Chapter 37: CH 34

Chapter 34
 
     There were a total of three department stores on the Hub’s main street.
     They were distributed an even block away from each other, in a triangle formation. H Department Store was populated by storefronts that focused on selling combat weapons; S Department Store was famous for its armor and other popular workshop products. (S store stocked the largest number of products from the DAA brand.) And, N Department Store mainly focused on consumables like skill scrolls or accessories with special abilities. Of course, we first headed towards S Mall.
     The Department stores were always packed with people. After dungeoneering, Users would often have nowhere else to go but to shop at malls and the nearby boutiques, spending their hard earned profits. Before, I had not ventured near these places because of the filthy high prices and the stinging gazes of those that looked upon Necromancers as if they were some spectacle.
     However, today was different.
      Of course, like any other day, there were quite a few people curiously staring at Lackey in my arms, but…..
     I now have 22 billion won in my bank account.
     Not, 200 million, 22 billion!
     Fantasies of things I needed to buy filled my head and I had no space to afford concerning myself with the others’ gazes.
     “What should I buy after the uniform? Should I grab a pair of shoes?”
     “Shoes, accessories, inventory expansions…..Consumable scrolls…Emergency escapes as well.” Dawon replied.
[Clack Clack!]
     “Hmmmm…I might forget things like this. I better write it all down.”
     “I’ll just remind you.” Seo Dawon spoke confidently.
     In the end, believing in his confidence, I lowered my cell phone which I was going to use as a memo pad. If I forget anything today…I can just come back again. Hearts buoyant with excitement, we finally stepped into the S Department Store.
     The mall we walked into had the largest number of stores, boasting a vast and open interior. The vaulted floor plan gave a refreshing feeling as soon as you entered. Without delay, Seo Dawon took the lead. After looking around in awe, I refocused and followed behind him.
     First, he identified the DAA’s store location using the map at the front information desk. DAA, the mecca for the top-priority uniform brands, was on the fourth floor.
     “Ah, it’s over there.” Seo Dawon said, as we exited the elevator; the DAA store was almost exactly opposite from where we were. I don’t know if we arrived at a busy time or if this was a usual experience, but there were throngs of people gathering at its door.
     Wasn’t DAA a super expensive brand? There sure are a lot of rich people in Korea….Though, I guess it’s weird for me to pass judgement when I, too, also arrived to buy a uniform.
     But I did suddenly get rich yesterday.
     The jacket worn by the person in front of me was also part of the DAA brand. Of course, it was for fashionable use and not an “item,” but, even so, the jacket must have a price tag in the millions of wons….
     “Hello, what are you looking for?” An attendant asked a nearby customer.
     Since so many surrounded us, I found it hard to talk to Seo Dawon. Instead, I wasted time by observing the surrounding people…
     One attendant must accompany each customer team; buyers could not enter the store without employee response. Still, my turn came sooner than I had expected. A DAA manager dressed in a suit approached me with a winning smile and asked me what I was looking for. I involuntarily glanced at Seo Dawon, but he only responded with a pointed and puzzled glance.
     I remembered that others could not easily perceive my ghostly partner, so I quickly avoided his gaze and responded to the DAA staff, “I’m….I’m here to check out the combat uniforms.”
     “Oh, the uniforms? Excuse me, please wait for a moment.” The employee disappeared, and soon another employee with a different name tag approached me.
     “Hello. I’m here as the one in charge of the combat uniform line. My name is Manager Lee Jihye.”
     “Ah, I see…” I bowed my head as she greeted me.
     The manager took us up the stairs to the second floor of the DAA store. I was a bit embarrassed as a party on the first floor, selecting brand name wallets, stared at me as I walked up. Maybe the uniform was especially expensive..maybe I was just feeling too self-conscious…
     Anyways, there were about four or five people before me on the second floor. As I arrived, they began scanning me with a prickling gaze unique to Users.
     Even though no one was particularly geared with anything combat related, I flinched with cold feet at their forceful poise….But, before I could do something stupid, Seo Dawon grabbed my arm and safely led me away from the Users and to the sofa the manager indicated.
     Lee Jihye seated me and asked if I wanted a drink; I shook my head. Then, she placed a tablet on the table in front of me. The screen displayed some sort of survey.
 
1) Customer-nim, what is your class?
 

