Chapter 7: Recruitment Offer
The dwarf confirmed the woman was a traveler.
But he did not tell her Finn was the same.
Had she known he was a player, she would not try to barter, and probably pay him in the real world's currency.
"It's a Lvl. 9 Rare-grade sword. I'll take 50,000$ for it."
"Hmm?"
She blinked.
The meaning of the words slowly dawned on her.
"You are a player?"
"Yes—"
"How is that possible!? The owner said he was sending a new blacksmith with the sword he made! How can you create a Rare-grade weapon when the game came out yesterday!?"
"The owner helped me—"
"Do you also have a Legendary Class!? It's a Blacksmith-type class, right!? You are so lucky!"
"It's not a Blacksmith—"
"Join my guild!"
The veins on Finn's temples throbbed.
She wouldn't let him speak.
If only she was not a customer, he would've kicked her out.
"I've no intention of joining a guild yet—"
"We'll pay you 100,000$ per month."
She interrupted him again,
It did not bother Finn.
He was all smiles instead.
His evaluation of the woman saw a 10,000% increase.
"Thanks for the offer, but I'll have to decline. I've no intention of being tied to anything, not yet at least."
Finn had his own plans.
Who said his swordsmithing ability was worth only 100,000$?
There were problems too.
He was not sure if he could forge weapons other than swords.
A big guild would definitely ask him to make multiple weapons.
"I see." She looked disappointed. "I'm Enryu, Vice Captain of Apex Guild. Our doors will always be open for you."
"Thank you. So, do you want to buy the sword?"
"I do. I can transfer the money first and I'll take the sword after it's confirmed. As for the guarantee…"
"I can vouch for him."
Yurian entered the shop with three mugs of ales.
He gave one mug to Enryu and the other to Finn.
"I'll hold onto the sword and, once the payment is confirmed, I'll give it to you."
Enryu seemed to be considering Yurian's proposition.
It confused Finn.
Was Yurian a traveler like them? Why else she would believe him to remain impartial?
"You are a traveler?" He asked.
Enryu looked at him in surprise.
"You don't know about him? There is a statue of Mr. Yurian in the middle of the city. He is as respected as the city mayor."
Yurian did not seem happy at the praise.
His eyes were dead.
"I'll bring the ale to the master. See you guys later."
After he left, Enryu rubbed her chin.
"Was it me or did he look upset?"
Finn shrugged.
He didn't really care.
He wrote his bank account number on a paper and passed it to her.
"I'll transfer the money by tomorrow."
As Enryu left, the heaviness pressing on Finn's heart disappeared.
He did not need to worry about money as long as she transferred it to him.
She would, right?
"Well, no point in thinking about it. Desire has publicized the shop already. More travelers will definitely come. I can sell it to them."
He decided to log out.
However, there was something he needed to check first.
His character profile.
"Status."
Finn
Class: Cultivator
Talent: Absolute Sword Dao
Dao Comprehended: Absolute Dao Sword (6%)
Qi Cultivation: None
Body Cultivation: None
Spiritual Techniques: None
"There are no levels or Exp bar."
Either Infinite Realm didn't have them, or his bug class didn't.
It was easy to guess the answer.
"Can I even increase my level?"
His attention went towards the Qi Cultivation, Body Cultivation, and Spiritual Techniques on the status.
One of those must be related to his level.
However, he had no idea how to increase them.
"I think I can't create swords higher than Lvl. 10 with my current 'level'. I need to increase my 'level' if I want to forge better weapons and earn money."
After confirming everything, he logged out.
He felt a sense of weightlessness.
There was a shift when he blinked and he was back in his room.
Finn removed the helmet after he sat straight.
He rose to his feet and walked only to stagger and almost fall face first into the ground.
"Urgh, what is this? My body feels sore."
The sense of nausea, hunger, and weakness was back after leaving the Infinite Realm.
It made him want to go back immediately.
After playing Infinite Realm for over twelve hours without food, his health was not particularly good.
Playing Infinite Realm for a prolonged period of time seemed dangerous.
"There has to be a way that I don't feel like this everytime I log out, right?"
Maybe there were better versions of VR helmets to solve the issue.
Or there could be the fabled VR Pods that inject nutrients into the players body directly while they play the game.
He had seen those in the anime.
Though he did not know if they existed in reality.
Even if they did, they were beyond his financial power.
His phone rang.
There was a notification from his bank.
[60,000$ transferred from Account No. 251933XXXXX]
There was more money than what they decided firsthand.
Enryu probably wanted to show her goodwill and build a connection with him.
A smile blossomed on Finn's face.
He was happy.
But, more than that, he was relieved.
"Before I eat…" Finn contemplated. "I should send some money to mom and dad."
"What excuse should I give them? I earned the money from my part-time job? No, they are knowledgeable enough to know no part-time job would give that amount."
"I saved the money? They'll tell me to use it myself."
"Scholarship? It could work but I'm pretty sure they would say I should use the money for myself and the college projects."
While he was seriously thinking of an answer, his phone rang again.
His mom was calling.
He answered it with a smile,
"Mom, I was just thinking of calling you. How are you?"
"...."
There was no answer.
"Mom?"
Silence.
"I can't hear you, mom. I'll call you back. Wait a few—"
"Sob… Sob…"
She was crying.
Finn's whole body froze in an instant.
He couldn't help but think of worst case scenarios.
Why was his mom, who always smiled, crying?
His heart was palpitating from the fear of the unknown.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone