Webnovel Author In The Apocalypse World

Kim Haru also went up to buy some.

He hadn't forgotten that he had a cat and eleven dogs at home, plus Kang Hose's one cat and one dog.

Surely, the animals still longed for the familiar taste of their old food.

However, Kim Haru didn't buy too much.

The stall owner didn't have a large stock in the first place, and the price was set high.

If he bought too much at once, it would definitely attract attention, and Kim Haru didn't want to stand out.

Besides, this was all pre-apocalypse stock, and who knew how long past its expiration date it was?

Buying a small amount for Fuzzball and the Cryo Wolf to taste was enough.

If they ate too much spoiled food and got sick, Kim Haru would feel bad for them.

It wasn't as if there was no other food at home for them.

Among the most popular items at these stalls were women's products.

Lipsticks and cosmetics drew swarms of female ability users, crowding around to inquire about prices.

Kim Haru even spotted Song Hayoon from the Caeruleus Draco team, bringing Yoon Soeon along to shop.

It made sense.

No matter how strong and queenly Song Hayoon usually was, she was still a woman.

And what woman didn't love beauty?

Not to mention women—Kim Haru even saw some men mixed into the crowd.

Of course, those men buying these products weren't necessarily getting them for themselves.

They could be gifts for their crushes, an offering to please a wife or girlfriend, or even just an item to resell at a higher price.

Kim Haru had no interest in joining the bustle and quietly turned to leave.

At some of the less prominent stalls, there were also electronic products on display.

The stall owner appeared to be an Lightning-type ability user and was charging the electronics himself.

Although in the post-apocalypse, these devices had mostly become disposable or outright useless, making them less valuable, there were still people browsing.

A charged electronic device could be used for playing offline games, taking pictures, or recording information.

Not everyone spent all their time on survival—having something to entertain themselves with during downtime wasn't bad.

Naturally, Kim Haru was drawn in as well.

Instead of pushing forward, he stood to the side and observed as other ability users haggled.

Kim Haru quickly noticed that many of them weren't asking about the price of the electronics themselves but about how much it cost to charge them.

It made sense.

Finding an intact electronic device wasn't too hard in the apocalypse—the real challenge was the lack of power sources.

The stall owner was well aware of this and promptly set a price for charging, even putting up a sign.

Before long, Kim Haru noticed people bringing their own devices to him.

They were only paying for a recharge, not buying anything.

Either way, it was a profitable business.

The price for charging was much higher than the price of the electronics themselves, so the stall owner naturally wouldn't refuse.

Most of the crystal cores used in these transactions contained lightning energy, ensuring that he could replenish his ability once it ran out.

It seemed to be an unspoken rule of the trade.

Besides the people coming to charge their devices, Kim Haru also noticed some ability users teams eyeing the stall owner's Lightning-type ability user enviously.

They asked if he had a team and tried to recruit him.

What piqued Kim Haru's curiosity was that the stall owner clearly stated he was unaffiliated but also refused to join any of the teams attempting to recruit him.

This reminded Kim Haru of Chung Hwangeun.

It seemed like this stall owner was also the type who preferred wandering alone.

Did all Lightning-type ability users share this trait?

These thoughts briefly circled in Kim Haru's mind before he pushed them aside.

Other people's preferences were none of his business.

He was only here to see if there were any games he didn't already have at home.

Kim Haru silently sifted through the pile of electronic devices, picking out the ones that caught his interest and setting them aside.

The stall owner, who was busy charging other electronics, glanced at him curiously several times.

"How much for these?" Kim Haru asked, selecting a bunch.

"Two crystal cores," the stall owner said, a little bit surprised to see someone buying so many electronic devices at once. "Do you need them charged?"

Kim Haru shook his head. "No need."

That only made the stall owner even more curious.

This guy didn't seem like a Lightning-type ability user—maybe one of his companions was?

Regardless of his curiosity, the stall owner didn't ask further.

After paying, Kim Haru took his things and continued wandering toward the next area.

As he walked further, the stalls became larger, and the patrol teams stationed in this section were better equipped.

The reason was obvious—this area mainly sold living creatures.

Not all mutated plants and animals were stronger than humans.

Some mutated creatures that was unable to be eaten and weaker than humans, were easily controlled and were still sought after by ability users.

If these creatures could be tamed for battle, great.

If not, they could be used for training purposes or even as bait.

Some people specifically searched for certain creatures because of their unique properties.

For example, the Xyphor Serpentis Snake—when attacked, it would blow bubbles filled with venom.

If these bubbles were roasted over a fire, they would harden into glass-like orbs that wouldn't break unless subjected to strong force.

Once this was discovered, Xyphor Serpentis Snake became highly sought after, especially by ability users with weaker combat capabilities.

They could store the venom bubbles in advance and use them later in fights.

However, Xyphor Serpentis Snake were difficult to find.

They lived in remote areas, and few people managed to locate them.

However, when someone did, they would often find entire colonies.

Aside from their venom, their combat ability was weak, making them relatively easy to be captured.