The Magic Milk Bottle. Under level 10, it was possibly the best healing item in the game. It was also relatively cheap to produce. However, it had one flaw. It spoiled quickly! Many years ago, Jisha recalled when her best friend pulled a prank on her.
Two players in the middle of a forest were running for their lives.
*>Fae Sol: Syny, I'm almost dead! Why is there a wild boss here???*
*>Synycal: Aaaaaah! Run away! Don't worry, Jishy, I've got us covered! Take this!*
*>+1 Magic Milk Bottle*
In a supposedly peaceful area, the two girls had stumbled upon some powerful mob by bad luck!
*>Fae Sol: Is it a potion?*
*>Synycal: Yeah. Just drink it!*
Jisha immediately drank it, but she wasn't healed like she had been promised.
*>Fae Sol: What? Syny, what is this?*
*>Synycal: Hahahahahaha!*
*>Fae Sol: Ugh, my head feels kind of weird... What did you give me???*
*>Synycal: It's the best potion ever! Eep!*
*>Party member Synycal has died!*
In a whimsical manner, Syny tripped and fell. In her immobile state, the wild boss easily finished her off!
*>Fae Sol: Ah... Come on...*
Feeling the effects of the spoiled milk, Jisha stumbled to the ground. She could only watch as the large monster swung a club at her, eliminating the last of her HP.
*Those were the days...*
Jisha reminisced about when the game was still a game and wished she didn't have to take life so seriously this time around. Though she wanted to get stronger, Jisha still wanted to have fun. Synergy was still fully an innocent game before level 10. Only after this significant level threshold would people begin to realize it was more of a second reality instead.
She looked at Luden who was most likely frantically messaging people and ruefully smiled.
*Though if the battles are too easy, they're not super fun...*
Jisha did enjoy seeing people's face twist in despair, but simple battles were too boring!
She sighed as the cart wheeled out the second-to-last item of the auction.
"This is a brand-new set of gauntlets brought to us by Covan's very own Quex Chet! It's the perfect item for a fledgling Fracasier! The bid on this Epic item will start at 500 Copper!"
"500 Copper!"
"550 Copper!"
"600 Copper!"
...
Once again, Jisha wasn't too enthralled by this item, but her group chat thought otherwise.
*>Jiel: We need this one. I don't know how much money we have left, but can you bid 1 Bronzium on our behalf?*
*>Aphro Expo: Nah, we'll take it. 1 Bronzium, 75 Copper.*
*>Hutian Crest: I think Fae Sol's just made out of Coins. Why don't we just bid 1 Silverium?*
Something ridiculous was just said in the group chat. Nobody could take Hutian Crest seriously anymore.
*>Fae Sol: Why would you bid 1 Silverium for a level 5 item...*
*>Hutian Crest: I dunno. It's not my money!*
*>Censer: Hutian. F*ck you.*
Meanwhile, the audience's bids kept rising.
"1 Bronzium!"
"1 Bronzium, 25!"
"1 Bronzium, 35!"
When the bids reached this amount, Jisha tossed in Aphro Expo's bid.
"1 Bronzium, 75!"
And once the audience heard this, they began to grumble again... But this didn't stop Luden from bidding!
"1 Bronzium, 80!"
*>Jiel: ... 1 Bronzium, 100."
"1 Bronzium, 100!"
"1 Bronzium, 105!"
...
Members of the audience began to look at each other. Some of them were a bit tired of this charade. What was the point of them even being there?
"1 Bronzium, 110..."
Some of them tried to keep up with the towering amounts, but...
*>Aphro Expo: 1 Bronzium, 115.*
"1 Bronzium, 115!"
Nobody, not even Luden, could keep up with these ridiculous amounts!
"Sold to the anonymous Beyonder for 1 Bronzium, 115 Copper!"
Luden shook his head when this bid was placed. He was definitely firing some people today!
*>Luden: What do I pay you guys for if you can't even find information about the competition...*
*>Axis Jack: ...*
Even though it sounded like it, Luden wasn't worried. He looked at his coin pouch, and he was sure he'd win the final item.
*>Luden: We're going all in on the finale.*
That's right - he wouldn't hold back! Straight out of the gate, he was willing to empty his pockets for this item. That's how valuable it was to him.
