"A moment of silence for Alfred, known as Storm of Shadows. Thank you for your gifts." Jin stood respectfully, for the first time, looking at the tomb in front of him.

It was a simple stone tomb on the snow. The coffin of Storm of Shadows was buried under it.

Ruby stood beside him to show her gratitude, and Dante kept a small distance to avoid affecting them with his misfortune.

It was basically a normal funeral with only these three present. It was so sad to see that Storm of Shadows had died decades ago and had no one to bury his body.

He likely just slept in the coffin by himself after he felt his death coming and wished that his inheritor would remember him. It was a sad and lonely life.

'Hopefully, I won't end up like him.'

He had a long life to live and fix everything. He had the Dragon Bloodline—if he slept every night without doing anything, he'd still gain 200 Vitality points just by growing up naturally.

And considering that he, unlike the others, would get a boost on his stats every time he advanced in ranks, then living for 300 years was nothing.

300 years should be enough for him to make some friends or even a family and die surrounded by them, right?

"I think that's enough…" Jin sighed, looking at his new sword with an emotional gaze: "See you later, I guess."

He turned around and looked at Ruby: "Will you follow me?"

Ruby didn't respond to him. She looked at Dante hesitantly and asked: "Are you sure you won't come with us?"

'That stubborn woman! She doesn't even know my real capabilities and she's already acting like this!'

Dante shook his head: "No means no."

Biting her lower lip, she was about to turn around and leave. But suddenly, her eyes sparkled as she got an idea.

She looked at the tree that was about to become Dante's home, remembering how empty it was, and suggested with a merchant smile: "What about me becoming your importer and exporter?"

"Hmm?"

Dante frowned in confusion, but before he could say anything, she explained: "I understand that you don't want to live among people because of your… curse. But what about buying things to improve your house and life? Living alone in the wilderness is boring and dangerous, don't you think?"

She pointed at herself proudly and added: "Fortunately, I can help! I'll buy you whatever you ask for and buy from you any valuable thing you want to sell! It's a win-win situation for both of us."

Dante squinted his eyes sharply: "And why would you do that? Certainly not only for connection, right?"

Hearing his question she nervously explained: "Well, if you accept my offer, considering the mercenaries I'd have to hire, the troubles I'd have to face, and many other expenses… Ahem, I think it's only fair that I'd ask for a small bonus…"

'I should have expected this.' Dante sighed as he started considering her offer.

He really had a lot of money that he wanted to spend. Turning that underground place into a real home was his priority. But because he couldn't go into any town to buy things, he couldn't do that.

'Fafnir doesn't have a Wheel of Luck for some reason, thus he isn't causing misfortune to others. But if I want to ask for his help, he'd have to die in order to return to me. This will prevent him from protecting Elizabeth or exploring the Central Region, and returning him to the Central Region again might take over a month.'

'Accepting that merchant's offer will allow me to buy whatever I want without endangering others, but it'll either cost me more than usual or be dangerous…'

She wasn't lying that she would need to spend a lot to buy anything for Dante—he couldn't deny or argue with that. The only thing he could do was make sure to make her buy him a lot of things at a time.

'That way, I'll have to pay less, but there is also another problem…'

Dante knew Ruby for only a few days. He couldn't trust her and give her his money carelessly and wait for her to return. She might scam him and leave with his money, and she might lie about the prices.

'She isn't my slave or friend. Nothing is forcing her to be loyal to me.'

As he thought of that, he heard a chuckle echoing through his mind. He didn't have to think too much to know it was Greed making fun of him.

'I hate that bastard!'

Dante exhaled and looked at Ruby. Her red eyes were fixed on him, waiting for his answer in anticipation.

"How can I know that you won't take everything and leave me?" Dante asked with a serious tone: "Do you expect me to trust you just like that?"

Ruby's smile widened: "No, but would you lose anything? Omar said that you have a good reputation as a mercenary, so you definitely have some coins hidden somewhere. Unlike the mana crystals, you can't consume them. Would you rather take the risk and accept my offer or let them rot with you?"

She bowed and added: "But please consider my offer. I promise I won't scam you! If I do, you can make a report and turn me into a wanted criminal! The criminals have no rights and all people are allowed to do anything to them, not to mention the price of my head! A humble merchant like me can't live such a dangerous life…"

Hearing her explanation, Dante started to consider her offer carefully.

'Yeah, I have a lot of coins. Should I just give the coins to her and see what happens? I technically solved the issue of buying a house and I don't need coins that much, but I'm not sure…'

His mind raced relentlessly to make a decision. For a moment, he had the idea of using his coin, but he dismissed it immediately.

Finally, after a few seconds, Dante opened his mouth: "Fine, I accept. Give me a few minutes to get the money."

Her eyes sparkled instantly: "Yes! You won't regret it, I promise!"

Dante quickly went to the tree and walked down the stairs. After he was safe from Ruby and Jin's gazes, he retrieved almost all his coins from his ring, leaving only one platinum coin inside.

'For emergencies, I guess.'

The big purchases that needed mana crystals could wait, he still had to see whether she could be trusted or not.

Next, he retrieved a small bag and put all the coins inside it. It was a bit heavy, reflecting the fortune that Dante had made after all his hard work.

'Wait, what do I need to buy?'

He looked at the small treasure room, the long and wide corridor, and the unseen ceiling.

This place was truly vast. The possibilities couldn't be counted. He could build whatever he wanted, and the money wasn't truly a problem.

'Firstly, I need a BATHROOM!'

Oh, he couldn't describe how much he missed the Mercenary Guild's bathroom. He hadn't washed his body for so long that he started hating his own smell. After using soap for weeks, he got used to the luxury of having a good smell.

But what he truly missed was the toilet. The feeling of using a seat and water instead of crouching and using dry leaves was something he truly missed.

'But how can I make them? I can draw water runes, and even if I solve this problem, would I have to make a hole?'

The image of the endless hole of the inn toilet flashed through his mind. As he examined his new house, he couldn't help but wonder—was it stable enough to endure digging a hole?

'Well, it stood for so long, so it might as well endure the process of creating a bathroom. Regardless, I have to leave now, that merchant is waiting.'

Dante counted his coins for the last time before walking up the stairs.

After a few minutes, he saw Ruby waiting for him in anticipation and Jin sleeping peacefully on the white snow, hugging his new sword as though he was hugging a pillow.

Without getting close to Ruby, he threw the coin bag to her, which she easily caught, and said: "You better have a good memory. I have a lot of things I want to buy."

Ruby nodded seriously: "Don't underestimate my Mind stat. My memory isn't perfect, but it's enough to remember hundreds of orders!"

For the next few minutes, Dante kept asking for everything he could think of.

Jin woke up a few times because of the noises, but he ignored them just as they ignored him and stayed on the cold ground.

'Finish that already, it's not like you're building a house from scratch… wait, he's technically doing that...'

He sighed and looked at his bag, his lips twitching in sadness and regret.

He finished all his alcoholic drinks.

✧A/N: I want to make a mass release to celebrate the new year like the others, but maybe this can wait until I finish my exams. In other words—BLAME AND CURSE THE COLLEGE!!✧

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