Chapter 177: Soul Coin

"Me? I think I’ll pass," Ron said, looking at the necklace. "This wouldn’t look right on me at all, would it?"

"This is clearly a woman’s necklace. I’d rather wear a gold chain as thick as my finger than this thing! Besides, I can’t even get it over my head!"

"Isn’t it simple?" Delaford asked, confused. "Just put it in your pack and take it out when you need to use it. Like you do with those Gemstones."

"Can’t we just take these Gemstones off?" Sera walked over, about to try it herself.

"Don’t!" a few of them shouted in unison, stopping her. "This Magic Item is a single piece. If you remove the Gemstones, they’ll just revert to their original state!"

’The necklace is valuable because it’s a necklace, not just a string of gems!’

"And holding it in my hand doesn’t work either," Ron demonstrated for the goblin. "See? I can’t activate it. It has to be worn around the neck to work."

"Elves are so picky..." Delaford muttered. He was actually quite envious.

And just as covetous was the Black Dragon, Aiksuuri, who had been watching from the sidelines.

"I have a question. Does it have to be worn on a neck?" he asked, blinking. "I want to give it a try."

"You?" Ron glanced at the jagged horns on his head and his thick neck. "It doesn’t even fit me. You think you can wear it?"

"I never said *this* neck," the Young Dragon said mischievously, extending his tail. "Quick, quick, slip it on and let me try!"

"I’ve heard of wrists and ankles, but I’ve never heard of a ’tail-neck’!" Ron slipped the Pride of Hailan onto his tail. "It looks like it’ll fall off any second."

"I’ll just flare my scales a little to hold it in place," Aiksuuri showed off proudly. "Look, look! Isn’t it shiny?"

"Let me try Casting, uh... Marking Slash!"

The Personification Monster hiding in the corner of the vault was scared out of its wits. "Master, Master! Don’t hit me, I’m not durable!"

"Hit that one! Look at that stone treasure chest’s shell—isn’t that a perfect practice target?"

"You!" The Treasure Chest Monster was aghast. But then, to its surprise and relief, its new master seemed to have no interest in it. Instead, he spread his claws and lunged right at its fellow monster!

In that instant, the luster of a jade Gemstone on Aiksuuri’s tail dimmed. In its place, the tips of his right claws began to sparkle like stars, leaving four brilliant trails of light as he slashed straight toward the Personification Monster.

"Aaargh! I’m a goner!" It was impossible to tell if it was being genuine or just acting, but the Personification Monster shrieked as its body began to transform, turning into a stone sarcophagus just like its brethren. When Aiksuuri’s claw struck its shell, it spat out its pseudopod—the way another creature might stick out its tongue and vomit blood—and coughed up a large number of coins it held inside as bait.

"Oh! It really works!" Aiksuuri couldn’t care less whether the Personification Monster was actually hurt, or how badly. He was just thrilled that his clever trick had actually worked. He really could cast the Magic from the necklace!

"Hey, wait. What’s this?" Seeing that the necklace worked, Ron was about to take out a third Gemstone, but then he saw Shadow Spirit Yelena walk straight toward the Personification Monster.

"That’s a Personification Monster. Surely you’ve seen one before?" Sera raised an eyebrow. "What’s all the fuss about?"

"Not the monster. This." From the Personification Monster’s pile of "vomit," Yelena plucked a coin whose design was clearly different from the others.

Compared to the gold and Copper Coins, this one was a behemoth. It was over ten centimeters in diameter and two or three centimeters thick. Its entire body was pitch-black, and it faintly glowed with a dark red light.

"This is the first I’m hearing of ’iron coins’," Delaford said, leaning in for a closer look. "What’s the exchange rate for this thing against Copper Coins?"

"It can’t be exchanged," Yelena said, forgetting her status as a prisoner for a moment as she pushed the goblin aside. "Even if you offered a pile of Gold Coins for it, you might not find anyone willing to trade."

"Because this ’iron coin,’ as you call it, comes from the Nine Floors of Hell. It’s the currency used there."

"A Soul Coin?!" Ron’s heart skipped a beat. "Are you sure you’re not mistaken?"

"Look at this," Yelena said, handing the coin over and pointing to the characters inscribed on both sides. "It’s engraved with text in the Purgatory Language and the Magic used to bind a soul to the coin. There’s no mistaking it. This is a Soul Coin!"

"The trail you wanted me to find is right here. Hey, Personification Monster, where did you get this?"

Faced with so many pairs of eyes, the Personification Monster instinctively cowered. Instead, the Treasure Chest Monster answered the question for it.

"It doesn’t like to stay in the cave. It often wanders off into the ruins outside. I’m guessing that’s where it found it."

"Yes, yes, that’s right! It was outside!" the Personification Monster said quickly. "I was just seeing if any other creatures were passing through the area, maybe looking for treasure in the ruins. If there were, I figured I could use this to lure them into my trap, right?"

"I swear, I had no intention of keeping it for myself! It was a complete accident!"

But unfortunately for the monster, no matter how it tried to defend itself, Ron and the others were no longer paying attention to it. Ron took the Soul Coin. The moment the cold piece of metal landed in his palm, he immediately sensed the feelings of the soul within: anger. An irrepressible rage burned inside the small coin.

"I may not be a Soul Merchant, but if you wish, I should have a few ways to let you read the story within," Yelena offered tentatively. "You know, every Soul Coin has a unique soul trapped inside, so each one has a unique story. They might have been imprisoned for breaking a contract, or they could be victims of a Night Ghost Witch’s curse."

"Can we free them?" Aive asked. "Imprisoning a soul... that doesn’t sound like a good thing at all."

"You could, but even if you did, you wouldn’t be able to redeem the soul in any way," Yelena said with a shrug. "It’s better to just let the coin serve its intended purpose."

"Of course, the decision is yours. I’m just here to provide the explanation."

"Unable to be redeemed?" Victoria asked. "Why do you say that?"

"Because only some souls return to the domain of the god they serve or the Outer Plane that corresponds to their alignment. Others might emerge from the Nether River in the form of an Inferior Demon," Yelena explained. "While releasing a soul from a Soul Coin is a good deed, you wouldn’t want that soul to meet an end it doesn’t deserve, would you?"