CH.80 Reward (4)
“We’re just friends.”
Though I felt quite flustered inside, I didn’t hesitate and answered promptly. Normally, such questions required a careful response. Hesitation could make it seem insincere. In reality, ‘just friends’ was the most accurate answer. But Kang Woo-hyun, upon hearing my response, clicked his tongue.
“Huh- You answered without a second thought. Is my daughter really that unattractive?”
He went there! The ultimate move of the overprotective dad. I knew this conversation was heading in this direction, and I could sense that I was in trouble, but the dice had already been cast. From the moment I finished my response, I had been preparing my follow-up explanation.
I calmly delivered my prepared response.
“Absolutely not. Holder Kang Juyeon is an attractive and beautiful person by anyone’s standards. Both in appearance and in her innate strength, she’s an outstanding Holder with no equal. She’s a popular student admired by many in the Academy. I only gave that answer to ensure there were no misunderstandings when you asked about the exact nature of the relationship between us.”
Phew, phew.
I silently let out a sigh of relief.
The response I had prepared in advance came out smoothly. It was almost like a rap battle.
Kang Woo-hyun, on the other hand, didn’t expect such a lightning-fast response, so he awkwardly cleared his throat.
“Hmm, I see. So, my daughter is at that level?”
“Yes, why would I say anything else?”
With a triumphant grin, Kang Woo-hyun said, “That’s my daughter for you. If she’s to be the successor of the Judgment of Fire, she has to be at that level. Haha.”
…Social life is tough. I almost had an existential crisis, but it wasn’t entirely untrue. My assessment of Kang Juyeon matched the external consensus, and she was undeniably beautiful, even by Academy standards. It was just difficult to approach her due to her aloof and cold demeanor. Plus, she was the successor of one of the top three clans in Korea, the <Judgment of Fire>.
Rather than rising, it was more like trying to approach an impenetrable fortress. That was Kang Juyeon.
“In any case, I’m relieved. My daughter talks about you so much that I started to get the wrong idea.”
“…”
“If by any chance, it was the kind of relationship I was thinking of, I would have kicked you out of the clan, rewards or no rewards.”
“Really?”
“Hahaha. I can’t leave thieves who want to take my daughter in the clan.”
Unbelievable… Are there really people like this? People who would just kick someone out of the clan, regardless of their position, just because they show interest in their daughter?
The dignity of Clan Master Kang Woo-hyun, which had been nestled in a corner of my heart, continued to plummet. He had seemed like an S-grade Holder whom I couldn’t even approach or speak to when I first met him, but now he appeared to be nothing more than a doting father.
And whoever he might be in the future, I wished him luck when he took Kang Juyeon as his wife, given the status of becoming the son-in-law of the <Judgment of Fire>. It was definitely not an easy task.
“In any case, I understand now. Our meeting today ends here. I hope we have another opportunity to talk in the future.”
“…Yes.”
I just wanted this conversation to end, Master…
I didn’t want to hear Kang Woo-hyun’s unbearable way of speaking any longer.
‘Still… it went smoother than I expected.’
My meeting with Kang Woo-hyun turned out to be much better than I had feared. I didn’t make any major mistakes during the meeting, and Kang Woo-hyun, in a surprisingly un-Master-like manner, led the conversation with a comfortable attitude, making it easy to talk freely. Acknowledged for my achievements and even acquiring the [Penitent’s Sword] as a bonus.
It was a conversation that turned out to be advantageous in many ways.
‘He doesn’t seem to be pushing for an official recruitment offer.’
While sipping on kimchi stew was an option, I honestly pondered what I would do if Clan Master Kang Woo-hyun extended an official recruitment offer.
My performance in this campaign felt decent to me. As a member of the party, I had silently fulfilled my role and greatly contributed to hunting the boss in the boss room while protecting other team members. I could even consider my performance as that of a B-grade Holder, not just a C-grade.
‘He only gave rewards, no offers.’
However, Kang Woo-hyun only acknowledged my efforts as a reward; there was no official recruitment offer or anything of the sort.
It might have been awkward for him to bring up such personnel matters, or maybe I was just overthinking, and I was nothing more than a mere participant. Regardless, for someone like me who had no intention of officially joining a specific clan, my current status was not a bad relationship.
“Well then, I’ll be going, Master.”
“Sure, see you again.”
I gave a casual farewell to Kang Woo-hyun and left his office. Fortunately, the meeting with the Master had ended without any issues.
***
Ippotranslation
***
A one-room apartment in Seoul.
With only two rooms, the kitchen area was quite cramped, but a dining table and a sofa somehow fit in the limited space.
Choi Arin sat at one side of the dining table, browsing her phone. She immediately opened a food delivery app.
Chicken, pizza, pig’s feet, pasta, snacks… They were all perfect options for Friday evening.
“Sis, I’m ordering food. Do you want to have dinner together?”
As she was about to press the order button for pig’s feet while swallowing her saliva, Choi Arin looked up at the sofa.
