Player Trading Market (Part 2)

"Hey, why isn't this guy's head glowing green?"

An odd pair of players, one tall and one short, both gaunt as skeletons, arrived at Li Si's stall. The tall one stared at Li Si in amazement, as if he were looking at a rare animal.

"Are you stupid? If their head isn't glowing green, they're an NPC!"

The short player jumped up and smacked the tall one on the back of the head. Then he impatiently shoved at his legs and said, "Come on, let's go. What's so interesting about a pile of old clothes? We came here to buy guns and do something big."

"But... didn't you say we flew all the way here to find an NPC?" the tall player asked hesitantly, scratching his head.

"Find an NPC, my ass... Wait, what did you just say?"

The short player jumped up and smacked the tall one on the back of the head again, but when he landed, he froze.

"Find an NPC!"

The tall player stiffened his neck, closed his eyes, and braced himself for another hit.

But the expected slap never came.

The short player clapped his hands, his face lighting up with sudden realization and excitement. "Right! An NPC. What was I looking for an NPC for again?"

"You said something about buying clothes. Some kind of Thunder... suit?"

The tall player looked troubled as he scratched his head and tried hard to remember.

"..."

Li Si stared at the two clowns before him, speechless. In the end, he couldn't take it anymore and blurted out, "The Thunder King Battle Suit!"

"Right! The Thunder King Battle Suit! How'd you know, bro?"

The short player shouted happily, nearly jumping three feet into the air.

"...Bro, that's enough, okay? So you two are stand-up comedians, huh?"

Li Si's smile stiffened. He had so many complaints he didn't know where to start. Where had this pair of weirdos come from? Their parents must have had a hard time raising them.

"Where? Where's the Thunder King Battle Suit?"

"Holy crap, an NPC! It's definitely him—the hidden merchant who appeared at Osir Tower!"

"Boss, I want to buy the suit! I'll pay whatever it costs!"

The short player was small, but his voice was anything but. His shout drew plenty of attention, and then, as if a virus had spread, the entire underground parking garage erupted into a frenzy.

Countless players charged at Li Si's stall. They shoved and jostled until he was completely surrounded. Their faces flushed as they waved cash around, and their fervor nearly overwhelmed him.

"Quiet! The suit costs twenty-five thousand, and the gloves cost one thousand. Money first, then goods. Card payments are accepted. If you haven't paid, put the items down!"

Li Si had seen plenty in his time, and he quickly collected himself. He pulled a card reader from his pocket, slapped it on the ground, and bellowed. His booming voice drowned out the players' arguments.

The noisy crowd fell silent. Whether Li Si's roar had startled them or the price had scared them off, the atmosphere in the entire underground parking garage chilled in an instant.

"If you're not buying, get out of the way. I'll take it!"

Just as the tension hit its peak, a fierce-looking white man shoved the crowd aside and barged through. He tossed a wad of cash onto the stall.

"I'll buy one too!"

"Boss, I'll take a set as well."

"I don't need the gloves. Just give me a suit."

With the burly white man leading the way, several more players stepped forward. Some paid cash, others used cards, and soon Li Si had sold a few more.

But that was as far as it went.

The players had a decent amount of starting money, but they still had to spend it on food, clothing, and shelter. They could scrape together ten thousand or so dollars, but to come up with more than twenty thousand, they'd have to pool their money.

And pooling it raised the question of who should contribute to whom. Everyone wanted the equipment, after all, and even if they could borrow the money, they'd probably feel awkward asking.

"Make way, make way!"

Just then, someone pushed toward the corner where Li Si was, and the voice sounded familiar.

"Boss, where's my stuff? Hurry up and show me. I want to see if it looks cool."

Relying on his broad, heavy build, Li Ritian shoved the people in front of the stall to either side. The short-haired female player named Ye Xi from last time followed behind him.

"Heh, don't worry. It's ready."

Li Si smiled as he shifted the large tool bag beside him. He pulled out a set of clothes folded into a neat square and waved Ye Xi over from behind Li Ritian. "Come on, this is yours."

"Mine?"

When Ye Xi saw Li Si beckon her over, she leaned out from behind Li Ritian and looked at the battle suit in Li Si's hands.

It was a complete outfit: a dark purple leather jacket accented with black for the upper half, purple stretch-fiber athletic pants for the lower half, and a black cape and a black eye mask. It looked like something worn to a masquerade ball.

"Wow! That's so cool!"

Ye Xi ran over with delight and happily took the battle suit, hugging it to her chest.

But the players who had bought the battle suits earlier were unhappy now. They looked at the ragged scraps of cloth in their hands, then at the cool leather outfit in Ye Xi's, and immediately felt cheated.

"Come on, boss, that's sexist! You can't give her special treatment just because she's a woman."

"Yeah! Why does she get a battle suit like that, while all we got was a few scraps of cloth and some wires? I'm not happy!"

"I want a refund!"

Several of them started shouting.

But before Li Si could say anything, Li Ritian impatiently waved them away like flies.

"Get lost, get lost, you bunch of broke losers. My sister spent two thousand game coins to customize this. If you can afford it, pay to customize your own. If you can't, quit yapping."

"Fuck, who the hell are you... Hao Bruce? Holy crap, this guy's Hao Bruce! Get him!"

Playing games was supposed to be a way to relax, so the players had few qualms about mouthing off. One of them had just snapped back when he saw Li Ritian's name, and immediately started cursing and preparing to attack.

"Go ahead and try!"

Li Ritian fearlessly glared at the players around him and pointed at them arrogantly. "Let me tell you, I've already booked this place. Anyone who starts a fight won't be allowed back in."

As soon as he said that, more players emerged from the crowd and stood behind him, facing off against the others. Their matching black suits made their affiliation obvious.

Now, no one dared to make a move. The few players leading the group raised their hands, caught between fighting and backing down, and stood frozen in awkward indecision.