Fantasy Realm – Infinite Worlds Adventure-Chapter 297: Creating Your Own Path Forward, Obvious Trap
Alex, happy with his trades, decides to use his newly acquired [Upgrade Token V2 (Light Purple)]
Please let it be something decent!!
[Noble Shirt +4]
World: Hunter x Hunter
Quality:Light Purple
Type: Shirt
Durability:35/35
Effect:Increases AURA regeneration by 15%
Effect: Increases NEN by 1 (Flat boost, not increased by skills)
Effect: Nen-Retention: Decreases the consumption of Resources by 5%, when using Nen-related Abilities
Note: A shirt created by a true genius designer. This work was influenced by his incredible passion, talent and drive to succeed and has a permanent Aura surrounding it. Just wearing it increases your Aura regeneration. The design itself, with its unique and simplistic appearance, is ahead of its time but not yet recognized by the design world, however.
Note: This item had its quality forcefully raised using an [Upgrade Token]
Note: This item had its quality forcefully raised using an [Upgrade Token V2]
Alex looks at his newly upgraded item with a surprised expression.
Not bad! Durability increased by a whopping 10, the base effect surprisingly improved to from 10% to 15%, and it got another specific Retention effect. It’s a generic effect, but still this is exactly what I need! Perfect!
Well… there is one more stop we’ll have to do until I’m fully satisfied.
Alex leaves the tower and heads towards the Item-upgrade facility.
Back there he notices that it’s mostly empty but quite a few excited-looking players are entering once in a while.
Hehe, I get their excitement. You need to work for a long time to obtain enough shards, but once you upgrade the rank of your item, it’s a bit like gambling. Anything can happen, but it’s a guaranteed improvement; that much is for sure. At some point, it’s the only realistic way to improve your current gear.
Let’s see, these are the items I haven’t sold because I wanted to turn them into shards.
Items marked for trading: 25 pieces of Green-quality equipment, 7 pieces of Blue-quality equipment, Goblin Sword x9 (Deep Green)
Let’s enter a cabin and get to work, Jewel.
❤️ Soulmate wants to go to a private cabin with his Princess Jewel? Soulmate is so bold.
Jewel, you are scaring me a little. You are picking up bad habits from the girls. I have to scold them later.
Princess Jewel is just looking for more varied ways to express her love. ❤️
Alex enters a room.
“System! Disenchant the items I’ve marked,” Alex orders.
The system displays the shard-list again.
Gray & Unranked: X/X
White: 1/X freewebnoveℓ.com
Light-Green: 2/4
Green: 3/6
Deep–Green: 4/8
Light-Blue 7/14
Blue: 10/20
Deep-Blue: 15/30
Light-Purple: 25/50
Purple: 40/80
Deep-Purple: 60/120
Light-Gold: 100/200
Gold: 150/300
Deep-Gold 200/40
[25 Green items will be converted into 75 shards.]
[7 Blue items will be converted into 70 shards.]
[9 Deep Green items will be converted into 36 shards.]
[Please confirm: Y/N]
Alex clicks Y on the floating screen in front of him.
You have received 181 Soul shards.
“System, please Rank up my [Noble Shirt +4]!”
[Ranking up [Noble Shirt +4] will consume 50 Soul shards]
[Please confirm: Y/N]
Man, this system sure is careful. I guess once you reach insane amounts of shards, the worth of the items skyrockets endlessly. I guess these are important decisions, after all.
Alex confirms his decision.
You have spent 50 Soul shards.
[Noble Shirt +4 R2]
World: Hunter x Hunter
Quality:Light Purple
Type: Shirt
Required stats: NEN - 10
Required skills: Basic Nen lvl 3
Durability:40/40
Effect:Increases AURA regeneration by 20%
Effect: Increases NEN by 2 (Flat boost, not increased by skills)
Effect: Nen-Retention: Decreases the consumption of Resources by 6% when using Nen-related Abilities
Note: A shirt created by a true genius designer. This work was influenced by his incredible passion, talent and drive to succeed and has a permanent Aura surrounding it. Just wearing it increases your Aura regeneration. The design itself, with its unique and simplistic appearance, is ahead of its time but not yet recognized by the design world, however.
