Product 77 - Cliche Novel

D/Z SAGA Fan Cafe.

A gaming cafe doesn't hold much significance as a community, to be honest.

In reality, South Korea's gaming strategy websites are divided into several factions, and it varies which community stands out the most for each game.

Gallery, Web, Live, Channel—there were countless strategy websites, including cafes and open forums. However, I can confidently say that D/Z SAGA had the largest cafe I managed.

As the first and lifelong operator, I had a lot on my plate. I had to deal with troublemakers, take note of the likable individuals, and handle countless other tasks.

Especially when the Novel Board Manager and the Fan Art Board Manager formed a romantic connection and solidified their camaraderie, splitting the cafe into two factions, I felt like I was at my wit's end.

I diplomatically separated their faction, encouraging them to enjoy their love while maintaining a friendly atmosphere. From that point on, the members started praising me as 'Super Youngjin.' Thankfully, it all ended well.

Anyway, this is a story from when I was living as the amiable cafe master 'Super Youngjin.'

-EveDanTotalAssembly: What does Youngjin-zuo do on a holiday?

-SuperYoungjin: I play games.

-EveDanTotalAssembly: Seriously? Don't you do anything else? Is there anything left unfinished? What about a setup?? Didn't you survive Rudika in Act 1???

-SuperYoungjin: I'm trying to achieve the true ending by leveling up Eve with physics. I've reached Act 7. It's really not easy to start over just before the characters die.

-EveDanTotalAssembly: Why on earth do you do that???

-CallUsSiEllaYang: What's this? Are you getting close to Youngjin-zuo? Ha, I'm starting to like the Eve Unit again;

-EveDanTotalAssembly: You're practically in the cafe 24/7; Look at the chat logs;; Youngjin-zuo is doing something really strangeㅋㅋㅋㅋ

-CallUsSiEllaYang: ㅁㅊ ㅅㅂ; You're leveling up Eve as a water-damage dealer?? And everyone survives?? Why?? Do?? You? Do? That? Why? Potatoes???

-SuperYoungjin: Because I want to.

EveDanTotalAssembly: Oh; That's pretty cool;;;

CallUsSiEllaYang: You nailed it;;;;;;;; Wow;;;;;;;;

From that point on, my famous phrase became "Because I want to." Well, anyway, it's an old memory.

So why did I end up living like this?

Why did I become obsessed with such a cursed game to the point of death?

"···I wanted to, laugh a bit more, with Kelters···."

That was because of the first heroine I killed.

She left a thorn in my heart and disappeared.

What I'm trying to say is, even when I was struggling to see the ending by leveling up Eve as a water-damage dealer, I strictly adhered to my own rules.

If a character that joined the party seemed likely to die, I would turn off the game and start over from the beginning.

That was the playstyle of veteran Lee Young-jin, and because I completely empathized with the characters, I immersed myself in their stories, which ultimately led to the end of my addiction to the game.

There were a few other rules, but anyway.

And when this Jephryn and D/Z SAGA unfolded before my eyes as reality, I tried to set aside those thoughts for a while.

Reality had always been harsh to me, so even when the game became a reality, I believed I should live for myself.

However, when Aila joined my party, the inner Lee Young-jin in me wondered, "What will you do if Aila faces danger?"

As a 29-year-old man, struck and killed by a convenience store delivery truck, a forgotten soul. While I accepted myself as Wolfram and tried to live as Wolfram, I couldn't shake off the questions posed by the little Super Youngjin within me.

"Hmm."

It may not be a grand resolution, but at this point, I guess I can't bear to see Aila exit in Act 3.

"I should do what I can."

***

The following day.

Oddly enough, a combination of Aila and Rudika appeared.

To be precise, they didn't arrive together, but it seemed like they had crossed paths on the way.

"Wolfram, I'm here."

"Wolfram! Rudika is here!"

After the last field trip, Rudika and Aila had grown quite friendly.

"It's getting warmer. It's the end of May, but if it stays like this, I'm concerned about June."

"Is that so? The season is warming up. Rudika doesn't really experience that."

