The Useless Staff

"Dude, name your price! I'll buy it even if it means selling my house!"

"Yes, this advanced equipment is only slightly flawed. After it's repaired, it should be able to reach four or five stars. It's a life-saving weapon."

"Would one and a half million dollars do?"

Surrounding players crowded around Irving, incessantly asking questions. The situation was far from a normal trade. Their voices carried a hint of pleading, begging Irving to sell them the [Slightly Flawed Shadow Peak Blade].

It was only then that they realized how foolish they had been. Compared to their lives, what did money matter?

"For now, I only want to trade this dagger, preferably for equipment that can enhance spiritual power." Irving replied. The moment his words fell, the crowd around him looked as if they had been doused with cold water. The previously excited atmosphere once again quieted down.

Equipment relating to spiritual power?

Most players found it hard enough to acquire equipment drops in the first place, let alone those that could enhance spiritual power. The players around them were suddenly at a loss for words.

Irving observed their reactions and was somewhat disappointed. However, at this moment, he inadvertently spotted a familiar face in the distance.

"Your dagger is quite good. It must have been dropped by a higher-level beast." A tall, beautiful woman approached him. It was Anna.

"Well? Are you interested too?" Irving asked tentatively. Compared to other players, the officials certainly had more resources in the game.

Upon hearing that the [Slightly Flawed Shadow Peak Blade] could only be exchanged for equipment related to spiritual power, the surrounding players dispersed in disappointment. With the news of the beast riot, the players were in a state of panic, and prices of all equipment and materials started to soar.

Anna's gaze lingered on the [Slightly Flawed Shadow Peak Blade] for quite some time. It was clear that she was interested in this piece of equipment. After a while, she conceded reluctantly, "Although several pieces of equipment have recently dropped in the Angel Squad, the highest grade is only advanced ★★. None of them has the attribute to improve spiritual power."

"By the way, you just mentioned... that you need equipment to improve your spiritual power. Have you already changed your class?" Anna suddenly realized and looked at Irving in surprise, "If I'm not mistaken, your new class is a mage, isn't it?"

Among the talented players recruited from various places by the Angel Group, only a mere three have changed their professions, and they all switched to the most common jobs: Warrior, Warrior, Knight, Mage.

Among these three basic classes, mage was the most difficult and rarest to obtain the class-changing inscription for!

Irving merely nodded, neither confirming nor denying her speculation.

The Necromancer is a hidden profession, somewhat similar to a mage, as it also requires the consumption of a vast amount of spiritual power. However, it is far more potent than a mage. If Anna knew this, she would probably be taken aback, but he had no plan to reveal this.

"By the way, I haven't seen Aron, the one who came with you last time." Irving deliberately changed the subject.

"Aron has some tricky matters to deal with these past few days. So he didn't come." Anna's eyes flickered with a hint of inscrutability as she continued, "In fact, ever since the birth of the Otherworld Game, there have been disturbances in various places abroad."

"Disturbances?" Irving frowned slightly, fully aware of the implications behind those words.

Anna furrowed her brow, "Recently, some suspicious individuals have been discovered entering our country. However, everything is still under control. Aron, having served at the border for over a decade, should be able to investigate this thoroughly in no time."

Irving nodded, recalling the thick calluses on Aron's hand when they shook hands last time. He had already suspected something then.

"Mr. Irving, are you really not considering joining our Angel Squad?" Anna had this idea since she first saw the Slightly Flawed Shadow Peak Blade. When she learned that Irving had class-changed to a mage, her desire for him to join the team grew even stronger.

"With the current instability both at home and abroad, and the ongoing disasters in the Other World, wouldn't you consider joining the Angel Squad? Not only would we provide protection in real life, but we would also dispatch other members of the Angel Squad to help you fend off the beast attacks in the game if necessary."

The protection offered by the officials was a benefit that the fearful players could only dream of. However, Irving declined her offer once again.

