Chapter 278
After the battle with the Great Bone War Fort, I returned to Shiratsuki and was more exhausted than I had expected, so I immediately logged out and went to sleep. It had been an intense battle, so I suppose it couldn't be helped.
Today, the day after that, was the final day of the event. During the event, I made new acquaintances, conquered the boss, and obtained items, so I had plenty to show for it. The same was true of my companions, even though they had spent hardly any time playing with me during this event.
Kanna, who was originally human, and their partner Raga apparently deepened their connections with other players on the surface. Sei, who tended to team up with others over their shared skill in mounted combat, said that, in addition to Kanna and Raga's connections, Sei had also formed ties with a clan of tamers.
What's more, Kanna and Sei entered a beach volleyball tournament as a team and apparently placed fourth. They seemed to be enjoying summer... even if it was only in a game.
Iris, who had been gathering materials in less frequented areas because she was concerned about her avatar's appearance, made a friend among players with similarly unappealing avatars. I also heard that Shiitake, who had been single-mindedly collecting Golem cores, met like-minded people seeking cores and conducted joint research with them. It was good to see everyone enjoying themselves in their own ways.
"All right, this mat will do. Next, let's arrange the merchandise."
"Yes!"
As for what I planned to do on the final day of the event, I was going to open a shop with Iris in the 'Undead Resting Place.' Our main products were Iris's equipment, Shiitake's useful items, and my talismans.
If Iris and Shiitake made their products in earnest, they would be good enough for the strategy group to want, so I had them prepare items using deliberately low-grade materials. I also made my talismans use magic that anyone could learn, keeping my trump card hidden.
Even so, the presence of monster crafter players like them should motivate the players here. Some might even decide to switch to crafting Jobs.
I would be satisfied if people simply took my talismans as a reference and thought, 'So things like this exist.' Perhaps someone might even be inspired by them to devote themselves to mastering 【Talisman Arts】.
This was only an expectation, not a certainty. The other party was an individual player too, so nothing could be guaranteed. Simply showing them that these things existed might have no effect at all. Even so, I had opened this stall for one personal reason.
"It would be interesting if this led to a new Race appearing... I hope it works out."
That reason was that I wanted to give rise to players who evolved into a new Race. If players of various Races appeared, the monster-player community would become more lively, and more than anything, I wanted to see it myself. In short, this was simply a move to satisfy my curiosity.
Iris was helping with my stall entirely out of kindness. She had said, 'I'm interested in the equipment other people use,' but there was no reason for her to go all the way underground for that. She must have been trying to be considerate of me. I was extremely grateful.
"Hey, Izam. What are you doing?"
"Oh, Mac. You came at just the right time! Come take a look."
Mac, who seemed to have just logged in, arrived just as we finished setting up. Perfect. Since he was a capable player well known in this Resting Place—and someone I knew—we could do business easily. I might as well have him look things over.
"...Are you planning to run a stall?"
"Exactly. Oh, let me introduce you. This is Iris, one of my clan's longtime members."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Iris."
"You've got another companion? I'm Mac17. Nice to meet you... But more importantly, what are you planning to do about money for the stall? Not to put too fine a point on it, but we monsters don't have any money at all, you know?"
As Mac said, monster players had no money. This was not because they had various expenses, but because they had no way to acquire currency. Unless they visited a city they could enter, monster players were completely cut off from the monetary economy. That was their sad fate.
But I knew that perfectly well. After all, we had been playing this game a little longer than Mac and the others. We understood the inconveniences of being monster players firsthand.
"I know. That's why this stall uses barter."
If you didn't have money, you could just trade goods instead! With that in mind, this stall would use the more primitive method of buying and selling known as barter. As long as they had an item to offer in exchange, anyone could make a trade.
If there was something they absolutely wanted but their current items weren't enough to pay for it, they could go earn more in a nearby side tunnel or the dungeon. I had no intention of overcharging them, but I did intend to collect the full value of what we offered.
"Well, in that case... Huh? There's more variety than I expected."
"The main products are various pieces of equipment and useful items. Iris can repair equipment too."
