27. Reunion (Continued)
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Translator: JayM
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: Reunion (Continued)
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Jeong Yoo-shin smiled and extended his hand.
“It’s been a while. I heard you got a job here.”
Einhorfer shook his hand.
“Yeah.”
“Have you given up being an explorer completely?”
“I have. I’m getting old, and my skills are getting rusty. I’ve hit a wall.”
Boron scratched his nose.
“Wait, you two know each other?”
“Yep. We were in the same party.”
“Really? That’s interesting. Anyway, what do you need?”
“A helmet and armor. Something lightweight.”
“Not using a shield?”
Jeong Yoo-shin thought for a moment.
“I don’t need one this time.”
“Alright. Iron helmet, of course, and light armor would be perfect. Let’s take your measurements. Come inside. Einhorfer, you come too. I’ll teach you how to take measurements.”
“Alright.”
Jeong Yoo-shin and the two dwarves entered a room in the corner of the blacksmith shop.
The room contained a large wooden table and a bookshelf filled with rolled-up parchments.
Boron brought a wooden chair, rummaged through the bookshelf, and placed several parchments on the table.
The parchments contained drawings of armor.
“These are light armor blueprints. I have a few more here. Take a look and decide. I’ll take your measurements and make it fit you perfectly, so don’t worry about the size.”
Boron pointed at the parchments.
“Alright.”
Jeong Yoo-shin carefully examined the blueprints. As he flipped through them, his hand stopped on one particular design.
His eyes lit up.
‘This is good.’
It had a leather armor base and was reinforced with segmented iron plates on the chest, abdomen, back, and waist. It also included spaulders and additional plates for the thighs, shins, and arms.
It was a practical design that offered vital point protection without significantly sacrificing mobility.
“How much is this?”
Boron approached him, crossed his arms, and examined the blueprint.
“That’s a very good armor. It’s normally five gold coins, but…”
Boron glanced at Jeong Yoo-shin.
“…I’ll let you have it for one gold coin.”
“Hahaha…”
Jeong Yoo-shin ran a hand through his hair and looked up at the ceiling.
“One gold coin? I don’t have that kind of money.”
“We have payment plans.”
‘I guess life is the same everywhere.’
Payment plans.
He had to refuse. It was too expensive. One gold coin would pay for three months of training at the Swordsman’s Guild.
He was about to refuse when he saw Einhorfer.
He looked shabby and his fists were clenched tightly.
Their eyes met.
“Don’t worry about me.”
Einhorfer said calmly as if reading his mind.
‘That’s what I should be saying.’
Despite his negative imprints, Einhorfer hadn’t resorted to illegal activities like Ditto. He was still trying to walk the righteous path.
A man worthy of respect. Unlike himself.
Unable to meet his gaze, he turned to Boron.
“How about this? I’ll buy this light armor if you give me a discount on future weapon and armor purchases.”
“Deal.”
Boron immediately agreed…
His business must be struggling.
‘Goodbye, my love.’
Jeong Yoo-shin reluctantly took a gold coin from his pouch and placed it on the table.
“He he. So you do have money.”
Boron grinned, picking up the gold coin.
He had his suspicions when Jeong Yoo-shin brought him that expensive liquor.
‘This barbarian must be doing well.’
He had been swamped with orders for the past few months.
He recently hired a dwarf with negative imprints as a cheap assistant, but then the Labyrinth Closure Order had been issued.
All his pending orders were suddenly canceled, and he was left with nothing to do. Now, a wealthy customer had walked right into his shop.
He couldn’t let this customer go.
“What about a helmet?”
Boron asked eagerly.
Jeong Yoo-shin wanted to tear his hair out.
‘Damn it, he’s squeezing me dry!’
“The same helmet as before.”
“I have a new model. Take a look.”
Boron zipped out of the room and returned with a helmet.
It was a barbute-style iron helmet, but with a visor.
“What do you think? Nice, right? It’s normally thirty silver coins, but I’ll let you have it for twenty.”
“Holy shit.”
Boron’s eyes widened at the sudden outburst.
“Holy shit, this is amazing! A masterpiece! Are you sure you can give me such a discount, Boron?”
