The Author is an Extra, The MC is a Reincarnator-Chapter 52 Fake Artifacts [2]

[21 April 2023, 11:30 AM]

[Park Injun's Store]

I got the Dark Chameleon skin rather easily right after I entered the Black Market. It was a bit surprising because this material was sought after for making [Stealth Robe] for most Sharpshooters, but then, maybe it was not popular yet, or my S Rank Luck allowed me to secure this material easily.

It cost me a hundred thousand USD, but I didn't mind it too much as I could make a cape for myself too from the excess material.

After getting what I needed, I went to Park Injun's store. I scratched the idea of going to Smith's place as the Dark Chameleon skin still needed some work. I was thinking of making the item myself, but then again, I was only an Enhancer, not some artisan whose job was to make some items.

Considering this was Smith's request, and he wanted the utmost secrecy, then Park Injun, his friend and someone with tight lips, was the best person I could ask to make the item.

Ting

I opened the door of his shop and said, "Park Injun, are you here?"

I surveyed the shop, and Park Injun was sitting on his usual chair behind the desk without his disguise. There was a strange air around him. He had his elbows on the desk as he glared at the painting in front of him. The painting was the Fake Monalisa Painting that he bought from my walking Piggy Bank.

He seemed to hear my greeting as he glanced at me and asked, "What? I am in a bad mood, so quickly tell me your business, or you can just leave for today."

I guess he had found out about the fake painting Artifact. Maybe he contacted Darkest Secret, or some rumors about the Fake Artifacts had been spread around.

Park Injun knew about my strange knowledge. He wouldn't be surprised if I somehow knew something that he didn't even know. This could be my chance to make him owe me something, and I would use this chance wisely.

"You got in a bad mood because you bought a fake painting?" As I said that, he raised his head quickly and stared at me curiously.

"You know something?"

"I do know something." I approached him and took a look at the Fake Painting. Without waiting for him, I pulled the painting frame and revealed words behind the snapped frame. "Look at this." I pointed at the words.

He didn't get mad at me because he already knew that it was a fake painting and only stared at the words curiously.

"Got you! Thanks for the money!?"

However, after he read the words behind the frame that I showed him, Mana began to leak out from his body. The pressure of his Mana was immense, and I had a hard time standing in front of him. He had shown his power from his prime as the best Mage in the past.

"How dare he!" Park Injun muttered ominously, but because he knew that getting mad wouldn't get him anywhere, he pulled his Mana and took a long sigh.

"You." He pointed at me. "You know where he is, right?"

"Of course." I nodded my head and gave him my sweetest smile. I smelled some money coming from him, which made my mood soar to the sky. "How much are you willing to pay for the information? And, I am curious, but… What are you going to do to that scammer?"

"Is that even a question?" Park Injun frowned. "I will make him regret living his life. And, I will do something for you once, anything you want me to do for you."

"Really?" I never expected that he would go so far, to the point of giving me anything that I wanted. My grin widened from ear to ear, and I spread my arms. "Then, let's find him tonight. I will take you to him, but… promise me one thing."

"What is it?"

"You take back what's yours, but I will take the rest of his ware."

He slowly nodded his head. "I don't mind. As long as he dies painfully later." He took the fake painting and burned it to a crisp. The ash fell to the table, but Park Injun didn't seem to mind it.

"That's good," I replied, satisfied with his promise.

I got unexpected help. I was expecting to deal with the scammer and his friend by myself, but then, I could appreciate some help from Park Injun.

"So… why are you visiting me today?" He asked me, his mood was considerably lifted because he got information from me. "Depending on your request, I will make it very cheap for you."

Very cheap, huh. He was still as stingy as ever. But I didn't mind. He said he would fulfill one request of mine in the future if I told him where the scammer was. However, I wouldn't waste this opportunity to save some money, even though I loved money.

"It's actually Smith's request, but whatever." I took out the Dark Chameleon skin from my magic bag and put it on the table after cleaning off the ash by blowing it with Wind Magic. "Can you make a half mask and a cape out of this? I don't know any trusted tailor."

