Chapter 40
After returning to the real world, I’ve totally forgotten about the stages .
Since I was gone for a couple of days, my mother had planned on jumping into the stage to find me .
Thankfully, my father talked her out of it so it didn’t happen .
“What do you think about going back to school?”
My mother spoke desperately while holding my hand .
As parents, they didn’t want their son to go in and out of a dangerous world .
In the end I couldn’t ignore them, so I’ve been in my room and studying for three days .
“It’s…difficult . ”
Holding a pen was really awkward and the words that were written in the book seemed foreign to me .
But, I’ve lost the will the study .
Just sitting on a chair for a couple of hours made my body itch that I couldn’t endure it .
“It’s probably better to start a job that requires me to use my body . ”
Even if my skills are cut in half in reality, the strength that I’ve obtained will definitely be a big help .
I already broke a wall before .
I was confident in becoming the ace when it came to work that required me to use my body .
That only remained in my thoughts and I didn’t really bother looking for a job like that .
That night, I had a drink with my father .
“It’s been awhile since you and I had a drink this late . ”
This felt new because I couldn’t remember the last time I had a drink with my father .
With a couple of bottles of soju and pork feet, it was a pretty decent setting .
“I’m thinking about continuing my exploration in that world . ”
My father seemed to have expected it because his face expression didn’t change .
However, he didn’t say anything and just drank some soju .
I also sipped some soju .
“After you disappeared again, I knew this was going to happen again . Honestly, I’m with your mother and am against you going there . ”
“…I understand . ”
“Well, it’s not like what we say will affect your decision and I’m sure you made this decision after thinking carefully about it, but…it’s sad . If something happened to you in that world, we won’t even be able to hold a funeral . ”
If one dies within the stage, they can’t return to the real world .
I knew this was true after seeing the graveyard .
“I’ll do my best not to die, but it’s always a possibility . ”
People would usually say that they’ll never die, but I didn’t want to make a poor lie like that .
There was always news about people dying within the stage, and there was no guarantee that I wouldn’t be part of it .
“Ha ha, that’s true . In this type of situation, it’s okay to lie about it . ”
“I decided not to lie to you . ”
“Am I supposed to be okay with that?”
Father smiled candidly .
“Do you have people to go in with? Those clans, parties or whatever, they group up together and it increases their chance to survive . ”
“I’ll be fine by myself . ”
“…I see . ”
My father always told me that I needed to learn to get along with people .
It seemed like he wanted me to go into the stage with someone .
“Well, like you’ve mentioned, you’ve done well by yourself up until now and I have no doubt that you’ll do fine on your own in the future . Please contact us often once you go out . ”
“…I will . ”
While eating the pork feet, my father and I continued talking after midnight .
***
After walking out of the house, the first thing I needed to do was find a new place .
To do this, I needed money and I decided to find a place where I’ll be able to sell the items that I’ve gathered .
“Crazy . ”
While walking the streets of Seoul, I couldn’t help but laugh at the signs that I saw .
Geny Currency Exchange, Geny Loans . Stage Attack Counseling Center, etc .
These odd stores had their doors open and was ready to greet the customers .
The interesting thing was that there were a lot of people in those stores .
I don’t like being around a lot of people and noisy places, so even though I was interested, I didn’t go into the stores .
And I already made the decision on where I was going to go .
I visited an appraiser that was located in a building in Myeong-dong .
They set a value on the items that were obtained within the stage and depending on the situation, they’ll buy those items .
They usually place a value on items that monsters dropped and there are those that visit here to see how well customized items will perform .
“Please take a number and wait . ”
When I entered the place, a woman that was wearing a suit greeted me .
There were four windows and the staff behind the windows were observing the items .
“Looks like they make a lot of money . ”
I commented as I looked at the people that were waiting as well .
There’s news that people were able to make a lot of money through the stage .
This place might be one of those .
“Number 156 . ”
They called my number after 30 minutes and I sat on the chair that was placed in front of the third window .
