01-20 · 008

Chapter 8: Escape from the Run-Down Apartment

The next morning.

I stood in front of 'D-Estate,' a real estate agency affiliated with the Explorers' Guild, early in the morning.

I was full of energy from yesterday's sushi. Honestly, I barely had anything to take from my run-down apartment anyway. Having nothing to move might be the only advantage of being poor.

"Welcome~"

As I walked through the automatic doors, a salesperson who didn't look particularly motivated glanced up. His gaze, clearly sizing me up, swept over my clothes.

Right now, I was wearing a worn-out shirt and faded jeans. No matter how you looked at it, I was a bottom-tier explorer.

"Um, are you looking for a rental? For budget properties, we have some over by the station—"

"No."

I cut off the salesperson and placed my smartphone on the counter. The bank app was still open on the screen, showing the balance Seira had transferred last night.

"I need maximum security and complete soundproofing. Also, please find a place with good access to the nearest dungeon. Rent isn't an issue."

"Well, even if you say rent isn't an issue… huh?"

The salesperson's eyes locked onto the phone screen.

[Balance: 1,599,950,000 yen]

"O-One, ten, a hundred…!?"

A few seconds of freeze. The next moment, the salesperson's spine straightened like a spring.

"M-My deepest apologies!! Please, this way! I'll escort you to our VIP room!!"

The sudden change in attitude almost made me burst out laughing. So this was the power of 1.6 billion yen. If I were still the old me, I'd have been turned away at the door.

◇

An hour later.

I signed the contract on the spot.

Property name: 'Gran Axis Shinjuku' Five-minute walk to the dungeon entrance. 24-hour concierge, biometric locks, full anti-magic barriers. Monthly rent: 1,200,000 yen.

That was 48 months of my previous rent. Spending that much in a single month… the old me couldn't have even imagined it. Still, unless I could source items to sell for high prices (even if not as high as Excalibur), there was always a risk I'd be kicked out someday.

"Thank you very much! We can hand over the keys immediately!"

"Oh, that helps. I'll move in today."

I received the key card and headed straight for my new residence.

◇

Shinjuku, 35th floor, corner unit.

As I opened the heavy door, a different world spread out before me.

"So spacious."

The living room alone must have been 30 tatami mats. The floor was marble, and the window offered a view of Tokyo's cityscape, with the massive dome that served as the dungeon entrance visible in the distance.

I tried clapping my hands.

Clap!

The sound was absorbed as if swallowed. Perfect soundproofing. Here, even if I made noise polishing metal with rust remover, I wouldn't get a thump on the wall from the neighbor.

"Alright… I'll make this my base."

From my backpack, I took out the "business tools" I'd bought at the hardware store:

・Industrial rust remover (18-liter can) ・Electric polisher ・Precision screwdriver set ・Ultrasonic cleaner ・Appraisal loupe

Total cost: 300,000 yen.

A far cry from yesterday's "steel wool." These were professional-grade tools.

Even after acquiring 1.6 billion yen, what I did fundamentally didn't change. Find treasures with 'True Appraisal,' repair them, and sell them. That was it.

There were still plenty of treasures sleeping in this world that only I could find. My transaction with Seira had convinced me of that.

I looked out the window, down at the dungeon sprawling below.

"Just you wait, garbage dump."

Before, going to the dungeon had been nothing but terrifying. A place where I was yelled at by Goda and the others, terrified of monsters, and treated like garbage.

But now it was different. That place was my very own vein of ore.

I put on my new gear—plain colors to avoid standing out—and left my new residence. My destination was the first layer of the dungeon, the waste disposal area.

To try for a second lucky find… or rather, a second holy sword.