LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 31
A man naturally can’t help but love secrets.
When I was young, I would hide in a giant wardrobe.
Lying on a fluffy blanket, I would imagine it as my secret base.
I even activated incognito mode while browsing on the family computer searching for “muhuhuhu.”
I secretly hid “Download/New Folder/Omoknuni/Baebsae” things in a forbidden path.
In RPG games, there were hidden classes.
Even when reading novels, hidden pieces!
Isn’t it great?
Am I the only one?
Anyway.
The element “Secret Workshop” that I couldn’t check in-game was enough to make my heart race.
Zhuk! Duk!
…
“But it’s a bit expensive.”
Two thousand points is an amount I would have to labor for almost a week if I only faithfully completed the daily quests at the shop.
Upgrading the shop to level 3 also cost 2,000 points.
If it weren’t for Lumi, I wouldn’t have discovered the hidden quest.
I probably would have spent some time crying while sucking my fingers.
It’s a reward.
Today, I should grill some beef herb steak.
***
Having finally overcome the trial of three days of business suspension.
We redesigned the indoor space and initiated a new leap.
Our store is officially open!
“Oh my, is that a customer? Without ID, you can’t purchase alcohol.”
“Huh? I’m twenty-five, you know?”
“But you look too young, like a baby deer! Make sure to bring your ID, okay?”
“Okay, yesss…!”
The new part-timer, Elise.
While checking IDs, she discreetly enchanted the female heroes.
The eye smiles flowing from her sparkling eyes.
Even though it didn’t reflect my taste, the shadow of that gigantic valley exposed beneath her simple outfit.
So cute, so cute…
“Um, that’s 50 gold! And 88 gold!”
“Wow, smart! Should I give you a candy?”
“Hehe.”
The prospective store manager, Tynia.
Welcoming customers who visited for purchasing and selling items at the newly established counter next to the stairs leading to the second floor.
…That person.
Was extremely formal when I attended to her…
“Kyaah, look! I’ll show you something pretty!”
“Wow!”
“The colors are dazzling…!”
At the bar, Ari.
As a result of thoroughly and meticulously teaching cocktail recipes and golden ratios.
She began to emerge as a new specialty with her unique social energy and synergy.
…It was a bit noticeable that she was sipping her own drinks while serving customers.
In their own places.
The workers were doing their best in their respective roles.
Now it seemed like all we needed was a head chef.
“Hey, it’s potato salad, coming right up!”
“I’ll make it soon.”
Cooking was still my responsibility.
In our hero party, there wasn’t a single person who could cook something decent, let alone proper meals.
Will you get married someday then?
I wonder what kind of guy they will live with, sigh.
After that.
Spending busy times without a moment to breathe alongside the heroes.
Today’s business ended.
“Hee hee, hee hee heh…!”
Seeing the new gold coins jingle in the slightly empty chest made me feel very pleased.
A slight trivial misunderstanding.
“Oh my, Ak! The gold coins aren’t made of pure gold?”
Right before leaving work, the fact pointed out by Elise made my world crash down, and my hands and feet trembled.
Still, gold is gold.
Even if it’s not pure.
Looking at those sparkling gold coins, I feel my heart becoming rich.
…Though I couldn’t help but wonder where I would spend all this money.
In the first place, gold coins in the game are used to purchase goods at the shop.
But whose shop is it?
Mine.
What’s the price for purchasing goods?
Free.
…Well, someday there might be a time when I’ll need to spend money?
***
“Ak? It’s time to wake up.”
Early morning.
A voice waking me from my sweet sleep.
…
I thought it was an auditory hallucination and gently pulled the slightly messy blanket back over my head.
Paralak!
An irresistible, strong force completely stripped away the blanket enveloping me.
“Ugh…?”
When I opened my eyes.
Before the glass window, I could see the deep blue sky of dawn, stronger in hue than the darkness, just before illumination arrived.
Today’s shift.
Yo-hena was sitting by the desk with a pouty expression.
“You asked to be woken at five. Even on my day off, I’m up early, you know?”
Faced with such realistic yet unreal scenery.
I was slightly dazed.
Usually, Yo-hena always woke up earlier than me, peeking at the sacred place like the devoted saint she was.
And even after returning home, her appearance remained unruffled, always maintaining her saintly and elegant outfit.
“Uh… um…”
Is that her sleepwear? Or casual clothes?
Maybe I was still drowsy, but her slightly visible skin seemed to show along the line of her figure sticking to her body, revealing a soft-looking belly button…
“Ah!”
Did she sense my gaze?
Yo-hena quickly covered her belly, striking my head gently with her adorable fist.
“Your gaze is inappropriate…!”
The one inappropriate seems to be the saint’s clothes…
Eventually, a warm light enveloped Yo-hena’s body, and she returned to her familiar and modest attire.
Tsk.
“What a pity.”
“What?”
“It was pretty.”
Bam!
“Why do you compliment me…?”
“Hurry and get ready…!”
With those words, Yo-hena dashed out of the room.
The saint’s weakness: weak to compliments.
Note taken.
Thus, today I jogged in the dawn alongside Yo-hena.
Though her slender body seemed unrelated to physical activities.
Still, a hero is a hero.
With stamina on an entirely different level from an ordinary person like me, she kept a calm expression and matched her pace with mine.
On our way back.
As the dawn light faded and the sun adorned the morning sky, we strolled leisurely, enjoying the moment.
Having a rare leisurely time, I revived the memory of Yo-hena (in sleepwear) and posed a question.