The skin was colored black and had some scales like the ones reptiles had. It was around two meters wide, which was enough to be used for a mask and a cape. I decided on a mask for Smith to further hide his identity; though it would only hide half of his face, it was still better than an item that only made an illusion without hiding one's face like the Necklace that Chloe wore.

"A mask? What is that guy trying to do?" Park Injun muttered as he picked the Dark Chameleon skin. "A Dark Chameleon skin, huh? Is that guy trying to be active again by hiding his identity?"

"I don't know. I just took his request to enhance it after hearing the reward from him."

"Does he still remember that time?" He muttered in a low voice before throwing the Dark Chameleon skin into the magical Shelf behind him. "Alright, I will make a mask and a coat for you. Just give me ten grand; it will be enough. I will take care of this job myself."

I caught something interesting from his mutter.

'That time… He should be talking about when Smith is defeated in a swordsmanship sparring.' That incident was something that made Smith go into hiding in the first place.

But I didn't care about that. It wasn't directly related to me, not now, at least. I should hear it directly from Smith because I didn't want to trash our relationship by being insensitive. Though, I already knew the person who won against him in pure swordsmanship.

"Sure." I pulled out my phone and saw a message from Chloe before I could transfer the money to Park Injun.

'Huh? Lisa will visit our house to eat lunch together? Also, who is this, Mrs. Marita?' I was a bit confused and froze.

"What's up? Are you low on cash?" Park Injun asked with a hint of amusement in his tone.

"No, it's just… There is something going on with my housemate." I shook my head and transferred the money to Park Injun. "There."

Ding!

Park Injun's phone got a notification, and he smiled. "Thanks."

"No problem. While I am here, can I change my clothes? I don't want to change in an alleyway again."

"Hahahaha! Sure! You can change on that corner. Just take this." He pulled out a portable changing room from the Magical Shelf and tossed it to me.

"Thanks."

I went to the corner and changed my clothes behind the portable changing room. I changed into the Academy's uniform before leaving Park Injun's store. Of course, I gave the portable changing room back to him. It was not even an Artifact, so I was not interested in it.

More importantly, there was an urgent matter…

'Why did Chloe invite Lisa?! Didn't I tell her not to invite anyone to our house?'

***

[House]

I arrived at the house in just five minutes because I was running back with all my might. I should be inside the house so Lisa wouldn't suspect anything. Not that being outside the house suspicious, it was just… I was trying to make sure of leaving no trace of suspicion.

When I thought about it again, having Lisa visiting us was a plus, though there was a danger of us being discovered if she revealed our house location to Ao. But, I could use her as our alibi in case Zaiden suspected something about Chloe or me.

The house was still empty; Chloe had yet to arrive. It was perfect. I entered the house, took a drink from the fridge, and sat on the living room couch, watching the TV news while crossing my legs. I also had my phone in my hand, browsing some news, mainly about Fake Artifacts, as I waited for Chloe.

There was a bag full of groceries in the fridge, so I guess Chloe only bought something that she forgot, or she changed her mind and tried to make something different from lunch; hence, she returned to the market.

Anyway, that didn't matter now. She had invited Lisa to the house, and due to her Trait, she couldn't take back her words. I should have just made Lisa shut her mouth when she was here. I racked my brain to create some excuses while my hand was scrolling my phone, trying to make myself appear to be busy.

Though, I was still reading the news that I looked up on my phone. The ones on the TV were all about Awakener doing this, or that, or die, which is honestly boring. However, when I thought about what kind of excuses I should tell Lisa, I found some interesting news on my phone.

The news was about Fake Artifacts and a warning. The warning was that we should be careful if we wanted to buy Artifact for now. This was the reason why Park Injun was in a bad mood earlier.

'So he read this news. As expected, he didn't ask Darkest Secret, huh? The cost of his information is astronomically high after all.'