Her sister, lying on the sofa like a lifeless body, was resting. Choi Yoo-min.
The question was directed at Choi Yoo-min. She suddenly raised her head.
“Ah, you startled me.”
And then, she stood up abruptly, as if she were a corpse. Choi Arin stepped back in surprise. Even though she was her own sister, whenever she saw her in this state, it felt as if there were no ghosts.
Choi Yoo-min, with a pale face and a less-than-enthusiastic expression, responded to Choi Arin’s offer.
“No… I have to work.”
“Again? No, take it easy. You’ll really die if you keep this up.”
“I’m almost done with the task… It’s almost the contract date, so I want to finish it by then.”
“Geez, what’s wrong with Do Jae-hyun that you’re going this far for him? He’s just one of your customers, after all.”
Choi Arin looked at her sister with a fed-up expression. Due to the passage of time, Choi Arin now knew the name of the Holder they had contracted with. Do Jae-hyun. Even though she didn’t know his face, he was a special customer who had invested a considerable sum in them and had provided economic support.
In response to Choi Arin’s teasing, Choi Yoo-min’s expression turned somewhat hostile.
“What? Do Jae-hyun? Why do you keep saying that, like he’s just a regular customer to me?”
“What. To me, he is a mere customer. Sister, you signed a contract for a fixed period, unlike me, who took a per-job contract. And since the last contract, I haven’t been looking for much, but so what?”
For the first contract, it was 50 million won. For the next contract, it was 200 million won. He had purchased potions at an unimaginable price. However, there had been no further transactions since then. Perhaps he rarely went hunting or didn’t need potions anymore. So, while Choi Arin was still grateful for him as a customer, she didn’t think of Do Jae-hyun as anything more than that, unlike Choi Yoo-min, who acted as if he were a big investor.
“Anyway, I have to work. You can eat by yourself.”
“Do whatever you want. If you don’t eat, you’ll be the only one at a loss.”
In response to Choi Arin’s provoking words, Choi Yoo-min waved her hand lazily and gave up trying to argue. Then she went into her room.
Below her room was a hidden space.
She descended the stairs and entered the narrow underground area. It was a makeshift workshop that they had started using during the vacation. They didn’t have enough money to set up a personal workshop yet, so this was a modestly arranged workspace.
“What was I working on yesterday?”
Choi Yoo-min moved towards one side of the workshop, searching for her unfinished project—a piece of equipment. It was a piece of armor made from leather, to be precise, a defensive equipment.
“He said he needed decent armor…”
Do Jae-hyun had given her an order to focus on creating armor when they discussed equipment production earlier. The weapons side still had plenty of items from the last batch, and especially, the [Well-Forged Longsword] was being well-utilized, so it didn’t require any enhancements.
In reality, the contract stipulated that she only needed to provide five pieces of equipment each month. Therefore, even if she disregarded his request and gave him any equipment, it wouldn’t matter much. However, Choi Yoo-min wanted to follow his orders as much as possible.
“Well, thanks to Jae-hyun, I now have an Epic Rune.”
It was an Epic Rune called the [Blood-Infused Tannery], belonging to the Alchemy branch. It was a talent Choi Yoo-min possessed that would secure her promotion to the Advanced Class by the next or next-next semester. She believed that without Do Jae-hyun’s support, she wouldn’t have experienced such growth.
Anyway, after his financial backing, her growth had continued at an accelerated pace.
She was so absorbed in her work that she even skipped meals while working on contracted tasks. The only reason was just that. That was all.
Klack- klack-
Kkakang-
Choi Yoo-min, momentarily dismissing her distractions, found herself completely focused on her work, holding a piece of leather armor in her hand. She was in the process of completing it. To be precise, it was an armor piece made from the unknown ‘Lizard Leather’ Do Jae-hyun had provided.
Moreover, this lizard seemed to be quite an unusual monster, as the leather had sporadic red patterns on it.
The equipment was almost finished. All that remained was the final touches on the seams.
Snip- snip-
Snapsnap-
Choi Yoo-min meticulously stitched the remaining seams and finished the piece with the final design.
“It’s done!”
With a bright smile, Choi Yoo-min looked at the item that had become exceptionally clean.
Was it five days? Six days? No, maybe a week?
It had been a long time since she had put so much effort into making the equipment, and at last, the moment had come when she completed it.
And the information window that appeared after her success confirmed that the equipment was indeed a success.
[Skillful craftsmanship and evolving techniques! Your alchemy skills, honed over a long time, are steadily deepening. Your understanding of crafting equipment is rapidly increasing.]
[The ‘Blood-Infused Tannery’ Rune has leveled up.]
[Gain +1 Strength and +1 Willpower as per the Rune’s attributes.]
The completed item was named [Scorched Lizard Leather Armor]. It was the first Rare item she had successfully crafted since becoming an Artificer Holder.
“Well, with this level of work, he should really like it.”
…However, despite her significant achievement, Choi Yoo-min was only looking forward to the customer’s feedback.
