Meanwhile, the robot continued clanking its way toward us.
The other event bosses had arrived first and were busy reuniting with Seo Ye-in.
The masked gentleman gave her a polite bow,
The clown did a comical little dance,
And the fortune-teller rapidly shuffled the deck of cards in her hands.
Shuffle-shuffle-shuffle—
Seo Ye-in looked from one to another, nodding repeatedly.
As if she was glad to see them again after so long.
Maybe this is my chance.
Normally, I had no way of knowing what they were saying to each other, but now that the side effects had turned her into 50% Chattering Sloth…
I might finally be able to clear up at least some of the questions that had only been piling up.
So I casually said to Seo Ye-in,
“I want to ask them a few things.”
“……?”
“What did they do during the breaks? Both summer and winter.”
A silent exchange of gestures, nods, and head shakes immediately followed between them.
Then Seo Ye-in turned back to me and answered.
“They were away.”
“Off Dungeon Island?”
“Mhmm.”
I had thought they had settled here permanently, but apparently, they had been traveling around during the breaks too.
Feeling like this only raised more questions, I asked another one.
“Then why do they keep coming back?”
This time, it wasn’t Seo Ye-in who answered, but the fortune-teller.
She rapidly shuffled the cards again, then smoothly drew one from the deck and handed it to me.
The card depicted several moons orbiting a massive planet.
[Attraction]
I pointed at Seo Ye-in to make sure I understood.
“You were drawn to her?”
– Nod.
“What exactly about her?”
The event bosses responded with some vague gestures that seemed to indicate they didn’t really know either.
Apparently, they had been acting partly on instinct.
I gently took Seo Ye-in’s face in my hands and pretended to examine it from different angles.
“They say you’ve got some kind of attraction. Is there a magnet in here?”
“……?”
Seo Ye-in tilted her head, looking just as puzzled.
Then, as if something occurred to her, she pressed herself against my side and linked her arm through mine.
“……There is a magnet.”
“You’re right. It’s a Kim Ho magnet.”
“Kim Ho magnet.”
Meanwhile, Song Cheon-hye watched the whole thing with sparkling eyes.
Normally, she would have either let out an incredulous scoff or made some snarky remark, but now her gaze lingered on my other arm.
As if she were about to grab it and declare, “I’ve got a Kim Ho magnet too!”
But just as Song Cheon-hye was about to make her move,
Whirr—clank, whirr—clank,
The robot that had been steadily making its way toward us finally stopped in front of us.
Then it held out the box it had been carrying in its arms. As it turned out, it was actually a large, box-shaped machine.
Seo Ye-in and Song Cheon-hye immediately showed interest.
“How do you open it?”
Clank, clank.
As if answering her question, both ends of the machine opened, revealing two input slots.
The display directly beneath them lit up with a message.
[Please insert items.]
I added an explanation.
“It’s kind of like synthesis. You put two things in, and something else comes out.”
“What about the rank?”
“Basically, it takes the average.”
For example, putting in one B+ item and one C+ item would produce a B-rank item.
Since two items were being reduced to one, the resulting item would usually rank up or at least gain a + modifier.
If you were really unlucky, though, the rank could drop.
The type of item you get is random.
Putting in two elixirs didn’t necessarily guarantee another elixir.
You might get materials like metal, lumber, or gemstones, or some completely random everyday item might pop out instead.
Song Cheon-hye didn’t have to think about it for long.
“I want to give it a try.”
“Go ahead. Just don’t overdo it.”
Since the Box Robot was entirely luck-based, the best approach was to treat it as something that would be nice if it worked out, but no big deal if it didn’t.
It’s best used for clearing out your inventory.
You could get rid of items that had outlived their usefulness and either try to raise their rank or aim for something more valuable.
But when I saw what Song Cheon-hye took out, I couldn’t help but question her choice.
[Orb of Lightning (B+)]
[Knot of Stealth (B+)]
“Aren’t those a little too good?”
Their ranks aside, both were rare pieces of equipment that even second-years couldn’t easily get their hands on.
As its name suggested, the former was a useful item for lightning-attribute mages.
The latter was a piece of auxiliary equipment that enhanced stealth abilities.
My guess was that she had gotten them for use in the underground levels.
But Song Cheon-hye answered without a hint of concern.
“It’s fine. We have plenty at the Magic Tower.”
“You’re sure it’s okay?”
“Yes. Thanks for worrying about me.”
She smiled brightly, without the slightest hint of annoyance.
At this point, I had no reason left to stop her, so I decided to watch.
If she got lucky, something even better might come out.
Song Cheon-hye soon placed the orb and the knot into the two input slots.
With a whirring sound, the box snapped firmly shut.
– ♪ ♬♩♬
The robot began giving off colorful lights as a cheerful melody played.
At the same time, it spun around in place and performed a mechanical dance before holding the box out in front of itself again.
Then the output slot at the bottom center opened, and an item came out.
Clunk.
[Orb of Lightning (B)]
It’s the same thing.
It had even lost its + modifier.
She really did seem to have terrible luck.
Even so, Song Cheon-hye examined the orb with a bright expression.
“That’s fascinating. Should I try again?”
“Wouldn’t it be better to stop here?”
“I just have a good feeling about it. I’ll try one more time, and then I’ll do as you say.”
That seemed less like a good feeling and more like she was recklessly going for it because of the side effects.
At least she didn’t seem intent on stubbornly keeping at it, so I decided to remain a bystander and keep watching.
This time, Song Cheon-hye put the [Orb of Lightning (B)] that had just come out into one of the input slots,
Along with an item called the [Watcher’s Patch (B)].