Note: This item had its quality forcefully raised using an [Upgrade Token]
Note: This item had its quality forcefully raised using an [Upgrade Token V2]
Alex can’t help but laugh.
“YES! From 15% to 20%, that’s incredible—way more than the usual 20%! And another point in Nen! Also, 1% less Nen consumption is pretty damn useful!”
The item has requirements now, but thankfully, they’re no problem for Jewel’s Dearest Soulmate. The system clearly recognizes this item as powerful and decided it needs prerequisites to balance it out.
He recalls his original [Noble Shirt], realizing something important.
[Noble Shirt]
World: Hunter x Hunter
Quality:Deep Green
Type: Shirt
Durability: 20/20
Effect:Increases AURA regeneration by 5%
Note: A shirt created by a true genius designer. This work was influenced by his incredible passion, talent and drive to succeed and has a permanent Aura surrounding it. Just wearing it increases your Aura regeneration. The design itself, with its unique and simplistic appearance, is ahead of its time but not yet recognized by the design world, however.
If you pour an absurd amount of resources into an item, even the most basic piece of trash can become a real treasure.
Unbelievable. This was just Deep Green quality, and it only had that pitiful 5% Aura regeneration. Look at it now.
Soulmate realizes it too, right? If Soulmate finds an item with a specific effect he desperately wants, then it’s viable to invest heavily into it. Especially if that item is focused on a particular trait—like Nen in this case—it’s likely further upgrades will continue enhancing that trait.
Yeah... that was my guess too. I’d say this little experiment confirms it.
Indeed, Soulmate. Princess Jewel is proud of her Soulmate. ❤️
You’re changing a bit, Jewel. I like that you’re opening up more—sharing what’s on your mind.
Alex raises his hand, and Jewel slowly climbs into it. He lifts her to eye level, looking at her with a gentle smile. Then he pulls her into a hug for a few seconds—until he notices something.
She’s trembling…
I’m sorry… did I hurt you?
❤️ …
❤️ A… Alex…
Soulmate… should probably return and tell the others about it…
Slightly flustered, Alex raises his hand again, letting Jewel climb back onto his head.
Alright. Let me quickly check my new status…
Alex Kerber: Lvl 5
HP: 349/349, MP: 359/359 AURA: 249/249
STR: 17 (+3), AGI: 17 (+4), PHY: 17 (+7), SNS: 17 (+2), CHA: 17 (+5), MNA: 17 (+10), INT: 17, SPR: 17 (+5), LUK: 17 (+6), NEN: 17 (+2)
Available Stat Points: 2
Followers: Menchi (Purple) lvl 12 (25%)
Pets: Jewel (Gold) lvl 5
Innate Skills: Nen Prodigy lvl 5 (Genius Conjurer lvl 5, Basic Nen lvl 5, Advanced Nen lvl 5), Statistical OCD lvl MAX
Arcane Medieval Armory: Annihilation Grenade lvl 5, Sealion’s Icewing Embrace lvl 5, Mustrano’s Malice Mauler lvl 5 (Claw Proficiency/Poison Resistance) / Toxic Breakthrough lvl 5, Magorian’s Rage Arrow lvl 5
Free Skill Slots: 1/4, Free Basic Skill Slots: 0/8
Basic Skills: Basic Close Combat Prowess lvl 5, Basic Footwork lvl 5, Basic Endurance lvl 5, Basic Long-Range Combat Prowess lvl 5, Basic Eloquence lvl 5, Basic Concentration lvl 5, Basic Meditation lvl 5, Basic Mana Control lvl 5
Passive Skills: Alexandrian Royal Swordsmanship lvl 5, Imbuement Archery lvl 5
Active Skills: Black Magic (Fire-Blizzard-Thunder-Series) lvl 5, Sword Magic lvl 5
Fantasy Coins: 302,500 Soul Crystals: Small x17 Medium x7 Fantasy Shards: 131
Current Weapons: Magoroth’s Legacy R2 (Gold), Enchanted Runeblade (Deep Purple)
Current Equipment: Sealion’s Might (Light Purple), Armor of Pluto (Purple), Visor of Pluto (Purple), Cuisses of Pluto (Purple), Gauntlets of Pluto (Purple), Sabatons of Pluto (Purple), Nimbus Cloak (Light Purple), Champion Belt (Blue), Destiny Watch (Light Purple), Sacred Emerald Copper Earring (Purple), Hunter License (Deep Green), Noble Shirt+4 R2 (Light Purple), Drakul’s Vitality (Deep Gold), Azure Flame Ring (Deep Purple), Skitterguard Bracers (Light Purple)
Recovery Items: Superior Dish (Dragon Skewer) x20 (Deep Green), Infused Exceptional Dish (Dragon Skewer) x10 (Blue), Wiggenweld Potion V2 x10 (Deep Green)
Miscellaneous Items: Jack’s Spare Silvery Mask (Light Green), Butchering Knife (Deep Blue), Commander Shepard’s Dog Tag (Deep Blue), Quintessence of Blood (Purple), Blood Essence x8 (Green)
Special Items: Baroque Works Invitation (Purple), Destiny Supporter Token (Purple), VIP Invitation (Deep Purple)
Okay. I sold what I needed to. Let’s check the markets one last time before heading back.