“Um, how should I put it? A uniform? Transformation? Are you still strong without your saintly clothes?”
“I’m strong… Umm, while I can’t perform skills like healing or blessings, my physical abilities are still quite similar.”
I see.
The human itself is strong.
That’s what it was.
No wonder her punches remain sharp.
“I noticed you didn’t have any equipment items earlier.”
“I left them in my room. It’s uncomfortable.”
“Isn’t it uncomfortable to transform all day?”
“Transform? Umm, I guess it can be interpreted that way. I’m used to it, so it’s okay… I was a bit drowsy earlier…”
Adding an excuse, Yo-hena blushed.
I wanted to make another teasing remark.
But I held back, fearing it would make her fluster even more.
It was a refreshing morning.
***
Today, to make the tower incursion a bit smoother, I bothered Ha-Rong right from the morning to create a new device.
New device? More like just a bigger version of what originally existed.
It was named.
Giant Special Power Spider-Web Cutting Scissors!
…The name was given by Tynia.
As the name suggests, cutting through spider webs easily would enhance our speed of breakthroughs.
I planned to create a large and beautiful pair of scissors for the heroes to snip away with their powerful forces.
But.
“It disappeared…”
“What? That’s cheap, the tower is cowardly!”
As soon as we entered the tower.
The giant scissors that the heroes had shouldered disappeared.
Fortunately, the detox ring on my hand was classified as “equipment items,” so it remained.
But even with just that, it was reassuring.
[Tower of Wishes 11th Floor – Labyrinth Entrance Section 6 Hidden Clear!]
[★★★★ : Destroy Aracrene’s Storage.]
– Hidden Quest ▶ Aracrene’s Storage
* Destroy all of Aracrene’s storage. (2/3)
There was indeed storage in Section 6, so I smashed and tackled one more while continuing as before.
Just in case, upon coming back outside the tower.
The giant scissors were sprawled out right at the entrance of the tower.
“How about taking them back to the smithy and starting again?”
That was Saha’s suggestion, worried about losing them.
“No, I’ll just take care of it.”
That would break the flow.
Originally, grinding must be done while clearing one’s mind and running hard until the end without tiring.
So, I stashed them neatly in my inventory.
And re-entered Section 7.
“Woof! I feel nothing!”
Nothing was in Section 7.
“Then let’s break through on the shortest route, Tynia?”
Looking back at our oracle, I found Tynia lost in thought with an expression like a puppy needing to relieve itself.
“What’s wrong? Did you get smart?”
“Um…!”
Tynia, accurately sensing the meaning of my Taiji Quan, started bobbing her feet anxiously.
Soon.
“Master, you usually store all items on the slab, right?”
“That’s right?”
“The items that come out from here are also thrown onto the slab.”
“Exactly?”
“Then can’t we take them out from here?”
…!
I hurriedly pulled out my smartphone and tapped the scissor-shaped icon I had stored in my inventory earlier.
Clank.
With the delightful sound of metal colliding, the stored scissors popped out.
“…Tynia? Did you get smart…?”
“Hehe, Tynia was always smart!”
Tynia proudly flaunted her status.
Afterward.
The speed of clearing the labyrinth increased about five times.
Even Yo-hena, who was originally a non-combatant (basic), transformed into Yo-hena (scissors), snipping and cutting away!
Especially remarkable was Saha’s scissors.
As the saying goes, a master can handle any tool.
She enveloped her scissors with flames, cutting through the path almost like a backhoe.
[Tower of Wishes 11th Floor – Labyrinth Entrance Section 7 Clear!]
[Tower of Wishes 11th Floor – Labyrinth Entrance Section 8 Clear!]
[Tower of Wishes 11th Floor – Labyrinth Entrance Section 9 Hidden Clear!]
Complex paths, powerful poisons, pesky monsters, and sticky spider webs.
Nothing could obstruct our way.
– Hidden Quest ▶ Aracrene’s Storage (Completed)
* Rewards will be given!
Immaterial reward.
Points were wired into my smartphone.
Sweet, sweet!
And the material rewards.
“It looks strange!”
“I don’t feel any evil energy. It seems okay to open it.”
“Right! It doesn’t look like a demon realm item, even to me!”
Lumi’s intuition.
Yo-hena’s sacred power.
And Tynia’s perception all confirmed the safety of the item.
We received a magical random box.
Everyone was watching with bright eyes, filled with anticipation.
I must meet those expectations.
I opened the first box.
[10 Random Gold Boxes]
[You can obtain rewards ranging from 500 gold to 5,000 gold randomly.]
…?
Is it a Matryoshka?
Why’s there a random box within the random box?
Next, I opened the second box.
[5★ Hero Limited Skin Exchange Ticket]
[A ticket to exchange for one of the 5★ hero’s separation skins.]
“Ahahahahaha…!”
I couldn’t suppress my frivolous laughter upon seeing it.
“Separation skin? What does that mean?”
“I’m glad you’re happy, Master!”
“…Ak? Your gaze has become a bit rude.”
Armor.
Was it heavy?
How about living in comfy clothes from today, Saha?
Muhuhuhu.
Muhuhuhu…!
Washing away my irritation about the Matryoshka gold box, I bowed to the hidden quest and opened the last box.
“Um…?”
[Blueprint of the Mammoth Revolver (RANK β)]
[[BETA / REVELATOR ONLY / CLASS MERCHANT] Tooltip not present. Please enter the tooltip.]
What is this, a bug item?
Is it a dud?
Still, it’s fine.
Investigate, investigate is coming!