CH 7

Chapter 7 Arctic World(7)

In the snow cave, day and night were indistinguishable. When Qian Yue woke up after a long sleep, it was already 02:10:23.

“…”

If it weren’t for the “third day” written before the time, she would have thought she had slept for almost a century.

She slowly sat up from the stack of straws, unsure if it was because of the increased indoor temperature, but Qian Yue felt that the rate of decrease in all her values had slowed down.

She checked her character status and realized that the 【Frostbite】 status had been lifted.

Name: Qian Yue

Occupation: Beggar

Level: 1

Health: 78/100

Stamina: 59/100 【Hungry】

Mental Points: 63/80

Qian Yue forgot to check her status before going to sleep last night, but fortunately, due to proper warmth, she didn’t lose many stat points during her sleep.

She pondered, “Seems like I don’t need that many resources to pass the instance.”

After raising all her stats above the green line at 80, Qian Yue rechecked her inventory:

Hard Bread x8, Vitamin C x7, Mental Suppressant x9, Blueprint (Roasted Meat) x1, Blueprint (Bandage) x1, Item Fragment (Meat) x5, Straw x3, Firewood x3, Secret Food x1, and 600 yen.

Qian Yue always kept track of the items in her backpack, so she knew that today’s spawn should be the Mental Suppressant.

From the probability in the lottery pool, it was evident that Mental Suppressants were relatively rare.

If someone else had spawned it, they would probably be thrilled. But Qian Yue spent most of her time sleeping and had excellent mental health, so she didn’t really need this thing.

She sighed, “I’d rather have a piece of bread or something.”

Mental Suppressant: …

Considering the current situation, Qian Yue’s inventory was still sufficient for the time being, and there were no signs of damage to the snow cave.

“Should I go outside…” she said, but she had no intention of moving.

Her laziness had struck again.

Since it was already halfway through the day, she decided to give up on the idea of going far and just ventured out to collect the items left by the wild wolves near her doorstep. Then, before getting 【Frostbite】 again, she retreated back into her snow cave.

The huge temperature difference made it almost impossible to resist.

Today’s another lazy day.jpg

Looking at the darkness in front of her, Qian Yue murmured, “I should find the Item Merchant in a couple of days and buy a flint.”

Otherwise, just staying in this dim yet safe environment for a long time, she would easily fall…

Asleep.

Qian Yue went back to sleep.

On the fourth day of the game, the snowfall became even more intense, reaching a point where it was almost impossible to see the road or even the length of one’s extended arm.

Qian Yue cautiously walked through the snowy terrain, using a tree branch to feel her way and carefully clearing the footprints behind her.

A cold gust of wind blew, and she shivered involuntarily.

“It’s too cold…”

In the past, Qian Yue would never go out in this kind of weather.

Not just because of the cold.

The fresh snow wasn’t as thick, and after a heavy snowfall, it could easily lead to many dangers.

But considering the impending shortage of supplies in the next few days, she had to go out and find that Item Merchant.

Qian Yue didn’t know if there were other towns nearby, so she relied on her memory to head toward the previous village.

Just as she reached the entrance of the village, she saw several groups of people rushing into the village, competing with each other.

“Hurry up! Otherwise, it’ll be sold out in no time!”

“Why are you pushing! I was here first!”

Qian Yue’s eyes lit up. It seemed she had indeed stumbled upon the right place!

However, there were too many people coming to buy things, and before the Merchant of Treasures could enter the village, he was blocked at the entrance by the crowd.

People were pushing and shoving, and the surrounding NPCs cautiously avoided the commotion.

Some players on the outskirts even strained themselves, trying to get a glimpse of the situation inside.

Qian Yue surveyed the scene for a moment, then confidently walked up and patted a player’s shoulder.

“Brother, you dropped your money.”

The person instinctively turned back. “Where did I drop it?!”

Taking advantage of the distraction, Qian Yue squeezed in and successfully attracted the attention of several other people.

A moment later, amidst the clamor of “Stop pushing!” and “Make way!”, a few sudden curses erupted.

“What the heck!”

“I want to buy something!”

As soon as Qian Yue finished speaking, a pop-up window appeared before her eyes.

She quickly glanced at it. The items on the shelves were not categorized, but there was everything from tools to food, and the prices were not too expensive.

At the same time, each small icon in the bottom right corner had a number, and that number was continuously decreasing.

Wow, it really is a limited supply.

Qian Yue didn’t dare to dawdle and quickly bought the flint.

Immediately after, she bought ten loaves of hard bread and ten portions of Vitamin C medicine—not that she didn’t want to buy more, but she couldn’t win in the scramble.

As everyone rushed to make their purchases, the essential items disappeared almost in the blink of an eye, leaving behind grayed-out squares and the words 【Out of Stock】.

So Qian Yue settled for the next best option and chose 【Seasonings】. She remembered someone mentioning that it could be used to make food without the need for a synthesis stone, although the effect wasn’t as good.

As for the mental suppressants and synthesis stones, both of these items had been snatched up long before Qian Yue arrived. She didn’t even catch a glimpse of them.

The same was true for tools like daggers and axes. No matter how expensive they were sold, they were still being snatched up, even dental floss was completely sold out.

Qian Yue flipped through the items but didn’t find the backpack and clothes she wanted. In the end, she bought a bundle of rope and an oil lamp.

