Chapter 9
“So, have you calmed down?”
“Aww~ Calm down? Boss, I was always ready to listen.”
“Hah! Well, of course you were.”
Cheonhwa replied, looking utterly incredulous at my Udyr-level change of stance.
I was a little taken aback by Cheonhwa’s reaction, though.
I brushed it off, doing my best to sound indifferent.
“A-anyway, what was that favor you wanted?”
“…Fine. Let’s get to the point.”
I wanted to hear what she wanted and get the money quickly…
No, I needed to finish this deal and get home to complete the quest.
Luckily, Cheonhwa seemed to think there was no need to waste any more time.
She got straight to the point.
“Anyway, what I’m asking is this: would you be willing to enter into a partnership with me?”
“A partnership?”
What exactly did she mean by entering into a partnership?
When I looked at her quizzically, Cheonhwa pulled something out, as if she’d expected my reaction.
Jingle.
“That’s…”
A familiar glass bottle filled with green liquid.
It was the Goblin Head Smoothie she’d been using to toy with me just moments ago.
“This potion has an effect you can’t find in low-rank Gates where goblins and the like appear.”
What was that supposed to mean?
When I played dumb, as if I still didn’t understand what she meant,
Cheonhwa glanced back and forth between the smoothie and me, then smiled and spoke.
“You made it, didn’t you?”
“…”
When had she figured it out?
Actually, there were plenty of things that could’ve given it away.
She’d said she found it in my pocket, after all.
“Yes, I made it.”
I decided to admit it plainly.
There was no point trying to convince Cheonhwa when she was already so sure.
Besides, from the way she was acting, if I tried to hide it and deceive her, it felt like her trust in me would take a hit right from the outset.
’20 million won…!’
It definitely wasn’t for the sake of the trust between us. It had nothing to do with money.
“Good. I’m glad you admitted it so readily.”
“Anyway, what I wanted to say was that I saw your potential in this potion.”
“My potential?”
At the mention of potential, I looked at Cheonhwa and the smoothie in her hand.
And only then did I begin to understand what she meant by a partnership.
I could vaguely piece it together.
“…You want the potions I make?”
“So you’re not entirely brainless, after all.”
Just how much did she look down on me?
It wasn’t as if I were some idiot who only cared about money.
I almost bristled at Cheonhwa’s words, but held back since she didn’t seem to mean any harm.
“So what are the terms of this partnership?”
“Oh… We’re finally making a little progress.”
’This woman, seriously…!’
She seemed to have a knack for teasing people. She’d been needling me from the start, and I was getting pretty fed up with her.
Glare—
When I shot Cheonhwa a deeply resentful look, she seemed to realize she’d gone a little too far and continued with an awkward expression.
“Ahem. Anyway, as for the terms, I want you to give me preferential treatment in all your dealings with me.”
“Preferential treatment?”
What exactly did she mean by that?
As long as she wasn’t asking for free potions, I was fine with it.
Still, the word preferential made me uneasy.
When I showed that I was a little wary,
Cheonhwa smiled as if to reassure me and continued.
“It’s nothing much. Just give my transactions or requests top priority.”
“Is that really all?”
“Yes. I swear it on my title as the Heavenly Demon.”
…She was going that far, so I figured I could trust her.
Besides, the terms weren’t to my disadvantage.
From Cheonhwa’s reaction, it really seemed like that was all she wanted.
“Oh, and when you deal with me, I’ll pay you one and a half times whatever price you were going to sell it for—”
“Let’s do it!”
Good grief, I must’ve been out of my mind to hesitate for a moment instead of recognizing the great Lady Cheonhwa for who she was.
Our most favored customer was offering to sign the contract of her own accord.
How could I have even considered hesitating?
I scolded my foolish past self and held out my hand to Cheonhwa.
That was when it happened.
“Pfft… Puhahahaha! Honestly, you never change. Do you love money that much?”
Cheonhwa looked at me and burst into loud, uncontrollable laughter.
What was so funny?
Sure, life was about coming into the world empty-handed and leaving the same way, but that was the sort of thing only people who’d never been hard up for money could say.
In the end, the world ran on money.
As Cheonhwa kept laughing, I started to get annoyed.
“Hey! So, are you making the deal or not?! I’m leaving then!”
“Pfft… All right, I’m sorry.”
L-look at her, still laughing right to the end.
How could someone be so obnoxious, always pushing exactly the buttons that made me angry?
If it weren’t for the money…
“Here, take this first. You came to sell those mana stones, right?”
Thud—
I would’ve served her for the rest of my life.
A bulging envelope, thick enough to burst, landed in my hand.
When I peeked inside, it was packed with yellow 50,000-won bills.
“It’s all in cash—40 million won. That should be enough, right?”
“Oh, absolutely, Boss! More than enough!”
As you’d expect from an S-rank Hunter, she was ridiculously generous.
