Black Market
741 Words
Chapter 5: BLACK MARKET
The quota was killing me.
*[SYSTEM QUEST: GM SUPERVISION 2/3 COMPLETE]*
*[ANOMALY METER: 16%]*
GM-07 was at every dungeon. Taking notes. Timing my reloads.
Yesterday he asked why my bowstring was "inconsistently taut".
Bro. It’s wood. It’s not consistent.
I needed a way to hide. Lower the meter. Fake my stats.
Something.
Which is why I was in a basement under a fried chicken shop at 2AM.
*[LOCATION: BLACK MARKET. HONGDAE SECTOR 3]*
*[WARNING: SYSTEM MONITORING DISABLED IN THIS ZONE]*
The sign on the door said "Jin’s Gacha Emporium".
Inside it smelled like oil, cigarettes, and bad decisions.
The guy behind the counter was 30. Scar over his eye. B-rank Rogue. Name: Jin.
"Ren Park," he said. "The RNG God."
"Please don’t call me that," I said.
"You’re on GM watchlist," he said. "16% meter. That’s cute. I can get you down to 5%."
"How much?"
"200k. Plus a favor later."
I had 288k left after rent. 200k was most of it.
"What's the catch?" I asked.
"No catch," Jin said. "Just a 'System Scrambler'. Makes your Anomaly look like lag. Lasts 1 week."
He slid a ring across the counter. Black metal. [+10 LUK] [HIDE ANOMALY]
"Why are you helping me?" I asked.
"Because GM-07 is an asshole," Jin said. "And because you’re interesting. Also because Iron Fist wants your head."
"Baek?"
"Baek put a bounty on you. 500k. 'Bring me the D-rank who got lucky'." Jin grinned. "So buy the ring. Or don’t. Your funeral."
I bought the ring. 200k gone. 88k left.
*[EQUIPPED: SYSTEM SCRAMBLER]*
*[ANOMALY METER: 16% → 5% [HIDDEN]]*
*[GM-07 STATUS: CANNOT DETECT CURRENT METER]*
"Beautiful," I said. "Thank you."
"Favor later," Jin reminded me. "And Ren. Don’t use [DELETE] with this on. It’ll break."
"Noted," I said. "I’m a peaceful D-rank."
I left.
Outside, Hana was waiting.
---
"You’re an i***t," she said.
"You followed me?" I asked.
"GM-07 told Iron Shield you were buying illegal items," she said. "I came to stop you from getting scammed."
"I wasn’t scammed," I said, holding up the ring. "See? 5%."
Her eyes went wide. "That’s... that’s illegal as hell."
"Technically," I said. "Is it illegal if the System can’t see it?"
"Yes," she said. "That’s literally what illegal means."
We started walking. Night air. Empty streets.
"Why are you helping me?" I asked. "You could turn me in. Bounty is 500k."
"Because you gave up 10k to Baek instead of fighting," she said. "Because you used your cooldown to save a mage instead of yourself."
She bumped my shoulder. "And because you’re funny when you’re terrified."
"That’s the nicest thing anyone’s said to me this week," I said.
We stopped at a 24-hour pojangmacha. Same one as last time.
One beer in, my phone buzzed.
*[SYSTEM ALERT]*
*[ANOMALY SPIKE DETECTED: 16% → 80%]*
*[LOCATION: HONGDAE SECTOR 3]*
*[DEPLOYING GM-07]*
The ring shattered in my hand.
"What the hell?" Hana said.
"That wasn’t me," I said. Panic. "I didn’t use anything!"
Another buzz.
*Jin*: _RUN. BLACK MARKET COMPROMISED. IT WAS A TRAP._
"Oh," I said. "It was a trap."
The air above us tore open. White portal.
GM-07 stepped out. Mask. Clipboard. Angry.
"Ren Park," he said. "Possession of illegal System items. Meter falsification. 80% spike detected."
"I can explain," I said.
"You have 10 seconds," he said.
10 seconds. 80% on the board. Even if I didn’t do it.
Option 1: Fight. Use real powers. 50%+ Anomaly. GM fight. I die.
Option 2: Run. Use [Cooldown Reset] + [Force Crit] to make an exit. Maybe 20% Anomaly.
Option 3: Talk.
I chose 3. Because I’m dumb.
"The ring was fake," I said fast. "Jin sold it to me. He set it off remotely to frame me. Check the serial number. It’s not System made, it’s player made."
GM-07 didn’t move. "Proof."
"Check the Black Market," I said. "He’s still there. With 10 other people he scammed today."
Silence. 5 seconds.
GM-07 tapped his tablet.
Then he vanished.
No portal. Just gone.
"Did he... believe me?" Hana asked.
"No," I said. "He went to arrest Jin. I’m still screwed."
*[ANOMALY METER: 80% [VISIBLE]]*
*[WARNING: GM ENFORCER EN ROUTE]*
The meter was back. And it was red.
"Okay," I said, standing up. "New plan."
"What plan?" Hana asked.
"Run," I said. "A lot."
I grabbed her hand. Used [Cooldown Reset] on my legs.
We bolted.
Behind us, the sky opened again.
[END OF CHAPTER 5]
- Writer
