I Level Up With In-app Purchases

I Raise With In-app Purchases – 30

EP.30 She Put on the High Heels (6)

Rebecca, who had occupied the bathroom for longer than expected, finally came out.

“Ahem! Took a bit too long, didn’t I? Sorry.”

“Sit down.”

I knew that women usually took a long time in the bathroom. And considering the embarrassing events from earlier, I had hoped she would take her time before coming out. It seemed Rebecca had similar thoughts.

“Do the clothes fit?”

“They’re a bit big, so I tied them up.”

“Good job.”

She had tied the T-shirt up to her navel and used a rubber band to cinch the waist of the pants. It must have been hard to find a rubber band in the bathroom, but she managed.

“Are you going to drink more?”

“We haven’t even started yet, of course, we should drink!”

Rebecca’s eyes sparkled at the sight of the re-set table. Indeed, the best way to ease awkwardness was to drink. We both drank as if pouring the liquor down our throats. Rebecca no longer looked at her unique equipment like a miser. Still, she had carefully repackaged it and placed it to the side, indicating that her attachment hadn’t completely disappeared.

“Ah~ It’s sweet. Sweet. Thinking that I won’t be able to drink this good stuff from next year makes me feel suddenly resentful.”

Soldiers couldn’t easily drink alcohol.

“Once you re-enlist, will you be discharged in six years?”

“Who knows. It might not be just six years. I told you I have a goal.”

“That’s right. But what kind of goal makes you want to re-enlist? You don’t have to tell me if it’s hard to talk about, but I’m curious.”

I knew the reason, but it would be strange not to show curiosity. She might think I was being considerate by not asking.

“Hehe, it’s not hard to talk about. It’s nothing special. I’m actually from the desert. You can tell by my skin color, right?”

“Of course. There were quite a few warriors from the desert among the mercenaries.”

Rebecca’s expression turned sullen at my words.

“Really? Are there many desert-born among the mercenaries?”

“In terms of overall percentage, not many, but they’re not hard to find either.”

“My dream is to reclaim the desert land. So, I’m gathering warriors from the desert scattered here and there to return and start anew. Everything!”

“Reclaim the desert?”

When I pretended to be surprised, Rebecca quickly explained herself.

“Of course, I know it’s an incredibly difficult task. I know it’s impossible. But can’t there be someone like me? Everyone has the right to long for their homeland.”

It seemed she hadn’t received positive reactions when she shared her ambition to reclaim the desert with others. Her immediate defensiveness indicated as much.

“I didn’t think that. I’ve probably heard ‘that’s reckless, don’t do it, you’ll die’ more times than you have.”

“!!!”

Rebecca was taken aback by my words. I decided to elaborate further.

“Even among mercenaries, there are only a few crazy enough to hunt monsters in the contaminated zones. Even fewer do it consistently. But I did that crazy thing. People around me started wondering why I wasn’t dead yet.”

“I didn’t know that. So, what happened?”

Rebecca, intrigued by my story, held out her glass. We clinked our glasses together and downed the drinks in one shot.

“What happened? I laughed at them. I told the guys who called me an idiot that they were idiots too. I ignored them and did what I wanted. Eventually, they started calling me a ‘money ghost’ because they thought I was obsessed with money.”

I hesitated to share this part. The nickname ‘money ghost’ didn’t have a positive connotation. But since Rebecca had shared something deeply personal, I felt I owed her the same.

“Money ghost?”

“It’s a nickname for someone crazy about money. Since I only hunted monsters, they saw me as someone obsessed with money.”

Everyone knew that hunting monsters was profitable.

“Considering I risked my life to hunt monsters for money, the nickname was fitting.”

“Still, calling someone that is mean. They were awful.”

“I didn’t care about people pointing fingers at me. What could they do about it? Nothing. All they could do was run their mouths.”

Rebecca burst into laughter at my words.

“Puhaha! That feels so satisfying to hear. All they can do is run their mouths!”

“Isn’t it true? They were jealous because they couldn’t even dream of doing what I did—surviving and killing monsters. So they just ran their mouths.”

If they were jealous, they should have gone out and hunted monsters themselves. But instead, they called me a money ghost while lacking the guts to hunt monsters. All they did was badmouth me behind my back. In the end, they were just incompetent fools.

“So, if you meet people who criticize your dream, tell them to shut up unless they’re going to help.”

“Ahaha! Should I really do that?”

“Of course. If they’re not going to help, why criticize? Among mercenaries, there’s a saying, if you want to live long, don’t meddle in others’ business. I think it’s true.”

“I like that saying too!”

Rebecca agreed wholeheartedly. Once again, our glasses clinked together.

“Ah~ That feels refreshing.”

“Don’t let insignificant people make you feel small, and don’t let them interfere in your life.”

“Thank you. Finally, I have a friend who supports my dream.”

It was surprising that I was the only one who supported her dream.

“Doesn’t Sasha support you?”

“Sasha worries about me, so she doesn’t really support it. She doesn’t want me to go. But at least she doesn’t try to stop me anymore, so that’s something.”

