Chapter 272

Chapter 272. Privileges Built on Reputation (4)

“Honestly, there are a lot of people.”

He showed me his smartphone screen and listed various details he had researched.

“Since the profits generated are quite substantial, many people are entering the market. Look at the number of editors who have posted their portfolios.”

“Check out those who used to upload videos on their personal accounts too.”

“I was doing that already! I’m focusing on those with good quality content.”

Fortunately, the task I gave to Kim Yul wasn’t urgent enough to require immediate action.

So I wrapped it up with some brief advice.

“Skill is fundamental, but eliminate anyone among the shortlisted who shows a lack of responsibility.”

“Yes.”

Kim Yul replied in his usual long-drawn manner, glancing around with his eyes, clearly wanting to ask something.

Judging by his demeanor, it seemed related to what I had been working on recently.

‘I didn’t feel the presence of the Damned System.’

But just to be sure, I surrounded us with divinity to prevent eavesdropping.

After evading the system’s watchful eyes, I prompted Kim Yul to speak.

“What are you curious about?”

“Uh… ahem, it’s about what you’re preparing right now…”

Kim Yul hesitantly poked at his food before cautiously asking.

“Are you trying to help the Biharin people? To bring them to Earth?”

In recent days, he spent the most time with me.

It would be stranger if he hadn’t noticed.

There was no reason to hide it, so I nodded calmly.

“That’s one of the reasons.”

“So, are you bringing all of them here? Moving everyone would be a massive task… Wouldn’t it be better to talk to the Order and ask for their cooperation? If you tell Rashar, she would help immediately.”

His anxiety grew upon hearing there was a way to save the Biharin people.

Kim Yul, being a fellow gray person like me, naturally reacted this way.

However, I couldn’t answer his subsequent question and fell silent.

Staring intently at the food before me, I let out a long sigh.

Perhaps misunderstanding my silence, Kim Yul’s voice quickened.

“Do you want me to tell them if it’s awkward for you to say it yourself? You and Rashar were on good terms. This could be an opportunity to reconcile…”

“Stop.”

I interrupted before he could finish.

“Act as if you don’t know anything for now.”

Even after much contemplation, this seemed like the right decision.

‘I believed Irel had no more information, which is why she was eliminated.’

But if there was something she didn’t know…

If inheriting Palao’s divinity alone wasn’t enough to lift the bindings…

‘I could still make a mistake.’

If we set up an evacuation plan with such uncertainties and it all falls apart…

‘There’s nothing more cruel than that.’

Offering hope only to plunge them into despair wouldn’t be different.

Excitedly spreading vague possibilities was out of the question.

Of course, that wasn’t the only reason.

‘I need to push the Order into an extreme situation.’

It was a decision made after considering many factors.

Yet Kim Yul, seemingly unsettled by my decision, spoke again.

“If you keep silent, when will we start the evacuation? There are billions of people, and…”

“I’ll prepare separately. Bihar’s smaller towns without walls have already been annihilated. Refugees will naturally join the existing castles once the evacuation from the frontlines begins.”

“Do you think the frontlines will fall?”

I responded by silently eating, conveying my answer without words.

Not just the three reclaimed castles, but also the original frontlines, and even the fortresses further back.

‘They will be pushed back, step by step.’

If the monsters decided to launch an all-out offensive, it was an inevitable outcome.

And it was exactly what I wished for.

“There will be significant damage…”

“I’m aware.”

Despite the inevitable damage, I needed to brace myself and watch Bihar fall.

For that, I had given various instructions to Lily.

“In a few months, the Association will instruct us to withdraw from Bihar.”

Clang.

The spoon in Kim Yul’s hand clattered onto the table, making a clear sound.

I pretended not to notice and spoke in an unchanged tone.

“The gates will be closed. Not much will change. You can still hunt via missions.”

As I spoke, I felt my appetite drop further.

Having eaten more than half a bowl, I decided it was enough.

‘I haven’t entirely skipped a meal.’

Having consumed the minimum required, my condition shouldn’t worsen significantly.

I put down my utensils and rinsed my mouth.

In doing so, I tried to redirect my thoughts.

At that moment, I glanced at the message window at the bottom of my view.

The problematic message window was almost filled with a single sentence.

「You indirectly contributed to increasing players’ survival rates. Reputation increases by 0.3.」

The number of people accessing the ‘Damned System’ via the homepage Guardian had reflected onto my reputation.

Of course, the value wasn’t particularly high.

‘There are tens of thousands who posted guiding articles before me.’

Yet my guides had somehow gained traction, steadily increasing my reputation.

I was likely the only one among tens of thousands of guide creators to have achieved such high view counts.

‘In the past two days alone, I gained about 120,000? 130,000 maybe.’

I opened the status window for verification. The last recorded reputation was in the high 800,000s.

‘The store discount rate was a whopping 44%.’

Thanks to this, I was procuring potions at significantly reduced prices.

Curious to see how much my reputation had increased this time, I glanced at the bottom of the status window.

Reputation: 999,998.6

“Oh.”

The reputation almost reaching 1,000,000 greeted me.

The reputation continued increasing by 0.3 even as I watched the status window.

Finally, when the message appeared five more times—

“Hmm?”

Reputation: 1,000,000.1

「Congratulations! You’ve reached a reputation of 1,000,000!」

Something completely unexpected occurred.

「A prerequisite has been met, opening the VIP Store.」

「Would you like to enter the VIP Store? (Y/N)」

Blink, blink.

