Chapter 73: Great Gacha Era (4)

Honestly, Adria did not fully understand the situation.

After all, she had never heard anything about the Guardian's former colleagues.

She had only recently learned that her Guardian was one of the heroes of Lartania, so she assumed she would somewhat know the other heroes of Lartania.

"You're like this creepy dragon!"

"I think you're no different...!?"

"You're even creepier! How could you do such a thing through consciousness sharing!"

"So I'm also quite savvy about poison-"

She never expected to meet such heroes in this situation.

Moreover, she had no idea that all these heroes were looking at the lord creepily, so she listened to their conversation with a dumbfounded expression, unable to say a word.

"Do you realize what a dangerous thing you've done!?"

"I haven't done any such thing...!"

"Not at all! What were you planning to do if the Master took a fancy to that woman's body... yeah...?"

The wolf suddenly became angry, muttered something to herself, then seemed to become depressed.

"I-I'm in control, so it's okay...!"

"It's clearly not your body, is it? If by any chance it goes in that direction..."

The Crimson Dragon countered the wolf's words, but upon hearing Merilda's follow-up, the Crimson Dragon looked at Adria in the mirror with a gasp, an expression full of disbelief and betrayal, as if realizing something very important.

[Nononono, wait a minute. I never intended to become like that with the Lord of Lartania!?]

Merilda and Rin frowned upon hearing Adria's excuse, which she blurted out incredulously from within her consciousness.

"...You're going to refuse what the Master wants?"

"Hmm, now that I hear it, that does sound a bit presumptuous."

Seeing the two heroes suddenly exude a murderous aura, Adria lost her composure and exclaimed with an incredulous expression.

"Really, I have no idea what tune to dance to anymore!!"

And so, how long had it been since they had suddenly barged in and started this dizzying verbal altercation among themselves?

Just as Adria began to seriously wonder if all the heroes present had serious mental defects, including bipolar disorder.

"...Okay, you've always been sneakily watching like that, so honestly, I wasn't going to say anything. But instead-"

Following Merilda's words, who had already led the devastating argument.

"-Can't we somehow... share consciousness too?"

"......"

Adria could only wear a dizzy expression.

Allen, the leader of a small mercenary band of about eight people, had been enjoying his days lately.

No wonder, since life in Lartania, recently dubbed the 'Labyrinth City' among mercenaries, had been satisfying for him in many ways.

Indeed, there was no one among the mercenaries who did not feel satisfied with the Lartania territory.

For mercenaries always engaged in dangerous work and wandering about, settling in one place to consistently earn money provided a great sense of stability.

Moreover, the reason mercenaries were so satisfied with Lartania was precisely because of the compensation they received for their work.

Of course, it wasn't that mercenaries weren't paid for their work.

They received their dues upon successfully completing assignments they took on through the mercenary guild.

However, hunting in the Labyrinth greatly shortened that process.

Unlike receiving compensation after a certain period following the completion of assignments taken from the mercenary guild, earning money in the Labyrinth was far simpler.

You go inside, hunt monsters, exchange Magic Stones for money.

Because of this simple process, mercenaries were flocking to the Lartania territory.

Spending his days like this and having quite adapted to the situation in Lartania, Allen was, as usual, drinking beer in a tavern today.

"...A magnifying glass?"

He heard an intriguing piece of news from a mercenary he had recently befriended.

"What, you haven't heard it yet? Hmm... Well, you might not have, considering it came out just this morning."

"What's so special about this magnifying glass?"

"It's obviously not an ordinary magnifying glass."

"Then?"

"It's an Explorer's Magnifying Glass."

"The Explorer's Magnifying Glass... I think I've heard of that before."

Allen rummaged through his memories and exclaimed 'Ah', before speaking.

"Isn't that the artifact that was quite popular ten years ago, which allows you to randomly find various items when used in a Labyrinth?"

"Exactly that. You're sharp, aren't you?"

"Smart? I've just picked up things living in this world."

Despite saying so, Allen, seemingly pleased with the compliment, sipped his beer with a swift smile and continued.

"So, why has the Explorer's Magnifying Glass suddenly become a topic of conversation?"

"Why do you think? Because they've started selling the Explorer's Magnifying Glass in Lartania."

"The Explorer's Magnifying Glass? I heard that it became incredibly rare around five or six years ago?"

"I thought so too, but today, Lartania started selling the Explorer's Magnifying Glass. And for just one Gold Coin at that."

"...What? Just one Gold Coin??"

"Yes. It's incredibly cheap, isn't it?"

"Hmm... is it really cheap? Considering the rarity of the Magnifying Glass, it does seem cheap, but..."

Allen made a strange expression.

After all, one Gold Coin was the amount you'd get for bringing in about ten of the lowest-grade Magic Stones.

"To be honest, it doesn't feel that cheap to me? From what I know, although the Magnifying Glass does help find items in the Labyrinth, the chance of finding something good is incredibly rare."

"Hmm, indeed, when you put it that way, it does seem to be the case."

At the mercenary's reply, Allen chuckled and continued.

"It might be nice to try for a life-changing find once, but that's not really my style to begin with. I think it's better to just keep working hard and saving money like now."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, why bother spending money when you can steadily earn it by hunting in the Labyrinth below? Just working diligently is better."

"Well, your point doesn't seem entirely wrong."

The mercenary agreed with Allen's words, nodded, and after finishing their response, the two continued with trivial daily conversations over drinks until they left the tavern late at night.

