Chapter 54: Chapter 54: The First Customer
On the sixth day, Perry Yates was ready to open for business.
Since it was a tavern, she deliberately chose a night with a bright, high moon for the grand opening.
The main reason, however, was that Perry Yates had spotted a player nearby and figured she could use this person to get some free publicity.
Tate Joyner was a player who had gone through two games. However, he had withdrawn early from both to save his own skin, so he had come away with nothing.
Whether it was bad luck or something else, Tate Joyner hadn’t managed to acquire any powerful cards in those two games.
He had even obtained a Fusion Card in the second game, but the game world was simply too dangerous. Since his new card had no attack power, he had no choice but to give up on it.
This meant that even though Tate Joyner had experienced two games, he was still no better off than a rookie player.
And while plenty of players were in the same boat, Tate Joyner couldn’t bring himself to be happy. He was utterly miserable.
Especially when he saw other players on the game forums showing off the cards they’d gotten.
Tate Joyner wished he were the one getting those cards.
But alas, there were no "what ifs."
"Oh, dear heavens, if you have eyes, please grant me a card!!"
"Whew, it feels much better to shout it out."
It wasn’t that he hadn’t tried his luck at the Survival Game Administration. But while item cards were one thing, there weren’t even enough Skill Cards to go around internally, so how could they possibly sell any to the public?
Even if they were available, he couldn’t afford a High Star Card, and he didn’t want any low star cards.
At that moment, Tate Joyner failed to notice the subtle change that had come over his surroundings.
"Strange, wasn’t this just a block of abandoned buildings? When did a tavern get here?"
Only after his initial confusion did it slowly dawn on him that his surroundings had changed.
As a player who was still basically a normal person, Tate Joyner’s first instinct was to run. ’Oh no,’ he thought, ’am I trapped in a supernatural maze?’
But how could Perry Yates possibly let a hard-won customer escape?
So, not only did Tate Joyner fail to escape, but he was horrified to find that the more he ran in the opposite direction, the closer the tavern behind him became.
Finally, realizing he couldn’t get away, Tate Joyner stopped in his tracks, resigned to his fate.
"What’s there to be afraid of? Worse comes to worst, I’ll fight. In twenty years, I’ll be a hero again!" Tate Joyner said, a look of righteous bravado on his face.
If his voice hadn’t been trembling as he spoke, Perry Yates might have actually believed him.
It was only then that Tate Joyner noticed the sign above the door.
"The Card Tavern."
These days, people were extremely sensitive to anything involving cards.
With a "what’s the worst that can happen, I’ll just die" attitude, Tate Joyner stepped into the tavern.
The moment he entered, Tate Joyner’s first thought was that it didn’t look like a tavern at all. It was more like a lavishly decorated restaurant.
Except this restaurant was completely empty, making it seem a bit too desolate.
Tate Joyner scanned his surroundings, and his eyes were quickly drawn to something behind the bar.
It was the display Perry Yates had specially prepared: twelve four-star item cards, fanned out for all to see.
Tate Joyner stared intently at those item cards, forgetting to even breathe. He couldn’t be mistaken—they were real four-star cards, exactly like the ones he’d seen on the game forums.
At that moment, the butler was behind the bar wiping a glass. Seeing Tate Joyner walk over in a daze, he finally spoke. "Sir, what would you like to drink?"
Tate Joyner didn’t hear a word the butler said. His eyes were fixed on the cards behind him, and he asked in an excited tone, "Are those cards behind you for sale?"
Four-star cards! If he could just get one, he could turn his life around and soar to new heights.
If the man before him just said they were for sale, he would get one even if it bankrupted him, even if he had to sell his own soul.
Facing the agitated Tate Joyner, the butler smiled faintly. "My deepest apologies, sir, but the cards behind me are not for sale. However, we do have other cards in the establishment that you may choose from."
Upon hearing the words "not for sale," a flash of disappointment crossed Tate Joyner’s eyes. But when he heard there were other cards, his eyes lit up again.
"Other cards? You have other cards here!"
"Of course." A faint smile remained on the butler’s face. He calmly set down the glass in his hand, then curled his fingers and tapped the tabletop twice.
The wooden tabletop instantly turned transparent, revealing five two-star cards of different attributes before Tate Joyner’s eyes.
After the shock of seeing the twelve four-star cards behind the butler, looking at these two-star cards left Tate Joyner feeling a little empty inside.
But he knew that with his current resources, he probably couldn’t afford even one four-star card, even if he went completely broke.
In fact, based on the prices set by the Survival Game Administration, he couldn’t even afford a two-star card.
But he didn’t want to give up.
"Can I ask the price of these cards?"
The butler smiled. "Our establishment does not accept monetary transactions. As for cards, they can only be obtained by trading other cards."
"Card for card? How does that work?" Tate Joyner asked curiously.
The butler explained patiently, "The number of cards required for an exchange depends on their value.
For example, to exchange for this two-star Water Attribute card, you would need five one-star Water Attribute cards, or ten Water Attribute White Cards. Of course, other attributes are also acceptable. As for item cards, they are more expensive depending on their utility.
Of course, if you have a Rare Attribute Card, one Rare Attribute Card is worth two regular cards."
After hearing the butler’s explanation, Tate Joyner’s head was spinning, but he understood the main point: if he wanted to get a card here, he had to trade other cards for it.
One-star cards weren’t easy to find these days, but finding ten White Cards was still doable.
"Um, I don’t have any cards on me right now. Can you wait for me?" Tate Joyner asked.
"Of course." The butler smiled. "But could I trouble you with a small matter as well?"
"What is it?" Tate Joyner asked.
’This person can produce so many cards so easily; his background must be extraordinary. I absolutely cannot afford to offend him.’
"Well, our establishment just opened today, and not many people know about us. So, we were hoping you could promote us a little on the game forums."
Hearing that all they wanted was for him to help promote them, Tate Joyner immediately agreed.
Once he had his Fusion Card, forget just posting on the forums—he’d go door-to-door to advertise for them if they asked.
"Um, I’d like to ask, where is your tavern’s address?"
Tate Joyner couldn’t help but shiver as he recalled his recent experience.
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