Re-Awakening: I Became a Pay To Win Boss Monster

<You've received a message from: Zafira Sutekh>

<Press to view>

Hmm? Does she miss me that much? Rael thought, before letting out a chuckle. Nah, it's probably just some envoy stuff.

With that, he pressed the button. But despite his certainty, Rael froze.

<Zafira Sutekh: What have you been doing? Your HP has been jumping up and down for the last few hours. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?>

What...? Rael's eyes widened as he looked around, making sure Zafira wasn't secretly stalking him.

And once he confirmed that, he grew even more confused.

<Rael Sutekh: How did you know?>

In an instant, she replied, and he could practically feel her frustration through the way she wrote.

<Zafira Sutekh: Click on my name.>

Rael tilted his head but did that nonetheless.

Immediately, an unexpected pop-up appeared, making his eyes widen.

—Friend: Zafira Sutekh (General Class Boss) [Level 150] [486,120,000/486,120,000 HP]

What the fuck is that HP amount? he exclaimed in shock.

<Rael Sutekh: You're... a bit stronger than I thought...?>

He knew she was one of the main bosses, as later on, when Sketa Online finally launched, she would become a boss that players could fight.

But that was solely because, during the couple of months leading up to the official release, her rule was contested.

In the end, she was thrown out, but the players had little to no access to any specific information—aside from the few lines she said during her boss fight which didn't really make much sense.

Back when he fought her, she looked much different than now.

Zafira used to have some strange black outlines in her hair, and a cool, yet unnecessary blindfold.

Nonetheless, Rael put that aside for now as he sent another message.

<Rael Sutekh: I had it all under control, and as you can see from my HP, I'm all better now. I will be coming back soon.>

<Zafira Sutekh: You better. Your store has attracted quite a lot of attention, and it seems like the travelers are specifically entering our city just to go there. Good job, Rael.>

A smile appeared on his face as he waved the messages away and focused on the main notification.

<Dungeon Owner: Unclaimed>

<Would you like to assimilate this dungeon into your possessions?>

<Yes/No>

"Yep."

<Dungeon Transferred!>

<Dungeon Owner: Rael Sutekh, The Platinum Overlord>

<Management Options Unlocked!>

Huh? That was instant, Rael thought, pleased.

Despite that, he wasn't really in a position to afford what came next.

<Dungeon: Wolf Den>

<Revive all monsters?>

<Cost: 100,000 Trell>

•—Balance: 9,581 Trell—•

Guess I'll just do it when I'm back. I'll organize their positions next time, Rael whistled and began slowly making his way back to the entrance.

The boss monster's body was completely destroyed, so getting anything valuable from it was impossible.

As he passed through what remained of the elite monsters, he realized that was the case for them as well.

Still, he was happy he managed to reach level 50. But now, his MP and HP regeneration had dropped to 2% per minute instead of the usual 10%.

It is what it is. I'll find ways to bypass it when I'm richer, he thought absentmindedly.

Finally, he reached the portal and went through it.

It was already nighttime, which meant he would get his money soon.

Rael sprinted back to Celestara, eager to check his boutique's performance.

After a few minutes, he finally arrived at the elevator, went down, and rushed into the city.

The guards didn't stop him, as, at a glance, they could tell he was their king.

But just as he was about to reach his boutique, he received another message.

<Zafira Sutekh: Why am I getting reports of you running around half-naked through the city?>

He decided to simply ignore her for now as he approached his boutique.

Surprisingly, there was a line of players gathered.

—Fuckkkk! Do you know how much I've sacrificed!?

—Dude, chill out. It's just a game.

—A game? I gambled three times and got jack shit! I'm going to kill the owner of this place!

Rael's brows twitched as he focused on the player.

As he did, a nametag appeared.

—xxMonsterGamer_69 (Player) [Level 11] [720/720 HP]

"..."

Rael was speechless, so he merely pushed the players aside as he entered his own boutique.

He saw a couple of girls petting the kitty-eared cleaning crystal constructs, while the receptionist construct dealt with the gacha enthusiasts.

But there were a few concerning murmurs going around.

—That crystal robot sure is scary...

—I know, right...? Its name is Xavier too.

—Yeah, it feels like it's reading our minds or something.

"Fuck off to the side already," Rael exclaimed, frustrated.

There were simply too many people.

He walked to the very front of the line and stood right beside the reception desk before casting a glance at all the customers present.

"I appreciate your patronage, but the boutique is closed until tomorrow morning. Scram."

"W-What, but—"

"No buts," Rael cut off the first guy in line. "Those of you who want to buy loot boxes past closing hours have to pay extra. So unless you are ready to cough up 50,000 Trell for one pull, I'd get moving."

The players looked around, startled.

Soon, most began heading out, but a few people, in particular, stayed.

"You two, what's the occasion?" Rael nodded at the two players, whose expressions beamed immediately.

It was Crouching Tiger and the Sausage Handler.

"Sir, we gathered a lot of people, so could we please get some chores to do?" Crouching Tiger asked, practically begging.

Rael glanced around the store before looking back at them.

"How does janitor duty sound?"

The moment he said those words, a system prompt appeared before him.

<Would you like to assign the quest: [Cleaning (Level 1-5)] to the players in front of you? Yes/No>

Pretty straightforward, Rael thought and pressed "Yes."

Immediately, the smiles that had been on the two players' faces brightened even more as they frantically paced around the store, looking for any sort of equipment.

But when they found nothing, Crouching Tiger approached him.

"Sir... where can we find the cleaning equipment?"

"I don't own any, but you can figure that out for yourself," Rael said with a smile as he dismissed the shocked Crouching Tiger and turned back to his reception construct, Xavier.

As if it knew what he was thinking, it stretched out its hand, and soon...

<Would you like to collect the earnings? Yes/No>

I should definitely buy myself a metal helmet...