Chapter 12
By the time I arrived in Dongtan, exhaustion had completely overtaken me.
Apparently, mana exhaustion didn’t affect only my mana.
That didn’t mean I could neglect what I had to do, though.
I parked and went into the café, where I spotted Ms. Gyuseon drinking an iced Americano through a straw.
“Hello.”
“O-Oh, you’re here?”
“Yeah. Did you sleep well?”
“Yes... You don’t look like you slept very well, Mr. Segyun.”
“Do I look that tired?”
“Yes...”
After answering, she started rummaging through her bag before I could say anything.
After searching for a while, she handed me a pill.
“What is it?”
“It’s a fatigue-relief pill.”
“...Thank you.”
Did I really look that tired?
Feeling awkward, I tossed the pill she’d given me into my mouth right away.
How much time passed?
In less than ten seconds, my mind suddenly cleared.
“...What is this?”
If it worked like this, I’d want to buy some.
“I made it.”
That answer was unexpected.
“You made it?”
“Yes. I’m a little frail, so...”
My mouth fell open.
Could you really just make supplements yourself whenever you felt run-down?
“Can an individual actually make something like this?”
“Oh, it was a prototype my company made, but the project was rejected...”
“They rejected this? It works insanely well.”
“The unit cost was too high. It contains Elixir, you see.”
...Was she crazy?
“Wh-Why are you looking at me like that...?”
“Elixir in a supplement? The cost...”
“Oh, of course it doesn’t contain a huge amount of Elixir. I found a way to maximize one particular effect of Elixir. This product specializes in relieving fatigue. Even so, it isn’t cheap... I expect one pill to retail for about ten thousand won.”
“Ten thousand won?”
Of course, that was expensive. It was expensive, but...
With effects like these, it seemed to have plenty of market potential.
Especially among Hunters.
They were the kind of people who’d gladly pay ten thousand won for a pill if it helped them stay in top condition.
“I don’t understand why they rejected this.”
“They said the cost per unit weight was about the same as selling the Elixir itself... So why go to the trouble of expanding the facilities to turn it into a fatigue-relief pill?”
Well, they weren’t exactly wrong.
Elixir had become an essential part of everyday life.
You might ask how a medicine that cost tens of millions of won per bottle could be essential, but among its consumers, it was hardly an exaggeration to call it that.
The wealthy didn’t hesitate to spend tens of billions of won a year on a medicine that could double their lifespan if taken over the long term.
By comparison, a fatigue-relief pill was more of a luxury—something you could take or leave.
After all, you didn’t die just because you were a little tired.
Looking at it that way, Seonggwang Biotech’s management had made the right call.
But...
“I think Seonggwang Biotech’s management made a stupid decision.”
“Pardon? What do you mean...?”
“I’d pay twenty thousand won for this.”
“Y-You would...?”
“It contains Elixir. The stuff that makes you live longer.”
“N-No... We minimized that effect and redirected it toward relieving fatigue...”
“That’s how it works in theory. Either way, it still contains Elixir, right?”
“W-Well, yes...”
“If I were an ordinary person, and I could get even a taste of an Elixir that costs tens of millions of won per bottle—something I’d never even dreamed of being able to afford—for just twenty thousand won, I’d definitely buy it at least once.”
Right. This was literally a ‘luxury item.’
When you considered the value for money, it wasn’t a luxury.
A luxury was something that shattered the idea of efficient consumption in the first place.
Compared to selling the extracted Elixir as a raw ingredient, turning it into a high-value product like this could bring in several times the profit.
I’d just found a business idea, hadn’t I?
At the same time, one thing became even clearer.
I couldn’t let this woman go.
No, I wouldn’t let her go.
With all that determination, I spoke to her sincerely.
“Ms. Gyuseon, please come work for our company.”
“Ah... Well... Yes...”
“Really?”
“But I have a condition...”
“I can accommodate most things. As for salary negotiations...”
She shook her head at the mention of money, glanced around, and whispered.
“I’m curious... how you extracted the Elixir...”
“Huh?”
“Oh, of course... I know it’s a secret... I’ll even sign a nondisclosure agreement. I only have one condition. I want to know... how you did it.”
“Oh.”
I’d completely misunderstood what would motivate her.
A high salary or incentives weren’t the way to persuade this research-obsessed woman.
The answer was to satisfy her curiosity and answer her questions...
“I was going to tell you anyway.”
I had to share my bacterial ability with her so we could talk about bacteria and add new strains together.
So even if no one else knew about my ability, she had to know.
That didn’t mean I could show her here, though...
“Is there somewhere quieter than this?”
“...I have a place nearby.”
“Huh? No, that might be a bit...”
“Why?”
What was this? Wasn’t she the one who wouldn’t even let me come to her door?
