Chapter 108: Traveling Merchant

The Nexus Network and the surface under the cracked earth hummed differently...

...

Three days after Terrence promised Ulyssia a call, she finally received a long-awaited message from him.

Looking at the digital display of her wrist watch, Terrence’s brief message instantly lifted her mood.

[Come to the City Plaza.]

Ulyssia brought three people along with her—one was her younger brother, and the other two were friends from the Barren Slum.

Painted clearly across their faces were expressions of high anticipation for whatever might unfold at the bustling City Plaza.

On a massive metallic platform carrying the entire plaza structure, situated right at a corner overlooking the jagged cliffs, a large group of people gathered closely around a single individual.

"Sis, I think that’s the travelling merchant everyone is talking about? Let’s go check what he’s selling."

"We don’t need to do that, Usaff. We have to find Terrence and meet him first."

Usaff’s face contorted with a surge of visible frustration upon hearing another praising call attached to Terrence’s name. Why did his sister always have to say it in such a reverent tone? As if the guy were some kind of holy reverend.

He had heard this exact tone many times before, and based on what his sister said every single time she mentioned Terrence, her words were always full of empty, flowery praise.

"Again with that guy," Usaff muttered under his breath, trying to hide his annoyance from his sister, but she clearly heard every word.

"What do you mean by that?" Ulyssia snapped, her eyes narrowing instantly. "You know how well-known he is for being genuinely helpful toward everyone in the Barren Slum. He is the only person coming from the affluent main sector who actually shows our home any real importance. He fought for us!"

Usaff clicked his tongue in irritation, rolling his eyes dramatically as he took a sharp step forward toward the outer edge of the crowd.

"Whatever. I’m going to check the merchandise of this traveling merchant who sells tamed beasts."

"Hey! I am still talking to you!" Ulyssia’s curvy body cast a sharp shadow across the metallic floor as she reached out to firmly grab her brother’s wrist. "If you walk over there right now, I will not give you whatever beast Terrence plans to sell to us."

"As if he can actually sell us something useful," Usaff sneered, yanking his arm away. "He is just another privileged guy from the main sector. Do we really have to look up to them and kneel to whoever shows us a tiny shred of fake kindness? Is that how shallow our people have become? You know full well that those sector elites play with our fates like they own us. So don’t lecture me ever again about Terrence this and Terrence that."

He aggressively shook his hand free from his sister’s grip, continuing his determined stride straight toward the dense crowd.

Ulyssia was left completely speechless, her lips parting slightly while the two friends who had come along with her brother watched her with deep concern and pity.

No matter how thoughtful and protective she tried to be, Usaff simply refused to see her good intentions.

However, Usaff was a human with his own mind, fully entitled to hold his own personal opinions. Because of that, Ulyssia couldn’t properly rebut his defensive mindset, especially since part of his trauma regarding main sector elites was valid.

As Usaff reached the thick crowd circling around the hooded, secretive traveling merchant dressed in tattered grey robes, the surrounding people were watching the vendor with open mockery, treating the whole setup like a massive joke.

"We were honestly expecting powerful, high-grade beasts, but this is really all you have? These are just completely common B-Rank or C-Rank beasts. Anyone can easily commission a basic squad to capture this kind of junk from the Nexus network," one of the bystanders shouted with loud mockery, earning quick nods of agreement from the crowd regarding his harsh assessment.

The traveling merchant didn’t react aggressively to the insult and simply smiled beneath his deep hood.

"See, that’s exactly where you are completely wrong. This isn’t just a common B-Rank beast." The traveling merchant’s pale hands peeked out from the sleeves of his worn grey robe, showing off a Mutated Azure-lined Frog resting calmly on his open palm. "You can see quite clearly that this specimen is heavily mutated. It possesses a completely different elemental affinity within its body, which makes it far more powerful than any ordinary Azure-lined Frog. Furthermore, you are entirely wrong about its combat rating. It is an A-Rank beast."

