“A Tower Shield made by HammerDeezBolt!” SpartanDonkey enthusiastically said as if selling sliced bread for the first time in history. “It was commissioned by a wealthy player back when our mountain had a thriving community. I bought it when he quit, envisioning the day a new player would need this shield. And here you are!”

“Links Shards slotted in this shield will gain levels?” My brow flew to the sky.

“You have a good eye for the crowning jewel of this piece!” SpartanDonkey knew he had me hooked. “This would be an unremarkable shield if not for that. Adding level to Shards is, in my opinion, the best generic attribute to craft onto anything. Well, the best is adding level to all Shards.

“The next would be only Link Shards, as there are usually two Link Shards and one Skill Shard on a full three-slotted item. The limit for a level twenty item is two additional levels. This line is the second-best generic attribute you can get. The other lines—Block Chance and more Blocked damage—are icing on the defense cake.”

“How is this invaluable if a BlackSmith could make it?” I asked, reeling in my enthusiasm. It was a fair question to his claim, or I could pin him for false advertising.

“I call this invaluable because only someone eccentrically wealthy will commission such an enchantment on a low-level item, wasting precious minerals for crafting. Can something like this be crafted? It can. You’re right about that, my friend. But will anyone do it? Should anyone do it? No! If you have the money to pay a top Blacksmith for something like this, I’d advise you to hold on to your money and use it when you reach level fifty to buy better items.”

I grinned. “You’re giving me an unnecessarily obscenely expensive object? Like a luxury bag or maybe a diamond.”

SpartanDonkey blinked, unsure of what to reply. “Not like a diamond. I’m not proposing to you, my friend.” We both chuckled. “Those overly marketed shiny rocks are intrinsically worthless. This shield, in contrast, gives four Lesser Skill Points if you slot in two Link Shards. I’d daresay that’s better than any level twenty shield you can find on the market.”

“You’re probably right about that.”

SpartanDonkey extended his hand. “Do we have a deal?”

“Alright then,” I shook his hand. No way I was going to let this opportunity pass. Four LSPs were comparable to four player levels minus a sprinkling of attributes. “We have a deal.”

“Great! A good day for business.”

“Do we make a Contract? How do we do this?”

“No Contract required. I’ll give you the items, and then I’ll teach you how to share files. It’s less bothersome that way. I trust you won’t abscond after I pay you.”

Savvy. Outwardly building trust while socially trapping me. “Is this taught in Expeditionary Legion business school?” I asked. SpartanDonkey only laughed as he typed the Artas value in the trading tab.

[ Received: 15,000,000 Artas, Smoldering Hooves of Kaghao, HammerDeezBolt’s Tower Shield {3} ]

I was supposed to feel ecstatic from one-upping SpartanDonkey—getting Artas and powerful items for a worthless battle log. To be accurate, it wasn’t worthless as every recording of Herald Stone was a page of the history book of awesomeness. But SpartanDonkey would think otherwise.

I didn’t scam him, however. It was his erroneous assumptions that led to this. Nonetheless, Spartan would be predictably pissed after reviewing the logs.

I wanted to avoid that.

SpartanDonkey, and by extension, the Expeditionary Legion, was a potential resource, a powerful ally, and a terrible enemy. Come the day that I, the Great Herald Stone, would find the escape off this mountain, the Expeditionary Legion would be there to pay me literal mountains of Artas. And along the way, SpartanDonkey would be plenty of help.

Alienating SpartanDonkey for low-level items wasn't worth it, no matter how good they were.

So why was I doing this?

Simple. SpartanDonkey needed to learn that I wasn’t one to be trifled with, that he couldn’t take advantage of me, and that I, Herald Stone, was a player at the high table, along with the big shots.

This wasn’t the time to celebrate my shiny new items. The delicate dance of manipulation had just begun.

“Press send,” SpartanDonkey said after guiding me on how to send the logs via my friends’ list. As an hourglass loading symbol appeared, he extended his hand again. “That concludes our business. SpartanDonkey of the Expeditionary Legion is glad to be of service. Till we meet again!”

“Aren’t you going to watch the battle log now?” I asked, giving his ginormous hand I could barely grasp one firm shake. “Check the goods I sold?”

“I’d rather not disturb you any further.” He gave me a wave and turned away. “I can watch it at my stall. Enjoy shopping with your—”

“I told you that you probably know how we did it. I just want to see if my suspicion is right.”

That made him stop. It must’ve set off alarm bells in his head. He faced me with narrowed eyes. “Okay… let’s watch it together.”

A tiny Zoar Elab and four even smaller Mardukryons stood on a plane floating in mid-air. The rest of the Silent Plaza filled up—the stone blocks tiling the floor, the ruined pillars and statues along the sides, and the greenery at the fringes. Numbers, graphs, and bars appeared, looking like the display screens I saw during my stay in the hospital.

Very similar, in fact, as it showed the vital signs of all five creatures on the battlefield.

“And play,” SpartanDonkey said.

The battle began. Kezo entered the Silent Plaza, and the boss hurled an energy ball at him. Megan, Nitana, and I followed inside. Spurts of black flames slapped the boss. Kezo lured it past mini-me. Numbers went up and down. Different colored bars lengthened and shortened—that’s what she said—and the names of skills used appeared.

The moment I was waiting for came—Totem Juggling time.

