WebNovels

Chapter 2 - Chapter 2: Inventory of the Damned

Daylight spilled through the cracks of the rusted shutter as Kaito stepped into his tiny, concrete bunker of a store. It still smelled like mildew and regret. The shelves were made from old crates. The counter was a flipped-over desk he found in a garbage pile behind a school. His stock? Emergency food, water bottles, rope, flashlights, knives, and one suspicious-looking pack of vitamins he didn't trust but kept anyway.

This wasn't just a store. It was supposed to be his foundation—his stronghold. Yet it looked like the world gave up halfway through building it. He stared at the chipped walls and the crooked shelving, sighing as dust caught in the sunlight.

He sat on a stool—if you could even call it that, more like three legs and a dent—and stared at the inventory. Everything was in place. Quiet. Still. The calm was almost eerie.

No footsteps. No chaos. Not yet. But it would come. He'd seen what this place would become, even if no one else had. That mall… the screaming… the monsters.

He closed his eyes, trying not to relive it. But it came anyway. The screams echoing through tiled corridors, people tripping over themselves as limbs were torn off by things with too many eyes and mouths. The feeling of being utterly powerless. His own death, short and humiliating.

He shook his head. "Not this time."

[Meri: Shop setup acknowledged. System Store access now fully available. Refreshing daily inventory...]

A screen blinked into place in front of him. Rows of items, half of them with names he couldn't pronounce and price tags that looked like phone numbers.

[System Shop – Day 1 Stock]

Tactical Survival Cloak (25 Coins)

Starter Pack: Clean Water ×10 (5 Coins)

Skill Fragment: Barter Lv.1 (15 Coins)

Mystery Box (???) (10 Coins)

Inventory Slot Expansion +1 (20 Coins)

Kaito scratched the back of his head. "I've got ten coins. That's just enough to get... something dumb."

[Meri: Recommendation: Mystery Box.]

"Of course you'd say that. You just want to watch me suffer."

[Meri: Incorrect. I want to watch you suffer efficiently.]

He sighed and tapped the box icon. The screen shimmered.

[Mystery Box Acquired] [You received: Common Skill – Shopkeeper's Instinct Lv.1]

"Oh wow," he muttered. "I feel so... instinctive now."

[Meri: Passive skill acquired. Automatically detects customer intentions and item demand radius.]

He blinked. "Wait, that actually sounds useful."

[Meri: Congratulations. You've unlocked the ability to notice when people are about to try stealing from you.]

"That's... disturbingly specific."

[Meri: Welcome to retail.]

He chuckled, despite himself.

Then he stopped laughing.

This wasn't a store. Not really. It was a bunker with a dream. A cave full of gear and silent hopes. Outside, the world was still fine—for now. Nobody was looking for shelter. Nobody was desperate.

But they would be.

Three days. That's all he had. He stood and paced the shop, checking every item again. Rations, lined up. Medical kits, clean and sealed. Water, stacked against the far wall. He began labeling them with handmade tags, scratching out prices and bartering values with a marker on scrap paper.

Every item needed to be visible, accessible, and easy to explain. No time for confusion later.

"Should I advertise?" he mumbled.

[Meri: That would require customers. Customers require desperation. Desperation requires collapse.]

"In other words, not yet."

[Meri: Correct.]

He exhaled, then leaned against the desk.

Still quiet.

Still too clean out there.

He opened the inventory screen again. No new coins. No new quests.

[Meri: You may manually request training simulations.]

"Training?"

[Meri: For skill familiarity. Time-limited. Risk-free.]

He paused. "Show me the list."

[Training Modules Available]

Customer Negotiation (Free)

Shop Layout Optimization (Free)

Survival Knowledge Basics (1 Coin)

Supply Chain Management (2 Coins)

System Economy Theory (3 Coins)

Kaito's eyes locked on the first one. "Start with negotiation."

The world shimmered. The dusty bunker vanished. In its place appeared a simulated room—clean, brightly lit, with a generic customer standing before him, arms crossed.

[Simulation: Customer Negotiation – Begin]

"Your price is too high," the simulation barked.

Kaito blinked. "Well, it's apocalypse inflation. You get quality and survival."

[Response: Improvised. Success Rate: 40%]

"I can get it cheaper elsewhere."

"Sure. But can you trust that place to be open tomorrow?"

[Response: Logical. Success Rate: 78%]

"Fine. Throw in a flashlight."

Kaito raised an eyebrow. "Buy two, and I'll throw in the batteries. That's my final offer."

[Response: Strategic. Success Rate: 92%]

The simulation ended with a quiet chime.

[Negotiation Skill Proficiency: +12%]

Back in the shop, Kaito exhaled. He didn't even realize he'd been holding his breath.

That kind of training would help—practical, controlled, quick. No risk, just skill.

He ran another simulation. This time for layout optimization. It taught him angles, shelf visibility, movement flow. Merchandising, apocalypse edition.

The day passed in drills, notes, planning. When his body tired, his brain kept moving. When his mind faltered, Meri filled the gaps with crisp system messages.

By nightfall, his shop felt different.

Organized.

Ready.

Kaito sat again, rubbing his sore neck, then looked up at the single hanging bulb that swayed above him.

His thoughts wandered.

Why him?

Why a merchant?

He couldn't fight. Couldn't punch monsters. Couldn't scream cool lines and save cities.

But he could sell. He could provide. And sometimes… the right item at the right time was worth more than a sword.

[Meri: System Note: Passive Influence Mechanics have now been activated.]

"What's that mean?"

[Meri: The more reliable you appear to survivors, the more likely they are to trust you instinctively. Your aura reflects preparedness.]

"That's actually kind of terrifying."

[Meri: You are now a walking emotional support shop.]

He snorted. "Great. I'm a vending machine with a face."

He stared at the locked shutter, the night pressing against the cracks like a rising tide.

Soon the screams would come.

And he would still be here.

Waiting. Ready.

For them.

For trade.

For survival.

Because this time, he wasn't going to run.

This time, he would sell the world back its future.

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