"Forget it. Just deposit fifty gold coins for now. I want a fifty-pull on the Standard Weapon Gacha."

  Since it was a "Newbie Benefit," Kael figured he’d be a fool not to take full advantage of it while it lasted.

  [System: A friendly reminder: Warehouse capacity is limited. Please, Host, act within your means.]

  Pfft—!

  Kael clutched his chest, fighting back the urge to cough up blood. "Fine. Twenty-pull then."

  The System went silent. Aside from the usual assortment of standard gear, two Superior-grade weapons emerged from this batch:

  [Berserker Greatsword]: Grants a minor boost to Attack Power. Passive Skill: [Rising Fury]—The longer a single battle lasts, the higher the user's Attack Power climbs. The effect resets once combat ends.

  [Gale Scimitar]: Grants a minor boost to Destruction Power. Infused with the power of the wind, it significantly increases the user's movement and attack speed during combat.

  "A Berserker Greatsword... this is practically touching the threshold of a Rare-grade weapon," Kael mused, pleasantly surprised by the passive skill.

  Including the standard weapons, the shelves were now almost entirely full. Kael decided to pause his weapon restocking for a while. As a Manager, the priority was moving the inventory; there was no point in hoarding "deals" if they just sat on the shelf collecting dust.

  Just as Kael finished arranging the last blade, a young man walked past the shop window, looking as though he were searching for something. After a moment of hesitation at the sight of the store’s eccentric storefront, he pushed the door open.

  "Is the Master Blacksmith of Cloud Mist City currently in this shop?" the boy asked.

  "Excuse me?" Kael blinked, a string of question marks popping up in his mind.

  Does this look like a forge to you? Why are you looking for a blacksmith here?

  "I’m the Manager of this shop. If you're looking for a blacksmith, you’ve come to the wrong place," Kael replied after a brief pause.

  "The Manager? Well, I suppose that works too." The boy paused, mentally cross-referencing his information before nodding. "Hello, Manager. My name is Chi Yongqiu. Ying Feng sent me."

  Chi Yongqiu didn't quite understand why Ying Feng had insisted—repeatedly—that he mention his name as the referrer. But he followed the instructions nonetheless.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  "Ying Feng... ah, those two siblings." It took Kael a moment to place the name. "How can I help you?"

  "I need a weapon! A powerful one!" Chi Yongqiu stated firmly. He was absolutely convinced that his loss to Ying Feng was entirely due to the equipment gap, never once suspecting his own martial skills were at fault.

  "Weapons are over there. See for yourself." Kael pointed to the racks.

  Chi Yongqiu immediately strode over.

  "Two hundred... two hundred Spirit Crystals?!"

  "Manager, have you lost your mind? Is this a prank?"

  "Is there a problem?" Kael leaned on the counter, his eyes half-lidded and his face a mask of indifference.

  "This is... this is a 'Black Shop'!" Chi Yongqiu’s voice rose an octave.

  A mere weapon was being sold for two hundred crystals? That was a price usually reserved for top-tier mages' staves embedded with rare gems.

  "My goods are always worth the price," Kael said flatly, ignoring the boy’s indignation.

  "Worth the price? What kind of knight’s sword could possibly be worth two hundred crystals?!" Chi Yongqiu scoffed. He scanned the rest of the rack, and when his eyes landed on the Dragon-Vein Greataxe, his pupils dilated in shock.

  "Four... four thousand..."

  "This Manager has clearly gone insane from poverty," Chi Yongqiu muttered, shaking his head. He gave up on trying to use logic with Kael and silently pulled a Sharpened Knight’s Sword from the shelf.

  "That will be ten Spirit Crystals," Kael noted.

  Chi Yongqiu examined the blade. He could feel it; this was the exact model Ying Feng had used. "Now, ten crystals for a sword like this... this is what I call worth the price." Satisfied, he swapped his old sword for the new one, clipping the sharpened blade to his waist.

  "Manager! I’m back!"

  Just as Chi Yongqiu was admiring his purchase, a booming voice echoed from the street. Tiger Hunt strode in, looking like he had just made a significant haul in the Cloud Mist Forest.

  "Perfect timing. Your heavy weapon has arrived," Kael said, looking up.

  "Has it? You've got a good memory, Boss." Tiger Hunt rubbed his hands together and walked eagerly to the weapon rack.

  Currently, there was only one heavy weapon on display.

  "Four thousand Spirit Crystals?! Manager, you certainly think highly of my wallet, don't you?" Tiger Hunt stared at the price tag and nearly choked. He let out a long, strained laugh.

  "You think so too, right? This Manager is obsessed with crystals. What kind of weapon is worth four thousand?" Chi Yongqiu chimed in, finding an ally in his disbelief.

  In their world, magic staves were expensive because they lasted a lifetime; the staff itself was just a conduit. Melee weapons, however, were high-wear items. If a pill was a one-time consumable, a sword was merely a "multi-use" consumable. Spending four thousand on a single axe was beyond decadent—it was absurd.

  "You can take it off the rack and see for yourself," Kael said. He had a decent opinion of Tiger Hunt, mostly because the mercenary had stepped up to help when Iron Wolf caused trouble.

  "Fine. Let’s see what all the fuss is about." Tiger Hunt didn't hesitate. He reached out and grasped the handle of the Dragon-Vein Greataxe.

  ROAR—!

  The moment the axe left the shelf, the containment field vanished. A terrifying, oppressive Draconic Aura erupted from the steel, flooding the tiny shop.

  Simultaneously, the phantom sound of a dragon’s roar thundered in the ears of everyone present. The sheer pressure nearly forced Tiger Hunt to drop the weapon. The axe, which had looked plain and unassuming on the shelf, suddenly pulsed with light as intricate patterns surged across the metal, forming majestic, glowing dragon scales.

  "Dragon... this is Dragon’s Majesty! What in the world did you use to forge this?!" Tiger Hunt’s hands were trembling—and he was a Level 36 Warrior.

  Beside him, Chi Yongqiu found his knees turning to jelly just by standing within the radius of that aura. Forget wielding it; he could barely keep his footing.