Gulp—
The thick envelope of money in my hand.
Just looking at it made my mouth water.
I must’ve been turning the envelope over and over in my hands when…
“Then, shall I take it that our deal is finalized?”
“O-of course! How could it be otherwise?”
Cheonhwa asked me once more about the deal,
and I nodded emphatically, answering as if it were obvious.
Cheonhwa smiled, looking satisfied.
“Well then, it’s time for us to part. It seems someone’s looking for me in a hurry.”
“Looking for you? What do you mean…?”
Cheonhwa suddenly stood up and straightened her clothes.
I was wondering who could be looking for her when…
“Lady Cheonhwa! Where are you?!!!”
“Speak of the devil. Looks like she came all the way here.”
A voice I’d heard somewhere before.
It was definitely Yoonha, the Aenghwa Guild Hunter I’d seen during the Gate incident.
“I slipped out without telling anyone.”
“Huh? Are you allowed to do that?”
“Hahaha—What’s stopping me? If I want to go, I go. If I want to come back, I come back.”
“Anyway, my contact information is in there, so be sure to save it.”
With that, Cheonhwa climbed up the wall and onto the rooftop in an instant.
She moved too fast for me to follow with my eyes, so I looked up.
There she was on the rooftop, waving her hand from side to side in farewell,
and I waved back lightly, bringing my deal with her to a close.
No, wait…
“…You said you’d give it back, damn it.”
You said you’d give back my Goblin Head Smoothie, you lunatic!
*
At a shopping plaza somewhere in Incheon.
“Ah! Lady Cheonhwa, where did you go? I’ve been looking everywhere for you!!!”
“I’m sorry. I had something to take care of.”
Yoonha, who’d been searching for Cheonhwa for ages, puffed out her cheeks when Cheonhwa finally showed up.
“Jeez! The Guild Master’s been really touchy lately because of all the Gate Breaks, and if you do this too, Lady Cheonhwa, I’m the one who’ll get in trouble!”
“All right, all right. I’m sorry.”
Yoonha grumbled at Cheonhwa, who’d stepped away for a while to make a deal.
Cheonhwa kept apologizing, doing her best to calm Yoonha down.
“So what did you have to do?”
After venting her anger for a while and finally calming down, Yoonha asked why Cheonhwa had disappeared.
Cheonhwa closed her eyes for a moment, as if considering what to say, then spoke.
“There was a child who reminded me a little of someone I know… The child seemed lost, so I took them back to the police station. That’s why.”
“…Is that so?”
Cheonhwa’s expression was serious, and there was a hint of longing in it. Yoonha couldn’t press her any further,
and nodded as if she understood.
“Still, please tell me next time. I really will get in trouble.”
“Understood. I’ll keep that in mind.”
With that, Yoonha went back to her own work,
and Cheonhwa seemed to ponder something for a moment before putting the thought aside and following after Yoonha.
Her face was filled with a longing she couldn’t hide, no matter how hard she tried.
***
“Good grief, I’m exhausted. I’m seriously about to die.”
When I got home, I set the black bags down on the floor with a groan.
They held the ingredients and equipment I’d bought after finishing my deal with the broker—no, with Cheonhwa.
“How does an air fryer cost over 70,000 won?”
What kind of electronic appliance costs 60,000 to 70,000 won apiece? It felt a little painful to spend that much.
But when I thought about using them over and over in the future, I decided to look on the bright side.
“Let’s see… I’ve got the blender and air fryer, all right. Shall I finally make it properly?”
The quest deadline was two days away. I had more than enough time.
I immediately plugged in the air fryer and blender, then brought up the Recipe Window.
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King Slime Butter Mochi.
1. Beat 1 egg, then add milk (200 ml), melted butter (30 g), and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. (Amounts may be adjusted.)
2. Sift the salt, tapioca starch (20 g), and glutinous rice flour (170 g) into the egg mixture and combine. (Amounts may be adjusted.)
3. Blend the King Slime jelly with 1 low-grade mana stone (about 200 g), then add it to the well-mixed batter and stir again.
4. Strain the batter through a sieve, then use a piping bag to fill the molds.
5. Bake the batter in the molds in an oven or air fryer for 30 minutes.
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“Heh—if I make this, I can make points multiply, right?’
Just thinking about it made me grin.
The recipe didn’t seem all that difficult,
especially considering how enormous the rewards were.
I immediately started tying on the apron hanging by the sink.
My height had shrunk quite a bit when my body changed earlier, leaving a lot of extra fabric,
but it still made me feel a little more like a proper cook.
“Points, here I come!”
I immediately started grabbing ingredients left and right,
and from that moment on, it was time for a hero to earn points.
Or so I was about to declare—
“Oh, right. Hospital bill first.”
I had to pay what I owed. I tapped away on my phone,
and, feeling much more at ease, I carefully examined the ingredients spread out before me.