Nobody said anything when Percy used [Consume] to devour the corpses of the monsters he’d killed. Apparently, the Coin of Prosperity didn’t care how much Melissa contributed to the avians’ deaths. As long as he landed the killing blow, his Ego considered the carcasses his property.

[11x Iron-feathered Eagles have been consumed. 4,930 Prosperity has been added.]

[6x Blueflame Hawks have been consumed. 6,952 Prosperity has been added.]

“You can do whatever you want with the monsters I’ve killed. My storage space is barely big enough to fit my equipment. There is no need to waste these precious corpses. Use them well and repay me later if you feel like it,” Igor commented while the other Glacia Knights looked at Liam and Ulfhar.

The old knight and the Glacia Knight Captain had bigger storage spaces than the rest of the Glacia Knights, with Melissa having the biggest space, but neither would store their corpses.

Ulfhar stored only the most valuable corpses and some expensive body parts – the Blueflame Hawks and Iron-feathered Eagles weren’t valuable enough – while Melissa didn’t grace the avian monster corpses with a glance. It was almost like the corpses didn’t exist.

Knight Liam collected some feathers but said that his storage was almost full, which resulted in a commotion of quiet curses and frustrated exclamations.

At last, the Glacia Knights turned to Percy with a vibrant smile.

“Do you want to buy the corpses?” One of the younger Glacia Knights asked, trying to look as innocent as possible.

They know I don’t have any money, but they want me to buy the corpses? But…do I have to buy the corpses in the first place? Once we leave, I can rush back and claim the corpses. It’s not like I have to stay with them all the time. It could be a little bit dangerous, though. And I don’t think they will like it if I rush back after every battle. They know what I can do and will collect the monsters they had to leave behind. So…am I going to buy the corpses and make friends with the Glacia Knights, or will I displease them and rush back into the danger alone?

One problem was that the Moonlight Forest was dangerous, and the commotion they were bound to create whenever they fought monsters in the densely grown forest would attract more monsters. Rushing back to the battlefield was dangerous, and he would be a prime target for sudden attacks.

But what if I…

His expression changed, and he smiled at the young Glacia Knight. The young man flinched and retreated a step, seeing the vibrant glow in Percy’s azure-blue eyes. For a moment, Percy looked like a grimacing devil.

“I buy them for one-tenth of their market price. Obviously, I cannot pay you immediately. I will pay you back once I make some money.”

This was an opportunity. If he could acquire the corpses of all Glacia Knights, Percy would make a fortune. It would be easy to increase his Tier by one or two ranks in the next few days, and it would be even easier to strengthen his sword - transform it into a powerful Artifact - and further strengthen the Gnoll Card. All he needed was enough Prosperity.

“Only 10 percent of the market price?” The young Glacia Knight asked, his eyes squinted to tiny slits, “I thought you were a nice guy…”

His last words were a whisper, but everyone heard them nonetheless. Some Glacia Knights nodded while others glared at Percy for trying to exploit them. Even Melissa looked at him curiously.

“I never said I’m a good guy. I was dirt poor until a few months ago, and I’m still not filthy rich,” Percy shrugged. He didn’t need to play the nice guy, but behaving like Erwdin made him uncomfortable. He didn’t want to be an exploitative businessman like the merchant.

Percy sighed and looked at the young man, “Look. I don’t have to buy the corpses from you or anyone to claim them. As long as I stay here for a minute while you and the rest of the troupe enter the Moonlight Forest, I can claim and consume the corpses. I wouldn’t have to pay a single copper, but I offer you 10% of the market price.”

The Glacia Knight didn’t seem convinced, but his features softened slightly.

“Look at it this way, you earn almost one silver coin for every Iron-feathered Eagle and probably close to two silver coins for the Blueflame Hawks you’ve killed IF you sell them to me. In contrast, you would earn nothing if you don’t accept my offer. Keep in mind that your comrades might accept the same offer. If the Glacia Knights kill 100 Iron-feathered Eagles, I would have to fetch one gold coin to pay everyone.” Percy stared deep into the young man’s eyes, and everyone could visibly see the knight’s determination crumble.

“Do you think Iron-feathered Eagles will be all we will kill in the Moonlight Forest? What if we kill a handful of Ogres? I would have to pay you and the others 10, maybe 20 silver coins for every Ogre you’ve slain. The Glacia Knight Captain said we must fight a lot because of the overflowing monster population.

Do you think I can afford to owe each of you several gold coins after we’re back from the Wintermoon estate? I have a single silver coin in my pockets, and the only Artifact currently in my possession is weaker than the Tempered Silvron Sword, which Knight Liam gifted to me…”

Percy took a few deep breaths, and his lips parted. He was about to unleash another fury of reasons when Melissa intervened.

“That’s enough. The Glacia Knights can choose if they accept your offer or not. My father pays them well, but I won’t forbid them to earn a little bonus as long as they know where their priority lies!”

He didn’t expect Melissa to say anything but was glad she did.

“You extended the same offer to me as well, right?” Melissa asked before turning away, “In that case, you should prepare enough money. Our way to the Wintermoon estate is long, and your pockets are empty.”

Her tease struck Percy hard. He didn’t expect Melissa to take on the offer as well.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

“If Lady Reeze accepts the offer, I shall accept it as well,” Ulfhar announced, smiling wolfishly at Percy.

That’s not good. You better don’t focus on hunting monsters! I don’t want to owe the Glacia Knight Order and Melissa a hundred gold coins or more once this is over!!

**

Percy transformed into the living trash can of the Glacia Knight Order. It was a little concerning how many monsters attacked the carriage and how meticulously Melissa Reeze counted the carcasses and their worth whenever the Glacia Knights sold them to him, but overall, Percy profited a lot.

