Bargaining for the Perfect Guild Deal
A brief silence fell over the appraisal office at the mention of the guild. Han Sio broke it first.
"I'm starting a guild."
"Pardon?"
What, what are you making? My jaw dropped at the unexpected bombshell hidden behind her meaningful smile.
A guild? Out of nowhere? Staring at her in bewilderment, she continued.
"Exactly what I said. We're making a guild. Just the three of us—you, me, and him."
"Okay, I get that part, but... a guild all of a sudden?"
She'd said she needed me, and now it's a guild? Do guilds need fine-dining chefs or something? I could supply goblin head smoothies, I guess.
Tilting my head, Kang Taejun spoke up from behind her.
"The direction we're aiming for with this guild is a bit different from others."
What did that even mean? A guild's a guild—what's so different? I kept staring blankly, and he went on.
"Simply put."
"No interference. Everyone does their own thing, and we handle needs through the guild."
Hmm, I got it completely.
...Basically, mind your own business and just use the guild for necessities.
The appealing pitch tempted me for a second. But I still didn't quite get it.
"Gotcha. So why me?"
Why pick me specifically? The biggest question remained unanswered. Sure, it sounded good, but what changed by including me? They could just do it themselves.
"Like I said earlier. That thing you made. It's not ordinary."
Han Sio pointed at the phone again.
"That smoke from before? You only see it from elixirs coming out of the tower. In short, it's special."
Oh... something about that word hit different. Special, huh?
She's hyping it up that much—maybe it's worth it?
My heart started leaning a bit. But one word wasn't enough to convince me.
"So, can I sell the stuff I make through the guild?"
I had no good place to offload my mass-produced recipes. Auctions were mostly guild-run anyway. Individuals risked too much putting tower-related items up for bid.
Han Sio grinned at my question.
"Yep. But there'll be about a 15 percent commission."
"...Huh?"
Wait, didn't you just say no interference or control? What's this commission crap? These scamming bastards!
I gawked at the two of them in disbelief.
"Hold up, didn't you say no meddling guild?"
"Yeah, but it's not free."
Then screw joining!
Why pay commission to sell? Auctions already take a cut—zero profit for me.
I twisted my face into maximum annoyance and reached for the door handle. That's when—
"Wait, wait, wait!"
Han Sio grabbed my hand desperately.
"I-I'm not done talking! Hold on."
"What more is there? I'll just start my own guild later and sell then."
Nothing left worth hearing. The only perk was selling right away—what else?
Might as well stockpile and sell later. Right as I went to shut the door—
"10 percent! How's 10 percent?"
"...Have a good one."
"Nooo—wait, just hear me out this once...!"
Let go already—my slimes are waiting inside!
Staring at Han Sio clinging to me, irritation finally bubbled up. If you need me that bad, drop the commission.
I glanced at her eyes again. No way she was budging on that.
Screeech—
Right as I tried closing the door—
"Just look at this once!"
Han Sio shoved something in my face.
What, another gadget like Doraemon?
It was a peach-colored ID card. Her resident registration.
"...Why show me this out of nowhere?"
"Phew—take a close look?"
What am I supposed to do with your ID...? Reluctant, but I focused on it as asked.
Then—
Flash—!
"Ugh—!"
Golden light exploded from the card. Eyes blinded, I instinctively tensed, reaching for a knife.
Whoosh...
The light faded gradually. Snapping to, I saw—
"Whaddya think?"
Han Sio thrusting the ID right up to my face, almost touching.
"Jeez, you scared me—why so close...?"
I stepped back from the proximity. But...
Something felt off. Looking at the ID she held out, it was different from before. No—the card itself had changed weirdly.
The central name "Han Sio" was squared out. Birthdate, address, registration number, seal—everything boxed into squares.
■■■ ■■■
■■■■■■■■ ■■
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■
■■■
"Wh-what is this? What just hap—"
Stammering in confusion, Han Sio smiled back.
"Remember my photo on the ID just now?"
"What're you talking about? Obviously brown hair and..."
Huh? It wouldn't come to mind. The face of the person in front of me... it was some edgy look, but...
Like it was deleted—no expression, no vibe. Nothing recalled.
Scratching my head in confusion, Han Sio approached.
"You don't want your identity leaked, right?"
"...Huh?"
What was this sudden talk? My head still spun.
She paused a beat, knowing my state, then continued.
"I can definitely hide your identity."
"My identity?"
Hiding my identity? Related to that just now? Staring questioningly, she placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Yeah. Or if you don't believe me, wanna test it out?"
...What to do. A bit worrying. But if true...
I could climb the tower—and troll—without getting caught.
Gulp.
I nodded. Affirmation.
Honestly, who wouldn't be curious? Trolling anonymously.
As I nodded, Han Sio moved her hand from shoulder to head.
And—
Flash—!
Same golden light burst over my head. Light gone.
I whipped out my phone faster than anyone, diving into the gallery app.
Posted some random crap. Then—
"Oh..."
The IP was all squares.
"Pretty... decent."
Way better than expected. Didn't know all the details yet, but figuring it out would be fun.
Staring at the gallery for a while—
Whoosh...
"Huh?"
Han Sio placed her hand on my head again. Brief golden light, and my eyes saw—
IP back to numbers.
"Demo over."
"Ah..."
Nooo, my invincible troll IP...!
Shoulders slumped. Total lie if I said I wasn't bummed. Almost joined over that alone.
But the commission was still too steep.
"So, can I go now?"
A little—no, a lot—disappointing. But unavoidable.
As I reached for the door—
"Hold up. How's showing just the boss's skill fair?"
This pushy dude grabbed me again.
"Argh! What now?!"
Yelling irritably, Taejun spoke calmly, seriously.
"Do you know Descartes?"
"What's that?"
Don't hit me with stuff only you know. Snapping back bitchily, he smiled.
"To be frank, you're in serious danger right now."
"...Suddenly?"
Danger? I'd been chilling threat-free, kicking back with chicken and beer.
What nonsense. Tried ignoring, but—
Stare—
What's with that look?
His eyes too earnest to brush off. Standing there, he spoke.
"Descartes, aka the Alchemy Cartel. They're coming for you."
"Why me?"
"That photo you posted. Descartes hates anyone better than them at alchemy. They're infamous for it."
So, what—hunt me down?
"Yeah, probably kill or kidnap. One or the other."
"And they might've already found you."
Reading my eyes, he answered my unspoken thought.
Gulp—
Maybe from Han Sio, but his serious vibe ramped my tension.
"...Ugh."
Still, 15 percent? No way.
As I hesitated, Han Sio jumped in.
"10 percent. Unlimited veil service."
5% off the original—huge concession. But I shook my head.
True about the danger, but that's that—this was this.
"5 percent."
"...8 percent."
"5 percent!"
"Urk..."
She nodded.
Oh...
Shot in the dark, but she agreed. Thought she'd refuse.
"So, you're joining?"
Taejun wedged between us.
Descartes, money, trolling...!
Recapped our chat in my head.
And.
I grabbed the door handle again.
That moment.
Han Sio gave a wry smile without a word.
But this time was different.
I wasn't closing.
I was opening.