Former Hero, Solo Play Oriented

[Oasis of the Desert, Philia Village]

“Oh.”

Finally, I arrived at ‘Philia Village’ after crossing the Fames Desert.

Considering it was a village smack in the middle of a desert, it was quite a sizable place.

Though smaller than the city of Erenburg where I had first passed through, the village had enough shops for adventurers to prepare for dungeon raids.

In the center stood a large oasis.

It must be that there were fewer users entering this area, as it seemed like there were still more NPCs than players around.

I hadn’t visited, but surely such villages existed in the actual Fames Desert of the Continent of Astria.

Doot bang doot bang.

I lightly picked up my pace and scanned the shops that would play an important role in my adventurous preparations.

First off, I headed to the general store.

“Welcome!”

A middle-aged man with a turban and a mustache greeted me.

The friendly NPC of Philia Village’s general store seemed much kinder than the grumpy NPC man from Erenburg.

I chuckled to myself at the memory of the unfriendly Erenburg general store NPC.

[HP Recovery Potion (Medium)]

[Cooldown: 30 seconds]

[Restores 200 HP for 10 seconds.]

“Oh.”

Perhaps in consideration of the HP levels of players entering this region, the effectiveness of the HP recovery potions had been increased.

The price was 1 silver.

“Gah!”

I let out a small squeak through my throat.

The small HP recovery potion cost 30 copper, so this was over three times the price!

The performance was doubled, but the price was three times.

But, to ensure smooth hunting in this area and to prepare for the next Elite Dungeon raid, it was a necessary investment.

I was so relieved that I had collected gold by selling elite weapons while farming the ‘Orc King’s Cave’.

With tears welling up, I purchased 50 HP Recovery Potions.

Really, really, I needed to save them until I graduated from this region.

After buying potions and snacks at the general store, I stopped by the weapon shop.

However, the weaponry on offer greatly disappointed me.

The attack power was slightly higher than that of the elite weapons from the previous area, but they had no special options and only came with a steep price tag.

Since I could farm elite dungeon items now, there was no reason to purchase shop weapons.

Once I head to the high-level areas of the Fames Desert, there would surely be rare field boss-exclusive weapons like the ‘Orc Champion Weapon’.

I would level up through diligent hunting with the ‘Orc King’s Sword’, farm the field boss weapons, and then move on to the next elite dungeon.

I shook my head and exited the weapon shop.

Next up on my list was…

“We have a lot of nice clothes!”

“Oh.”

The clothing store.

A shop for so-called ‘look-doll’ users who enjoyed dressing up their characters in various outfits.

I briefly glanced down at my current outfit with dissatisfaction.

It had been a while since I donned this ‘Orc Champion Outfit Set’.

In the early game, it was my unique attire, but now it was no longer rare at all.

It had become one of the commonly seen outfits among users in the Orc Forest region.

If I had obtained a uniform from the ‘Orc King’s Cave’, I would have swapped it out.

“It seems a bit worn out.”

I had never heard of outfits in the game becoming worn, but it seemed to lose its luster in my eyes.

It was finally time to change my outfit.

I looked around the clothes displayed in the store.

And then, I found an outfit set that caught my eye.

“Whoa.”

It was a rare outfit set with a limited edition label!

A casual shirt and shorts with a slight side cut looked very comfortable for moving in combat.

The white beret alongside it seemed to match my hair color well too.

And the long coat that resembled a stylish uniform was the cherry on top.

Though it looked like it might be hot to wear in the desert, I had heard that in dry deserts, wearing long outer garments helps prevent moisture loss.

Wielding a sword in that coat would surely make for a splendid display, right?

With my mouth agape, I blankly stared at the outfit set while checking the price.

[Desert Admiral Outfit Set]

[1 Gold]

“Yikes!”

I couldn’t help but scream.

1 gold meant around 1 million won in real money?

What kind of game outfit is this expensive?

Of course, early in the game’s launch, the gold itself was pricey, and overall currency would eventually balance out, making purchases easier later on.

“Too expensive.”

I checked my remaining gold with a teary face after having sold some cash to buy necessities like potions.

After converting a portion to help with living expenses and purchasing hunting items, I had about 1 gold and 30 silver left.

“I-I can buy it if I really try.”

If I thought of it as in-game currency, it was expensive but manageable.

However, thinking of it as 1 million won in real money made my head spin.

In reality, I had never spent over 30,000 won on clothes before.

“Yikes, yikes.”

With tears in my eyes, as I gazed at the outfit set with a long face and tried to turn away,

Poof.

I bumped my head into something fluffy.