Little Herald placed a Totem in Zoar Elab’s way. I gave SpartanDonkey a sidelong glance. His four eyes widened into perfect circles. Did he know what I was going to do?

Mini-me debuffed the literal mini-boss—haha, nice pun—and plopped another Totem after the first was destroyed. The Totem Juggling went into full swing. Miniature Kezo, Megan, and Nitana attacked the distracted Zoar Elab.

The tiny Mardukryon statue looked hilarious, spinning round and round, but SpartanDonkey didn’t share my thoughts. His face contorted in a frown.

The battle continued. SpartanDonkey exhaled long, his wrinkled face relaxed. He deliberately nodded. Did he realize his mistake? Then his shoulders heaved as he chuckled. Did he find the tiny version of my party running around to survive funny?

He could be laughing at himself for getting ‘tricked’ into overpaying. He was yet to know he didn’t bring enough gifts.

“Was I right?” I asked. “Did you already know about this build?”

“I’m familiar with using Totems this way,” he said, still chuckling. “But I’ve never seen or heard it Linked with Enraging Call. Yes, Replicant Totems are paired with low-cooldown, crowd-control skills. But there are dozens of stronger and more reliable CC than Enraging Call. What you did here wouldn’t work for all enemies.”

“I know. I couldn’t hold the last phase of Zoar Elab—the full plant monster form. Lucky for us, it was almost dead by then.”

“It’s typically the player who’ll kill their own Totems,” SpartanDonkey explained. “The most popular Replicant Totem Spam build is called the ‘Necro Hug.’ Undead Necromancers specialized in CC for PvP summon Replicant Totems that cast the Clutches of the Damned, then they sacrifice the Totem with a ritual spell to heal back a portion of the cost. If built right, it can hold someone for a very long time. Your way is a very inefficient and suicidal Replicant Totem Spam. But kudos to you for making it work.”

Ehem, I’m calling it Totem Juggling. I noticed he wasn’t calling me ‘my friend’ anymore, and he spoke in a monotone. Though he kept the conversation going, I could sense the frustration bubbling beneath.

I didn’t say anything, waiting for him to show it.

SpartanDonkey stopped the playback. Zoar Elab and the mini-version of my party struck a pose mid-battle. Numbers, graphs, and other data froze.

With a smirk, he sarcastically said. “That was probably the most expensive movie ticket I’ve paid for.”

“How so? Isn’t Luds paying for this?”

“He is,” SpartanDonkey said, dropping all pretension. “But what he paid was far from the value of those two items I gave you. Oh well, at least Luds will be happy. Or maybe not.”

“Does that mean only a small portion of the payment was for what actually happened in the fight?” I asked. SpartanDonkey shrugged, opening his mouth to reply. “And the majority was for Mehubanarath’s secret… which you didn’t find. I did tell you I haven’t used anything from him.”

SpartanDonkey sighed. “Yes, you did.”

“That’s not entirely accurate.” I scrolled through the list of skills cast during battle and tapped [Healing Touch]. “I got this from him.”

“I know how to get the Healing Touch Shard,” SpartanDonkey curtly said, practically snapping.

A Shard? I pointed out [Healing Touch] because SpartanDonkey might’ve missed it or thought it was a random healing skill I got from a minor quest. This was better.

I dramatically said, “It’s not just a Shard.”

I cast [Penitent Fortune Healing]. Glowing chains circled me. I cast [Healing Touch] on SpartanDonkey. Fortunately, luck cooperated—phantom Mardukryon horns appeared on top of him, indicating the double heal effect.

“It’s a complete Ocadule,” I said. “What I got from Mehubanarath is an Ocadule called Aritu Ancestral Form.”

“I was right!” SpartanDonkey snapped his fingers and pointed at me. “The Poison Ocadule from Bawu! You got a different path because of Mehubanarath’s Ocadule. It must’ve affected Gula and—”

“Nope,” I cut him off. “That’s a whole different matter. If you want to know, you’ll have to pay for it—if I decide to sell it anyway. Speaking of payment, you now know I have an Ocadule from that giant hermit roasting meat in the Golden Forest. I’ll even take it a step further and tell you that besides this Ocadule, there are two more choices.”

“Three choices?” SpartanDonkey whispered. “Rewards for a hidden achievement!”

“And so is this.” I used [Greater Pyro Shell].

“Pyro shell?”

“Are you sure?” I hoped my version would have a different visual effect than the basic one.

“It doesn’t look as transparent. It’s also bigger and brighter. An upgrade of Pyro Shell? Is this from a hidden achievement too?”

“I think that’s more than enough information for the Kaghao Hooves and crafted shield.”

“As a member of the Expeditionary Legion, I uphold even trades,” SpartanDonkey said, thumping his chest with his fist. “Give me a couple of days, my friend, and I’ll be sure to give you—”

“No, no, no. I’m not asking for anything.” I had the upper hand. I wasn’t going to nullify it by allowing him the opportunity to make it even. “Think of it as a friendly free sample,” I added, copying his ‘free sample’ shtick telling me about Bawu before, though the information I gave was far more valuable in comparison.

“As friends, I hope you’re open to negotiating,” SpartanDonkey said, winking his two right eyes.

“Some other time. I’m busy with something right now. And you’re probably busy yourself.”

“I can make time. I’m free as—"

“You’re going to be busy,” I said. “Here’s another free sample. A world quest is probably going to happen soon. Can you contact the hibernating Mardukryon community to tell them about it?”