Switching to the trading interface under his handle DemonSlayer, he quickly listed several items:
[RC Toy Airplane + RC] for [Refined Iron x5] or [Feather x15]
[Toilet Paper x1 Roll] for [Refined Iron x3] or [Enchantment Stone x1] or [Feather x3]
[Kids' Cotton Clothes x1] for [Refined Iron x12]
[Toilet Paper x5 Rolls] for [Refined Iron x15] or [Breeze Stone x1] or [Vajra Source Marrow x1]
[Toilet Paper x10 Rolls] for [Refined Iron x30] or [Breeze Stone x2] or [Vajra Source Marrow x2] or [Enchantment Stone x5]
[500g Beef x1] for [Refined Iron x15] (9 servings total)
[Bread (70g) x1] for [Refined Iron x1] (20 servings total)
[Mineral Water (500ml) x1] for [Refined Iron x3] (5 servings total)
[Frost Serpent Meat (500g, Rank F) x4] for [D-rank Beast Tendon x1]
(Note: Rank-grade food enhances physical strength and constitution.)
A moment later, the district chat exploded. People remembered him all too well from yesterday's "trades."
BreezeStallion: "DemonSlayer! Will you let me be your underling for some bread or water? I'll do anything."
Dogan: "Man, just one bottle of water and one piece of bread, please! I'll follow your every command, big boss."
Regaas: "Don't trust him, guys! He tricked us yesterday and stole everything we had!"
TheEdgelord: "So the 'lucky emperor' is back. We're out here fighting for scraps while he's selling rank-grade meat. Must be nice."
ZaraQin: "DemonSlayer, we're only on Day 2. Please spare some water? I'm 17, used to be the cutest girl in *** High School. If you save me, I swear I'll do anything when we finally meet. If you don't believe me, I can record my voice for you."
Logan smirked at the messages flickering across the screen. "People offering to be my servant for a loaf of bread… is that all their pride is worth? As for those calling me out for 'scamming' them, well, good luck finding my island," he whispered.
He also shook his head at the people promising appearances or relationships. "They must have forgotten we're in a post-apocalyptic survival game," he muttered.
Ever since parts of his memory returned, Logan's perspective on this brutal world had shifted. He wasn't a hero—just someone who refused to be used or sacrificed.
A series of pings indicated new private chat requests. Logan saw over a dozen pending friend invites. Three stood out:
MorganBlossom (the same girl who wanted a duvet and offered Azure Essence Beads):
"Thank you, DemonSlayer! You gave me some clothes before, and though they're not as warm as a duvet, they really helped. I appreciate it so much!"
She continued, "I noticed your new trades, but I don't have any iron. I do have 50g of Grade A Paralysis Poison. I'm too weak to use it, and there aren't any big sea creatures near me. Could I trade it for some rank-grade food and a bit of toilet paper?"
TheBarbarianKing:
"I have a C-rank Magic Tendon x1. The price you set is too low."
Paul:
"Greetings, DemonSlayer. Apologies for the bluntness, but this game is harsher than most realize. I have a Fire Spirit Stone. You're building high-level weapons, right? Let me rent one from you in exchange for the stone. Let's discuss terms."
Logan frowned at the demands from strangers urging him to drop his prices. "We're all rivals in this messed-up game," he thought. "Why should I do them any favors?"
He glanced at the time, guessing it was about 1:00 PM. That gave him roughly half an hour before the predicted F-rank turtle arrived on his island. If he wanted to stand a chance at harvesting it, he needed a better weapon fast.
"Looks like I'll have to work quickly," he whispered. "But first, I'd better see if I can trade for enough materials to forge something decent. That turtle isn't going to kill itself."
He inhaled slowly, steeling himself for a flurry of negotiations and hasty decisions. Survival was never simple—especially not in a world this cutthroat.
Logan Lane accepted friend requests from MorganBlossom and TheBarbarianKing, but he declined to add the "foreign number," which belonged to someone calling himself "Paul." Logan saw no need for the so-called Fire Spirit Stone that Paul mentioned. As far as Logan was concerned, that stone might be rare in the future, but it was useless to him now. After all, if he couldn't handle a mid-level sea beast with nothing but a flimsy stone axe, a fancy rock wouldn't help much.
He reflected briefly on how he'd managed to obtain the Frost Serpent Meat. That creature had already been wounded and half-starved, lacking the strength to fight at full power. Its scale armor was tough, but not indestructible. Otherwise, Logan would have ended up as snake food long ago.
He sent MorganBlossom a quick message:
"Yes, I'll give you 1 roll of toilet paper and 1 pound of F-rank Frost Serpent Meat in exchange for your A-rank Paralysis Poison. I can trade right now. If you find anything good in the future, let me know."
He then messaged TheBarbarianKing:
"You say my price is too low? Then tell me what you have in mind. If we can reach a deal, great—if not, maybe next time."
After sending these replies, Logan checked on the rest of his trade listings. People might have been hurling insults or trying moral guilt trips, but none of that really mattered.
The only items that caught any attention were his RC Toy Airplane (plus remote) and some of the Frost Serpent Meat. Nobody touched the children's cotton clothes or other goods, presumably because they didn't have the materials to trade.
He retrieved the unsold toy plane and left the Frost Serpent Meat up for grabs, still waiting for TheBarbarianKing's response. Glancing over his toilet-paper listings, he mused about who would be eager enough to exchange precious resources for something so basic.
Unsurprisingly, he found that the main buyers—aside from one user named DragonQuellerAndTigerSubduer—were all women. Apparently, many were determined to stay clean and feel somewhat normal, even in dire circumstances. Logan could almost imagine them clinging to their old sense of beauty and dignity.