Ark

Ark: Volume 4 Chapter 3

Meeting Sid Again

Giran’s main street was as noisy as ever. Even at dawn, the Trade district in particular was so crowded that there was no space to walk due to the players selling and buying goods. With the exception of a space where three or four people could barely slip out, the street was covered with stalls. It looked exactly like a European flea market that you could see on TV. There were all kinds of items, from material items worth several Coppers to Rare items; there was nothing they didn’t have.

If you used the auction house, you had to pay of fee of 5%. As the price of the item grew higher, the fee became very burdensome. From the buyer’s perspective as well, there were a lot of players who prefered direct dealing since they could get the item they needed right away. However, there was the risk of getting scammed in a direct deal if you didn’t know the market price, so you had to be careful.

‘Well, though that doesn’t matter to me…’

Ark hadn’t been interested in business like that from the very beginning. He could get the items he needed on his own, and it was Ark’s opinion that it was more profitable to just use the time to hunt rather than do business to save on the fee.

Ark went through the flea market without much thought. He intended to quickly sell off the japtem he had gathered from the thief gangs in the store and go bounty hunt. But at the end of the flea market, he suddenly stopped.

In Ark’s gaze, shoddy clothes were piled up in a secluded corner.

– We are having a clothing sale for all items. Flat price of 50 Coppers!

In New World, casual clothes existed in addition to armor. They didn’t have any defense, but they were worn in villages or cities to look cool. Also, there were cases where expensive clothes had an option called ‘Charm.’ Charm was a stat that influenced intimacy when talking to an NPC. That’s why Merchants went around with several articles of such high-class clothes. Naturally, fancy clothes like that were as expensive as armor.

The clothes piled up on the stall right now were just casual clothes. They could only be used for something like trying them on once for a change of mood. Of course, since Ark had no interest in clothes in reality either, there was no reason for him to be interested in game clothes.

What interested Ark wasn’t the clothes, but the Hobbit Merchant squatting behind them. The player who was so absorbed in needlework that it was as if he couldn’t feel Ark’s gaze on him was Sid.

‘Why is Sid selling clothes here?’ Ark tilted his head.

Sid had changed his profession to Trader. It was a profession where one would buy and sell trade goods from distant villages or cities. But he was making and selling clothes worth just 50 Coppers? Moreover, the feeling that emanated from Sid wasn’t bright and cheerful, like before. As if the backdrop around him had changed to grayscale, he gave off a heavy feeling of gloominess.

“Hey…”

As if afraid of Ark’s shadow, Sid flinched as he quickly bowed his head. “Ah! We-welcome. I am selling all kinds of apparel at a special discounted price. Use high quality goods to get off on the right start every day. We even have the feathered hat and small fashion items that are popular these days. Please buy one. It’s only 50 Coppers. If you buy two, I’ll cut 10 Coppers for you.”