Hey, sorry I didn't reply yesterday.
I got a call from Kim Daeseok the day after I joined the "Chojunyeok" guild. I was about to head out for my part-time job, putting on my sneakers, when I answered his call.
"I was grinding until late last night."
"You're really living it up during break, huh?"
"I had no choice yesterday! Taeseong brought a girl he's close with and introduced her to me!"
Taeseong? Wasn't he the guy who didn't study during exam season and just drank all the time? I asked indifferently.
"So, how'd it go with the girl you met?"
"...We decided to be good friends. She was nice."
Figures. That was the expected outcome.
"Ahem. Anyway, about what you asked me."
Kim Daeseok cleared his throat, and I recalled the staff that got taken from me yesterday.
A weapon with the stat Lux 2.0. The guild master, Feber, had said it was expensive when he took it.
"What kind of staff was it?"
"+4 Solis."
"Oh, that's gotta be crazy expensive. Were you planning to buy it?"
"No. Not planning to buy…"
Just as I thought. I sighed and rubbed my forehead, feeling the fatigue creeping in.
"I lost it."
"Huh? Lost what?"
"The +4 Solis staff with Lux on it. I had it taken from me."
"Whaaat?"
Kim Daeseok's dumbfounded voice showed he wasn't processing it.
"How did you even get that?"
"I got it as a gift."
"What? Are you kidding? From who?"
"…Someone who gives out stuff like that."
"Wait… don't tell me it was Chojunyeok's guild master?"
"..."
Even without answering, my silence said it all.
"Wow… that's wild…"
"Just tell me how expensive it is."
"Well, it's not like endgame-tier or anything, but it's still pricey. I don't know mage gear all that well, but… probably around 1.6 billion gold?"
1.6 billion? So about 1.6 million won in real money?
"It could be worth even more now. Prices keep changing, and Lux gear especially goes up over time."
That's insane. So I've been carrying around a weapon worth $1,200 without even hitting max level?
"The reason it's so expensive is because it's hard to make. You need an item called Light's Erg to enhance Lux, and that only drops during events."
"Only during events?"
"Yeah. Lux 1.0 is cheap because you can get that with a bit of luck while crafting weapons. But Lux 2.0 requires the Erg, and the success rate is insanely low. Like 5% or 6%."
"That is low."
"And since Ergs only drop during events, that makes it even harder."
I remembered when Yu Chae gave me the Solis staff. I'd seen a +4 Luna staff with Lux 1.0 listed for 5,000 gold on the market.
I really need to stop brushing things off so easily. As I thought that, something felt off and I frowned.
"Wait, if it's that hard to enhance, why didn't the staff have any fancy description? It just said Lux 2.0 and that was it."
"Lux is considered a base stat, so maybe that's why. But it's a damn good base. If you enhance a weapon with Lux, its buff multiplier is at least 1.5x higher than others."
"That's ridiculous."
"Plus, Solis is already a pricey staff, so put the two together and it's even more expensive. I don't know the exact numbers, so take this as a rough guide. You'd probably need to ask a guildmate who actually knows, once you're in Zeno."
"No, it's fine. I'll find out the rest myself."
This much basic info was enough. For details, I'll track down that punk Yu Chae who threw that absurd item at me and ask him directly.
"By the way, how'd you even lose it? You drop it in PvP or something?"
I briefly explained what had happened the day before. After listening with interest, Kim Daeseok spoke with an exasperated tone.
"Man, that's rough. Why do these ridiculous things keep happening to you?"
"Beats me."
"Hey, you're not gonna quit, are you? You stuck it out even when Chojunyeok's guild master was being shady. Think about that newbie starter pack I bought you!"
"Shut up. I'm heading to work now. Hanging up."
I ended the call without mercy, thinking again about the staff. 1.6 million won. And apparently it gets even better with enhancements.
'…Not bad at all.'
Forget cotton candy foxes or whatever. Time to run some raids, hit max level, and take back what's mine. My beautiful, beloved, expensive staff.
***
After finishing my part-time job and workout, I came home, washed up, and logged into Zenoris right away.
As soon as the system message announced my login, the guild chat blew up.
[Guild] Yu Chae: Bro!
[Guild] Yu Chae: You're here?
[Guild] Yu Chae: Bro bro!!
[Guild] Yu Chae: Wanna run a raid with me today?
This guy's like a dog begging for a walk…
[Guild] Mocabang: Can I leave the guild?
[Guild] Mocabang: I'll come back after the qualifiers lol
[Guild] YangnyeomCrabChomp: After the qualifiers?
[Guild] YangnyeomCrabChomp: You saying Sleepy's gonna quit?
[Guild] Haereun: Heya Sleepy~
[Guild] Yu Chae: ?
[Guild] Mocabang: Haha no way~
[Guild] Mocabang: Loyal as always ^^7
[Guild] DrinkWater: Heya
[Guild] Sleepy: Hi there
[Guild] DrinkWater: You up for a raid?
[Guild] DrinkWater: We've even got a new recruit joining soon
[Guild] Sleepy: If it's Seltern Normal, I'm in
[Guild] Sleepy: But uh
[Guild] Sleepy: I don't know anything so you'll have to teach me
[Guild] DrinkWater: Okok
[Guild] DrinkWater: If we all hop in Discord, Normal's easy
[Guild] HuntCrazed: Seltern Normal? Any spots left?
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: Count me in too, I'm bored out of my damn mind ㅠ
[Guild] Yu Chae: Bro
[Guild] Yu Chae: What about me?? Bro
[Guild] Yu Chae: Of course I'm joining too, right?
[Guild] Yu Chae: Bro?
[Guild] Sleepy (JeoJollyeoyo): Okay, enough already;
[Guild] Yu Chae: Oki~
What an annoying bastard. After finishing my gear check, I asked Muljom:
[Guild] Sleepy: When are we heading out?
[Guild] Muljommasyeora: Hmm
[Guild] Muljommasyeora: Maybe in about 15 minutes?
[Guild] Muljommasyeora: Just head to the Seltern dungeon entrance for now
[Guild] Muljommasyeora: We'll start right after the new recruit logs in
[Guild] Sleepy: Got it
[Guild] Yu Chae: Bro bro
[Guild] Yu Chae: I'm already at the dungeon entrance!!
[Guild] Haereun: Was Seltern a 7-man dungeon?
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: First come, first served lol
[Guild] HuntCrazed: I'm already at the entrance too, suckers
[Guild] YangnyeomCrabChomp: Damn, you guys are fast;
I used fast travel to get to the Seltern dungeon entrance and spotted our guild members standing among the other players.
[Public] Yu Chae: Bro!
[Public] Yu Chae: Come over here!
Yu Chae, spotting me, came rushing over and opened a party invite, throwing in an emote that looked embarrassed. I clicked the party window labeled [111111] above his character and joined the party.
[Party] Yu Chae: hehehehehe
[Party] HuntCrazed: Hey Sleepy
[Party] Haereun: Heya
[Party] ParkSeungjin99: Now we just wait for Muljom and the new guy, right?
I ignored Yu Chae, who kept circling around me, and opened my inventory. Sure, I'd lost my original +4 Solis staff with Lux 2.0, but it wasn't like I was weaponless.
I equipped a staff that had dropped from a mage in the Feber guild when they died. It was a Luna staff, but it was +5, so it was usable.
[Party] Yu Chae: Sleepy bro
[Party] Yu Chae: Is that the staff you're using now?
The moment I equipped the weapon, Yu Chae scurried up to me, bombarding me with questions. I could almost see a wagging puppy tail behind him.
[Party] Yu Chae: Bro bro
[Party] Yu Chae: Is it really enhanced?
[Party] Yu Chae: Want me to check its stats for you?
[Party] HuntCrazed: Guild leader's putting his whole heart into
[Party] HuntCrazed: Laying on the charm…
[Party] ParkSeungjin99: lol
[Party] ParkSeungjin99: Honestly not even surprised anymore
[Party] Haereun: Yeah;;
I ignored every word and swung my staff hard—THWACK, it smacked right into Yu Chae's character's head.
[Party] Yu Chae: ???
Caught off guard and too close to dodge, Yu Chae typed in a panicked message.
[Party] Yu Chae: Bro?
[Party] Sleepy: You deserve a beating, you little shit
[Party] Yu Chae: Huh?
I kept whacking him with normal attacks—thwack thwack thwack—and Yu Chae, who took a few hits quietly, suddenly panicked and started to run.
You think I'll let you escape? I chased after him, still smacking him with autos.
[Party] Yu Chae: Bro
[Party] Yu Chae: I'm hurt!
[Party] Yu Chae: Brooo
[Party] Sleepy: stfu
[Party] Yu Chae:sob
As if. My damage barely tickled him—maybe 10 or 20 at a time—since we had a big gear gap and I was a mage who relies on skills, not autos. At this rate, even if I hit him 200 times, I wouldn't kill him.
[Party] HuntCrazed: We've reached the "catch me if you can" stage now
[Party] Haereun: Just ignore him and go watch YouTube or something lol
[T/L: Read extra chapters on my ko-fi page "Pokemon1920" : http://ko-fi.com/pokemon1920 ]