Chapter 44: Silver Moon Earrings

Chapter 44: Chapter 44: Silver Moon Earrings

Before the term "troll" became a thing, Seraphina Sinclair always thought of it as a god-given talent. So she cherished it, frequently finding people online to practice with, terrified of letting her gift go to waste.

But after being pulled into this world, she had started to slack off.

After all, just staying alive was hard, and Seraphina Sinclair really didn’t have the energy for such things.

But since people were now willingly delivering themselves to her doorstep, Seraphina Sinclair wasn’t about to miss the opportunity. She’d just add them to her blocklist for now and chew them out one by one when she was bored or in a bad mood.

Seraphina Sinclair had just finished blocking the seventh passive-aggressive ID when the system announcement suddenly started updating again.

[Results for this instance have been verified]

"!!! See! It really was verifying! Who was it just now who said the system was just inexperienced? You’re telling me that guy was actually right?"

"It’s not necessarily inexperienced, right? Maybe it’s just being thorough? Or maybe the system initially believed no one could clear the instance at this stage, which is why it was so shocked when a Blacktiger Ford appeared."

"Either way, one thing is for sure—and I mean ’anyone who doubts it is an idiot’ for sure! Blacktiger Ford is the real deal!"

"I second that! Totally!"

This time, the system didn’t falter. Like someone finally getting relief after being constipated for ages, it all came rushing out in an instant.

[Tenth Echelon: Survivor who fully cleared the instance (defeated all nine monster waves)! Server-wide confirmed count: 1 person!]

[Survivor ID: Blacktiger Ford]

[Rewards: Advanced Survival Pack x3, D-level Legendary Equipment of Choice x1, Advanced Medical Kit x3, Legendary Achievement x1!]

The chaotic chatter in the regional channel fell silent, then a thousand different thoughts coalesced into a single word that flooded the screen: "FUCK."

"It’s really just one person! He actually cleared it!"

"The man’s a legend! I knew it was real!"

"Seriously? Who would even think it’s fake? It’s a server-wide announcement! You get me? Server-wide! If Blacktiger Ford could fake something like this... that... haha, that would be even more impressive than actually clearing the instance!"

"Where are all the doubters from before? Come on out, take a walk."

"Why are you guys talking about pointless stuff! Is no one paying attention to the equipment? D-level! Legendary! Of Choice! That’s just stacking OP modifiers to the max!"

"I haven’t even seen a piece of E-level equipment, and this guy is already getting D-level, and it’s Legendary Equipment at that. But... what exactly does ’Legendary’ mean? Is it some kind of super-powerful prefix? I see the achievement also has the word ’Legendary’ in front of it, so it must be amazing, right?"

"How are we supposed to know? None of us have gotten one. If you’re that curious, just ask the man himself."

"@Blacktiger Ford... Sir, you can just throw your old weapons and equipment in the trash. Maybe you don’t know where the trash can is? Let me walk you through the detailed steps! First, click on my profile picture, then click on the ’Gift’ tab next to it. A new page will pop up. Just select everything you don’t want anymore, then click ’Confirm’ to successfully dispose of your items. See?"

"Holy crap, he actually tagged him! What a brave... wait a minute... where did this shameless beggar come from!"

Seraphina Sinclair wasn’t paying attention to the regional channel messages. Her focus was entirely on the rewards.

The moment the text appeared, the rewards were distributed. Everything, except for the achievement, materialized in front of Seraphina Sinclair in an instant.

The Advanced Survival Packs and Advanced Medical Kits looked almost identical—red and white plastic cases. The only difference was that one had a bread logo, while the other had a pill logo.

The previous Supply Boxes and Medical Bags had their contents listed in parentheses, but these new ones had nothing written on them, as if they were hiding something.

As for the item Seraphina Sinclair was most looking forward to—the D-level Legendary Equipment of Choice—it was a box, pure white and faintly shimmering with a flowing light.

The four words "Equipment of Choice Box" were carved on top, but neither its rank nor its supposed "Legendary" prefix was discernible from its appearance.

It was all very mysterious.

Seraphina Sinclair took a deep breath, her heart filled with unstoppable anticipation.

Her fingers hovered over the Equipment of Choice Box for a moment, then, steeling herself, she ripped the lid open!

[Identity confirmed!]

[Survivor Black Tiger, please select your desired equipment type: Weapon/Accessory!]

Seraphina Sinclair’s brow furrowed as she instantly realized this wasn’t going to be simple. There were only two options, and not even the most common one—armor—was among them!

She couldn’t help but wonder: did these ’of Choice’ boxes just not contain armor, or did the entire concept of armor not exist in The Black Mist World?

Either way, it wasn’t a problem she should be worrying about right now.

Seraphina Sinclair’s gaze fell on ’Weapon,’ then settled on ’Accessory.’

She would choose the accessory.

The reason was simple. She already had a...

No, to be more precise, she already had two E-level weapons!

Even if the weapon from this box was D-level, it wouldn’t be a huge upgrade for her. It was far better to choose an accessory and experience the massive leap of going from zero to hero!

Having made up her mind, she raised her hand and pressed [Accessory].

The instant Seraphina Sinclair’s finger touched the option, the entire white box began to vibrate violently.

The flowing light on the box’s surface swirled as if it were alive, gradually converging in the center to form a dazzling sphere of light.

[Survivor has selected an accessory-type equipment]

[Currently selectable equipment: Silver Moon Earrings...]

Seraphina Sinclair waited patiently as the three dots after ’Earrings’ pulsed a few times. Just when she thought a new accessory option would appear, the dots simply vanished.

This...

’Did this mean... there was only one thing to choose from?’

’What happened to ’of Choice’? And there’s only one option?’

Seraphina Sinclair closed her eyes. ’I really, really need a complaint button right now!’

’Wasn’t this just forcing me to pick this stupid earring?’

Seraphina Sinclair fell silent for a long moment before finally accepting reality.

The instant her finger fell, the Equipment of Choice Box erupted in a brilliant flash of light.

Seraphina Sinclair reluctantly raised a hand to shield her eyes. Only when the light dimmed did she move closer to see what on earth this earring actually did.

She hadn’t even checked the equipment’s Description before its appearance captivated her.

It certainly lived up to the two words ’Silver Moon.’ The main body was a new moon fashioned from an extremely fine silver thread. Its silhouette was as sharp as a blade, yet it exuded a cold, sharp elegance.

In the center of the lunar arc was a single, translucent Stone. Sealed within it was what looked like a wisp of flowing mist, at times glowing an ethereal blue, at others suffused with a dark violet—ever-changing and so beautiful you couldn’t look away.

Seraphina Sinclair stared at it for a while, but she still couldn’t bring herself to like this ’of Choice’ equipment that wasn’t really a choice at all.