Systemless in a Parallel World

"The expanding pouch is a used, second-hand Pseudo-Storage Artifact and you want me to pay four gold thalers for it? You are sober…right?" Zayn asked sharply while looking at the expanding pouch, which was actually the only Storage Artifact in the shop.

There were no other options to choose from, yet the skinny Merchant wanted four gold thalers in exchange for it. The storage space inside it was barely 25 cubic meters as well!

"I think you know very well how rare genuine Storage Artifacts are. My prices are already very fair. If you don't like them, feel free to leave!" The skinny Merchant responded before he pointed at the small vial that held 10 grams of the blue Pilavan Power and five Basic Potions Sets, each holding nine Basic Potions.

"In total that would be four gold thalers, five gold coins, and 25 silver coins!"

The moment the skinny Merchant finished calculating the price for all goods, excluding the Karambit knuckles, Zayn's hand smashed on the wooden counter.

He was still holding the two karambit knuckles including two scabbards that had been customized for them as he gritted his teeth,

"I will only pay four gold thalers for everything, including the karambit knuckles and scabbards!" Zayn declared in a cold, confident voice while watching the reaction of the skinny Merchant. He stared deep into the eyes of the young man, where he could see a tinge of hesitation.

"I won't pay even a penny more than that. Either take four gold thalers, or risk being exposed at the Union of Merchants for your exploitation!" He added in the same cold voice, acting as if he actually knew something important about the Union of Merchants.

Zayn's warning seemed to work because the young merchant began to shudder. He frantically nodded his head several times and gave his utmost to avoid the cold eyes that stared down at him.

"Al-Alright…just don't…forget it…" The skinny Merchant spoke incomprehensibly, which Zayn ignored by retrieving the pouch with four gold thalers inside.

The gold thalers had been amassed by Paul who had collected and sold the equipment of the Adventurers he and the others had killed. He could have left the town and moved somewhere else with four gold thalers, living a pleasant life while building his own small family.

However, the fortune that would last for two generations of ordinary people was not even enough to purchase a proper Storage Artifact. The Pilavan Power and the five Basic Potion Sets weren't cheap either, let alone the karambit knuckles that were far more valuable than his silver iron shortsword, or even the Silveria Warhammer which Zayn sold not too long ago.

Zayn didn't want to know how many people had to die before Paul accumulated four gold thalers or how long it had been since he and the Cerk family started with their mission, but he could instinctively tell that the casualties were probably in the three digits and that it had already been quite a while since they started working on the mission of their God.

It was disturbing to even think about it and he couldn't help but shudder when he finally left the shop, where the skinny Merchant smiled bitterly while clutching the four gold thalers in his palm.

"I made a profit...but why do I feel so weird…?" He mumbled while his eyes flicked to the door of his shop. An ominous feeling crept up his spine, causing him to feel uncomfortable and conflicted about the uncertain future.

Meanwhile, Zayn had all his goods safely deposited inside the Storage Artifact before he made a detour and returned to his room in the Inn at the outskirts of the town.

He walked through different alleys, entered a tailor's shop, and got hold of a bunch of new clothes before he visited the nearby food stall where he purchased big amounts of different jerky.

Everything was stored in the expanding pouch that was fastened to his belt. The weight of the objects stored inside the Storage Artifact was drastically reduced, which made it much easier for Zayn to move around unhindered.

That was also how he returned back to his room where he stored the large iron mace and the large shield inside the expanding pouch. Zayn understood that it made no sense how something as large as the shield and the mace fit inside the small pouch as it defied the normal laws of physics.

Fortunately, he didn't have to understand the logic behind the laws used in Storage Artifacts to use them, otherwise, he would never be able to use any Storage Artifacts and scratch his head for eternity.

Patting the expanding pouch lightly, a faint smile surfaced on Zayn's lips.

"Did I store everything?" He mumbled to himself as his eyes swept through his room. Everything looked roughly the same as it had been on the day he first lodged it. There didn't seem to be anything special, yet his eyes were pulled back to the glass window in his room.

Zayn approached it purely out of curiosity and he squinted his eyes as he saw some piece of paper attached to the ledge outside of the window. He opened the window carefully and picked up the piece of paper, just to see a business card that had been hidden below the piece of paper.

The business card showed two crossed swords that were silver in color and a black onyx embedded in their hilts. The onyx looked like eyes that were staring deep into Zayn's soul. He couldn't help but shudder for a moment as he kept glancing at the business card for a few more seconds.

Only then did his attention flick to the other paper.

There were a few sentences hastily scribbled on the piece of paper and Zayn read through it without thinking much about it, just to freeze in place.

The color was drained from his face and he felt an ominous chill that had nothing to do with the cold air outside crawl up his spine all of a sudden. His head poked out of the window while his hair stood up on its end.

"Is that for real?"