"Really? Don't you feel the heat?"

"···Hmm. Well, not really. I don't really feel hot or cold."

Aila fanned herself with her hand, and Rudika tilted her head. It was likely due to special training that Rudika didn't feel the heat, unlike Aila.

I casually prepared some drinks for the two of them. Since Rudika didn't feel hot or cold, I made something entirely unique.

"What's this, Wolfram?"

"It's a beverage with ground cinnamon beans."

"What's the effect?"

"···There's a spicy flavor hidden behind the sweetness."

"······! Wolfram is truly Rudika's best comrade!"

Afterwards, Rudika downed the drink and began murmuring, 'This spiciness is delightful. Hmm. This deserves a perfect score.' 'One day, I'd like to invite Wolfram to the Shadow family. The family's chefs could learn a lot from him!'

Once she finished, Rudika nodded with a smile on her face.

"Thank you, Wolfram! Rudika is satisfied!"

"······Hmm."

If she could use words like "spiciness" or "chef," it would be nice to adjust her slightly skewed language system.

What should I say now? Perhaps I should suggest adjusting her way of speaking…

"By the way, Rudika, did you come to the Magic Department to learn how to handle magic? Have you made significant progress?"

"Hmm. Right now, I think I can be considered a wizard up to the 6th tier. In fact, I am one."

"Is that so? So, did you manage to dispel a scarecrow protected by 6th-tier magic?"

"·········Hmm. Well, something like that. It was akin to a scarecrow… Yep. It didn't feel quite satisfying."

Rudika's grasp of language is slightly askew. Wolfram is a good kid with only one life to live.

"Ah, senior! I'm here! It's a bit warm! Do you have anything cool?"

"Ah, hello. Senior Wolfram…"

Following that, Nephti and Mille-feuille arrived, and the now regular group of four secured a table and began their conversation. Thus, just like any other day, the regular customers ordered a single drink and meal, spending four hours at the convenience store before getting ready to depart.

As one by one they left, just before Aila was about to take her leave, a thought crossed my mind.

"Aila."

"Yes, Wolfram."

"What's your current equipment situation?"

"···My equipment?"

"Ah, my apologies. I misspoke. I meant to ask about your equipment for battles. Your weapon, armor, and any accessories you use. Can you tell me about them?"

"Hmm…? I'm not sure why you're curious, but I don't use a weapon when I cast magic."

"Wouldn't it be more efficient to use one?"

"Ah… Staffs or Magic Bangles with good effects are rare to come by. There are many fakes out there. I just rely on my own abilities in battle."

"I see."

"And as for my casual clothes… you know, the white blouse and black skirt. They're somewhat enchanted for purification."

"What about accessories?"

"I don't really have any accessories with magical enchantments. But why do you ask?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just a curious question."

"Hehe. See you tomorrow, Wolfram."

"Hmm. Be careful on your way home. You can request the last regular shuttle of Patrasch to take you to the Glast Heim dormitory."

"Oh, I'll gladly accept your kind offer."

Aila said this with a cheerful smile and left the convenience store.

Once I made sure no one was around, I let out a deep sigh.

"Is that really her equipment situation?"

I was so shocked that I almost said something that barely fit within the limits of 1st-tier royal lineage.

If someone asked me to clear Act 3 with that equipment, I'm confident I'd grab the keyboard and use it as a weapon.

***

A few days later, delivery personnel from Maestro and Tristar arrived.

"The total cost is 8 million Rin."

"On our end, it's a total of 13 million Rin."

"Hmm. Let's double-check the amount."

A purchase totaling over 20 million Rin. Even with the money I have now, it's a significant expense. However, it's an expenditure that must be made at this time.

Moreover, considering the world's prices, it's actually a real bargain.

Examining the roughly processed gemstones and metal frames that looked like they were stamped out, I nodded to myself.

In the game, even the lowest-grade gems weren't this expensive, but considering that monsters might appear in the mines, it was a pretty high price.

And unlike in-game materials, which are uniformly produced with standard effects and sizes, these frames are handmade. So, considering the labor costs, the price is fairly reasonable.