Boron beamed.
“What are you talking about, barbarian? We’re practically family.”
‘Since when are we family?’
He inwardly wept as he took twenty silver coins from his pouch and handed them over.
Boron grinned, pocketed the coins, and shouted,
“Hahaha! Good! Einhorfer, get the measuring tape! Let’s take our customer’s measurements!”
“Yes!”
He stood there blankly for thirty minutes.
Meanwhile, Boron and Einhorfer diligently took his measurements and recorded them on a piece of parchment.
“Alright, we’re done. It’ll take about two weeks to complete the armor.”
“I’ll see you then.”
“Take care!”
Boron waved as Jeong Yoo-shin left the blacksmith shop.
He stopped by the market on his way back to buy supplies.
He bought torches, healing ointment, rope, bandages, flint and steel, a thick robe, and two small healing potions, just in case.
“Do you sell bags? The kind you wear on your back?”
“This one’s our bestseller.”
The shopkeeper placed a small leather bag on the counter.
“I don’t think my torches will fit in there.”
Jeong Yoo-shin stroked his chin.
“You can tie the torches at the top of the bag with rope. You can also shorten the handles if they’re in the way.”
The shopkeeper replied indifferently.
“Oh!”
“Six silver coins for everything. Cheap, right?”
“Oh.”
Jeong Yoo-shin reluctantly placed six silver coins on the counter.
He felt like a mother sending her son off to war.
His heart ached.
“Here’s a razor, on the house.”
The shopkeeper tossed a razor into the bag.
“Thanks. Good luck with your business.”
“Come again. But not when my daughter’s here.”
“Sure.”
He left the shop and trudged down the street. The market was empty.
He felt dizzy and sat down on the side of the road.
“Am I crazy? What am I doing with my life?”
He had spent one gold coin and twenty-six silver coins today, almost all of his earnings from the belly kiss.
He had twenty-eight silver coins left. After paying rent and his temple tuition, he would have about twenty-six left.
He suddenly felt a tightness in his chest, and it became difficult to breathe.
“No, Yoo-shin, get a grip. This is an investment in your future. The labyrinth investigation team is a big deal. Inner peace. Inner peace. Asurabalbalta. A true champion smiles even in adversity.”
He muttered to himself. The passersby gave him strange looks and kept their distance.
After sitting there and closing his eyes to meditate, he got up.
He hadn’t found inner peace yet, but he still had something else to do.
It was almost lunchtime, and he had training at the Swordsman’s Guild.
Thirty silver coins a month. He couldn’t afford to miss it.
He returned to the inn, packed his belongings, and then ran to the Swordsman’s Guild.
“Your swordsmanship is sharp today.”
Ashur, the Swordsman’s Guild’s guild master, complimented him.
“Yes. I don’t have much time left.”
“What do you mean?”
“My time here. I only have two weeks left, don’t I?”
“You got paid by Karin, didn’t you?”
Jeong Yoo-shin’s eyes widened.
“…How did you know?”
“Like I said, I learn things just by virtue of my position. Didn’t we talk about this before?”
“I spent all that money. Today.”
Now it was Ashur’s turn to be surprised.
“One gold coin and fifty silver coins?! You’re a newbie explorer?!”
Ashur was shocked by the barbarian’s extravagant spending.
He pointed at Jeong Yoo-shin.
“When I was a newbie explorer, I lived frugally, savoring every crumb of bread and every piece of jerky. What’s with your spending habits?”
“Things just… happened.”
Jeong Yoo-shin’s nonchalant reply left Ashur speechless.
“What did you spend it on?”
“Let’s just train. We’re wasting time.”
“Did you go to a brothel?”
“No.”
As Ashur was about to say something, someone approached them.
“Brother.”
Ashur turned his head.
“Delia.”
A tall elven woman with long, green hair and a delicate face walked towards them.
“Skar? It’s been a while!”
The elven woman looked at him and greeted him with familiarity.
“Who are you?”
“Del!”
Jeong Yoo-shin’s jaw dropped.
“…The goblin?”
“That’s right.”
He was shocked by her transformed appearance.
