Chapter 55

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

Chapter 55: Different Species (2)

Swoosh.

As Yeongwoo picked up the problematic equipment, Jongsu tilted his head.

“What is that, Hyung-nim?”

“It’s a compass.”

“…That’s a compass?”

It was a perfectly normal reaction.

Even Yeongwoo, looking at it, couldn’t see how it could be related to a compass from the outside.

「Fearful Cat」 – Epic Compass

【Indicates a threatening target.】

【–Empty slot–】

The equipment that came out of Shin Youngju’s left pocket was a small, three-colored cat model smaller than a palm.

It crouched down as if frightened, and its eyes were closed in its current inactive state.

‘Does that mean there’s no threatening target nearby right now?’

Yeongwoo instantly figured out how the “Fearful Cat” worked.

It was because he already had a similar device.

「Serpent of Greed」 – Epic Compass

【Always seeks rarity.】

In the reset world, Yeongwoo was one of the people who quickly encountered the new material.

‘Thanks to the compass, Shin Youngju found me right away.’

Of course, at that time, it was impossible to know why the Fearful Cat perceived this side as a threatening target.

‘I never had the intention of fighting from the beginning… There might have been conflicts due to merchant problems, but I still wanted to solve it through conversation.’

However, this was only Yeongwoo’s one-sided thought.

Anyway, the result was that Shin Youngju died, so wasn’t Yeongwoo a threatening figure?

“…”

Yeongwoo put the Fearful Cat in his pocket with an uncomfortable feeling.

Then the Serpent of Greed, wrapped around his left wrist, turned its head with a flick of its tongue.

Swoosh.

The object it stared at was none other than the sword that Shin Youngju had been holding all along.

It wasn’t the supply-type sword stuck in the mountain of the sword, nor was it the early bird, which made Yeongwoo curious.

‘Is it a mutation equipment?’

The probability was high.

If it was the current Strongest Sword, even if it couldn’t use mutation equipment, it would have at least two.

One obtained from a mutant and one that the former Strongest Sword had.

Thunk.

Eventually, when Yeongwoo pulled out the sword from Shin Youngju, a tooltip appeared in his field of vision.

Ping!

「Underdog」 – Mutated one-handed sword

【Power increases by 25% against targets larger than the user.】

‘Oh.’

Compared to its relatively plain appearance, the special ability was outstanding.

‘If this applies permanently against mutants, it would be good.’

If the ‘build’ mentioned in the tooltip simply referred to height, it would be activated against the majority of adult males.

Conversely, it would have no effect against smaller males and most females.

Clang.

Clang.

Yeongwoo pulled out the early bird from his waist belt and replaced it with Underdog.

Jongsu, who was watching this, let out a dry laugh.

“Even the Strongest Sword rummages through corpses after the fight. How did the world end up like this?”

“…There’s no other choice. Even the Gangnam Strongest Sword probably goes around digging through corpses.”

Gangnam Strongest Sword.

Yeongwoo didn’t have much knowledge about that side, but mentioning Gangnam gave the impression of a wealthy neighborhood, so it was half-joking.

Surprisingly, Jongsu took this seriously.

“Come to think of it, there might be a Gangnam Strongest Sword. Or maybe just lump it all under Seoul Strongest Sword…?”

“I don’t know.”

Listening to it, it made sense.

Although both are ‘cities,’ the population difference is staggering.

The population of Chungju is about 200,000, while Seoul has a population of 9.4 million.

That’s a difference of 47 times.

So, logically, there should be more Strongest Swords for Seoul.

For example, one for each district.

Even so, considering the population, there could still be fewer Strongest Swords in Seoul.

Seoul is divided into 25 districts.

“I don’t know if there’s really a Gangnam Strongest Sword.”

When Yeongwoo said this, Jongsu spoke with an excited voice.

“That’s right, isn’t it? Hyungnim, aren’t you curious? Who holds a position like Gangnam’s Strongest Sword?”

“…”

[PR/N: It’s PSY. He holds the position. Trust. Oppar gangnam style.]