The cart wheeled the 10th and final item of the auction out onto the center of the stage.
Though this was the item most people had been waiting for, nobody was expecting to win it at this point. They expected another fierce back and forth between the two titans.
However, before Luden could place his bid...
Before the auctioneer even spoke a word...
"50 Bronzium."
A girl's clear, calm voice pierced through the audience.
Despite how quietly she said it, everyone in the audience heard it clearly.
The voice carried power and confidence, but when people heard it, they couldn't believe their ears.
"Huh?"
"Did I hear that amount right?"
But it was definitely real! After all, you couldn't bid more than you had at an auction.
"How is that possible?"
50 Bronzium, or over 5000 Copper, was casually thrown out. The voice did not carry excess ego, nor did it carry any hint of boasting. The voice was above them. This was a simple fact!
The hall was silent.
There was no competition. The one they assumed to be the underdog was a dark horse all along.
"Sold to the anonymous Beyonder for 50 Bronzium!"
And just like that, the auction was over.
The group chat was silent as Jisha inspected the item she had just purchased.
*>Name: Magical Oaken Dagger*
*>...*
*Yeah. This is for her.*
When Jisha was contacted by her best friend in this life, Jisha had already resolved herself to give her a gift when they met up.
When she found the ordinary level 5 dagger, Jisha considered giving it to her. However, Jisha quickly realized that she could easily find something better, thus deciding to sell it off at this auction. But she didn't expect to find something great so soon.
Syny Cytem, also known as Synycal in the game, would, alongside Fae Sol, become a very well-known player in the future. In her past life, Syny had become one of the greatest dagger wielders in the game... And this was only after Syny was indecisive about her class for so long. If Jisha could nurture Syny's talent at an early stage, how much better would she become?
Jisha believed Syny could be at the level of a top player in a few weeks!
And though professionals didn't exist yet, Jisha was certain that Syny would stand above all future pros if she was trained properly.
Jisha couldn't wait to test this theory.
Skill level was an odd thing.
When one begins learning a skill, whether it be a game, craft, hobby, or something else, they would struggle. In the very beginning, one is obviously worse than average.
But if one were to train properly, they could easily exceed average.
This was because a vast majority of people, regardless of what they were practicing, were not practicing optimally. If one received guidance on *how* to and how *not* to practice, they would avoid practicing improper things thus putting their fundamentals at a higher level than most people. Without proper fundamentals, it was impossible to reach a high skill level. But with proper fundamentals, one was unshakeable.
So, in Synergy, when nobody had a clue about any optimizations, those who would rise above were either lucky to have found an optimal path or had exceptional talent in some area. If Jisha, someone who knew about all optimal routes and was talented in many areas, taught a protégé with these methods, the results would be astounding.
Of course, Jisha wasn't going to write any guides. At least not ones that were available for the public. The information she knew about the future was worth an unfathomable amount of money. It was suicide to simply give it away. She was going to use this information to grow herself and those around her.
This dagger Jisha had purchased was one of the many "optimizations" she could think of for a fledgling dagger wielder. Not only was it a superior weapon until level 10, but it was also upgradeable. Usually, new weapons and equipment would have to be purchased or found after certain level thresholds. However, if an item was upgradeable, one could use it for much longer than ordinary weapons.
*>Fae Sol: Everyone, meet outside.*
*>Censer: ... Yes.*
The auction had concluded and many of the NPCs had already left, but many of the players still lingered around wanting to catch a glimpse of the dark horse that took out an organization. As Jisha, Brookie, Jiel, and the seven leaders walked outside, much of the crowd attempted to follow behind.
*Now, it's time.*
Using the Nightwalker's ability "Item Cloak", Jisha cloaked seven items she was keeping in her inventory. Outside the door, she fairly distributed the items that they had purchased in the auction.
"Congratulations! Here's your item!"
"Thank you!"
And every time she did, she gave them a celebratory pat on the back or a hug. None of the men objected to getting a hug from a pretty girl even if the gender of the user behind the avatar was ambiguous.
But once all the items were distributed and everyone was feeling chipper, Jisha dropped a bombshell statement.
"Now, gentlemen. Do you want to know the catch?"
"... Huh?"
Though some of the keener org leaders had remembered there would be a catch at the end, most had clearly forgotten.
"... What can you even do? We already got our items," said Simulator Child.
