Chapter 26
But as soon as they turned the corner of the hallway, Segleninde stepped in front of Cynthia and blocked her way.
“That thing. Is that dangerous to you too?”
Cynthia craned her neck around Segleninde’s body. She wondered if they’d already reached the area where the Butcher Cooks appeared, but it wasn’t. When she recognized the figure standing ahead, she actually relaxed instead.
“No. It’s fine. It’s not dangerous.”
Standing in the middle of the hallway was an enormous old woman who looked to be well over two meters tall.
The old woman was draped from head to toe in ragged scraps of something, with ashen skin and skinny limbs, and where her eyes should have been, black satin ribbons were sewn shut in their place. It was obvious at a glance she wasn’t human.
As soon as the old woman spotted them, she split her mouth in a wide, creepy grin and let out a chilling laugh.
< Heeheeheehee! >
Then, without warning, she pulled a large box out of her arms and flung open the lid.
The old woman’s identity was the only hope and salvation in this unfriendly game: the item merchant.
If you met her when you’d gathered the right items for trading, you could obtain useful goods, so many players were very fond of her. No matter how horrific she looked, she was the only creature in the game that wouldn’t kill the player, and the more you saw her, the more familiar she seemed.
Cynthia approached with genuine relief.
“Hello, ma’am. May I take a look at your wares?”
<Hee, hee, hee.>
The old woman nodded as much as to say, “Go right ahead,” and presented the open box before them. Segleninde, looking puzzled, let go of his sword and followed Cynthia.
Inside the box were three neatly placed items. Every time you met the old woman, the items would be randomized. As Cynthia scanned the items in the box, she couldn’t help but marvel inwardly. This was an incredibly lucky selection for this early in the game.
As her eyes fell on each item, a description window popped up.
[ Ghost Rat Taming Bait ] [ Instant Death Dagger ]
: Lets you check the entire structure of Wincastle Manor, from the first floor to the top floor. 16 Luvens.
: Feed it to just one Ghost Rat, and every Ghost Rat on that floor will recognize you as their master and share information with you. 27 Luvens.
: No matter what you stab, this dagger will kill it instantly. 66 Luvens.
‘They’re all great items!’
The problem was the price.
So this was why gold coins existed now. The item exchange system had changed to a currency system. Cynthia opened her inventory to check how much gold she had.
‘21 Luven Gold Coins.’
“…Hmm.”
Well, at least she wasn’t completely broke.
She wanted to buy everything, but she could only afford the one she needed most right now. Of course, there was only one item that was absolutely essential at this stage.
Cynthia pointed at the full mansion map.
“I’ll take this one.”
<Hee hee, hee!>
The old woman grinned with delight and handed her the map. Cynthia easily handed over the coins and received the map in return.
When she unfolded the worn map, the full layout of the mansion was displayed.
From the first floor to the top, including the two garden areas on the second floor, the third floor, and the Sky Garden on the fourth (top) floor. Even a sparkling marker showed her current location.
“There was something like that wandering around my mansion?”
Segleninde, watching from the side, looked faintly displeased. Cynthia belatedly wondered if she should have revealed an ally to the protagonist right in front of the villain, but the old woman just grinned, completely unconcerned, as if to ask if they wanted anything else.
She would have liked to buy something else, but she didn’t have enough left for anything. Especially that ‘Instant Death Dagger’—it looked extremely useful. With no combat abilities to speak of, having something to protect herself in case of danger would have been nice.
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