[?]
[Seriously?]
[These guys are really scammers?]
[???]
[Where at?]
“Look closely here, it’s a bit different.”
I shined two coins at the camera.
At a glance, they looked like identical coins, but the Growth Coin had a slightly open entrance.
[…?]
[What’s the difference?]
[Whoa, it’s real?]
[?]
[It seems like only Lily can see it.]
[Yena really got scammed, lol.]
[Open your eyes a bit; then you’ll see the difference.]
[I can’t see it.]
The viewers’ responses were split.
If you didn’t look closely, you wouldn’t be able to notice, and it was crafted precisely enough not to be detected by Yena, the Cat Beastman.
Upon hearing my words, Yena rushed over to examine the coin.
Squinting her eyes, Yena stared intently at the coin for about 10 seconds before abruptly turning her head to glare at the rabbit.
“Are you… seriously pulling a scam?! I knew it would come to this!”
“I don’t understand what you mean. The Growth Coin and Golden Coin are different currencies to begin with. It’s natural they look a bit different.”
“Ha! You admitted it easily, huh? Meow?”
“What…?”
“You clearly said that the buffs from the coins have the same probabilities if they’re the same rank.”
“That’s right.”
“Then that means ‘this’ would yield the same results, right?”
Yena pointed to the Golden Coin, not the Growth Coin.
The rabbit stiffened a bit and shook its head.
“…They may look similar, but the Golden Coin is just currency. Even if you flick it, you will not obtain what you desire.”
“Hmph. Is that so?”
Ting~
Yena flicked the Golden Coin she had just received from me into the air.
And, naturally, it spun back without any message.
Ping! Tingtingting~
The coin rolled on the floor, but ultimately nothing happened.
“See? That’s just currency.”
“This is just a test.”
Woooom!
Mana swirled around Yena.
The power of the guardian spirit that blesses her and part of Pharaoh’s power seeped into the coin, causing the tightly closed box to tremble.
“And this is the real deal.”
“…That alone won’t open it.”
“That’s…!”
Crash!
“You won’t know unless you try!!!”
I don’t know how much strength she infused, but eventually, Yena withdrew her strength, raising her hands.
She barely succeeded in creating a gap, but the box closed up once more.
“Phew! Okay, I acknowledge it, meow. I’m done for.”
“I understand losing money is heart-wrenching, but the path of transcendence is long and arduous. It’s better to give up now and climb the tower a bit more.”
“More like it’s the Annoying One.”
“Give up? Why would I ever give up, meow?”
“?”
Yena squinted one eye while handing over the struggling coin to me.
“Did you ask me to do it?”
“Yes!”
[Hahahahaha]
[Oh lol, do it]
[Yena seems really desperate]
[If it’s Lily, it’s possible]
I held the coin and stared at the rabbit.
The rabbit was trying its best to stay calm, but you could tell it was nervous inside.
“Right.”
I held the coin and forced some holy energy into it.
Crack!
A sound came from the coin, a whole level above Yena’s from earlier, and the box was already starting to open.
I trembled and tried to close it as much as possible, but it was a meaningless resistance.
Right now, I was at Level 4, using the Saintess’s compassion, so it wasn’t a matter of lacking power.
“It’s about to open…”
Boom! Kaboom!
“?”
“…Lady Lily?”
“It’s closed.”
Yena and Leo looked at me with questions in their eyes.
Just a moment ago, I had opened half of the box inside the coin, and if I added a little more power, I could fully open it.
But for some reason, someone had ‘interfered’ and forcibly closed the box.
I tried to reopen it, but it seemed to be exerting even stronger force than before, making it difficult to open.
“Phew. Hehe… This is pointless.”
“Hey you, what did you do?”
“No way, right? I didn’t do anything!”
“This is… You, come out! Let’s fight on Level 51!”
“No thanks.”
“Meow!”
Yena went wild and grabbed the rabbit by the scruff, shaking it left and right as its body flailed in response to her grip.
That level of violence seems to not count as violence at all.
“…Hmm.”
It seems like the Master of the Altar has intervened.
The Master of the Sealing Altar I met just before had strength comparable to Intermediate Angels and the Demon Race.
And the Master of the Growth Altar must be even stronger than the Sealer.
“At least Intermediate Angel or equivalent to the Demon Race. It’s exerting power within its created items and its own domain.”
Since I had entered the palm of the altar master, doing anything against that would be close to impossible.
That said, it would be ridiculous to use Sacred Transformation or go all-out just to open this one box…
“I see. Can’t open it…”
Clang!
I placed the coin on the ground, transformed the White Guardian into a hammer form, and lifted it high.
Then, I released the Saintess’s compassion and concentrated the power of the God of Destruction in one place.
If forcibly opening it was out of the question, there was only one option left.
“Now, wait a second, what are you planning to–”
Kabooooom!!!
[What the;;]
[That scared me]
[Lily, calm down;;]
[Lily is violent, lol]
[???: If I can’t have it, I’ll break it]
[Oh no]
“It’s not breaking.”
“It’s breaking.”