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     Hnrk. What’s this, some kind of investigation? I was at a loss from the very first question.
    I looked at the manager sitting beside me in bewilderment, and she began to talk to me in a friendly manner when our eyes met. “Perhaps…Have you previously purchased a uniform from our store?”
     “N-no….”
" "
     “Then, is this your first time here?”
     “Yes….But, what is this questionnaire?”
     “Oh, our questionnaire asks for basic information in order to find a more suitable product for you. Our uniform line is a highly customized product that allows customers to make requests for the DAA workshop and its affiliates: for example, custom enchantments and other options.”
     “I see….” I glanced at Seo Dawon, but he, too, was listening to the explanation without a word, without any reaction to note truth or falsehood.
     Had Seo Dawon never worn a product from this place either? Or had the brand changed in the past three years….? In the end, mindful of the other’s time and attention, I began writing into the tablet’s touch screen.
     Class, color preference, the dungeons I frequent…all that was readily answered, but I was briefly stumped when the questionnaire asked me to choose the three most necessary options to add onto the uniforms. What on earth…they have over 100 recommended options and they expect me to choose only three out of that many?
     “Choose annulment of 1 magic attack, auto-thermal control, and defence MAX for your three options.” In the nick of time, Seo Dawon informed me of his opinion.
    I didn’t panic and chose what he had pinpointed and returned the tablet to the manager.
     I was worried that she would laugh at the ‘Necromancer’ written in the class column, but that didn’t happen.
     Rather, she smiled saying that the three options I had chosen were the most popular combination ordered. The words were nothing special, but I somehow felt like I had made the correct choice.
     ‘Wow, managers at expensive stores really are good at making customers feel special.’ I thought.
     “Now, with the three main options that you’ve chosen, we have 33 additional customizations that can also be added. Up to 33 options may be chosen at this time.” She switched to another screen and once again showed me the questionnaire.
     Each additional customization was accompanied by a brief description, an example image, and, kindly, the price. Though the price range varied widely, the cheapest one was 10 million won. I thought I had misread the number of zeroes, and looked at it again, but the quotes were correct.
     Honestly….these aren’t airplane customization options, why are they so expensive?
     The manager, perhaps gauging my astonishment, began to explain, “Because our uniforms are made of dragon leather, we have an overwhelming advantage in durability over the other rival premium brand lines. However, the material is a bit tricky to process. We have to penetrate the innate anti-magic properties of dragon leather and deal with the toughness while trying to add the customized skills….It’s a very difficult task. So, our prices cost twice as much compared to any other leather.”
     But, Seo Dawon who was reading the screen even before her explanation ended, said “Let’s add all the options.”
     I looked at him with wide eyes, but he neatly ignored my surprise and gently admonished, “You shouldn’t be looking at me right now.”
     The manager still maintained her friendly tone as she continued, “If you’re having a hard time choosing between the options, I’d recommend these four steady….”
     At Seo Dawon’s urging, I eventually gulped down my pooling spit and said, “Add everything.”
     “Sir?”
     “All of it. Please give me all the additional options.”
     For a brief moment, surprise surfaced in the manager’s expression, but she recovered quickly. “Yes, of course. All 33 additional options?”
     I nodded; she handed over the tablet and motioned for me to sign at the bottom.
     The rest was handled similarly.
     After finalizing the body options, Seo Dawon similarly ordered the best choices or all available choices for the arms, legs, and breastplate. In the end, the uniform bill in front of me totaled 4.5 billion won.
     “Let’s double check your customizations. The basic design is the Zejira R4 black, you’ve ordered the best of all the Super Armors and the customized…..”
     After a neat 360 degree spin on the tablet, the projected design sample was comparable to the cost of a sports car.
     Before I slid the credit card, I felt breathless. What if the payment gets rejected? Fortunately, however, the payment was processed normally, and the manager sent the receipt certificate to my cell phone.
     She finished the interaction with a bright and friendly smile full of capitalist vigor. “Thank you so much for your patronage, Choi Lee-kyung-nim. We will contact you in 4 days, or feel free to visit us on another convenient date.”
    Just as I was about to turn and leave, following the manager’s farewell, I suddenly heard a loud noise from outside the store.
 
 
TL: My heart stopped when they spent 4.5 billion…I’m such a penny-pincher…

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