Looking up to see what was in my way revealed…

Red?

That red was looking down at me with a big smile.

“Hi there!”

“Huh….”

Doot bang doot bang.

Doo-tuck, doo-tuck.

“Eek!”

Why does she keep following me?

Not only did that stealing sister take my monster, but she also bought the limited edition ‘Desert Admiral Outfit Set’ all while following me in the village.

Since when had she been watching me?

“Ahh~ I bought it because it looked pretty, but I think the ‘Orc King’s Outfit’ suits me better. Now I feel like I bought it for no reason?”

And she even taunted me.

I swallowed tears of frustration and quickened my pace.

Doot bang doot bang.

Doo-tuck, doo-tuck.

“Um, hey, Rain?”

“…….”

I walked silently without turning to look at the girl who was speaking to me.

“I’m not trying to be rude, but I think this outfit would be a waste to just throw away, and I feel a bit reluctant to keep checking the auction house for it.”

“……?”

What in the world is she talking about?

“So, how about you take this outfit set?”

“Uh.”

I was taken aback by her unexpected comment.

She was offering me a fancy outfit that costs 1 gold for free?

Shake shake.

The ‘Desert Admiral Outfit Set’ she held out was shaking in front of my eyes.

“Wah!”

I, entranced by the trembling outfit, suddenly snapped back to reality.

Thwack!

I slapped my face with both hands.

Get a grip, Rain.

Nothing in this world is free.

That evil sister might want my body as a condition for giving me the outfit set.

I could find myself captured in a party without knowing and get turned into an expendable tank.

But still, that outfit set was just too appealing.

Maybe just temporarily being used a little wouldn’t be so bad?

If a temporary mercenary is 1 gold, it doesn’t seem like a bad deal at all.

“…….”

Stealthily.

Whoosh.

I carefully approached her and snatched the outfit set that was shaking in front of me.

“Oh my.”

The red sister smiled brightly.

Beep.

[Onmyoji ‘Chris’ has sent you a friend request.]

[You are now friends with Onmyoji ‘Chris.’]

“…Not when I’m busy, okay?”

Especially when I’m trying to solo challenge the Elite Dungeon.

At that time, I planned to turn off the message reception feature entirely.

“Really? Will you party with me?”

“If it’s just once.”

“Yay!”

Jump jump.

The red sister bounced like a goofball, grinning like I did when I first logged into the game.

What a silly way for an adult to act.

Ah, but I guess I’m an adult too.

The red sister named ‘Chris’ waved goodbye until I disappeared from her sight.

Luckily satisfied with having sent me a friend request, she didn’t follow me any longer.

Once she was completely out of sight, I took the ‘Desert Admiral Outfit Set’ from my inventory and put it on.

“Heh.”

Spin, spin.

Flutter, flutter.

As I moved side to side, the magnificent coat waved around.

So cool! So cool!

Jump jump.

It was also convenient when I jumped.

As expected from an outfit that costs 1 gold, there was no slight discomfort at all.

I was so satisfied.

I was now the proud owner of a limited edition outfit worth 1 gold!

Click, click.

I snapped countless screenshots of myself in the ‘Desert Admiral Outfit Set’ by the oasis in the village as if taking selfies.

*

Chris was feeling quite good.

“Heehee.”

Boom!

A talisman flew from her hands, and with the powerful Onmyoji main skill ‘Demon Sealing Technique,’ the monsters in the Fames Desert fell like autumn leaves.

“Wow, you’ve already reached level 18, Senior? The next Elite Dungeon requires level 25, right?”

Before she knew it, Cherni, the spirit master of Chris’s raid party, approached her.

“Yeah. For the time being, I need to focus on leveling up. Heehee.”

“……?”

Cherni narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Chris.

“Senior, is there something good happening? You don’t usually smile so much.”

“Heehee~? What could my junior possibly be curious about my personal matters?”

Cherni opened his mouth wide in shock.

“W-wait, Senior. Did you catch something from Bae Merong? That cold beauty senior is smiling like an idiot and using third person… Ugh!”

Thwack!

Chris kicked Cherni in the shin.

“Kh, cough. So, the Senior I know is still here.”

“Shut up. If you’ve got time to chatter, hurry up and level up. We’ve got overlapping hunting grounds; get out of here. Shoo, shoo!”

Chris waved her hand dismissively at Cherni, continuing her hunt.

Cherni scratched his head and moved to a spot where the hunting monsters wouldn’t overlap.

“Heehee, heehee!”

For a while, news spread among the party about the red-haired beauty who was gleefully hunting monsters like a fool.

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