After crossing the final event node, Xia Ling’s footsteps visibly became lighter.
If she avoided vertical branches, the first floor had four nodes in total.
The final node was always the Strange Merchant.
Xia Ling had already cleared Moss Hand, Sami’s Language, and Ursus.
Beyond them lay the supply node.
Which meant—
Until she reached the second floor, she was completely safe.
Soon, after crossing the frozen lake that stretched across the entire first floor, Xia Ling spotted a tiny tent standing on the icefield.
It looked completely out of place in its surroundings.
“Neither ally nor enemy.”
“Some prefer standing in between.”
Xia Ling read the words carved into the wooden sign.
“Guess this is Cannot Goodenough’s shop.”
“Indeed, my friend!”
A man wearing a strange metal bucket helmet and black coat emerged from the little tent.
“Welcome to Cannot Goodenough’s humble establishment!”
“System.”
“Are you controlling him?”
Xia Ling whispered.
[Of course not!]
[Do I look like I could naturally act like this?]
The System sounded slightly offended.
[He’s a simulated program generated by the enhancement module.]
[His memory resets after every Trial.]
[Relax. Treat him like an NPC.]
“I see.”
“Then I won’t feel guilty about robbing him later.”
Xia Ling nodded seriously.
“I was worried it would feel awkward stealing from somebody I knew.”
“Miss.”
“Discussing your future plans to rob my shop while standing directly in front of me is rather inappropriate.”
A helpless, low male voice emerged from beneath the metal helmet.
“At least wait until I can’t hear you.”
“Ehehe.”
“It’s not like I have the strength to rob you right now.”
“When I actually do, I definitely won’t announce it to your face.”
Xia Ling tilted her head and stuck out her tongue in a cute, mischievous grin.
“Anyway, Cannot.”
“Show me what good stuff you’ve got.”
Xia Ling narrowed her eyes and rubbed her thumb and index finger together.
“And what sort of ‘good stuff’ might the young lady be seeking?”
Cannot asked.
“Got Cipher Plates?”
Xia Ling leaned closer conspiratorially.
“I want something that can skip nodes.”
“As a matter of fact…”
“I do.”
“But whether you get what you want depends on your luck.”
Cannot pulled open the tent flap, revealing the merchandise counter.
[Support Anti-Riot Barrier]
[Medic Recruitment Permit]
[Invitation of Vision]
[Iron Guard — Training]
[Canned Leafy Greens]
[Terrain Map — Beta]
[Herbal Root Beer]
[Heavy Music Collection]
Cannot’s voice remained perfectly flat.
“You do have one refresh remaining.”
“Or does anything here interest you?”
“System.”
Xia Ling stared intensely at the canned vegetables.
“Does firing my gun count as a Skill or a basic attack?”
[Obviously a basic attack.]
[Even if Host makes firing the thing look extremely difficult.]
The System immediately understood what Xia Ling was thinking.
[Don’t tell me you genuinely believe your marksmanship qualifies as a Power Strike-type Skill.]
“Pity.”
“If it did, combined with the Anti-Riot Barrier, I might actually gain some combat strength.”
Xia Ling shook her head regretfully.
“Refresh it, Cannot.”
“Certainly.”
Cannot closed the tent flap.
Then opened it again.
Every item on the counter had changed.
[Support Mine Group]
[Caster Recruitment Permit]
[Rainbow Urn]
[Frozen Husk]
[Blunt Claw — Training]
[Healer — Breakthrough]
[Triumphal Horn]
And—
[Cipher Plate — Proliferation]
“YES!”
Xia Ling jumped in excitement.
“Lady Luck hasn’t abandoned me!”
“It seems the young lady has found what she wants.”
Cannot gave a faint laugh.
“That will be eight Originium Ingots.”
Xia Ling opened her backpack and counted.
Eighteen ingots total.
She handed all of them to Cannot.
“Here.”
“Take eight for the Plate.”
“Deposit the rest.”
“Actually, wait.”
“System, you removed that stupid investment-system malfunction mechanic, right?”
[Relax.]
[Anything that pointlessly harms the gameplay experience got removed.]
“Good.”
“If the system suddenly broke, I’d have to continue with money I couldn’t spend.”
“What a waste.”
“The young lady’s outlook on mortality is…”
Cannot visibly began sweating.
“…admirably open-minded.”
He quickly accepted the ingots and handed over Cipher Plate — Proliferation.
“Since our transaction is complete, I won’t delay you.”
“Safe travels, young lady.”
“Perhaps we’ll meet again.”
Cannot waved his sleeve.
In the next instant, both he and his little shop vanished from the icefield without leaving a trace.
A new Foresight message appeared for the second floor.
[Upon clearing this floor, obtain Cipher Plate: Canopy.]
“Hmm.”
“So it wants me to keep moving forward?”
Xia Ling enlarged the map.
All she could see was a vast green region.
“Silent Woodland?”
“The first node ahead is another Encounter.”
“The second appears to be combat.”
“The third…”
“I can’t see it.”
“But there’s no combat-danger indicator, so it probably won’t be too bad.”
[For safety, Host can use the Cipher Plates when you reach that point.]
“All right.”
“Let me think…”
“The left branch has two forks after the combat node.”
“We can try that route.”
“If I happen to encounter Enthusiasm, I can stabilize another free node.”
“Haa.”
“Time to move.”
With most of the Originium Ingots removed, Xia Ling’s backpack had become considerably lighter.
She once again began her journey across the snowfield.
This Encounter seemed unusually peaceful.
No tree bark suddenly peeling away.
No people hiding inside caves.
Xia Ling nervously walked through the forest for more than ten minutes.
Yet all she heard was the rustling of leaves and occasional calls from antlered beasts.
Nothing else happened.
“No.”
“This isn’t right.”
After wandering for more than ten minutes, Xia Ling stopped.
“Based on the previous nodes, if I keep going I’ll leave the event area.”
“Why hasn’t anything triggered?”
[Uh… maybe Host took a wrong turn?]
“Impossible!”
“This is literally a single-path road!”
Xia Ling argued loudly—
While honestly opening the detector anyway.
“Let’s see…”
“Huh?”
“Wait.”
“Why did the detector freeze?”
[What?!]
[That shouldn’t happen.]
[This thing can actually malfunction?]
The System sounded even more surprised than Xia Ling.
“I remember pressing this button to turn it on.”
“If I hold it down, it should reboot, right?”
Xia Ling found a button on the back.
She held it for several seconds.
Words appeared on-screen.
Rebooting.
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