Chapter 50 Costs and Benefits
Noah Sherlock had a very small frame for a High School Student.
With a cute face and an unimposing expression always displayed, he was always known to be a harmless yet fragile classmate.
As a result, he wasn't particularly bothered in class.
However, he was also a smartass who was recognized as a teachers' pet, so not too many people really liked him.
Since Noah was a smart student who always aced everything he set his heart to, he made a lot of people appear bad in comparison.
All of this culminated into a somewhat average Karma Points for him.
When his turn came to choose his Skills and Class, he could only afford three Skills.
Shadow Magic (B-Tier)
Phase (C-Tier)
Projection (C-Tier)
His Class on the other hand was pretty average as well. He got the [Thief] Class, which dealt in stealth and agility.
It was quite hilarious how he ended up following the path of his Class to the letter.
Noah was able to leave the Royal Estate thanks to this particular ability set that he obtained, so he didn't particularly dislike his Skills and Class.
Not only did the [Thief] Class automatically improve the effects of any Stealth-Based Skill by 50%, but it also had an innate ability of camouflage if one was still for long enough.
It perfectly suited his needs.
With [Projection], he could make people see illusions. Wirh [Phase], he could pass through matter—so long as there was no interference.
And, while he hadn't properly learned how to use his [Shadow Magic] Skill, he could turn his shadow tangible and loosely control it to do his bidding.
All in all, these abilities were incredibly useful when Noah ventured into the outside world to learn more about the world he had been summoned into.
There was a secret he had kept close to his chest—one that no one else knew.
He was a coward!
'I don't want to fight any Dragons! I just want a normal life!'
Unfortunately for him, he had no means or independent resources in this new world.
He was dependent on the Royal Council and the wealth of the United Human Alliance to survive.
That had to change!
And so, by coating himself in his Shadow, this increasing his height and appearing more intimidating, he ventured into the town and observed the commerce.
He was able to ask questions, and the people readily answered him thanks to his intimidating presence.
The information he could obtain was limited, since one needed money before they could learn the more intricate details of this world.
As a result of his need for money, he began to sell some of his personal items.
This allowed him to have his own disposable income, and it helped him learn more information.
But it wasn't enough.
Noah needed more money.
As a result, he cast his gaze on his classmates and their possessions.
That was when he decided on his first target—Rey Skylar.
**********
'Well, that was a mistake.'
Noah sighed as he looked at Rey who was making his offer.
"What do you say, buddy?" Rey was smiling at him, but Noah could not tell what was going on in the boy's head.
'Is this really all he wants?'
Noah disliked confrontations to a fault, and he was also genuinely afraid of a lot of people.
The only reason he had made it this far was because his fear of Dragons were far more than that of others.
He didn't even want to imagine facing one.
"C-can I think about it?"
"No." Rey said with a narrowed gaze, causing Noah to shrink in fear.
"I'm already being very generous as it is. You know I could just read your mind and know everything you know, before disposing of you, right?"
"E-eh?!"
"I could also wipe away your memories so you don't remember this exchange. Why else do you think I'm showing you so much of my hidden power?"
Noah found himself gulping hard.
'H-how did he get so much power, though? Just how many Skills does he have? Does he have a Hidden Class as well?'
He had so many questions, and most of all… he was frightened.
'For the sake of my survival, I have no reason to refuse.'
And so, with his head hung in defeat, Noah gave his revised answer.
"I… I accept."
********
After Noah accepted, Rey sat him down and made him explain more about the details of his expeditions into town and what he had learned.
This included the economic state of the capital, the transportation factors and distribution to the other cities, towns, and villages within the Nation.
The prices of certain goods were also discussed thoroughly.
'Now I see why he went to the town and asked these things rather than sticking to the library.'
These sorts of things didn't exist in the Royal Library, and even if they did, they weren't in as much detail as Noah had found out.
Apparently, Noah also frequented the library. However, since he was a night owl, he usually read very late in the night until morning.
That was probably why no one noticed him going.
"The Monster Cores sell for 2 Gold Pieces each—though that's only because they're Grade 6 Cores. Lower Grade Cores sell for less."
Monster Cores were divided into 9 Grades, based on their worth. The lowest Grade was 9, and the highest was 1.
Grade 6 Cores belonged to C-Tier Monsters, so they were considerably priced well.
Since there had been a low influx of such quality of Monster Cores in the capital, their value was bound to increase.
"Two Gold Coins, huh…?"
One of the first things Rey did in the library was to study the currency and economics of this new land he found himself in.
In this world, they transacted using coins.
There were Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Coins.
One Bronze Coin was enough to buy a low-budget meal. Two or three would get you something nice, and five was bound to leave you with a full belly.
At least, for the regular folks.
As a result, an average man spent about Ten Bronze Coins to survive a day.
This was, of course, not accounting for accommodation and other similarly important factors.
100 Bronze Coins translated into a Silver Coin, which was pretty much the average weekly wage of a working adult in this world.
100 Silver Coins translated into 1 Gold Coin.
With a Gold Coin, you could get a good house for a year. Rarer did commoners get to use Gold Coins, so it was reserved for merchants and high-class individuals in society.
As for the Platinum Coins… they were only used by the richest of Merchants and Nobles, or Royals.
100 Gold Coins translated to 1 Platinum Coin, and with just one of it… one could build a house, buy good land, and deal with top-end business.
A single Platinum Coin could make an average man set for life.
"Two Gold Coins seems like a lot."
"Seems? It is a lot!" Noah responded to Rey in disbelief.
"You sold an entire sac of my Monster Cores, right? They're about a few hundred in a sac. That translates to about 600 Gold Coins."
"Y-yeah. A total of 680 actually."
That was 6 Platinum Coins and 80 Gold.
"And how much did you get that enchanted necklace?" Rey asked with narrowed eyes.
"About… 180 Gold Coins…"
That meant he had 5 Platinum Coins left.
"I don't know if you studied the process of making Enchanted Items, but they usually utilize Monster Cores."
"Y-yeah. I heard that." Noah answered.
The fact that he heard it, and was stuttering about it, told Rey that he didn't completely understand the process.
"For example… your Enchanted Necklace will primarily use the Monster Core of a Monster who relies on Invisibility. The Core will be converted to the essence of the Necklace, while being powered by a Mana Crystal to activate its effect."
Of course, other minerals like Adamantite—which had great Mana conductivity—would be used as well.
"The point I'm making here is that Monster Cores are very essential in making Enchanted Items. As a result, it doesn't make any sense that the Monster Core of a C-Tier Monster will only be valued at 2 Gold Coins despite its scarcity in the Capital."
When considering the transportation cost necessary to bring C-Tier Cores from the other regions which had them, and the other conditions of commerce—such as time and certainty—it was clear that whoever had a direct source of Grade 6 Monster Core straight from the Capital, was encountering a sweet deal.
Such a merchant could either resell for a much higher price, or make his other products for a cheaper rate.
No matter how one sliced it, they would be in an immense advantage.
"That's why the Cores should have been more expensive…"
"W-what are you saying exactly?" Noah asked Rey, his brows raised in genuine curiosity.
Rey smiled at him, a small sigh escaping his lips.
"You've been scammed."