Chapter 17
“Good evening! The True Ancestor has arrived!”
The door flew open, and the manager came in.
She looked refreshed, as if she'd slept soundly.
Her smooth skin gleaming, she strode inside.
“My vassal, you worked hard! Was today a difficult one?”
Apparently, admiring a whole pile of figurines before going to sleep had helped a great deal.
Maybe she'd fallen asleep while running scenarios about being able to bring limited-edition figurines home with her?
“The True Ancestor's domain is peaceful again today!”
Seeing the clean interior of the convenience store, she nodded with a satisfied expression.
“You look cheerful today.”
“Hehe, I received some very good energy.”
“Good energy?”
“Yes! Perhaps it was thanks to pulling while looking at the limited-edition Asteria figurine……. Ta-da!”
She thrust the screen of her smartphone toward me.
The alternate Asteria, fully maxed out in both constellations and weapon refinement, sparkled on the screen.
“You really did manage to max out both her constellations and her weapon.”
“Hahaha! Indeed! I went home and used the currency I had left, and she came home in a single pull! So I spent even more money and max-refined her weapon, too!”
The alternate Sky Asteria released for the game's fourth anniversary.
The original Sky Asteria had a blue-toned mechanical angel concept.
She was one of the few angel-themed characters in Stella Echo.
The scene of her descending from the heavens with a spear in hand and a halo above her head had created countless fans.
And the one released this time was Asteria's demon version.
‘Asteria of Purgatory.’
She wielded a scythe instead of a spear, and the dark circles beneath her eyes were more striking than anything else about her.
She was the complete opposite of the original Asteria, and the keyword ‘corruption’ had made both existing fans and newcomers go crazy for her.
The game company was pushing her extremely hard, so I'd heard she was guaranteed to be a top-tier character and that people should pull at least for her first copy, or preferably up to her second constellation.
“Are you planning to destroy the world?”
“Hehe, if she's an Asteria raised by the True Ancestor, that should be possible.”
“How much did you spend?”
“Don't be shocked! I finished all the remaining constellations and refinements in only three trucks.”
“Oh.”
That was a little enviable.
Generally, in these subculture gacha games, ‘one truck’ refers to the most expensive currency package available in the shop.
The exact amount varies from game to game, but it's usually 119,000 won in Korean currency.
The number of pulls you can make after dumping an entire truck's worth of currency into the game is roughly fifty.
In other words, the three trucks the manager had spent came to only around 150 pulls.
Considering that it usually takes around eighty pulls to hit pity, and that even then the featured character only has a fifty-percent chance of appearing under the 50/50 system,
with 150 pulls, you could barely get the character's first copy and signature weapon—or, if your luck was bad, lose the 50/50 and walk away with only the first copy.
‘It's exactly the sort of thing that could leave you completely broke.’
“All of that came out in just 150 pulls? Without losing a single 50/50?”
“I told you! Even the True Ancestor doubted her eyes! Asteria descended every ten-pull—what a thrill it was!”
The manager puffed out her chest triumphantly, snorting through her nose.
Looking closely, I could see that she couldn't control the corners of her mouth twitching.
At times like this, it was best to give a truly lucky pull an appropriately enthusiastic reaction.
You needed this kind of satisfaction to play subculture games.
You bragged to the people you played with, and they bragged to you in turn.
Building that sort of shared understanding was part of the fun, too.
“It would've been an even better deal if you hadn't already pulled her second constellation and signature weapon through pity after pity.”
I remembered the manager's condition when I'd come to work that morning—she'd looked like she was on the verge of death.
So gacha could change a person's condition this much.
Was she even human, or was she a True Ancestor?
“The store atmosphere should be bright today.”
“Indeed, the True Ancestor is in an excellent mood! Even if a whole swarm of obnoxious customers came in, I could forgive them. Vassal, hurry up and clock out. Today, the True Ancestor will graciously let you switch shifts ten minutes early!”