Several people in the crowd snickered mockingly at his bold claim, while a few others burst into loud, boisterous laughter, not caring in the slightest if the traveling merchant felt offended by their cruel reactions.

Who in their right mind would ever label a common Azure-lined Frog as an A-Rank monster, when the absolute maximum rank anyone had ever cataloged for the species was B-Rank? Even finding one at B-Rank was considered barely notable, and beyond that, they were so absurdly easy to trap that any novice tamer could contract one on a total whim.

So, seeing this specific creature listed among the three beasts presented before the traveling merchant was nothing more than a hilarious joke to the crowd.

The traveling merchant quietly watched the loud laughter of the people surrounding him. The Azure-lined Frog sitting on his palm didn’t react violently either, remaining entirely unbothered despite clearly noticing it was being severely underestimated.

"If you won’t give the frog proper credit, then how about this Green Blob right here? It is a Mutated Spiky Slime. A rare variant you can’t just easily catch in the wild!" the traveling merchant presented smoothly, but once again, the crowd laughed even harder at him.

"And here I was actually expecting something new!" another observer jeered, crossing his arms. "And what, are you going to present that basic canine next? That’s just a standard C-Rank Grey Wolf! Out of all the beast species coming from the canine family, Grey Wolves are barely decent. Calling these ’God-tier’ beasts is absolute garbage. What a total scam!"

"A Mutated Spiky Slime is literally just a rebranded version of any ordinary blob slime," a third man chimed in, shaking his head in disgust. "They are undeniably the absolute weakest beast class in existence. Grey Wolves can be somewhat formidable, sure—if you’re fighting against them with pathetic D-Rank beasts! But these days, holding a C-Rank beast is only considered decent, and holding a B-Rank beast just makes you a glorified average tamer!"

The traveling merchant fell silent, refusing to argue back. Watching this sad display from the edge of the crowd, Usaff began having serious second thoughts about whether he should just turn around and walk back to his sister.

It certainly seemed like his cynical view of main sector vendors was being proven right.

"You." The traveling merchant suddenly raised his hand, pointing a slender finger straight at Usaff.

Usaff blinked in pure disbelief, unsure if he was actually the one being addressed, so he pointed a finger back at his own chest in confusion.

"Yes, you," the traveling merchant assured him in a calm, steady voice. "Step forward. I will give this beast directly to you for free. In return, you will use it to fight this man and whatever rank his beast happens to be."

The Mutated Azure-lined Frog took a small step forward on the merchant’s palm, its bright eyes fixing on the young man. Usaff hesitated, shifting his weight in heavy reluctance. However, remembering that he couldn’t afford to return to his sister completely empty-handed, he squeezed his hands into tight fists and stepped through the circle.

"On one strict condition—you are actually giving it to me completely free of charge?" Usaff demanded, searching the merchant’s hidden face.

The traveling merchant let out a quiet chuckle beneath his hood, nodding smoothly.

"Isn’t that what I just said?"

The arrogant man whom the traveling merchant had pointed at grinned broadly. He had been shouting the loudest insults against the merchandise, which was the primary reason for the surrounding crowd’s extreme hesitation to place any bids.

What the traveling merchant was offering was actually exceptionally solid stock that a regular citizen couldn’t easily acquire on a normal day. But due to the man’s loud opposition, no one else had shown any genuine interest in buying the creatures.

"Oh... are you really sure about making that bet, young man? Fine by me!" The arrogant man stepped into the center of the open space around the crowd, pressing his thumb onto a sleek card, Pocket Sanctuary, to summon an eye-catching Beauty Butterfly. The creature’s massive wings flapped gracefully, scattering fine, hypnotizing dust into the air as its colorful purple and blue scales beautifully reflected the natural sunlight filtering over the plaza.

"I am absolute certain that no matter what beast you summon, my merchandise can defeat it with total ease," the traveling merchant declared softly, his voice carrying an icy edge of absolute confidence. "And for all of you watching who refuse to buy right now—after this match, I will be selling my beasts for no less than Twenty Million credits each."