For some reason, unlike the excited Jongsu, Yeongwoo found it difficult to understand the other’s emotions.

Is it because everything still feels like a game or a dream?

From the beginning, abandoning his former comrades abruptly and sticking with this side, giving up the opportunity to become Strongest Sword…

Yeongwoo felt that Jongsu didn’t seem to take post-reset life seriously.

“Mr. Jongsu, how do you plan to live from now on?”

“From now on?”

Receiving Yeongwoo’s question, Jongsu made a face as if he hadn’t thought about that far.

Then, he once again let out his characteristic playful laugh.

“Moderately… I hope to travel and see the world without too much trouble.”

“See the world?”

“Yes. Isn’t it fascinating how the world has turned out like this? Just a few days ago, you wouldn’t have thought you’d end up getting stabbed by a judge’s sword, right?”

“But…?”

It became clear.

Jongsu regarded life after the reset as some kind of bonus.

Otherwise…

“Hyungnim, do you think I’m strange right now? Like a crazy person.”

As if reading Yeongwoo’s mind, Jongsu uttered a line that seemed to peer into Yeongwoo’s thoughts.

So, Yeongwoo didn’t press the matter any further.

“Yes. Usually, people are busy trying to survive or panicking. It’s rare to find someone who wants to see the world in the midst of all this. I doubt there will be many more like you in the future.”

“Haha, that’s true. Because, for most people, the top priority is to survive.”

Jongsu’s forced laughter somehow sounded artificial.

In contrast to his animated appearance, Yeongwoo found it difficult to understand the other’s emotions.

For some reason, Jongsu’s face, even with the fading laughter, appeared quite imposing, reminiscent of their first meeting.

It didn’t match the subsequent dialogue at all.

“Mr. Jongsu, is survival not your top priority?”

Surprisingly, Jongsu remained silent.

His face, now lacking even a trace of a smile, was unexpectedly intimidating.

And then, the words that followed seemed completely incongruent.

“I didn’t want to live, let alone survive. Originally, I should have committed suicide today.”

“…?”

Yeongwoo, wondering if he heard wrong, tilted his head. Jongsu, with a wrinkled nose, confirmed his statement.

“When I checked the Fate Record, today was supposed to be the day I die. If it wasn’t for the reset, I would have really committed suicide as planned.”

And this means…

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

“Are you saying you’ve been thinking about suicide even before the reset?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Yeongwoo reflexively questioned.

He couldn’t understand it at all.

Wasn’t he a guy with exceptional physical abilities who looked like a dangerous person in this world?

Of course, external appearance and inner circumstances are separate, but it was hard for Yeongwoo to easily believe in someone who seemed so strong.

“The reason… I’ll tell you slowly later. It’s not something to brag about.”

Seeing the shadow on Jongsu’s face, who always laughed so heartily, it seemed like he truly desired suicide.

After all, it was written in the Fate Record, and if it wasn’t for the reset, he would have truly died.

“So, for now, since I’m not dead, might as well live, is that it?”

“Well, something like that… and I have a bit of curiosity. The conglomerates are rumored to turn into dragons after they come back. Can you just ignore that?”

With his regained momentum, Jongsu burst into laughter.

Yeongwoo, finding it absurd, also laughed.

* * *

Having a bizarre conversation with a man with former suicidal behaviour and bursting into fake laughter was only temporary.

Soon, Yeongwoo had to continue searching for Shin Youngju’s corpse.

For some reason, the second mutation equipment didn’t come out from her body.

‘Could it be the one who defeated the mutant on the first day wasn’t the Strongest Sword?’

It was a difficult thing to accept, but given the circumstances, there was no other way to think about it.

Even the Serpent of Greed wasn’t looking at the corpse anymore.

‘Really, it’s not here. Strange.’

As Yeongwoo, with a serious expression, continued to search Shin Youngju’s pocket, Jongsu asked.

“Why? What’s not there?”

“Equipment. When you defeat a mutant, equipment usually comes out, but there’s none. Any Strongest Sword should have had it…”

“Oh, really? Then maybe the former one didn’t have it from the beginning.”