Apparently on cloud nine, the manager hopped over the counter and pushed me aside.
In any case, having the owner in a good mood made things easier for an employee, too.
“Then am I not getting bitten today?”
“Hmm, judging by your condition, I think we can do it tomorrow. The True Ancestor is a master who even carefully examines her vassal's condition!”
What a shame.
I could've earned 100,000 won.
“Oh, right, Manager. May I ask you one thing before I clock out?”
“What is it? If you need the True Ancestor's wisdom, I will gladly lend it to you.”
“I received this from a customer as a tip today.”
I took out the S-Rank Life Spirit Stone I'd received as compensation for the World Tree pollen and placed it on the counter.
For an instant, a pale-green light flashed.
“I don't really have anywhere to sell this, so what am I supposed to use it fo—”
“E-eeeeeek!!!”
Before I could finish speaking,
the manager shrieked like a cat on a scorching hot griddle and clung tightly to the tobacco display some distance away.
She covered her nose and mouth with her hands, furrowed her brow, and shouted.
“Where did you get such a hideous object?”
“…Is it really that serious?”
“Of course it is! To the True Ancestor, it looks like a lump of filth! Urp!”
I'd heard that the power of the World Tree was a terrible match for vampires.
Was the spirit stone the same way?
“You have more things you're afraid of than I expected. Manager, being a picky eater is problematic. No matter how much you dislike something……”
“Y-you wouldn't like it if a cockroach suddenly appeared in your house, would you?!”
“……”
Hmm.
I couldn't argue with that.
A roach showing up in my house?
I'd leave the house that day and never go back in.
This really was my mistake.
“I'm sorry.”
I hurriedly shoved the spirit stone back into my pocket.
“I didn't expect even the strongest vampire, Manager, to react like that.”
“E-even the True Ancestor has difficult opponents.”
Perhaps she was pleased by being called the strongest.
She seemed to relax a little and climbed down from the tobacco display.
“I was thinking of giving this spirit stone to the World Tree branch I planted. Would that be all right?”
At first, I'd considered asking the gallery.
But the more I thought about it, the more it seemed that asking the gallery would reveal my identity, so I abandoned the idea.
A convenience store part-timer who received an S-Rank spirit stone would be far too easy to identify.
Advertising that I possessed an item whose value could only be determined through an auction seemed like an incredibly dangerous choice.
So I decided to ask the manager first, since she was an expert in this world.
She was practically the only person(?) I could rely on in this unfamiliar world.
If she said it wouldn't work, I was even considering selling the spirit stone through her.
Even if I didn't know how, a manager who had established a convenience store here and looked incredibly powerful probably could.
“Have you decided to plant a World Tree in the True Ancestor's domain?”
“…Would that be a problem? If it gets too strong, my presence will definitely become conspicuous……”
The manager, whom I expected to shout that it was impossible, hesitated for a moment, then rolled her eyes.
“…Now that I think about it, there isn't any reason not to put it in the World Tree branch, is there?”
“Huh? Is that really okay?”
“Well, adding one spirit stone won't turn it into a true World Tree. It will merely make the World Tree's power a little stronger. Don't worry too much.”
The effect seemed awfully minor.
“Don't worry so much. It's a worthwhile choice. The True Ancestor guarantees it. Besides, it's not as though you can sell that at auction anyway.”
“I can't sell it? Why not?”
“There are very few beings who could afford a spirit stone of that caliber. It would be better to use it on the World Tree branch than wait for demand to appear.”
Supply and demand.
I was rendered speechless by such a basic economic principle.
“Then what good is it if the World Tree's power becomes stronger?”
The manager, who had been about to answer my question, closed her mouth.
“I'll let you discover that for yourself. It wouldn't be any fun if I told you everything. As I said last time, gacha only has true meaning when you open it yourself.”
At times like this, the manager really was dependable.
“Thank you. You've helped me make up my mind.”