Anyway, as I gazed at the mountain of gemstones and metal frames, what I was about to do was very straightforward.

Plain labor. In gaming terms, it was grinding work.

[Accessory Crafting]

[You are crafting an accessory.]

[What will you make?]

Wearable.

That is, crafting accessories with enchantments (magic enchantments) that fit into equipment slots. In the game, these are distinct from regular accessories and are commonly referred to as enchanted accessories.

Anyway, enchanted accessories are used as decorations or for character flair, quite different from the likes of fake graduation rings used for Zolf's graduation ceremony, for instance.

[Brooch selected.]

[If you include a special recipe, the brooch might gain mysterious powers!]

To enchant magic, two types of materials are essential.

One is a mineral that can be considered a 'gemstone.' The other is the 'metal frame' that encloses the gemstone.

In other words, if you make a ring, even a worthless gemstone must be embedded in the center, and the gemstone must be completely surrounded by metal.

Thus, if you focus on making wearable enchanted accessories, leveling up the skill becomes a monumental task consuming a great deal of money. It's an incredibly demanding skill.

But it must be done.

I activated the skill and placed a gemstone in front of me, then clicked it into the frame. After repeating this process quickly three times, a message appeared in front of me.

[Brooch crafting successful.]

[Brooch crafting successful.]

[Mystical Brooch crafting successful.]

"[Item Appraisal]"

[Low-grade Brooch Containing Weak Light Magic Blessing]

[9T]

[A brooch that slightly enhances the power of your light magic. Otherwise, it's not particularly special.]

···Hmm.

While the enhancement is subtle, the fact that an enchanted accessory was created is promising.

After crafting three of them, keeping the one with the magic enchantment and releasing the other two, I removed the gemstones with a 'pop'. The gemstones popped out, and the brooches reverted back to their frames and stones.

"Hmm. So the extraction process works."

Yes, this is the grind known as an extraction run, using the method of returning made accessories to their original materials. Craft them, extract the ones without enchantments, and enchant them again. One might wonder if you could just keep recycling them, but…

[Item Disassembly Failed!]

[The item is destroyed!]

With a crunch, the metal frame tears, and the gemstone breaks. It's not due to my strength. It fails automatically due to error correction. Truly frustrating.

"Sigh."

My head is spinning. Crafting an accessory consumes 0.5 of my magic power per skill, and appraising items consumes the same. Even after drinking the mana potion Aila brought me, 3 magic power has been depleted, leaving me with just 1 recovered magic power.

Accessory crafting, being a magic skill, comes with its burdens for continuous use.

"Nevertheless, I have to keep going."

In the corner, metal frames and gemstones are piled up in burlap sacks. If I turn all of these into brooches, I might get something usable.

"It's a good effort for Aila, but it feels like a long shot."

As I grumbled, I started crafting again, and fanfare rang in my head.

[Accessory Crafting Major Success!]

[Congratulations! You've crafted an item that's exceptional for your level!]

[You have successfully crafted a Brooch with Subtle Power!]

···Huh?

Why did this happen?

"The chance of a major success at skill level 1 is about 0.00075%, right?"

Did I just beat those odds? No, there must be some additional modifier. It's not a probability that's easily surpassed.

"Ah. Ah-ha. Of course. It's because I'm in a party with Aila!"

That's right. Aila and I are in a party. And the party option is…

[Due to the exceptional talent of the party member, all magical actions receive an additional +5% modifier!]

[Due to the exceptional talent of the party member, the chance of a major success in all magical actions increases by +5%!]

So, this major success in crafting the accessory was because I teamed up with Aila.

'-Ahem! I won't be a burden to Wolfram. We're partners in rebellion, right?'

In my mind, I pictured Aila with her fists clenched at her waist, puffing her cheeks, and smiling confidently.

"···Yeah. That might just be possible."

Muttering to no one in particular, I gazed at the brooch and cast "[Item Appraisal]" again.

"I wonder what will come of it. 'Subtle' usually means at least a 7-tier crafting message…"

Hopefully, the accessory that emerges will be fitting for its future owner.