Alex decides to check his current Equipment before proceeding with the upgrade:

    [Armor of Pluto]

    [Visor of Pluto]

    [Cuisses of Pluto]

    [Gauntlets of Pluto]

    [Sabatons of Pluto]

    Alex then activates the Blessing, spending 100,000 FC, 5 small Soul Crystals, and 1 Medium Soul Crystal. A light surrounds him, and the light plate armor set begins to glow in a mystical light. It takes a few seconds, but nothing special happens, aside from his armor looking a bit more high-quality, covering more of his body.

    [Armor of Pluto]

    [Visor of Pluto]

    [Cuisses of Pluto]

    [Gauntlets of Pluto]

    [Sabatons of Pluto]

    Alex quickly checks how his status has changed, only focusing on the changes:

    Alex leaves the skill-upgrading chamber and rejoins his friends.

    “You look slightly different, Alex… your armor—did you upgrade it?” Menchi notes, tilting her head as she observes him.

    Alex nods, glancing down at himself. His armor now looks slightly bulkier, shinier, and clearly more refined—powerful, and expensive. He can’t confirm it for certain, but he’s pretty sure both the physical and magical defenses of the set were significantly boosted.

    “Looking powerful!” Tereza says with a grin.

    The group leaves the building and glances around. They’re standing at the center plaza but aren''t quite sure where the trading hub—also known as the marketplace—is located.

    “Let’s go north,” Menchi suggests. “I smell food... and most of the people seem to be heading that way.” She sticks out her tongue in a playful, cute way.

    “Let’s go, then!” Tereza agrees, trusting her friend''s instincts.

    It doesn’t take long before the group reaches a massive market.

    The area is a sprawling square filled with dozens of mid-sized buildings—and a few truly massive ones—surrounded by a thousand player-run stalls of varying shapes and sizes.

    Alex is stunned. “Where are we even supposed to start? This is insane!”

    “Oh my god! So many stands!” Menchi exclaims. “They’re all run by players. Some of the larger ones are probably managed by entire guilds!”

    “Yeah… and the surrounding buildings are likely operated by Realm workers. We should at least check those out. But don’t forget—we’re kind of pressed for time. Let’s take a look, but don’t get too distracted, okay?” Alex warns.

    “Okay~!” both girls reply in cheerful unison, making Alex blush slightly.

    Despite the looming meeting with The Coven, he can’t help but enjoy the moment.

    Instead of walking straight into the chaos, Alex decides to approach things logically.

    “Let’s start with the Realm-run stores. That’ll give us a good idea of what’s generally available—and a baseline for prices we can use when negotiating with players.”

    They begin touring the official shops. Menchi, unable to resist, makes several small purchases—mostly rare cooking ingredients far superior to anything the general Realm offers. She ends up spending several thousand FC, excited to experiment with new recipes.

    Alex, meanwhile, uses the system to log prices and catalog what’s available. Sёarch* The n??el Fire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    One particular store catches his attention: an arrow shop. Even the green quality arrows being sold there pale in comparison to his own conjured arrows.

    They eventually enter one of the larger buildings and walk into a store divided in two. One half offers all kinds of weapons—though the quality caps at Green, and the prices are roughly 50% higher than what Alex would consider fair.

    On the other side is a repair and forging service.

    Curious, Alex approaches the counter and speaks to one of the workers.

    “What’s the maximum item quality you’re able to forge here?”

    The worker, professional and honest, responds, “Depending on the materials you provide, we’re capable of crafting items up to Purple quality. However, be aware—you’ll need all materials to be at least Deep-Purple to Light-Gold quality to hope for that result. For anything above Deep-Green, we recommend seeking out player artisans.”

    That answer pleases Alex.

    “I stumbled across some blacksmithing materials. What would you offer me for my blue-quality [Goblin Silver] and green-quality [Goblin Steel]?”

    The worker nods politely. “Magnificent materials, truly. I wish I could offer you more, but I can give you 3,500 FC for the [Goblin Steel] and 11,000 FC for the [Goblin Silver]. However, I’m willing to accept any quantity you wish to sell.”

    “Thanks, I’ll think about it,” Alex replies with a friendly smile. “One more thing. Since you sell weapons, I assume you also buy them? What about my [Goblin Sword]?”

    The worker goes silent.

    Alex, now energized, continues peppering him with question after question—until, finally, the worker politely but firmly cuts him off.

    “Sorry, dear player,” he says with a smile that’s clearly forced, “but I can only assist customers, not those here just to gather information.”

    “Sorry, I a customer. I’d like to repair my items!” Alex says with a cheeky grin.

    He spends 5,750 FC on repairs and tips the worker generously, rounding it up to 6,000 FC—not out of kindness, but to avoid getting a negative reputation.

    Tereza also decides to repair her items, which seems to please the worker, softening his attitude.

    With a firm grasp on the minimum item prices now, the group heads toward the player-run stalls.

    On the way, they stumble across a small worker-operated store that exchanges 1 Medium Soul Crystal for 5 Small Soul Crystals, and vice versa. The store demands 1,000 FC in compensation for each exchange.

    To Alex’s shock, the player stalls are mostly empty. The only items they do find are absurdly overpriced, mostly Green and Blue quality gear.

    “This is… disappointing,” Alex mutters, clearly unimpressed.

    Just then, they approach a stall that appears to be just opening. They hurry over and immediately spot multiple Purple-quality items at very reasonable prices.

    Alex’s eyes light up as he spots an intriguing-looking shield—but before he can even examine its stats, he watches in horror as another player steps in and buys out over half the stock in seconds, leaving behind only low-quality scraps.

    “Good luck next time,” the man says smugly, flashing a grin before walking away.

    He looks to be in his forties, dressed in a sleek, expensive-looking business suit that screams CEO. Everything about him—from his demeanor to the subtle swagger—tells Alex that this guy has serious cash.

    “Let’s follow that guy for a bit,” Alex whispers to the others.

    They keep a cautious distance and observe how the man moves. He goes from stall to stall, buying every Green and Blue ranked item that falls under a specific price range—completely ignoring the item type.

    “Let’s move,” Alex suddenly says. “We need to check out another place before making any purchases. We’re missing crucial information.”

    Tereza, not entirely sure what he means, smiles and nods. “Go ahead—I trust you.”

    “You’re a shrewd trader, Alex,” Menchi says, her tone confident. “You’ve proven that more than once—especially today. Lead the way.”

    With that, Alex, Tereza, and Menchi leave the trading hub, heading off in search of the new facility they haven’t encountered yet.