Chapter 147 The New Clerk and the Hundred Thousand Yuan

Chapter 147: The New Shop Assistant and One Hundred Thousand Yuan

Before its arrival in Fog City, the Mist-Shrouded Shop was far from an ordinary establishment; indeed, it was invisible to most people and supernatural beings, making its existence as a conventional store within Fog City impossible.

However, setting aside the "truth" concealed within Fog City's reflection, accumulating assets there was clearly a crucial aspect of the current game. Furthermore, the Mayor, in his enjoyment of building Fog City, had evidently left some inconvenient loopholes. Consequently, despite the variety of shops available, residents still had to trek to the distant Central Mall for certain sundry items.

Seizing the opportunity while the shop assistant, young Xiao Wu, was awake, Su Bai inquired if the Mist-Shrouded Shop could be transformed into a regular store visible and accessible to all. The answer was affirmative.

Provided Su Bai, the owner of the Mist-Shrouded Shop, gave his consent, the ethereal shop, existing like a phantom, could masquerade as a tangible, ordinary general store. All necessary goods could then be sourced from its warehouse. While these ordinary items from the warehouse lacked any trace of the red moon's power and bore no real-world brand names, they were more than sufficient for Fog City, nestled within the nightmare realm.

Moreover, anticipating Su Bai's potential extended stay in Fog City, Xiao Wu had unlocked the shop's lounge, which previously had to close when the nightmare world shut down. With the exception of the inaccessible door leading to the real-world hospital room, Su Bai now possessed a remarkably comfortable abode within Fog City.

Compared to its initial state—a lounge furnished with nothing but a bed and a table—the current lounge, now with a layer of white sand accumulating in a jar on the counter, was significantly larger. It also boasted a simple washroom and a cabinet for storage. While far from luxurious, this living arrangement was undeniably lavish when contrasted with the plight of other players who entered Fog City with nothing.

"Boss, if you encounter something difficult to resolve, you must wake me up."

Su Bai vividly recalled the day they entered Fog City. The small child, barely reaching Su Bai's waist, looked up, his red moon-like eyes intently fixed on Su Bai, and spoke with utmost seriousness—

"Fog City is a rather unique place with its own set of rules. As long as you abide by them, it's just an ordinary game. After all... the city's owner is a very rule-abiding fellow."

"You've been sleeping for a long time lately." Su Bai had been somewhat perplexed at the time. During Xiao Wu's "slumber," the fair and adorable child would transform into a tiny, thread-wrapped doll, resting on the counter like a common toy, completely unresponsive to any prodding.

Yet, Su Bai distinctly remembered Xiao Wu explaining, when he first became the shop owner, that his sleep was a consequence of Su Bai's power determining the Mist-Shrouded Shop's power, and vice versa. However, due to the nascent strength of both Su Bai and the shop, Xiao Wu, as the bound shop assistant, had to conserve energy through sleep.

But now, both Su Bai's and the shop's powers had improved. While not dramatically so, it shouldn't have necessitated increasingly prolonged periods of sleep for Xiao Wu, should it?

Su Bai recalled Xiao Wu's helpless expression then. The little one was about to speak when his expression subtly shifted, as if he'd heard something, before he reverted to a thread-wrapped doll and fell to the ground.

That had been over two months ago. To this day, the thread-wrapped doll that was Xiao Wu remained on the bed in the lounge. The little fellow who had once vowed to be the shop owner's invaluable assistant had never reawakened. However, despite the passage of two months, the administrator had previously stated that time in Fog City was virtually static compared to the outside world. Thus, for other regions of the nightmare world, the two months Su Bai and the other players experienced might have been but a fleeting moment.

Nevertheless, in the two-plus months since Su Bai entered Fog City, this was the first time someone had asked him for money, and a hefty sum of one hundred thousand yuan at that.

Su Bai gazed calmly at the young male shop assistant, who had joined only two days prior. The assistant, likely aware of the absurdity of his request, wore an expression of embarrassment and shame on his still-youthful face.

"Boss Bai, even if it's a loan, could you lend us one hundred thousand?" Perhaps due to Su Bai's overly calm demeanor, the shop assistant completely lowered his head when he spoke a second time.

Us?

While the entirety of Fog City was undeniably eerie, the lives of its residents appeared, on the surface, happy and content. Though the city housed both ordinary and affluent citizens, there were no beggars on the streets, nor anyone jobless or starving. Assets were certainly not of paramount importance to Fog City residents.

In this city, those desperately seeking money, specifically one hundred thousand yuan... could only be "outsiders"—other players—who had entered Fog City with a mission.

Observing the male shop assistant, who was most likely a Nightmare World player, Su Bai's face betrayed no surprise. After all, when he hired the man, he had already discerned his player identity through the red moon's power within him. Su Bai himself had simply never revealed his status as an outsider, a player, to anyone.

Even at this very moment, as the shop assistant requested a loan, he likely perceived Su Bai as nothing more than an ordinary general store owner in Fog City.

Su Bai shouldn't have needed a shop assistant for a small establishment like the Mist-Shrouded Shop. However, Qing Lan enjoyed painting throughout Fog City during the day, and Su Bai would simply close the shop when he went out to paint. This caused considerable inconvenience to the nearby residents who frequently patronized the Mist-Shrouded Shop. Since its appearance on Fifth Street, they no longer had to journey to the Central Mall for small items, so they had pleaded with Su Bai to leave an assistant in the store when he went out to paint.

This was the reason Su Bai had hired the young player before him.

If Su Bai remembered correctly, the man's name was Meng Wei.

"On your third day of employment, you're asking the boss for a hundred thousand yuan salary advance?" Su Bai, of course, knew why Meng Wei needed the money, but his tone remained as nonchalant as if he'd heard a joke. "Are you sure you understand this is just a small general store? Do you know how many years you'd have to work here to earn a hundred thousand in salary?"

"Boss, I know you're not just the owner of this general store; you're also a very talented painter. Even the Mayor of Fog City has bought your paintings." The young player, Meng Wei, opened his eyes and looked at Su Bai, as if his resolve was firm. "You must be able to come up with one hundred thousand, right?"

"As long as you're willing to lend me one hundred thousand, I won't leave this general store for the rest of my days. I can even sleep on the floor here at night!" Meng Wei seemed acutely aware of the absurdity of his request, but his expression clearly indicated he had no other recourse.

Before Su Bai could respond, Meng Wei suddenly took a step closer, then lowered his head and whispered, "Boss, please agree. If I can't convince you, if you don't agree to provide one hundred thousand, both of us will die!"

Meng Wei's desperate attempt to keep his voice low made it seem as though he was terrified of being overheard, as if someone else lurked in the shadows, waiting for Su Bai to produce the one hundred thousand.