Deon leaned back in his chair, staring at the Level purchase screen for a few more seconds before closing it with a thought.

If this were still District 4, he would’ve bought the Levels without hesitation. Being faster, stronger, and harder to kill was the kind of simple improvement even an idiot could understand.

But right now, he didn’t need any of that...at least, yet. So Deon opened the Card Shop again. He filtered them by function, looking for mostly [Support-based] Cards or [Recon-based] Cards.

The panel flickered, rearranging itself as new Skill Cards appeared beneath a glowing header.

[Recommended Skill Cards]

[Thread (Common): 10 Points – Creates a thin, invisible thread between two objects. If the thread breaks, the user receives a mental ping.]

Hmm, maybe useful but fulfills only one niche. And I’m not particularly worried of the others anyway. Next.

[Quiet Step (Uncommon): 50 Points – Muffles the user’s footsteps for 1 minute.]

Not bad as well, maybe some rooms require me to be sneaky and steal something. Will buy when the situation arises...Next.

Deon scrolled through the rest of the options, which only contained skills that were good at their specific niche, but outright useless in others. Even the Rare Cards followed this trend.

He kept a few of them in his mind, but the rest...

"Trash..."

[ClownWithWifi: Ain’t no way bro called the shop trash!]

[ChairGoblin_22: Thread is actually decent tho]

[RandomToastEnjoyer: lowkey most Cards in the shop are worse than dropped or gacha’d ones.]

[LovesAGoodBargain: Information tools are rarely useless. But some are definitely overpriced for their value.]

What they said had merit, but once again, the same problem emerged. They were useful tools—yes, but tools were only good after he knew what job needed doing.

Buying them now would be like buying a hammer because he might need to fix a pipe later. He tapped on one of the Rare Cards that at least sounded promising.

[Red String (Rare): 200 Points – Attach a string to an object and yourself, causing it to permanently be bound. Any changes in condition to the object affects you and vice-versa (does not work with other Cards)]

Tch...

For a second there, Deon thought he could get a permanently bound Card, recreating the effects of a True Holder. But maybe that wasn’t so easy.

Hana looked over from the shelves. "Did you find anything?"

"Several ways to waste Points."

"So...no?"

"No."

Vivian, who had been inspecting the painting above the desk, glanced back with a lazy smile. "Why not get something? You’re the richest one out of all of us?"

"No thanks," Deon replied immediately. "After my experiences with money...I’d rather be frugal, thanks."

"Suit yourself," she shrugged before lying on one of the red chairs and almost immediately falling into a nap.

Unbelievable! How can someone take a nap in a death game with such a tight time crunch?!

Deon found that his jaw was wide open before proceeding to close it. He turned, looking one last time at the shop before closing that as well.

But just as he was to start looking through the stack of papers in the table ahead, a new message appeared in the chat that caught his eye.

[GraveyardArchivist: Would you like to buy one of my Skill Cards?]

GraveyardArchivist? I’ve never seen this name before. Has he always been lurking my chat?

Deon looked at the Viewers tab, seeing if it had gone up, and to his surprise...it had...by a few people.

[Viewers: 15]

[ClownWithWifi: oh hell nah]

[ChairGoblin_22: archivist spoke???]

[RandomToastEnjoyer: bro was lurking this whole time]

Even the chat seemed to slow when the Archivist came in. Not stopped, obviously. These people seem physically incapable of shutting up, but the mood changed just enough for Deon to notice.

"You guys know him?"

[RandomToastEnjoyer: creepy lore guy]

[ChairGoblin_22: he mostly just watches]

[GraveyardArchivist: So? What do you say?]

"Hmm..." Deon scratched his cheek. "Tell me what it does first, then I’ll decide."

Ding!

[Private Trade Offer Received.]

Deon opened the notification with a tap.

[Private Trade Offer]

[Viewer: GraveyardArchivist]

[Offer: Personal Skill Card]

[Skill: Playback (Expand)]

[Price: 300 Points]

Three hundred Points? So this seems to sit somewhere in between a Rare and Epic Skill Card...seems valuable, but is it what I need right now?

Deon tapped on [Expand].

[Playback]

[By touching an object, the user may reconstruct a fragmented memory tied to the object’s strongest lingering impression.]

[The clarity of the reconstruction depends on object condition, emotional residue, and temporal distance.]

[Warning: Memories may be incomplete, distorted, or contaminated.]

Deon saw the value of it instantly. In a mansion full of hidden mysteries, filled with lies...this—was the closest thing to an objective witness he could buy.

But three hundred Points...that’s pretty much everything I have. I’m gonna go broke again for sure.

Yet that wasn’t even the biggest problem. As it stands, Points are a currency...but they’re also a ranking.

Deon noticed that Mimi had called this the Second Game, whilst the Game Master had called the ruined city the First Scenario.

That distinction had been bothering Deon ever since they arrived. During the First Scenario, Musical Chairs had been the First Game, and even then, there were multiple rounds inside it.

If this was only the Second Game, then it meant this mansion was still inside the First Scenario.

There could be another Game after this. Maybe even more. And if the Scenario ranking was calculated at the very end...

Then spending three hundred Points here could be the same as voluntarily cutting his own legs off before the finish line.

Deon’s eyes moved toward the corner of his panel.

[Current Points: 371]

Then toward the offer.

[Playback — 300 Points]

I’d fall to 71 if I accept, that doesn’t even scratch the Top 10, let alone the Top 5.

But most importantly...

Deon knew it might not be enough to beat Levi. If he spent three hundred Points now and Levi didn’t. Then by the time this Scenario ended, Deon could lose first place without even knowing when it happened.

And something told him that the title of "First Place" didn’t come without its merits or advantages.

But then came the other problem. First Place only mattered if he lived long enough to claim it.

Deon stared at the offer again.

[Playback — 300 Points]

"Ah, screw it."

[Trade Offer Accepted.]