Chapter 43: The Alchemist and the Spendthrift (1)

It wasn't just combat-type Hunters who saw potential in the growth of the DG Guild.

Once others had found out that Kang Woo-Hyuk was receiving such luxurious treatment for his services despite being just a novice, other craftsmen flocked to the guild. With this influx of new members, Kim Ki-Rok had another building constructed right next to their headquarters—the DG Workshop.

This workshop now housed five craftsmen, including Kang Woo-Hyuk.

Kim Ki-Rok was currently on an outing with Kim Ji-Hee, but took the chance while he was stopped at a traffic light to lower the window. He turned to look out at the DG Workshop, feeling the intense heat that rushed into the car along with the faint yet sharp metallic ringing.

Kim Ji-Hee piped up from the seat beside him, "I like it, that bwassy noise."

Kim Ki-Rok raised an eyebrow. "You mean brassy?"

"Yeeees," Kim Ji-Hee nodded. "Bwassy."

Kim Ki-Rok gently patted Kim Ji-Hee on the head as she smiled bashfully, tightly hugging a stuffed rabbit with its pocket watch dangling around its neck. After confirming that the traffic lights had changed, he pressed his foot down on the accelerator.

"Mister, mister," Kim Ji-Hee bounced in her seat.

"

Hm?

" Kim Ki-Rok grunted in response.

"Where are we going?" Kim Ji-Hee asked.

Kim Ki-Rok paused. "Well... you know there's a building next to our house, right?"

Kim Ji-Hee nodded. "The DG Workshop."

Kim Ki-Rok shook his head. "No, not the one on the left. I mean the other one. The one opposite the workshop."

Kim Ji-Hee tilted her head to one side. "The one with no one living in it?"

"Yes, that one," Kim Ki-Rok confirmed.

When Kim Ki-Rok had first begun the construction of his guild's headquarters, he didn't just buy enough land for one building; he bought the surrounding land as well.

"We're on a mission to bring back the people who will be living in that building," Kim Ki-Rok explained.

"Is that place also like the DG Workshop?" Kim Ji-Hee asked.

"Not really. I guess you could call it the DG General Sales Office."

Still puzzled, Kim Ji-Hee tilted her head to the other side.

Kim Ki-Rok decided to save any further explanations for later. "In any case, we're heading out to bring back the people who will be living there."

"Are they nice people?"

"Of course they are. No matter how talented they might be, I won't be bringing back anyone with a bad personality," Kim Ki-Rok assured her.

In the first place, people with bad personalities weren't the type to listen when they were told to do something. Training them would be an endless hassle.

Even if Kim Ki-Rok were to spoon-feed them with opportunities and assist their growth, they'd still find a way to cause trouble eventually. In fact, trouble would be the least of his worries.

In the past, there had been quite a few who had mistaken their discovery of his meticulously prepared "chance" encounters as the result of their own natural talent and ability, ruining his mood with their arrogance and ingratitude. Some of them had even gone so far as to betray the guild.

So rather than waste his time struggling to raise a single troublesome person, it would be much better to raise dozens of less talented but honest people. Hence, Kim Ki-Rok considered personality to be the most important factor when it came to who he chose to recruit.

That said, since the final battle would be a full-scale war where even a cat's paw could be useful[1], he couldn't ignore talented individuals with questionable personalities. Instead, he sent them off to the guilds that he was friendly with... for a fee, of course.

To facilitate these introductions, he had offered up his services as a kind of headhunter.

But were the guilds ever dissatisfied with his offerings?

Not particularly. After all, the people Kim Ki-Rok recommended might have had nasty personalities, but they weren't irredeemable scumbags.

And what about those beyond redemption?

If they needed to be eliminated, he would take care of it, and if they were on the verge of falling into darkness, he would sever their path to corruption.

"We're here," he informed Kim Ji-Hee.

They had arrived at a street full of workshops located in Seocho District, Seoul.

After parking the car in a paid parking lot, Kim Ki-Rok got out with Kim Ji-Hee.

"This is where we met Mister Woo-Hyuk!" Kim Ji-Hee's voice bubbled with excitement as she recalled that day.

"That's right," Kim Ki-Rok confirmed. "This is the place where we first met Mister Woo-Hyuk."

"Are we meeting a different mister here?"

"A missus," Kim Ki-Rok corrected her.

"A missus?" Kim Ji-Hee repeated.

Kim Ki-Rok nodded his head,

"Mhm, we're here to recruit a missus this time."

"Missus..." Kim Ji-Hee scanned their surroundings with wide eyes as she thoughtfully chewed on her fingernails, then turned to look up at Kim Ki-Rok. "Like the restaurant ladies?"

"Not really." Kim Ki-Rok shook his head with a smile.

In the DG Guild, the only women of the appropriate age group for Kim Ji-Hee to address them as missus were the ladies who cooked in the guild's restaurants.

