Chapter 69
Stealthy Betrayer!
A title you can only obtain by being the first fugitive to destroy another fugitive’s mark.
Just like this, there were countless hidden quests in the ‘Abyss of the Second Night.’
Each time you discovered and cleared a quest, it would either upgrade your qualification or grant you special abilities.
‘This is useful.’
Park Chan-woo gave a small nod.
The ‘Stealthy Betrayer’ he just obtained had some extremely useful options.
Destroy a fugitive’s mark and you instantly gained a whopping 400 contribution points—an unbeatable condition.
Of course, there were risks.
First, it was impossible to gain contribution by rescuing prisoners.
And—
‘I can’t let anyone see me dealing with doppelgangers.’
If someone caught him, his identity and existence could be revealed to everyone.
He didn’t know exactly how it would be revealed, but once it was, it was clear he’d gain countless ‘enemies.’
He would almost certainly end up being hunted by both fugitives and chasers.
High risk, high return.
The saying “there’s no free lunch” applied here as well.
‘As long as I handle things quietly and secretly, it’s fine.’
Park Chan-woo planned to deal with all the doppelgangers anyway.
If left alone, they would explode in power, and once they grew strong enough, they’d stop running.
Instead, they would start attacking chasers and Earthlings.
If even one evolved into a ‘Doppelganger Lord,’ the end would be catastrophic.
The worst possible scenario had to be avoided.
Above all, with [Nonexistent], he could minimize the danger.
Secretly, quietly.
He needed to deal with groups of chasers and prisoners all at once, or attack lone fugitives one by one.
Park Chan-woo regained his composure.
‘The fugitives have been replaced by doppelgangers. The rest is just as it was in the past.’
Nothing else had really changed from before.
Only the group of fugitives had been swapped for doppelgangers.
All the other rules and progress were the same.
Naturally, as a regressor, he was fully aware of how to tackle this ‘Abyss of the Night.’
He also knew exactly what was most important at this stage.
‘At the end of the Second Night, everyone regretted it.’
Humanity kept making one wrong choice after another.
They left traces of their failures and regrets everywhere.
Park Chan-woo always kept a close watch on their ‘journals.’
The Second Night was the same.
Everyone’s biggest regret was related to ‘quests.’
—The start of the Second Night is all about quests.
—Clear hidden quests to upgrade chaser or fugitive abilities.
—Normal quests, secret quests, hidden quests, and even masterpiece quests!
—It was only too late that we realized how much the early upgrades affected the late game.
—It’s a shame. A crazy shame. Maddening regret!
Most people neglected quests.
After all, clearing them only gave a minuscule amount of contribution.
They judged it was much more worthwhile to catch fugitives or rescue prisoners from chasers during that time.
But they were wrong.
‘It has to be quests, no matter what.’
Quests.
Uncovering hidden elements and clearing them takes priority.
And finding quests was easier than you’d think.
‘Quest Compass.’
Park Chan-woo opened his map.
At the lower left of the map was a compass—this compass pointed to the nearest quest.
With it, you could resolve nearby quests one by one.
However—
‘Anyone using this is a newbie.’
He shook his head inwardly.
Using the compass was the most basic method.
‘Just buy a quest map at the shop.’
The last tip that had popped up in the message.
The system always scattered ‘tips’ for participants about things they should note or must do.
It was a safety net of sorts, giving advice to humans who were at an absolute disadvantage in the Abyss.
Park Chan-woo recalled the tip once again.
[Tip: Special shops are now marked on the map.]
[Survive the night by purchasing useful tools and equipment from shops.]
The shops sold all sorts of items.
A book called the ‘Quest Map’ was one of them.
Unlike a mere compass, it was a guide that told you the types and locations of quests!
Of course, you needed special currency to use the shop, but Park Chan-woo didn’t care.
‘I’ve got more than enough currency.’
He had so much that he could buy everything he needed and still have plenty left over.
—
Master of the Moon, Ahheta.
He opened his own vault.
Only shopkeepers could access his vault, but not all devil merchants could use it ‘equally.’
“Welcome to the ‘All-Purpose Contribution Shop!'”
One devil merchant called out cheerfully.
A massive stone building, as big as a castle, was the ‘Contribution Shop.’
Inside, there were treasures so dazzling they would make your jaw drop.
“Merchant, can you only use contribution points here?”
A man asked as he entered, and the devil merchant nodded.
“Yes! You can purchase items using ‘contribution.’ Our shop holds more treasures than any other.”
All of these treasures had been taken from Master of the Moon Ahheta’s vault.
Depending on the shop’s size and specifications, the number of items you could bring from Ahheta’s vault was determined, and the ‘Contribution Shop’ was the largest of them all.
Naturally, it had the most items on display.
“…The ‘Moon Necklace’ is a million contribution?”
“The ‘Chaser’s Sword’ is five million?”
“Did they really put those there for someone to actually buy?”
Among them were many treasures with outrageous prices, clearly meant for display.
However, ‘contribution’ was the easiest currency to obtain here.
Because you could buy items at this shop with contribution, the number of users exploded.
‘No need to worry about sales.’
The shop owner, top devil merchant Bibola, smiled.
He had competed with countless other merchants to become the owner of the Contribution Shop.
Thanks to the fierce competition, sales were excellent.
He’d really drawn the ‘shop golden ticket.’
But that wasn’t the only reason the shop was thriving.
‘Humans really are simple.’
The treasures Bibola selected from the Lord’s vault mesmerized people, and they lined up to spend all their contribution to buy things.
Strategically placing the treasures to appeal to human psychology had worked.