Eyeing the sudden system window, I pressed the yes button.

「You are entering the VIP Store for the first time! Reputation increases by 1,000.」

「As a first-time entry privilege, a double achievement increase benefit is provided.」

Witnessing the unfolding scene left me speechless.

「The VIP Store is an exclusive privilege provided only to players who have made significant contributions to the survival of humanity and victory in the war…」

I barely noticed the information written at the top of the newly opened VIP store tab.

After all, I was occupied admiring the products listed in the store tab.

「Gate Relocation Usage Permit」

「Helmet of Carica」

「Magic Array Textbook by Salbarnaon」

….

The VIP store was filled with legendary-grade relics that hadn’t appeared before.

And the shock didn’t end there.

Amidst the legendary-grade relics, there was an especially eye-catching item.

A glass bottle the size of a fist, intricately carved, containing a golden liquid.

With a vibrant image that seemed almost tangible, the words displayed were concise.

「Divine Elixir」

Although concise, the significance of those words was substantial.

Gulp.

Without realizing, I swallowed dry as I pressed the slot holding the Divine Elixir.

An enlarged image opened with a new popup.

「Divine Elixir」

* Description: Unique

* Explanation: A liquid evenly imbued with the divinity of the 7 Great Gods, in some sense, the closest thing to perfection.

By eliminating imperfect elements, it holds the property to make everything perfect.

Various diseases and congenital disabilities are classified as imperfect elements and eliminated, earning it the reputation as the ultimate panacea, or the perfect cure-all.

* Price: 30,000 Achievement

* Inventory: 3 Bottles

In that moment, I uncovered the elusive usage of achievements.

* * *

The items for sale in the VIP store were by no means few.

Apart from the Divine Elixir, there were legendary-grade weapons and armor.

Several hundred Mana Accumulation Tools said to be lost in the war.

Even gate usage permits and Transfer Application to the Order were available.

The peculiarity of these items was that they were all at or above the unique grade.

‘I figured special grade relics were scarce in the field.’

Turns out, this was why.

As such, most items in the VIP store had a single stock.

Meaning…

‘If I purchase it, no one else can.’

Achievements were needed to purchase these items.

Achievements could only be earned by closing Holes or completing Hidden Missions and Main Scenario Missions.

‘Only by joining the Order-specific missions can you earn more based on ranking.’

Frankly, it’s not a significant amount.

Destroying and closing a 3-level, 1-star messeo earns just 5 achievements.

‘2-star earns 10, and a 3-star Hole earns 15…’

It’s a precise increment of 5 each time.

The highest grade messeo identified so far was an 8-star.

Destroying it and closing its Hole yielded 40 achievements.

Without partaking in special missions, one must close 750 8-star messeo Holes to purchase a single bottle of Divine Elixir.

Its excessively costly price couldn’t be denied.

‘Though it’s worth the value.’

So I bought it. I left no stock behind.

After reaping the double achievement benefit as the first entrant, my accumulated achievements stood at 242,554 exactly.

Thanks to the extra achievements, I could procure three bottles of Divine Elixir and leisurely browse other items.

‘This is why it pays to be diligent.’

The result of accumulating seemingly insignificant achievements consistently was rewarding.

Since purchasing the Divine Elixir, I reveled in satisfaction.

Admittedly, this remarkable success also raised several questions.

‘The limited stock suggests there really were only that many items in Bihar.’

Perhaps chaos erupted in the Order headquarters due to the disappearance of the Divine Elixir.

Regardless, I had no intention of returning it.

‘Previously, I heard the Order held two bottles of Divine Elixir.’

Yet, the VIP store showed three bottles in stock.

‘The first apostle of Karlos engaged in creating Divine Elixirs.’

If not, there wouldn’t be an increase from two to three bottles.

Extra lives wouldn’t be a bad thing either.

‘I hope they diligently produce more.’

I fully intended to secure the newly born Divine Elixir.

Engrossed in thoughts of the VIP store, I eventually heard,

“Hey, K.”

An anxious voice cut through my seemingly endless train of thought.

Turning my head, I saw Sniper who had trimmed his beard neatly.

He stood amid a common hillside near Seoul.

The reason Sniper, who primarily patrolled between the USA and Mexico to regulate Cratoll, arrived in Korea was simple.

‘Because I summoned him.’

The prompt that summoned him was equally simple.

– Are you still searching for a Divine Elixir?

At that single sentence, Sniper promptly flew to Korea.

‘He should repay the effort of bringing him here.’

I opened a spatial pocket the size of a fist attached to my belt.

Then, I retrieved the bottle filled with golden liquid purchased from the VIP store a few days ago.

Gulp.

Sniper swallowed nervously and approached. His fingers lightly touched the bottle.

Surely, a popup appeared in his vision with item details.

As soon as Sniper’s eyes widened dramatically on seeing the information.

The item returned to my spatial pocket.

Momentarily sparkling, those eyes darkened with despair.

Subsequently, he mumbled silently.

Sniper hesitated, searching for words, clenching his fist, examining me from head to toe.

As if calculating something.

Had Sniper lunged at me to forcibly seize the Divine Elixir, I wouldn’t have let it pass.

Fortunately, he wasn’t that foolish.

“…. What do I need to do to get it?”

His question, the one I desired, made its way to me.

Instead of offering a detailed explanation, I handed him an ordinary-looking piece of paper and a pen.

“Sign at the bottom, in the Subordinate section.”

It was an item sold in the VIP store—appropriately named the Obedience Contract.

Damned System