A calm woman with a soft voice spoke .
“Please place the item you would like for me to analyze . ”
It was like a bank where they asked to place the item on the table .
From the inventory, I took out a Wyvern’s toenail, which I obtained from the third stage .
It was weird, because this item was placed as an ingredient and it was placed in my inventory without analyzing it .
Other than the toenail, there were a lot of other items that I needed for them analyze .
“I’ll analyze the item . ”
The item can be analyzed through a special item and through a skill .
However, analyzing it through a skill can only be done by those that have the ability and those people have already been recruited by large companies .
“Hmph!!”
She let out a cute sound and was analyzing the toenail with an item that looked similar to a magnifying glass .
“Wow!! Please wait a second, sir . ”
The female staff covered her mouth with her hand and disappeared after asking me to wait .
She walked into the manager’s office .
Not even 10 seconds later, she walked out with a male staff that had a manager name tag attached to his shirt .
“Excuse me sir…would it be okay if we continue this elsewhere?”
“Sorry?”
“Oh, it’s not far from here . Please . ”
“Okay . ”
The other staff that were working looked at me and the manager .
It must be rare for him to leave the office because they seemed surprised by it .
I followed him to a room that had the sign, “Employees Only,” and walked through a narrow hallway .
“Even though we’re a small office, we do our best when it came to investing the VIP room . ”
The man spoke while boasting about the room .
The room at the end of the hallway had a nametag that read, “VIP Room . ”
The luxurious decorations and furniture caught my attention .
The VIP room had European decorations and it was made to serve people in the high-class .
“Please sit wherever you like . ”
The man smiled while leading me to a sofa .
My face instantly relaxed as soon as I sat on the soft and comfortable sofa .
Just sitting here made me feel like I was receiving special treatment .
“Would you like coffee or tea?”
“…Coffee is fine . ”
I answered because they asked, but I didn’t understand why I was being treated like this .
I was starting to worry that maybe it was a mistake .
“The Red Wyvern’s Toenail is the main item in the 11th stage . It’s amazing that you were able to obtain it . I didn’t think I would actually see it myself . ”
“Red Wyvern?”
“Hm? Did you get obtain this yourself? There’s no way someone would give away a rare item like this as a present . ”
“Oh, right . I did obtain it . ”
Describing my battle with the Wyvern as being fierce wasn’t enough because it was much more difficult than that .
After I managed to somehow kill it, I was too exhausted to actually analyze the monster .
“Since you obtained it yourself, I’m sure you have some sort of information about it . Did you bring it here to confirm the authenticity of the item?”
“Yes…that’s right . ”
“It may differ depending on the blacksmith’s skills, but items that were made using the toenail are considered to be Rank Six at the least . If it was requested to a person who’s very skilled, it’s highly possible that it can be a Rank Five item . ”
I was busy nodding my head after hearing their detailed explanation .
Despite of the fact that I researched through the posts online, the information this man was providing was much more detailed .
“I…would like to make an offer, if that’s alright with you . ”
The man carefully spoke as if this was what he originally wanted to talk about .
“You don’t have to pay us for analyzing the item, but what do you think about splitting the profits after creating a finished product with this item? Of course we’ll adjust it so that you have the advantage . ”
“How much will it be based on the current market price?”
“If we were to sell it as is, probably around 150 million . ”
“I see . 150 million…hm?”
It was hard for me to keep a straight face after hearing the ridiculous amount .
If I displayed my true emotions, then I may lose the initiative in many ways, so I tried to keep a straight face .
“Well, I’m sure there were others that helped in obtaining this, so even if the amount was split among them, it’s a pretty large amount . ”
“Right . ”
“In order to create the finished product, we have to request it to a blacksmith and create various conditions in regards to the payment and procedures, so there are many things we need to go through . That’s something we’ll take care of on our end . ”
Just hearing his explanation made my head spin .