“Besides, if the World Tree's power gets too strong, it might interfere with the True Ancestor's enjoyment of her figurines……”
“That's your real reason, isn't it?”
“Ahem, ahem! N-no, it isn't? That's merely one consideration……”
That had been exactly the moment when I was supposed to feel moved.
“If it really seems impossible later, I'll move it then.”
“Hehe, I knew my vassal was the best. Oh, you know that the day after tomorrow is your day off, right?”
One day a week when I didn't come to work at the convenience store and could rest.
A full day off.
“Yes, I know. But will that be all right?”
“What do you mean?”
“If I'm off, who's going to watch the store during the day?”
“Ah, don't worry about that. I have a solution.”
“Understood. Then I'll head home now. Oh, right, I also handed over the cursed necklace safely.”
“You handed over the necklace? Did you happen to meet that old man?”
“If you mean the old man……. Ah, the lich customer?”
“Yes! He didn't say anything strange to you, did he?”
“He told me to contact him if I needed immortality.”
“Absolutely do not do that. That company is a black corporation.”
“I don't plan to.”
At my immediate answer, she smiled brightly.
“That's the way my vassal should be! You worked hard. Go home and get plenty of rest!”
By then, the manager was turning Asteria of Purgatory this way and that, wearing a satisfied smile.
***
The moment I opened the door, I felt the refreshing air.
It felt like I'd entered an arboretum with the air conditioning blasting.
The room was fresh, and the breeze was cool.
“Wow……. This is nice.”
I casually tossed off my outerwear and headed straight for the corner of the room.
The World Tree branch was sitting in a small flowerpot.
The branch that the manager had recoiled from, saying it gave off an unpleasant aura, was neatly placed beside the figurines.
Though she'd said she disliked it, the fact that she hadn't moved it somewhere far away felt like a reflection of the manager's personality.
She acted gruff on the outside, but was secretly quite warm-hearted.
‘I told you, she's secretly the sort who cares about things like this.’
I looked at the World Tree branch, which gave off a fragrant scent of phytoncides.
Even my eyes, which couldn't sense anything normally, could feel the strange energy rising from the branch.
It was as if merely looking at it cleared my head.
“The manager told me to give it to you.”
I took the S-Rank Life Spirit Stone out of my pocket.
I carefully placed the spirit stone, radiating a dazzling pale-green light, on the soil beside the World Tree branch.
“Plant nutrients usually come with a cap that you open and stick into the soil. Do I need to crush this one?”
I was wondering whether I needed to fetch a hammer when—
Vrrrrm.
The World Tree branch planted in the flowerpot began to resonate faintly.
Then the spirit stone's pale-green light slowly rose like mist and began streaming toward the leaves and stem of the World Tree branch.
“Oh……”
It was a fascinating sight.
The spirit stone, which had been a solid jewel, melted into liquid—or rather, into light—and seeped through the soil and roots into the branch.
It took less than a minute for the little stone to disappear.
Fwoosh—!
A dazzling light flared from the World Tree branch after it completely absorbed the spirit stone.
After the brief glare faded,
“It's growing.”
The thin branch, which had clearly been about the size of a chopstick, grew visibly thicker and shot upward in height.
New twigs stretched out, and fresh pale-green leaves sprang up from their tips with little pops.
“Wow……”
The World Tree branch had grown to about the size of a small shrub—slightly too large to call a branch, but far too small to call a tree.
I could feel the air becoming cleaner.
All it took was one breath.
“Haaa.”
Energy surged through me.
“This is amazing.”
I could feel my head clearing and vitality coursing through my body.
It definitely seemed worth the money.
At this rate of growth, it might take on the form of a real tree before long.
I gently stroked the leaves growing from the World Tree branch, now thicker than before.
They swayed softly and scattered a faint light.
“Grow big and strong. So I can sell you later.”
I felt like I was going to sleep wonderfully tonight.