Fantasy Realm [One Piece] [Harry Potter] [Naruto] - [Progression] [LitRPG]

Chapter 26: The Trading Hub: A Poor Man's Nightmare - Time to make some money!

Alex arrives back in his spotless and empty room. It's a stark contrast to his cramped apartment, which is filled with old things and trash lying around.
He slowly walks the long way towards the trading hub, checking his status and formulating a plan to escape his poverty.

Alex Kerber: Lvl 1
HP: 80/80, MP: 80/80
STR: 7, AGI: 7, PHY: 7, SNS: 7, CHA: 7, MNA: 7, INT: 7 SPR: 7, LUK: 7
Available Stat Points: 0
Innate Skills: Genius Conjurer lvl 1, Statistical OCD lvl MAX
Free Skill Slots: 1/2, Free Basic Skill Slots: 0/8
Basic skills: Basic Close Combat Prowess lvl 1, Basic Footwork lvl 1, Basic Endurance lvl 1, Basic Long-Range Combat Prowess lvl 1, Basic Eloquence lvl 1, Basic Concentration lvl 1, Basic Meditation lvl 1, Basic Mana Control lvl 1
Passive Skills: Pistol Proficiency lvl 1
Active Skills: Annihilation Grenade lvl 1
Fantasy Coins: 0 Soul Crystals: Small x1
Current Weapons: Mr. 5's Revolver (Deep Blue), Solid Marine Saber (Light Green), Navalia Hunting Bow (White)
Current Armor: Navalia Fur Armor (White), Navalia Fur Boots (White), Navalia Fur Gauntlets (White)
Miscellaneous Items: Navalia Wolf Jerky x14 (Gray), Navalia Arrow x66 (White)

After a few minutes, he reaches the central square and spots the road leading to the trading hub.

His current situation isn't looking good. He has 0 FC and no way to trade. Apparently, real money is worthless here. One of Roja's guildmates even buys white items for 10,000 freaking USD. "What a whale! Maybe joining them wouldn't be such a bad idea after all... well, I still have time to think about it. If I don't want to join, I won't. I prefer solo play, to be honest. I'm not much of a team player, and I'd hate to stay back or carry weaker people through quests just to stay grouped up. Maybe I can just join, sell them grenades at a high price, and do missions solo... That'd be perfect," Alex schemes.

After considering his current options, Alex realizes the only logical thing to do is sell some stuff. But what can he sell?

Thinking it over, Alex settles on selling his hunting bow and arrows. With his new pistol skills and revolver, the bow just isn't worth the effort anymore. The revolver is far more powerful, accurate, and doesn't rely on limited, subpar arrows. There's no reason to keep outdated gear when he can focus on mastering a real weapon.

The armor he's wearing, despite having nearly full durability, likely won't fetch a good price. How much could he really get for a slightly used white-quality armor with no effects? Not much—at least, Alex wouldn't pay much for it himself. These kinds of items are easy to come by in different worlds. Besides, he has no intention of entering any world without some form of protection.

The hunting bow, on the other hand, is a decent weapon, and he also has 66 arrows. There must be someone out there looking for a ranged weapon or, at the very least, someone who already has one and just needs arrows.

If he can't sell those two things, he has only one choice left—sell his Soul Crystal. But he desperately wants to avoid that since they're rare, and Alex needs it to level up his innate [Genius Conjurer] skill—assuming he survives the next mission. Demanding some guidance, Alex rudely messages Roja, praying she'll respond soon.

As he moves through the central plaza, he curiously eyes the different people, momentarily distracted by a beautiful older woman with a body Alex can only describe as the perfect MILF type. Just as he's admiring her, 1337 rudely interrupts his thoughts.

[If this were the real world, I would ZAP you until you ceased this foolishness. If you don't stop embarrassing yourself like this, I'll have to introduce a ZAP bank to get you to behave.]