Chapter 50

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 50

Chapter Title: Honorable Hyeji (3)

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"I swear I'll never call the Guild Master's ability a freebie again!"

"The Guild Master's ability is magnificent and... c-cool!!!"

Kim Hyeji groveled in dogeza, begging for forgiveness.

"Ugh..."

I placed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a piping hot B-rank kukri—freshly forged—right on top of her head.

"Now do you understand how much effort and sacrifice goes into making something like this kukri?"

"Yes, I do!!"

"Good. Back to position."

"Position!"

She was definitely good at following orders.

Orders, that is.

If I let her roam freely during guild activities from now on, she'd probably just smash equipment left and right, so I'd have to manage her strictly.

"What do you think, Yena? Satisfied?"

"No, make her do a grand dogeza too."

Come to think of it, I'd made Yena do a grand one because a regular dogeza wasn't enough for her.

"Hyeji, what are you doing? The vice guild master is talking to you."

"Yes, ma'am!!!"

And so, the hierarchy in Boastful Guild was established through dogeza, restoring discipline.

Later, it became a proud tradition of Boastful Guild to express gratitude and loyalty via dogeza whenever receiving new equipment.

"Now hurry up and absorb it!"

Yena, who'd been waiting nearly six hours with curiosity building to a peak, urged Hyeji to level up her rank.

"O-Okay...?"

Maybe because of her ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠earlier failure, Hyeji was tense even using her own ability.

"Go on, do it."

At my permission, she gulped and picked up the B-rank kukri.

"Ooh~"

Blue particles immediately poured out from the kukri and began absorbing into Hyeji's body.

...

"It's done!!! I'm B-rank again! Quick, give me A-rank gear, Yujun!"

Back at B-rank, Hyeji dreamed of consecutive awakenings.

"Hmm."

"Whyyyy... not yet...?"

I pondered, and she immediately deflated, glancing at me nervously.

With her history of mishaps, she probably felt guilty about plenty.

"Pfft. Here, go ahead."

I promptly handed her an A-rank buckler shield.

No reason to drag it out, and if I teased her too long, she might smash the B-rank gear in the meantime—which would be my loss.

"Okay... but can I have something else?"

"Like what, a weapon?"

"Yeah..."

"No way. What if you break it again?"

Not that I thought shields were unbreakable, but it was to improve her combat style.

She'd probably lost her kukri trying some thief-like tightrope play.

"But then I'll get shield-related skills... No helping it, I guess..."

Hyeji reluctantly agreed with my words.

I was providing the gear anyway, so she had no real choice.

...

"Wait, what did you say?"

"Huh? No helping it..."

"No, before that. What did you say before that?"

I grabbed her shoulders and shook her.

"Sh-Shield-related skills will come up..."

"You awaken based on the type of equipment?"

"...You didn't know?"

"Sigh..."

Calm down.

No immediate problem right now.

"Hyeji, let me see your status window."

Come to think of it, I'd never checked Hyeji's status window before.

I'd planned to recruit her to the guild eventually, but she'd been a backup, so I hadn't interfered directly until now. Time to give some proper advice.

"What? Her job isn't Thief?"

"Oh, it changes a little with each awakening!"

"What was it before? Tell me all of them."

"Uh... Pickpocket, Thief, and then Bandit."

The job name kept shifting, but it stayed in the thief lineage.

But if I gave her a shield and awakened her with that...

Whoa, almost ruined her build.

I'd assumed she was fundamentally a thief because of the Equipment Grade Steal skill, but really, she'd just stolen a dagger right after awakening.

What if I made her smash everything and handed her a staff first—would she turn into a mage...?

Various hypotheses popped up, but I didn't have gear ready for experiments, so I focused on what I could do now.

"Shield is definitely a no-go."

"Yeah!! Daggers are the best."

"Why?"

"I've used them a lot, and they match the skills I've got so far!"

