The blue pillar of light was not just a beacon; it was a sanctuary.
As Kael and Elara stepped into the light, the sounds of the dying city faded. The roar of distant monsters, the screams of survivors, the crackle of fires—everything was replaced by a serene, elevator-music hum.
[You have entered a Temporary Safe Zone.][HP and Mana regeneration increased by 500%.]
In the center of the light stood a small, wooden cart. Sitting on top of it was a creature that looked like a goblin, but dressed in a tuxedo with a monocle.
[NPC: Gix (Dimensional Merchant)]
"Welcome, welcome!" Gix rubbed his green hands together. "Fresh customers! Survivors! Do you have cores? Do you have credits? I sell power! I sell hope!"
Elara lowered her shield, looking around in confusion. "A goblin... in a suit?"
"Don't let him charm you," Kael warned, walking straight to the cart. "He'd sell his own mother for a D-Rank core. But his goods are legit."
Gix grinned, revealing gold-capped teeth. "Smart human! For you, a discount? Maybe a rusty sword for 500 credits?"
A holographic menu popped up in front of them.
Iron Sword (Rank F): 200 Points
Health Potion (Small): 50 Points
Bread: 5 Points
It was trash. The "Noob" inventory.
Kael didn't look at the menu. He leaned over the counter, looking Gix directly in the monocle.
"I don't want the tourist trash, Gix," Kael said calmly.
"T-Tourist trash?" Gix sputtered. "This is top quality—"
"I want the 'Backroom' stock," Kael interrupted. He leaned closer and whispered a phrase in a language that shouldn't exist on Earth yet.
"Azaroth. Kimgal. Void."
Gix froze. His monocle popped out of his eye and dangled by its chain.
"H-How..." The merchant stammered. "That is the password of the High Merchants. A human cannot know—"
"Open it," Kael commanded. "Or I report to the System Administrator that you're skimming profits from the tutorial zone."
It was a bluff. Kael couldn't report anything. But he knew Gix was corrupt. In the future, this merchant was executed by the System for embezzlement.
Gix turned pale. He frantically tapped the air.
"Okay! Okay! Quiet, please! The Administrator is watching!"
[System Override Accepted.][Secret Menu Unlocked.]
The holographic list changed instantly. The trash weapons vanished, replaced by items glowing with purple and gold auras.
Skill Book: Fireball (Rank D): 2,000 Points
Elixir of Giants (Str +5): 5,000 Points
Mystery Box (Unique): 10,000 Points
Elara gasped. "Look at those prices... We can't afford any of this."
She was right. Kael had roughly 2,000 Points from the slaughter event. He was broke in the face of these prices.
"We aren't buying the expensive stuff," Kael said. He scrolled down to the bottom of the list, to the "Miscellaneous" section.
He found it.
[Item: Broken Pocket Watch]
Rank: F
Description: A watch that doesn't tell time. Useless.
Price: 500 Points.
To anyone else, it was junk. To Kael, it was the "Glitch."
In his past life, a player named "Lucky" found this watch three years into the apocalypse. He discovered that if you fed it Mana, it didn't tell time—it reversed cooldowns. It was a legendary item disguised as trash because the developers made a coding error in its description.
"I'll take this," Kael said, pointing to the watch.
Gix blinked. "The watch? It's garbage. I use it as a paperweight."
"I like garbage. And this too."
Kael pointed to a mask.
[Item: Mask of the Nameless]
Rank: E
Effect: Conceals the user's face and Level from anyone lower than Level 50. Hides "Name" on leaderboards.
Price: 1,000 Points.
"Total: 1,500 Points," Gix said, relieved he wasn't losing his high-tier stock.
Kael transferred the points. The items materialized in his hands.
He equipped the Mask. It was a sleek, black material that covered the lower half of his face, leaving his cold eyes visible.
[Identity Concealed.]
Then, he picked up the Broken Pocket Watch.
"Elara," Kael said. "Give me your hand."
"What? Why?"
"Just do it."
He grabbed her hand and placed it on the watch.
"Channel your mana into it."
"I don't know how to—"
"Just imagine pushing water through your veins into the metal."
Elara frowned, concentrating. A faint blue glow surrounded her hand. The watch began to tick.
Tick. Tock. Tick.
[System Alert: Hidden Feature Activated.][Item Identified: Chronos Dial (Sealed - Rank A)][Current Effect: Resets the Cooldown of the last used Skill.][Charges: 1/3 per day.]
Kael smiled. "Perfect."
With this, he could use [Shadow Step]... reset it... and use it again instantly. Or double-tap a Boss with his strongest attack.
"You knew," Elara whispered, staring at the watch. "How do you know all this?"
"I read the patch notes," Kael lied smoothly.
He turned back to Gix. "One last thing. I have cores to sell."
He dumped his bag on the counter. Goblin cores. The Boss core from the Butcher. The spider cores.
Gix's eyes bulged. "A Field Boss core? On Day 1?"
"Calculate it," Kael said.
"Fine, fine! For the bulk... and because I like you... 3,000 Points."
"Make it 4,000 and I don't mention the 'skimming' again."
"Deal! You devil!"
[Transaction Complete.][Current Points: 4,500.]
Kael turned to leave. He had the Mask. He had the Glitch Item. He had capital.
"Wait," Elara said. "What about me? I don't have a weapon. My sword is chipped."
Kael paused. He looked at his "Tank". If she died, he lost his shield.
"Gix," Kael said over his shoulder. "Give her the 'Thorn Mail' chest piece. Put it on my tab."
Gix grumbled but threw a heavy vest made of black iron spikes onto the counter.
[Item: Thorn Mail (Rank D)][Defense: 50][Effect: Returns 10% of physical damage to the attacker.]
Elara caught it, stunned. "Kael..."
"Don't thank me," Kael said, walking out of the light. "Just make sure the monsters hit you and not me."
As they stepped back into the darkness of the city, a global notification rang out.
DING!
[System Announcement: The Tutorial Period ends in 10 minutes.][Warning: The 'Tutorial Barrier' surrounding the city will dissolve.][The First Wave is approaching.]
Kael looked at the sky. The invisible dome that had kept the high-level monsters out was flickering.
"Day 2 is starting," Kael said, adjusting his mask. "And the real monsters are coming."