On the other side.

The ponytailed beautiful girl, Lily, who just bought the [Pigskin Armor], was whispering to a young man in a suit and leather shoes.

The young man in the suit and leather shoes is named James, the young master of the Green Vine Group in the capital. At this moment, his brows are furrowed:"He needs a piece of equipment that enhances spiritual power. I did find one a while ago, but it's severely damaged and it's only a common item. He might not want to trade with it."

The two were siblings and among the first batch of players who got the beta testing quota.

"Just give him more money." Lily sneered, "The guy who sold you the warrior class-change rune also refused at first, but didn't he agree when you raised the price to 20 million dollars?"

James nodded and they started walking towards Irving.

"Hello, my name is James." James glanced at Anna and then at Irving, "I heard from my sister that you want to trade for an item that enhances spiritual power. I happen to have one."

"Really?" Irving was somewhat surprised.

James took out a staff.

[Item Information: Severely Damaged Staff]

[Grade: Common★]

[Description: A weapon left behind by a powerful mage. Severely damaged in battle, it can slightly enhance spiritual power. Other details are unknown...]

"Your equipment... it's too terrible." Anna, who was standing nearby, shook her head and said, "Are you joking? You want to exchange this piece of junk for a high-level item?"

Due to severe damage, the staff appeared black all over. If it weren't for the item information, one would have thought it to be a broken stick picked from a pile of firewood.

James also felt somewhat embarrassed, "This equipment can only be used by a mage-class profession. It's useless for me. And I really like your dagger... So, how about I add another five million dollars to the trade?"

"Let me have a look first." Irving replied. For some reason, when he first saw this staff, an indescribable feeling arose in his heart. As if there was a connection between him and the staff.

Soon, Irving took the staff from James.

The next moment, he felt a faint flow of warmth emanating from within the staff and spreading in his palm. The otherwise black body of the staff seemed to flash a hard-to-detect golden gleam.

[Equipped: Severely Damaged Staff.]

[Staff Affinity is increasing, Affinity: 5 points]

[Activated equipment additional skill: Beginner Fireball!]

[Notice: This staff has a certain level of spirituality. Unfortunately, due to severe damage, its initial form will be slowly restored with continuous repairs. The higher the Affinity, the greater the function of the staff.]

The equipment was ranked from trash, common, advanced, rare, epic to legendary.

A jolt ran through Irving. He realized that he couldn't judge the value of this staff based on its current grade. Surprisingly, the staff could generate affinity. Although this was related to his necromancer profession, the fact that the weapon's inherent skill [Beginner Fireball] was activated as soon as it fell into his hands showed that this staff was extraordinary!

"Calm down, calm down," Irving muttered to himself, suppressing his excitement. He couldn't show it now, at least not letting James notice anything unusual.

Irving shook his head, pretending to be reluctant, "This equipment is really bad. It can only slightly enhance spiritual power, not much use."

"Ten million dollars!" James slapped Irving on the shoulder, "Buddy, how about we become friends? Consider it as selling me a favor. If you need anything in the future, you can always ask for my help!"

Lily chimed in, "Ten million is already quite a lot. The warrior class-change rune my brother bought last time only cost twenty million. Besides, one favor from my brother is very valuable. He knows quite a few people in the whole capital!"

"Well... okay then." Irving sighed and reluctantly agreed. In fact, he was almost bursting with joy inside. He was sure that this staff had a great potential for future improvement. He definitely profited a lot from this deal!

...

At that very moment.

The players in the park who were busy looking for equipment to prepare for the first catastrophe didn't notice a group of men in black quietly approaching from a nearby dense forest.

The group consisted of fifteen men, all stout and robust, led by a man with a terrifying scar on his face.

"We've finally escaped the encirclement and arrived here. Kill them all!"

"Yes, sir!"

The men under the scar-faced leader showed a fierce gleam in their eyes as they prepared for a merciless rampage.