A Veteran of Infinite Buffs - Chapter 96

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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 96

“Foreigners, form a line! Maintain order!”
“No! My child is waiting for me right now!”
Observing the South Gate up close, I found it resembled a bustling marketplace.
The usual throngs of parents were there, mingled with players from other regions returning to Liam laden with supplies—a chaotic mass of humanity.
“This won’t make entry easy, will it?”
“You’re right. I suppose it’s my turn to step in.”
Yet Bella appeared confident nonetheless.
In truth, it wasn’t a difficult problem.
She was a celebrity, after all.
“I’m Bella from the Lumiere Guild. Could we enter ahead? It’s urgent, and I’m only bringing one companion.”
Bella’s face was her calling card.
With striking looks that turned heads wherever she went and a World Quest completion to her credit, she enjoyed considerable recognition among Liam’s NPCs.
“Ah! Lady Bella! Please, help us! We’ve never seen foreigners this aggressive!”
“I’m sorry. I can’t go that far. How about we follow proper procedure?”
The Guard Soldier replied with an awkward expression, gauging the situation.
“This doesn’t even qualify as a minor offense. A royal decree has been issued forbidding threats against innocent foreigners.”
“…There was a royal decree?”
Our conversation was brief.
A woman who hadn’t even customized her appearance barged in.
“Miss! Could you let me through as well? I’ll compensate you handsomely. How about it?”
Bella’s expression darkened.
Should I intervene?
For now, I decided to observe the situation a bit longer.
The Guard Soldier hadn’t answered yet, after all.
“Oh dear. What should I do? I have urgent business.”
“Hmm. Lady Bella’s companion is…. Ah.”
In that moment, the Guard Soldier’s gaze fixed upon me.
More precisely, upon the Golden Fox fur trim adorning my outfit.
“Lady Bella. Is your companion perhaps Kael?”
“You recognize him? Yes, that’s right. May we enter?”
“Ah! Kael! Could I ask you to help settle this situation!”
It seemed the Guard Soldier was indeed assigned to the Training Ground.
The fact that he recognized me despite my perception-obscuring mask spoke volumes.
Since I wanted to enter quickly as well, I decided to comply with his request.
“Understood. Please step aside for a moment.”
“Yes!”
Under normal circumstances, this would have gone smoothly, but this chaos was a sight I never wanted to witness.
The people here were newcomers, but they weren’t newcomers to everything.
Crash!
“Kyaaah!”
“Ugh!”
“Ahhhhh!”
I brought Sumoq down onto the bare ground.
My tiger’s aura even manifested unbidden, unleashing another shockwave through the surroundings.
“M-monster!”
“Who is that person! My ears are ringing!”
“Cough! Ow! Dust everywhere!”
Perhaps I’d held back too much.
I needed to seek permission from the Guard Soldier first.
“As long as I don’t kill them, it’s fine, right?”
“Of course! Kael, you are the pride of our Training Ground! These newcomers have just arrived, so please do your best within the bounds of keeping them alive!”
“Understood.”
Bella, sensing my intention, began casting buffs around the area.
I wasn’t sure what buffs they were, but they were likely designed to keep the other users from dying.
“Huff.”
I took a deep breath.
Boom!
I brought Sumoq down with all my strength.
With the intent to create wind pressure so intense that screams would be swallowed.
Moreover, because I poured power into it, my tiger’s aura manifested even more violently.
Roooaaarrr!
Even the roar of a tiger came as a bonus.
As a result, the surroundings fell into instant silence.
Now was the right moment for me to add a word.
“This place is also a world. Let us all maintain order.”
The Guard Soldier had been knocked down as well.
But because his status overwhelmed the users, he quickly got back up and greeted me with a whisper.
“Thank you. So it truly is you, Kael. You may enter now.”
And he shouted to the other users.
“This is not South Korea but Liam of the Meriam Kingdom! Everyone form a line and wait your turn! From now on, I will use force against those who do not follow orders!”
Only then did the situation begin to settle.
People truly learn only through experience.
This Liam, while not quite like Belhard, was still medieval at heart.
They needed to understand that strength and level came first.
“…Oh my. How dizzying.”
“Who exactly is that person? I thought my heart would stop.”
“They look perfectly fine. Why make such a frightening display?”
People still whispered among themselves, but no one dared shout openly anymore.
Everyone had begun forming orderly lines.
“Let’s go now.”
“Yes.”
After exchanging polite nods with the Guard Soldiers, I entered the Village.
The interior was even more remarkable.
“They’ve already filled out their test papers. They work fast.”
“Those people sitting on the street over there—they’re all students, aren’t they?”
“Seems like it.”
Dozens of players clustered along the roadside, solving problems written on papers.
All dressed in basic gear, sitting directly on the ground.
Moreover, among those passing by, I spotted quite a few players with notably high levels.
Judging by the heavy loads they carried, they appeared to be here for commerce.
“If it’s already like this, the Fountain must be absolute chaos.”
“Probably ran out of space there and got pushed back here.”
The scent of opportunity wafted from every direction.
Several students already had bowls of gruel made from herbs harvested outside the South Gate placed nearby.
Had there been a café nearby, it would have been an absolute goldmine.