The culprit of the one who made the Fake Artifact was not found yet, but there was one suspect. The suspect was the guy who visited Park Injun's store at that time, Raymond. A few of his colleagues had been caught by the police, but the main culprit was still hiding in his safe house, or so the news was about.

'And I know where his safe house is. Though there will be many D and C Rank Awakeners, and he himself is a B Rank Awakener, inside his safe house, I have a reliable paw– ally with me.' I mused as my lips curled into a grin.

However, the news spread fast, as if someone had purposely spread it. I should investigate it further after raiding the safe house.

'I should visit that guy after taking care of Raymond. I need to investigate that matter too. He should know something about it.'

Getting the fund collected by the scammer was of the utmost importance for now. I would be able to upgrade my gear with that fund, and I should raid the Lich Dungeon again with Chloe to get some Lich Blood.

While I was lost in my thoughts, a shout from the entrance brought me back to reality. 𝒇𝑟𝐞𝐞w𝐞𝑏𝙣𝑜vℯl.co𝑚

"I am home!"

"I am sorry for intruding."

"Excuse me…" 𝒇𝑟𝐞𝐞w𝐞𝑏𝙣𝑜vℯl.co𝑚

It was Chloe's voice, followed by two others.

I looked over my shoulder and saw Chloe accompanied by a middle-aged woman, and Lisa entering the living room. The woman held a plastic grocery back in her hand, which was a bit strange, considering her luxurious outfit.

I didn't recognize the woman, but she should be Mrs. Marita, whom Chloe told me about in her message.

Seeing them, I smiled and said, "Welcome. Please just think of this as your own home."

'But don't mess around too much.' I added inside my mind.

The woman, Mrs. Marita, returned my smile and put her hand on her cheek.

"My, how polite. You have landed yourself a good man, Chloe."

"Un. Vincent is kind."

"Hahaha. How lucky." Mrs. Marita chuckled.

Lisa glanced at me and nodded her head. Why, though? I couldn't understand, but I would leave it at that.

"Chloe, you are going to cook, right? Should I help with plating like usual?" I asked and stood up, about to go to the dining room to prepare the plate on the table. But, before I could take a step, Mrs. Marita spoke.

"You don't need to do anything, young man. Please just leave it to us, girls. Just relax and watch TV, okay?"

"Huh? Are you sure?"

"Of course. Please leave it to us, right, Chloe?"

"Yes. Vincent, you rest for now."

Making a guest, though uninvited by me, do something I usually did make me uncomfortable. But, because she was the one who offered, and Chloe backed her, I couldn't do anything but follow her wish.

"Alright. What about Lisa? Are you going to wait with me?" I asked, glancing at Lisa.

I had another question in my mind. Why was she here? Wasn't the Academy having class today? I didn't attend because of my job, but she should be in the Academy right now. It was strange that the honor student skipped a class, different from me who was branded as a delinquent. But then, I remembered.

'She's skipping the class because Zaiden is not there, huh.' My expression turned into a skeptical look as I waited for her answer.

"I-I will help them. I want to learn how to cook for… the future." She muttered the last part quietly.

Without her telling me, I knew the future that she talked about was the one with Zaiden. As expected of the craziest one among the heroines.

"Well, I will leave the food for you girls then." I smiled at them. "While you are at it, let me buy some drinks from the nearby convenience store." I turned around and went to the entrance.

"Be careful, Vincent." Chloe waved her hand as I walked out of the house.

I closed the door behind me and heard them talking excitedly inside the house. Unsurprisingly, the content of their talk was about me, and somehow, Chloe called Zaiden's name a few times when Lisa wanted to talk about me. Girls would be girls, no matter where and who they were. They loved to talk about love stories.

Even Chloe, who I thought didn't understand something about love, was immersed in the talk. Were the heroines the ones who corrupted her?

'Well, at least she got the normal girl life she wanted. I don't know whether I should thank the heroine for introducing love to Chloe or hate them for it.'