As its name suggested, it assisted with detection abilities.
Like the [Knot of Concealment] that had just been lost, it seemed to be something she had planned to use in the underground levels.
– ♪~♬♩♬~
Once again, the robot performed its mechanical dance to a cheerful melody.
Then the box’s output slot opened, and the result popped out.
Clunk.
[Orb of Lightning (B+)]
Song Cheon-hye said with a bright expression,
“The rank went up!”
“Yeah, it did. Good for you.”
Though it had only gone back up after dropping.
And two valuable B-rank pieces of equipment had vanished in the process.
Still, as long as she was happy, that was all that mattered.
By the time the drug wore off, everyone would have gone back to their dorms anyway.
Gambling really isn’t worth it.
And people say gaming isn’t a disease?
With that thought, I was about to move away from the Box Robot when Seo Ye-in gently tugged at my sleeve.
“You know.”
“What?”
“The ones we saved.”
I thought back for a moment, and something came to mind.
“The random boxes?”
– Nod.
[Descent of the Feathered Serpent] random boxes we had obtained during the last raid.
Six had dropped in total, but we had opened only one and decided to hold on to the other five for the time being.
“You were saving them for this?”
– Shake, shake.
“This was unexpected even for you?”
– Nod, nod.
I ran the numbers in my head for a moment.
I had just watched Song Cheon-hye fail spectacularly, but our lucky charm always managed to produce results beyond expectations.
That was even more true whenever event bosses were involved.
Maybe two, just to test it out.
Even if they turned out to be complete duds, it was still worth giving it a shot.
There was just one thing that bothered me.
Song Cheon-hye is right here.
There was plenty of circumstantial evidence that we had cleared [Black Death] and [Descent of the Feathered Serpent], but no one had managed to produce any definitive proof.
And if we showed her the random boxes now?
We might as well be confessing, “Yeah, that was us.”
With the side effects affecting her right now, she might let it slide without thinking much of it, but once they wore off, she’d come straight after us.
So there was no way we could take them out in front of her.
I need to distract her somehow.
For some reason, I had a feeling it would be easier than I thought.
Song Cheon-hye was usually like a hedgehog, always bristling with suspicion and keeping her guard up, but right now, none of that was there.
So I casually broached the subject.
“I have a favor to ask.”
“Go ahead. I’ll do my best to help.”
“You’re being awfully nice today.”
“You let me come along with you.”
Song Cheon-hye answered with a radiant smile.
I nodded and pointed at the Box Robot.
“We’re thinking of putting a few things in there too.”
“I hope you get something good.”
“Thanks. But I’d rather have a few less eyes on us, so could you turn around for a minute?”
“Why do you need fewer people watching?”
We were in the middle of the downtown area to begin with, and small groups of onlookers had already gathered around.
So I used Seo Ye-in as an excuse and launched into a completely ridiculous argument.
“Our lucky charm has trouble getting good results when she feels pressured. It’s even worse when someone she knows is watching.”
“……? Pressure, pressure.”
Seo Ye-in played along despite practically having a question mark floating over her head.
The usual Song Cheon-hye would have immediately sensed something suspicious.
And there was no way she would have agreed to the request.
But just as I had expected, she didn’t seem to think much of it this time.
She even made a suggestion of her own.
“Then I’ll go somewhere for a bit.”
“Where?”
“I told you I’d buy you something good to eat, remember? There’s a place nearby that I go to often.”
“What a thoughtful idea. Thanks.”
“It’s nothing. I’ll be back, then.”
– I want to come too.”
Chattering Sloth who happened to be looking bored tagged along, and Song Cheon-hye readily welcomed her and left with her.
She was being so nice today that I almost felt a little guilty.
Still, I had to do what I had to do, so I turned to Seo Ye-in.
And then said in the solemn tone of a martial artist.
“Are you prepared?”
“Come at me anytime.”
“Such spirit.”
An admirable mindset indeed.
I nodded approvingly as I opened my inventory and took out just two Random Boxes for now.
Then I handed them to Seo Ye-in and continued.
“I leave it in your capable hands.”
– Shake, shake.
“After coming all this way?”
“You go first.”
“Think I can do it?”
“Not sure.”
“Then why?”
“……? Not sure.”
As always, Seo Ye-in made her decisions based purely on gut feeling.
Since I had no other choice, I did as she said and put the Random Boxes into the slot.
Then, as I watched the robot dance, I thought,
– ♬♪♩♬
Maybe I’ll get something good.
Song Cheon-hye had already taken more than enough bad luck for us.
If two whole B-rank pieces of equipment had been wiped out, surely I could get something out of this.
So I waited with a little anticipation until,
Clunk.
The machine’s compartment opened, and a small box rolled out.
[Gathering of Villains Random Box (B+)]
There’s the gambler’s fallacy again.
Or rather, independent probability. No matter how much bad luck you got out of the way beforehand, the actual odds remained the same.
And I was firmly on the unlucky side.
With a troubled look, I turned to Seo Ye-in as if seeking her advice.
“We put in two, yet only one came out. What should we do?”
“There’s no other choice.”
“…….”
“……I’ll have to step in myself.”
“Those are the words I’ve been waiting to hear.”
It seemed she was finally getting fired up.
Seo Ye-in promptly held out both hands toward me.
“Hand them over.”
“Here they are.”
The moment I handed her [Gathering of Villains] and [Feathered Serpent Box], she tossed them straight into the slot one after another.
– ♬♪-! ♬♬♩♬-!
The Box Robot began its mechanical dance once again.
Its movements seemed far more energetic and exuberant than ever before.
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