HBWnovel Chapter 46
Chapter 46
Chapter 46[2,000 points are required to enter this chat room.]
[Do you wish to enter?]
One of the chat rooms had an entrance fee with a cost equivalent to two level-ups' worth of Community points.
[Selling an artifact that reduces resource consumption. Auction (18/20)]
After reading the room’s title, Jae-Hyeok made his decision. There are only two seats left before the chat room fills up. I can’t miss this opportunity by hesitating...
He selected Yes on the message prompt and felt a slight dizziness.
The Community was a space for one’s consciousness, not one’s body.
Although the form of someone’s consciousness was inherently the same as their real body, the rules governing it differed. It was akin to a spirit body.
Jae-Hyeok’s consciousness soared through the ceiling and quickly gained altitude.
The dormitory building shrank away as he reached a height so high in the sky that the whole school could be seen.
Flash!
An explosion of light blinded Jae-Hyeok’s vision.
“......”
When he opened his eyes next, he found himself in an unfamiliar space.
He was in the living room of an old mansion. Twenty chairs were neatly arranged in a circle.
“Based on how you’re just standing there, are you a newbie?”
“Oh my god, a newbie spent 2,000 points to go to an auction.”
“Indeed, but why does he look so dazed? Haha! He’ll drop out early.” A burly man noticed Jae-Hyeok glancing around and casually hurled insults at him.
Like Jae-Hyeok, he was also wearing a mask. Hm. This is the downside of anonymity...
So long as a player chose to keep their information private, the Community guaranteed their anonymity. With that assurance, it wasn’t an environment where good manners or common sense could be expected.
Jae-Hyeok grasped the mood of the room, found an empty seat, and sat down.
The masks worn by the people present varied widely.
Most of them were masks that personified animals or everyday objects, but the colors, designs, and accessories were all very different.
For example, he spotted two people wearing rabbit masks, but one wore an eyepatch, while the other had a folded ear.
It seemed everyone had distinct masks so people could be recognized and remembered inside the Community without exposing their identities.
The person next to Jae-Hyeok asked, “Aren’t you very frugal? How many points does it cost to decorate the mask? Why stick with the basic model?”
Jae-Hyeok’s plain mask was intriguing.
Hm. So the mask isn’t determined in advance like a fingerprint. It’s customizable like an avatar, Jae-Hyeok thought.
“Aren’t you uncomfortable? If you go to an ordinary chat room with no entrance fee, you would be treated like a newbie and ostracized.”
The person next to Jae-Hyeok was wearing a basic mask with only a feather attached to it.
“It’s the same for you,” Jae-Hyeok replied indifferently. His modulated voice sounded like a wild beast.
The feather-masked man’s eyes widened slightly.
At this moment, a System message notified them that the twentieth person had joined the chat room.
Some people had been
The feather-masked man raised the price at once.
Most of the people groaned and stopped bidding.
“45,500.” However, the tiger-masked woman kept following.
“If only there weren't paralysis.” The man in the old gentleman mask clicked his tongue and gave up bidding.
“50,000.” The feather-masked man opened his mouth once more, and the tiger-masked woman fell silent. He murmured, “It looks like I will be the one to win the bid... ”
Jae-Hyeok called out, “51,000.”
“...55,000.”
“60,000.”
The feather-masked man looked at Jae-Hyeok in surprise. “I thought you were quite frugal, but you’re different from how you look? 65,000.”
Jae-Hyeok shrugged. “Aren’t you the same? 70,000.”
Jae-Hyeok’s voice was reminiscent of a beast of prey. His snarling voice echoed through the room, causing the woman in the tiger mask and the man in the old gentleman mask to shudder.
With a modulated voice like that, don’t tell me...?
Why is such a bigshot in a place like this?
Was this bracelet worth more than they thought? They wondered if they should participate in the auction again. However, the bidding price for the bracelet was skyrocketing to the point where it was too much for even them to bear.
“73,000.”
“80,000.”
That amount of money could be used to purchase ordinary legendary-rated items.
“Groan.” The feather-masked man was discouraged once 80,000 came out. “You must’ve saved up all the money you could’ve spent on your mask to become rich. Ah, I’ll give up.”
He raised his white flag in an exaggerated manner before whispering in Jae-Hyeok’s ear, “It seems today I’ve met someone who doesn’t fear curses.”
“......”
“The next time I find an artifact like this, I will come find you. I’m sure I can be of great help.”
[A Conscientious Merchant sends you a friend invitation.]
[In order to accept the invitation, please set a Community name.]
“The reason I conceded this time is to build a valuable relationship. Please accept the favor.”
The feather-masked man shared the information on the number of Community points he held.
The man had seemed well-versed in the Community, but on seeing the long string of zeros, Jae-Hyeok realized he was dealing with an experienced old-timer.
In addition, he must have a lot of information as a merchant.
There was nothing wrong with forming a relationship.
But first, I have to decide on my Community name.
Jae-Hyeok tried to define himself. Who was he?
An aristocrat.
A knight.
One who would punish his father’s enemies and raise up their fallen family.
The standard: a beacon to some, a terror to others.
...Yaksha.
[The Community name has been set to Yaksha.]
[You have accepted the friend invitation of A Conscientious Merchant.]
“Yaksha? A nostalgic name. In truth, that was the last name I expected to see.” The feather-masked man’s eyes were wide.
His surprise seemed genuine. Apparently, he had mistaken Jae-Hyeok for someone else.
“Still, this is good, too. It’s a big world.”
The man grinned, and his body slowly vanished in a cluster of light.
Soon, only two people remained in the room: Jae-Hyeok and the room manager.
This meant that Jae-Hyeok was the winning bidder.
The room manager’s eyes were strange as she looked at him.