The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 423

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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 423
Chapter 423
Kalbera Territory.
Once a barren wasteland in the Southern Region, this place had transformed.
“Wow, it’s beautiful!”
“It’s really developed, isn’t it?”
“Look at the height of those buildings.”
“Isn’t it much grander and more beautiful than Labelt?”
“Labelt is nice too, but this is a brand new city that was only recently built.”
“And being so close to the sea is wonderful.”
“But if the sea is this close in the Southern Region, wouldn’t the monster threat be enormous?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about. Mir the Marquis’s Heukryeom Guild is stationed in Kalbera Territory, isn’t it? The Imperial Navy is also stationed here.”
“Oh, that’s right!”
Kalbera Territory had recently become the most popular location in the Empire.
And with that popularity came demand for property.
Houses with a view of the glittering sea through their windows—how romantic could it be?
Many wanted to purchase buildings in Kalbera Territory, but the Territory didn’t sell them easily.
To maintain complete security, they couldn’t simply expand the land and buildings indiscriminately.
But now, that Kalbera Territory had made a move.
“Marquis! Kalbera Territory has begun selling development rights!”
“Is that true? I’ve been waiting for this moment! Go immediately!”
“How much gold should I prepare, sir?”
“Kalbera Territory is in the midst of rapid development! If you buy prime land now, it’s guaranteed to appreciate! Prepare as much gold as possible!”
“Understood!”
Recently, Kalbera Territory had begun releasing development rights.
They sold not only beautifully constructed buildings facing the sea but also land in the newly expanding new city, as well as various business licenses.
Noble Officials who had been watching Kalbera Territory, along with numerous merchants and wealthy players, began competing to purchase development rights.
But that wasn’t all.
“They’ve released a massive quantity of Eastern Mountain ore?”
“Yes, sir. These were originally traded to the Empire for military use and exchanged for trade in the Western Region, but this time they’re releasing large quantities.”
“We must buy as much as possible! High-quality ore from the Eastern Region will definitely turn a profit, whether sold directly or processed!”
Eastern ore that was rarely sold except through the Simons Trading Company.
That ore had begun circulating in massive quantities.
But this was only the beginning.
Kalbera Territory had opened up every element it had kept hidden until now.
As a result, enormous wealth began flowing toward Kalbera Territory.
And there was one more thing.
There was another place where gold was being sold frantically.
“Wow, this is actually selling?”
“They priced it above market value, yet it’s still selling.”
“Is some big player reinforcing items or something? They’re completely draining Gold from the market.”
“This shouldn’t be possible with ordinary money. Who on earth is it?”
“It’s gotta be the Royal Guild.”
“Look at the current listings. Gold is completely running out?”
“How much of a big player are they to drain the Auction House of Gold? This has to cost at least tens of billions?”
“Tens of billions? More than that. From what I can see, it’s not just one person—it looks like a Guild or corporation-level entity sweeping up Gold.”
“What for?”
“Hmm….”
It was the Auction House.
A place where game Gold and items could be exchanged for cash, and conversely, where cash could be converted into Gold or items.
Someone was draining this place of Gold as well.
Until now, most people hadn’t sensed any major crisis.
They simply thought of it as a curious phenomenon.
Of course.
“Damn it!”
“Who the hell is doing this!”
“This could be more serious than we thought?”
A few perceptive individuals caught on to the gravity of the situation, but events were already unfolding rapidly.
And so, days later.
“Insane, Gold prices are what now?”
People watched the exchange rates of Gold listed on the Auction House.
Gold that had become two or three times more expensive than just days before.
No, even at this very moment, with insufficient inventory, Gold was becoming increasingly expensive, and they could only gasp in shock.
* * *
The phenomenon where currency supply expands and the value of money plummets is called inflation.
This was one of the primary problems most societies faced as their economies developed.
Then what about the opposite?
‘Deflation.’
That’s what it’s called.
It’s not a common occurrence, and typically happens when the economy overheats or when the government intervenes to regulate currency supply to suppress inflation.
Or it occurs when the economy is collapsing.
And now.
“Gold is in short supply!”
In an Empire that seemed completely unrelated to economic collapse.
In an Empire that was currently thriving and entering its golden age, deflation had begun to take hold.
“What? The Merchant Caravan’s funds are depleted?”
“Yes….”
“No, that can’t be right. Where did all that Gold go?”
“Well, we purchased development rights to the Kalbera Territory this time. And we also purchased ore from Eastern Mountain….”
“Can’t you just sell the ore!”
“We have no sales channels! Kalbera Territory is flooding the market with far more ore than expected!”
“That… that can’t be.”
“It appears Kalbera Territory has been stockpiling ore all this time. They’ve released it in massive quantities, which is causing this situation.”
“Damn it, selling now would result in catastrophic losses. Still, they can’t sustain that volume indefinitely. For now, let me at least sell some mining rights…”
“About that.”
“What now!”
“The price of mining rights has also collapsed. Kalbera Territory released mining rights at an unimaginable scale, causing their price to plummet below the ore price itself.”
“Damn it!”
Gold was scarce.