The only thing I was able to understand was that I could receive a larger amount than selling it in the current condition .
It’s true that I had a hard time trusting what he said, so I thought it would be best to look into how items should be sold .
It’s better to have an acquaintance that’s able to sell the item for me .
“Are you able to tell me around how much you’ll be able to guarantee?”
“If a Rank Five is created without any issues, it’ll be worth 500 million and you’ll get eight and we’ll receive two . ”
I didn’t really want to argue so that I could get more money from it .
Just receiving 400 million was enough for me .
“If you ask that the people that helped you, I’m sure they’ll agree that this is the best choice . Even though we’re small, we have pretty good connections to a skilled blacksmith and an auction house . ”
“How long will it take? I’m sure there’s a term after it’s been made and sold . ”
“It usually takes about three weeks, but I’ll make sure that you receive it within two weeks . ”
400 million…400 million…400 million .
That amount was the only thing that filled my head .
‘I wonder if the other items that I have are worth this much . ’
I wasn’t really planning on showing this guy the other items that I had .
Only after the trade has been completed and I’m able to trust him .
It won’t be too late to do it then .
“Okay, let’s do that . ”
“Right, then we’ll start on the contract right now . ”
He showed the contract as if he had been prepared for it .
It had seven pages and they were filled with sentences that I didn’t know the meaning of .
“What is this regarding?”
“Oh…you see . ”
For me, asking about the contract took more time than asking about the item .
I spent two hours on it and right when the manager was losing his patience, my curiosity was resolved .
Currently, this contract was the thing that I needed to be most cautious about .
It’s possible that it can scam me, so I had to be careful .
I continuously glanced at his expression and it didn’t seem like he was lying about it .
He seemed like a salaryman that was trying to best to earn more commission .
“It looks fine . ”
“R…right . Ha ha ha . ”
The manager didn’t lose his smile while talking to me and I respected him for that .
Providing service to someone younger than them wasn’t an easy thing to do .
“This is my business card . If you have any questions, feel free to contact me . ”
“I will . ”
After I was done, I visited a fast food restaurant that was nearby and decided to eat lunch there .
I thought about looking for a cheap dorm, but with 400 million, there was no reason for me to live there .
I’ve never had that much money in all my life, but I’m expected to get it in two weeks .
I still couldn’t believe it, so I kept on reading the contract .
“…I’m nervous . ”
It felt like I won the lottery .
I didn’t think I would get nervous because of money .
“Hm . Now that I think about it, when I visited MS Group for an interview, I think they offered this amount . ”
If I had accepted their offer, I wonder how much my salary will be .
The stage must be pretty popular .
I didn’t expect so many people to be involved .
“Hey, I have a couple of friends that completed up to the sixth stage . He said that once he graduates, he’s going to try to become an official challenger . ”
“No way!! I know someone that even dropped out of school to complete the stage . ”
I happened to listen to the high school students that were sitting at the table next to me .
‘Crazy . ’
I think society has gone crazy .
Of course that includes me too .
I thought people wouldn’t be able to do anything because they were filled with fear .
Now, there were those that were enjoying it, like those high school students .
“400 million . It’s an item that I obtained from the stage . ”
I felt uncomfortable by the fact that the value of the item was equal in both worlds .
After looking at the stores that were related to the stage, I briefly imagined what the future would be like .
“It’s going to fall . ”
I remembered what the Oracle and the Great Spirit said, but that was for a moment .
I dropped my coke after listening to what the woman next to me said and approached her .
“A more difficult level appeared . Nightmare level exists . ”
“What did you just say?”
“You scared me . What do you want?”
“What did you say just now?”
“Oh…I was reading the most popular thread regarding the stage . ”
I immediately took out my phone and read the thread she was referring to .
Someone wrote made a post about the Nightmare Mode .
There were a lot of things that I knew of .
That meant that this person experienced this level .
This was the last sentence .
“I’m a human that’s been chosen by the Manager!!”
“…Who are you?”
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