"I wonder. Do you remember how much money you spent?" Jisha asked.
"We spent 100 Copper," said Censer.
*Huh. I guess I was really underestimating them.*
Though it wasn't anything special, Jisha was mildly impressed that one of the org leaders actually kept track of how much money they bid.
*It's the bare minimum effort they could've put in, but still.*
"Honestly, I didn't expect any of you to actually know how much you spent. And surprisingly, Censer, you stayed within your budget! Congratulations!" Jisha praised sarcastically. "Here's your 338 Copper back!"
"... Thanks?"
"And I'd also like to give an honorable mention to Jiel, who spent 0 Copper and also stayed within his budget. Let's give him a round of applause, shall we?"
"..."
The organization leaders awkwardly looked at each other. No one clapped.
"Tch, tough crowd huh? Well, that makes sense. Because the rest of you..." Jisha said ominously as she turned to the rest of the group. "Why don't we start with... the least debt? Dolphin Killer, amazing job. You spent 200 Copper and are only 2 Copper in debt. Fantastic!"
"What? Is that even right?" Dolphin Killer asked.
"Did you really think that I wouldn't keep track of how much *I* spent? It was all my money, you know."
"... What do you mean? It's our money. We pooled it together to take out Shock Collar. That's what we agreed on," Aphro Expo said.
*They're so naive.*
Jisha couldn't help but *almost* feel bad for these guys... but they had to learn the ways of the world sooner or later.
"Is there a contract anywhere saying we agreed on it?" Jisha asked.
"I-"
The org leaders were baffled once this play started going off-script.
"And Aphro Expo... How sad! You spent 2 Bronzium, 165 Copper and are 46 Copper in debt!"
"..."
One by one, Jisha listed the sum of every leader's total bids in addition to the "debt" they were in. At first, the leaders didn't understand how she was getting this "debt" number.
But they quickly realized that it was the difference between the total amount they bid and the original amount they put in! This meant that Fae Sol had not only remembered how much they spent, but also remembered how much they each individually put in as well as how much more they spent, and calculated the debt value... for all 7 members.
When they realized this, the organization leaders got chills. It wasn't that this math was hard, but it seemed tedious for no reason! Why was she going out of her way to torture them with this meticulous information? She was ruthless!
Finally, Jisha approached the end of the list.
"Hutian Crest... I am so incredibly sorry for you! You've spent the most, and even though you were the richest in the beginning... You're the most in debt. You spent a whopping 11 Bronzium, and your debt is 6 Bronzium!"
"... so?"
"Hutian Crest, do you understand what's happening right now?"
"We totally beat up Shock Collar?"
"Haha, of course. That is true, but what's happened to you right now?"
"..."
"You're deep in the red, Hutian Crest," Jisha said as she lowered her voice. "Not only you, but all of you except Censer and Jiel! All of you are indebted to me and are to pay me back this value by this day next week!"
"... I figured something like this would happen," Censer said.
"... D*mn, we should have thought of that. At the end of the day, we did spend some of her money, too. Well, it should be simple to pay it off by next week," Dolphin Killer said.
The group leisurely discussed this problem among themselves, but Jisha wasn't done quite yet!
"And when I said 'this value', I mean the value of the money I loaned today accounting for inflation. And don't forget interest! Are you all a bit more aware of what you owe me now?"
When the organization members heard this, they were confused for a bit.
"Inflation? You mean the value of money dropping?" Aphro Expo asked.
"Yes, you seem to understand exactly what I mean. After all, the 46 Copper you owe won't be worth the same amount in one week! To equal the value I was so generous to bestow upon you gentlemen today, the number of coins you need by next week will be quite a bit higher, don't you think?"
"Oh, sh*t..." Censer mumbled under his breath. He had a faint idea of what was going on here, and when he thought about it, he was extremely glad to not have spent any money at all.
"What? So how much do we owe you?" Hutian Crest asked.
"Hmm... Let's see. If what I remember is correct..." Jisha murmured as she tried to estimate a value. "Ah, I got it," she said as she clapped her hands. "How about one hundred times?"
"... What?"
Once again, the group was confused. At first, they didn't even understand what these words meant. But Censer immediately did, and if VR facial expressions were realistic, his eyes would be bulging from their sockets.
