving a pocket dimension granted stat increases.
This game certainly had many ways to purchase stats with money.
Which meant Cha Eun-kyung’s stats surpassed mine in every regard.
“Take these.”
“Pardon?”
Even after the pocket dimension transfer concluded, Cha Eun-kyung handed over several items, including a small sculpture.
[Magnificent Achievement!]
[You have obtained a masterpiece artwork for the first time!]
[Luck increases by 1.]
[Magnificent Achievement!]
[You have obtained a masterpiece accessory for the first time!]
[Vitality increases by 1.]
[Luck increases by 1.]
Like the subspace, these are items whose stats increase simply by receiving them through Achievements.
I had no idea what masterpiece artworks or accessories went for, but given they were part of Cha Eun-kyung’s collection, they certainly weren’t within casual reach.
I decided to return them carefully—carelessly handling them might damage their durability, which would be catastrophic.
“Thank you for using them.”
“Keep them. A gift.”
“Oh…”
Was the additional 3 million won deposited actually a storage fee for valuables?
This was the weight of money.
My heart grew heavy.
Still, the situation wasn’t entirely negative.
Though I hadn’t confirmed the options on the masterpiece artwork and accessories, both would undoubtedly prove invaluable in their own ways.
Especially the artwork—the fact that merely gazing upon it granted buffs earned it exceptionally high marks.
“Thank you so much. I’ll repay this kindness without fail.”
Cha Eun-kyung rose from her seat.
Considering her social standing, her schedule today must be quite packed.
Separately, she’d have appointments with torture technicians as well.
“Contact me.”
“Yes, understood.”
I wasn’t sure what she wanted me to contact her about, but I could only agree for now.
She had become a VVVVIP.
“Seo-jun. What just happened?”
“Right? It feels like I received an incredibly generous gift.”
“Exactly. She’s famous within Seoguang for not caring about people. How on earth did you win her over?”
“I just treated her like a normal VIP. She’s the type who throws around hundreds of millions without asking questions or complaints.”
“Wow…”
Sung-chul (Elder) made an exasperated expression and extended his hand into empty air.
A small subspace materialized.
“I prepared this instead. A cheap item came up for sale from the Gravity Magic Tower.”
“Oh no. How much is it? I only have 50 gold left, but if needed, I can cover the rest in cash.”
“No. I can’t transfer it even if I wanted to now. The Gravity Magic Tower is second-tier.”
“What does that mean? Is it like a Magic Tower ranking? I was using a Black Magic Tower item before.”
“Right. The Black Magic Tower is first-tier. Subspaces from lower-tier Magic Towers have interference magic preventing simultaneous use. It’s like preserving brand value in medieval fashion?”
“Oh my. So what do we do?”
“What else? I’ll use it. My existing subspace is also second-tier and made by the Gravity Magic Tower, so compatibility is perfect.”
“Hmm.”
“Besides, only people like Cha Eun-kyung use first-tier Magic Tower subspaces. Most Seoguang people only use second-tier or lower.”
I’d received something far more precious than I’d realized.
The actual price certainly wasn’t 100 gold.
If this was the case, I needed to settle accounts properly.
“Elder, let me give you Hidden Class clues instead. I actually have two initial clues.”
“What? Two initial clues? Two hidden classes?”
“Yes. The job names are ‘Defector’ and ‘Double Agent’. They’re both related to the Belhard Royal Family and the Meriam Royal Family.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa?”
Sung-chul’s expression began to brighten in real time as he realized this was indeed a solid proposal.
“This is a jackpot, isn’t it? Our guild’s situation fits perfectly between those two.”
“Exactly. The Belhard Royal Family proposed defection to me. The job clues appeared together.”
“At this level, Royal Court quests are guaranteed. How much would you need?”
“Huh? I was planning to just give them to you?”
“Right now, our Seoguang Guild can pay the highest price for those jobs. Both royal families are applying subtle pressure. So I’m the one who’s short. We’re talking hundreds of millions per job.”
“Just accept it. In exchange, I’ll ask you for various kinds of help.”
Sung-chul pondered for a moment before reaching a decision.
“Fine. What kind of help do you need?”
“I’m currently touring the Chinese Beginner Villages because of the hidden class clues. More specifically, I’m searching for traces of the Eternal Adventurer.”
“Oh, isn’t that some landmark that only shined briefly in the early days of the game? There are plenty around Liam.”
“Yes. But I obtained a slightly more special clue about the adventurer. I’m looking for traces that no one has discovered yet.”
“Hmm. Just the name ‘adventurer’ doesn’t carry much value, but if it’s the first traces ever found, that’s definitely remarkable. It’s certainly not an ordinary hidden class.”
Sung-chul seemed unfamiliar with the Eternal Adventurer.
Come to think of it, he was more of a hunting ground person than a library person.
Most of the advice he’d sought from me had been about combat techniques.
“Okay then. I’ll take those two hidden clues and do my best to help you with your class advancement.”
“Deal sealed.”
“What contract between us? I’ll take better care of you. You’re still a newbie… right?”
“Of course. I’m level 20 now.”
[Name: Kael]
[Level: 20]
[Unused Points: 5]
[Strength: 34 Agility: 59 Vitality: 41 Wisdom: 44 Luck: 37]
[Eternity: 4 Mana: 2]
My level was only 20, separate from my stats.
“Huh? You don’t look level 20 at all. Plus, haven’t you done quite a bit of PK? Your videos are circulating like crazy in China too.”
The phrase “your videos too” meant there were videos of other people besides me.
The protagonist of those videos would be Eden.
The rest would be the Spirit Tamer Legion and the Training Instructor.
“Well, I haven’t done much, but I did get some easy kills. I haven’t seen the videos though—did my face show up completely?”
“No. Most of them are just shaky shots looking down at the ground. At best, only the upper body shows in most of them. Our guild only managed to capture a brief facial silhouette.”
“That’s a relief then. Most people probably didn’t see it.”
“Right. For now, I’ll keep your identity secret. Cha Eun-kyung doesn’t seem like the type to go around spreading information anyway. So, shall we coordinate our schedule?”
“I’ve only visited two villages so far—Boa and Lis. As you know, I didn’t gather information properly, just earned money.”
“Looking at your route, it seems like you’re making a clockwise circuit, right?”
“Exactly.”
“Then your next destination would be Dran. I’ll head over to Kela Village and investigate there. Let’s meet up again after.”
I could definitely feel the experience.
Being part of the Seo-gwang Guild meant they’d be quite helpful in gathering information too.
“Sounds good. Let’s do that.”
“Since the schedule will be busy, let’s add each other as friends first. We’ll handle the rest through whispers.”
My third friend in-game became Sung-chul.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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