Chapter 18 :The heart of a desperate person can be bought cheaply(3)

“They’re coming!”

Numerous monsters were rushing towards the cadets.

“How about we take care of this ourselves?”

Yuhwa wore a sly smile.

“C, can we do this?”

“I’m here! Of course, we can!”

They were just academy cadets. They didn’t have to risk their lives in this fight.

The number of monsters was excessive even for a cadet. When this many monsters appeared, it was an option to hand them over to the teachers who would be waiting nearby.

“If we win this, we can get a huge amount of points!”

However, Yuhwa was different.

She was a student with overwhelmingly stronger abilities compared to ordinary cadets.

She’s Seo-yeon’s daughter. She had the talent inherited from her mother, the artifacts received through the guild’s support, and her own talent was not insignificant.

She could prove herself to be of a certain level even if she became a hunter right away. There was no reason for her to hesitate just because a few more monsters came in.

“B, but…”

However, even if she was different, the people with her were not active-duty hunters.

They were well aware that Yuhwa had received terribly low scores in the recent ‘field training,’ so they couldn’t help but be nervous.

“Trust me! I’ll be trusting you guys!”

“Yuhwa…”

The cadets who came out together were terrified, but Yuhwa was smiling.

‘There has to be a crisis for me to have a chance to use the gun!’

The teachers were monitoring them even now.

If she took out her gun and fired it in a situation where it wasn’t needed, she would only get points deducted.

However, if a level of monsters that was difficult to deal with using conventional methods came-

“Here they come!”

Monsters of all shapes and sizes were rushing towards them.

“Alright. I’ll go first!”

Yuhwa clenched her fist tightly.

Through the red ribbon that tied her hair, the flow of magic began to intensify.

“Fire!”

A simple and concise chant. However, its power was by no means light.

A huge flame started from her hand and grew large enough to fill her vision.

“Wow…”

Even the other cadets roughly knew Yuhwa’s skill level.

However, they had never seen her go all out to sweep away the monsters in front of her.

“Next!”

“Uh, um. Alright!”

However, it wasn’t infinite.

Her spell had already swept away many monsters, but the number of enemies was even greater.

Other hunters began to rush in to hunt the monsters that broke through the flames and the monsters that luckily avoided the flames.

“H, here I go!”

“At this rate…!”

Arrows imbued with magic are fired from here and there. A hunter with a sword desperately takes down monsters.

“Uh, ah!”

However, they were still cadets. No matter how much you accumulate field experience, it was not enough, and there were bound to be people who made mistakes.

“No!”

One of the cadets beside Yuhwa was surrounded by two monsters and stumbled.

Of course, that wouldn’t put him in danger. The armour he was wearing was designed to withstand a few attacks from these low-level monsters.

However, Yuhwa was exposed.

Mage-type hunters used spells with powerful force, but in exchange, they needed time to use them again.

If she became defenseless after using a large-scale spell, the teachers would have to intervene. Then, all the students here would have points deducted.

But.

“Don’t panic.”

Yuhwa leisurely drew the gun from her waist.

It’s an easy gun to aim. Moreover, the enemies were not flying around from afar but were rushing towards her.

A situation where she could easily hit the enemy without aiming the gun or taking a stance.

“I’ll take care of it!”

Yuhwa quickly fired several magic bullets. The monsters rushing towards her were instantly hit by the bullets and fell.

“Wow…”

Yuhwa looked at the students looking at her and smiled leisurely.

“The fight’s not over yet. Everyone, focus!”

It was the kind of remark that could earn her extra points in the ‘leadership’ category from the teachers watching this scene.

‘Alright. Everything’s going according to plan!’

Yuhwa smiled and encouraged the other cadets, then prepared and cast her next spell.

“It’s… really over.”

Numerous monsters that the cadets here couldn’t defeat were lying on the ground as burnt corpses.

‘At this rate… No! It can’t end with just one time! If I repeat this a few more times, there will definitely be more people who want to buy this gun! Then my brother…’

Yuhwa happily imagined and secured her pistol to her leg holster.

****

-I’m sorry. I’m a bit short on time. Could you come to the guild?

“Phew…”

Having made an appointment with Seo-yeon, I stood in front of the guild building, feeling very nervous.

‘So this is the Muksung Guild building…’

It was such a famous guild, so I had seen this building on the news a few times.

‘Well, it’s not bad.’

The fact that she invited me here meant that she would treat me seriously as a ‘merchant who came to sell goods.’

If she just wanted to treat me as ‘the brother who’s close with her daughter,’ she would have tried to meet me at her house or a nearby cafe.

‘Let’s not overthink it.’

The other party is somewhat strong, but I didn’t have to think of myself as necessarily being at a disadvantage.

If Seo-yeon thought my goods were worthless, I could look for other guilds or workshops.

If no one would accept my goods, I could just give up on Lumikite and consider it a loss.

Since it was an ore I received from selling water, I didn’t need to feel pressured to make a ‘huge profit.’