“I heard you retired. Did you save enough money to remove your goblin imprint?”
“Yes, I retired. But I wasn’t able to save enough money. My family helped me remove the imprint in the end.”
He was confused.
“Why did you keep the goblin imprint for so long then? Couldn’t you have just asked your family for help?”
“Explorers can’t rely on their families. Especially those from prominent families in the Eastern Alliance. They have to stand on their own two feet. It’s the law of the Labyrinth City. No exceptions.”
“I see.”
He didn’t fully understand it, but it wasn’t his place to question the laws of this world.
He briefly wondered about Karin’s generosity, but he pushed the thought aside.
Laws, exceptions, and prominent families were irrelevant to him. It had nothing to do with the labyrinth.
He would just accept it and adapt.
Del bowed her head to Ashur.
“Brother, I came to say goodbye before I leave Labyrinth City.”
“Safe travels. Do you need an escort?”
“No.”
“Alright.”
Del turned to Jeong Yoo-shin.
“Skar, thank you so much. You saved my life.”
She reached out and took his hands in hers.
Their eyes met.
“Don’t mention it. I just did what I had to do.”
Jeong Yoo-shin replied, gently pulling his hands away.
“And this is a gift. Thank you for saving our party.”
Del handed him a scroll sealed with a blue wax seal.
“What's this?”
“An Anti-Poison scroll. An area-of-effect detoxification spell.”
“I’ll put it to good use.”
He tucked the scroll away. She had always been beautiful, but she seemed even more so now.
“See you later, Skar.”
“Yeah. Let’s keep in touch.”
Del smiled at his reply and left the training ground.
After she was gone, Jeong Yoo-shin turned to Ashur.
“Your sister?”
“My youngest sister.”
“There seems to be quite an age gap.”
“Don’t ask embarrassing questions.”
“Yes, sir.”
“So, what did you spend all that money on?”
Ashur asked again, seemingly genuinely curious.
“Don’t ask embarrassing questions.”
“Ha. This kid…”
A vein throbbed on Ashur’s forehead.
Jeong Yoo-shin spent the rest of the day being pummeled by Ashur’s wooden sword.
A week passed.
The Labyrinth Closure Order remained in effect.
Baseless rumors spread throughout the city, and the Explorers Guild was inundated with inquiries.
More and more explorers gathered in taverns and inns, drinking and gossiping.
But Jeong Yoo-shin’s daily routine remained unchanged.
An endless cycle of training.
The physical enhancements from his level up had plateaued.
He had reached his limit.
He added new exercises to his morning routine.
He asked Dalmong for permission to use his sacks of flour, which he hoisted onto his shoulders for squats.
Then he ran around the courtyard with the sacks of flour on his back.
Finally, he relentlessly practiced his Sacred Weapon imprint ability, draining his magic power.
“Pant… Pant…”
“Working hard, I see?”
A voice spoke behind him as he finished his morning training.
He turned around and saw Karin standing there, arms crossed.
“What brings you here?”
Karin approached slowly.
“The labyrinth will reopen in a week. Be prepared.”
“I’m ready.”
“That was fast. You have everything you need?”
“Yes.”
Karin’s nose twitched as she got closer.
Jeong Yoo-shin took a step back.
“What?”
“I thought you might find my sweat unpleasant.”
“Not at all. I’m an intermediate-rank explorer. I’m not bothered by a little sweat.”
“My apologies. I wasn’t thinking.”
“And as a porter, you should be able to carry at least three of those flour sacks, so train properly.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Karin tossed him a white towel.
“Here. Wipe your sweat.”
Jeong Yoo-shin caught the towel. It felt soft and expensive.
“Thank you.”
He wiped his face and neck with the towel and then draped it over his shoulder.
“Let’s go have breakfast, Karin-nim.”
“Alright.”
They walked side by side as they left the courtyard.
Jeong Yoo-shin didn’t notice, but Karin’s eyes were fixed on the towel.
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T/N - What a small world, for Del to actually be Ashur's sister. Did he know the MC saved his sister and her party, so he decided to train the MC personally? Also, I wonder… Keep guessing, dear readers. Mwahahaha!