Alex strolls through the player market, scanning the stalls.
He notices a few interesting items, but one immediately catches his attention—a blaster rifle from Star Wars. Despite its relatively low quality (Light Blue), it’s priced at 100,000 FC and boasts consistent damage: 85–95. However, a note on the tag explains it can only be used in high-tech worlds and may become partially or completely unusable elsewhere.
Huh. Makes sense. Still… 100k? Damn.
Then his eyes fall on something else.
Oh wow, look at that! That sword looks killer… wait—is that from Dark Souls???
He stares in awe for a moment, his thoughts running wild, but Jewel pulls him back to reality.
Soulmate should get going—the others might be worried. Princess Jewel has a bad premonition.
Alright. I trust you, Jewel. This was fun, though.
As Alex turns to leave, heading toward the Player Tower, his gaze lands on a small group of goblins loitering near the market’s edge.
One of them is smiling at him—a familiar female goblin, flanked by four female bodyguards dressed in sleek suits.
It wasn’t a premonition, was it, Jewel? Did you subconsciously sense someone was spying on us?
Jewel fears that’s exactly what happened. And Jewel already warned Soulmate about this particular goblin. Jewel is worried.
Then let’s leave. No point taking chances.
Alex offers a polite smile as he approaches.
“Good day to you, Miss Glimmerwhisk. Seems you really are someone important, walking around with four capable-looking bodyguards. Sadly, I’m in a bit of a rush—got an important meeting lined up.”
“Oh, Alex… that’s very disappointing.” Glimmerwhisk tilts her head, still smiling. “I’m starting to think you’re a little scared of me. Could there be a tiny bit of truth in that, do you fear this cute, harmless goblin?”
“Why would I be scared or fear you? You’re quite nice, and you really helped me out earlier. I’m just... busy,” Alex says, maintaining his composure.
What’s her deal? Why is she targeting me?
“Surely you can make time for a friend?” she asks, tone playful. “I’ve got a very intriguing offer for you. Let’s call it… a test, my cute human friend.”
Alex sighs, rubbing his temple.
“Glimmerwhisk, have you heard the famous quote? ‘A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.’”
She grins. “So, you’re saying you’re a fool? A little self-deprecating, isn’t it?”
“You’re dangerous,” Alex chuckles. “Your invitation feels like a fish biting into bait, knowing there’s a hook… but taking the risk anyway.”
Jewel shifts slightly on his head, her little legs tightening their grip.
Don’t worry, Jewel. I’m not biting the hook.
Jewel knows Soulmate should walk away… but Jewel also believes this goblin doesn’t wish to harm Soulmate. She simply wants to test him. Maybe this is an opportunity. The risk is high—but so is the potential for rewards.
“Indeed you are clever,” Glimmerwhisk says, her grin widening. “You seem to understand the situation you are in quite well. But you’re not considering one crucial thing—what if the bait is just too tasty to ignore?”
She reaches into her inventory and pulls out a letter.
“Why don’t you take a look at this?”
Alex approaches her and gulps as he sees the item in her hand.
[C-Rank Mission Request]