Overwhelmed by the splendor as soon as they entered, after just one circuit around the shop, they would find themselves having spent all their contribution.
What a simple and fantastic cycle.
‘Let’s check the sales rankings for a moment.’
Of course, he’d be in first place.
Bibola grinned as he opened a window.
[Shop Sales Ranking]
1st. Contribution Shop (Bibola)
2nd. Mark Shop (Pariphim)
3rd. Body Shop (Kimering)
……
……
11th. Coin Shop (Shiad)
12th. Reputation Shop (Dagon)
Twelve shops that could be used with all sorts of currency.
Naturally, the absolute leader was Bibola with the Contribution Shop.
His smile deepened.
‘Pariphim and Kimering can’t match up to me.’
They were all devil merchants and fierce competitors.
The ‘Mark Shop’ and ‘Body Shop’ were both also highly competitive.
The Mark Shop dealt in transactions using fugitives’ marks, and the Body Shop traded in parts of one’s own body.
The surprise was the ‘Body Shop.’
‘I didn’t expect the Body Shop to climb to third.’
He thought it would only manage a middle ranking.
Humans are sensitive to pain and cherish their bodies most.
For humans to give up part of their body to use a shop?
‘Kimering specializes in fusion products.’
It meant that shopkeeper Kimering was that good at selling.
Kimering was a merchant who excelled at handling ‘fusion products.’
He had a knack for finding artificial bodies or interacting with other monsters’ bodies.
Humans would sell parts of their own body for immediate power, then buy the fusion bodies Kimering recommended and swap them in.
…Well.
‘Still, third place is as far as they go.’
The gap with himself in first was like heaven and earth.
As Bibola scrolled down, his eyes landed on the bottom of the window.
Bibola grinned slyly.
‘Dagon, of course you’re dead last.’
Dagon, the owner of the Reputation Shop!
He never failed to disappoint.
Dagon’s father was one of the executives who managed all the devil merchant associations.
He was a legendary devil, famous for his incredible track record as a merchant.
He climbed the ranks through his achievements, becoming an executive—a living legend among devil merchants!
…And yet, one of his sons, Dagon, was notorious as a perpetual loser and failure.
‘Why choose the Reputation Shop? Tsk tsk.’
Humans could barely collect any reputation at this point.
Why would he deliberately choose to run the ‘Reputation Shop’?
There was nothing dumber than supplying with no demand.
Maybe he was just desperate enough to cling to any rotten rope.
Did he think personally managing it would change the result?
“I have somewhere to be. Watch the shop for me.”
“Yes, Bibola.”
When Bibola gave the order, the lower devil merchants all bowed their heads.
With a shrug, Bibola left his shop.
He swept his gaze over the other shops.
His competitors and those lower than him.
“Puahahaha!”
When he reached the 12th-place ‘Reputation Shop,’ Bibola couldn’t hold back his laughter.
The reason was simple.
“This is supposed to be a shop?”
It was a shabby building made by clumsily tying together planks of wood.
Compared to the castle-like other shops, its size was pitiful.
It seemed obvious Dagon had built it himself.
Meaning he’d received no investment from the merchant association when constructing it in the ‘Abyss of the Night.’
It takes considerable resources to build anything here.
Why would the association invest in something sure to fail?
Bibola clicked his tongue and entered the ‘Reputation Shop.’
“Hey, Dagon! Are you even trying to sell anything?”
“…Bibola. Why are you here?”
Dagon’s face hardened as soon as he saw Bibola.
Before becoming merchants, the two had been trainees in the same class.
Bibola was always top, Dagon always at the bottom.
Dagon was the disgrace of the devil merchants.
Living off his father’s fame alone, it was only natural for Bibola to look down on him.
Bibola glanced around and sighed.
“I thought you’d have this place lined with junk. But do you think there’s a single human who could buy these high-value items?”
The items hanging in the Reputation Shop—
Every single one was priceless.
Not one thing could be bought with the reputation humans currently had.
On top of that, nothing seemed normal.
Would there really be a human who could use any of these?
‘As expected of Dagon. He doesn’t even know the basics of being a merchant.’
The Reputation Shop should have been filled with ‘cheap’ goods, but Dagon didn’t even know the basics.
“…Mind your own shop, Bibola.”
“I’d like to, but just had to ask. This pathetic, ready-to-collapse shop—did you build it yourself?”
“….”
“Hah, I had a feeling. The merchant association really is too much. No matter how little they expect, they could have at least invested a little. Want my help?”
“…I don’t need it.”
Dagon forced himself to stay calm.
Bibola was hardly the only one to come here and laugh.
Other devil merchants had come to see this shop and left laughing just as hard.
“Don’t say that. We’re still classmates, aren’t we? Gotta help each other out.”
“….”
“Heh! Just let me know if you need help, Dagon!”
Bibola laughed for a long while before turning to leave the Reputation Shop.
Left alone, Dagon closed his eyes and bit his lip.
He’d expected this kind of reaction.
He was sure he’d be mocked and scorned for making such a foolish choice and going through unnecessary trouble.
But.
Even so.
Why, then, did Dagon stubbornly choose the ‘Reputation Shop’ that every merchant avoided?
And why had he filled this tiny shop with treasures far beyond its means?
Tap, tap.
At that moment.
Footsteps echoed.
When he turned his head toward the source, Dagon’s hardened expression softened.
Soon, a man entered the shop.
“…You’ve finally arrived.”
Dagon, seeing Park Chan-woo, broke into a bright smile unlike any he’d shown before.
The savior he had waited for so desperately had finally appeared.