“Have you lost your mind?”
“But it’s already cracked a bit, so if we hit it one or two more times, it’ll definitely break, right?”
Whoosh!
Kaboom!!!
The entire Rest Area on the 50th floor shook, causing the rabbits to topple over as they struggled to maintain their balance.
The only ones who remained steady were Leo, hovering in mid-air, and Yena, the Cat Beastman, who balanced well.
And excluding me, this place has been a complete mess for a while now.
“Crazy…”
“This time, I’m going to hit it twice, and the White Guardian is going out twice, so that’s a total of four hits planned.”
Just two attacks had already left the coin heavily cracked.
Surely, this coin will shatter either this time or the next.
“……”
And when the coin breaks, something they’ve been hiding will surely be revealed.
“Alright then…”
“Stop! You can’t break that—”
Thwoom!
“? ”
“Oh?”
“Meow?”
Just before the hammer came crashing down.
A rabbit, clutching Yena by the scruff, flailed around, screaming. Suddenly, the coin shot up into the air.
Simultaneously, the cracked coin emitted a dazzling light like never seen before and began to spin.
Ding ding ding~
As the coin spun, Kiki also naturally started spinning the slot machine.
Similar to before, but slightly different phrases filled my vision.
[True Growth’s Altar – You have used a coin.]
[Visitor of the Altar. The ‘probability’ of the coin increases.]
[Challenger of the Altar. The ‘probability’ of the coin increases.]
[You have ascended half of the tower. The ‘probability’ of the coin increases.]
[Growth device is over 50%. The ‘probability’ of the coin increases.]
…
…
…
[You have used a True Growth Coin. Aside from changes due to achievements, the ‘probability’ of the coin will not fluctuate.]
[Special! Strong luck has graced you, but due to restrictions, the ‘probability’ of the coin increases only slightly!]
[Coin – Stealth (A) acquired.]
[Temporarily can use legendary-grade stealth for 1 minute during non-combat.]
[This buff lasts for 5 days.]
“Huh?”
“…Why? All on your own.”
“Something else was right.”
The rabbit gave me a hollow look, staring blankly at the coin and me.
And it’s understandable; the Golden Coin and the Growth Coin you buy with it are different coins altogether.
The Golden Coin is the real deal, while the Growth Coin that can be exchanged is a manipulated fake.
The rabbit had given me the real one while hiding this fact and exchanging it for the fake.
‘The reason for keeping the real one… is probably because of the system.’
Deoen’s entire world is managed by raccoons, raccoon-like beings, and some unknown someone.
Just as the bracelet for sealing the Kraken was found at the Seal’s Altar, this altar must have its own management as well.
Perhaps this ‘true’ coin is one designated by the system fairly.
Maybe this ‘real’ coin is the one designated fairly by the System.
Perhaps the fake coin was created later in order to profit while avoiding the Manager’s gaze?
‘Even if it’s fake, the effect should be similar.’
“Actually, I could have gotten a better buff with a manipulation. Should I consider this good or bad?”
It seems that despite the probabilities being skyrocketed, I only got a mere A rank.
At this point, Kiki might as well be nonexistent.
Honestly, the manipulated result might have been better for me.
Experience points are great, but stats aren’t completely useless.
However, now that the manipulation is exposed, if I kept pretending it was manipulated, I’d be lucky to even get a temporary buff lasting three months, let alone SS rank.
Because there’s no way they’d give anything good to someone who figured out the trade secret.
‘Of course.’
“So, since I’ve been caught, I should be ready, right?”
“…Heh heh heh heh.”
[Are you really going to cheat?]
[I guess we have to smash it with a hammer.]
[Let’s just kill it.]
[Rabbit roast, here we go!]
[LOL!]
[Let’s cut off the wrist~ let’s cut off the wrist~ let’s cut off the wrist~]
[But is it real that I got a lower rank? Haha!]
[Are you seriously tricking me?!]
[Yena?]
[Yena has gone insane!]
Yena laughed maniacally and pressed her forehead against the rabbit’s forehead, grabbing its collar.
We can only see her back, but she must be filled with conviction in her eyes, right?
“Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit…”
“……”
“I told you, if you cheat, you’ll get hurt badly… Meow.”
“…It’s not cheating.”
“Give me my money.”
“Did, did I say something wrong? Didn’t I clearly say it was different—cough.”
Wrenching!!
Yena’s grip is slowly strangling the rabbit’s neck.
Even though she’s an assassin, with her race, job, countless items, and buffs stacked, breaking the rabbit’s neck would be nothing.
Of course.
“Nyakk!”
“Cough!!”
The Master of the Altar acted first, but the rabbit’s body was enveloped in a golden aura that forcibly repelled Yena.
[The Master of the Altar prohibits violence within the Rest Area.]
“I was cheated! My money!”
[The Master of the Altar denies that.]
[The Master of the Altar claims that was merely a stroke of bad luck on your part.]
“What?!”
Boom!
A golden signboard fell from the sky.
[“Climb to the 80th floor. I have prepared what you desire.”]
“…80th floor?”
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