God-Tier Enhancement: My Upgrades Never Fail-Chapter 275: Episode _Legend of the Demon World (8)

12.

When Han Simin returned, the atmosphere was... strange.

’What the hell is with this shitty mood?’

It was a peculiar tension that was hard to put into words.

No one was saying anything, yet he felt an oppressive weight from their stares.

“Hey. What are you bastards staring at?”

They remained silent.

Simin voiced his thoughts, completely unfiltered.

As long as he didn’t upset Epia, nothing else mattered.

With her protecting him, none of the top-tier demons under her command would dare to openly harm him in her presence.

The demons’ typical challenges to duel and the like didn’t apply to him, since he wasn’t a demon.

In any case, getting angry at the flood of attention wouldn’t change anything.

Over the past month, the demons had realized that his bluster posed no real threat to them.

His pathetic combat power had been laid bare during his monster hunts.

There was no need to be scared of his shouting when he was just relying on Epia’s protection.

The only thing they needed to be wary of was the serious look he wore when he was enhancing.

“Ah, fine. What is it? Why the hell are they acting like this?”

In the end, Simin gave up.

Demons were simply a vicious, ridiculous, and shameless race.

When he was Enhancing, he could ask Epia to slit their throats or whatever to keep them in line, but he couldn’t very well ask her to handle something like this.

And even if he did, she wouldn’t listen.

He hadn’t completed the quest yet.

The only option left was to ask them what they wanted.

Whatever it was, it wasn’t like they were all going to collectively demand he kill himself.

As long as it wasn’t something that would cause him a serious loss, he was willing to listen.

He might act like he was ignoring them, but there was no downside to building a rapport with Epia’s top-tier demons and those under them.

“What is it? What’s going on? Why is the mood like this?”

“Simin, what did you do this time?”

“Are you all right?”

The Specialists and the others, who had followed him in, sensed the strange atmosphere and turned to him for an explanation.

It was proof that he wasn’t the only one feeling it.

It also made it clear that all those gazes were focused solely on him.

“Sigh.”

No one answered.

’So what do they want me to do?’

Just then, Epia approached, resolving his frustration.

“Those armors and weapons you made. My babies want them.”

“...Huh?”

’Babies?’ In what world were these demons—hulking, muscle-bound brutes nearly two meters tall who looked like they could rip a few humans apart for a snack—considered babies?

He let the minor issue slide.

The fact that Epia, with her childlike appearance, was a more effective Demon King than any of her predecessors was already a contradiction in itself.

“Those things.”

She didn’t seem to be saying it with any particular seriousness.

He followed her pointing finger and saw the magic pouches stuffed with seventy sets of +15 armor and weapons he had made while grinding his stats.

“Ah.”

Right.

He had forgotten about those for a moment.

He had forgotten they were even there.

Normally, he would never have forgotten.

He would never have just left them tossed on the ground for anyone to take.

Even if they were low-level, each and every one was in the level range that sold best on the continent—especially among Users—and their grade was extremely appealing to buyers.

That was just how games worked.

It had been true for PC online games, and it was still true now in full-dive VR.

All items fell into two categories: endgame gear for high-spending whales, and mid-range gear for mid-spenders and efficiency-focused Users. Those two types always sold the best.

Strictly speaking, Simin’s +15 items were too good to be called mid-range, but they were perfect for high-capital players in that level range who were power-leveling like crazy with their eyes on the ranker ladder.

If the grade was too high, it became an awkward purchase.

After all, Users who invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into a single item weren’t planning to mess around at level 50–70 and then quit.

They might quit, or give up on grinding, but no one bought items assuming they would.

That was why these were so good.

They were +15, but not Legendary grade.

You could use them for a while, then swap them out for flawless items at level 100 and beyond.

’Simin, get back to basics.’

To think he had just thrown items like that on the ground.

He really had been out of his mind.

“Thanks, Epia. You reminded me about my piles of money.”

Without a shred of ulterior motive, he pulled Epia into a hug.

“Simin, be careful. That whole scene is giving off some serious loli vibes.”

“Shut it. It’s a game, don’t try to give me a conscience.”

Kang Yeseul tried to rein him in, but Simin wasn’t the type to be cowed by something like that.

He had acted as if he wasn’t particularly interested in women, and there were plenty of rumors on the community boards questioning his virility, but wasn’t this proof that he was perfectly fine?

He even occasionally showed himself to be a decent husband in his marriage to the Imperial Princess.

In a world like Fantastic World, where anything was possible, the only reason he hadn’t just scooped up Kang Yeseul, who kept asking him to marry her, was because he wasn’t some sex-crazed lunatic.

He fell silent.

In any case, the pure-hearted expression of gratitude ended the moment he felt the small, childlike hands groping his butt as she accepted his hug.

’She really is a succubus.’

He couldn’t let his guard down for a second.

It hadn’t felt bad, but he had no intention of offering his butt for free to Epia, who was clearly projecting the image of the former Enhancer onto him.

He broke the hug and picked up the magic pouches.

“I’ll stash these safely and sell them when I get back to the continent.”

’Sorry, kids. I was so focused on enhancing top-tier items that I neglected you.’

