Chapter 199 Solar Flame Scriptures
The light blue translucent display screen showcased the price of the Solar Flame Scriptures, a figure so audacious it practically screamed from the digital interface.
"Did this guy mortgage his house to buy virtual gold?" Eric muttered, his eyebrows shooting up in disbelief.
It wasn't just a curse; it was a sentiment shared by anyone who laid eyes on that price tag. Some might even resort to a more colorful vocabulary, accompanied by a symphony of flailing limbs, to express their astonishment.
One thousand gold. It was a figure that bordered on lunacy.
Eric's gaze flicked to the seller's name.
"RadiantElegance."
The name itself exuded a certain… flair. A certain lack of self-awareness. Suddenly, the exorbitant price tag made a twisted kind of sense.
Still, he had to try. He'd come this far, after all. He initiated a communication request, masking his own identity. RadiantElegance wouldn't know who he was dealing with.
The call connected after a delay that stretched just long enough to be irritating.
"Well, well, look who decided to grace me with their presence," a voice oozed through the speakers, dripping with self-importance and a hint of playful arrogance. "What's on your mind, little one? Need a carry? If you were a cute girl, I might consider it."
Eric blinked.
'A girl?'
'Carry?'
'What in Eldoria is going on? Is this some elaborate joke? Has the universe conspired to throw me into a bizarre sitcom episode?'
Lots of thoughts were flickering in his mind, and he feigned a smile.
"Hello? Cat got your tongue? Or are you one of those… gender-benders? Not my cup of tea, sorry to say." The voice, laced with a nervous laugh, betrayed a hint of insecurity beneath the bravado.
"Greetings," Eric said, deciding to ignore the bizarre preamble. "I saw your listing for the Solar Flame Scriptures at the auction house. I'm quite interested."
"Ah, so you're a customer, not a groupie," the voice chuckled. "Excellent! Tell you what, for you, my friend, I'll even knock off a bit of the price. How does nine hundred gold sound? A steal, I tell you!"
Eric fought back a sigh. This was going to be harder than he thought. "How about twenty silver?" he countered, his tone carefully neutral.
He knew, with a certainty that bordered on absolute, that RadiantElegance had no clue what he was sitting on.
The Solar Flame Scriptures were a rare drop from humanoid enemies above level 10 who wielded fire magic. The drop rate was abysmal, making them a valuable commodity. But a thousand gold? That was absurd. One could purchase an Epic-level item for that price. No one in their right mind would spend that much on the Scriptures.
"Now, now, let's be reasonable, shall we?" RadiantElegance scoffed. "You sought me out, offered me a pittance… you must be desperate. Let me enlighten you, my friend. Have you heard of the Darkstar Guild? Top-tier, third-rate guild here in Silvervale City. The name alone should command a price tag of at least a hundred gold."
The Darkstar Guild was, admittedly, a force to be reckoned with within Silvervale City.
But to Eric, they were just another name.
"One gold," he said, his voice firm. "Take it or leave it."
It was clear that RadiantElegance saw him as a mark, someone desperate enough to overpay. Unfortunately for RadiantElegance, he'd misjudged his target.
"Think carefully, my friend," RadiantElegance said, his voice oozing confidence. "This is the only copy of the Solar Flame Scriptures in all of Silvervale City. But you seem like a decent sort, so I'll give you a special, bleeding-heart price. Ten gold and one hundred thousand credit points. That's my final offer."
"Goodbye," Eric said, ending the call without hesitation.
RadiantElegance stared at the disconnected call, panic rising in his chest. He hadn't expected such a decisive rejection.
'Where is the haggling, the desperate pleas?' he thought.
His one gold, practically within his grasp, had vanished. He cursed himself for his arrogance, but pride prevented him from re-establishing contact.
"Fine," he muttered, trying to convince himself, "You'll be back. You'll see what you're missing."
He clung to the belief that the Solar Flame Scriptures were worth far more than he'd initially thought. Eric's refusal to budge, his willingness to walk away, only solidified this belief. He was playing hard to get, trying to lowball him.
RadiantElegance returned to the auction house, a smug grin spreading across his face. He adjusted the price of the Solar Flame Scriptures. From one thousand… to ten thousand gold. Let's see Eric resist that.
He refreshed the page, expecting to see his listing, a beacon of greed amidst the mundane.
What he saw instead made his jaw drop.
The Solar Flame Scriptures. His precious, unique Solar Flame Scriptures. There were five of them now. Five identical listings. His, proudly displayed at ten thousand gold, and four others… each priced at a paltry fifteen silver coins.
And the number kept climbing.
"What in the…" RadiantElegance stared at the screen, his mind struggling to process the impossible.
'How can there be so many? My precious, world-shattering treasure… reduces to a common trinket.'
As he watched, the fifteen-silver listings vanished, one by one, purchased by eager buyers.
Thirty-two copies of the Solar Flame Scriptures changed hands that day. Thirty went to Eric. One went to a lucky buyer who snagged the last fifteen-silver listing. And RadiantElegance's lone copy sat there, a monument to his shattered ego and inflated sense of worth.
A horrifying thought struck him. He frantically opened the official Silvervale City trading forum.
There it was. An anonymous post, simple and to the point: [Buying Solar Flame Scriptures. 14 silver per copy. Feel free to list at 15 silver on the auction house.]
It was a common tactic in the world of virtual economies. Many players hoarded valuable items, waiting for the right moment to sell. Others, like RadiantElegance, blinded by their own perceived brilliance, rushed to the auction house, eager to cash in on their "one-of-a-kind" treasures.
Eric, witnessing the unfolding chaos, couldn't help but smile. The anonymous post was his doing, of course. He'd forgotten about the Solar Flame Scriptures, their existence buried beneath layers of memories from his past life. RadiantElegance's ludicrous listing had been a timely reminder.
'Thirty copies should be more than enough,' he mused, examining his inventory.
He'd spent a significant chunk of his funds, 4 gold and 50 silver, but he wasn't worried. Gold was meant to be spent, invested. Hoarding it served no purpose.
He knew the true value of the Solar Flame Scriptures. He knew that their price would skyrocket once their secret was revealed.
In his past life, countless players had stumbled upon the Scriptures, only to discard them as worthless trinkets. Then, a lone Ranger, driven by some unknown purpose, had begun buying them up, driving the price up to 1 gold per copy. His actions had sparked curiosity, leading others to investigate.
The truth had been uncovered in a blaze of glory. A group of players, exploring the level 25 Inferno Shrine, had stumbled upon the Ranger, effortlessly farming bosses and elite enemies. The source of his power? The Solar Flame Scriptures.
The revelation had sent shockwaves through the community. The price of the Scriptures had skyrocketed, reaching a peak of 3 gold per copy, and even then, demand outstripped supply.
And here he was, buying them for a pittance.
With Tonny and his team indisposed, and the more challenging quests requiring either a group or a higher level, Eric found himself with an abundance of time. The Inferno Shrine, a dungeon he'd initially planned to tackle later, beckoned.
It wasn't just the allure of farming bosses and elite enemies. The Inferno Shrine was a treasure trove of forging blueprints, the very blueprints that had made that Ranger in his past life a fortune, earning him over six hundred gold.
He made his way to the teleportation gate, paid the 24 silver fee, and stepped into the swirling vortex, his destination: Crimson Flame Keep, the outpost closest to the legendary Inferno Shrine.
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