"She can repair it too? That's great. I don't need it myself, but a lot of my companions have weapons that are on the verge of breaking."
Apparently, those without acquaintances in crafting Jobs had no recourse once their equipment broke. Monster drops were their main source of equipment, so a stable supply was impossible. As a result, they saved their powerful equipment for major battles and used subpar gear in their daily lives.
Being able to repair it would be a huge help. That information should translate into sales. But one of the items we had prepared was guaranteed to sell. Its sales would put the repair business to shame!
"Weapons are fine, but our recommended product is over here."
"Recommended item? Is this a lamp? With 【Night Vision】, we don't need one of those, do we?"
"No, no, that's not how you use it. For now, try turning that knob."
"Like this?"
Mac looked at the lamp and me with suspicion, but he obediently turned the knob. The lamp then emitted a faint glow imbued with the Light attribute.
"...Hey. I'm taking damage."
"That's the point. This is the 'Daywalker,' a lamp for overcoming weakness to the Light attribute. Even an Undead can function outdoors in broad daylight if given enough time."
The 'Daywalker' was based on the method I had used with my half-broken lamp: taking Light-attribute damage while logged out until I overcame my weakness. Iris's proud creation made it possible to carry out that process deliberately.
The brightness could be adjusted by changing how far the knob was turned, and it required fewer magic stones as fuel than an ordinary lamp. It was a small item, but it was a masterpiece containing the pinnacle of Iris's magic-item-crafting skill.
We had brought a large stock of them. They had been mass-produced for an entirely different purpose, not to be sold here, but we had brought them anyway for the sake of our fellow monster players.
"Huh? What? Overcome our weakness? Seriously?"
"Seriously. I'll sell it cheaply, so why not try one?"
"I-I'll buy it! I'll buy this lamp!"
Being able to operate outdoors without fearing sunlight meant that the area in which Undead could act during the day would expand dramatically. If I hadn't been able to walk around during the day, I probably couldn't have gone on even half as many adventures as I had so far.
Mac was stunned for several seconds, but when he came to his senses, he rushed over to me with a desperate look on his face. Yes, that was the reaction I wanted. If I had been in his position, I would have wanted one desperately.
As for the barter rates, we set universally obtainable items such as magic stones at lower values, while valuing items unique to this side tunnel and dungeon more highly. For the latter in particular, we accepted items of somewhat lower quality and rarity. This made it easier for even lower-level players to buy them.
The surrounding players must have heard our exchange as Mac loudly made his purchase, because they all flocked to our stall. It was difficult for the two of us to deal with all of them, but it was enjoyable in its own way, and we got to talk with and add as friends players other than the 'Undead Bastards.'
"Excuse me! This weapon..."
"A single-use item that lets you use magic even without a magic-based Skill... That's a must-buy!"
At first, interest was concentrated almost entirely on Iris's 'Daywalker,' but when we told everyone there were more than enough for all of them and that they didn't need to panic, the rush subsided. Instead, more players became interested in and picked up items other than the 'Daywalker,' namely Iris's equipment and my talismans.
While we were busy with our sales, two familiar people approached us. One had shining eyes, while the other grimaced at me as though displeased. That alone should have told anyone who the duo was.
"Hey, Columbus and Keisuke-kun. Feel free to take a look."
"Sure, I will!"
Columbus, who had said he wanted to travel in search of all kinds of scenery, was interested in rare items just as I had expected. Seeing Columbus drawn in by our wares, Keisuke-kun wore a bitter expression.
Meanwhile, we continued serving customers. Iris handled the equipment, while I explained the effects and uses of the items, and we steadily made sales. Partway through, Mac led the members of the 'Undead Bastards' over, and they bought a little of everything, so we were definitely in the black.
Even aside from the profits, interacting with so many players through these trades had been an enjoyable experience. The reason things proceeded so peacefully after the initial rush was that we had prepared more than enough items, so no one had to fight over them. That was a credit to Iris and Shiitake, who could consistently produce sufficient quantities of high-quality items.
And so, my deserted-island event came to an end without any major disputes or our having to go to battle. We continued doing business until just before we were forcibly teleported to our usual logout locations, then parted ways after promising to meet again.