’I’ll be sure to sell you for a very high price.’

As Simin busied himself stuffing the pouches away, Epia spoke up.

“Give those to my babies.”

“...Huh?”

“If you don’t need them, then give them away.”

She spoke casually, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Almost like a girlfriend trying to be cute with her lover.

There was a certainty in her voice.

Expectation, perhaps.

She was picturing her demons growing stronger.

Her expression and tone made it hard to say no.

Any ordinary man would have no choice but to nod.

Han Simin, however, hardened his expression.

He put on a serious face and snapped.

“Are you insane? Are you trying to pull rank on me? No way. Absolutely not for free. I poured my heart and soul into these!”

He couldn’t stand for it.

No matter how much he was on the side of “justice,” this was one thing he couldn’t let go of.

Yes, if she asked, he had to give them. And technically, they could be taken from him by force. But even in a tiger’s den, if you kept your wits about you, you could at least avoid being eaten alive. He forced himself to speak as calmly as possible.

“Look, what I’m saying is, if you ask, I’ll have to give them. But if you just take them, I’ll be really heartbroken, and that heartbreak might interfere with Enhancing your twin swords for this last step. Compared to the twin swords, these things are worthless junk, sure, but if those useless things end up making the twin swords go ’boom’ during enhancement, wouldn’t that be a huge loss for both of us?”

She remained silent.

“We’ve always had a give-and-take relationship, right, Epia? My memories are starting to come back bit by bit, so I can understand.”

“Really? Your memories are coming back?”

“Yeah. Our happy memories. It’s confusing because it’s a me that isn’t me, but still...”

“Really?”

“Of course. So please understand. Even though I’ve come back, I might be a little different from the me of the past.”

“All right.”

Epia nodded, a pure, radiant smile on her face.

For a moment, she looked just like the Epia from the old video.

It was as if he was finally seeing an expression that matched her appearance.

Her charm, captivating as ever, burst forth.

And that smile, to Han Simin, was permission.

It meant the deal—which had been half a gamble—had worked.

It had been borderline blackmail, but this was proof that Epia hadn’t taken it as such.

Feeling relieved, Simin dumped out the contents of the magic pouches.

The +15 gear, flaunting its deep crimson aura, spilled onto the ground.

Seventy pieces in total.

The sight alone was enough to inspire awe.

As the demons’ oppressive gazes grew even heavier, Simin shouted,

“All right! Since you demons have so gentlemanly acknowledged the value of an artist, I’ll repay you in kind. Pick what you want, and if you pay a fair price, you can have it. We’re opening a barter event!”

They were too stunned to speak.

The way he said it, he sounded exactly like someone at a flea market trying to offload junk from their storage room.

*

He could, in fact, sell them to Users.

No, selling to Users would be easier.

He could get cash directly, or, as he had with Kenji, he could accept real estate or other physical assets if the price was right.

However, there was one reason he was deliberately trying to sell to the demons.

’I can’t flood the market with too many +15s.’

If he were going to, he would have already been mass-producing them like a factory and dumping them on the market.

Even if he only charged tens of thousands of dollars per piece, he could have been making hundreds of thousands a day.

And the cost to make them was barely twenty cents per item at most.

The lower the item level, the cheaper the cost.

Yet their value didn’t plummet just because they were low-level.

From the very beginning, however, Simin had positioned his Enhancement services as a high-end luxury brand.

In practice, he had only held a few auctions, and there were no +15s in general circulation.

Even Specialist’s gear had topped out at +14 recently, and Kenji’s had only gone up to +14 as well.

Thanks to that, the value of +15 items had shot through the roof, and he intended to keep it that way.

So, in a sense, he had tossed these aside.

He’d said he would sell them on the continent, but he had never really planned on taking them with him.

He would sooner throw them away than haul them over and dump seventy pieces of +15 gear into the hands of Users or NPCs. The potential devaluation of his +15 items would be unimaginable.

Especially later on, as levels rose and Enhancement costs skyrocketed, he could afford to treat those seventy +15 items as the price he paid for the stats he had gained.

But then an opportunity had fallen into his lap.

Out of nowhere.

It was like a whole pumpkin patch had rolled up to his door, vines and all, practically forcing themselves down his throat. What was he supposed to do, refuse?

“All right, line up, everyone! With one of these, you can even block Epia’s attacks! Cheap, cheap! We accept Demon-World-only specialties, jewels, accessories, and so on—anything of value. Bring only things that are actually worth something. If you bring useless crap and try to haggle, I’ll beat you to death with it.”

“You’re really going to give those away for things like this?”

“Of course. I owe the demons a favor, and honestly, I could just give them away, but then they’d get spoiled. You’re a good Demon King, but when it comes to this stuff, I know better. Just trust me and follow my lead.”

“Okay. I trust you.”

“Then help me appraise from the side. I can’t trade them for anything too ridiculous. Tell me if you think what they bring is a fair swap for what they picked. I don’t really know the going rates in the Demon World.”

“All right. When will you do the Enhancement?”

“As soon as we finish handing these out.”

And just like that, a flea market disguised as a community swap meet opened for business.