‘Well, when you think about it, that’s how it is.’

At least until now, the value of my goods was in their ‘ridiculously cheap cost.’

Everything was just a byproduct of accumulating my ‘trade performance.’

“Hello! Are you here for an appointment with the Guild Master?”

“Yes.”

As soon as I entered the lobby, the receptionist called me.

“Go straight to the elevator and go to the Guild Master’s office on the 7th floor.”

“Thank you.”

I can feel their gazes.

To Yuhwa, Seo-yeon is just her mom.

But to these people, Seo-yeon is someone who has more meaning.

Someone they respect, follow, and are loyal to.

Some hunters might have joined the Muksung Guild just because of Seo-yeon’s existence.

If you’re an active hunter in Muksung, you always fight alongside Seo-yeon. They know how strong she is and how amazing she is much better than I do.

I had to meet Seo-yeon surrounded by such people, under their gazes.

‘…So what.’

The elevator arrived.

I pressed the 7th-floor button.
****

“Nice to see you.”

“It’s an honor to see you again.”

Seo-yeon calmly looked at the man.

‘…Well, he must have wanted something.’

He’s a person who sells goods. There’s no way such a person would just let go of an opportunity to meet her.

‘Still, the inside of the guild is a public space. He won’t be able to do anything rash here.’

It wasn’t that she didn’t believe he was a good person. However, she simply acknowledged that even a good person has moments when they have to become evil in front of their livelihood.

“I don’t have much time, so I don’t have time to chat. You came to sell that gun, right?”

“Yes?”

He tilted his head in confusion.

“Do… Do you need it?”

“…No?”

“Why would you need such an item-“

Seo-yeon let out a chuckle.

‘I like this.’

Because of her connection with Yuhwa, she was willing to buy some unnecessary items if it was within reason.

The guild’s finances weren’t abundant, but she could afford to buy a quantity that would save his face.

However, Jeong Isu didn’t seem to be that kind of person.

“You came to sell something. Right?”

“That’s right. It’s a different item.”

“Hmm…”

Seo-yeon looked at the man with a relaxed smile.

“It’s getting interesting.”

It was neither an empty word, nor a courtesy, nor a word with more meaning, but a literal meaning.

‘That small pistol. Even if it’s not useful, it was a curious item, wasn’t it?’

A crude pistol made from materials from who knows where, which would be difficult to make even if you tried to make it on purpose.

It was also questionable where he got the items from, and how he made them.

If such a Jeong Isu brought a new item, she couldn’t help but be interested.

“It’s an ore.”

“…Not an artifact?”

“Yes.”

He took out a small paper box that could hold lotion.

Inside, there was a yellow metal.

“…What is this used for?”

“It might… be imbued with magic.”

“Might be?”

At that ambiguous statement, Seo-yeon bit her lip.

“It’s confusing. Should I buy this after verifying it, or should I buy it without verifying it?”

Normally, it would be right to call hunters or blacksmiths related to the guild and have a discussion about the ‘usefulness of the metal’ before buying it.

However, Seo-yeon was indebted to this man.

“I can buy it without verifying it… But in that case-“

In an instant, Seo-yeon’s eyes turned cold.

“You’ll have to use my favor quite a bit, though.”

If he’s trying to scam Muksung, she could be fooled once.

But, this is the last time. No matter how much he sells this useless metal for, there won’t be a next time.

“Of course, you should determine the value of this metal before deciding to purchase it.”

Seo-yeon couldn’t understand the situation.

‘Why? No, if he wasn’t trying to scam me by relying on my favor until now… What is that ambiguous statement?’

I don’t know. I can’t figure it out.

I can’t predict what this man’s intentions are, what specific abilities he has, or what he’s thinking.

This is, a little bit-

‘Scary?’

If he approached Seo-yeon with goodwill, and she rejected him.

Muksung and Seo-yeon might be throwing away an opportunity that others couldn’t even imagine.

If he had malicious intentions, and she fell for his words.

Seo-yeon might have to pay a price beyond what she had imagined.

‘…Let’s not panic.’

I needed to clearly understand the situation. There’s no reason to worry about figuring out his intentions right now.

She already got his consent. It would be a wise choice to analyze the situation after confirming what value that ‘metal’ has.

“Then, excuse me for a moment.”

Seo-yeon picked up her phone and called one of the guild’s alchemists.

A skilled person who was from another large guild and came to Muksung through a personal connection with Seo-yeon.

She would properly assess the value of this metal.

“I told you not to call me for strange things. Most of the time when some strange peddler says ‘It’s a metal that conducts magic!’ it’s a scam, you know…”

“I know. Do it.”

“In the first place, if it’s a real gate-produced metal, the source would be clear. Otherwise, there’s no way it would have magic-“

The alchemist, who took the yellow metal in her hand, shook her head in confusion.

“…It works?”

“What?”

“It definitely conducts magic. This… If processed well-“

Seo-yeon, who had secretly thought the item was fake, bit her lip in confusion.

“It’s an artifact.”