Kim Ki-Rok bought some snacks from a nearby street stall and handed one to Kim Ji-Hee as they walked into a narrow alley. Unlike the main road, the area here resembled a bustling marketplace.

"Ohhh..

.

Wow..." Kim Ji-Hee gaped in awe.

Potions and weapons were lined up on the large mats that served as street stalls, allowing the various passersby to scan the items as they walked past. And every so often, one of them would crouch down to fiercely bargain with a stall owner.

Kim Ji-Hee lightly tugged on Kim Ki-Rok's finger as she asked, "Mister. What is this place?"

Kim Ki-Rok answered her question, "This is a place where low-level craftsmen sell their items and where low-level Hunters come to buy them."

Upon hearing Kim Ki-Rok's explanation, Kim Ji-Hee blinked in thought for a few moments then shouted with a bright smile, "The Noob Village!"

Kim Ki-Rok was taken aback. "Now, where did you hear something like that?"

"From oppa Tokeny[2]," Kim Ji-Hee innocently revealed.

Token was one of the younger spirits who had followed Kim Ji-Hee out of the Fortress of Living Armor. Strangely enough, the young spirit had become obsessed with video games.

"So oppa Tokeny told you what that term meant?"

"Mhm! The place where noobs gather!" Kim Ji-Hee proudly stated in a loud voice.

Several people turned their heads with a frown upon hearing "noobs."

Although they knew it had just been the whims of a child, it still hurt their pride. They had half a mind to give her a stern lecture about watching her tongue. Verbal abuse was a clear crime, after all. It was better to educate children early for the sake of their character and future.

"Who are you calling a noo—oh? It's Ji-Hee."

"Huh? Is that really Ji-Hee?"

Once they realized the one who had spoken was Kim Ji-Hee, the mascot of

the

DG Guild, they immediately froze.

They wouldn't even dare to dream of continuing to approach her. After all, holding Kim Ji-Hee's hand was none other than her de facto guardian, Kim Ki-Rok, the Crazy Bastard.

No matter how much of a pretty, cute, and lovely angel Kim Ji-Hee might be, with such a madman hanging around her, no one had any desire to get close to her.

Kim Ki-Rok and Kim Ji-Hee walked through the market for about ten minutes, all the while drawing attention from the whispering crowds surrounding them.

"We're here!" Kim Ki-Rok finally declared with a smile.

"We are?" Kim Ji-Hee asked as she looked up at the old building in front of them.

She checked the sign on the building, which read:

Minji's Potions Shop

.

"Minji's... Potions Shop?" Kim Ji-Hee read out carefully.

"That's right. It's Minji's Potion shop," Kim Ki-Rok confirmed, patting Kim Ji-Hee on the head with a pleased look.

He then silently activated Discernment on the lady sitting at the counter inside the building.

[

Lim Yun-Ju

]

Ability: Potion Brewing (C)

Sealed Ability: Pharmaceutical Encyclopedia (Summons the Pharmaceutical Encyclopedia written by Junias, Master of Potion Brewing)

Unlock Condition: Brew ten different types of potions with unique effects a thousand times each

Her ability could be fully unsealed after brewing a total of ten thousand potions. It might seem like quite a difficult challenge, but in reality, it wasn't.

For example, just with stat-boosting potions alone, there were five types, each providing a bonus in Strength, Vitality, Magic, Willpower, and even Elemental Power. Adding on antidote potions, mana recovery potions, and health recovery potions, that brings the total potions types up to eight.

So what about the last two types of potions?

Well, potions weren't just meant to be used on oneself. There were also potions that could inflict debuffs on one's opponents.

For example, there was the Deadly Venom Potion meant to poison enemies, and the Paralysis Potion that could paralyze them.

The problem was procuring enough materials to brew a thousand of each potion, for a total of ten thousand potions in all. However, Kim Ki-Rok was more than capable enough to handle such a simple matter.

He had already constructed a workshop for the sole purpose of recruiting Lim Yun-Ju, who possessed the sealed ability known as Pharmaceutical Encyclopedia.

Ding dong.

As the pair walked into the shop hand in hand, the woman sitting at the counter unconsciously tilted her head in curiosity.

"Welcome to our..." Lim Yun-Ju began greeting her new customers only to trail off mid-sentence. These customers' faces somehow felt familiar to her.

"Good day," Kim Ki-Rok greeted.

"Hello." Kim Ji-Hee waved her free hand.

The shopkeeper snapped out of her thoughts and said, "Ah, my apologies. It's just that you two look so familiar."

"You may have seen us on the news," Kim Ki-Rok hinted.

On the news?

Were these two famous?

Lim Yun-Ju couldn't quite remember where she had seen them before, but when she lowered her gaze to take in her younger customer. Her eyes lit up at the sight of such an adorable little girl.

"How cute."

"

Heeheehee.

" Kim Ji-Hee hid behind Kim Ki-Rok's legs as if embarrassed by the compliment.