It wasn’t just one place—everywhere I looked, gold was in short supply.
Not only renowned merchant groups, but even prestigious noble families.
Everyone was starved for gold.
The reason was obvious.
“Damn it, what is happening…”
It was because of Kalbera Territory.
All the Empire’s wealth was flowing into Kalbera Territory.
As a result, gold had become critically scarce.
A single territory had drained the entire Empire’s coffers.
I wondered if such a thing was even possible, but I had no choice but to accept the reality unfolding before me.
As gold became scarcer.
“Master Merchant! At this rate, we’ll face bankruptcy! We must liquidate our inventory immediately to raise emergency funds!”
“Damn it, we have no choice!”
“Marquis, at this rate we won’t even be able to pay our employees’ wages.”
“That’s unacceptable. If word spreads that wages are in arrears, it will tarnish my honor.”
“We must either sell luxury goods urgently or put up buildings in Rabelth…”
Everyone began scrambling to secure gold.
Goods flooded the market, and prices plummeted.
Buildings in the Capital were being sold at bargain prices.
The fortunate part was.
“Hmm? What’s going on here.”
That most of those suffering losses were massive merchant groups and nobles.
How would ordinary people even afford mining rights in Kalbera?
Why would commoners buy Eastern Mountain ore?
The common folk were actually welcoming the sudden price adjustments.
Furthermore.
“Me? Rich?”
The miners stuck in the Eastern Region’s Goa Mountain.
They too reaped enormous benefits.
Trapped in the mines, swinging pickaxes all day, they’d never spent their wages—only accumulated them.
Now, as gold’s value skyrocketed, the wealth they’d amassed in the mines was enough to easily purchase a house.
Most importantly.
“Now is the time.”
The driving force behind this entire affair.
Kalbera Territory began moving in earnest.
The moment market prices plummeted to their lowest point.
Under Ena’s direction, Kalbera Territory purchased cheap goods flooding the market and buildings appearing in the Capital.
As a result.
Despite my consuming an enormous amount of Gold at the Golden Altar, Kalbera Territory’s funds didn’t diminish—they actually increased.
Of course.
“M-Mistress Ena! We’ve received contact from the Imperial Court!”
“What did they say?”
“They’re warning us… Isn’t this serious?”
The Imperial Court, having grasped the situation, issued a warning to Kalbera Territory.
“Since the Lord of Kalbera Territory is Mir, the Imperial Court won’t dare touch us carelessly. Besides, I have no intention of using this method a second time anyway.”
It was merely a warning, nothing more.
No further sanctions were imposed.
* * *
After requesting funds from Ena.
She readily provided the capital, and I used all the cash I’d earned selling Mythic-grade items at the Auction House to purchase Gold.
Thanks to that, I could pour Gold into the Golden Altar without restraint.
[ Your level has increased. ]
And raise my level.
I was pleased with my accelerated leveling speed, but I worried whether draining Gold like this would bankrupt the Territory’s finances.
– You needn’t worry about the Territory’s funds.
“Are you certain?”
– Of course. We’ve accumulated considerable Gold reserves, and I’ve made quite substantial investments with it. Relatively speaking, Kalbera Territory remains among the wealthiest territories in the Empire.
Whether this was genuine reassurance or merely comforting words, I couldn’t tell.
But there seemed to be no major issues.
Thanks to that, I could continue hunting at the Golden Altar.
‘Phew.’
Finally, the last day had arrived.
Soon I would be granted qualification to participate in the World Tournament.
Just one more hour.
After one hour, those ranking in the top 100 would automatically receive their qualification.
I didn’t even have time to check my current level.
It seemed this would be my final round.
Rumble!
I poured all the Gold I’d allocated into the Golden Altar.
The Gold was far more abundant than I’d anticipated—it overflowed from the Golden Altar itself.
Fortunately, the Golden Altar absorbed every last bit of Gold I poured into it.
But then.
Rumble, rumble, rumble.
The Golden Platform began to vibrate.
This much was familiar.
Whenever the amount of Gold I spent exceeded a certain threshold, the monsters that appeared would change, and the Golden Platform vibrating was routine.
However, the problem now was.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
It wasn’t the Golden Platform—it was the Golden Altar itself that was moving.
Immediately after, a message appeared before my eyes.
[ The amount of Gold poured into the Golden Altar has reached the threshold. ]
[ The Golden Altar is satisfied with the offering. ]
[ With the tribute fulfilled, the boss monster sealed within the Golden Altar, ‘Goldishark, the Golden Demon,’ is summoned. ]
Even I, who had used the Golden Altar frequently in First, was seeing this for the first time.
What was happening?
Was this a newly added element in Second, or was it a monster that existed in First as well but I had never encountered because I hadn’t met the conditions?
I couldn’t know the answer.
“My gratitude, foolish human! Thanks to you, I, Goldishark the Golden Demon, have regained my power!”
What mattered was.
‘Of all times.’
With less than an hour remaining before the announcement of qualifications for the world tournament, a boss monster that looked undeniably formidable had appeared.
In other words.
I had to defeat that creature within the hour, no matter what.

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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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