Slowly, the rest of the group began to comprehend what was just said. But...
"Hahaha... Fae Sol, that is a very funny joke! How much do we actually owe you?" Hutian Crest jovially asked. One hundred times? It was clearly nonsense!
However, Jisha didn't respond but instead gave a bright smile.
When the group realized that she was most likely being serious, their first reaction was dumbfoundedness followed by rage.
"Do you seriously mean we owe you 97 Silverium?" asked Simulator Child.
"Precisely! One week from now, you, Simulator Child, will owe me 97 Silverium. You're a bit slow to catch on, but if you weren't, then you wouldn't have fallen for this anyway!" Jisha said.
"100 times today's coins??? That's a total ripoff!" Hutian Crest fumed.
When she heard this, Jisha wanted to laugh.
"A ripoff? Yes! It's a ripoff. You've been scammed and there isn't anything you can do about it! After all, you were the fools who gave up all of your money in the first place. Did you think there was going to be a happy ending for you once you did that?"
"100 times. I assume you understand what you're saying and being serious... But that would be literally impossible to pay back," argued Aphro Expo.
"Actually, it's not," said someone unexpected.
The group turned around to look at Censer. Being one of the two people in the black, he was a little more confident to speak up about this.
"A week from now, at least in the beta, inflation reduced the value of currency by approximately 50 times," he stated. "This was because earning Silverium wasn't very difficult... comparatively. Once we got to Aurite, players started having a bit more trouble. But... 50 times was simply in the beta. If many more players join the game in the coming week, the economy will be flooded with new cash since every player starts with 10 Copper.
"On top of that, some of those new players will be earning a bit of Silverium in the coming week. Since we were at the forefront of the game's progression, it was natural for us to have more money than the average player. So... as ridiculous as it sounds, especially if you were to account for interest... 100 times is quite a reasonable estimate... even if it'll completely bankrupt you."
After he said this, they turned to look back at Jisha who was still smiling sweetly.
Someone audibly gulped.
But some still weren't convinced.
"Ok, well... First of all, I don't believe that. Second of all, you're gonna make us pay you how, exactly?" asked Hutian Crest.
"That's right! You can't force us to pay you!"
"And why can't I do that?" Jisha asked.
"Ha, easy. We'll just group up and kill you," Hutian Crest said.
"Yeah? Do you want to try that?" Jisha said as she continued to smile.
"..."
Her confidence baffled the organization leaders. Though her level was obviously hidden, there's no way it was that high, right? And even if it was, stat gains per level were pretty small, so even a player that was multiple levels higher could easily die to a lower-leveled one.
"I don't know why you're so confident. You're clearly bluffing. Aren't you just one *girl*?" asked Aphro Expo, putting the emphasis on *girl*.
Jisha's eyebrows would have twitched in real life when she heard this, but she maintained her current expression.
"And... on the off chance that you *can* kill us... We'll just split up and run away," Dolphin Killer said. "You're clearly a beta player. You know how big Synergy is."
"Oh, you're right... I should have thought about that!" Jisha said as she feigned helplessness. "Synergy is really really big!"
By now, those who had been a bit scared had calmed down. Due to the outlandishness of her claims and her unthreatening stature, the organization leaders weren't able to take her seriously anymore. They shook their heads and split up going their own separate ways.
Only Censer and Jiel caught the obvious sarcasm in her voice... But they didn't have to worry. They were in the black.
"Don't forget! You all owe me 100 times! Have that money ready next week! Or else!" Jisha yelled after them.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Hutian Crest said, obviously not caring.
Even some of the random audience members who were witnessing the shenanigans laughed at the little girl yelling after a group of guys who were clearly ignoring her.
But little did they know, when Jisha had given them a hug or a pat on the back...
*>-1 Small Lightweight Tracker*
*>-1 Small Lightweight Tracker*
*>-1 Small Lightweight Tracker*
...
*>Name: Shahar's Nightwalker*
...
*>Abilities:*
...
*>Shahar's Blessing (Rank 0) - Item Cloak: Mask the Presence of up to 10 Rank 0 Consumable-type items by 99% per week. Items cloaked: 7/10. Cooldown: 1 week. Upgrade this ability using Shards of Darkness. Shards: 0/1.*
At the end of the day, there was only one true winner in this auction.
She would definitely find them!