Hearing that, I flipped to the next page to check her skills.

"Yeah... makes sense."

She wouldn't just absorb the rank from gear—she'd actually use it in combat.

So, not only leverage existing skills, but provide gear she could actually wield effectively.

"Sigh... Let's hold off on A-rank awakening for now."

"Eeeeeek?!!"

"Can't just shove anything in your hands and awaken you, like you said. Gotta wait for a solid A-rank dagger."

"...B-But maybe a shield could work too?"

"Nope. When a killer A-rank dagger drops, you'll get it first. Just wait."

"Got it..."

I was just as disappointed not to push her straight to A-rank.

But I couldn't just hand her random junk.

Even within the same rank, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠gaps in jobs, skills, and stat builds were huge. No way I'd raise her as a jack-of-all-trades knowing it'd flop.

Besides, A-rank gear would be her main weapon for real fights for a while.

Might as well hold out for one with proper attributes.

In the end, Hyeji went home as a B-rank awakener.

Well, technically she'd dropped to C before, so it was an upgrade.

Plus, this was where I'd first met Yena, named the guild together, and all.

Not a wasted trip.

Objectively, we'd gained a lot, but the unmet A-rank expectation left a sour taste.

"Call me the second a dagger drops...?"

Hyeji seemed fixated on that nonexistent A-rank dagger too.

"Yeah, I'll contact you right away. Don't worry."

"No! Don't contact—just summon me. Promise!"

"Got it. And tomorrow, Hunter Association by 3 p.m., right? I'll pick you up, so get ready."

"Okay!"

I'd planned to have her crash at my place, but Yena vetoed it, so home she went.

She hadn't come planning to stay overnight anyway—no spare clothes—so her own bed was comfier.

"See you tomorrow~ Hyeji."

"Yeah, Yena..."

Despite my worries, the two women had gotten close enough to use nicknames casually. Relieving.

Clunk—

With Hyeji gone, just Yena and me in the suite.

"It's getting dark already."

"Yeah~"

Feels like we barely did anything today, yet bedtime loomed.

"Gotta leave by 1 to pick up Hyeji tomorrow, so let's prep for bed quick."

"Okay, I'll shower first. Yujun."

"Sure..."

Something off about Yena's vibe, but probably nothing.

——

Yena said she'd go first, but with three bathrooms in the suite—two full with tubs—order didn't matter.

"Hoo..."

Today's reward for my sweaty forging marathon.

Water cascaded down, washing away the day's fatigue.

Hyeji synergizes so well with my ability.

Someday, A-rank gear would overflow.

Then maybe swap her jobs per party comp, turning her into an all-rounder.

If she could adapt to different styles, that is...

Honestly, even thief didn't seem her forte.

Shhhhhhhh—drip.

Showering while pondering the future pruned my fingertips wrinkly.

Click—

I'd taken my time, apparently.

Back in the bedroom, Yena lay in bed under the covers, waiting.

"Yena, you staying up?"

"Nah~ Gotta sleep."

"Then why're you in my bed..."

"Just lie down first."

I did as told, sliding in beside her.

Absolutely not because I'd surrendered my will after repeated force-outs.

Swish—

Covers pulled up, she turned toward me, staring intently.

"Wh-What..."

Swish—

She grabbed my right hand, placing it on her cheek.

"...Warm."

Both fresh from hot showers, maybe...

Or...

"Where is it?"

"Huh...?"

Swish—

Stroking my right ring finger specifically.

"Where's the ring?"

"R-Ring...? Oh~ The Guardian Ring~?"

"Yeah. Where'd it go?"

Whirrrrr—

A gentle breeze enveloped me softly.

"Huh? Yujun. Where's the ring?"

"..."

"If it's in your inventory, just pull it out..."

Gulp.

Tell her I lent it to the saintess?

Or say I lost it?...

Or...

"Who'd you give the ring to?"

Ah... She already knows and is just confirming.