Return Of The Strongest Player

After receiving the ring, Arthur returned to the inn, collapsing on the bed as he gazed at the item. The metal was a lustrous, golden hue, while the stone shimmered in a beautiful, velvet color.

The ring truly had a majestic appearance and could attract the eyes of most jewelers who were aware of its true value. However, for a warrior, only efficiency mattered. Appearance did not matter in the slightest.

What truly mattered was to what extent could the ring assist Arthur during an intense battle?

'Ascertain,' Arthur muttered internally, causing a translucent, blue window to manifest before his eyes. As he read the contents of the screen, his expression continued to pale, and his excitement gradually dissipated.

[Name: Nimble Ring]

[Grade: D-]

[Trait: Increases speed by 5% when activated.]

Arthur let out a sigh, realizing Blaire had scammed him. He could purchase such an item in bulk, considering the amount of tokens he had now amassed. Although it was still an artifact, it was absolutely useless.

'Well, a 5% speed boost isn't completely useless,' thought the crimson-eyed man, slipping the ring on his finger. Suddenly, a faint sense of rejuvenation coursed across his body, causing his expression to loosen.

He relaxed on the soft mattress of his bed.

'Not yet,' Arthur suddenly stood up. He needed to complete one more thing before allowing himself to rest. 

After taking a shower and slipping into dark robes that had the capability to mask his face, Arthur headed towards Ferhill's Igueno's shop. After a few minutes of navigating through the bustling streets of the Outer District, he finally arrived.

He entered the shop, enjoying the pleasant scent that permeated across the shop. The shelves were almost sold out, with a few customers traversing across the shop. Judging by their appearance, they were players on the 10-15th floor level.

In their hands was an artifact Arthur had personally crafted. Heading to the register, they handed the artifact to Ferhill, who quickly prepared change while accepting the payment. He then handed the artifact back to them.

The customers left the shop with a wide smile on their faces, seemingly satisfied by their purchase.

Little did they know, the artifact was utterly worthless, and would soon destroy itself. Moreover, it would only work properly for a few more floors. Then, it would gradually become obsolete, causing the purchase to be useless.

The tokens would have been wasted.

The customers couldn't protest, either, since by then, Ferhill would have fled and assumed a different persona. He was bound to be caught one day, but he would lack the funds to reimburse his customers.

Basically, any purchase people made was worthless. 

"It seems business is booming," said Arthur, approaching Ferhill with an expression displaying his admiration. Not only had the latter managed to prevent any allegations from surfacing, but he had also sold almost all the items Arthur refined.

Such skill in the aspect of business was incredibly beneficial to Arthur, who valued tokens for his future purchases. As he ascended through floors, his token consumption would increase in order to maintain steady growth.

Tokens from clearing floors or completing quests were not enough.

"You're back," Ferhill muttered under his breath. His expression turned sour before he forcefully mustered a business smile. "Yes, the business has been 'booming'. Almost all the items you refined have been sold."

"Good, good," replied the crimson-eyed man, collapsing on a bean bag chair in the distance. "Are you ready for another month of work? Get a new disguise and get the ingredients I tell you to."

Ferhill let out a sigh. Due to the increase in workload, the man only had a few hours in the day to spend with his wife, whom he needed to meet in different locations each time to conceal her identity.

He had too many enemies, and couldn't risk revealing his identity and location.

Just like Arthur, many would pursue to take advantage of his wife… his weakness. It pained him to refer to her as his 'weakness', but he had no choice. However, he swore to protect her eternally, and mere inconveniences weren't enough for him to abandon that goal.

Moreover, Arthur was providing him profits that didn't lose to what he earned prior to the crimson-eyed man's appearance.

So, it wasn't too bad.

However, that didn't mean he would hesitate to stab Arthur in the back if he ever received the chance.

"I'll gather them soon," replied Ferhill, nodding. Arthur handed him a list of ingredients, which Ferhill read promptly. As he did so, his expression crumpled, causing him to eventually scrunch his eyebrows in confusion.

"What is it?" Arthur inquired, noticing the change in the man's expression.

"These ingredients… Why?" He asked, showing the crimson-eyed man the list. "These ingredients would only be needed if you were planning on making real items, not counterfeit. Why spend so much on these?"

Arthur tapped his thigh, allowing a mysterious smile to blossom on his face. "Ferhill, why do you think people make counterfeit items?"

"To scam others and make money?"

"Exactly. And, do you think it is done commonly?"

"It's very common. I had several competitors a few years ago, but I was the only one who managed to survive without getting killed by the outrage of customers."

"Yep," said Arthur, continuing to smile. "Since counterfeit items are so common, many customers spend more time contemplating whether the item is counterfeit or not, rather than considering whether they need it or not."

"What?"

"The abundance of counterfeit items makes it so that even a single imperfection can cause allegations to rise."

Ferhill thought for a few seconds before eventually nodding. It was true that people seemed to be incredibly wary. 

"That's why we need to make the items as close to the real ones as possible, but still cut back on costs so that our profits are much more generous than that of people who make actual artifacts."

Ferhill raised his eyebrows, nodding as if he understood.

"The easiest thing of all is to deceive one's self, for that makes it simple to deceive others."