“A woman living alone inviting you into her home...”
“I live with my family...”
That was even more awkward!
But there wasn’t anywhere else to go.
And it wasn’t as if we could go somewhere inappropriate together.
In the end, I found myself heading to her home.
“Mom, I have a guest.”
“Hello. I’m Kim Segyun.”
“Oh my... Hello... A man? Is he your boyfriend?”
“No! It’s not like that! C-Come inside...”
Blushing bright red, Ms. Gyuseon dragged me into her room.
When I stepped inside, my eyes widened.
“Do you sleep in here?”
There wasn’t even a bed. The room was nothing but a laboratory.
“O-Oh, no... I sleep in the living room. The room’s too small... Hehe...”
“I can see that.”
“S-So... the secret...”
“Oh, right. Do you have any trash you’re throwing away? Food waste would be even better.”
“J-Just a moment... Mom!”
I heard a brief squabble outside, then the door opened and she came in carrying a container of food waste.
“H-Here.”
I casually released the bacteria from my inventory and had them break down the food waste inside.
Since it was organic matter, the bacteria divided faster, so their numbers increased a little, too.
Gyuseon’s eyes widened when she saw it.
“Th-That’s PE!”
“PE?”
“Perpetuus Exomodulus! The bacteria our company was researching!”
Oh, right. That was its name. Who could remember a bizarre full name like that?
In my head, they were just ‘bacteria’ or maybe ‘No. 1.’
“That’s right.”
“Wait a second. But... why are they alive?”
She stared in shock, her mouth falling open as my bacterial legion actively fed in the open air and broke down the food waste in an instant.
“They’re alive... Really... in the open air...”
“And not only are they alive...”
At the direction of my hand, black dots formed by billions of bacteria moved together.
At the same time, they didn’t break down any of the material at that spot.
“I can control them, too.”
“......”
“Hello? Whoa...”
She slid down to the floor and lost consciousness. I caught her and laid her down.
Was this really enough to make someone faint?
After about five minutes, Ms. Gyuseon finally opened her eyes.
“Are you feeling all right?”
“...I’m sorry. I think I had a dream. The bacteria were moving exactly as I wanted...”
“That wasn’t a dream.”
I moved my bacterial legion once more, and this time she didn’t faint.
Instead, she trembled and spoke.
“M-Mr. Segyun.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll absolutely do it. No, please let me join.”
Uh, I’d succeeded in recruiting her... right?
I was a little taken aback by how successful I’d been, but it seemed to have worked.
Now all that remained was to get things started properly.
First... after a little rest.
**
After successfully recruiting Ms. Gyuseon, I went home and slept like the dead again.
This feels like déjà vu.
Didn’t I pass out like this yesterday, too?
The one annoying thing was that I still woke up automatically at seven in the morning.
I didn’t have to go to work anymore, but my body must have gotten used to waking up at that hour.
I opened my eyes and checked my phone...
What? Why are there so many messages?
─What do you think of this bacterial strain?
─How about this one?
─This one’s available, too!
Most of them were from Ms. Gyuseon.
They were full of technical terms I couldn’t understand, but I could tell she was talking about some incredible stuff.
‘I’ll leave it to you.’
I sent back a quick reply. Next up.
It was Mincheol hyung.
─I handed in my resignation and left the company for now. I’ll contact the clients, focusing on the five important ones you mentioned.
Add him to the list of people who hadn’t escaped the clutches of seven-in-the-morning yet.
Next...
─If you have time later, stop by for a bit. There’s something I want to give you.
It was Zephyros.
Zephyros suddenly had something to give me... Why was I kind of excited?
‘Can I come now?’
I sent him a message, and since he must have been holding his phone, he replied almost immediately.
─Come by nine. There’s someone I want you to meet, too. Bring your Hunter registration card, ID, a copy of your bankbook, and either a certificate of your registered seal or a certificate of your personal signature.
Nine? It would be hell getting to Gangnam during rush hour, so I’d have to get ready right now just to make it in time.
Anyway, who was this person I had to meet first thing in the morning?
Curious, I washed up and boarded the subway to Gangnam.
Driving myself to Gangnam during the morning rush would’ve been stupid.
But then...
“Did you hear? About the Impossible Gate clear?”
“It was all anyone talked about yesterday.”
“Is this a top-tier rookie showing up for the first time in ages? I wonder who he belongs to.”
“Maybe a foreign company? Do domestic companies even have what it takes to raise a rookie like that?”
“I heard he’s the third-generation heir of the Seonggwang Group. Supposedly, they’re staking the group’s future on him. They say they fed him all kinds of expensive skill books and boosting potions to clear it.”
It wasn’t just the people talking right in front of me. All around me...
I heard people talking about me.