The 600 yen from the beginner’s package was quickly spent.

At the moment the transaction ended, the people behind her immediately crowded in, pushing her aside.

“Women shopping is such a hassle! Took so long!”

Upon hearing this, Qian Yue turned around abruptly, her fists clenched. However, more people came from behind, quickly pushing her

out of the crowd.

“Hey, make way! Don’t block the front!”

Qian Yue took a deep breath and decided not to stoop to their level.

She grabbed her backpack and prepared to leave when someone approached her mysteriously.

“Do you want to buy weapons?”

Qian Yue turned around; it was a player.

Seeing that she didn’t speak, the seller instantly understood and pulled her towards a nearby alley.

There were NPCs secretly opening windows to let in some fresh air in the alley. But as soon as they saw someone sneaking in, they hurriedly closed the windows with a bang.

When Qian Yue reached the entrance of the alley, she stopped and refused to go in. “Let’s talk here. What kind of weapon?”

Seeing her cautiousness, the seller didn’t mind. “This thing of mine is a great, heavyweight weapon! Absolutely sharp, capable of drawing blood and severing throats…”

Qian Yue turned around and walked away.

The seller quickly called out, “Hey, hey, don’t be in such a hurry. I’ll bring it out, I’ll bring it out.”

He probably didn’t have time to finish his exaggerated praises and was worried about not being able to sell it. The seller’s face didn’t look too good.

But as Qian Yue saw what he brought out, her interest was instantly piqued.

It was an ice axe.

This thing was straight and half of it was a stick while the other half was a triangular head. The handle at the end was made of plastic, making it look like a modified version of a spear, but much heavier.

Indeed, it was a heavyweight weapon.

The seller attempted to struggle a bit and said mysteriously, “I bought this from the Item Merchant on the first day of the server opening. I can guarantee that this item is absolutely rare and hasn’t been sold for the past few days.”

Upon hearing his words, Qian Yue knew that the guy had no idea about the purpose of the ice axe and was trying to find someone naive enough to make a quick sale.

She asked expressionlessly, “Then why don’t you keep it for yourself?”

The seller didn’t even think and replied, “I have something better.”

A metal tool would cost at least 400 yen, and the money she received from the beginner’s package wasn’t enough to buy even two weapons.

The person’s response clearly showed that he hadn’t thought it through, making it obvious that he was eager to get rid of it.

The seller said, “This thing is really sharp, it can stab wolves and fish precisely. Don’t believe me? Touch it yourself!”

The stall owner tried to bring the item closer to Qian Yue, but she sidestepped it. He talked about stabbing fish and wolves, but Qian Yue was probably more familiar with how to use an ice axe than this guy.

“How much does it cost?” she asked.

The stall owner tested the waters, “What do you think?”

Qian Yue remained silent for a moment and said, “…One piece of hard bread.”

The stall owner slapped his thigh, “You’re really stingy! This is such a good weapon; don’t mention that price!”

He gestured with eight fingers, but Qian Yue turned around and started walking away.

“Don’t go!”

“Six! Oh no, five!”

In the end, the transaction was completed with the price of two pieces of hard bread and two vitamin C.

Feeling like he had sold it at a loss, the stall owner had a sour expression on his face.

Qian Yue thought for a moment and asked, “Do you want any mental suppressants?”

“You sell that?!” The stall owner almost thought he misheard and asked nervously, “How… how much? How many?”

Qian Yue casually named a price, “Eight pieces of bread for one bottle, a total of two bottles.”

The stall owner, “!!!”

This person was clearly doing it on purpose!

But mental suppressants were hard to come by. If he missed the opportunity, he didn’t know if he would be able to buy them later…

The man gritted his teeth, “Ten pieces of bread, two bottles.”

Qian Yue nonchalantly said, “Forget it if you don’t want to buy.”

“Buy, buy, buy!”

The man looked helpless, “Your price is really too high. Even if I sell it to someone else, it’s not guaranteed that they would buy it.

Since we have such a good fate, can you lower the price a little?”

He paused, “Eight pieces of bread, four vitamin C, and I’ll also gift you a piece of information.”

This price happened to be within Qian Yue’s expected range. However, since the other party was willing to provide some information, Qian Yue naturally accepted it with a smile.

“Deal.”

After exchanging the items, the man said, “I heard that some NPCs in this game are quite intelligent, comparable to real people. You can build a good relationship with them if you’re lucky, and even negotiate prices.”

“If you can access the main quests, it would be even better. You can clear the game early. But this quest thing is just what I’ve heard from others; I can’t guarantee if it’s true.”

Qian Yue immediately thought of her character attribute: Default NPC Favorability +30%.

So that’s how it’s used?

“Thanks, it’s very useful.”

The stall owner grinned, “I’m Yu Chengyi. We can continue to cooperate in the future if the opportunity arises.”

“Qian Yue.”

After parting ways, Qian Yue couldn’t wait to test the effectiveness of her 30% favorability. Then she looked up and saw the Item Merchant, who hadn’t yet left.

Earlier, Qian Yue was too focused on buying things and didn’t have a chance to take a good look at what the merchant actually looked like. But now, with everyone gone, she realized that he was a young man with a handsome appearance.

Qian Yue’s eyes lit up!

Young man, you will do!