Chapter 4

Continuing from the previous explanation, we will discuss the third danger of being a merchant. In this case, it might be more accurate to call it a vulnerability rather than a danger.

In a world where there are combat-oriented jobs like swordsmen and spearmen, it is somewhat unreasonable to expect merchants to engage in combat. However, this vulnerability stems from the warning that bringing a fragile unit into a dungeon can put the entire party at risk.

This issue is not about the merchant's personality or experience but rather the inherent design of the merchant job, which makes it impossible to improve.

More specifically, the problem lies in the 'stat increase values upon leveling up' that are set for each job.

To start, the explorer's stats are quantified, much like in a game. These are the eight stats:

STR (Attack Power)

DEF (Defense)

VIT (Health)

MEN (Mental Strength)

SPD (Agility)

DEX (Dexterity)

MAG (Magic Attack Power)

REG (Magic Defense)

There is a hypothesis that there might be a LUK (Luck) stat, but since it remains a hypothesis, we will not consider it for now.

In general, the higher the value of a stat, the stronger it is considered to be. Stats generally increase as the level rises, but the amount of increase varies by job.

For example, the basic stat increases for a swordsman, a typical combat job, are as follows:

STR (Attack Power) ... 10

DEF (Defense) ... 6

VIT (Health) ... 8

MEN (Mental Strength) ... 6

SPD (Agility) ... 7

DEX (Dexterity) ... 7

MAG (Magic Attack Power) ... 0

REG (Magic Defense) ... 3

Total: 47

To be precise, there are also adjustments based on the actions taken before leveling up, but for simplicity, we will omit that here.

From the above values, it is clear that the swordsman is a front-line job specialized in attack rather than defense.

For a knight, the SPD and DEX values decrease, while the DEF and VIT values increase. For magic users, the MAG and REG values tend to be higher.

Due to these job-specific stat increases, the higher the level, the more the role division of 'combat jobs in the front, magic jobs in the back' becomes more pronounced.

There is no room for personal experience, such as having martial arts experience, or personal preference, such as preferring the front line over the back line.

Now, let's look at the stat increases for a merchant.

STR (Attack Power) ... 5

DEF (Defense) ... 5

VIT (Health) ... 5

MEN (Mental Strength) ... 5

SPD (Agility) ... 5

DEX (Dexterity) ... 5

MAG (Magic Attack Power) ... 5

REG (Magic Defense) ... 5

Total: 40

All 5s.

While these numbers might be praised if they were on a report card, they are among the most problematic for an explorer's stats.

Additionally, there are adjustments: +2 to STR for a weapon craftsman, +2 to DEF for an armor craftsman, and +2 to SPD for a traveling merchant. However, even with these adjustments, they do not match the specialized jobs, so they offer little help.

Moreover, while merchants can theoretically use magic, it is more effective to have specialized jobs learn magic. Furthermore, as previously mentioned, society as a whole views the existence of merchants as dangerous, so there are very few people who try to strengthen merchants.

In short, merchants are versatile but weak in both the front and back lines. This is the general evaluation of merchants as dungeon explorers.

However, if this were the only issue, merchants would not have fallen from being the 'best job' to being seen as 'potential criminals.'

In reality, the skills of merchants are extremely useful, and there were people who tried to utilize them without resorting to criminal activities.

However, the rise of the "Item Bag," which replaced the Item Box, completely halted efforts to improve the status of merchants.

---

After the appearance of dungeons, various experiments were conducted worldwide.

Among these, there was a researcher who focused on the "leveling up of equipment."

It was known early on that weapons used in dungeons gained mysterious powers.

The reason was unknown, and it was believed to be a spiritual phenomenon, such as the power of monsters flowing into the weapons, so detailed research was not conducted.

"Although the principle is unknown, the fact that equipment is strengthened is true. There must be some rule," thought the researcher. He used various objects to slay monsters.

Swords, spears, axes, fists, staves, and bows and arrows.

He was diligent and investigated many different objects.

Then he noticed something. Arrows that pierced monsters showed signs of enhancement, but the bows did not.

Do not dismiss this as "obvious." Often, new discoveries come from such perspectives.

He tried slaying monsters with the bow itself without using arrows. The bow showed signs of enhancement.

This proved that 'the object that slays the monster is enhanced.'

From there, things progressed quickly.

When he wrapped a weapon in cloth and attacked, both the weapon and the cloth were enhanced.

When he filled the enhanced cloth with iron balls and attacked, both the iron balls and the cloth were enhanced.

When he made a bag from the enhanced cloth, filled it with weights, and attacked, the bag was enhanced.

The enhancement was dramatic. Not only did the strength increase, but the capacity also increased.

At first, everyone thought it was a fluke. However, when the experiment was repeated with sand, it was confirmed that the capacity had clearly increased compared to the initial state.

--- The dream storage item that anyone can check the contents of, the Item Bag, was born at that moment.

Further experiments revealed that the expansion limit depends on the size of the original container. For a drawstring bag about 10 cm in length and width and a few centimeters thick—considered the limit that does not hinder an explorer's movement—the capacity can be expanded to about 1 cubic meter.

Incidentally, the initial capacity of the Item Box that merchants can use is 1 cubic meter.

If the capacity is the same, it is natural to think that there is no need to use the Item Box, which only the owner can check the contents of.

Incidentally, while the contents of the Item Box cannot be damaged, the contents of the Item Bag can be damaged. The Item Box can recognize and retrieve items internally without sorting, while the Item Bag requires proper organization. Despite these various reasons, the Item Box is generally considered superior for transportation and storage. However, even for those who were trying to defend merchants, it was difficult to overlook the significant disadvantages. As the Item Bag, an alternative, became widespread, merchants lost their social status.

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