The problem was that most of it was rumors and nonsense, which made me cringe.
What? A third-generation chaebol heir?
Man, if only I were a third-generation chaebol heir...
Phew, at least it was lucky my face hadn’t gone public.
During the hour it took to get to Gangnam...
I was a third-generation chaebol heir about three times, an overseas-Korean mercenary about twice, and a rookie who’d been given every resource a major guild had about five times.
So this was the kind of thing people talked about even among ordinary folks.
I wondered what would happen if they found out I had absolutely nothing to my name.
After all kinds of complicated thoughts, I arrived at the RHS headquarters building, where Zephyros was waving at me from the lobby entrance.
“Zephyros!”
“I told you, I’m Ryu Hyeonsu. It must’ve been a pain getting here. Why don’t you find a place near Gangnam now?”
“I’m seriously considering it.”
I had no intention of wasting money, but this was draining.
Since most of the Hunter industry’s government offices and companies were in Gangnam, it seemed convenient to live nearby if I could.
“Oh, first, take this.”
“What is this... Is this a skill book?”
The first skill book I’d ever held looked like an extremely old, worn-out book.
Of course, it wasn’t something you read. It was closer to an item you used.
But this skill book had gold trim and... looked expensive.
[Understanding Harmony]
[Grade] : Legendary-Grade Common Skill Book
[Description] : Those who understand the harmony of mana shall experience its greatness.
[Effect] : Increases natural mana recovery and total mana. The increase scales with skill proficiency. Using mana increases skill proficiency. <Can only be learned by magic-type classes.>
“......”
I rubbed my eyes and looked again.
The name was still the same.
Understanding Harmony... I might not remember other skill books, but I remembered this one clearly.
Just a month or two ago, I’d seen a news article about it selling at auction for over ten billion won and cursed at the price.
Why would a single skill book cost over ten billion won?
And now it was in my hands?
“This... is mine?”
“Just think of it as a small gift for signing an agent contract.”
“It’s not small. Doesn’t this cost over ten billion won?”
“Oh, what? You know about it?”
“Holy crap...”
As expected, this skill book proved that a short description could pack a punch.
It was a simple passive skill book that increased mana recovery and total mana.
But weren’t those the alpha and omega for a mage?
It was even more important for me in particular.
[Mana Status]
─Your current natural mana recovery rate is 1% per second.
─You are using 0.303% mana per second to maintain your current population (base 30.32%, with the 200% control effect applied).
Temporarily, I could pump up and maintain a huge bacterial legion, but I couldn’t sustain more than my natural mana recovery rate indefinitely.
The same was true for other summoning-type classes, such as necromancers, spirit mages, and summoners.
If you temporarily increased your undead legion beyond what your natural mana recovery could support, you could eventually lose all your undead to mana exhaustion.
That was the worst possible situation for a necromancer.
That was why natural mana recovery and total mana were so important to necromancers.
Passive skills like this and items that increased recovery were exactly the kind of thing that could scratch that itch.
“C-Can I learn it right away?”
“That’s what I gave it to you for.”
“Thank you!”
With something like this, I had to take it, even if it didn’t work out.
Even if it made me sick, I was still going for it.
As soon as I declared my intention to use it, the skill book shone, then scattered into my body and was absorbed.
[You have learned the Legendary-Grade Common Skill ‘Understanding Harmony’!]
[Understanding Harmony (F)]
─Total mana increased by 10%.
─Natural mana recovery rate increased by 1%.
This was the F-rank proficiency effect?
My natural mana recovery instantly doubled to 2%.
Arithmetically, I was twice as strong as before.
Wait, if I equipped my item on top of that, my proficiency would rise to D-rank, wouldn’t it?
Zephyros patted my back as I stood there stunned and laughed.
“Now that you’ve learned the skill book, let’s go meet our guests.”
“Oh, the guests... Right... Who are they?”
“The Chungbuk Provincial Government and the Ministry of Resource Development.”
“...What? Government officials?”
Why were government officials suddenly here?
I hoped they weren’t going to audit my taxes just because I’d gotten rich overnight.
As if he’d read my unease, Zephyros laughed heartily and said,
“You cleared an Impossible Gate. You’re entitled to the reward money they put up for it.”
“R-Reward money?”
“Yeah. It’s not much compared to the achievement, but there’s no reason to turn down money they’re offering, right?”
“How much is it?”
“A measly 200 million won from the local government and one billion from the central government. Twelve hundred million total, tax-free. Tch, you’d have gotten ten billion in the U.S. This is why no one’s cleared one in nearly twenty years—the government’s so stingy.”
First a skill book worth over ten billion won... and now another billion-plus?
It still didn’t feel real.
Suddenly, it felt like money was rolling into my wallet all by itself.