“We’ll have to pass the Fountain to reach the Inn. Will we be alright?”
“Yes. If it gets too difficult, I can carry you and jump through. Let’s go.”
I was curious about the situation at the Fountain myself.
What were those people ahead selling there?
And was the Knight of Pure Love, Liam’s celebrity, still distributing bread to newcomers?
Yet I saw no students eating bread nearby.
We arrived at the Fountain.
This place was a genuine hotspot.
“Refreshing iced Americanos! Cool coffee for just 90 copper!”
“Handwritten copies of Mathematics Essentials! 1 gold per volume!”
“50-sheet notebooks for sale!”
There wasn’t a single empty space.
People filled every corner, and every stall overflowed with lines.
Even 18,000-won Americanos were selling like mad.
The appearance of handwritten Mathematics Essentials copies was remarkable in itself.
“Hmm.”
“Warm and cozy sleeping bags for sale! We have pens and notebooks too! Highly efficient lanterns that consume less oil! Come take a look!”
Right beside the Fountain, in a prime location, the Russell Merchant Company had brought an entire wagon and was selling various goods.
Silverpenn wasn’t at the stall—he must have gone to sell items that Chae-rim had made.
“Two Americanos, quick!”
“Notebooks, please! How much are they?”
“Handmade Wall Grain Pills for sale! They can help with studying!”
Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have spared these items a second glance.
Of course, the Wall Grain Pills possessed some merit worth considering, but seeing them mass-produced on such a scale suggested their performance wasn’t particularly impressive.
The fact that the target demographic was novices only reinforced this assessment.
“Those people are all celebrities.”
“Pardon?”
“See the person selling Americano over there? That’s the Demon King Coffee CEO. And the one selling skewered chicken—that’s Marim Chairman. He even operates a poultry farm directly in western Liam.”
“…Indeed.”
Those who forge ahead truly operate on a different level.
Having already established tremendous influence in reality, they possessed the foresight to rake in enormous profits within the game by staying ahead of the curve.
“If such heavy hitters are already moving, won’t all the lifestyle rankers converge on Liam?”
“Lifestyle rankers.”
“Ah, that person isn’t actually a lifestyle ranker. The one transcribing ‘The Essence of Mathematics’—they’re a popular math instructor from Daechi-dong. I heard they entered the Orange Tower, probably to earn research funds while building their reputation.”
It seemed the merchants here weren’t exclusively lifestyle rankers.
Extending my senses, I could certainly detect an unusual aura emanating from quite a few of them.
Most were higher level than I was.
To aim for the top here, I needed to ride the current.
“Seo-hyun.”
“Huh? Calling me by name all of a sudden?”
“Do you happen to know any famous academy directors among your acquaintances? If you could introduce me, I’d be sure to repay the favor.”
With Bella’s connections, surely she could reach someone like a renowned academy director.
“Well, yes. There are some who even donate to foundations.”
“If I were to establish an academy and dormitory in Ath Village, do you think that person would take interest?”
“…”
Bella’s expression grew intensely serious.
And her answer emerged carefully.
“Absolutely. It wouldn’t stop at mere interest—honestly, even without directly contacting the director, if word just spreads, it could become a massive hit.”
“To that extent?”
“Yes. To that extent. With so many people here now, how could anyone study? The wealthy students will get private tutoring at upscale inns, but most won’t, right? Even with the favorable time multiplier here, they can’t watch lecture videos.”
“Then Ath Village has considerable potential?”
“Absolutely. If you just gather enough people, opening a café would be a massive success, running a restaurant would be a massive success. Honestly, if you just assembled the merchants here and executed a grand vision in Ath Village, it seems like it would work.”
“Oho.”
If things proceeded as she described, it would certainly be solid.
But my counterparts were no ordinary individuals.
Still, my confidence stemmed from one thing: my connection with both Ath Village’s Village Chief and myself was ironclad.
Once word spread among players while avoiding Royal Court attention, it would be nothing short of optimal.
“Since it’s still daytime, I should make contact sometime this evening.”
“Would you like my help?”
“Your assistance is always welcome, Seo-hyun.”
“Understood. Then I’ll stop by the Guild Headquarters first before heading over to where Lee Seo-jun is.”
“Yes. I have some banking matters to attend to at City Hall, so I’ll probably be here for a while. I’ll see you this evening.”
“Got it! See you later!”
Bella seemed to be in a good mood.
She appeared to prefer being called by her name.
I made a mental note of it.
“….”
Upon entering City Hall, I found myself speechless once again.
The place was packed to the brim with people.
The only saving grace was that the Bureaucrat NPCs were ushering out the students.
Still, there were far too many people.
“No, I’m telling you, I have money! Let’s just buy one building! Even an empty lot would be fine!”
I learned that land prices in Liam had skyrocketed beyond measure.
This was a harbinger that Ath Village would soon follow suit.

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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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