The next day.

"Alright, let's give it our best today as well."

"Let's collect only 30 today as well."

"Agreed! It would be nice if Magic Stones dropped from every one we kill this time too."

While hunting in the Labyrinth with the mercenary band he led, Allen and his companions,

"Yessssssssssssss-!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Allen's group, involuntarily turning their gaze towards the thunderously loud sound, was soon able to identify its source.

The source of the shout was a man looking at the sword in his hand with a face filled with ecstasy.

Soon, one of Allen's companions who was looking at the sword gasped and said,

"Crazy! Isn't that the Sword of Alanka!?"

"Ah, the Sword of Alanka??"

"Wait, isn't the Sword of Alanka an extremely rare weapon that can be obtained in the Labyrinth??"

"Yeah, that one! If we sell it, we could get at least 200 Gold Coins...!"

"200 Gold Coins!?"

Everyone in the group wore a surprised expression.

Not only them, but all the mercenaries passing by also watched the scene with their mouths agape.

However, the mercenary, seemingly unconcerned with the expressions around him, smirked and carelessly threw the Magnifying Glass he was holding onto the ground,

"Oops."

and only then did he realize the mercenaries around were looking at him and started running somewhere, fearing that the Sword of Alanka might be snatched away.

Seeing this, Allen looked down to examine the item the man had thrown away earlier.

"This is. A magnifying glass?"

"...It's an Explorer's Magnifying Glass. I saw it being sold in front of the Lord's castle."

A companion spoke upon hearing Allen's words.

"Isn't, isn't that worth one Gold Coin?"

"What??? Did he just pull an item worth over 200 Gold Coins with something worth one Gold Coin?"

"...200 Gold Coins?? At least 200 Gold Coins, and if it goes to auction, it could exceed 250 Gold Coins!"

"...Crazy."

Accordingly, one by one, the heroes watching the scene seemed to start discussing.

"...Thinking about it, since it's one Gold Coin each, wouldn't it be a jackpot if just one out of ten turns out to be something decent?"

"Right? Even if something strange comes out, it could still be sold, so it wouldn't necessarily be a loss."

"...Huh?"

"Maybe it's worth a try after all?"

With that thought in everyone's mind, the mercenaries present started moving towards the Lord's castle without exception.

And about three hours later.

"...Wow."

Elena, helping Kim Hyunwoo make Magnifying Glasses, involuntarily opened her mouth in surprise at the sight of the huge queue of people below the Lord's castle window and said,

"Lord, just as you said, people really have gathered, haven't they?"

"It's a bit early, but what do you think? People have gathered just as I said, haven't they?"

Elena, upon hearing the confident words of Kim Hyunwoo, glanced at Lani, who had been making Magnifying Glasses with her until a moment ago, and then continued,

"...Indeed. Honestly, I didn't think that so many people would gather like this."

Honestly, Elena had a somewhat negative feeling towards the Magnifying Glasses when Kim Hyunwoo revealed their nature and asked for her help yesterday.

Indeed, the Magnifying Glasses he made were special, but she thought no one would want to buy a Magnifying Glass for as much as one Gold Coin.

"What exactly caused people to suddenly flock here?"

So, Elena asked with curiosity,

"Perhaps one of the mercenaries who bought a Magnifying Glass managed to pull a good item against the odds. And because of that, everyone else saw hope."

"Hope?"

"Yes. The hope that they too could strike it rich with just one Gold Coin."

Kim Hyunwoo grinned and continued,

"As you know, Elena, one Gold Coin is actually a large amount to use on a 'Magnifying Glass' gamble. Everyone knows that, and the mercenaries are well aware too. After all, the odds of getting something strange rather than something good when using a Magnifying Glass are high.

However, when people see someone striking it rich by using a Magnifying Glass, they cling to hope. Essentially, if a mercenary in a similar situation can make money using a Magnifying Glass, then maybe they can too? That's the psychology.

From that point, when such thoughts arise, mercenaries start calculating profit and loss. For example, seeing an item worth about 100 Gold Coins emerge, they think investing about 50 Gold Coins is reasonable. Moreover, this thought also arises-

'If they pull it in one go, and I have 50 chances, shouldn't I get it at least once?' That's a deceptive hope, as you know, since the chances of getting a good item are extremely slim.

But now, most people deliberately ignore that fact. They develop an unfounded confidence that if someone else can do it, so can they, especially with 50 chances. So, if they spend 50 Gold Coins and fail to pull a rare item, is that the end? No, it's not.

By that point, most people start to regret the money spent. If they've used 50 Gold Coins and got nothing, it's essentially like throwing money away. But they don't give up. The sunk cost of 50 Gold Coins keeps them buying more Magnifying Glasses. So-"

Kim Hyunwoo, while speaking, suddenly felt as if he had returned to the past.

Not just any time, but back to when he was a high school student, despairing over not getting 'Kalani's Knuckles', a limited gacha item for 'Explorer's Magnifying Glass', despite earning 837,200 won, even below the minimum wage.

Therefore, Kim Hyunwoo, who had been fervently explaining the garbage nature of gacha, or rather the Arteil BM, for a while,

"That's why this Magnifying Glass is dangerous,"

said, staring intently at the Magnifying Glass he was making, with a somewhat gloomy expression.

"...Ah, yes..."

Elena could only look at Kim Hyunwoo, who appeared endlessly gloomy, with a slightly startled expression.