“Yeah. Given the circumstances, it seems likely.”

Yeongwoo decided to stop searching for equipment at this point and stood up.

Perhaps the missing mutant equipment was something consumable like a potion.

“…”

For some reason, it felt unclear, but there wasn’t much time left.

“Can we still trade?”

When Yeongwoo asked Kubu, who was looking in this direction from the empty air, the creature blinked its eyes.

—Yes. It is possible. The commission fee remains unchanged, but the target of the trade cannot be changed as there is already a record of the transaction.

As expected.

Kubu’s provided selection of trade targets was only available to Yeongwoo as a first-come-first-served basis.

“I guess there’s no other choice. Please proceed.”

As Yeongwoo nodded, Kubu blinked its eyes once more and recited a formal statement.

—The intermediary commission for this transaction is 10%, included in the product price. The trade partner is the Black Market merchant in Cheok’s Martial Arts Hall.

‘Cheok’s Martial Arts Hall…’

Learning about the opponent’s origin, Yeongwoo unintentionally stared at the giant wheel trapped inside the pillar of light.

Whether Cheok was a planet or another dimension, he didn’t know, but there seemed to be a wheel like that there.

—The product list is complete.

Soon, Kubu rolled its eyeballs to inform that the products were ready.

Then, blue spots appeared in front of Yeongwoo’s eyes and began to take the shape of human characters.

Ssslik.

1 ― 「Executioner」 – Ancient Two-Handed Axe

【Destroys ordinary weapons.】

【Significant decrease in power when used with one hand.】

◇ 70,000 Karma

2 ― 「Myol’s Crystal」 – Hero’s Shield

【–Empty slot–】

【Double effect of equipped gems.】

◇ 116,000 Karma

3 ― 「Vanguard」 – Relic Helmet

【This helmet does not get damaged.】

◇ 310,000 Karma

4 ― 「Illusion」 – Unique Shoes

【30% chance of detection evasion.】

◇ 630,000 Karma

As expected, the fifth slot was empty.

Shin Youngju, who had visited this place before, gave a legendary achievement and bought a compass.

However, in the end, the item came to Yeongwoo, so he practically saved one legendary achievement.

‘The rest are tremendous. Shin Youngju didn’t deliberately leave some items behind; she just didn’t have the cash to buy them.’

In comparison, Yeongwoo currently possesses 871,000 Karma.

‘The axe is now meaningless, and the shield is ambiguous. It’s not that I can’t use it, but it’s better to use another sword.’

Therefore, the only things that Yeongwoo urgently desired were the relic helmet, ‘Vanguard,’ and the unique shoes, ‘Illusion.’

Especially for ‘Illusion,’ the tooltip was not ordinary, just like its high grade.

‘What does ‘30% chance of detection evasion’ mean… precisely?’

Detection.

In a literal sense, it means discerning the opponent’s thoughts.

‘Could it be?’

Yeongwoo blinked his eyes widely, taking a deep breath.

Among the things he experienced in the post-reset world, the only thing somewhat similar to detection was the hologram guide provided by the ‘Sword Techniques.’

‘If it’s a 30% chance of detection evasion, does that mean 30% of my movements won’t be captured by the hologram?’

For the first time, he considered it genuinely crucial for him, who had to fight with a stat disadvantage.

‘The Illusion costs 630,000. I have enough money, but I have to give up the helmet for now.’

After buying the Illusion, the remaining money was 241,000.

‘I can’t afford to buy the Vanguard, which requires 310,000.’

Certainly not a small amount, but it wasn’t a considerable sum either.

‘I can earn that money by hunting a few more monsters, but I don’t have any right now, so…’

Swoosh.

Feeling regretful, Yeongwoo searched around, hoping he might find some remaining monster marks.

Suddenly, he realized one thing.

“Ah.”

Then, turning his head to the benefactor of his life, who was observing this trade from a distance.

“Jongsu, how much money do you have?”

“…?”

[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]