It’s understandable that a close friend would be concerned about someone taking a thorny path. Sasha’s opposition made sense.

“That’s understandable. It would be hurtful if she said, ‘Hurry up and go!’ right?”

“I hadn’t thought about it that way, but yeah, it would have hurt if Sasha had said that. It would have felt like she was telling me to go die. I guess that’s why they say people’s hearts are like reeds.”

People’s feelings can change, just like how they feel differently when going into and coming out of the bathroom.

Nodding at Rebecca’s words, I raised my glass.

– Clink! –

Once again, the clear sound of our glasses clinking echoed.

“Stay strong. You can do it.”

With the SSR characters I would summon in the future, her dream might not be as far-fetched as it seemed. Rebecca might not be entirely confident about her success, but I had a strong feeling that her chances were higher than she thought. There were still plenty of SSR characters with incredible abilities that could help reclaim the desert.

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Rebecca planned to stay in the military until she reclaimed the desert. It was a shame that I had made a friend, but the time we had together was only a year.

Moreover, targeting the desert was extremely dangerous.

‘The chances of dying are enormous.’

In the game, I had formed an SSR party to purify the desert terrain, but Rebecca wouldn’t have such reliable companions. She would likely die trying to purify it alone. After struggling for six years to rehabilitate, who knew how much longer she could continue her military service?

Was it because she was a friend I had made after a long time?

The thought of parting already left me feeling regretful. I knew that path was far from safe.

‘The timing is bad. It would be perfect if my SSR characters could join her when they enlist. But can she hold out until then?’

I couldn’t just hand her a resurrection stone and tell her to hang in there until then. The special package I had purchased included three resurrection stones. If I gave one to Rebecca, I would have two left. Two was not a bad number.

However,

‘Is Rebecca worth the investment of a resurrection stone?’

Although Rebecca and I hadn’t known each other long, we had become close quickly. Our friendship was strong enough that I could lend her unique equipment for free. But a resurrection stone was a priceless asset.

‘How much could Rebecca contribute to the world’s purification?’

Even if I tried to assess her value, comparing it to a resurrection stone was futile. Rebecca was lacking in many ways. Even if her skills improved significantly, it wouldn’t be enough.

‘No means no.’

Moreover, there might not even be a situation where Rebecca would need to use a resurrection stone. Worrying about an uncertain future and giving her a resurrection stone in advance? To someone whose worth I couldn’t fully ascertain?

‘That would be insane.’

Of course, she was a friend I had connected with after a long time. How happy must I have been to make a friend when I had none? Even I felt that I had been a bit too elated recently. Having a drinking buddy… honestly, it was nice to have one.

Moreover, Rebecca was special. I already knew a lot about her and knew she was trustworthy.

‘A friend I can trust not to betray me.’

Rebecca had easily earned the trust I couldn’t give to the people I met during my mercenary days.

‘That was the problem.’

How much would the mercenaries who knew my personality laugh if they saw me now? They would say I wasn’t a money ghost anymore.

I hadn’t anticipated the side effects of getting close to a character I knew from the game.

‘Knowing so much about someone is dangerous.’

I had opened my heart too wide. The problem was that, objectively speaking, there were plenty of SSRs who could replace Rebecca. The idea of the resurrection stone shouldn’t have even come up in the first place.

‘Of course, having someone in the military who never gives up until the desert is reclaimed would be great. And knowing Rebecca, she would push herself to reclaim the desert.’

This wasn’t a game world where you could continuously attack contaminated zones with a click of the mouse. In reality, an active policy to purify contaminated zones directly from the military was necessary.

‘Even if I raise them well, is there a reason for them to push through the contaminated zones?’

What if the military doesn’t allow it? Soldiers have to follow orders from above.

“It would be troublesome if that happens. Why did I go through all that trouble then?”

Even if things were stable now, contamination would start threatening the purified zones again. I had spent 14 years preparing for that time.

‘What if I raise them well, but the military has no intention of purifying the contaminated zones?’

I didn’t go through all that trouble and spend money to see that happen.

‘In this sense, Rebecca might unexpectedly become quite important.’

If Rebecca excelled in the war and rose in rank, active campaigns might become possible. The military’s policy could change.

‘And if I attach the characters I raised to her?’

Just like in the game, they would form an elite party to attack the contaminated zones. The contaminated zones would gradually shrink, making the world I live in safer.

‘Planning the future around Rebecca might not be a bad idea.’

I started to lean towards the idea of giving her a resurrection stone. But then I shook off the thought, realizing it was absurd.

‘It’s too early to make any decisions.’

There was still a year left. I decided to think about how to utilize Rebecca until then. Maybe I could protect her without giving her a resurrection stone.

I never thought I would once again struggle to separate personal feelings from business, just like in the past.

‘That’s why they say you live and learn.’

There might be an SSR more important than Rebecca in the future, so I couldn’t use the resurrection stone recklessly. Who knew when it would be available as a product again?

‘It was the first time in 14 years that the package included a resurrection stone.’

Even if I seemed stingy, I hoped to be understood.