Everyone, without a single exception, surrendered their monsters to Percy, who consumed them once Melissa finished updating her list. She smiled vibrantly at him whenever a rare and highly valuable monster was killed by the Glacia Knights. It was almost like the young noble found joy in the massive hole in his wallet.

Percy didn’t have any money, and even if he was to earn several gold coins in the following months, not a single coin would stay in his hands. He had to repay his debt to the Glacia Knights and Melissa as soon as possible.

That seemed like a problem solely based on the numbers, but Melissa and the Glacia Knights were sorely mistaken if they kept underestimating him.

The last few days had been full of action, and they never received a break longer than two hours before more monsters attacked. However, the Glacia Knights defeated their enemies quickly. Melissa and Percy stopped training and started fighting as the forest’s density increased. The moon trees were large in the deeper parts of the Moonlight Forest, while the natural scents of countless natural treasures overlapped. Percy couldn’t decipher most smells, but a few seemed familiar.

He sent Hyean out to collect some herbs in the carriage’s proximity and consumed them to keep increasing his Prosperity. He didn’t use his Prosperity until the afternoon before they arrived at the Wintermoon estate.

『Percy 』

[Ego – Coin of Prosperity]

[Tier] – [Elite-2]

—

[Gnoll(Common –⭐⭐⭐) – [Blade Mastery⭐⭐⭐],[A Hunter’s Smell⭐], [Minor Strength Boost⭐]]

[Empty]

『Coin of Prosperity』

Prosperity: 1,370.246

➛Consume

He might be knee-deep in debt and had to repay the Glacia Knights and Melissa for 17 gold coins and 63 silver, but that was a minor concern. His Tier reached Elite-2, and Percy could instinctively tell that it wouldn’t cost much to rank up again if he used Prosperity directly on his Tier. But that wasn’t what Percy did. He focused on Hyean instead.

He used [Consume] on Prosperity to upgrade the Gnoll Card’s potential.

[Gnoll Card’s Potential -[Common ⭐⭐⭐] has been upgraded. 75,000 Prosperity have been consumed]

The first upgrade was around 30,000. That should be an increase of 2.5 times.

Percy nodded slowly, licking his lips nervously as he repeated the process.

[Gnoll Card’s Potential -[Common ⭐⭐⭐⭐] has been upgraded. 187,500 Prosperity have been consumed]

Once again, the Gnoll Card’s potential cost twice the Prosperity he paid before. Percy nodded slowly, still using [Consume] on Prosperity to observe the silverish-golden shimmers around the Potential tag and the Gnoll Card’s Augmentations. But before he did anything else, another notification popped up.

[Your Tier increased by one rank]

The flood of mana cooled his nerves. He smiled and proceeded with his initial plan. There was no need to be hesitant and angsty!

[Gnoll Card’s Potential -[Common ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐] has been upgraded. 468,750 Prosperity have been consumed]

[Gnoll Card’s Potential increased to [Elite ⭐]. Gnoll advanced to Gnoll Warrior.]

This is… Am I supposed to be surprised, or is that expected? I know that Hyean was an average Gnoll and that Gnoll Warriors, Elite Monsters, existed. But it’s nice to see that it is rather easy to advance Hyean to a Gnoll Warrior. But then again…it was a bit pricey. If all upgrades cost 2.5 times…I don’t think Hyean will become an Evolved Monster easily.

Percy smiled and summoned the Gnoll Card’s interface.

[Monster Card – Gnoll Warrior(Elite –⭐) – [A Hunter’s Smell⭐] – [Blade Mastery⭐⭐⭐]– [Minor Strength Boost⭐] – 250,000 Prosperity]

The Prosperity number was lower, but Percy didn’t plan to consume the Gnoll Warrior Card either way. He invested enough Prosperity into Hyean to keep the Gnoll Warrior on his side as long as possible. Thus, he continued using [Consume] on Prosperity to strengthen Hyean. The stronger his Monster Card, the stronger the Cardist.

[Gnoll – Healthy]

[Name – Hyean]

[Potential: Elite ⭐ ⭐]

[Augmentation]

[Blade Mastery⭐⭐⭐]

[A Hunter’s Smell⭐]

[Minor Strength Boost⭐]

[Berserk ⭐⭐⭐⭐]

Percy’s eyes narrowed to tiny slits. He didn’t expect another Augmentation to pop up. Unfortunately, he didn’t have enough Prosperity to unseal Berserk instantly. Percy was forced to focus on the other Augmentations.

[Blade Mastery] is too expensive to upgrade, and [A Hunter’s Smell] isn’t needed as much now. That leaves [Minor Strength Boost]. It shouldn’t be too expensive, though. Can I upgrade it to Basic right away?

[Gnoll Card’s Augmentation, [Minor Strength Boost⭐] has been upgraded. 45,000 Prosperity has been consumed]

[Gnoll Card’s Augmentation, [Minor Strength Boost⭐⭐] has been upgraded. 67,500 Prosperity has been consumed]

…

[Gnoll Card’s Augmentation, [Minor Strength Boost⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐] has been upgraded. 227,812 Prosperity has been consumed]

[Gnoll Card’s Augmentation [Minor Strength Boost⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐+⭐] evolved to [Basic Strength Boost ⭐].]

Percy’s eyes bulged at the cost of upgrading Hyean’s Augmentation, but he didn’t have enough time to lament about the shocking price and the flood of notifications when a wave of pain spread through his body.

The power of [Basic Strength Boost] jumped into action, and Percy quickly realized how massive the difference between the [Minor] and [Basic] was.

In the seven hells!! That hurts!!!