Lim Yun-Ju realized she had been unconsciously smiling and turned back to face her customer. "Are you here to purchase some potions?"

"No." Kim Ki-Rok shook his head. "I am here to recruit you, Mrs. Lim Yun-Ju."

"Huh?"

Kim Ki-Rok repeated himself, "I am here to recruit you into our guild, Mrs. Lim Yun-Ju. Ah, and also..."

Also?

"I would like to recruit your daughter, Cha Min-Ji as well," Kim Ki-Rok added.

***

Cha Min-Ji had suddenly awakened during class one day, letting out a cheer of joy as it happened. Her friends who were first-hand witnesses to this had also been cheering for her.

At that moment, she had felt as if she could conquer the whole world.

It was a shame that that feeling only lasted for a moment.

"

Haaah...

" Cha Min-Ji stumbled along with her head hanging low and sighed. "Shiiiiiiiiit! Skill, Scroll Production."

[

Scroll Production (E)

]

Effect: Allows the production of magic tomes (scrolls) containing spells or other abilities

Condition 1: Magic Parchment

Condition 2: Mana Ink

In order to use her ability, she needed to use magic parchment and a pen filled with mana ink, neither of which were easy to procure.

She had hoped that she might be able to obtain the items through the Hunters Association, but...

"

Aaaaaah.

" Cha Min-Ji let out another tired groan.

They didn't have it. Let alone the magic parchment, no one in this world had found any artifacts that could produce magic ink.

She might still be able to obtain recipes for creating magic parchment and mana ink by trading with the otherworldly races, but who should she trade with? And how?

Even if she wanted to trade with them, it was impossible for her to contact them.

The Gates that led to other dimensions were filled with danger, and none of them were guaranteed to have those exact materials or were safe enough for her to leisurely trade.

"I'll just have to give up," Cha Min-Ji reluctantly conceded.

After awakening her ability, she had tried to find the recipes for the items she needed by diligently searching the auction houses and visiting the guilds that operated in Gates where otherworldly races appeared, but all of her attempts had failed.

That was how she had spent the last two years.

"I've wasted enough time on this," Cha Min-Ji reflected.

What was the point of having an ability when I couldn't even use it?!

As she arrived closer to home, yet another sigh escaped her lips. She noticed that there were a lot more people crowded around her mother's shop than usual.

"

Hm?

" Cha Min-Ji raised her head, a bit confused.

What's this? Was something going on?

Cha Min-Ji trudged over to a man who was standing at the back of the crowd. She knew the man as he owned the shop next to theirs.

Knock knock.

Min-Ji knocked on a nearby surface and called out to the man, "Excuse me."

The man turned and noticed her. "

Hm?

Oh, it's you Min-Ji. Back from school already?"

"Yes. I just came back from school. But what's going on? Why are all these people gathered in front of our store?" Cha Min-Ji asked.

The man hesitated, unsure of his answer. "Ah... it seems like an extremely famous person is visiting."

"An extremely famous person?" Min-Ji repeated with curiosity.

"Mhm." The man just nodded his head.

The fact that so many people had gathered around the shop like this meant that it had to be a very famous person indeed.

There was no reason for an exceptionally skilled Hunter to be visiting a market street like theirs, so Min-Ji excluded that option first. Even if a high-ranking official like the mayor of Seoul or a member of the National Assembly had come here to take some publicity photos, there was no way they would be able to draw a crowd like this, so that was also out of the question.

"Are they using the market street as a set to film something?" Cha Min-Ji guessed. "Is it an actor? Or some other entertainer?"

The man shook his head. "No, it's a Hunter."

Since it was the very first option that she had excluded, Min-Ji was taken aback, "Huh? A famous Hunter is hanging around near our house?"

"Well, he's currently talking with your mother in your shop." The man corrected her.

Min-Ji blinked her eyes, confused by what the man from next door was telling her, before she suddenly turned and dove through the wall of people with a cry, "Mom! What's going on—!"

Her mother was there in the store with a man standing across from her. There was also a small rabbit clinging tightly onto a smaller rabbit. It was crouched down staring at all the potions on display beneath the counter.

"A rabbit?" Cha Min-Ji yelped in surprise.

The crouching rabbit turned its head toward her. It was actually a little girl with her hair done up in cute pigtails.

"Huh?" She was taken aback after recognizing the girl as someone extremely famous. Cha Min-Ji turned her head to stare at the man who was talking to her mother and said slowly, "The Crazy Bastard?"

"Min-Ji!" Lim Yun-Ju yelped in shock, startled by her daughter's rudeness.

"

Hahaha!

" Kim Ki-Rok just burst into hearty laughter.

1. This is a Korean idiom meaning that one might accept help from anyone when the situation is dire, even if they are usually unqualified or unhelpful. ☜

2. Not a typo, it's part of Ji-Hee's lisp. ☜